"Sometime in July"

Work continues on the Haile Plantation extension of Archer Braid Trail, but the project is behind schedule with completion anticipated "sometime in July." Some of the heaviest excavation has taken place along sections of SW 91st Street where much of the activity has been centered recently.

Being Memorialized

I’ve been remiss in keeping up with postings here while I resolved some of the questions raised when I was asked about aging in Gainesville. A moment of indignation turned into months of introspection because the concept of aging isn’t the same as the reality. Eventually, something of worth emerged and had been published in the May edition of "Senior Times" magazine. There’s a link to the digital version on their home page
 (http://www.seniortimesmagazine.com/). Free, analog versions of the magazine are widely available locally at Publix and other locations.

An editorial observation about the piece in Senior Times; the images are not mine. They are stock photos.

Unrelated news is the 2014 version of the National Bike Challenge, sponsored by the League of American Bicyclists. From May through September individuals record their daily mileage. Affiliation with bike clubs, workplace and community is recorded and, especially with bike clubs, competition becomes fierce. Gainesville Cycling Club buried all competition last year and is maintaining a firm grip on first place.

Archer Braid Trail is Growing

If you haven't ventured down Tower Road recently you might not be aware that ABT is coming.

Archer Braid Trail makes Haile Village more accessible

Getting to Haile Village is a three mile ride mostly on the paved path winding its way through the Plantation’s neighborhoods and I do it boldly, despite the warn sign telling me the path is a benefit for residents and guests, only. I figure the Farmers’ Market in the Village is an open invitation.

When the current extension to Archer Braid Trail is completed access to the Village will be dramatically easier as will the ride to Archer. Memorial Park will be a fine alternative to using the YMCA parking area on Archer Road and the new section will add an additional couple of miles.

Haile meets ABT

Ninety-first Terrace is the Main Street of the Village; it’s where the Market appears on Saturdays and where much of the Village’s other “content” is located. With improved access provided by ABT it makes the eateries located there much more convenient destinations for anyone wanting to venture out on a bike. It’ll be possible to ride to Haile, indulge in snacks, a meal or just dessert and work some of the calories off getting back to the Park.
Haile Village may not be specifically bicycle friendly, but traffic is seldom a problem, amenities are easily accessible and there are widely spaced racks and abundant flyparking options. After the Market the most relevant amenity I might consider using me is dining, though it’s been a long time since I have availed myself of the opportunities.

Haile Village Bistro is a starting point for many Gainesville Cycling Club (GCC) rides so you can assume they are friendly or tolerant of bicycle riders. They’re open daily at 0700 offering light breakfast and complete lunch and dinner entrees until 11pm weekdays and 1AM on Saturday and Sunday. Their menu runs from deli sandwiches to Middle Eastern inspired Kabobs. English Pub food is also on the menu, but in my opinion it should only be ordered in the attached Queen’s Arms Pub; Fish and Chips, Shepherd’s Pie and Bangers and Mash have always been very good. Fish and Chips’ll cost you $12 and will be worth the price.

Queen's Arms Pub

Haile Village Bistro

There is a rack across the street from the Pub and a wrought iron fence around the outdoor seating of the Bistro. Neither is the ideal way to accommodate bikes, but both serve the purpose and unless the weather is oppressively hot or unpleasantly cool, outdoor seating is a good thing.


Sisters is no longer open for dining. It is catering only. Alas.

patticakes is a confection destination but not nearly as bicycle friendly as it oughta be. With an abundance of carbohydrates available it’s a great place to indulge in extremes. Haven’t visited since soon after they opened so I’ve no idea how much a designer cupcake goes for. I do recollect that whatever I paid was justified by the taste.
Only flyparking is available using various trees and signs, but this is less than ideal.


Cacciatore is an oddity. It’s a catering company that makes pizza and other typical pizzeria fare from 5pm to 9 mp on Thursdays and Fridays. Its prices are competitive and reviews suggest they make good stuff. It fits outside the general idea of bicycle friendly. Maybe I’ll stop by for a piece some evening and have more to say about it. I'll even add a picture when i do.


