Bike update: The gear cable is still broken but I got the bike into a comfortable gear. It's functional. Plus, I really needed to use it Thursday, 'cause I missed my once-a-day neighborhood bus and got into a jam trying to get where I needed to be. I'll get it to a bike shop later. It just needs a good once-over from a professional.
I rode Route 23 Mercantile to the T board meeting today. The Mercantile route is fairly new. It circulates around Meacham Airport, a couple of colleges and an industrial area at the southwest corner of North Beach and Loop 820. It was a very easy 3.5-mile bike ride from my home to the nearest bus stop, which was just west of the Budget Suites in that area. The only tough part was riding past Motorola and Countrywide, where traffic was too heavy for me on Beach Street and, since there were no sidewalks, I rode on a stretch of roadside grass that was as fluffy as a roll of Charmin. Took a little extra effort.
One other passenger was on the bus, but he jumped off near an animal health manufacturing company of some sort. I had originally planned to get off Route 23 at the Northside Transfer Center. But the driver, Doroteo Mendioli, asked if I was trying to get downtown. He said his bus was about to go out of service and he could take me downtown if I wanted to avoid a 10-minute wait for another bus at the transit center. I told him I actually needed to get to the T's office on East Lancaster, and since that's where the bus garage is, he practically took me to the front door. Friendly guy. He's been with the T since Day 1. He says he hasn't had an accident in 29 years of driving, and when he hits 30 years, he wants the T to buy him a steak dinner or a plaque or something ...
30 years accident--free. That's something to shoot for ...
After the T board meeting, I got a ride home from Joan Hunter, the T's public affairs guru. She was very nice to allow me to put my bike in the back of her SUV. We had a nice chat, although we got stuck in terrible traffic on 35W, where traffic was blocked by a police shooting scene. It was hard to remember when to turn on KRLD 1080 AM for a traffic report on the 8s because Joan keeps her clock set 12 minutes ahead. That's too much math for a reporter!
An animal health manufacturing company? Interesting. We've got it all in Fort Worth, Don't we?
Posted by: Doug | December 21, 2007 at 08:32 AM
Yeah, I meant to write down the name of the place but forgot. I don't know if they make doggie drugs, horse toothbrushes, or what. It didn't look like the kind of place that made anything edible.
Posted by: Gordon Dickson | December 21, 2007 at 08:59 AM