Chris Walsh (chris_walsh) wrote,
Chris Walsh
chris_walsh

Sunrise-bound

My previous apartment was three blocks away from TriMet Route 19. That was true in two directions. Either walk up the Boise St. hill to Milwaukie Ave. and turn right (north, towards downtown), or walk up the Boise St. hill to Milwaukie Ave. and turn left (south, away from it). Literally the same distance, give or take a few yards. And I'd have to force myself to turn left.

I've the long-standing habit, since moving to Portland in 2001, to get to a street with a bus line then walk along it until a bus caught up with me. Each place I've lived these past 15 (whoa) years, I've been able to do that. Occasionally I miss a bus because I'm in between stops when it passes, but that's rare; I accept that little risk and go on. I like making the effort to get more walking done; I have no problem with walking more.

But going the other way along a route -- that's a mental effort. Part of me must think "my speed going towards the bus plus the bus's speed means that there'll be less time for me to see and react to a bus, while walking the same direction as the bus is going makes our intercept speed incrementally slower. Whoa; I COULD MISS IT DUE TO ALGEBRA." Yeah, here I am telling myself that the speed difference is negligible unless I'm going at cheetah speeds, and that going backwards can be as valid as going forward.

I now have a good reason to break that habit. Where I am now, I can take the Route 10 bus along Harold St., an east-west road, to work. Similar distance to go to either the stop at S.E. 69th/68th Ave. or the stop at S.E. 72nd Ave.

Heading east to S.E. 72nd on workday mornings is awarded, on a sunny or sunny-ish day, with sunrise light. Didn't have that motivation along the north-south Milwaukie Ave.

I'm a fan of sunrise light (and of light in general). Why not get more of it when I can?
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