Hamm's - By Request

Mower Bike!

A response from George in Baltimore to the preceding post :

At the Intersection of Lawnmower and Bicycle

This was forwarded by my nephew, Chris 'Beer Boy' Anderson, who's life title is something like Digital Media Marketing Mangler for the Toro company.

 A group of urban activists known as The Mower Gang have cleared the half-mile Detroit Velodrome track of weeds, beer cans, and other trash that kept bicycles away for decades. "It's really not about getting some 45-year-old guy a better place to ride his bike," said the Mower Gang's founder. "It's more about getting 10-, 12-, 13-year-old kids a better place to spend an afternoon.

Lawnmower, bicycle and good deed content! My question to Chris is, "Why are these people not using free Toro equipment? This is within your power. Use it."

Cambio Corsa Watercolor

Masini would like to buy a print of this painting. Anybody have a source?

Battle of the Elmores, James vs Leonard

Geri McShane

Lorna's friend, Geri died from breast cancer yesterday. The last time I saw her was back in April when she was over here writing a story on Lorna's family surviving breast cancer. Sad time.




Obit

Big Thanks to Big Mikey

I would like to thank Dr. Micheal White for this. For the single Canadian reader that I'm aware of, do not worry, I will be a stern, but fair master:

In her radio show, Dr Laura Schlesinger said that, as an observant Orthodox Jew, homosexuality is an abomination according to Leviticus 18:22, and cannot be condoned under any circumstance.

The following response is an open letter to Dr. Laura.

Dear Dr. Laura:

Thank you for doing so much to educate people regarding God's Law. I have learned a great deal from your show, and try to share that knowledge with as many people as I can. When someone tries to defend the homosexual lifestyle, for example, I simply remind them that Leviticus 18:22 clearly states it to be an abomination ... End of debate. 

I do need some advice from you, however, regarding some other elements of God's Laws and how to follow them.

1. Leviticus 25:44 states that I may possess slaves, both male and female, provided they are from neighboring nations. A friend of mine claims that this applies to Mexicans, but not Canadians. Can you clarify? Why can't I own Canadians?

2. I would like to sell my daughter into slavery, as sanctioned in Exodus 21:7. In this day and age, what do you think would be a fair price for her?

3. I know that I am allowed no contact with a woman while she is in her period of Menstrual uncleanliness - Lev.15: 19-24. The problem is how do I tell? I have tried asking, but most women take offense.

4. When I burn a bull on the altar as a sacrifice, I know it creates a pleasing odor for the Lord - Lev.1:9. The problem is my neighbors. They claim the odor is not pleasing to them. Should I smite them?

5. I have a neighbor who insists on working on the Sabbath. Exodus 35:2 clearly states he should be put to death. Am I morally obligated to kill him myself, or should I ask the police to do it?

6. A friend of mine feels that even though eating shellfish is an abomination, Lev. 11:10, it is a lesser abomination than homosexuality. I don't agree. Can you settle this? Are there'degrees' of abomination?

7. Lev. 21:20 states that I may not approach the altar of God if I have a defect in my sight. I have to admit that I wear reading glasses. Does my vision have to be 20/20, or is there some wiggle-room here?

8. Most of my male friends get their hair trimmed, including the hair around their temples, even though this is expressly forbidden by Lev.19:27. How should they die?

9. I know from Lev. 11:6-8 that touching the skin of a dead pig makes me unclean, but may I still play football if I wear gloves?

10. My uncle has a farm. He violates Lev.19:19 by planting two different crops in the same field, as does his wife by wearing garments made of two different kinds of thread (cotton/polyester blend). He also

tends to curse and blaspheme a lot. Is it really necessary that we go to all the trouble of getting the whole town together to stone them? Lev.24:10-16. Couldn't we just burn them to death at a private family

affair, like we do with people who sleep with their in-laws? (Lev. 20:14) I know you have studied these things extensively and thus enjoy considerable expertise in such matters, so I'm confident you can help.

Thank you again for reminding us that God's word is eternal and unchanging.

Your adoring fan.

James M. Kauffman, Ed.D. Professor Emeritus,
Dept. Of Curriculum, Instruction, and Special Education
University of Virginia PS (It would be a damn shame if we couldn't own a Canadian)

Remembered the Camera Today

 The trail follows an old rail bed which ran on the bottom of the valley so most of the time it is next to, or over moving water. Posted in order taken. Tried shooting from a moving bike with mixed results.

Green patchwork fields near Preston. Amish country

The trail north out of Preston along the South Branch

The Old Barn Cut, long and always cool

.

Trail nearing Lanesboro.

New paving. Brand new, eight feet wide,

flat and straight. Wind her up and timetrial
your ass off.

 Cut below the Ox Cart Road.

A lull in business at the Wursthaus. Arv on tuba, his wife on piano,
 and a regular who showed up just to play a little. Music played badly,
 but with passion.

Stopped to see Bill at his ice cream shop. He couldn't come out and play bikes because he was too busy selling ice cream cones. :-(   What the hell? He's retired from IBM. Why the hell is he selling ice cream cones instead of riding? ...with me?

The trail rolls over 48 bridges. Big bridges, small bridges, bridges spanning rivers and creeks, fast water and slow water. The fisherman below was working the confluence of the Root and the South Branch. Three years ago a flood wiped out 100 feet of high causeway to this bridge that had been there 150 years. It was rebuilt within a year. I watched him for a while because he had beautiful technique. Alas, skill does not always equal fish.

