The streets of Old Town are fraught with danger. Tourists crossing streets without looking, crossing against the light, the trains and buses. One of the worst problems involves bicycles and now tricycles.
Bikes are rented all over Old Town. Key West is one of the best places in the world to ride a bike and enjoy scenery and serenity. Key West provides bike paths on many streets. Some streets are without.
Bicyclists appear to be under he impression that they are the only ones on the street. They forget there is automobile traffic. The bikes travel not on the bike paths and not to the left side. Generally down the middle of the road. Red lights and stop signs are ignored. It is as if they do not exist. Turns are made without signaling.
Driving a car can be a pressure packed experience.
Florida laws state that bikes are to be treated the same as motor vehicles. Bikes must follow the same rules of the road as autos.
Bicyclists do not.
The vacationing society is becoming older. Baby boomers are vacationing. Those older, also. A bike can be a difficult thing to maneuver as one ages. A wobbly ride as opposed to a smooth one. Ergo, the tricycle business has boomed. A tricycle is a three wheeled bike. Also known as a trike.
The tricycles are even a worse danger. They are wider than an ordinary bicycle. Especially the back wheels. More for a car to hit!
I have written this dissertation not because I do not like bicycles and tricycles. I own two bikes. Ride them often. I write because accidents are occurring and more will occur. Simply because bicycle riders are not careful in the operation of their bikes.
Riding a bicycle/tricycle and driving a car have become sad events waiting to happen on the streets of Old Town.
Cold! Very cold during the night and this morning. Fiftys during the evening. Fifty seven at the moment. The high today is projected in the low 60s.
The cold front will have moved out friday and the temperature for friday and the weekend will be in the mid 70s.
Technically, this cold front is not a normal one. Key West cold fronts generally come off the ocean. This one from the northeast U.S. Whenever the weather is extremely cold up north, it stretches down to the Florida keys. We feel the impact. Our temps drop. Though no where near what it does in the north country.
Visited Jake yesterday. He was outside chasing tiny lizards/geckos. What a happy life!
Did Dante’s for lunch. An outdoor restaurant/bar on the water front. I ate at one of the bars. There were heaters overhead so the cold was not a problem.
Afterwards worked on last night’s blog talk radio show. Tuesday Talk With Key West Lou.
Sloan came over and worked with me a while.
The blog talk radio show last night was a good one. Discussed at length two topics. The Cyprus bank situation and the U.S. Supreme Court same sex marriage issue.
For the second week in a row, a screw up occurred. No one could hear me!
I do not know the source of the problem. Those who called in could hear me as they waited. Everyone else, nothing.
Frustrating!
The show is archived and available 24 hours a day. Even though I was not heard at the time of the broadcast, for whatever reason the archive recording was not affected. Ninety per cent of my listeners tune into the archive and will be able to hear it at any time. Not all was lost.
I have been in communication with the blog talk people. An Allan is supposed to call me to work the problem out.
I apologize to those who could not hear me last night. Disappointing to all of us. Please return next week.
The Key West Citizen reported this morning that the lobster and stone crab fishermen are complaining that this has been one of the worse seasons ever. One fisherman claimed it has been the worst in 40 years.
We Key Westers have been aware of the situation. Fishing friends frequent the Chart Room and Hogfish. May next year be better!
I must go out on the town this evening! I have been in 2-3 nights in a row. Need to have a couple of drinks and enjoy the company of others.
Enjoy your day!