Right turners

Bicyclist in Portland are blessed with an abundance of bicycle lanes on our city streets. Bike lanes, however, come with their own set of problems. One of these is the right turning motorist.

The right turning motorist (RTM) often does not appear to be aware or considerate of the bike lane. Thus, the RTM does not check the bike lane before executing his right turn. The most careless will turn right into you even when you are directly in view (i.e. adjacent or in front of their hood), but that doesn’t happen often. The more common occurrence is the driver who executes the turn just as you are passing him. This is often called the “right hook”.

This morning I was riding downhill on Lloyd Blvd towards Grand Avenue. Almost everytime I take this route, I get caught by the very long traffic light at Grand because Grand has more traffic than Lloyd. Also, once it turns green, the light changes to red rather quickly.

As I rounded the curve and the light came into view, the light changed to green. Not wanting to miss the light and have to wait through a full cycle, I accelerated down the hill as fast as I could. Cars filled both lanes and were stacked up about 8 deep. As I approached each car, I checked for their right turn signal as well as the subtle drift to the left that often presages the right turn. Several cars drifted into the bike lane, but I forgave them because there is a curve there. As I neared the intersection, the light was still green and the car beside also started to drift into the bike lane. Just as I got up to her rear door, the turn signal came on about a half second after she started the right turn. Normally I would give the trunk a slap to let her know I was there, but this time I only had time to slam on the brakes and yell, “HEY!” She did turn around and I shook my fist at her as I whizzed through the intersection, still mindful of the light.

Just another day as a bike commuter.

Smoker Confrontations, Part II

As I explained in Part I, smoking is now banned on TriMet property as of January 1. This morning I had my second confrontation with a smoker disobeying the new rules.

First, let me clarify my stance on smoking. Although I have made the decision not to smoke for a variety of reasons, I respect the right of others to smoke if they want. I also acknowledge that there is such a thing as considerate smokers. In fact, I know several and am related to a few. I was a smoker once myself, too, although I always considered myself to be considerate. Sometimes I don’t even mind subjecting myself to second-hand smoke, as long as it is my choice. Being forced to breathe the smoke of others is just not cool.

Having said that, I object strongly to being forced to breathe unclean air, especially when I have the force of law on my side. This morning I had a long, wet climb up the hill to get to the nearest Max station. When I arrived there quite breathless and fairly wet, I was in no mood to be sucking someone else’s smoke. Unfortunately, that is precisely what was foisted upon me. As I took off my helmet and gloves, I immediately noticed the sting in my throat and turned upwind to find an old, wrinkled lady smoking six feet from the No Smoking sign.

I walked up to her and pointed to the sign and said, “There’s no smoking on the Max platform.” She explained that she had just left cancer treatment and was going home, as this is note her only illness but she has it also in the ovaries. You can find the information in Ovarian Cancer Symptoms Inspire organization content and reviews.

So I turned around, walked back to my bike, grabbed my water bottle, walked over to her and squirted the cigarette in her hand, which was now away from her body. She sort of spazzed in surprise and then started yelling at me for “assaulting” her. She then stepped up to me with the now-soggy cigarette and snubbed the remains directly on my chest. We then yelled at each other for a few minutes and she threatened to call the cops before leaving.She also said she would not put out her cigarette and not even her vaporizers. I asked her again twice and she refused twice. I pointed out what the rules were but they had no

She returned a few minutes later with a younger gentleman who confronted me about what I had done to this fine lady. I confirmed that I had doused her cigarette because she refused to do so. He yelled and threatened me for several minutes and I (regrettably) yelled back. Eventually, things died down and I returned to my bike and they settled in to making snide remarks about me while we all waited for the Max to arrive.

At some point, another young man joined their conversation and eventually joined her for another smoke. After asking them to put them out, I decided it was best to ignore them rather than start the conflict again. However, after the Max arrived and I got on, I immediately went to the little button that calls the driver:

Driver: How can I help you?
Me: Two people who were smoking on the platform refused to put out their cigarettes and are now on the train.
Driver: Are they smoking on the train now?
Me: No.
(pause)
Driver: I will notify the proper people.

I walked back to my bike while the smoking lady rushed up to say her peace with the driver. Unfortunately, she couldn’t figure out how to press the button and succeeded only in yelling at the box for several minutes with no response from the driver. She then yelled a few choice words at me before grumbling off to her seat.

I knew that if anything was going to happen, it would happen four stops later at the Gateway Transit Center, which is the usual place where the transit cops are seen. Gateway eventually came and went with no authorities boarding the train. I read Just A Geek and escaped into the world of Wil Wheaton while she continued to gripe to the passengers around her. I got off before her and it ended there.

I replayed the incident in my mind many times and concluded that I made many bad choices. Getting drawn into a confrontation is definitely a bad idea and it spiraled out of control very quickly. I’ve decided that in the future I’ll just take a picture of the smoker in front of the No Smoking sign and present that to the TriMet authorities. I’ve also been meaning to talk to one of the Gateway supervisors with whom I am on friendly terms. I’ll find out from him what the recommended course of action is.

Thomas wants a cell phone

Evidently two kids in his class have cell phones, so Thomas has been bothering us to buy him one. We keep telling him that he’s not old enough to have one, but he is relentless. At one point, I pointed out that he hardly used the phone at home and asked for what would he need a cell phone.

