Halt! Who goes there?

DAY 161 / 985 MILES I never, ever, would’ve thought simply walking on public streets as a subversive act. But, the Walk Around Lowndes project has whispered “au contraire” in my ear. I’d read in some of my high falootin books on walking, about the notion that aimless traipsing can trigger high alarm and suspicion from the good citizens. I didn’t believe the books but now, I’m on my knees brother. Mistakenly, I assumed that kind of reaction was more common centuries ago when the high road was a highly dangerous place where dangerous people lurked. Usually I stroll past people,… Continue reading

A walk in the Golden State

08/10/23 Day 155 / 938 Miles “LA’s fine but it ain’t mine”. Neil Diamond’s words are true when comparing LA County to Lowndes. The City of Angels might connote well behaved citizens (all beautiful of course) walking streets of gold…Welll, not exactly. It certainly has its share of devilish acts perpetrated on a backdrop of urban grit. But one thing it does have that we don’t is a climate that produces a bounty of flora thats unseen in our quadrant. It’s everywhere. “She’s like a Rainbow”. We in the Southeast, tend to mostly just get weeds that volunteer to grow… Continue reading

Take a Break

Day 150 / 900 miles One of the most personal joyful aspects of the Walk Around Lowndes project is that I’m free to stop & start as life demands and the body prescribes me to do. In fact its a down right cushy endeavor when you think about it. At night I’m never (in the words of Randy Newman) “miles and miles from your nice warm bed”, or away from my splendid kitchen that turns out meals that make us mumble through mouthfuls of bliss “myghwaadastgud”, a hot shower, and all the comforts that sweeten life. The people I really… Continue reading

Not walking gets you where you don’t want to go.

Day 144 / 874 Miles Last week I advocated for more public space thats dedicated to an improved ambiance of pedestrians unhindered by motor traffic, where the car isn’t king. Thoughts on the matter made me curious about the specific point on the humanity clock when mobility began its makeover (or when feet became obsolete). My reconnoiter shows it most likely began on Sep 15th, 1830. The first fully steam driven passenger railway was inaugurated, with great fanfare, between Liverpool and Manchester. The technological advent was one giant leap for mankind, as a rash of track laying around the world… Continue reading