Non Sign II advertising nothing at Peace Arch Park

Rather than being bombarded with commercial messages, this sculpture, commissioned by the US government, basically encases fresh air. Was installed in 2011.

From Wikipedia: A large public art installation entitled "Non-Sign II" was erected near the crossing booths. The art piece is a 'blank space' in the shape of a billboard sign, surrounded by a mass of twisted metal rods. Click on photo to enlarge.

Viewed on my way back from Vancouver in the Nexus Lane. I have a Nexus card even though I'm bicycling and I don't even go up to Canada that often. It's a long story, but I can tell it here.

They now require enhanced Washington State (drivers or non drivers) ID, Nexus or passport to cross the border. I don't have a passport and the year that the enhanced ID requirement went into effect the Washington State Department of Motor Vehicles was a madhouse. In Bellingham, it was by appointment only and booked clear till after that summer. Summer of 2009, so I decided to get a Nexus instead. It costs a bit more, but lasts 5 years. Nexus is pre screened and usually just a hello at the border. Fewer questions.

Now the enhanced ID is easier to get as the crowds have subsided after the switch over, but I've already got my Nexus.

Whatcom Transit Authority bus took me to Blaine on this latest trip Sept 16 2011. Then I biked to the Skytrain station at King George Highway. Skytrain took me and my bike on into Vancouver where I went dancing, that evening and stayed in a hotel. Next day I rode around downtown on peripheral bike paths at Coal Harbor and False Creek. Then took Skytrain back out to King George Highway. From there I biked back to Bellingham, WTA service in Whatcom County is very limited on Saturday.

Trying to prop up middle class with tax breaks doesn't work especially when there are few middle class jobs

Ever increasing tax breaks for families eclipse benefits for special interests reads headline in Washington Post and as government revenues decline, more middle class jobs go on the chopping block.

I say maybe it's time to stop trying to prop up the middle class with tax breaks. The problem is, there aren't enough "family wage" jobs so the middle class is disappearing anyway. More tax breaks may just exacerbate this problem by robbing governments of needed revenue, thus causing said governments to eliminate more middle class jobs as well as the funding for needed infrastructure which helps the private sector create jobs.

The middle class is declining because there aren't enough jobs that pay a mid level "family wage." In the private sector, it seems like the bulk of the jobs are low wage while a few extremely high wage jobs reside at the top. This contributes to growth at bottom and top of wage scales, but not much in the middle class.

Government tends to be a "last bastion" of middle class jobs. The jobs that are reasonably well paid for teachers and so forth. Many of these jobs are on the chopping block.

How can we bring back the middle class? That's a puzzle for sure. Put on your thinking cap.

Taxing the rich and redistributing that wealth to lower income people might get us part way there, but i doubt this solution would get us that far.

Another way to bring back the middle class might be to "grow the economy." Yes, rev up the economy. In an economic boom, wages eventually go up. One hears that a rising tide floats all boats.

This is a popular solution, but it's problematic as well.

Does the rising economy also push up prices? Does the gap between rich and poor just get wider and life becomes even more unaffordable for those close to the bottom?

Also one has to look at the environmental ramifications of a booming economy.

I'm not necessarily against increasing prosperity if changes in technology can provide this without destroying the environment. It's a solution we have to be careful with however.

Another solution might be to make living at low wage jobs more dignified. Maybe low wages are here to stay, so how can one still live, and even thrive, in spite of not being middle class?

Learning to live without the automobile, for instance. Can save lots of money.

Also healthier lifestyles. Living healthier so there can be less need for costly medical care.

Living in smaller, more dense residential settings is another part of this solution.

A lot of creative planning can go into what people call "downshifting."

All these solutions have some pluses and minuses, but at least we're using our thinking caps.

Tax breaks for the middle class are popular, but probably not such a good idea. For instance, the interest deduction on home mortgages is designed to, supposedly, make home ownership more affordable. Problem is, it may just toss money into the market, thus inflating the cost of houses. Government looses the tax revenue while house prices inflate. Home ownership is not necessarily any more affordable.

I hear that the mortgage deduction does not exist in Canada yet the percent of population being able to own a home is still comparable to USA.

Another problem with this deduction is that the high end houses get more. It tends to support McMansions for the wealthy as well as houses for the average person.

There are proposals to phase out the home mortgage deduction, or at least make it less available to "high end" homes. For instance as recommended by the Bowles-Simpson Commission.

Many of the tax breaks, designed for the middle class, end up doing more to help the wealthy in the long run as inflation and bracket creep take place.

Of course we should discuss more taxes on the wealthy, but as some Republicans point out, this might not net that much total revenue. How much total revenue can we squeeze out of just 1 percent of the population?

I'm for taxing the rich, but I realize it may not be a panacea in terms of revenue. Taxing the rich is very important, symbolically however. If the rich get off with low taxes, others become cynical.

If nothing else, taxing the rich creates the feeling of a more level playing field. That could do wonders for people's attitude and sense of fairness, if nothing else.

