running – Person versus Automobile

Self-propulsion Perks #1: Lending Libraries

Mission: To promote driving less so all may live more.

Emission: There are 7 years, 1 week, 2 hours, 15 minutes and 44 seconds until the Climate Clock reaches zero (approximate).^[1]

Hey, I’ve read this post. Let me skip down to the Additional Lending Library Photos!

The Benefits

Many benefits follow the self-propelled person (who isn’t run over).

One benefit is easy access to neighborhood Lending Libraries (also known as Little Free Library, Little Library, Book Exchange Station, and Book Box).

Today I went on a run-walk and documented the lending libraries I frequent, along with some books that I’ve picked up. This post necessarily might be more interesting to those who live in my town (and/or like used books), but it illustrates something one might miss in a car.

Kimbark Street

This one is mostly for kids & I’ve never poked inside the mailbox.

About three or four blocks west, we have:

Kimbark Street #2 Library, near Snowberry Court.

Emma Street, West of 287

Emma Street #1 Library, near Aegean Drive.

Some books from there:

Programming Books (went to my son)—I love the O’Reilly covers & would pick up those books even without the programming skills.

Waneka Lake Park

Picked up this:

Gentlemen of the Road, by Michael Chabon—a book I’ve not heard of though I’ve read Chabon.

Near Coal Creek Trail

Coal Creek Feeder Trail Library—see video below for a little guidance in case Snoopy is luring you. This location is strictly off the road, but conspicuous for the self-propelled.

Two. This:

Bound to Last, ed. Sean Manning, subtitled “30 Writers on Their Most Cherished Book”—it was the foreword by Ray Bradbury that caught my eye—and its cover makes it look like a J. D. Salinger book. (Yes I judge some books by their covers.)

and this:

Harry Potter & the Sorcerer's Stone, by J. K. Rowling — Harry Potter & the Sorcerer’s Stone, by J. K. Rowling—one of my daughters told me to read at least one of the series…and I have yet to.

Back to Emma Street, East of 287 (yes, we are completing the loop)

By The Post (restaurant)

Emma Street #2 Library, near South Roosevelt Ave.—near The Post’s bike rack.

And here I found…

Bless Me, Ultima, by Rudolfo Anaya—I sat under Rudy Anaya in a creative writing course at UNM in 1975 and only read the book this week!

On the Corner of Emma & South Longmont Ave.

Emma Street #3 Library, near South Longmont Avenue—for this one you don’t need to read a book, you can just read the quotes on the outside.

Two. This:

Infinite Jest, by David Foster Wallace—I’ve read two pages, which is progress. This copy looks unread. It’s not a simple matter reading this book as the donor apparently concluded.

and this:

Anne of Green Gables, by L. M. Montgomery—published 77 years before the unforgettable Megan Follows mini series.

And that completes the loop.

Lending Library Loop - 5 Mile Loop — Lending Library Loop – 5 Mile Loop, Counterclockwise.

Addendum: Lending Libraries from Everywhere

People liked the lending libraries. As you will see, we are adding to the collection below. So far, a couple of Boulder-based ones (the first accompanied by its proud builder, the second built of wood and bark) and a unique one from British Columbia—along with a movie library I’ve added. Please, everyone, keep your eyes open and your cameras ready. Email sightings to me, including full-size photos!

Dennis and his book box. — Carol sent this of her husband, Dennis, and the library he built. It’s on the bike path through Noble Park, located in Boulder not far from the Valmont Dog Park. (NPHOA—glad to see an HOA doing this!)

Outside of Gapter Rd. Book Box — The “FREE” is pennies screwed into place, with the tree bark on the side, giving it the natural look. Copper and bark with books inside.

Inside of Gapter Rd. Book Box — On Gaptor Rd. (near Baseline and Cherryvale), fits well into the landscape.

Lending sticks for dogs. — From Jan P., in Sechelt, British Columbia: lending library of sticks for dogs!

Lending Movie Library in Lafayette — If you love “Stargate,” you might love this box: nearly every (or every) season of the show!

Today’s Bollard

Bollards stop cars, sometimes brutally, offering a kind of payback moment to those who frequently feel threatened by drivers. Likely, those whose cars are stopped by bollards get citations, but probably not in this case.

This video has an optional soundtrack (in case you want to mute it—I would):

Nobody gets preferential treatment from the #WorldBollardAssociation pic.twitter.com/KaAhEjFXAI

— World Bollard Association™ (@WorldBollard) July 11, 2022

Optional Video (9 minutes of narration—very pedestrian by both definitions)

This is a knavish piece of work, which I dignify by quoting Hamlet who is disparaging a play he is producing. More and more, I watch videos at 1.25 speed, which brings this one down to about 7 minutes.

