Riding with Death
I don't do a lot of driving in Milwaukee. Part of if it is though that I don't really have anywhere to go. One of the things that' different about here than anywhere else I've lived, with the possible exception of back when I was living in the dorms in college (but that doesn't count) is all of the stuff I have access to that's only a short walk away. Or, if I want to get there really fast, a very short trip on my bike.
My apartment is located on the last block before the end of N. Stowell Ave firmly in the area that would be described as the Eastside of Milwaukee. I'm just a block over from the "famous" Downer Ave, which has a bunch of neat stuff stores on it. There is a somewhat smallish grocery store where I shop at a lot. The selection is a lot smaller than your average supermarket, but bigger than you'd find at a mini-mart. The prices are reasonable for what I buy, which tends to be the basic ingredients for stuff, and the quality is pretty good too. And I like how I can walk there and back to my apartment in less than 20 minutes. Because of it, I haven't reattached my "basket" to my bike. I'm also close the the North Ave area, but that's mostly bars and eateries, and I don't really have the money to eat out a lot.
Around last week Thursday, I finally pulled my bike out of my storage unit, and I've been riding it everyday since. There's no place to securely park it near the building, so I just keep it in my room. I've a nice spot for it near the door, and some nice long rugs to let it sit on. My bike will easily fit in the elevator, but I find it faster to just pick it up and carry to the top floor. That is another reason why I haven't reattached my basket. It would make it little more awkward to carry up and down the stairs with it on. Biking around here is pretty easy. Most of the streets that have heavy traffic usually have a bike lane. I've also found a nice bike trail that runs along the Milwaukee trail. I spent the earlier part of this week exploring that trail, and then the later part of this week just riding bits of it over again for exercise. I guess I wasn't in too much of an adventurous mood. Of course, the weather might have had something to do with that.
Back in my old apartment in Eau Claire, I had a boxed that I never unpacked. It mostly had posters and other decorations in it. It had been opened, but the majority of it remained unpacked. It just sat there for month after month. I don't know why I never got around to unpacking it. That box came with me to Milwaukee. It's empty now; the contents hanged all about the walls of my new apartment. In fact, I don't have any boxes yet to be unpacked. That seems like a fitting way to say that I've arrived.
My apartment is located on the last block before the end of N. Stowell Ave firmly in the area that would be described as the Eastside of Milwaukee. I'm just a block over from the "famous" Downer Ave, which has a bunch of neat stuff stores on it. There is a somewhat smallish grocery store where I shop at a lot. The selection is a lot smaller than your average supermarket, but bigger than you'd find at a mini-mart. The prices are reasonable for what I buy, which tends to be the basic ingredients for stuff, and the quality is pretty good too. And I like how I can walk there and back to my apartment in less than 20 minutes. Because of it, I haven't reattached my "basket" to my bike. I'm also close the the North Ave area, but that's mostly bars and eateries, and I don't really have the money to eat out a lot.
Around last week Thursday, I finally pulled my bike out of my storage unit, and I've been riding it everyday since. There's no place to securely park it near the building, so I just keep it in my room. I've a nice spot for it near the door, and some nice long rugs to let it sit on. My bike will easily fit in the elevator, but I find it faster to just pick it up and carry to the top floor. That is another reason why I haven't reattached my basket. It would make it little more awkward to carry up and down the stairs with it on. Biking around here is pretty easy. Most of the streets that have heavy traffic usually have a bike lane. I've also found a nice bike trail that runs along the Milwaukee trail. I spent the earlier part of this week exploring that trail, and then the later part of this week just riding bits of it over again for exercise. I guess I wasn't in too much of an adventurous mood. Of course, the weather might have had something to do with that.
Back in my old apartment in Eau Claire, I had a boxed that I never unpacked. It mostly had posters and other decorations in it. It had been opened, but the majority of it remained unpacked. It just sat there for month after month. I don't know why I never got around to unpacking it. That box came with me to Milwaukee. It's empty now; the contents hanged all about the walls of my new apartment. In fact, I don't have any boxes yet to be unpacked. That seems like a fitting way to say that I've arrived.