Limerock Road used to be something else and it was something else when I ate there. Billed as “the Neighborhood Grill you’ve been searching for” it may be just hat, preposition notwithstanding. Like any good Neighborhood Grill in the Home of the gators, it offers Happy Hour whenever the Gators play. It’s not clear whether that is just football or includes lacrosse, softball, basketball, et cetera. The lunch menu shows a host of handheld Grill-type options for lunch and more worldly items for dinner. Lunch will cost about $10 and for dinner you’ll need more than $10 and less than $20 for a meal.
Limerock has an adequate bike rack and there are numerous flyparking options should the rack be full.


South Garden and Limerock Road are in the same nook at the North end of the Village. South Garden offers typical items at competitive prices. As with Cacciatore, I’ll ride by some afternoon and taste what they offer. They’re open Tuesday through Friday for lunch (11am – 2pm) and dinner (5pm – 8:30pm) and for dinner only; Monday, Saturday and Sunday (5pm – 8:30pm).
Adequate flyparking is available and Limerock’s rack is nearby.

With parking available at Memorial Park, ABT should become more heavily used than it is already and the possibility of a stop in Haile Village makes it even more appealing.

Improvise

What do you do with a bucketful of 4 inch C Clamps?


Clamps and fencing.

Consider options.

Add stuff.

Give her a Cat Walk.

Archer Braid Trail Construction

Work on the next section of the Archer Braid Trail has commenced in ernest. Utility work at the entrance to Kanapaha Park on Tower Road was extensive, but has been completed.
Ground has been well broken where the Haile portion of the Trail meets Archer Road.

Whether it’s cold or whether it’s hot, we’ll have weather, whether or not.

I am aware that my opinion doesn’t count for much except to me, but the Internet makes it possible for any damn fool to have a forum. Mostly, my personal forum is about bikes and using local resources. Coming further south and leaving the Exurbs of Atlanta means that I was not trapped in the Amazing Weather Event of ’14. Instead, I ride year round, have an abundance of fresh produce well within riding distance and I don’t have to put up with snow. This posting isn't about either.

It’s easy for Yankees who are familiar with cold weather and driving in the snow to be disdainful of a city like Atlanta being immobilized by less than 2 inches. After experiencing my first winter weather in the South I realized that showing my transplanted-Yankee-icy-road-driving-prowess was badly misplaced because of the too large number of unskilled drivers who braved the cold and ice while turning me, other drivers and assorted inanimate objects into unintended targets.

Atlanta has virtually no geographical limits to its expansion, has inadequate mass transit to accommodate the people who live within the Atlanta metropolitan area (as designated by United States Office of Management and Budget) and no means for commuting from beyond the metro area other than highways and cars. So, when something compounds the commute, like foul weather, bad things are sure to happen.

Weather projections were more than adequate for the recent “disaster” but as is often true, especially among Atlanta city officials, the fear of looking bad was a part of their decision making process. Atlanta for all its desire to be an international city has an inferiority complex and bad press is especially upsetting, or so it seems. The governor hastened to suggest that the Weather Service warnings were inconsistent, yet the entire metro area was placed under a warning long before schools and businesses opened. There was no lack of forewarning only lack of good sense. The governor feared the potential loss of revenue if business closed and gave no regard to the thousands of kids and tens of thousands of commuters who suffered.

Maybe the governor wasn’t living in Atlanta and environs for Snowjam ‘82 or the sleet and ice in January of 1988 or the Blizzard of ’93. I was. It sucked every time. Staying home might be an inconvenience and it might make the area look wimpy to snow-veteran northerners, but it keeps the roads from turning into temporary residential communities. Took me hours to drive less than 10 miles during the ’82 Snowjam, not because I could not handle conditions but because of the gridlock of cars. Kids miss one more day of school and businesses don’t open; seems better than the aftermath of this recent foolishness. The National Weather Service and the Weather Channel had everything correct. And if looking wimpy to snow-skilled Yankees is an issue just watch how they handle the next week-long 90 plus degree days.

