What Makes the Middle of the Drawbridge the Highlight of Your Commute?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the experiences and highlights of participants' commutes, with a focus on personal anecdotes and reflections on various commuting environments. The scope includes casual observations, emotional connections to specific locations, and comparisons of commuting experiences across different modes of transport.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Conceptual clarification
  • Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • One participant describes the unique acceleration experienced on a drawbridge while biking, comparing it to a mathematical function.
  • Several participants express envy over scenic commutes, contrasting them with less enjoyable experiences, such as driving behind large trucks or in heavy traffic.
  • There are mentions of specific locations, like the Edmonton River Valley, which some participants find particularly enjoyable for biking.
  • One participant shares a touching story about a man who waves at passing cars, highlighting the emotional impact of small interactions during commutes.
  • Discussions arise about the cultural implications of describing individuals by race, with some participants questioning the relevance of such descriptions in their narratives.
  • Some participants share humorous or light-hearted anecdotes related to their commuting experiences, including biking tricks and gardening as part of their daily routines.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants generally share personal anecdotes and reflections without reaching a consensus on the best commuting experience. Multiple competing views remain regarding what constitutes an enjoyable commute, and there is no resolution on the appropriateness of describing individuals by race in anecdotes.

Contextual Notes

Limitations include varying interpretations of what makes a commute enjoyable, dependence on personal experiences, and unresolved discussions about cultural sensitivity in descriptions.

Who May Find This Useful

Readers interested in personal narratives about commuting, cultural reflections, and the emotional aspects of daily travel may find this discussion engaging.

oedipa maas
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http://photos-853.ll.facebook.com/photos-ll-sf2p/v236/27/91/575983853/n575983853_940536_3472.jpg

The middle of the drawbridge - where the two platforms meet - is pointy (like f(x)=-|x|). So you get up a bit of speed on your bike as you approach the centre and then enjoy the weird acceleration as you go over the non-differentiable part.

http://photos-f.ak.facebook.com/photos-ak-sf2p/v236/27/91/575983853/n575983853_924829_3994.jpg
What you see when you're in a boat on the left hand side of the first photo.
 
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Looks like you have a beautiful commute! Lucky!

My view is usually the back of a large, dirty truck.
 
That looks nice. My nicest part is walking from my car to my door when I get home, the rest of my drive is bumper to bumper at break neck speeds.
 
I'm getting a new bike this weekend, after that most of my commute will be through the Edmonton River Valley, which is pretty nice.
 
Lucky you neodevin! I love biking in the river valley, it is so nice and the trails are awesome. my commute for this summer is on the henday, not terribly scenic unfortunately :(
 
It must be refreshing to live in a small town for a while.
 
scorpa said:
Lucky you neodevin! I love biking in the river valley, it is so nice and the trails are awesome. my commute for this summer is on the henday, not terribly scenic unfortunately :(

Better than the whitemud, which is my commute right now. With the construction it's more of a parking lot than a freeway...
 
My commute is a 3 minute walk, so the scenery consists of neighbourhood condos/apartments and a school yard.
 
Best part of my commute is the bump wheelie on the up-ramp of our parking structure. Or maybe the practice stoppie in the parking lot before going into the parking garage :biggrin:
 
  • #10
I hardly ever go anywhere and most of my work (at least in the summer) consists of gardening. This is the nicest part of my commute, when the garden is all weeded and I'm headed up to sit on the back deck with a cold beer.

greenacres.jpg
 
  • #11
Not having one, unless you count the walk down the hall.
Sending some recycled electrons to commute for me.
 
  • #12
turbo-1 said:
greenacres.jpg

What's at the top of the tall tower, turbo?


.
 
  • #13
berkeman said:
What's at the top of the tall tower, turbo?


.

A garden gnome, maybe...?
 
  • #14
lisab said:
A garden gnome, maybe...?

No, no, silly. It's got to be an antenna of some kind(s)... I'm too much of a geek not to ask. It could be a TV antenna if turbo is way out in the boonies, but more likely a HAM antenna? You a HAM, turbo?
 
  • #15
Going home at six o/clock in the morning, i see the wild life, foxes, rabbits, munt jacks, the pigeons are a pain in the ass as they fly or waddle off at the last second, so all of my five mile commute is the best.
 
  • #16
berkeman said:
No, no, silly. It's got to be an antenna of some kind(s)... I'm too much of a geek not to ask. It could be a TV antenna if turbo is way out in the boonies, but more likely a HAM antenna? You a HAM, turbo?
It's a TV antenna. There is no cable out here in the boonies. I've met quite a few crusty old HAMs over the years, in my never-ending quest for high-end vacuum tubes. I built/repaired/restored tube-drive guitar amps for a lot of years and sometimes the right tube in the right socket can turn an OK guitar tone into heaven. I've never gotten into the HAM radio thing, but their swap meets are great places to meet skin-flint hoarders. One guy that I bought a bunch of tubes and a nice mil-spec tube tester from has a workshop full of old radios and TVs. Some of the console TVs had round screens just a couple of inches across.
 
