Today my first hundred yards of cycling ended with me learning about
Snaking the city's drains. The guys in the truck were extending a 2500 foot! cable into our old neighborhood's concrete pipe sewer drains. The newer drains are purged with high pressure water, but the old drains get the Rotor Rooter treatment. Just like my house did earlier this week. I had a brief moment of panic, thinking that my dislodged sludge had gone into the street pipe and blocked it, but the city guy said no, those drains are a foot in diameter or more. No chance I could have caused a problem.
Somehow my random riding style took me over to a little spit of land surrounded by canyons and one-way streets. It's almost
The Land That Time Forgot. I once rented a 6-car garage over in this area, and then I went there frequently. Much to my surprise, I haven't been back in 10 years or more.
My favorite streets in that area were full of long, low mid-century houses like the one I live in. I'd hoped to buy one in the
LTTF, but never found the right place that I could afford. They have an awesome view of the city and the harbor.
Of course, no street is perfect, and in the intervening years since I was shopping, the houses have all been built up. Imagine the horror of the neighbors who were surprise to see this house spring up in front of their living room window which (formerly) looked out at the yacht basin.
Like many odd-ball houses, it's surrounded with chain link fencing, a trailer where the guard lives, and no recent signs of activity. I suspect things are tangled up with city permits and repeated appeals from the neighborhood.
In keeping with the Range Rovers spotted in several previous posts, I am contributing these two
Land Rover Discoveries. The owner of this house obviously believes (as I do) why stop with one great car if you can have more than one of them? But imagine the monthly fuel bills of a household with multiple 10-12 mpg vehicles - that could open your eyes wide!
I rode home on the major thoroughfare, and I'm happy to report I was able to pass that much younger guy cycling ahead of me. And stay ahead of him. A most pleasant surprise.
