SHOW us YOUR PIX here .... Odd, WeiRd ,UnUSuAl or EyE CaTchIng things from your rides

[Prairie Dog]

Mick is a dead ringer.

Are there dog-monkey encounters other than the barking?

I suspect that’s why they use the powerlines to move around so that they can avoid such encounters. We watched this group several blocks away as they made their way above moving toward the side of the mountain across the street from the home. A husband of a friend of my wife’s who lives further out in the countryside, showed me a sling shot which he uses to deal with the macaques around his own house. Apparently, many are killed every year by local municipalities but it’s illegal to hunt them.

 

[Jeremy McCreary]

Mick is a dead ringer.
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I suspect that’s why they use the powerlines to move around so that they can avoid such encounters. We watched this group several blocks away as they made their way above moving toward the side of the mountain across the street from the home. A husband of a friend of my wife’s who lives further out in the countryside, showed me a sling shot which he uses to deal with the macaques around his own house. Apparently, many are killed every year by local municipalities but it’s illegal to hunt them.

So it'll be the monkeys first.

 

[Jeremy McCreary]

Yesterday was apparently "round thing made of round things" day.

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First, I came across a mysterious round plateau made of round beach cobbles.

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Probably the work of aliens branching out from crop circles. Stopping down to cut the glare off the water shows just how flat they managed to get the top.

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Then I rode up to a favorite overlook — the very fancy Alila Marea resort on the bluff immediately above the last spot shown.

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And there I found a freshly planted patch of dandelions. More round things made of round things!

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Very cool geometry executed in lucite and stainless steel.

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Similar light sculptures found online. The resort will apparently be using theirs as Christmas decorations. Can't wait to see them at night!

Follow-up: Given the urgent need to see the dandelion light sculptures at night, we had no choice but to go back to Alila Marea for a sunset drink.

After a good but seriously over-priced burger at the bar...

 

[Prairie Dog]

we see a lot of them in the UK, theres quite a few near me, great little vehicles, very cheap, the Japanese export cars with the slightest mechanical issue at a certain age., right hand drive seals the deal.
Pickup trucks mostly, adverts will say grey import version

A couple of more of those Japanese ultra compact food vendor trucks. These ones were in the Tokyo district. Most used cars in Japan are in pretty good shape due to the vigorous but mandatory Shaken insurance inspection.

 

[Art Deco]

A couple of more of those Japanese ultra compact food vendor trucks. These ones were in the Tokyo district. Most used cars in Japan are in pretty good shape due to the vigorous but mandatory Shaken insurance inspection.

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Love the optional plastic panda. Not. But the mini trucks are very cool.

 

[Prairie Dog]

Love the optional plastic panda. Not. But the mini trucks are very cool.

Coincidentally, the place was in fact named Panda Square. Likely a tribute to the loaned pandas that were once housed at the nearby Ueno Zoo.

 

[Prairie Dog]

Love the optional plastic panda. Not.

I suppose Hello Kitty disguised as a panda doesn’t cut the mustard either. Got to hand it to the Japanese, when it comes to character design especially with mascots, they reign supreme.

 

[fooferdoggie]

 

[fooferdoggie]

I guess this guy wanted a hot ride? he's he is pumping gas on the bike.

 

[fooferdoggie]

 

[steve mercier]

You are getting sleepy...very sleepy....

 

[Prairie Dog]

You are getting sleepy...very sleepy....View attachment 168211

That home would have been a good fit for the man they call, 'Reveen'.

 

[Art Deco]

You are getting sleepy...very sleepy....View attachment 168211

Wow. The owner of the next house must really love it.

 

[DaveMatthews]

Wow. The owner of the next house must really love it.

I'm sure he doesn't remember a thing...

 

[Jeremy McCreary]

Do places you were all set to ride till your left knee suddenly crapped out count?

Booked 2 nights on Shelter Island (on the north shore of San Diego Bay) to watch the annual holiday boat parade and explore the area by rental ebike the next day.

Poking around the Shelter Island marina before the parade was fun.

The Attessa — one of 3 superyachts of the same name owned by the same British zillionaire. Guess that's what the expression "third-boat wealth" is all about.

The harbor police have a station there. That night, saw a police boat pursuing a speedboat on the bay. The speedboat was still ahead when I lost sight of them.

The 80-vessel parade was a fine spectacle, but a phone camera wasn't the best way to prove that.

This cruise ship returning to port crashed the party. Lighting that sucker up at night must be half the fuel cost.

Next morning, loaded the dog in the car for a walk on the ocean side of nearby Point Loma, here seen from Shelter Island. Cabrillo National Monument at the top, two Ticonderoga class missile cruisers (visible only with good binocs) berthed at the Navy piers below.

Sea arch in the Sunset Cliffs on the other side of the point. No legal place to walk the dog there, so on to the Monument.

And just after taking this shot of harbor seals hauled out in the rocks, my funky left knee's recent spell took a very nasty turn for the worse. So much for the planned afternoon bike tour.

The bay panorama from the Monument's visitor center is stunning. All I could do to hobble over to the observation deck from the car, but totally worth the pain.