Still, the middle class (especially the upper middle class) is where a large chunk of the money still resides. We may have to look here if we want to increase revenue.

The main thing that would help the middle class is not more tax breaks, but an economy that creates more middle class jobs. Figuring out how to do that is the real challenge.

The skids to default are greased

Quite a coincidence that the nation now likely to skid into default which has people worried about the contagion affect is Greece. The skids to default for many nations are being "greased," or actually Greeced. A new slang term in economics? One of my brainstorms.

Short video of Sahalie Falls

On the McKenzie River northeast of Eugene, Oregon. Taken on my 2011 bicycle tour.

Photo of falls.

Feeling of abundance and generosity creates wealth, not the Tea Party slogan of "hang onto your money"

We're in a retrenchment mood, especially with the Tea Party Republicans.

Can't afford this, can't afford that.

The wealthy have lots of money, but most of them seem to be too uptight to invest it in much, except treasury bonds. It doesn't create a lot of jobs to manufacture a treasury bond. Treasuries just fund the government which really should be funded by collecting enough taxes. The catch with funding government through treasuries is that these instruments, supposedly, need to be paid back.

The rich are afraid and uptight about other private investments since they could loose money. There's less middle class buying power to create markets for investments in companies that sell products and services. It's a vicious cycle. A mood of retrenchment.

If society wants to go down this road, at least we could learn to better deal with less. Downsize and live with less affluence.

I don't see people adapting to this easily even though there are many notable "downshifting" movements. Most folks are still under pressure to be prosperous every time the rent is due. Costs of living are still high. Many of the products and services that people make are inexpensive, but other costs such as housing, health care, education and corporate executive salaries are still unsustainable.

As the uptight money interests; the corporations and Tea Party lead governments, want to cut back, the whole thing goes down into depression. Maybe everything will be brought down. Ruled by fear and holding onto your treasury bonds. Eventually treasuries may go belly up also.

We need to get past this uptight period and recreate the spirit of generosity. Possibly spending more, instead of less. Even if it means printing money, if we want prosperity. Scientific research is one avenue toward new wealth. I listened to a real interesting segment on NPR Science Friday. It's about how basic research is needed for new kinds of wealth in the future. There are worries that the current mood of retrenchment may bring down the hope we've had for a long time that life keeps getting better for us and future generations.

I take a 2 pronged approach to economics. Learn to live and even thrive with less, if that's what's being thrown at us by the environment and economic conditions. At the same time, maybe we can use science, planning and other things to get to even greater, or at least greener, wealth in the future.

The whole definition of what constitutes wealth is also important. Wealth in quality of life, or wealth in better products and services. Maybe we can learn to better enjoy what we've got, but at the same time do what it takes to bring the better products and services.

A more fair distribution of wealth needs to be part of the picture also. How can there be mass markets for businesses to serve if the middle class is disappearing?

I don't think the Tea Party is going to get us to any of these goals. It's just going to make us want more while having less. As the wealthy hold onto their wealth, the feeling of generosity vanishes. Generosity being replaced by a Tea Party mantra of "we're broke."

Decline of middle class. Sour grapes. Middle class was hard to enter in Bellingham anyway

Finding what people call a "real job" has not been easy for several decades here in Bellingham, WA. Perceived livability of this city means competition for "professional type" jobs has been fierce be it university faculty, or whatever. People with vast truckloads of credentials have eyed job openings for years ready to move into Bellingham from all over the world.

Now, many other parts of the country are joining Bellingham's tight market conditions for middle class jobs. It's kind of like the rest of the country can say, "we are Bellingham now."

Still, a lot of local people have survived and even thrived over the years with somewhat different expectations than the traditional "American dream." Innovations based on sustainable living and things like bicycle culture can keep expenses down while social connectedness is high. Some call Bellingham the last holdout of the hippies, but there are actually lots of counterculture currents in other parts of the country as well as the world.

On the surface, it looks like the middle class has been strong in Bellingham. With at least 3 major institutions of higher learning there has been a large percentage of the local workforce employed in state type jobs at places like Western Washington University. Also a lot of people choose to retire here, so they often still own homes and have incomes from employment in the other regions where they lived before retirement.

Our local private sector has not been as strong at creating family wage jobs as private sector employment has been in, say major metropolitan markets like Seattle. Still there is some mix of manufacturing, consulting and medical employment. As with a lot of places, Bellingham has lost several large manufacturing employers, such as Georgia Pacific Pulp and Paper mill. A few new manufacturing outfits have started up, but like in much of the country, those jobs are often outsourced or automated.

The rest of USA seems to be catching up with Bellingham's precarious middle class as economic conditions keep changing. It can be depressing, but it also means this country is going through a transition. We're in a paradigm shift that none of us really seem to understand that well.

Many forces are working against the statuesque of middle class America these days. Cuts in government spending are high on the list. Also the middle class is weakened by tax policies that have been tipping away from "sliding scale income tax." Tax policies are tipping more toward favoring the wealthy.

