Cartoon idea about Bush energy plan

Person reading paper. Headline says, "Bush plan calls for extending Daylight Savings Time into November." Person looks up from paper and says, "They plan to extend summer into November." "Global warming."

Out over my paper route in the shadow of a university

View out over my childhood neighborhood in Pullman, WA. This image was taken by my older brother sometime in the mid 1960s. From a nearby dormitory. He recently shared some of his old slides.

I grew up in a college town. A compact little town of neighborhoods, sidewalks and back fences. Hardly any sprawl. There were tall buildings at the university that sprang up practically next to thousand acre ranches. One could really tell when one was "out of town."

The area shown was basically my "paper route."

Large Castile like structure in upper left is the Theta Ki Fraternity. It was on my route for a while.

One time as I went to collect the bill, it's halls were ankle deep in leaves. Leaf rakers were doing a "frat house prank."

Struggling for 2 and 1/2 years, I eventually gave up the paper route in 8th grade. Hardly made any money at it, but I wasn't a very good book keeper. I didn't keep the route book up to date and ended up delivering papers after people had dropped subscriptions and moved.

I fantasized that my little route would be the start of some big "communications enterprise" in my adult life. Little did I know said "communications empire" would be a web page.

Hardly an enterprise. It still doesn't make much money, but money isn't everything. I am not really that motivated by money.  

When Growth Was Fun

Construction equipment around Bellingham. Reminds me of growing up in growing Pullman

Growing up in Pullman, WA. I walked down our driveway headed off to first grade. My dad had his new movie camera rolling. In the background, construction cranes were working on the big dormitory which was almost across the street from our house. It was rising up 6, or so, floors.

Concrete bucket swinging.

Washington State University was building new science buildings, dorms, all for the good of education. A new store was going in beside the grocery store.

Modern Drug.

One could now buy balsa wood toy airplanes there.

We took Sunday drives around town. Mom would say, "look, those houses are springing up like mushrooms," but a drive out of town left the houses behind. One was really out in the country. Not a house in sight, just 2,000 acre wheat ranches. That was before I knew anything about sprawl. We didn't have it around our compact little town.

More recently, in fact just a few months ago, my older brother sent some photos to the family spread out across USA.

An image from the top of that dorm, like flying in a little plane, out over my childhood world. Looking down on the neighbor's birch tree I used to climb. Thought it was so high. Looking down inside our patio fence. Childhood memories. 

Gay Marriage Legal In Canada

Congratulations to Canada. Some conservatives fear that allowing gay marriage will lead to the breakdown of the family and society. So maybe Canada can be seen as an experiment. People have often called "democracy" and experiment anyway. One often talks about the "great American experiment."

So the experiment is running. We'll see if Canadian society breaks down. My bet is, Canada will do very well. Canada is also an experiment in something called "multiculturalism." All these different ethnic groups, religions, lifestyles attempting to live together in a civil society. There are some rough spots, but Canada seems a lot more civil than most places. Less violence than even here in USA.

Congratulations for being willing to experiment. Nothing wrong with that. Experimentation can be good. Remember; USA is often called the great experiment. In this case, the Canadians have us beat.

Scandals in Bush administration or where ever

Scandal news has now become background noise. When people say, "all politicians are crooks anyway," another scandal just becomes, "what else is new?"

But, be careful with cynicism, it can become like crying wolf.

I remember Watergate breaking new ground. A mood of trust in our public officials was breached.

Now there is less trust to breach.

Watergate was a watershed.

Since then, scandal after scandal has washed in. We are even unearthing affairs during the Kennedy years and (using genetic science) learning of Jefferson and a slave.

Ironically, the more vigilant we get about scandals, the more they are like background noise.

Then it becomes harder to make a big deal out of scandals or do anything about them.

People Power

It doesn't just take money. People power often works to build trails. I just got a copy of Mount Baker Bicycle Club Newsletter. That's where above logo is from. There is an article about volunteers starting to work on a 7 mile long trail segment between Maple Falls and Glacier. That's out along Mount Baker Highway. The hiking club, bike club and Whatcom County Parks are working together clearing a path. Someone has used GPS technology to find where the right of way was. Follows old Bellingham Bay and British Columbia (later a Milwaukee) rail line. Good news from July 2005 edition. Slowly piecing a better world together. 