____Footnotes____

^[1] This is the estimated duration until earth’s temperature rises 1.5ºC above pre-industrial temperatures. When a country makes headway against CO emissions, the times is extended. When industry makes headway against environmentalism, the time is shortened. Somewhere between an increase of 1.5 and 2.0°C, grim things are predicted. The fact that this is purely an estimate that is frequently re-calculated, the smaller increments of time (“seconds”!?!) are for dramatic effect.

The figures in this post are taken from the Wikipedia article “Climate Clock”. Several climate clocks exist. This one provides a more generous estimate (in case you are feeling anxious): https://climateclock.net/. This web log will present the Wikipedia estimate for the particular day for which any given post is published.

Publishing Info

This post was first published on: Jul 15, 2022 at 16:25. I change the publication date when making a substantial revision in order to bring the edited post to the top of my directory.

Running While Black

Mission: To promote driving less so all may live more.

This post initially was entitled “Person vs. Two Pickups, a Pistol and a Rifle,” until I saw a Wikipedia page dedicated to “Running while black.” One of its footnotes cites an article, Running while Black: Why we are not all in this together, in which the author, Dewayne R. Stallworth, states something that must haunt many black runners:

As an educated black man who enjoys taking contemplative runs in my neighborhood, I must confess that I leave my home with the thought that I may not return (and this is before Arbery’s killing). I think about my attire — would this shirt cause someone to think I am a burglar.

Jogging as a black person in the US is a thing. For a person of any race, urban running brings with it risks of breathing bad air, a possible sprained ankle, and collision with a car.^[1] But for a black person, there’s the added risk of being beaten or killed.

Driving in the US is also a thing. It imposes new risks to the environment, pedestrians, bikers, and animals. When the two meet—running as black and driving as a racist—something terrible occurs. Bad as racism in itself is, the added power of a pickup truck, a pistol, and a rifle make the situation all the worse. Cars and trucks make it extremely easy to track and kill—with almost no effort at all.^[2]
Continue reading “Running While Black”

Wait, Wait, Peter, Don’t Run From Me

Mission: To promote driving less so all may live more.

This post offers some quotes from Peter Sagal’s The Incomplete Book of Running (2018), a confessional book, both humorous and insightful.

Covidiocy, Covidity, Covitality

Mission: To promote driving less so all may live more.

I was pretty sure I had invented all those words, but that’s not the case. Covidiocy refers to people who make inane statements or perform inane actions relative to covid-19. Covidity refers to having a proclivity toward respecting the guidelines for slowing down the spread of the virus. Covidity has its own Facebook page. Covitality predates covid-19. It is a kind of therapy for adolescents (especially). It phonetically contrasts with co-dependence. In Person vs. Automobile, however, I give it a new meaning.
Continue reading “Covidiocy, Covidity, Covitality”

Person Meets Police

Mission: To promote driving less so all may live more.

This is “person meets police” not “person vs. police,” please note.

Tuesday, April 2, I discovered late in the morning that I had a business meeting in Denver. The only bus that would get me there on time is the “LD2,” a regional bus that happens to skip my home town. So I decided to run out to highway 287 to catch it, which isn’t a big deal or a long run (about a mile), except that there was no bus stop where I expected one.

So I began to run south along the wide-shouldered highway toward the real bus stop, a mile away. Meanwhile, time was running out, so when cars came by, I turned around and stuck out my thumb, hoping someone would give me a short ride to the next stop.

Why We Run in the Street (a picture story)

Mission: To promote driving less so all may live more.

This post is a public service announcement. With a web log named “Person versus Automobile,” I owe drivers an explanation of why I still risk running in the street. In this respect, there is no antagonism, only competing risks.

There’s a slight analogy here: as far as I know, my father avoided crosswalks because they provided false security. Whenever I feel I may trip on the sidewalk (if it exists), I shift to the street, assuming it’s empty.

Ok, on with the picture story.

Sometimes the sidewalk ends suddenly...happens a lot where I live. — Sometimes the sidewalk ends suddenly…happens a lot where I live.

We Almost Drove Over My Real Estate Agent

Mission: To promote driving less so all may live more.

When it was over, I gasped, and said, “We almost drove over my real estate agent!”

Hannah looked at the split-rail fence that had put her Subaru to a final stop. Little damage done.

The wintry day was sunny and the roads were mostly dry. We had just turned onto Marshall Road, outside of Boulder, speed limit 25.

As we rounded a corner, I saw a woman running on the opposite side of the road, facing traffic, as one should do. She was blond, young and…

“It’s Sally!” I thought—my real estate agent who had helped me sell my house in Coal Creek Canyon. Suddenly that thought gave way to, “Dang it, we’re sliding toward her!”