While these things seem more obvious as time goes on, people still tend to vote Republican much of the time. Hard to imagine, since Republicans are usually cold to the concept of "graduated income tax."

Still, there's more to this than just the politics. We are definitely in a transition that neither Republicans or Democrats can manage. Technology and automation creates some new opportunities, but it also eliminates the need for lots of formerly middle class jobs. For instance, people can now book travel online rather than using the services of a travel agent; thus meaning less jobs for travel agents. There are thousands of examples of this all across the economy.

Some folks might vote Republican as a case of "sour grapes." They say, "if we're struggling in the private sector, why do state employees still get such good benefits?"

Other factors hurting the middle class are environmental issues. People often don't like to see virgin lands bulldozed for new subdivisions of middle class homes, yet as population grows, new folks need places to live.

Automobiles are a great convenience, but global warming and peak oil has been lapping at car culture for years. I even remember a book that came out in the 1970s with the title "Death of the Automobile."

Middle class homes and cars are getting harder to come by.

No doubt we need to do things a lot differently as paradigm shifts continue into the future. While changes can be rough, there is a lot of innovation in lifestyles, business practices and government. There's lots of innovation here in Bellingham as well as in other places.

Many pioneers are finding ways to create sustainable culture and economics. Finding ways that sit well with the environment. Also finding ways to benefit from new technologies while still being able to pay the bills. It's all a challenge. A brighter, tho different, future is still possible.

Below posted in 2009.

700 applicants for a custodial position in Bellingham

Made the news in Ohio, but it's not unusual.

Much of the time, here in Bellingham, WA. it seems like custodial positions at the university or school district can draw a hundred applicants at least. Especially as they pay a bit more than most custodial positions in the private sector.

Benefits and health insurance also.

State jobs.

Custodial work is not bad work. Can be fairly hassle free and low stress. Of course depends on situation.

All through the 1980s and beyond, I remember years when custodial positions at Western Washington University would draw huge piles of applications.

The school district and city would be similar.

Much of our local economy is what they call a "service economy."

Retailing, restaurants, lawn mowing.

Lots of waiters, waitresses and store clerks. Many of the jobs have been part time and not paying much more than minimum wage.

Of course, if one has low overhead, life doesn't have to be so bad.

Good health, free time, flexibility and then people say they leave Bellingham when it's time to look for a "real job."

The places I have worked have only had a few full time jobs and large staffs of part time workers.

Much of the local work force is students who work their job schedule around class schedules. Classes come first. After one graduates, life comes first and the job comes second. There are not that many jobs which are super inspiring.

State jobs tend to be more likely to have benefits and full time hours.

Welcome to the new economy.

Bellingham has been there for a long time.

It pays to have "low overhead," but many of the houses in this area are quite large and expensive.

There's a disconnect.

Seems like many of the homeowners are retirees who got into owning in other areas and times.

Local workers are often renters.

Then there are the much sought after state jobs.

Our economy kind of revolves around education and retirement.

Some say it's the result of not being friendly to industry. Yes, much of the industrial base has deteriorated and gone overseas.

Volunteer sector is the most dynamic and exciting part of our city's economy. In spite of recession, one still finds vibrancy at various gathering spots. Political meetings, discussion groups, folk music, dancing, festivals.

To folks who say, about 911, that US corporations and foreign policy had it coming, I say

Over 30,000 people die in the US each year in traffic accidents which could be seen as a byproduct of the corporate, oil economy. Still, I try to not be too bitter. There's both good and bad in pretty much all human activity including even our economy. Sometimes I feel like I'm caught between feuding fundamentalists of many fighting religions and belief systems just living on this planet. I hope I can stay out of their way and also hope I can try and not inadvertently join them.

20th anniversary of my first bike trip across America

Bandshell in Huron, SD. 1991.

20 years after my first cross USA bike trip, I biked in western Washington and Oregon.

Felt just as good as I did in 1991. No aces and pains to think of. Did I cover as many miles each day as 20 years ago?

Hard to say as I couldn't figure out how to set the trip miles on my new odometer. I wasn't even sure if it was reading kilometers or miles either. Sometimes it would just flash zeros at me indicating it wasn't picking up the passing magnate on the wheel. I didn't try to figure it out. Probably the daily total of miles was less, but "what you don't know can't hurt you." The trip was still enjoyable. In 1991, I also had an electronic odometer and carefully kept track of daily trip miles. Seemed like back then, the odometer functions were more intuitive.

In 1991 my total trip miles was much farther than in 2011, but that's because I invested over 2 months of travel time into the 1991 trip. In 2011 the trip was only about 3 weeks.

The odometer hasn't changed much in the years, but some other things I carry have. No longer riding with me is that antenna booster for AM Radio called the Select-A-Tenna. It wasn't that heavy, but many of the talk stations I listened to in the past on AM radio have gone "all sports talk." Boring. For instance KIRO AM 710 out of Seattle is now sports. It's political talk is now on FM which the Select-A-Tenna doesn't help. I've never had much desire to "keep score." Keeping track of daily milage is one thing, but most important is just having a good time.

