Go down every rabbit hole

For the past couple years maybe, we’ve been exiting this particular highway, turning east, and driving towards our neighborhood. Out of the corner of our eyes, depending on who was driving, or who was staring out the window, not looking at their phone, someone would notice something on the sound barrier wall.

“Someone has put climbing holds on that wall!”, my wife was sure of it every time she caught a glimpse.

“There’s no way they could get away with that, it must be some acoustic panels or something,” I’d respond. The kids would crane their necks, but the brief moment where the angle was correct for looking back meant we could never get a close look.

Last week we drove to a different mountain bike trailhead and had a rare drive without the kids. My wife said, “could we go have a look at that wall?”

We exited off the highway, doubled back along the frontage road and parked the car. Walking up towards the wall, we both let out a big laugh.

It was not climbing holds, or sound panels, or anything of that nature. A guerrilla art installation, performance art, I guess you’d call it?

There were hundreds of phones mounted to back of this sound wall.

And located down on the wall, was this box:

Opening it up we found another phone, waiting to be hung up:

The instructions made me laugh out loud as well.

I’m having a hard time parting ways with all of this old tech that we have around the house and at school. Most of the time, it still works, maybe needs a new battery, but definitely still performs the functions it was designed to perform. This exhibit of phones, probably mostly working when they went up there, connecting us to “no one” was pretty poignant.

Days later, I’m still thinking about this. I recently watched Cabel Sasser’s presentation at the XOXO conference, and the message, “go down every rabbit hole” really struck me. We could have kept driving past this location for years, and might not have ever seen it if we hadn’t interrupted our typical route to go have a look. It was such an unexpected moment of joy to find this out in the world.

Cabel references his earlier talk from 2013, and I took a few minutes to view that one as well. It’s a personal story of how he worked through a difficult time leading the company that he co-founded. The thing I took away from that talk though was the very real humans that are behind the software and hardware that we use every day. I feel like, at least in the Mac community, (whatever that means anymore) that I’ve been using software, made by real people for decades now. Often times the same software over many different versions and operating systems.

I’m not sure we as a society ever think about the actual people who make software and hardware. Artists, authors, musicians are fairly present and inextricable to the work they produce. When you go to a concert, the musicians are right there. We know there is a person behind the book that you’re reading. Their name is right there on the front. After a bit of research there is, in fact, a human behind the phone wall we found. (In their case, I think the anonymity is a bit of a feature but who’s sense of humor I would probably very much enjoy.)

I hope you’ll stop and go down those rabbit holes out there in the world, and also, open up that About… menu in that app you’re using, have a look at the names and learn a bit about them.

Cargo Bikes

I’m going to go ahead and say I was ahead of the curve on this one…

I got curious about the phenomenon, which clearly has charmed one of society’s more frazzled groups: parents of young children. According to one observer, this has been a steadily growing “quiet movement” for many years.

From ‘This is not a blip’: A quiet movement grows on San Francisco’s streets

We bought our cargo bike in 2013, and in 2012 I was test riding a few. We bought ours without e-assist, which was… a lot of work.

We added the e-assist in 2016, which was a game changer. But, the kids got older, and I couldn’t justify keeping it in the garage. We sold it in 2021 and I sill miss riding it around loaded with kids, dogs, groceries or whatever.

It’s an amazing option for anyone with a reasonable “bike score” who’s looking for a car replacement. Highly recommend it for everything the article talks about.

One party is the party of progress and the people.

Letters from an American, January 19, 2024

Great post here. I recommend subscribing to this newsletter if you haven’t already.

Adventures in travel

We were dropped off at entrance to St. Paul’s union depot about eight in the morning, despite our awareness that the train was already delayed approximately 45 minutes. As we sat in the cavernous hall, along with a growing number of passengers, I researched the internet for information about the status of the train.

Amtrak itself does not seem to publish a real-time map of the system, but several enterprising (and low-budget) sites exist for this purpose. The appropriately named railrat being my new go-to. I appreciate the quick load times and mostly text-based information, however all the news was bad. The delay times grew longer and longer between data refreshes.

After a text message update from Amtrak (“we’re experiencing delays”), I considered heading back home to grab the van, but was able to determine that the train had in-fact left St. Cloud and was chugging our way. There were updates on railrat of the speed dropping to zero that impacted the growing delay, and I could only guess that the great Empire Builder was being forced to wait as freight trains sharing the tracks were moving in and out.

Before too much longer, at least, the train did arrive at St. Paul’s Union Depot. A long line had quickly formed in anticipation, and general announcements were made to the group. Looking back at the line one could only imagine what this hall looked like in the hey-day of train travel out of Minneapolis and St. paul, with multiple platforms serving the upper midwest.

Clearly the conductor had worked on his comedy routine as he explained the boarding procedure. Have your barcode out when you get to the front. If you don’t have your bar code out you will be sent to the back. If there were groups of 3 or more traveling together, come to the front so that they could efficiently assign the seats in coach.

