Wackadoodle airport codes outside the USA

• BRA (Barrieras, Brazil)
• EGO (Belgorod, Russia)
• BEG (Belgrade, Serbia)
• BOG (Bogota, Colombia) – don’t get bogged down there.
• CIA (Rome, Italy – Ciampino) – got cha!
• CUM (Cumana, Venuzuela) – please wash your mouth out with soap.
• CUZ (Cuzco, Peru) – cuz I said so
• DAD (Da Nang, Vietnam)
• DOG (Dongola, Sudan)
• DUM (Dumai, Indonesia) – hey, I didn’t name it.
• DUD (Dunedin, New Zealand) – must be really exciting there.
• FUK (Fukuaka, Japan) – careful
• IZO (Izumo, Japan) – should call the lounge the Izone. If you aren’t from the USA, you may not get the joke.
• MAD (Madrid, Spain) – don’t get mad, get even.
• PEE (Perm, Russia) – wonder if they are pissed about the code they were assigned?
• PEX (Pechore, Russia) – flex those pex.
• POT (Port Antonio, Jamaica) – pure Karma that this code should go to an airport in Jamaica – LOL
• SIN (Singapore- Changi) – sort of surprised they accepted this code.
• STD (Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic) – be careful what you catch here – make sure it is just a flight.

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Cool artistic Cali theaters

Here are photos of two historic theaters in located in the Sierra Nevada mountains northeast of Sacramento in the lovely communities of Grass Valley and Nevada City.

Amazing art deco Del Oro Theater in Grass Valley

Another view of the Del Oro

Nevada Theater in Nevada City, CA

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“This land is your land” – a 2012 eco-version

Source: mallmemories.com

Saturday, July 14th will be the 100th anniversary of Woody Guthrie’s birth. To honor him and express this eco-bicyclist”s concern beyond those expressed his original lyrics, here is a modified version of Woody Guthrie’s classic folk song This Land is Your Land. The original lyrics written by Mr. Guthrie may be seen through this weblink.

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This land is your land, this land is my land

From Car-lifornia to Wall Street canyons

From clear-cut forests to oil-stained waters

This wasteland was allowed by you and me

-

As I was pedaling – a crowded highway

I saw above me – a concrete skyway

I saw below me – more golden arches

This wasteland was made by you and me

-

Chorus

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I’ve roamed on cell towers  – and taken exits

To sprawling cities - paved over deserts

And all around me – neon signs were shouting

This wasteland was made by you and me

-

Chorus

-

The sun dawns hazy - as I was rolling

Weeds were waving  – and dust was falling

As the smog now settles - voices start shouting

This wasteland was made by you and me

-

Chorus

-

As I tried walking – no sidewalks for me

As I tried biking – drivers scowl right at me

Few remaining places - of peace and safety

Those are the ones for you and me

-

Chorus

-

Throughout  our cities – empty seas of asphalt

Are clearly saying – whose really’s at fault

And some are grumblin’ – and some are wonderin’

Why this wasteland was allowed by you and me?

-

Chorus x 2

(Lyrics based on original song by Woody Guthrie)

Happy 100th Birthday, Woody!

Source: en.wikipedia.org

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Two celebrity cafes

For fun, here are photos of two coffee shops/cafes in the United Kingdom that have a certain amount of celebrity status associated with them. The first is the Beatles Coffee Shop in London. If you take the excellent and interesting two-hour Beatles Walking Tour, this is where your trip concludes.

The second is the Elephant House Tea and Coffee Shop in Edinburgh, Scotland where J.K. Rowling wrote Harry Potter. It has excellent food and an outstanding view of the Edinburgh Castle. Be sure to see the table where Ms. Rowling sat and wrote the books as she looked out over this lovely city. Definitely worth a stop to visit.

Source: flickr.com

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A few more predictions

The U.S. single family housing market will remain stagnant, not only because of the 2008 crisis, but as the baby boom generation ages there will be less demand for single family homes for the next 20 years.

Exurbs and distant suburbs will wither due to increased fuel costs and desire for shorter commutes.

Demand for scooters will soar in the USA for at least five more years.

Educational attainment will fall drastically in the USA by 2020 largely due to cuts in public school funding.

At least one of the big three hamburger chains will fail by 2020.

Independently owned department stores will gradually return to the retail landscape as consumers grow weary of “retail sameness.”

Despite attempts to derail funding, both AMTRAK and high speed rail will flourish.