Instead of that antenna, I have a netbook computer. I stopped at a lot of WIFI places along the way. That's why my daily milage may be in decline; Facebook.

Since the mid 1980s, I have gone on some sort of bike tour every summer. It's been a fairly mellow and enjoyable legacy. Keeps me in reasonable shape, at least along with other things like dancing that I enjoy.

World Trade Center memories from 40 years ago

Is it time for the media to move on from the horrible memories of ten years ago on 9/11?

I basically think yes. It should be remembered like we remember World War II. That was a tragedy also.  Doesn't have to be the focus of current news and mindsets, but it still comes up in documentaries and so forth.  Remembering to try and prevent another Hitler from happening.  Remembering the heroism of past service members and so forth, but not having the media dominated by it. The mood of the country can move on, for the most part. Look to the future. Yes, various police agencies still need to be vigilant to keep up the guard, but that's a separate issue from having the mood of our country be dominated by 9/11.

I considered not writing about it myself, but friends suggested my views needed to be heard along with all the expected ten year hype about this topic.

Then I thumbed through some of my 1971 mail.  Mail from 40 years ago when I was in high school and wrote to the World Trade Center for information.  They sent a bunch of clippings and brochures that I still have.

More pleasant memories than a tragedy, but how dated.  Space age communication with reel to reel tape and cameras as large as washing machines.  Computers with cathode ray tubes and even push button phones.

Cutting edge, for 1971.


Pictures from World Trade Center brochures and a New York Times advertising supplement.

Pristine school. Whatcom Middle School rebuild

I bike past Whatcom Middle School quite often and notice the progress on the rebuild after the fire of 2009. They basically rebuilt the whole school except for the gymnasium wing in back and two original entrances. It's now ready to open and all pristine before the first day of school.

At least humankind can build a new school with updated technology and make it look like the original building. I'm impressed as I bike by. schools aren't necessarily all crumbling, tho some could use more investment. Roads, on the other hand; many carry a lot more traffic than they were designed for.

Some earlier pictures below.

Steel frame going in fast. They say it may be ready for this fall, 1 year ahead of schedule. Being rebuilt after 2009 fire. New outside shell. All new construction except for 2 entryways. New shell designed to look like old building.

Labor Day goal, a 3 day weekend

Less person hours are needed to run our economy and a lot of workers are idle. Maybe it's time to shorten the workweek again. How about a 32 hour workweek and a 3 day weekend?

The 40 hour workweek was seen as progress over longer workweeks in sweatshops of the past. That accomplishment is one of the things people celebrate on Labor Day, yet for many workers, even the 40 hour week is just a dream. Some are out of work, wishing they had a workweek. Others toil overtime in companies that have downsized and placed more of the burden on remaining workers who often toil beyond 40 hours. Still others work the 40 hours, but when one counts time spent on long distance commutes their day is almost shot. Little time for friends and family, let along sleep and exercise.

It's time to think about distributing work hours more evenly. Create jobs for some people who are currently out of work and maybe reduce the burden on many who are still working while feeling overworked and over stressed. Outcome could be a healthier balance for all and possibly less health care costs.

Rather than proposing legislation to reduce work time, I just propose discussion about the workweek, vacations and the overall economy. A shorter workweek isn't necessarily the solution for everyone, but it's something people can think about. Folks can work out answers for their own situations.

One thing that could help is lower cost of living. Some of the average living expenses seems unnecessary. For instance high rents and mortgages just to prop up inflated property values. Toiling to maintain national wealth is one thing, but toiling just to maintain a bubble seems like a waste of effort.

Technology is kind of a two edged sword. It can create a lot of new jobs and opportunities, thus lowering unemployment, but it also has the effect of reducing the amount of work needed for the same unit of productivity. When our economy is growing, the new opportunities from technology can out pace the tendency of technology reduce the need for work. At other times, especially when the economy isn't growing, technology's effect on reducing the need for labor is more evident. We are now in a real slow growth economy.

Better distribution of existing work burdens is in order.

Part of the reason why the economy is growing slowly is all the environmental restrictions and energy costs. Worries about global warming can put a damper on things. A shorter workweek, and reduced wealth expectations, can help us adjust to these environmental issues. Still, the type of wealth we consume can change so we don't necessarily have to just lower our expectations. New technology can create cleaner production. Still, the advent of cleaner production methods has trouble keeping pace with increasing demand for wealth.

Change in society, rather than just technology, can help us redefine what wealth truly means. More free time and less hassle for the average worker could be seen as a form of wealth. Something like the 3 day weekend could be seen as a form of progress for the economy, as the 40 hour week was once seen as progress.

I would guess that the super wealthy would not like the idea of a shorter work week. It would mean that the masses are not spending as much of their time playing the game that the wealthy tend to be "top dog" at.

What Am I doing indoors typing this essay? Glorious sunny day. I should ride my bike somewhere.