  • #17
lisab said:
A garden gnome, maybe...?
Yes a garden gnome with IR detectors and high-powered laser to cook any deer that decides to feast on my vegetables!
 
  • #18
NeoDevin said:
I'm getting a new bike this weekend, after that most of my commute will be through the Edmonton River Valley, which is pretty nice.

Yes, it's pretty nice.

david_h_pic.jpg


How late in the year do you plan to ride? -15 C is about all I can tolerate. After that I have to take my polar bear - and then the neighours complain because it eats dogs and small children.
 
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  • #19
I'll ride all summer for sure, probably until about -15 or -20
 
  • #20
That's a beautiful old bridge Oedipa. I'd love to have something like that near me.

I either cycle or walk, so I get to take the quiet back-streets and head through the park, which is always nice:smile:

2373965274_25bde6e84c_m.jpg
2218554949_f2ec862c7a_m.jpg

It's a Victorian park and has lots of old and interesting things in it. Nice at any time of year- even has a greenhouse with reptiles, birds and things for when it's cold & miserable.
 
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  • #21
oedipa maas said:
it eats dogs and small children.

Please, may I borrow it? :shy:
 
  • #22
The best part of my commute is that it's only 5-15 minutes long, depending on whether I'm heading to the farm or office and how many of the lights I catch along the way (it used to never be more than 10 min, but they've added traffic lights since I moved here, and there seem to be an awful lot of people who can't find their accelerator pedal who slow me down).
 
  • #23
The best part of my commute is when I drive by this one house. There is a black guy there who doesn't exactly have all his marbles. He stands on the driveway and waves to cars as they drive by. Everytime I see him I beep and wave and smile. He waves back and blows you a kiss. Hes been doing this for years. I think he has downs syndrome and he's probably in his early 40s by now. But every day, day after day, he'll be there to wave at you. I get sad when he's not there to wave at.
 
  • #24
Moonbear said:
people who can't find their accelerator pedal who slow me down).

That sort of reminds me of one of my best friends, who I used to drive around before he got his license. While being totally brilliant (he's an administrator at Cisco), he's a wee bit dislexic with directions. We'd be driving around, and he'd keep saying 'gas' or 'clutch' to indicate upcoming turns, because he couldn't remember the names for 'right' or 'left'. No problem to me, but it weirded out a couple of secondary passengers. :biggrin:
 
  • #25
Cyrus said:
The best part of my commute is when I drive by this one house. There is a black guy there who doesn't exactly have all his marbles.

Believe me, Cyrus, when I say that I mean no offense by this. It's just a matter of trying to understand cultural differences. Why would you specify that he was black? That seems to be something that happens in the US as a matter of course, but I thought that you were in the UK. In Canada, people are just people. :confused:
 
  • #26
Cyrus said:
The best part of my commute is when I drive by this one house. There is a black guy there who doesn't exactly have all his marbles. He stands on the driveway and waves to cars as they drive by. Everytime I see him I beep and wave and smile. He waves back and blows you a kiss. Hes been doing this for years. I think he has downs syndrome and he's probably in his early 40s by now. But every day, day after day, he'll be there to wave at you. I get sad when he's not there to wave at.
Aww...that's cool. Really nice that a wave can make a complete stranger happy every day.

Danger said:
That sort of reminds me of one of my best friends, who I used to drive around before he got his license. While being totally brilliant (he's an administrator at Cisco), he's a wee bit dislexic with directions. We'd be driving around, and he'd keep saying 'gas' or 'clutch' to indicate upcoming turns, because he couldn't remember the names for 'right' or 'left'. No problem to me, but it weirded out a couple of secondary passengers. :biggrin:

:smile: Yeah, that would freak me out a bit too if I didn't know what he meant.
 
  • #27
Moonbear said:
that would freak me out a bit too if I didn't know what he meant.

I think that I also caused a few stained shorts doing 160 mph in a 50 zone... :rolleyes:

edit: In case that sounds as if I'm reckless, keep in mind that I was in that 50 zone for only 3 1/2 seconds...
 
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  • #28
What were you driving going 160 mph?
 
  • #29
My commute between little town and working station let me pass this scenery:

enroute1.JPG


So today I took my camera.

enroute2.JPG


Why am I thinking of buying an expensive SLR when I can make these pics with my budget bridge camera?

Direct linking may not work. But the pictures are here behind the thumbnails:

366139_enroute1.JPG


and

366140_enroute2.JPG
 
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  • #30
Danger said:
Believe me, Cyrus, when I say that I mean no offense by this. It's just a matter of trying to understand cultural differences. Why would you specify that he was black? That seems to be something that happens in the US as a matter of course, but I thought that you were in the UK. In Canada, people are just people. :confused:

No, I am in the USA. He kinda looks like an old gary coleman but life size. I think they told him not to stand so close to the road, because every time I see him his got a broom and he's sweeping deep in the drive way. I have to put my window down and beep when I drive by an wave at him. He gets all happy and waves back!