Bikes, Coffee and Biscotti

I'm not a Vegan and I've never played one on TV, nor have I recently stayed at a Holiday Inn Express.

When I visit the Haile Farmers' Market I don't go with the intention of buying something from one of the several vendors offering Vegan products. I have my favorites and staples: Caprihaven Dairy Goats; Cypress Point Creamery; Tree City Coffee; Firefly Farm and Cross Creek Honey. Additionally, there's always a good chance that one of the local growers will have some appealing produce which can include Southern Peas, Romanesco, scallions, peppers, carrots and other things depending upon the season. Recently I've added another favorite; Sweet Thursdays Cafe, another cottage kitchen making something worth getting.

Having something to add to a morning-break cup of coffee is pleasant and biscotti are frequently the perfect thing. Christy the owner and baker of Sweet Thurdays makes a damn good biscotto which is like a step back to childhood when you dunked everything . . . well . . . I did!

This week I chose two 2 packs of her Double Chocolate. Last week it was Cherry Chocolate. I have never cared much for hard bits of stuff in dunkable confections, so nuts, typical to many commercial biscottis, while acceptable, don't win full favor. I was pleased with Christy's offerings.

Lest anyone question the relationship between Coffee and Bikes . . .

Archer Braid Trail prepares to meet Haile Plantation

It appears that utility work has advanced for the extension of Archer Braid Trail from its current terminus at SW 91st Street to the eastern end of SW 41st Place where a large spool of wire is awaiting use. Trees were cut several weeks ago and excavation markings have been place on the south side of 41st Place where it meets Tower Road.

East to the end of SW 41st Place near Chapman's Pond, GRU's Kanapaha Water Reclamation Facility and UF's TREEO Center.

SW41st Place at Tower Road across from Kanapaha Park.

It will be very interesting to see the solution for ABT crossing Archer Road.

ABT west to Archer.

Paved trail from SW 91st end of current ABT to SW 75th Terrace, paralleling Archer Road.

Coffee, Again

Maybe I am too old and I miss the point, but there seems to be something wrong in the world of personal coffee brewing. It’s not that I think I am an authority on coffee; I know what I like but I know that preferences are personal. What I don’t understand is why people are embracing top-dollar single cup coffee makers.

The most common reason for their use and popularity is convenience. Yet, the amount of additional waste created for the sake of spending less time making a cup of coffee seems to be extreme. I’m not a “tree hugger” but I have accepted responsibility for the waste I produce for the convenience of not making my own soup from scratch or food for my cat. I don’t keep a goat or cow out back so I can have milk without using having to buy plastic bottled products. Seems to me that there’s a range of convenience; some things are practical and others come closer to being a matter of disregard for reality. That the big name Keurig can be fitted with a reusable device thus eliminating the need for disposable containers makes more sense.

I hadn’t paid any attention before and was stunned when I saw the cost of the little prefilled coffee things for the Keurig; almost $10 for 4.2 ounces of coffee? Fifty dollars a pound for coffee? Does the desire for variety of choice justify paying that much for convenience? I bet it’d be much cheaper to buy some imitation hazelnut flavoring or ground cinnamon in the spice section of a grocery store.
Makes no sense for me to promote that idea that there are much less expensive single cup coffee makers; $12 versus $100. As with everything, it’s about personal preference and choice. I drove English sports cars (’66 and ’67 MGB) in a past life and there weren’t too many less practical vehicles in the cold and wet than cars with Lucas electrics.

The bottom line, as we tend to say now, is that it makes no sense to add additional plastic to our waste. My Kitchen Selective single cup coffee maker with a reusable filter makes coffee equal to the single cup French press I formerly used. Water is heated to 190 degrees. I can use as much or as little coffee of any variety. I can add flavorings if I wish. And the coffee, roasted locally, costs me $10 a pound.