My 2011 bicycle trip photos now on line

A quieter route under freeways in Tacoma.

Bellingham, WA. to Eugene, Oregon. Then east to McKenzie Valley and up to Portland, OR. Train back from Portland.

While US economy looked like it was crumbling, should I be going on vacation, or hunkering down and hoarding food?

Vacation wins. There's still plenty of food. Glad I do have a job. Not a real fancy job being a custodian, but it's a job. Offers month long vacation benefit. That can be worth more than higher pay.

Enjoy leisure while you can. Who knows what retirement will bring. Much of the current economic worry has to do with all the debt overhang. A lot of that debt is actually money people have "saved" (lent to the government) in hopes that the investments will still be whole, when time comes to cash in. A lot of folks are starting to cash in as post war baby boom reaches retirement. Hard to say if the economy will still be solvent enough, with governments and other entities paying back debts, to meet people's retirement expectations.

Might as well enjoy life now rather than storing too many of one's expectations for the future. Savings is a good idea, but balance is needed. Who wants to work too hard, now, just in hopes of being able to afford a great retirement. Much of that retirement can disappear given the condition of our economy. Also the condition of one's health. Don't work yourself to death.

No need to hoard food, yet, but good idea to hoard your health. Who knows what Medicare will be like in the next decades.

There's WIFI on a moving train

I am on the Amtrak Cascades headed north at the end of my 2011 bicycle tour. Biked to Eugene and McKenzie Valley area of Oregon from Bellingham. Then biked back as far as Portland where I spent a day and got ready to take the train back to Bellingham. Now using WIFI on train, but soon to sign off and look out the window.

Why the marketplace isn't likely to solve global warming

It would be a lot easier for the marketplace to react if peak oil was the only problem we faced. The price of oil would just go up as the true extraction cost of oil rose. For instance, oil prices could rise to reflect the cost of producing oil from sources like North Dakota's Bakken Shale where more has to be done to get the oil out of the ground. Eventually costs would rise so far that the marketplace would find cheaper alternatives. At first, it would shift to natural gas, coal and possibly nuclear, but eventually renewable sources such as wind and solar would be the cheapest alternatives as these other fuels run out or become too expensive.

The market could adjust to these true production costs. Problem is, we also face global warming where there is little direct production cost for the market to respond to. There are real costs to pumping oil out of sticky sources such as Bakken Shale, but there aren't that many real costs to releasing carbon dioxide from a chimney or tailpipe. As time goes on, it gets harder to pump oil out of the ground, but it doesn't get harder to push carbon dioxide out of a chimney. The cost of operating a chimney is global warming, but it is a more distant cost than what is felt directly by the owner of the chimney. The cost may be clear around the world such as rising sea levels and flooding in places like Bangladesh.

These distant costs don't automatically fall on the owner of the chimney the same way that the cost of extracting oil falls directly on the owner of an oil well. When extraction costs go up, oil well owners can pass that cost along to the consumer where the mechanisms of the marketplace can motivate change. With the smokestack, there is little direct cost to the owner to pass along to the consumer. Instead, an artificial cost has to be rigged; for instance there has to be a carbon tax. This is a tax imposed, most likely, by government to artificially make sending carbon dioxide out the chimney or tailpipe more costly.

"Cap and trade" seems like just a more complex way of expressing the concept of a carbon tax. That's where companies can trade carbon credits around, but someone still has to artificially impose these costs at the end of the smokestack. It seems like it just about has to be something like the "T" word. Taxes. This is problematic in a world that doesn't trust taxes. Also something subject to corruption and dispute. How does one calculate the true cost of carbon emissions?

It would be a lot easier if the only problem was the true cost of actually extracting the energy resource from the ground. We may be blessed, or really I should say cursed, with enough inexpensive fossil fuel reserves that we loose our climate stability before we run out of fossil fuel.

One other possible way that market forces might curb global warming is if the renewable energy technology ever becomes cheaper than fossil fuels. Technological advances are taking place with things like solar energy. It is conceivable that solar could become less expensive than mining our vast coal reserves. Then the solution becomes easier again.

Otherwise we have to either rely on the goodwill of people, smokestack owners and consumers to want to do the right thing, or we have to accept something like carbon taxes.

* Upper picture, I-5, Tacoma, WA. 2011

* Lower picture, The Earth in 2008 Bellingham Ski to Sea parade.

Along Spring Water Trail

Coming into Portland, Oregon along Spring Water Trail toward end of bicycle trip.

Enjoyed visiting Terwilliger Hot Springs east of Eugene in the McKenzie Valley. Then headed through west side of Cascades and a place called Detroit, Oregon. After that it was many more forested miles to the Portland area.

By Friday, I should be headed back to Bellingham on the train.

Streetlights in Springfield, Oregon

Only I would ride over to Springfield at dusk to see what the streetlights look like when they are on. The bulbs look different than most streetlights, but I've only been through by day. This time I rode over there when it was getting dark to see what they look like at night. There's bike paths all the way over there, so why not.