Green space among development north of here in Vancouver BC.

Where governments have a big say in the shape of things.

Another one of the approximately 22 large subdivisions being considered in Bellingham area has entered the news. Balfour Village would be developed by Aiki Homes on land that is currently a golf course. 767 homes proposed over a period of a few years. Located approximately 20 miles from Bellingham out Mount Baker Highway in the Kendall area.

Also hitting the news: enough signatures have been gathered to place Initiative 912 on Washington State ballots. That would repeal a gasoline tax hike which was recently legislated to fund an estimated 50 billion dollar backlog in statewide highway upgrades.

Of course people will be asking, "Can State Route 542, The Mount Baker Highway, handle increased traffic from development in it's hinterland?" Especially if there isn't much gas tax revenue available for highway projects.

Some folks say, "don't build anymore road capacity so growth stops in Washington State."

I see lots of baby strollers around town and read that the Kendall area has already seen around 144% population growth between 1990 and 2002.

Developers proposing Balfour are talking about building to green standards, putting in trails and trying to implement a lot of "smart growth" ideas. Maybe this would be better than what's already happening out there, but it's still a long ways out that thin strand called Mount Baker Highway.

A few years back, I started hearing about something called "Chain Of Trails." Better bike and pedestrian connections between things in that part of our county. I think it was some kind of grant, back in 1999, leading to a "wish list" of trail connections. Could take some pressure off Mount Baker Highway.

Have any of these trails been built yet?

I haven't bicycled out that way very much since they put "chip seal" along much of Mount Baker Highway. Chip seal is a cheap way to pave.

Could some of this new development help fund Chain Of Trails? It would be nice to use a "trail alternative" rather than some of the worse stretches of that highway.

I put two and two together and wonder if the vast cornucopia of homeowner investment, in our county, could be harnessed to fund better transportation alternatives than just having people sit in traffic out the Mount Baker Highway? Maybe we could find ways to fund some of those "community wish lists?"

Just then, one of my readers sent me an article from July 7 Portland Oregonian comparing development in Vancouver, BC to "state side" development in Portland, Oregon. I bike up to Vancouver more often than heading toward Mount Baker these days. I found a route of better roads and bike paths headed Vancouver way.

In that city, governments and communities deliver wish lists and demands to developers. Stipulations that say things like, "you can build, but so many units must be reserved for low income." "A park, A community center, A day care must be built."

On the US side of the border, it seems like we are torn between the two extremes of letting free markets reign or shutting everything down. Libertarianism or "no growth ism."

People say, "if they build, it's going to be ugly." Then they say, "don't build."

Dah, when "bottom line" rules, things can get ugly.

The Oregonian article was praising residential development near downtown Vancouver for being able to bring "family friendly living" in a high density area. It's taken "strong arm planning" to make this happen.

I am not a "family man," but that Oregonian article brought up some interesting points.

On our side of the border, "market solutions" tend to rule." I guess it takes government intervention to make family friendly neighborhoods more viable; especially in dense "high property value" areas. Day care centers, subsidizing affordable units, parks, mandating more bedrooms in some units. That's what they do in Vancouver.

On our side of the border, families tend to move out to the suburbs more, relying on those long commutes, rather than going into the high density downtown areas.

In the past 10 years, the article said that 6,400 new units have gone into Portland's Perl District, but only 25 school age kids live there. The more unregulated market is favoring "child free" professionals and retirees who can afford to live near downtown and don't need things like day care. This in spite of Republican Party rhetoric about so called "family values."

Meanwhile, Canada is home to gay marriage, (soon to be legalized) but she also manages to make her inner cities better for kids as well. It must be a "win, win" situation for all. In Vancouver's denser areas, government has "strong armed" the developers into providing things that, in this case, families want.

Wait a minute. Maybe not being too family oriented is a virtue. Central Vancouver is starting to get traffic jams from baby strollers according to that article. Another round of population growth arrives.

So, what is my conclusion?

