ATL 6/16/08 - World Naked Bike Ride

Friends!
Getting ready
The Ride
After The Ride - The Riders
After The Ride - More Riders

OREGON/MOVIE/LOCAL/U.S./WEB NEWS

OREGON - I participated in "World Naked Bike Ride" - an event to bring attention to oil dependency...and bring attention we did! Some estimates put the number of riders at over 2,000! It was just like riding a roller coaster - maybe a little nervous at the start, but once we got going, I didn't want it to end! -bikeportland-

Having an Obama sticker on your car in Portland is like wearing a Star of David in Israel...doesn't everybody already know you're Jewish?

Nike has replaced garbage cans in individual offices with recycle bins. If you bring something into the building that can not be recycled, reused, or composted, you have to make a walk of shame down to the breakroom to the communal garbage can.

Love Stumptown Roasters for coffee. Unlike Starbucks, where you wait in line, give your order to one person, pay, and go to another person to pick-up your latte, at Stumptown, you wait in line until a barrista is available. You tell him your order and he makes it in front of you, hands it to you, and you pay him. It made my latte seem so...personal.

A new traffic/bike lane system is being implemented at select intown intersections. There have been many biking accidents caused when a bike is in the right hand bike lane and a car traveling parallel to it turns right and hits him, especially at a stop light. The PDX solution is the green bike box - at an intersection, cars stop behind the "green box" - about 12 ft back from the crosswalk - and bikes pull up and stop in front of them. Bikes are the first to take off at a green light (and cars also can't turn right on red...they are too far back from the intersection).

"Honored Citizens" - Signage on Trimet buses for "Seniors" and "Disabled" seating.

Sshould not be played for investment purposes" - Warning sign on Oregon Lottery billboards. -the law-

OLCC - Oregon Liquor Control Commission - When throwing a party with alcohol, they are the ones you worry about coming to shut you down...not the police!

Had to change hotels, ending up at the fantastic "Hotel Lucia". I walked in to ask about a rate. "We have a special low rate for Triple-A; are you a member?" Boy, I sure could use a low rate.

"Um...no...but I can spell it!?!" "Good enough!"

I really love that hotel.

MOVIE NEWS -Wednesday, June 18 - Flicks on Fifth, "Horton Hears a Who"

Wednesday, June 18 - Fox Theater, "No Country for Old Men"

Thursday, June 19 - Screen on the Asphalt, "E.T."

LOCAL NEWS -Friday - Decatur Beach Party -events-

Saturday - Coming down the stretch! Only two more Saturdays to practice run the Peachtree; meet in the Metropolis lobby at 7:30 with your Breeze card. MARTA up to Lenox/Buckhead and run back to Midtown. Meet again at Caribou for coffee at 9:00!

U.S. NEWS -The Midwest has too much water and Texas has too little; who's going to grow all that corn we need to produce that energy crisis-solving biofuel? Oh, yeah, and what are we going to eat? How about we start by not feeding food to food...

WEB NEWS -Great photography website at aymeric giraudel.