I  am, I think,  quite   reasonably
apprehensive  about dying  tomorrow  It's  15k / under  10 miles,  split
morning. Previously, I had been car  into different  thirds.  If you are
pooling  (in the sense  that I have  smarter  than Google Maps, which is
neither car nor license)  on my way  outdated,  rather than bicycling on
to seasonal work;  anyway my rusted  a motorway  the first third is on a
old  frame and warped  wheels  gave  closed  highway,   converted  to  a
way,  and I just indulged  in a new  sort-of close village  of mansions,
bicycle   (large  29"  MTB,  normal  the front-portion of each being one
tires).                              acre  of  personal  socker   field,
                                     realistic  topiary  garden,  or the
Previously  I've only biked halfway  most popular-  herds of shiny black
(just  15k total),  but it was  the  miniature   ponies,  backing   onto
nice half.  Something I have become  homes  that are the hotel  from The
acutely   aware  of  is  that  it's  Shining.
commonplace    in   NZ  for   large
vehicles  to simply  drive with one  The way the district  was separated
wheel on the wrong side of shoulder  off was that the former highway was
noise-makers.  I guess it's quieter  blocked  at one end and  road  made
that way.                            discontinuous   at  the  other,  so
                                     there  isn't  even a question  of a
I believe strongly  that it must be  truck  shortcut.    Then, the  only
possible   for people  to  bike  on  vehicle  traffic  entry/exit  is  a
roads (given  that walking  them is  confusing   unidirectional    entry
illegal    and    crossing     them  followed    by  exit  on  a  110kph
impossible);  and it's necessary to  motorway  past the city, and you're
have  one of the possible  jobs  in  going  to be on the motorway  for a
NZ, seasonal  fruit picking. