lumpy
Thu Mar 28 12:41:36 EDT 2019
The milk isn't supposed to be lumpy, sigh.
The jug said "SELL BY MAR 02", but usually this fridge is cold enough to ignore that. What came out looked like soupy cottage cheese with huge curds. It's fortunate that I first pour the milk into the bowl before I add the cereal, so I didn't lose the cereal to the bad milk.
I was hoping that today's commute would be warm enough to allow me to eat dry cereal with (cold) milk for breakfast. Hot oatmeal doesn't chill me before the ride, but it takes a lot of oatmeal - 3 servings, according to the box - and it takes a lot of time to eat that much oatmeal. And it gets kinda boring.
Thursday 23:41
Today was fine for riding in with a light jacket and shorts, and returning with an added fleece layer. Tomorrow should be even nicer.
I found a bike headlight on the C&O Canal towpath tonight, a Serfas True 150. It was on the ground pointed toward me, and its reflector reflected back my light. (When I stopped and walked back to see what it was, it looked like a turd from the other end. (Dog walkers are expected to pick up and pack out, so there's no poop on the path.)) It's a discontinued product, no longer on the Serfas website. With 150 lumens for its brightest setting, it is feeble by today's standards. (My headlights are 1200 lumens, and brighter lights are available.) USB charging, which is the norm now.
https://www.raysbike.com/product/serfas-tsl-150-true-light-headlight-77657-1.htm (best photo)
https://kylesbikes.com/serfas-true-standard-150-usb-headlight-713835022566.html
http://www.bikeroar.com/products/serfas/tsl-150-true-150-headlight-2012
It's not a bad size for a carry-around flashlight, and the beam is very useable. And replacement mounts (handlebar or helmet) are available. But I would like to get it back to the person who lost it.
The towpath is rough, so anything that isn't mounted very well can get bounced lose. I don't know how you don't notice losing a headlight if you're using it at night, but maybe this rider leaves work before dark. Or it's a spare light (redundant systems); maybe it fell out of a pannier that wasn't closed properly.
On the towpath, I also noticed a lot of inbound (motor) traffic on Canal Road, traffic that wasn't moving much. Traffic was backed up coming across Chain Bridge (from Virginia), and all the way up Glebe Road. All the way back to Glebe's intersection with the end of Williamsburg Blvd (the side street at our corner). (Checking traffic reports after I got home revealed that Route 123, the other Virginia feed to the bridge, was also clogged. Apparently not so bad farther out on Canal Rd, which is either coming from the Beltway on Cabin John Parkway, or coming from farther west outside the beltway.) Coming in on Canal Road, there's a flow split at Arizona Avenue (going north), and Canal Rd continues east into Georgetown. I hadn't noticed problems on that portion of Canal Rd, so maybe the congestion went up Arizona Ave. This kind of traffic doesn't happen after 21:00. I don't know what was going on.
Friday 22:09
Apparently that crazy traffic last night was a consequence of a tanker-truck spill on the beltway (I-495 crash). The critical western bridge over the Potomac was closed for hours. Chain Bridge is the nearest bridge going into DC; it's 3 lanes (1 inbound last night) while the beltway is 8 lanes. The nearest bridge the other direction is US 15, way way out (Leesburg?). There's also a ferry out there, but it's not going to make a dent on a beltway closure, and I doubt it runs all night.
Rob GouldIf this describes you, don't expect me to do anything to avoid hitting you, because I cannot see you:
I put up a sign for the bike light I found last night. It's a rather nice light - underpowered by current standards, but I expect it was a star when it was a new product. Adequate for riding in dark places, and enough to make you visible/noticed in places better lit. A nice, classic beam pattern - a bright, circular center spot, and a broad circular spread to make you visible to side traffic. It would be a fine camping light, too. If I don't hear from the person who lost it, it would make a good backup headlight. (I'd need to get a handle bar mount and/or a helmet mount.)
Saturday 01:46
I was trying to find out more about the Serfas light, and I found this (Sept 2012) customer review:Lowest setting is plenty
I bought a True 150 this time instead of another True 250 because there is no need, ever, for anywhere near 250 lumens - it's way, way too bright.
The True 150's low beam is all the light anyone needs for any conceivable road use, whether city or dark country road. It's nice, in a way, I guess, to have the higher settings, but I can't imagine a situation where they are needed or even useful.
I wonder what this guy is using now? I ride with two 1200-lumen lights, one mounted on the bike, and one on my helmet. I usually run them at 200 and 300 lumens on streets, and sometimes just one at 100 when I have to mix with pedestrians on sidewalks (closed streets), but I generally kick them up on paved trails with no oncoming traffic, and I often have one full up on the rough, unpaved towpath. (I might want to avoid rolling over or into rocks, puddles, mud, deer, frogs, spiders (no threat to me, but why squish them?), goose poop, and lost bike lights.)I can't speak for off-road or trail use since I never do that kind of riding and do not know what those needs might be.
The mountain bikers are probably the driving force for brighter and brighter lights, but the road riders and commuters are buying them too. The farther you can see, the faster you can ride.
One reviewer must have bought his in Jan 2011 - I've been trying to figure out when this light was introduced.
Introduced August, 2010; $100 suggested retail.
[This entry was originally posted as https://syntonic-comma.dreamwidth.org/1058407.html on Dreamwidth (where there are
comments).]
The milk isn't supposed to be lumpy, sigh.
