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Three Speed Get Together, 10 June 2024 (and the status of the Three Speed Tour)

Hello, friends of Three Speeds! Pedalpalooza, Portland’s summer-long celebration of bicycle fun, will soon be upon us. It’s a good time to host a three speed event, as there are a lot of eyeballs on the calendar. I thought I might muster up the energy to do another Three Speed Tour to Oregon City, the one and only ride happened five years ago. But my summer is lining up to be quite busy. If all…

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Adding a couple watches to the collection that appeal to my inner teenager

With a couple exceptions, I’ve worn a wristwatch since I was eight. I went through a few phases in those forty years, starting with what would be cool to a 1980’s boy (Frogger watch! 1 Calculator watch!), then Casio G-Shock when I was a teen, then a long phase of analog dial, Indiglo-enabled Timexes. (Timexii?) After a frustrating attempt at battery replacement a couple years ago, I asked for my…

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Journal Comic, 1 May 2024: Okay

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Do you have a commuting boundary?

Risley Landing, 20 April 2024. Canonet QL17 GIII/Fomapan 400 Recently over at Carfree Rambles, Stasia talked about a job listing that interested her, but that the distance from her house–over 20 miles–made it too far for her to consider applying, no matter how good the position could be. I realize that 20+ miles is not so super far for maybe an average American commute which is done by car. In…

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On the ends and potential beginnings of blogging eras

Baltimore Woods, 30 March 2024. Olympus OM-1n, OM Zuiko 35-70mm f/3.5-4.5, Kodak Pro Image 100 It’s a topic I’ve brought up before: There was once a great number of bicycle blogs that concentrated on everyday, urban cycling. When I really got into blogging at the end of 2010 (this blog had been launched five years before, but up until then I posted sporadically and haphazardly), I was motivated…

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Tweed Ride 2024 Report: The end of an era

Portland Tweed Ride group portrait at Overlook Park, 21 April 2024. Ricohflex Dia TLR/Kodak Gold 200, cropped from the original. Portland’s Tweed Ride started in 2010. This was the year a lot of Tweed Rides around the world started up, as the original London Tweed Run happened the year before. There was a lot of enthusiasm in 2010, and the crew of ride leaders for that one did a good job in…

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On the mental geography of a city

From Waud Bluff, 31 March 2021. Olympus OM-1n/OM Zuiko 35-70mm zoom/Kodak Pro Image 100 A couple weeks ago Jonathan Maus over at BikePortland posted about the “PDX Sidewalk Joy” map, a guide created by a few people highlighting the weird, interesting, and cool things that can be found on Portland sidewalks. I always love stuff like this, as does Jonathan. I think he was expecting a “Wow! Cool!”…

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On cult bicycles and Bromptons

Mount Tabor, 18 March 2024. ashica YF–Yashinon 50mm f/1.8–Kodak Portra 160 Since I got my Brompton 2 1/2 years ago, my radar has become more attuned to what’s being said about this eccentric British folding bike. Some of this is because I sought it out, especially when I was trying to figure out how to bring my Brompton to Japan. And some I just come across because I follow the blogs of a few…

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On growing older, finding the energy to do what you love, and bike camping

12 April 2024. Olympus OM-1n–OM Zuiko 50mm f/1.8–Kodak Portra 160 It’s Tuesday April 23rd. If I had stuck to my plans, I’d be waking up at Ainsworth State Park in the Columbia Gorge, on my first bike camping expedition of the year. But instead, I’m at home. What exactly got me here, or more correctly, what didn’t get me there? The weather is beautiful, sun and highs around 70F/21C, so that’s no…

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Vintage vs. new in "analog" hobbies

Last month Danny over on the Fountain Pen Chronicles lamented the decline of the vintage fountain pen hobby. Interest in vintage pens is waning at a time when interest in fountain pens is growing. Why is this? …Society and its love affair with the BSO syndrome (Bright Shiny Objects) … it is all about the latest and greatest new stuff, the desire to have the first, changing taste, the love of a…

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Where have all the "urban knickers" gone?

Me rockin’ a pair of Aero-Tech Designs knickers at Overlook Park, 18 Sept 2023. Camera: Olympus XA2 Film: Lomography LomoChrome Color 92 (ISO 400) From time to time I’ve lamented the lack of practical bikes on the market. When I really got this blog going in late 2010, it seemed like we were on the cusp of a Practical Bike Revolution, where smartly provisioned steeds would carry us all through…

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A reflection of my Austin visit, 3-11 April 2024

Downtown Austin skyline, 4 April 2024. Olympus XA/Kodak ColorPlus 200 From April 3 through 11th, Emee and I were in Texas, with the majority of that time spent in Austin. This is the third time I’ve visited the state’s capital. The first was in 2005, right after spending part of the winter in Tucson. The second was in 2018, when Emee, her kids, and I visited during Thanksgiving. I’ve been…

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Three months in with the Yashica YF, and a reflection on my rangefinder stable

Well, look at that: A vintage rangefinder with a fancy leather bag. So…urban. On my birthday last August, Emee gifted me a Yashica YF rangefinder. It needed some TLC before I could really go to town with it, so I dropped it off at Advance Camera and picked it up after I got back from Tokyo in January. The Yashica YF is a pretty rare circa 1959 machine that uses interchangeable lenses with the…

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Austin Trip 2024: Journal Comic Report

Hey all, just got back from Texas. Yesterday was brutal: We were supposed to catch an 8:30 AM (CDT) flight out of Austin, connect at San Diego, and then get into Portland around 1 PM PDT. But that flight leaving Austin got delayed by seven hours, necessitating two reschedules of the connecting flight. We didn’t get into Portland until 11 PM! Add to that waiting for an hour for baggage that never…

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Journal Comix, 10-11 April 2024: Austin and the eclipse

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Relief map of the Driftless Area, USA

by u/mushroomgnome

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Viewing the solar eclipse deep in the heart of Texas

Hello, folks. I’m currently in Austin. Emee and I came down here late last week. While Emee always has an excuse to visit this Texas town, as she lived here before moving to Portland and still has friends here, this time we came here specifically because of the eclipse. While Portland was just outside the totality portion of the 2017 eclipse, I was stuck at work, only catching 97%. While this is…