Immediately two older folks and their dog walked to the front. The conductor reprimanded them with enough volume so that the entire line could hear, “No, your dog does not count as a person in your group.”

Person number four in line could not produce his barcode quickly enough, and then phoned a friend to discuss. He was directed to the back of the line. We approached the scanner, and were told “car four, and make sure they know you’re getting off at Glenview”.

We found two seats in coach quickly. I chose the left side of the train so that we could view the river on the way down. (Counter-intuitive because the river is on your right as you sit in Union Depot.) My memories of the last couple Amtrak rides quickly flooded back. The seats are in rough shape. The carpet, rougher. One of the reading lights doesn’t work. One of the tray tables, stuck in place. One seat missing a foot rest. For what we spend on a mile of rural highway resurfacing it seems that we could get some upholstery in here.

Nonetheless, the seat is comfortable and we get organized. Books, laptops, games, headphones and snacks come spilling out of our bags as we settle in. Pretty soon, the train starts moving. “It’s so smooth!” Elena exclaims.

The first couple stops and hours pass quickly. Since we were approximately 3 hours late in departing, lunch is served before we leave Minnesota. We are seated in the dining car with a graduate student attending UI Champage-Urbana for Computer Engineering. He’s from China. Can’t find an internship for the summer. “Is the job market good?” I think it is, I reply, not really knowing. We learn that he took the train from Chicago to Seattle and back for his winter vacation from school. We all order the burger. It’s quite tasty. I have the last Stone IPA in the dining car before they shut down the service.

The snowfall has picked up as we cross into Wisconsin, but we continue to chug along. Despite promises to “make up some time” in route, I determine from railrat that we are basically holding steady. Around the Wisconsin Dells, the troubles begin.

I had previously noticed an odd shudder in the train, seemingly when they were attempting to accelerate on the straights. We are clearly moving slower as we pull away from a most recent small station. An announcement is made that we are experiencing “a little” difficulty with the engine and they “can’t get it past notch 5”. “Possibly an hour to milwaukee” After the next stop in Columbus, WI, the train remains motionless for an exceedingly long time. At 5:03pm, the power drops out. The ventilation and accessory power stop. Attempts to reboot the systems are apparently made as the power comes on and off several times. An announcement or two are made, I’m guessing from the engine area, based on the ambient noise surrounding the unknown speaker. What I could only describe as a “hot mic” catches the following: “got a fault on the engine, it won’t move”.

Approximately two hours later, the train lurches violently several times as it attempts to start moving. I consider putting on the long underwear I brought along explicitly for the purpose of trudging across a wind-swept Wisconsin cornfield in a snowstorm in the event of an engine failure. There is no cell signal. Madison is 25 miles to the southwest. We could probably hitch a ride as soon as we find a road. As vague apocalyptic thoughts past through my head, the train starts moving, slowly at first and then with more purpose. Judging by the occasional vehicle I can see through the blizzard, we’re moving approximately 40 miles per hour.

A cell signal returns quickly enough and I get back on the railrat.net site. The simple html and text once again loads instantaneously, even on 1 bar of LTE. (Did I mention there is no wifi on this train?) Railrat confirms the mental calculations I had made. We are about four hours behind schedule, now expected to arrive at 10pm. We’ve missed pizza night. The reserved uber ride from the glenview station is canceled until we have a better understanding of the arrival time.

At 7:12pm One of the Amtrak attendants gets on the PA to ask every to pray that we make it to Chicago. The amish man seated across from me loudly munching on a duffel-sized bag of popcorn dutifully lowers his head in silent assent.

Perhaps the call to prayer works in our favor, because with little additional drama, the train arrives to the Milwaukee station and slows to a stop. Immediately, all hell breaks loose.

“Assistance to the platform, we have a situation” crackles across the radio. A moment or two later, a wildly more urgent announcement. “We need some immediate assistance outside car 15, we have an emergency!”

Passengers in our car pile towards the windows trying to determine what is happening. The bystander effect kicks in, and I wonder for a moment if I should head closer to the situation, whichever direction that is.

Before I can leave my seat, another announcement. “The police have been called.” I can see one of the Amtrak employees carrying a piece of luggage and escorting someone off the platform. A terse announcement over the PA. “Please everyone stay calm, nobody is to leave the train. We have a serious situation outside.”

I can see a police cruiser pull up and park as if the driver is completing their behind the wheel training. A new, calmer person is on the PA: “I just wanted to get on and de-escalate the situation since the term “emergency” was used. We are waiting here for a new engine so that we can safely complete the remainder of the journey to Chicago. It will take approximately 30 minutes to get the new engine placed on the tracks and hooked up. We deeply apologize for the delays and appreciate your patience. Also, there was a brawl outside and the police were called.”