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A night of triumph and tragedy

Greater Lansing experienced two very opposite emotions in the world of bicycling last night. On the triumphant side, the Lansing City Council voted 7-1 to adopt the city’s new bike parking ordinance.  This approval is another big victory in making all of Greater Lansing more bicycle friendly. Congratulations to everyone involved in getting this ordinance passed and thank you to the Council members who voted for it.

However, the local celebrations were tempered as it was learned that a 24-year-old bicyclist from suburban Perry, Michigan was killed later last evening along Bath Road.  Details about the accident are sketchy at this point. How very sad and tragic –  condolences to the victim, as well as their family and friends. Please pause and take a moment today to remember the victim.

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Counterintuitive retailing

For the past couple of years, I have been attempting to get the local Kohl’s department store to install a few bicycle racks for customers and employees who prefer active transportation. To date I have been unsuccessful. However, in the ultimate irony, the store installed two cigarette disposal containers instead. Is that really their intent – to tacitly support an unhealthy habit instead of promoting fitness, exercise, and good health? I doubt it, but their actions speak differently.

Sadly, Kohl’s is not alone. One can walk into numerous area businesses and see the same unfortunate priority. Even three national retailers who sell bicycles here, Dick’s Sporting Goods, Wal-Mart, and Toys R Us, do not even have bicycle parking at their stores. That is plain ridiculous. It seems counterintuitive to long-term customer health and their own long-term business prosperity.

It is long past time that our society places greater emphasis on good health, fitness, and exercise and stops giving even tacit support to unhealthy habits that cost all of us dearly. Please note, these thoughts are coming from a former cigarette smoker – me. For businesses, promoting healthy activities reduces their insurance costs, sick time, and employee absence. Those benefits themselves strongly outweigh the costs of installing a simple bicycle rack or two. The sooner our society starts to get its collective priorities in order, the sooner our nation’s general health and welfare will begin to improve.

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Ann Arbor’s marquee marquees

Here are a couple of photos taken Monday evening of  the State and Michigan theaters located in downtown Ann Arbor. Always have loved old movie theater signs and marquees and these two are iconic.

State Theater

Michigan Theater

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My favorite stadiums

Last night I watched a very interesting and entertaining program on PBS about the 100th anniversary of Fenway Park in Boston. I highly recommend the special.

The show got me to thinking about what my favorite stadiums are (or were) and what was likeable about them. I certainly cannot claim to have visited or seen very many, but here’s my list of the one’s that impressed me the most, primarily from their outward aesthetic appearance, location, and compatibility/context sensitivity with the surrounding neighborhoods. This list includes stadiums used for American football, soccer, cricket, rugby, and baseball. Also, here is a weblink to a cool website called world stadiums.

• Wrigley Field – (Chicago) – when you are a diehard Cubs fan, this place is heaven.
• Stamford Bridge (Chelsea -London, England) – you hardly know it is there until you walk up to it.
• Old Trafford Cricket Ground (Manchester, England) – very nice and quaint – tea anyone?
• Oldsmobile Park (Lansing) – excellent center city baseball stadium, though I prefer this name to its new one – Cooley Law School Stadium
• Michigan Stadium (Ann Arbor) – sunken bowl, except the press box and suites.
• Fenway Park (Boston) – two words – Green Monster – nuff said
• Spartan Stadium (East Lansing)
• Lambeau Field (Green Bay)
• Old Trafford (Manchester, England)
• Orioles Park at Camden Yards (Baltimore)
• Comerica Park (Detroit)
• Ford Field (Detroit)
• Murrayfield Stadium (Edinburgh, Scotland)
• Louisville Slugger Stadium (Louisville)
• Victory Field (Indianapolis)
• Easter Road (Edinburgh, Scotland)
• Crew Stadium (Columbus, OH)
• Ross Ade Stadium (Purdue-West Lafayette)
• PNC Ball Park (Pittsburgh)
• Notre Dame Stadium (South Bend)
• People Natural Gas Field (Altoona, PA) – the name alone deserves recognition as an unintended bad pun. A very nice facility though.
• Lane Stadium (Virginia Tech-Blacksburg)
• Municipal Stadium (Hagerstown, MD) – small but loads of fun for baseball fans
• Soldier Field (Chicago)
• Lucas Oil Stadium (Indianapolis)
• Canad Inns Stadium (Winnipeg)
• RCA (Hoosier) Dome (Indianapolis) – no longer with us
• Heinz Field (Pittsburgh)
• Kauffman Stadium (Kansas City, MO)
• Memorial Stadium (IU- Bloomington) – should have been named “lean forward stadium” the way the upper seats make you feel like you could fall onto the field.

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On Transit: A comparison by Miles of Track

On Transit: A comparison by Miles of Track. Interesting data and comparison by Ink & Compass.

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