I guess I am saying, government can be a tool for developing the communities we want. Whether it be families, single people, parks or better transportation alternatives.

When money starts pouring into an area, some of it can be harnessed for "public good." That is, if the political will is there.

More of my thoughts about Vancouver.

 

Slowing, or even eliminating? The Traffic

Traffic calming circle near St. Joe's Hospital.

Is this a golden opportunity for some developer to plan a car free neighborhood in Bellingham, WA.?

Demand for residential real estate is at an all time high. People are concerned about traffic from new development. Even the mayor recently said,

"When people complain about growth, the're usually not talking about people." "What they are talking about is cars." July 1 Herald.

I say, if a subdivision was planned for folks who don't want to drive, it would still sell in a hot market. That's my guess at least.

Just say "no" to the automobile.

Turn the streets over to people, bicycles, public transit, emergency vehicles and, maybe, deliveries.

Why not?

The market is selling so fast, even this "perceived inconvenience" wouldn't stop it.

If the real estate market was almost dead, it would be another story, but this market has plenty of "give" to it.

Of course the city would have to make some changes also. Zoning that requires parking would have to be waved, changed or worked around.

It's something to think about.

Is this a radicle idea?

Not really.

Bellingham already has one neighborhood where automobiles are highly restricted. Can you guess where that is?

It's Western Washington University.

Much of the campus is "roadless." It's a roadless area.

Like wilderness?

Not unless one is thinking of wild parties at the dorms.

Much of the campus is pedestrian plazas. There are some buildings you can't drive to.

High Street, which runs in front of the Viking Union, is blocked off during the day. Turned over to pedestrians, bicycles, transit, emergency vehicles, deliveries.

Parking isn't that easy to find on campus, but there are a lot of bike racks and Western enjoys the most frequent bus service of any area in Bellingham; except for the transit terminal that is downtown.

Western is hard to negotiate by car but it remains a popular place. So popular that an enrollment ceiling must be imposed.

Limited state funding, rather than anti growth sentiment, brings the ceiling, but lack of roads hasn't killed Western.

Some say this will work for young students, but older people must have cars.

I don't know about that. Many friends in my age range (around 50) still bike over mountain passes. Also there is the bus.

Another "less car" kind of planning has come to our city as well.

Some areas near downtown allow apartments to be built with less parking required than before.

Less parking per unit.

This is a new zone designed to help preserve historic buildings and promote living with less cars.

Some people gripe that these developments are causing "overflow parking" along nearby streets. They also gripe about overflow parking from Western.

I guess people never stop complaining.

Maybe these folks should just stop driving if they are going to complain about traffic.

Are you part of "traffic?"

I live on a busy downtown street and don't really notice whether people are parking or not.

They've always parked here.

I haven't noticed any difference since new apartment buildings were built nearby.

Of course retailers tend to complain if they think there isn't enough parking in an area.

Maybe someday retailing can kick the car addiction also.

It seems like nothing will keep houses from selling, but retailing is a different story. Competition for retail customers is fierce in this city. Parking might be harder to do without.

The housing market is hotter than the hamburger market. They've built so many restaurants.

Someday, even retailing can kick the car habit. Especially in areas of high pedestrian concentration, but for now, someone could propose a car free residential area, at least.

If people will pay a fortune for cracker box houses, maybe they will do with out cars. They're that desperate to live here and maybe they'll discover they can do it.  

You sat in a logging truck on Earth Day?

A friend of mine didn't think that was "the politically correct" thing to do on Earth Day. He was kind of horrified, but I forgot it was Earth Day.

Senator Gaylord Nelson, credited for founding the day, passed away July 3 so lots of stories are being told. My story is about sitting in a logging truck on that day in 1991, and I don't even drive.

It was a bike ride to the Skagit Valley Tulips fields. A one day fitness class from the YMCA.

After peddling around in the tulips, I suggested dropping by the headquarters of Paccar International. Paccar was having an open house. Other class members liked the idea.

Often wondering what Paccar did, the open house would be an opportunity to find out.

It tests trucks, big ones.

We dropped in for the tour, free cookies also. It was another happening at the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival.

