82. Spring

Typical spring commute today; squinting left eye from the sun; squinting right eye to keep out the rain.

81. Flat Tire, Again

Made it to the bus okay, but when I took it off the rack, the tire was flat.  So I had to walk the bike up the hill (you, it's just as hard to walk a bike up a steep hill as it is to ride it?)

This time, though, I was ready.  Inspired by responses to Singlespeed's lament about flat tires, I had left a patch kit and pump at work.  Twenty minutes later (33% faster than last time) I was ready to go.

80. Bad News

My imagination or are my $80 water resistant bicycle pants letting water pass through?

I stop off at REI and a find a clerk.  I'm glad it's a woman; the men tend to be condescending, as in, "hey gramps, great to see you out on a bike; that's awesome man."

She confirms that yes, these pants have a collective coating that does wear off.  I guess I can make it through the rainy season.  Nothing lasts for ever.  And I didn't pay $80; I got them on sale or something.

79. Photo ID

As I angled through the intersection, a flash of light caught my eye.  I knew what it was--the same light a few years ago in Portland left me with a ticket for running a red light.

This time though, there's no license plate to match.  But face recognition?

It took the British cops in The Tourist just a few minutes to match a face to a passport picture.  So, though I may have slipped by this time, I need to get a new passport photo, one without me wearing my bike helmet.