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HAPPY NEW YEAR.

Vace Pizza
clearly the best pizza in washington dc
carry out only
number one on the speed dial
with no need for the speed dial as the number is etched into my brain
called ahead when I dropped off Dean's buddy after we saw the film Narnia
tried to time things right
tried to find a space
rolled around the block
saw no spots freeing up
took a close but not legal space
after the parking ticket my 10 dollar pizza cost me thirty bucks
took the ticket off the windshield with a smile
laughed with the valet staff that stood before me
then drove home
got home with Dean only to see that Lisa and Grant had already picked up a Vace Pizza

Vace Pizza

andy singer cartoons
andy singer's style is easily recognizable
andy singer's message rings true to those with bicycle bells
andy singer's images are worth checking out
andy singer's t-shirts look stylish

you have most certainly seen the work of andy singer before

A CLOSER LOOK AT CARGO MIKE'S BIKE
been running into mike a fair amount lately
it is not tough to see him when he is around
his trailer in tow makes him stand out

took a closer look at his rig I learned that he gets credit for the PVC structure that mounts on a bicycle specific trailer that is made by the folks at Bikes at Work
it is an impressive structure
fashion and function!

some links I have been to today
citybikes portland
(no association with citybikes dc)
ask the old wise bicycle guy
trackstar
velorution
marino's bike diary
fixed gear101

and for the go go gadget in you
instructables

that is just a few that have stolen my day...
there were others.... but they are not within view on my task bar as I type

and photoshop stole some of my day as well

oh
there was this NSFW stuff as well
scroll
previous/next... you can spend hours wading through this stuff

the cremaster cycle
watch the trailer
then please.... explain this to me
what does it have to do with bikes?
it has the word "cycle" in it.

all riders
any riders
not just messengers
not just racers
not just the freaks on their funky bikes
any riders
all riders

ask zach

keith and his cruiser
a student at a washington dc high school
keith has a passion for customizing his low riders
from our brief conversation it sounded like keith works on bicycles and cars
all riding low
originally from florida, keith is finding that his love for low riders is not shared by his new friends
hopefully over time he can inspire his friends to take up his love for design and fabrication

toys, toys, and more toys
a few simple rules
there can never be enough blocks when working with Lego
there can never be enough track with working with Thomas the Tank Engine
and
there is something to be said about "age appropriate"

so many of the modern day parents (like myself) are so quick to share adult ideas with their children
the films my sons watch are often more on par with what young teen agers should be watching rather than developing four and two year olds
we see them as little people... not like small children
just as we let them watch movies that are for older children
we often present them with toys that are for people of an older age as well

so there are times when I try to slow things down a bit
put aside the Star Wars movies
refuse the request for the Spiderman films
and ignore the endless demands for Power Rangers
but instead I reach for some classic old school Scholastic films
many of the Scholastic DVDs and Videos take classic childrens books and put them on the screen
it amazes me to see the children absorb Harold and the Purple Crayon
or for them to soak in the various Maurice Sendak classics with Carol King soundtracks
or even the story of Cordoroy that goes nearly 10 minutes with zero dialogue
they enjoy these dvds more
and ya know what
I enjoy them as well
as far as the toys go.....
my boys have standard Legos
but I like to pull out the larger Legos that meets their age and little hand requirements
there should be no stigma to Duplo
cause if there is... I should wear the scarlet letter for having such a love for Duplo

that said...
I made the Duplo castle in the image above
took the new toys they got for Christmas and pulled out the old toys in the closet
merged the similar toys to get what appears to be one grandious new toy
when it is a collection of toys acquired over the years

love life bags
if Timbuk2 has gone too mainstream for ya... then lovelifebags may be for you
ya never hear anything about ZO BAGS anymore...
in my misspent youth... the Zo bag was "da shit"
had a Zo and a De Martini
(although I was frustrated at the time that City Bikes had a virual monopoly of the De Martini bags and did not sell any of these bags without their logo screened on the exterior)
and
from a Messenger Site... a list of Messenger Bags
personally... I think that the standard backpack style is better for your body and better for riding a bike

and of course
The Old Bag Blog

the Stolen Camera Saga Continues
yesterday after the kids were asleep...
lisa requested that I check on her car... her oil light was on
so I went out to her car and poured a few cans of oil into the engine
with the woods of Rock Creek Park by my side I simply tossed the empty oil containers into the woods
the cans feel comfortably next to the other various trash
the empty radiator fluid bottle made it all just seem right
then once inside the house I got a call on the phone
it was a DC police officer calling to make a follow up on my stolen camera
seems that they ran the tags
chased down the thief
got the camera back
made the streets safter and the world a better place
ah... my tax dollars at work!
rewarding knowing I had done the right thing by going to the police
good to know that we have these people working for us


okay... hold on
that is not how things happened
yes, I did put oil in Lisa's car
yes, there is various trash in the woods including an empty radiator fluid container
yes, the police did make a follow up call
but
no, I did not toss my trash into the woods
no, the police had not caught the criminal
as a matter of fact... the police had done nothing on this case since I was proactive and went to the station to file my report
the courtesy call from the Keystone Cops was fluff
since the time of my call there had been no research of the suspect in question
not only did I have my camera missing but I had to give up my personal time to deal with this incompetience
this fluff was just more fuel to my already existing anger
their calling me over a week later simply showed that they did not follow up on my report
the police had done nothing with the information I had given them

the call was just a superficial niceity
something to make the citizen feel as if their hired guns were on the case, which they were not

not only was nothing done it was clear that the case was not understood
the officer calling did not have the tag information that I had given them
there was no data on the report to show his tag
the officer calling did not understand that this theft was not a camera thief, but rather a person who was paranoid that their illegal behavior was "caught on tape"
the camera had been stolen not for the value of the camera
but rather for the information that it stored

don't police watch police shows?