I consider asking if we can get off so that I can take a $250 Uber ride the remainder of the journey. I also consider renting a car, but all of the car rental locations are closed. The still blustery and snowy conditions do not inspire confidence in those options. Neither does the next announcement. “The new engine is here and we just need to cut the front engine off, hook up a few cables and we should be on the move. Should be about fifteen minutes” We’re currently running 6 hours late.

It is within an acceptably fuzzy 15 minute that we do indeed begin rolling. Clearly the tracks between Milwaukee and Chicago have seen some recent maintenance and repair. The engine pulls hard and we are quickly moving 75 miles per hour. (I had downloaded a GPS app at some point to check on our speed.)

Carl (from the Café car) gets on the PA. I had made a previous comment to Carl, while picking up a beer from the Café car, that this had been quite the adventure in my cheery Minnesota small talk way. His gaze of cold realism fixed on me as he said, “I’m just wanting to get home to my family.”

Carl’s mood has clearly lifted with the new southerly speeds. “Once again we apologize for the delays on our journey. At this time, everything in the Café car is complimentary. Everything except alcohol, which will NOT be served.”

Not one to turn down free food, I leap into action. So do at least two thirds of the trains passengers. Luckily I had beat most of them to the door, and was down in the stairs in a flash. Six or seven others were in front of me, grabbing everything they could see like a Kay-bee toy run. Elena pulls up next me as we take a candy bar, an asian noodle salad, and a diet coke for me. I look at Carl and say “thank you, hope you get to see your family soon”. He nods and hands me an ice-filled cup for the Diet Coke.

The North shore continues to whiz by the window. Now lit with suburban Chicago glow, I can see the snow has stopped. An announcement over the PA, Glenview is next. I’m still hopeful for what train travel in this country could be like. We grab our bags, nod to our fellow passengers and head for the exit. Two college-aged women are discussing their similar majors at different institutions. They are getting picked up by friends for late-night eats. Each makes this journey often, neither has experienced anything like it before.

It’s midnight as we stop in Glenview, more than 12 hours since we boarded and about 16 hours since we arrived to Union depot. It was an adventure, and we made it safely. Unfortunate to report upon, but I would still do it again. Not this weekend though, since our return ticket on Amtrak was already cancelled due to the storm and cascading crew displacement. Next time, I guess. Just now, as I finish the typing this story from the floor of O’Hare International Airport, a text buzzes on my phone. “Your flight is delayed.”

The quotes in this story are true to the best of my recollection. Names have been changed. The Amtrak employees we met were all working hard, despite the broken system.

new party

I wonder if we’ll ever get a new political party out of all the current mess.

Fetterman is an interesting case:

Fetterman, Breaking With the Left on Israel, Rejects ‘Progressive’ Label

“Can’t it be possible that it’s really appropriate to stand for both?”

That quote is out out of context – but the sentiment is there… all of this stuff is more complex than most of our public discourse has time for.

skiing at Afton Alps today

I just took quick notice of the fact that my climate change-related posts increase dramatically each winter as the warming of the planet is felt here in Minneapolis more than other places in the country.

They tell us that it is a “brown” Christmas about 30% of the time for as long as records were kept, however, I think that conflates the lack of precipitation with the warm temperatures. My phone tells me it rained about .4″ today – that should’ve been good enough for 4-6 inches of snow, but instead, we got mud and big ruts on the hill where the kids were practicing.

The impact on my kids’s (and my) psyche is pretty strong. The sound of rain all last night on the roof did not make for an easy wake up to go skiing this morning.

Four Takeaways From the COP28 Climate Summit

It took 28 years of climate negotiations for world leaders to agree to wean the global economy from the principal source of climate change: the burning of fossil fuels.

Great. They’ve been working on this almost as long as I’ve been blogging.

In the meantime – as I told the kids this morning, we need to keep on loving the things we love to do outdoors so we don’t lose the reason to keep up the fight for the climate.

Happy Thanksgiving 2023

As I sit here at my computer, there is so much to be thankful for. My family, friends and neighbors. Our careers and schools. Our city, and state and country. I’m thinking today about the many people in our country who might be celebrating Thanksgiving with much less, or not celebrating at all. And then, when I expand my thinking beyond our borders and seas, to the people in other countries who are searching for a better life, or who find themselves entangled in conflict, likely through no fault of their own. It’s a lot to comprehend.

I hope we’re still moving towards a future where the arc towards peace, safety, self-determination and freedom is as apparent and attainable as it is for our small corner of the world. Elections matter, the world over, and we’re seeing those outcomes play out, sometimes delayed, sometimes immediate. Nobody really reads my blog anymore, but I hope for anyone who does, that you are informed, involved, and take the responsibility of voting seriously.

I believe it is ultimately the free people of the world who can affect the change within our governments necessary to create equitable conditions for everyone. We won’t get there through violence, hate, intimidation, but simply through our love for each other and a mutual respect for our common humanity.

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