Recently I was in his room fixing a computer problem he was having. As I waited for the computer to reboot, I looked around his room and my eyes fell on a piece of paper with a list: “Reasons to have a cell phone.” He had the list pre-numbered to ten but had not thought of ten reasons yet. I don’t remember any of the other entries, but the last one caught my eye:

    7. Kidnapped!

NBA Players I Dislike

    Actively dislike: 

  • Antoine Walker: Shoot first, pass never. Shoots the three way too much for his proficiency.
  • Latrelle Sprewell: Choked his coach. Couldn’t support his family on millions.
  • Jerry Stackhouse: Once slugged John Stockton and slagged Michael Jordan. Shoots alot, never passes.
  • Rasheed Wallace: Once waited outside after a game to threaten a referee. Do you need to know anything else?
  • Ruben Patterson: Convicted sex offender and general purpose thug.
  • Ricky Davis: Once shot at an opponents hoop in order to get his 10th rebound for a triple double.
  • Tim Duncan: Boring!
  • Stephon Marbury: Totted as The Next Big Thing coming out of college, he’s a point guard who embodies everything a point guard shouldn’t be. Ten years and four teams later, Larry Brown is trying to reign him in with little or no success.
    Rehabilitated: 

  • Alonzo Mourning: The biggest whiner in the league before his kidneys went bad. Now he’s the epitomy of the “sports warrior” who just goes out and does what his team needs.
    Going backwards: 

  • Kobe Bryant: Had Shaq traded and Phil fired so he could have his own team and then found out it’s not as much fun as he thought. Seemed like he might be adopting the team concept this year, but his recent string of 40+ games says otherwise.

Vital Statistics

Current reading: Just A Geek by Wil Wheaton
Recent listening: Coverville, The Cure, Yo-Yo Ma Plays Ennio Morricone
Recent viewing: Sportscenter, The Colbert Report, The Daily Show, South Park
Recent playing: Poker Room
Most Important To Do: Cut out Pinewood Derby cars

Saga of the New Tivo, Part VI

Previously : “The replacement card was now “linked” to our old DTivo (the one in the Big TV room) and the card that had been in the old DTivo was now a useless piece of plastic.”

As you may recall from Part IV of our story, I had determined via troubleshooting that the electrical problems had rendered two of my four satellite channels inoperable. The dish would either need to be fixed or replaced in order to get the new Tivo online.

Sometime during my many conversations with DirecTV (DTV) representatives, one suggested that I sign up for the DirecTV Protection Plan, which costs $8/month but provides free replacement for all of your equipment. I specifically queried this rep about my particular situation, and he said I could sign up for the plan and call the repair department the next day. Otherwise, it would be at least a $60 fee plus the cost of replacing any defective hardware. It was an easy decision to make and I signed up on the spot.

Thus, yesterday I found myself on the phone again with DTV explaining my problem and describing the troubleshooting steps that I had taken. After a few minutes of questioning, the rep concluded that I needed onsite service and transferred me. After ten or more minutes on hold, I went through the same process with another rep in a different department, even though the first rep had said she was making notes on my account. The second rep then confirmed that they would need to schedule onsite service for me and transferred me again! Again ten or more minutes of holding before the third rep booked an appointment for onsite service on January 15, 2006 (Sunday).

I still have to run coaxial cable from the junction box on the side of the house to a second set of connectors in the Big TV room, but I’m going to see if I can talk the technician into doing it for me since he would do a much nicer job than me. Failing that, I’ll have Sunday afternoon to do it myself. If I’m successful, this saga may finally come to an end and Tina will have her birthday present before Valentine’s Day.

Next: “And it only took three months to get everything working.”

Vital Statistics

The road home tonight was wet. Very wet. It was pouring when I rolled my bike out of the office and into the brightly lit darkness of downtown Portland. I raced the seven blocks down Stark Street to the Max Station on Front where I waited and hoped for the Blue Line. Red Line to Airport. Damn. Instead of a five minute downhill ride, I was looking at twenty minutes possibly against some vicious east wind out of the Gorge.

Thankfully, the wind was out of the south but the rain pummeled me the whole way home. When I cut across the Fred Meyer parking lot, there was a water puddle so large that it had waves rippling through it. At that moment I looked up at the sky to see that each drop of rain was clearly visible in the street lights of the parking lot. Torrential.

I stripped down to my shorts when I got home and everything went in the wash and then the dryer. Warm, dry clothes feel so good after a good soaking.

Bike odometer: 5653 miles
Current reading: Just A Geek by Wil Wheaton
Recent listening: New Roman Times/Camper Van Beethoven, Coverville, Blame The Vain/Dwight Yoakam, Yo-Yo Ma Plays Ennio Morricone
Recent viewing: The Colbert Report, CSI: Miami, Countdown with Keith Olberman
Recent playing: Falling Sand Game
Most Important To Do: Call DirecTV to get satellite dish fixed

Vital Statistics

Current reading: Just A Geek by Wil Wheaton
Recent listening: New Roman Times/Camper Van Beethoven, The Carter Family, Yankee Hotel Foxtrot/Wilco, Liz Phair, Especially For You/The Smithereens
Recent viewing: NFL Wildcard Playoff games, Distraction, South Park, ER, CSI
Recent playing: Falling Sand Game