so... frustrated and irrate I asked the officer to hold and went to find the tag information
although the officer took the paper with the tag information from me without returning it I had scribbled it down again before I left the station
thinking that I may want to follow up on this further on my own

once I had the tag information in hand I returned to the phone composed
a tad winded I tried to aid the officer in further understanding this case
starting with the idea that a camera was stolen
but that this person was not a camera thief
then going onto the idea of the image and the tag information
if this is the correct tag information and it did not match the vehicle that was being driven....
does this tell you anything?
yes... the tags may be stolen, the tags may be to another vehicle registered to this man, this vehicle may not be registered...
okay, take it from there as there are multiple scenarios

our converstation ended pleasantly enough
did she get on her computer and start chasing criminals?
more than likely not
more than likely this officer got on the phone and made more vacant phone calls
I had recieved similar such calls
calls responding to email complaints
calls responding to phone call complaints
in some cases the officer talked at such great length that I felt that they may be punishing me
causing me such great pain that I would think twice before calling the police with information


this my stolen camera story
keystone cops

calling the police
involving the police
it just is not my style
in front of my house a car has been in front of the hydrant for 5 days now
my wife wants to call the police
I would prefer to leave a note
or just make mention to the car driver when/if I see them moving their car
clearly we can resolve things fine on our own
and in the case where we try to involve the police.... unless both parties are on the site
well
there is just nothing that they can do
or better yet
there is just nothing that they are going to do

cowbell...
"we need more cowbell"

custom cowbells
rock and roll cowbells
t-shirts

and
it would not be Go Go without he cowbell!

I will do a quick search to see if there is someplace that makes inexpensive Cowbells and drops a logo on it
that would be a fun stocking stuffer for the cross racer who has everything
a cowbell with their favorite shop logo on it

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local rider/racer studies racing at a scientific level
also trying his hand at coaching
from the looks of his friend's results... his tips are effective
kette rechts coaching blog
get in now while the coaching is cheap
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Comet Deli scheduled to close
this is a sad day
the loss of one of the great Mom and Pop delis in the Adams Morgan in Washington DC for that matter
Mom and Pop are now Grandma and Grandpa, if not great-Grandma and great-Grandpa
(after reading the article I learn that pop died last March)
the time to retire may have come....
but what is to take the place of the Comet Deli?
a laundra-mat?
another Tapas place?
a hair salon?
something privately owned or a national chain?

along with the aledged Gentrification
there is some sort of Generi-fication.... everything is becoming Generic!
so much of the United States has become Anywhere USA

all over the city I have seen the places with character removed for something hipper with a spalsh of neon
or worse yet....
another Starbucks or a Whole Foods
come on...
do we need another Tapas joint in Adams Morgan?
sure, I eat Whole Foods and drink Starbucks
but... when given the option.. Mom and Pop get my cash!

what is a guy to do?
sit back and watch change take its course?

photo from the Washington Post

back on the bike
the year of 2005 was a year of multiple set backs
got knocked off the bike early in the spring season
crashed on the first rock in the first race of the season
(scroll down for the race report)
healed, recovered, got back on the bike, then got knocked down again
surgery on the hand
physical therapy on the hand
a manic effort to get into race shape
managed to do a handful of races
then, well, got knocked down again
first it was a major break and dislocation of my index finger on my left hand
then in mid-Fall I fell while riding my cross bike ending in a dislocated shoulder
no surgery for the shoulder
currently involved in Physical Therapy for the shoulder
missed the complete cross season
waited in grand anticipation for my bike
once I got on the bike I tried to make an attack like a clown being shot out of a canon
well....
there are certain risks to being shot out of a canon

today was Day One BACK ON THE BIKE!

last night I put air in the tires and lube on the chain
good to see the Karate Monkey Single Speed has a use other than hanging towels to dry
dug deep into the piles of gear for cold weather gear I have not worn for 8 months
gathered an assortment of tights/pants/jerseys/jackets/gloves/skull cap/and helmet
put aside my walking pack
loaded up my riding pack

this morning I got up walked the dogs as I sipped my coffee
then went to the basement to get into my gear
like Batman in the Batcave I put on my suit
then out the back door
into the alley
onto the bike
onto the streets of Washington DC
wanted to extend my morning commute
but...
the morning of walking the dogs and playing with my two son's and our new Christmas Toys cut into my ability to break a real sweat before work

there will be plenty of time to sweat
good to get back into it slowly
will be good to work some different muscles
those long power walks to and from work were starting to wear on me

wish me luck!
hopefully 2006 will be as good as 2005
remove the injury from 2005 and it was an amazing year
focus on the injury? never
there was far too much good stuff to focus on the negative

good to be back on the bike
good to be a cyclist again
cheering from the sidelines is not really my thing

The National Aquarium Washington DC
larger than your average pet store
a tad less than impressive in comparision to Monteray or even Hatteras
but....
far closer than Baltimore and far less crowded as well
a good way to spend the day
inexpensive and nearly people free
National Aquarium WDC