Better picture of low pressure sodium light in Springfield from my 2012 trip.

Now I am visiting Eugene. Springfield is Eugene's neighbor to the east. Sort of like a "twin cities" with Eugene being "university and yuppie" while Springfield has a more of a lumber town character. Both are great biking cities.

When I pulled into the campground at Fern Ridge Reservoir, just west of Eugene, I ask the rangers at the check in office if there were any stores nearby. I wasn't that hungry, having eaten earlier on my ride down from Corvallis, but a bit more to snack on would be nice.

The store was another 3 miles away (and 3 miles back, makes a difference on a bike) so the ranger grabbed some cokes out of the fridge and raided the cupboards for all the cookies and crackers she could find. I offered to pay for the snacks, but she said, "don't worry, we love our bikes." I did pay the campground fee for my stay that night, but it was lower for bikes than for automotive camping.

Next morning a bus full of high school kids pulled up to the day use area where I was eating some of my snack food before riding off into Eugene. They were swarming around my table getting ready to go sailing. As I started to leave, the counselor ask me to give an impromptu talk about my travels. I talked a bit about my trip and they offered some advise on interesting places to visit in Eugene. They didn't mention streetlights in Springfield, but did suggest a place called Voodoo Doughnuts. It's near the city library. I checked it out and had a maple bar. Bumper stickers say "I got VD in Eugene" for Voodoo Doughnuts. Biking tends to burn off the sugar so I can partake of a few things like doughnuts.

Passing through Vernonia, Oregon

Trees and graffiti growing inside an abandoned concrete building near Vernonia, Oregon. I camped at a town park just outside of Vernonia. This building stored sawdust fuel for a big mill that is no longer there. There is a small lake that was the mill pond. Campground is across lake from this building.

Looks almost like a cathedral inside old Vernonia fuel house. More images from there.

At the campground, some other campers caught crawdads in the Nehalem River for cooking. They look kind of creepy with their claws, but taste like lobster. I tried some and they were good. First time I have eaten crawdads.

Ferry from Cathlamet, WA to the Oregon side of Columbia River is quite small. Maybe only 8 cars and my bike. Even makes Lummi Island ferry look big, if that's believable.

Weather has been great. Overcast and delightfully cool in mornings, but no rain. Sunny and partly cloudy in afternoons.

In Forest Grove, I'm visiting a friend named Kody who used to live in Bellingham. He volunteered at the Radio Museum in Bellingham and is now attending an art college in Portland.


Old railway wigwag signal can be activated by pushing a button at Banks Trail Head of Vernonia Banks Trail.

Looks kind of funny to see the draw bridge go up

We don't have bridges like Seattle's University Ave. in Bellingham. Opportunity for me and a cyclist waiting near me to visit.

I've been riding bike trails through Seattle area at a leasurely pace. Interurban, Green River and so forth.

At a drive-in just north of Seattle, someone called my name. He remembers dancing with me in Bellingham. Also remembers my web site.

This slow pace seems to make the world more friendly.

By the way, did you know you were on the radio?

Passing water tower by cannery in Mount Vernon.

My first night out was in Mount Vernon where I dropped by the Friday meeting of Cascade Rainbow LGBTA Community Center. One of the folks I visited with is a local peace activist named Jerry Sumerseth. This fall, he was in the hospital for a while after suffering a fall at his home. While he was recovering, they did a tribute to him on KSVR Radio in mount Vernon. I happened to find tat interview in a Google search so I listened to the podcast last may.

Seeing Jerry reminded me of that radio show so I mentioned that I had heard the show. He looked a bit puzzled. Turned out he didn't know the show had been done. We turned on a laptop and went to the archive. Sure enough, there was the tribute to Jerry. He sat and listened to the show and was quite pleased to find out about it. Show was part of KSVR's Stand Up Speak Out public affairs show.

It's like, "by the way, did you know you were featured on the radio?" Made for a fun evening before I headed back to my motel.

Day two. After a glorious ride down Snohomish Centenial Trail, I'm staying in a hotel in South Everett. Not much camping in these urban areas, but the bike paths are nice. A new section of Centennial Trail starts north of Arlington. It starts at Bryant in Snohomish County, but plans are to build it on north to Skagit County line. Should be open in October 2011. South end of trail is in Snohomish.

New section of trail crossing Stilliguamish River north of Arlington.

Weekend of bad news, except successful launch of Juno probe to Jupiter

From the economy to the war in Afghanistan. A lot of bad news this weekend. About the only good news was the successful launch of the Juno space probe to Jupiter. It's our second probe to orbit Jupiter and the sixth one destined to Jupiter; counting the probes that passed the giant planet. Juno is scheduled to arrive at Jupiter in 5 years. Ingenuity at work again.

On a radio interview, I heard them say that solar collectors have really improved over recent years so Juno can be solar powered even out as far as Jupiter. Our last mission to Jupiter had to use plutonium RTGs which are a form of nuclear power.