Independence class Littoral Combat Ship leaving port. Part of the "green-sea" (as opposed to blue-sea) Navy, these fast trimaran helicopter/troop carriers were designed to conduct land, sea, and air operations in coastal waters. Mountains of the Peninsular Ranges loom in the distance.

Islands of the Isla Coronado group, some 25 mi WSW of Tijuana, MX. Like the Channel Islands off SoCal, they represent the summits of faulted seafloor mountains created by ongoing relative motion between the Pacific and North American plates.

Next morning, knee was no better, and I was still bummed about missing out on biking Shelter Island. But on the way to the car to head home, we got a big consolation prize: A pair of ospreys on their nest overlooking the parking lot and bay.

Knee's better now. After the Holidays, we'll throw our bikes on the train and take care of this unfinished business.

 

[steve mercier]

Do places you were all set to ride till your left knee suddenly crapped out count?

Booked 2 nights on Shelter Island (on the north shore of San Diego Bay) to watch the annual holiday boat parade and explore the area by rental ebike the next day.

View attachment 168256
View attachment 168257Poking around the Shelter Island marina before the parade was fun.

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The Attessa — one of 3 superyachts of the same name owned by the same British zillionaire. Guess that's what the expression "third-boat wealth" is all about.

View attachment 168258
The harbor police have a station there. That night, saw a police boat pursuing a speedboat on the bay. The speedboat was still ahead when I lost sight of them.

View attachment 168251View attachment 168255
The 80-vessel parade was a fine spectacle, but a phone camera wasn't the best way to prove that.

View attachment 168252
This cruise ship returning to port crashed the party. Lighting that sucker up at night must be half the fuel cost.

View attachment 168263
Next morning, loaded the dog in the car for a walk on the ocean side of nearby Point Loma, here seen from Shelter Island. Cabrillo National Monument at the top, two Ticonderoga class missile cruisers (visible only with good binocs) berthed at the Navy piers below.

View attachment 168269
Sea arch in the Sunset Cliffs on the other side of the point. No legal place to walk the dog there, so on to the Monument.

View attachment 168268
And just after taking this shot of harbor seals hauled out in the rocks, my funky left knee's recent spell took a very nasty turn for the worse. So much for the planned afternoon bike tour.

View attachment 168265
The bay panorama from the Monument's visitor center is stunning. All I could do to hobble over to the observation deck from the car, but totally worth the pain.

View attachment 168266
Independence class Littoral Combat Ship leaving port. Part of the "green-sea" (as opposed to blue-sea) Navy, these fast trimaran helicopter/troop carriers were designed to conduct land, sea, and air operations in coastal waters. Mountains of the Peninsular Ranges loom in the distance.

View attachment 168267
Islands of the Isla Coronado group, some 25 mi WSW of Tijuana, MX. Like the Channel Islands off SoCal, they represent the summits of faulted seafloor mountains created by ongoing relative motion between the Pacific and North American plates.

View attachment 168264
Next morning, knee was no better, and I was still bummed about missing out on biking Shelter Island. But on the way to the car to head home, we got a big consolation prize: A pair of ospreys on their nest overlooking the parking lot and bay.

Knee's better now. After the Holidays, we'll throw our bikes on the train and take care of this unfinished business.

Sorry to hear about your bum knee. Will you be looking to get it replaced?

 

[Jeremy McCreary]

Sorry to hear about your bum knee. Will you be looking to get it replaced?

Thanks. Starting physical therapy tomorrow and seeing an orthopedist in 4 weeks. We'll see then.

The knee's been all over the map day to day since the current spell started a month ago. Thanks to my ebike, it now tolerates cycling better than walking and way better than stairs. With a little more assist than usual, it's tolerated several 10-15 mi rides on good days since the low point above.

 

[DaveMatthews]

Thanks. Starting physical therapy tomorrow and seeing an orthopedist in 4 weeks. We'll see then.

The knee's been all over the map day to day since the current spell started a month ago. Thanks to my ebike, it now tolerates cycling better than walking and way better than stairs. With a little more assist than usual, it's tolerated several 10-15 mi rides on good days since the low point above.

I don't want to tell you the story of my buddy's knee replacement...

 

[Jeremy McCreary]

I don't want to tell you the story of my buddy's knee replacement...

Appreciate the restraint. Thanks to the general perversity of the Universe — especially when biology gets involved — there are always horror stories in any medical procedure. But the vast majority of knee replacements go well.

All you can do is play the odds. After a career in medicine, I'm firmly convinced that positive thinking improves the odds, and there are good studies to that effect. So best to go in hopeful.

All that said, Plan A is to keep my own knees as long as they"ll let me. That's why I'm seeing physical therapy first.

 

[DaveMatthews]

Appreciate the restraint. Thanks to the general perversity of the Universe — especially when biology gets involved — there are always horror stories in any medical procedure. But the vast majority of knee replacements go well.

All you can do is play the odds. After a career in medicine, I'm firmly convinced that positive thinking improves the odds, and there are good studies to that effect. So best to go in hopeful.

All that said, Plan A is to keep my own knees as long as they"ll let me. That's why I'm seeing physical therapy first.

Always run away from the guy with the knife... unless you can't...