Strike

Today is the first day of the Transit Strike. Personally, I think Roger Toussaint, the leader of the Transit Workers Union is an asshole and deserves to be thrown in jail for breaking the Taylor Law. In a nutshell, he has shut down all of NYC since he refused to give in on one issue. That issue is having new hires pay 6 percent into the Pension Fund, rather than 2 percent for current employees. So everyone who is striking is doing so for an issue that doesn’t even affect them. There, I’ve said my piece on that.

Since I am affected by a lack of subway service into the city, I decided to forgo my scheduled bike ride this morning, since I figured I would simply ride into the city by bike. While I was getting ready, a rusty nail punctured the bottom of my foot. The thick wool sock I was wearing pulled up an old nail from between my 100 year old floor boards. It went in about an inch, but fortunately missed anything vital.

I screamed when the nail went in and I screamed again when I pulled it out. The nail was an angry rusty thing with a hooked curve to it. While I was sitting on the floor squeezing out some blood, I asked my wife for my cordless phone, whereupon I called my local doctor and asked if I could come in for a tetanus shot. Fortunately he had one available so I hobbled on over to be stuck again. I've included a picture of the nail to the left.

I really didn’t mind having to get a tetanus shot, because I knew I would need to do so to have protection against illness when I do the Manhattan Island Marathon swim in June 2006. I also had them draw blood to see if I needed a Hepatitis A or B vaccination. So while the nail in my foot was inconvenient, it really didn’t take me out of my way.

When I returned home, I had to make some business calls before I headed into the city. Unfortunately, it appeared that my home technology was going on strike as well. My cordless phone battery died, my cell phone couldn’t get a signal and my internet connection went out taking along with it my secondary Vonage line. Since I had no email, phone or Internet, I decided I may as well get going.

My original plan was to get into my office around 10am. I have a special garment bag for my bike and I packed a suit, tie and shoes. I wanted to make a point of showing up for work, properly dressed and ready to go. My lunch plans included going to the dentist for my regular hygiene visit.

The ride in was very smooth and easy. There was a lot more traffic than usual compared to the times I’ve commuted to the city by bike in the past. Overall though, it was a great day for a ride and I thoroughly enjoyed it. While on the Manhattan Bridge, I even helped a young lady who had a flat tire.

I arrived at 57th and Lexington around 1:10pm, so I just headed over to the dentist since it didn’t make sense to go to my office first. During my examination, it was discovered that I had a cracked tooth and I needed to get a crown put on it. I decided to make the most of this situation and asked for them to bring on the Nitrous gas while the dentist did his business. I must say the day was turning out well. First a very pleasant ride on a beautiful winter day and now an hours worth of relaxation under a Nitrous induced hypnotic daze. It reminded me of my college days when I would do whippits with my friends.

The gas was taking a few minutes to clear out of my system, but that didn’t stop me from getting back on my bike and riding the half mile back to my office. Traffic was moving very slowly, so it wasn’t all that dangerous to be bobbing and weaving between the cars. Upon arriving at my office, I received many smiles and laughs over my riding outfit. Baggy tights, brown work boots and my down jacket, with a balaclava and helmet to round things off.

I worked for a few hours and then began to get ready for the return trip home. Traffic was a little heavier at this point, but that only meant an extra 5 minutes of travel time. It took me 47 minutes to get home and 42 minutes to get in. I can honestly say, I’ve had my fastest commute in quite some time. I think I need to commute like this more often.