Canadian dollars may be worth more, but our dollars might be prettier

Our one dollar coin piece is pretty, but few people use it. Americans are kind of stuck in old traditions and don't seem to adjust to new things as quickly as Canadians do. Of course the Canadians don't have much choice. Their paper dollar is no longer printed. Also, Americans still remember being burned by the Susan B Anthony dollar. Nice idea, but it looked too much like a quarter. Seems symbolic of American's mistrust of bureaucracy. Sometimes I do wonder about planning. Both government planning and that of corporations. Our new dollar coin is fine, but people, and businesses, seem reluctant to use it. Openness to new things would help our economy.

Volunteer sector may be more vibrant than the private sector

As the much credited, or hated, private sector struggles with recession and doesn't seem to have much job creation spunk, the volunteer sector is overlooked.

Volunteering isn't as likely to help us put food on the table, or maybe it can. There's volunteer gardening communities and the barter system. What volunteering does do well is allow people to follow their bliss path. Folks tend to volunteer for what they enjoy most and often it's the best fit for their skill sets.

In the marketplace of the business world, folks are often trapped in jobs they don't really like as they can't find what they really want to do.

An ideal world would seek the balance between private enterprise, volunteer efforts and the public sector.

I know that some folks are starving, loosing their homes and so forth, but high unemployment can also create some opportunities, if basic needs are still met. More time for participating in the volunteer sector. It's time for a paradigm shift and a rethinking of our entire economy.

Future generations may even enjoy a shorter workweek with more time for volunteering, among other joys of life.

Many people in Bellingham do seem to have a fairly healthy mindset of balance between the various sectors. Folks who live here often work at jobs that are way below their skill levels, but are the jobs they can find. We have folks with masters degrees and even PHDs who are waiting tables. At the same time, many of these people turn their skills loose volunteering. Volunteering in the community as well as on the internet.

Doing things like waiting tables isn't all bad anyway.

These trends seem to be happening nationwide. On the internet, and elsewhere, there are concepts like "crowd sourcing," and being a "prosumer." Prosumer derived from mixing the words producer and consumer. Think booking your own trips on-line rather than paying for a travel agency.

Healthy volunteerism can have feedback into the private sector. For instance, artists can add color to life in a town even though their crafts often go unpaid. That color can promote tourism and other economic activity where things like restaurants can thrive. It all kind of works together and the public sector is part of that equation as well.

Slow Clap For Congress

My brother Jack's son named Chris Ashworth has started a web site called Slow Clap for Congress. A few of the claps from his new site made it into a sound byte on MSNBC national news. Slow Clap For Congress site went viral and then back to normal.

Some aspects of the debt ceiling deal are starting to hit, or clap, closer to home.

There is my site called "Theslowlane" and now my brother's son has started something called Slow as well. Does it run in the family?

Here's my contribution.

Pit stop at my home

Was in Bellingham for a few days between my trip to Vancouver and my trip south.

Worldwide economic news sounds so bad, some folks would be tempted to barricade themselves in their homes with a hoard of food and ammunition, but the world around me looks fine. Supermarkets are still as abundant as ever. Bank machines, laundromats, hotels, campgrounds, it's all still working.

As always, I think it's a good time to hoard your health, rather than food and ammo. Healthcare costs are among the biggest burdens in our economy. Who knows how available healthcare services might be in the future. Hopefully, they will figure out a way to keep things somewhat available.

Also now is a good time to go ahead and live one's life. A lot of promises have been made for retirements. With all the debt in the world, who knows what future retirement earnings will bring. Retirement savings are based on economies in the future paying back debt obligations. Planning for the future isn't bad, but living for the here and now makes sense as well. Keeping a balance. Some people sacrifice their lives for a fancy job hoping to have a great retirement. Well, some of my retirement is here and now as my work isn't super high paying, but vacations are sure nice. I do have some retirement assuming the world keeps upright.

Escape to Vancouver Gay Pride. That economy is huming

While the US was mired in it's debt ceiling fight, I escaped 23 miles north to Canada. No, I wasn't trying to escape USA. It was the gay pride parade in Vancouver and I have vacation time.

My pictures of parade.

Ironically, as USA teeters on bankruptcy, it might be better to head for USA than Canada since the Canadian dollar is now more valuable (last I checked) than US currency. Unless our society breaks down so we actually start shooting at each other, USA offers travel bargains, but I survived Canada's strong dollar for just 2 days. The difference isn't that much.

Main problem is, or let's call it a virtue, gay pride is big business in Vancouver. Try finding a motel room that isn't booked, or priced off the planet. An estimated 750,000 people showed up for pride, if I heard that correctly. CBC Radio was estimating impact on traffic with road closures and so forth. Were they also counting folks who live in the effected neighborhoods?

I stayed way out in Surrey in an affordable motel. That wasn't bad, just take the elevated Skytrain and feel like you're able to fly right downtown in minutes. Getting to Surrey was a bike ride for me. Only about 35 sunny miles from Bellingham.

