Two-wheeled observations

I've been riding my bike around town lately, not so much because I need the exercise, but because I'm cheap and hate filling the tank more than once a week.

My wife had bought one of those Burley carts a few years back for $40 at a garage sale. The kids had used it at first and then outgrew it so I grew into it and use it to lug my camera gear around.

Sure, I look funny and people smile and smirk when they see me coming. They wonder out loud whether I've finished my paper route and I smile and wave back, with the appropriate finger, of course.

I've even taken to wearing a helmet, which makes me look even more out of place. At first I didn't think I really needed a helmet, but over the course of the past few months I've been to a couple of wrecks where guys would still be around if they had been wearing helmets, so it just made sense to wear one.

It makes sense for everyone to wear a helmet.

But I digress.

The really cool thing about riding a bike around town is how it slows you down and you see things you wouldn't normally see. It's life in slow motion, a window that only the bike privileged get too look through. Oh sure, you can go real slow and walk by all this stuff, but walking is too slow. It's normal paced and if you slow down or stop, people wonder what you're up to.

But if you're riding a bike and you slow down, people wave, say hello.

It's kind of nice.

I've also gotten to noticing a few things about Columbia Falls that I hadn't noticed before. To wit:

? There are at least two homes that I know of made entirely of cinder blocks. Not garages. Homes. Seems strange in a town surrounded by trees. The owners don't seem to mind. They're painted bright colors.

? We have a lot of older homes that probably won't hold up another 50 years. Many of these houses are very, very close together. One house in particular can't be more than a foot (maybe 18 inches) from the other. I hope the bathrooms aren't facing.

? One fella has a brand new house but his trophy mounts — a nice elk, and a couple of deer — hang in his garage. I suspect his wife had something to do with that.

? Very few people in new subdivisions have planted native trees. That's sad. Native trees like Ponderosa pine and Douglas fir require zero maintenance. Ditto for mountain ash, which feeds the birds.

? There are a lot of dogs behind those fences.

? Watch yourself when crossing Highway 2. Red lights are just a suggestion, it seems.

Have a good week.

Chris Peterson is the photographer for the Hungry Horse News.