The jug said "SELL BY MAR 02", but usually this fridge is cold enough to ignore that. What came out looked like soupy cottage cheese with huge curds. It's fortunate that I first pour the milk into the bowl before I add the cereal, so I didn't lose the cereal to the bad milk.
I was hoping that today's commute would be warm enough to allow me to eat dry cereal with (cold) milk for breakfast. Hot oatmeal doesn't chill me before the ride, but it takes a lot of oatmeal - 3 servings, according to the box - and it takes a lot of time to eat that much oatmeal. And it gets kinda boring.
Thursday 23:41
Today was fine for riding in with a light jacket and shorts, and returning with an added fleece layer. Tomorrow should be even nicer.
I found a bike headlight on the C&O Canal towpath tonight, a Serfas True 150. It was on the ground pointed toward me, and its reflector reflected back my light. (When I stopped and walked back to see what it was, it looked like a turd from the other end. (Dog walkers are expected to pick up and pack out, so there's no poop on the path.)) It's a discontinued product, no longer on the Serfas website. With 150 lumens for its brightest setting, it is feeble by today's standards. (My headlights are 1200 lumens, and brighter lights are available.) USB charging, which is the norm now.
https://www.raysbike.com/product/serfas-tsl-150-true-light-headlight-77657-1.htm (best photo)
https://kylesbikes.com/serfas-true-standard-150-usb-headlight-713835022566.html
http://www.bikeroar.com/products/serfas/tsl-150-true-150-headlight-2012
It's not a bad size for a carry-around flashlight, and the beam is very useable. And replacement mounts (handlebar or helmet) are available. But I would like to get it back to the person who lost it.
The towpath is rough, so anything that isn't mounted very well can get bounced lose. I don't know how you don't notice losing a headlight if you're using it at night, but maybe this rider leaves work before dark. Or it's a spare light (redundant systems); maybe it fell out of a pannier that wasn't closed properly.
On the towpath, I also noticed a lot of inbound (motor) traffic on Canal Road, traffic that wasn't moving much. Traffic was backed up coming across Chain Bridge (from Virginia), and all the way up Glebe Road. All the way back to Glebe's intersection with the end of Williamsburg Blvd (the side street at our corner). (Checking traffic reports after I got home revealed that Route 123, the other Virginia feed to the bridge, was also clogged. Apparently not so bad farther out on Canal Rd, which is either coming from the Beltway on Cabin John Parkway, or coming from farther west outside the beltway.) Coming in on Canal Road, there's a flow split at Arizona Avenue (going north), and Canal Rd continues east into Georgetown. I hadn't noticed problems on that portion of Canal Rd, so maybe the congestion went up Arizona Ave. This kind of traffic doesn't happen after 21:00. I don't know what was going on.
Friday 22:09
Apparently that crazy traffic last night was a consequence of a tanker-truck spill on the beltway (I-495 crash). The critical western bridge over the Potomac was closed for hours. Chain Bridge is the nearest bridge going into DC; it's 3 lanes (1 inbound last night) while the beltway is 8 lanes. The nearest bridge the other direction is US 15, way way out (Leesburg?). There's also a ferry out there, but it's not going to make a dent on a beltway closure, and I doubt it runs all night.
Rob GouldIf this describes you, don't expect me to do anything to avoid hitting you, because I cannot see you:
- it is night
- your skin is dark
- your hair is black (no helmet)
- your clothes are black
- your bike is black
- you have no lights
- you have no reflectors
- you are riding the wrong way on a one-way street
- your street has a red light (that doesn't face your direction because you're riding the wrong way)
I put up a sign for the bike light I found last night. It's a rather nice light - underpowered by current standards, but I expect it was a star when it was a new product. Adequate for riding in dark places, and enough to make you visible/noticed in places better lit. A nice, classic beam pattern - a bright, circular center spot, and a broad circular spread to make you visible to side traffic. It would be a fine camping light, too. If I don't hear from the person who lost it, it would make a good backup headlight. (I'd need to get a handle bar mount and/or a helmet mount.)
Saturday 01:46
I was trying to find out more about the Serfas light, and I found this (Sept 2012) customer review:Lowest setting is plenty
I bought a True 150 this time instead of another True 250 because there is no need, ever, for anywhere near 250 lumens - it's way, way too bright.
The True 150's low beam is all the light anyone needs for any conceivable road use, whether city or dark country road. It's nice, in a way, I guess, to have the higher settings, but I can't imagine a situation where they are needed or even useful.
I wonder what this guy is using now? I ride with two 1200-lumen lights, one mounted on the bike, and one on my helmet. I usually run them at 200 and 300 lumens on streets, and sometimes just one at 100 when I have to mix with pedestrians on sidewalks (closed streets), but I generally kick them up on paved trails with no oncoming traffic, and I often have one full up on the rough, unpaved towpath. (I might want to avoid rolling over or into rocks, puddles, mud, deer, frogs, spiders (no threat to me, but why squish them?), goose poop, and lost bike lights.)I can't speak for off-road or trail use since I never do that kind of riding and do not know what those needs might be.
The mountain bikers are probably the driving force for brighter and brighter lights, but the road riders and commuters are buying them too. The farther you can see, the faster you can ride.
One reviewer must have bought his in Jan 2011 - I've been trying to figure out when this light was introduced.
Introduced August, 2010; $100 suggested retail.
[This entry was originally posted as https://syntonic-comma.dreamwidth.org/1058407.html on Dreamwidth (where there are
comments).]