Gregory Hillman » Travel

Where is the best place to use a bike?

Greg — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 22:59:26 +0000

Recently, I have been watching and hearing people talk about where they should ride their bike. I believe it mostly depends on your needs and the type of bike you are using but there are some basic rules that all bike riders follow. I know this because I have been riding bikes for my entire life and have not had a car for most of it. I have used bikes as my only mode of transportation for many years and I have biked daily in cities like Seattle, New York, Miami, Chicago, and Los Angeles. I have also spend plenty of time riding outside the city and on various mountains so this is general information that you should be able to use for years to come.

1) Bikers ride with traffic on the right side of the road in the US. Sometimes people from the NE of the US who have not biked much believe you should bike like you walk. Wrong. Bikes need to travel at high speeds to commute effectively and this can only be done with traffic. If you were to hit a car or a pedestrian going the opposite direction death would be very possible. Stay safe and bike on the right.

There is exceptions to this such as when there is a right turn only lane at a stop light in the US. Then the biker should be stopped on the right side of the right most lane that will continue straight. This way cars can still turn left safely and the biker can start traveling with traffic when the light changes.

2) Use bike paths when possible when riding in the city. Almost every city in the world now has bike paths and a quick search on the web will reveal many bike paths that you may not know about. Be sure to coordinate your trip with easy access on a safe public bike path.

When biking on a bike path be sure to right on the right, use a white 180 degree light at dark, and be friendly to the other bikers. You are not required by law to stop and help if someone is injured but if there is no one that will get to an injured person quickly you should try to help by calling 911.

3) Mountain bike in an area that you are familiar with (or be very safe and hold back), others should know where you are, and make sure they know when you should be back and who to call. It is best to mountain bike with a few friends in a location that is safe, public, and has easy access if you need to be air lifted or taken off the hill.

Be careful you do not get too aggressive while going down hills and considering large jumps. Take the jump slowly at first when possible until you have mastered it and can safety try it faster. Ride in the mountains only in well lit environments and I do not suggest ever riding in the mountains at night.

4) Don’t bike on the sidewalk. I have recently even seen staff from the city transportation department bike on the sidewalk and it is just not safe or appropriate for anyone involved. Today, the city transportation employees on bikes almost hit a pregnant lady trying to walk down the sidewalk to work. It does not leave room for people to walk safely and you would be going against traffic in many cases.

If there are any youth, children, or anyone that may move unexpectedly you should always bike well away from them. Just going slow around kids on or off a sidewalk is not enough because they may dart out in front of the bike and get injured or worse.

If there is no one on the walk way for miles or if it is the only safe place to be then sometimes the sidewalk is your only option but in 99% of the cases be on the right side of the road and leave the sidewalk for walking.

Ambulance parked in red keeping bikes from traveling on right.

When riding your bike in the city it is appropriate to use hand signals:

Left turn: Left arm out straight
Right turn: Left arm 90 degree angle up
Slow down: Left arm 90 degree angle down
It is best to use the left arm and use your right arm to drive.

Enjoy biking, help your friends understand how to do it easily, and it will help keep you healthy and your community less polluted with carbon monoxide and auto waste. Always wear your helmet!

Also, don’t take my word for it. Here is what others have to say about where to ride your bike from all over the US and the names have been removed for privacy:

“I hate sidewalk bikers. No sidewalk bicycling is an ordinance in Everett: and I’ve been clipped by bike cops on the sidewalks up there more than once.” -Seattle, WA

“A bike cop came THISCLOSE to hitting me on the sidewalk in downtown Seattle a couple of weeks ago. I actually thought it was illegal to ride a bike on the sidewalk, but I guess not?” -Portland, OR

“(I) watched a dude take out a 5 yr old with his bike. and he took off. We tried to catch him, but could only shout obscenities” and “just speeding through a very crowded festival. No business being on a bike inside the Seattle center at any time, much less festival time.” -Seattle, WA

“We have bike lanes here and it still doesn’t stop them from using the sidewalks. Here is what happened this last summer…this little boy ended up having to get surgery on his head, to do with getting hit” and “We don’t have cops that ride bikes here but we are a large college town were most people are from out of state coming here for school, most take buses, walk, and ride bikes. Now not everyone is like this, because I do know many responsible students, but for the majority in the morning traffic those that aren’t from here” -Iowa

I believe that covers it. Don’t ride on the sidewalk near people because it is not safe and be sure to follow the other guidelines or leave your response here.

Canada and UK Visa or Passport Photos 45mm x 35mm

Greg — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 22:16:10 +0000

After looking all over Los Angeles to find a legitimate business that could take a 45mm x 35mm I finally found out about Bison Photo through craigslist.org’s community talk channel. They have plenty of parking, only specialize in photography and processing photos, and have their visa or passport booth set up when you walk in the door. They are on Bison Ave so it is very easy to remember. There is plenty of free parking and there are other restaurants and businesses that share the business park area.

Warning Garbage US Passport Photos

I had been to all types of places to find a metric photo including professionals like Timothy Brendan, Hans Ku, and normal stores like Costco, and Walmart. Many of them could do a normal US passport photo but none of them could complete a passport photo or a visa photo for the UK or Canada. One guy said he could in Santa Monica and even had an ad up on the web but he was just set up in the back of a mini-mart and the photo sizing was not even close. The expression was wrong and the background was not off white enough.

