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๐ Pluralistic: You should be using an RSS reader (16 Oct 2024)
by JamesYou should be using an RSS reader: The one thing you can choose to do that will make your internet life better and make the internet better for everyone else, too.
Hey look at this: Delights to delectate.
This day in history: 2004, 2009Iโve gotten out of the habit of using my RSS reader because Feedly would unauth itself every so often. Maybe I should lean back in again. -
The Week #224
by James- ๐ฒ I did my first commute by bicycle and it was everything I thought it would be. I posted a small tootstorm (?) with some photos of my commute on Mastodon. Time saving wise โ it's not as much as I was expecting, but I felt way more energized and better when I arrived to work. I think it's not going down 2 levels to go up 3 levels just to to go down 4 and up 3 i.e. riding 2 subways and an commuter train.
When I arrived in Shinbashi the FujiTV folks were milling about in front of the steam train. I purposefully tried to hide from their view. What I noticed takes longer than unfolding the bike is actually putting the bag back into its case and securing it to the seat.A matcha green Brompton in front of a steam train in Tokyo
There aren't that many options for coffee / breakfast open at 7am in Tokyo that aren't Starbucks or a Tully's. But I found one . At first I was wondering how they'd react to me trying to bring the bike inside. But it was perfectly fine and they didn't say anything. Also the breakfast and coffee were really good, so I'll probably go back again this week as well.
Finding my way from there my office was a bit tricky as near my office the roads curve around a lot and I haven't memorized them yet. I'll find the optimal route soon enough. - ๐ค A major milestone, Leo stayed the night at the in-laws by himself without his cousins being there. Just jiji and baba. The boy wanted to watch YouTube that much. For better or worse that's kind of turning into our routine. After a busy school week and swimming on Fridays, he wants to spend a day laying around. If he does it at the in-laws' then it means we can go out and...get lunch and have a break.
The next day it enabled me to have a second run at just bringing my folded bike into a cafe (komeda0 and turns out, they don't seem to care. It slid right under the table easy peasy, too - ๐ณ One of the reasons I wanted the folding bike was so that Leo and I could ride bikes together away from the house. Both bikes fit in the back of my kei. When I went to pick up Leo from in the in-laws and I took our bikes so we could ride some place new. We rode down to the major park and played for a bit. On the way back we stopped for some ice cream ๐. It's soย easy to go out and explore (especially as it's flat), I'm tempted to leave a bike for Leo at their house.
- ๐ฒ I recognize this week's post has mostly been "James and his Brompton". I'd be worried if, a week after new bike day it wasn't.ย On Sports Day, I took the bike out for a long-ish ride. I rode down to Sakaigawa and headed inland towards Yamato. I used to ride this direction a year or two ago on my cross-bike for a while. Rides along the river are always fun because there's dedicated paths sandwiched between the river and farmland.
Brommie near the river in front of a harvested rice field
When I got back, Leo wanted to go out on bikes with the 3 of us. It was getting dark so we made a bike-train and rode over to the bike shop (to adjust Leo's brakes), Ito Yokado (for some shopping), then to Chai, (a local Indian joint) before bike-training back home. It was a lot of fun riding together as a family and I hope we can do more of it in the future.
- ๐ฒ I did my first commute by bicycle and it was everything I thought it would be. I posted a small tootstorm (?) with some photos of my commute on Mastodon. Time saving wise โ it's not as much as I was expecting, but I felt way more energized and better when I arrived to work. I think it's not going down 2 levels to go up 3 levels just to to go down 4 and up 3 i.e. riding 2 subways and an commuter train.
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by JamesAfternoon Ride
First long-ish ride with the Brompton. Only got scared once as I was directly under a bridge when the Shinkansen went over my head.19.6km
79.2min
163.4m climbed
108.7avg bpm
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by JamesThree I had whileย walking around making maps with Leo today:
1. Take all of my runs and plot them as a SVG. Map the streets of the the world by running.
2. It be neat to have a custom map logging local vending machines and their cashless status.
3. It would also be neat to build a map โfrom scratchโ. Walk / ride streets to build the lines. Maybe denote portions in different colors to reflect terrain. What would it be like to not have mapping data and have to make your own personal maps? -
Checkin to Komeda's Coffee (ใณใกใ็็ฒๅบ)
Vienna Coffee with my Brompton tucked under the table. I could get used to this. -
by Jamesโ๏ธ Morning Run
Keeping out of run debt. Gonna be hot today isnโt it?4.4km
30.1min
18.8m climbed
151avg bpm
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by JamesMorning Run
Post breakfast run. Not too bad.4.6km
30.1min
30.2m climbed
146.5avg bpm
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Checkin to ใใใใซใใง ๆฃฎใฎใใถใ
Relaxing breakfast on the way to work. -
Checkin to TSUTAYA BOOKSTORE ๅผฅ็ๅฐๅบ
#Brompton cafe working time. -
The Week #223
by James- ๐ถ Sophie is getting old and has started developing a number of what could be balls of fat or could be something more serious. One in particular was worrying because it was on her stomach had gotten rather large. Left untreated it could result in her intestine going places it shouldn't. This week she went in to the doctor for surgery to confirm if these blobs were fat or cancer (and remove them). Good news is, it wasn't cancer. Sophie will be wearing a cone while she recovers. To a long and healthy life!
On the "Japanese is hard, even for the natives" front, Yumi told one of her Japanese archery friends about the results "it was only a shibou (fat)" and her friend overacted because she understood shibou with its other meaning, "death" ๐คฃ. - ๐ฒ I went and picked up my matcha green Brompton. I had visions of a sunny New Bike Day which would enable me to ride around Minatomirai and take sweet photos of it to share. Unfortunately it was raining, so it went into my bike bag and I carried it around.
The Brompton was fine to carry around, but after a while it got to be a bit heavy. Which makes sense, it's a bike. It's meant to be ridden and carried from the gates of a station and into a train. It's not meant to be lugged around for an hour.Matcha green Brompton folded up
The next day I rode it to our local Ito Yokado with Leo. The small wheels and the riding position make it feel like it's an extension of your legs. What I mean by that is it seems like the perfect bike for last mile transport, which makes sense as that's what it was designed for."Sitting" Brompton - ๐โโ๏ธ Technically last week, but Leo passed his test at swim class! For one reason or another he's failed or not taken the test for the past...what feels like 6 months. He's excited he passed and I think having this opportunity to have to work to overcome and succeed is good for his overall character development.ย Even better is he's resumed taking the bus to swim class by himself, letting him build up his independence.ย
- ๐โโ๏ธ I maintained my run debt with 2 runs this week. The cooler weather is fantastic and I think I'm close to getting back to the mental state to bring my runs back to 3x a week, enabling me to get fully out of run debt. I'll make that my goal for October: get out of run debt.
- ๐ถ Sophie is getting old and has started developing a number of what could be balls of fat or could be something more serious. One in particular was worrying because it was on her stomach had gotten rather large. Left untreated it could result in her intestine going places it shouldn't. This week she went in to the doctor for surgery to confirm if these blobs were fat or cancer (and remove them). Good news is, it wasn't cancer. Sophie will be wearing a cone while she recovers. To a long and healthy life!
