Torn Between Two Worlds

Yesterday I went out on a dolphin safari. It was great. Let me just give you one image of the overall context. You can imagine the sounds and smells on your own.

Compared to the average roadway in today's busy cities, this is a pretty attractive alternative to cycling.

But I am still out riding this morning. I took the Paramount and rode hilly streets. I can tell I am getting stronger - and my confidence has increased that I can power over the hill and not expire!

In the middle of this ride I saw a van so brilliantly green that I had to share it with someone. So here:

The massive black patch on the roof is not a sunroof, but an area that was probably once a camper conversion pop-up unit. It's now filled with metal, painted black. Overall, I thought it looked very nice. Since it was by a little park, I took the chance to ride around on the grass for awhile before taking this photo. Then it was back on the streets again.

The road in this shot looks nice and flat, but it doesn't reflect the average condition of our streets. Just before I took this photo I hit a pavement joint that was so high the shock made my teeth chatter. Since our neighborhood is about 100 years old, it's possible to do street repair archeology on my bike rides, and examine the generations of repairs on top of repairs on top of repairs - the streets are never made right again.

I know, I am a whiner.

Here's a shot to take your mind off the ugly asphalt jungles of San Diego. These dolphin are the same distance from my lens as the pavement is in the photo of the street!

If this is intriguing, why not take a moment to see them in action? Pull your feet back first, or they will get wet.