Send Photo or Visit Bison Photo

You can either send them the photo to be processed or come in directly for photo processing. I suggest going directly there because there are background requirements for the UK including the cream or gray background depending on the type of photo that is needed. I also brought an application on my iPhone that shows millimeters so I measured the photos exactly when they came out. They were pretty exact and the photographer even gave me an additional one because one of them may have been a millimeter off. Regardless, it worked and I have my visa with a great photo from Bison Photo. Thanks!

Bison Photo Contact Information:

(949) 644-6533

Address:1220 Bison Ave Suite A-4 Newport Beach, CA 92660

45mm x 35mm Professional Photos

Greg — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 21:47:31 +0000

I found the place that can do 45mm x 35mm. It is called Bison Photo in Newport California. They have the real deal and I tell you all about on the Bison Photo page. The photos were approved by the border agents and looked great.

>>>

After months of searching, asking people, visiting tens of photo stores, calling a variety of location, and searching on the web I believe it is very difficult to find 45mm x 35mm photos in Los Angeles for any type of visa. If you are aware of any places that provides photos like this for visas, passports, and other documents please feel welcome to leave your message here.

Here are some of the places that have already said “no” they can not provide or do not normally provide this type of photo:

Costco
US Post Office
CVS
UPS Store
FedEx
Kinko’s
Ambassador Photo in Santa Monica
Albertsons
Wallgreens
Timothy Brendan Photography (http://timothybrendan.com/)
Hans Ku Photography

Of course these are the places that normally offer passport photos which are 2″ x 2″ but the 45mm x 35mm is much harder to come by. Really we need a place that does this type of photo full time on a normal basis and does not need you to “bring in the paper.” I believe part of the problem is that this size is normally used in the UK and not in the United States. The location should already know what is needed for the photo even through there are a number of guidelines. All of the paperwork says doing it at home normally would not work but I am not sure where to find it otherwise. Any help would be appreciated.

How To Get A Birth Certificate

Greg — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 19:51:43 +0000

Are you wondering, “how do I get a copy of my birth certificate?” The answer is easy and you don’t even need a “copy.” If you call, write, fax or mail the city or county you were born in they should be able to help look up your birth certificate and send you a original with their stamp of approval.

I suggest speaking with someone at the city because they will know the various ways to request the birth certificate. Be sure to ask the person on the phone what is the least expensive way of getting your birth certificate unless you are in a rush. Normally there is a way to mail in the request and save at least $10.

What Will They Ask for a Birth Certificate?

They will normally ask you questions about the names of your family and basic questions about your birth so they can find the certificate in their database. The whole process in most states should cost less than $25 and you should have a new birth certificate at your door in less than 10 days. Many places can also send you the certificate with in 24 hours for an additional fee.

It is important to have a birth certificate if you are traveling or trying to get a visa. Many countries require this certificate before you will be accepted into their country if you plan on working.

Simple Gifts With Big Results

Greg — Fri, 13 Feb 2009 20:33:55 +0000

Most everyone gives “simple gifts” but we need to focus on what we are giving if the gifts will count. Through out my life my family has given small amounts of money for gifts which are normally lost quickly in needed items for daily life. Everyone has certain things they need in their daily life and I suggest not considering these things as gifts.

Simple Necessities As Gifts?

Gifts should enrich the life of the person that you are giving it to and not be a necessity. Necessity gifts are really just needed help in disguise because they do not enrich life and instead maintain it. This is not to say that a simple gift that someone uses all the time is a necessity. You might already have some old cheap plastic Tupperware that works as a need but someone might be able to enrich your life by providing high end laboratory glassware containers that will not break, have solid lids, and are easy to cook with. This gift would enrich the life of someone you may know and may not be seen as a necessity.

Rocks as Gifts?

One of the strangest gifts that I have seen work well is a rock from your travels. Some locations do not allow you to remove rocks or anything from the natural environment so you may want to check with a local person first before removing part of the habitat. If it is alright to take a rock find one that is interesting and one that your person may not see in their environment. Some people really love this because they get to touch and experience something that you simply can not buy in a store or have delivered on Amazon. It also shows that you made an effort to really pick out something they would like. Even a simple gift like this can really make a difference.

Simple Gifts

Trees Down On South Mt. Hood Oregon

admin — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 00:45:36 +0000

After driving for many hours I came across many downed trees on the south side of Mt. Hood. The trees were all right next to the roads in the national forest which was beautiful but as you can see here very dangerous. I first started to get concerned when there were many leaves and branches littering the road due to the high winds. There were no signs or advisories mentioned but it was clear after about an hour of driving that the conditions were getting worse and could be hard to navigate. Then there were about 10 trees on the road. Most of them took up about half of the road and I drove around each one trying to make it to my destination. Finally I saw one tree that was much larger than the rest. I thought at first that I could drive around this one much like the others but after a quick hit of the break pedal I had to stop because there was no clearance around either side.

Fallen Trees in Oregon

The tree had fallen from about 50 feet inside the forest, across the road, and through more than 50 feet of trees on the other side. This made the tree impossible to move. It was viced between over 40 trees and with each semi that would try to push and pull it seemed harder to move it away.

Even creating planks to jump the tree with a 4×4 did not work out and a trip that was over 3 hours out of the way was next. I waited for about 40 minutes but all that was found was over 100 stopped semis on the road. After seeing yet another tree that was larger fall in the road 1/4 mile up there was little option but to try to travel around. Be careful when traveling through Oregon with wind because you might find yourself stuck behind or under a fallen tree! The next day on the radio I heard that these major roads were closed for over 24 hours. Drive safe.

Tree on Road Near Mt. Hood