Paccar puts big trucks through the tests. Shakes them on hydraulic shakers, runs them around a track, puts all kinds of sensors in them.

Tour ended in the garage. A room full of trucks. Logging trucks, tractor trailers. Lots of trucks on display.

People were invited to climb into the cabs, look around, even honk the horn. Kids loved it.

I climbed into a logging truck even though I've never even driven a car. It felt powerful and yes the horn worked.

Then it was back to our bicycles for the trip to Bellingham where I got a phone call from a friend.

"What did you do today?" he ask. He was horrified and reminded me that this was Earth Day.

To me, it wasn't that inconsistent to be sitting in a logging truck. Earth Day was a great idea, but it's also symbolic. The one day each year that people think about environmentalism. Railing against logging trucks is another symbolic thing.

The true problem is consumptive lifestyles and overpopulation the rest of the year.

People who live in wooden houses, use paper products, depend on our economy might be able to appease their guilt by lashing out at the logging industry. It can be railed against, pushed out of sight, pushed overseas, but still exists as long as its products are in demand.

There is also the concept of "responsible logging." Yes, that industry is part of our lives, but (like so many things) dialog can be used to make it more responsible. That same dialog applies to our personal lives which create the need for the industries. Even though I had forgotten that it was Earth Day, I did spend the day bicycling. The bike trip was a great way to celebrate that day.

Some of the staff out at Paccar was impressed. They said, "you biked all the way here?" "Didn't know it could be so fun."

Liberate those loggers from their workaholic loads. Let's all work "part time." That's responsible stewardship of the environment. Just log part time for sustainable yield.

Picture: Display in Starker Demonstration Forest near Corvallis, Oregon. Seen on my 2004 bike tour. 

Fireworks over Bellingham Bay

Seen from many parts of the city. One year, fireworks could be viewed above old Yeager's warehouse building. A few years later, that building burned for an unrelated reason.

On another note: Congratulations to NASA for the smashing success of Deep Impact mission to that comet. 

Reflecting in old telescope mirror.

Reflecting in old telescope mirror. Taking picture of myself with a flash. Image from 1996 bicycle trip to Victoria, BC. Museum at base of Dominion Astrophysical Observatory.

What's Inside a Comet?

10:52 PM Pacific Daylight Time July 3 (+ or - 3 minutes), if all goes as planned. A probe from Deep Impact spacecraft smashes into comet Tempel 1 to kick up dust. Then the spacecraft can get a look at what kind of material is "deeper down" inside the head of a comet.

Tempel 1 is also being monitored by observatories around Earth such as the Hubble Space Telescope. Hopefully it will be a very educational blast. Learning more about comets may teach us about the first dust clouds that formed our solar system. Questioning more about creation, which to a large extent, we don't have a clue about still.

A link to the web page for that unmanned mission here.

There's also, supposedly, the big bang which created this universe and many questions about how order and life evolved on our planet. Questions as to whether something like life exists elsewhere in the universe.

Religious dogmatists have thought they knew the answers to these questions for thousands of years. Many of them act like "know it alls" fighting over who's dogma is correct. Is it Islam, Christianity, Voodoo? Which interpretation?

Fighting over different religions, there are often blasts of another kind, car bombs, or bombing raids from military aircraft.

Religious dogmatists often repress those who offer new information, persecuting Galileo for instance. They thought they "knew it all" when the Sun went around the Earth.

In past times, comets could mean great fear. Signs from an angry god.

But, what about bothering to ask God? Not presuming we know it all. Not even knowing if God exists, or how do we define "God?"

Admitting that there are still more questions than answers can be seen as a sign of weakness, in the eyes of machismo warriors.

Questioning can also be seen as a sign of modesty, humbleness; true virtues.

It seems like scientists tend to be humble. Willing to question. To dialog. Scientists often using phrases like, "We need to go back to the drawing board." "Rewriting our understanding of..."

Asking the questions and not claiming to know all the answers yet. That is a quest which is pursued by scientists, among others.

Putting aside all the energy we spend on wars, arguing over who's right. Some folks are actually bothering to ask, "what's out there in the universe?"

If the deep impact succeeds it can be a blast. This blast for peaceful questioning of the cosmos.