Some folks invited us Bellinghamsters to join Vancouver Polyamory contingent in the parade. I got lots of pictures. The Vancouver Sun even mentioned our contingent. They said people were looking for their dictionaries when we passed by. What is polyamory?

Out of all the mass of folks, the god of coincidence was shining on me. A friend of mine happened to be waiting at the same Skytrain stop as I. What are the chances of us running into each other with 750,000 in the milling crowds?

As the Skytrain whisked us back out of the city, we had a good talk. My friend says the recession seems less evident in the "Lower Mainland" than most of USA, or even a lot of Canada for that matter.

Lower Mainland is basically the Vancouver metro area. Economy is humming, tho I'm sure it has some problems.

What's happening?

Innovation. It's like a blue state economy. Of course, it's all because of gay pride. Don't you know, I've heard several economists say that gay people are good for the economy.

Well also BC benefits from abundant natural resources. In an overpopulated world hungry for stuff like energy, it helps to have lots resources in the ground (for some reason, Canadians seem to pronounce it REZORCES). Natural gas, oil, hydro power, (or sometimes they just say HYDRO instead of calling it power). They also seem to enjoy good planning with less blatant conflict between government and private enterprise.

We can learn a lot from examples north of the border.

Suggestion detecting bicycles at intersections

How does a bicyclist know if they have activated the light at an intersection?

?????

Once in a blue moon, you will find a sign, like here on the WWU campus, assuring cylists that there is a bicycle detector in pavement, but how does one know if they've tripped it or not? Maybe they could paint a sign on the pavement indicating where the detector is located showing the best place to put the bike so it can activate the detector. Pedestrians often have an audio cue to let them know when the walk button has been pushed. For instance the tone of a beeping button changes pitch. Then when the walk light comes on, some of them even say, "walk light is on," "walk light is on." How about connecting the bicycle detector to that system so one can hear the change in tone when the detector has been activated?

Maybe someone has already thought of this, but I might as well suggest it.

Some walk light buttons have an LED light that changes color to indicate when the button is activated. That could be connected to the bicycle detector also. A cyclist can see this from the road without having to go over to the walk button.

In some cities, bicyclists even have their own button to push right by the bike lane without having to cross to the sidewalk and push the walk button. This is real nice, but more expensive to install. It's rare to find that sort of set up. More commonly, the pedestrian walk button is not very accessible to cyclists, but the detection system that works for cars is supposed to apply to the bike also. Problem is, it's hard to tell if you, with your small bike, have actually been detected.

Conservative Christians an oxymoron?

Dilemma that Christians, especially conservative Christians face as right wing policies often contradict Sermon On The Mount. I saw an interesting article, "Catholic Bishops Blast Boehner's Debt Plan" from Faith In Public Life. Toward end of article is the phrase, "Keeping in mind that House Speaker John Boehner is Catholic, and is under enormous pressure from the Tea Party to move in the opposite direction, the bishops' position complicates his position even more."

I'm glad to see the mean spirited Republicans put in their place even by some of their own fellow, for the most part, conservatives.

Good question to ask Republicans. Would they roll back the Medicare prescription drug benefit that passed during the Bush administration?

Roll back Medicare Part D? That specific of a proposal would go over like a led balloon. That's why it hasn't been discussed. Instead Republican Congressman Ryan's proposed budget calls for turning Medicare into block grants.

Hmm.

Folks might say, "okay," they don't understand what block grant means anyway. They'll say, between cans of beer with the football game playing in the background, "whatever."

Block grants. Kind of an esoteric topic. The Ryan budget did go over like a led balloon anyway.

Rolling back a specific benefit, like the drug benefit, or raising the copay would certainly make people upset. They'd understand that even better.

The person who is alleged to have done the mass shooting in Norway is said to be a fundamentalist

An extreme outcome of fundamentalism run amok. Fundamentalist religion can lead to so much intolerance and fighting. He's said to be a Christian fundamentalist, which isn't any better than any other kind of fundamentalist.

Canada is probably more financially sound than USA

Yes I think Canada is better managed and more worthy of being a "safe haven" for money than USA. It's finally getting recognized in money circles.

Lots of energy and natural resources plays a role. Canada is second largest country in the world in terms of land area. They have a lot of resources that the rest of the world uses, but they also have some sound policies when it comes to civil society and economics. It's about time Canada gets recognized in economic circles.

This also means an uptick in retail sales in places like Bellingham along the Canadian border. Kind of a side effect. Bellingham is in USA, just south of the metropolitan area of Vancouver, BC. Cross border retailing becomes a bright spot in the local economy when the Canadian dollar is strong.

Still, it means low pay retail jobs. Jobs are hard to find in Bellingham, but the city seems alive. Being alive is not just from economic issues. Being a "blue state" kind of town, Bellingham people try not to sink with our dollar. People continue smiling and going about their business of concerts in the park, art openings, jogging, bicycling, friends, political causes and so forth. There's often a lot of energy in Bellingham even among people who call themselves broke.