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IU / photo / Wednesday — Comments Off
6
Jul 16

Look at this place

Hey, it is July, and hot. Even the statue of Ernie Pyle is sweating:

The Media School, where I live and work, is about to be moving. That’s the culmination of a three-plus year project, and since I’m new and it is the summer, there’s not a lot for me to do yet. A little HR ere, a little paperwork there. And I’m giving myself tours, so I went by to say hello to Ernie today.

I don’t yet know what goes on in this building:

This used to be a dorm. Now it is an administrative building. I hear it is going to become a dorm again:

And this is a side of one of the intramural gyms, Wildermuth. It used to be where the men’s basketball team played during the middle of the 20th century. It sat 10,000 people. Now there are 10 courts, a gym, a pool, locker rooms and classes in there:

The current facility, Assembly Hall, is undergoing a renovation right now ahead of next season. It will seat more than 17,000.

I walked through one of the international studies buildings:

It seems that every physical actor and voice actor that has ever played Vader was British, American, Canadian. But we’ll allow it on the basis of cleverness. And the idea that Polish might be a challenging language to study for most Americans.

food / IU / photo / Tuesday — Comments Off
5
Jul 16

First day at the new job

Had to happen eventually, going back to work, I mean. We have everything unpacked and most things are settled. Except for the hanging of picture frames. We might need some help with that, so come on up.

Anyway, reported for duty today. This is the new building:

I’ve been reading Ernie Pyle for years. As best I can tell I first mentioned him on this site 10 years ago. And some long time before that I first read his columns. He was an incredible rider, and he’s from Indiana and attended the university. He’d come back home from time to time to see his family and friends. He’d come to campus once in a while, too. And he’s still beloved here. His desk is here, this building is named after him. He has a statue that was installed in recent years, and that’s over at the location of the new building. I’m sure we’ll get around to explaining all of that here in time. For now, I’m at Ernie Pyle Hall, who could have seen that coming? Soon, we’ll be in a newly renovated facility. Pretty fancy upgrades all the way around.

This is a small part of the student union. They say its one of the largest in the country. They have a bowling alley and a barber shop and a bakery inside. Also, no kidding, a hotel:

This will take some explaining. Friends took us to this restaurant when we were up here at the first of the year. On a lark I tried a sort of burger I wouldn’t ordinarily order. It was delicious. We came back tonight for the first time, but they’d taken it off the menu. Didn’t sell. (Because I hadn’t gotten here yet, I guess.) I was so stunned and saddened that it took me even longer to think up a backup order, much to the delight and consternation of The Yankee and a friend of ours who was up visiting some family. I finally settled on this James Beard Foundation prize winning burger. It was OK, but not as good as what I wanted.

Now, the waiter, this poor guy who had to deal with me, he got the chef to give him the recipe for the mythical Cuban Frita burger:

Going to have to try to make that soon.

cycling / Indiana / memories / Monday / photo — Comments Off
4
Jul 16

Happy Fourth

On Saturday we took a long ride. We went through downtown, alongside a creek, through a park, on roads that start with the word “Old” and to a town in the next county above us. Also, we went directly by the local driving school which seemed a dodgy proposition after you thought about it a bit. This was a 56-mile ride where we climbed 2,600 feet or 1,800, depending on which app you like.

I’ve grown skeptical of all of them, though. I think I’m going much faster than their speeds would suggest, he said, while elevating his chin and using a sidelong stare to indicate he’s joking and he’s actually quite slow on a bicycle.

We went by this on our ride. You wonder what all has been stored in there over the years, and how many kids climbed over all that stuff, and what they thought about it:

I always loved places like that as a kid. Oh, I could go climb over it now. But I’d hurt myself. And I’d be “trespassing.”

Whatever, lawman.

I think about the most random things when I am riding or running. I tell stories to myself and make up great jokes to write down and I forget all most all of them soon after. Most of them were brilliant, though. Except for my forgetfulness, which is probably just brought on by being out of breath as I ride.

Like this, I took a picture of this sign and car lot for some reason. It was hilarious in my mind. And if I could tell you the joke you’d think it was mildly amusing, too. But that was Saturday and this is Monday and I have forgotten it already:

Just look at all of those bargains!

What do you figure the point of that one part of the fire department is:

If you built that just to have the longest fireman pole slide in three counties … well, that would seem odd. And I didn’t notice it as I pedaled by — it was uphill, mind you — but that looks sort of like a watch platform or a diving board or something on the top. or perhaps it is the world’s most optimistic rain break.

Nothing fancy for the Fourth this year. It just felt like a good day to stay in. We celebrated with a patriotic and colorful dessert:

So that’ll go in the archive, which has grown quite historic. And large:

adventures / Friday / photo — Comments Off
1
Jul 16

Any ointment and gauze on that aisle?

Today we did a test ride from the house to the campus. You have to know how to get places and all of that. So it was the height of the day and I did it in shorts, so it was in no way representative of riding your bike to work, but we found two routes. It’s about four-and-a-half miles one way.

Isn’t that an upgrade?

Also I found a new grocery store gimmick, the wall o’ values:

I should go through there regularly and see if the selection changes. There’s probably a good web gimmick in there somewhere.

Oh, look at this:

Nice countertops, huh?

I gave myself that blister while changing a bike tire. This probably means I’m doing it wrong. That it took 10 minutes definitely means I’m doing it wrong.

Bloomington / cycling / Indiana / photo / Thursday — Comments Off
30
Jun 16

Corn! Beautiful corn!

And how was your day? Mine was just fine, thanks. I spent the afternoon yoyoing off and on the back of the front pack of the slow group ride. That sounds like about the right station in life for a couple of hours.

Here we were hammering it by a cornfield. Keeping up is hard!

I love this. A John Deere tractor sitting out on the corner nearest the road. That’s a tool and a display piece. And it is a welcome site.

If I rode more I’d see more.