Slow Mo

I had the best time on my birthday, on foot, taking public transportation.  I took the Glendale Beeline bus to Glendale Community College and walked up Sunshine Drive.  It was a steep hill.  I walked through winding neighborhoods, eating Animal Crackers.  I ran downhill to just miss the NoHo to Pasadena express bus, which was okay because I got a sandwich and ate it while waiting for the next bus.

I boarded the bus at its Glendale stop and got off at Memorial Park in Pasadena just 6 minutes later.  I walked down the staircase to catch the Gold Line and had a nice chat with a friend who also happened to be waiting for the train.  It was only 2 stops to Allen station.  I got off the light rail and walked down to Pasadena City College campus.  I was out all day, and I got a headache from either stress relief or dehydration, but in the end I was glad that I gave myself the time and invitation to slow down and enjoy life for the day.

Last Friday, I took the Metrolink to California State University Northridge.  I rode with a guy who was taking Metrolink for the first time in his life.  He had a career as a limo driver and knew the freeway system better than most people.  In his opinion, the current freeway system cannot accommodate the population of Southern California.  The best we can do is exercise imminent domain, paying market value for people's houses and businesses, to add one or two more lanes to the existing freeway systems.  This will, in his experience, never be able to address our growing population.  The answer, as he sees it, is to get more people taking buses, light rail, and trains.  He also had his bicycle on the train and was planning to get off at Van Nuys and ride about 5 miles to Sherman Oaks.

It was so refreshing to see another person taking transit that seems to "get" the situation like I see it.  I didn't tell him anything about myself, he just let loose with his life experiences.  It was refreshing and part of the reason we think it's so important that cyclists have a dedicated bicycle car on every train. Those recent transit adventures reminded me of Kelly Kearns, who gave up her car for a full 60 days. There's nothing like it to help you appreciate mobility, two legs, two arms, two ears, two eyes, two lungs, and one heart all working together to get you around town.

I've been reeling over a set of maps published in The Washington Post showing our world's natural resources and the effects of climate change.  Los Angeles is part of the SF-LA megacity that drives the gross domestic product (GDP) of the entire United States.  We absolutely need to continue investing in the transit infrastructure to prevent our city from pollution, gridlock, and health issues.  I was meditating this weekend and the only concept that helped me reach a calm, peaceful state of mind was the color green.

Fostering more gardens and less concrete, biking more and driving less, recycling and conservation; these are all ideas that can help us live more sustainably on this planet.  I'm not saying we can reverse the damage we've already done, but I think that there are things we can all do to enjoy what we have now.  We watched the movie Valley Uprising this weekend, about rock climbing in Yosemite National Park.  We also watched some Huell Howser on Starr Ranch in Orange County.  It's difficult to imagine a changing climate that would drive out the plants and animals living in California. Prolonged drought and increased development will lead to such a future where the state I love is no longer habitable.

I hope we can plan an escape for Bike to your National Park day, September 24th.  If you're planning something, let us know where you're going.  Try to completely eliminate the need for a car if you can. Challenge yourself!  Take it slow, enjoy the journey.