Hummingbirds, taken through the window while I was
on the porch killing peach pie ala mode with coffee.

World Famous Pies.  Great pies, bad music. When it was the Overland Inn, Overland advertised the "Best Music On the Trail" - blues piped in all day, every day. Now it's modern country of the worse ilk. 

The McLean when I stopped 10 miles from the car to check out an ever increasing noise, which proved to be a failing old Regina freewheel . It became a scraping grind, but made it all the way. 

Z-Man Pictures From New Yoork City

Roof top view.

Visp.

Bike Agenda Spins Cities Toward U.N. Control

Republican gubernatorial candidate Dan Maes is warning voters that Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper's policies, particularly his efforts to boost bike riding, are "converting Denver into a United Nations community."

"This is all very well-disguised, but it will be exposed," Maes told about 50 supporters who showed up at a campaign rally last week in Centennial.

Maes said in a later interview that he once thought the mayor's efforts to promote cycling and other environmental initiatives were harmless and well-meaning. Now he realizes "that's exactly the attitude they want you to have."

"This is bigger than it looks like on the surface, and it could threaten our personal freedoms," Maes said. continued

Calvin Russell

Sometimes early in the morning the face staring back at me over the bathroom sink looks old, tired and haggard. Puffy. Weatherbeaten. Bad.  But never as bad as this man looks, three years my junior.  Wanna look handsome? Hang out with ugly people.

Z-Man Report From the Big City

So it's been a while since my last shout so I'll give her all I got. A while back after riding down to boston on the back of a dirt bike, after kicking it hard in cape cod for the 4th (great time by the way, met back up with some dear friends from vail for tons of shenanagans in the ocean and islands around marthas vinyard),  after time in boston with another dear vail friend, I made my way down to the big apple. Had just a couple days planned with sara, amazing loud new yorker that had spent a month in vail, hooked up with a roommate of mine out there so she was practically a roommate as well. Situation was; she was paying double rent for july in the process of moving from manhattan to brooklyn so she had 2 rooms...reason enough to stick around for a while. I bought a $100 bike. A week turned into two. I knew it was time to get the fuck out and hike AT or some shit. Right before I'm about to make a move someone suggests that I give bike messenging a shot. Why the fuck not, right? So I apply a quite a few places. Turned down at all of them, I don't have enough experience. I finally decide that I will just have to lie, so I do and get the next job I apply for. Ding dong. In the process I buy a smart phone...need the maps for work. Bought another bike...super hipster fixed gear. It's not all complete, show it to you when it is. So I'm a new york city bike messenger. I have a boost mobile phone the a ring to dispatch with. They give me an address with a package, I pick it up and deliver it...on my bike, in manhattan. I see some of the coolest offices. One, chandeleer, is a huge open room with a buch a large apple computer and sculptures. Huge ones. A horse with bows and a wacky helecopter. Fuckin crazy shit. I take packages to and from, victoria secret, ABC, fuse channel, bath and body works headquarters, cosmo magazine. A lot of HD tapes for tv and a lot of prints from photography studios. I am always picking up packages from "major models" some modeling agency. There are always a bunch of beautiful people there. If someone is sitting waiting and they obviously aren't a model, I ask..."you a model?" We laugh, hasn't back fired yet. I secretly hope I'll be discovered delivering a package there. The mix of people that are messengers is interesting. Not a lot of super hip dudes. A lot of black dudes. Fun to shoot the shit with my brothers. I was riding up 6th ave around 40th to 5oth, a block east of times square, just ripping. Its 5 or 6 lanes here, another messenger comes along side and we start spinning fast. Weaving super tight traffic. I pick a faster line and pass him back. EEEYAW! He yells back and then we're ripping side by side pedaling our faces off. Diving in and out of a sea of yellow crown victoria yellow cabs. We go for 10,12 blocks like this just making yellows and then running reds. Fuck he was fast, but so am I. It feels so good to yell out in manhattan. The hoards of pedestrians standing in witness of a gay little sprint up an impossibly busy 6th ave. My man calls out that he's turning and I coast the next 3 city blocks. Fuck, when its good its good.

I've been at it for a week and a half now. It's pretty solo work. Just me and my bike, a cranky dispatcher and clueless folks making a shitload of money in swank new york offices who need their shit somewhere else in manhattan right away. I couldn't sustain life as I live it right now, messenging doesn't pay shit. Jack shit. Last week I grossed $240 before taxes. Fuck me right? I applied to a different place and got the job, don't know if I'll take it, might be just as devoid of earnings. I guess if my real goal was to be making money I would go at it some other way...just wish it weren't SO shitty.

Anyway, living in a new place in brooklyn, moved my backpack and bikes over here yesterday. I live in a nook loft accessable by ladder for 600 a month, pretty outrageous, cheap for here though. It's a big place though, very old industrial. The deal sealer is the roof, full manhattan view. I'll try and post a photo with my fancy ass phone. Having a droid is like having a two cocks, I just gotta make sure I'm not playing with my second cock too much.

 Anyway. India after a bit then I'll be good and broke.  I keep riding around thinking I might see a McLean chained to a pole, but alas, I never do.

Anyway, some photos. The track bike is a visp. Gaudy (sp?)? Yes, but I just have to dial in a no handed wheelie on a fixed gear. The one I ride around the city is a kona with a front brake and freewheel. Its got like a 40/18 on it so my spin is amazing right now. $100 bike with a $100 lock. That's nyc.