Today it IS a narrative

Yesterday's writing was so disjointed that I felt compelled to offer an excuse for veering wildly about. Today I am prepared to offer a more orderly narrative, something with a beginning, some middle parts, and an end, and always exhibiting some thematic unity. Let's get started.

Ooops, wait, first an editorial comment. We do not expect to receive any update from France today as our Wireless correspondent is away from the keyboard (on a side trip to Strasbourg).

Here, then in choronological order and in an orderly manner are the things I found interesting today.

The day was quite cool for May, requiring a return to a light jacket and pants as bicycling wear. Too cool is better than too warm as long as too cool can be kept comfortable. I have the gear.

I wanted to go someplace that I don't go very often so I deviated from the usual routes as soon as I had cleared the neighborhood and the constraints placed on those routes by the necessity of finding a reasonably quiet spot for crossing of the busy streets and highways which surround me on all sides.

I quickly turned off the usual northern route and headed east instead, into the northeast wind. Here is where I was after five miles.That's the corner of Western and County Road B2. It is an interesting spot because the road in all four cardinal directions goes downhill. I don't get there very often, partly because, of course, there is no possible way to get there without riding uphill.

As I paused the sun was making some attempt at breaking through the persistent cloud cover. This sort of almost breakout continued throughout the ride but no sun ever actually appeared. Fortunately after I got home there was a spell of at least a couple of hours when the sun came out and we had a pretty nice, if cool, afternoon.

Today's behavior note occurred as I was passing Lake Gervais at about the eight mile mark.

A citizen walking along the pavement between its edge and the fog line (note: this is exactly the piece of pavement I am always attempting to occupy) went way outside what I have recently delineated as normal bicycle/pedestrian interaction. HE gave a hearty "Hello" before I was within several yards of him. I responded in kind. But then the man on foot offered something not encountered in some time, if ever. He attempted to continue the conversation with an inquiry into my well being ("How ya doin'?"). I barely had time to be polite before sweeping past at 15 mph. Perhaps that's the problem. It is hard to interact when the speed at which one of the two parties is moving is so rapid that the opportunity window for interaction is going to be quite short.

I shall continue the research.

I soon ran out of opportunity to continue east as geography and the road network conspired to leave me with a choice of north or south or into the lake. I climbed the hill up from Lake Gervais on Arcade and made the first turn to the right, and was now proceeding north on Labore Road.

This is the ten mile mark.That's the overpass on Labore Road over the west end of the 694/35E interchange.

This is a spot well known to anyone who lives in the east metro. The last couple of years this interchange has been subject to considerable reconstruction in an attempt to "unweave the weave". A similar project is, of course, going on on the south side.

Here is the turnaround point at about mile twelve.That's Macaluso's Roadhouse at the corner of Labore and Goose Lake Road.

I noticed that I had just been riding through the City of Gem Lake. I don't get to Gem Lake much. After riding only east and north to this point I would now began to ride first west and then south. The change in conditions was so instantly noticeable that I stopped in less than 100 yards and removed my jacket.

I rode across the south end of Lake Vadnais. I ride to Lake Vadnais a lot but ride that south shore only occasionally.

It is worth pointing out that even though I started out intending to ride someplace different that I ended up, yet again, at Lake Vadnais. The reason for this is the same reason as the reason why the first few miles of my ride is always the same. There is a certain inevitability of arriving at certain places because of the limited number of places where one can easily and safely cross the busy streets and highways. The Rice Street crossing of 694 gets used a lot because it is one of the very few places where that crossing can be made safely. Just beyond that crossing is Lake Vadnais. Vadnais is inevitable.


I was riding up the hill from Vadnais towards Rice Street. The street there crosses a ramp which elevates the departure from lake side. The roadway is divided, with a concrete median. At first impression I passed this object without stopping so when I wanted a picture I had to turn and go back. SpiderMan has suffered some sort of setback.At first I thought it might be a child's toy but closer examination reveals that it is probably a car toy. Those giant suction cups in lieu of hands indicates that this Spidey is probably meant to cling to the back window of an SUV. My spider sense was tingling as I imagined Spidey letting go of the window and falling to the side of the road.

I had to break TWO of the basic rules for recreational bicycling to get this next photo. Going back to get the picture meant that I had to ride a few yards against traffic on the wrong side of the center median.

But most importantly, I had to STOP ON THE HILL.

Here is the fifteen mile mark photo.That is the corner of Rice Street and North Owasso Boulevard. I found that intersection interesting because of the opportunity that it provides for dining.

That's a Taco John across the way (there is also a Caribou Coffee and a credit union). A hungry American has the option of a 20 piece Chicken Tenders for $4.99 or 5 soft shell tacos for $5.

Difficult decision.

This is all starting to look way more familiar now as I start to get closer to home and back onto streets that I ride on a lot.

This is the spot where Hamline Avenue ends, meeting up with and being absorbed down there at the bottom of the hill by Snelling Avenue. It is also the twenty mile mark of today's ride.I ride on Hamline a lot.

I noticed along the way today that Lexington at long last has been swept. Rice Street has not. Cleveland still has not.

I was nearing home. I would like to point out that in the interest of purity of narrative theme that I took a direct route out and a direct route back, deviating for NONE of the mileage adding loops that I sometimes use. At the mile twenty-five mark I passed the corn field and got a photo from the much less often photographed east end of the field.That corn is off to a good start.

I rode some places that I do not ride to very often but I do note that I rode on not one single piece of pavement that I have not ridden on before. As I occasionally remark to TOPWLH, if it is within an hour's ride from where I live, I have ridden there. Today I just went about the tour on a less often used route.

Nice enough day, nice enough ride.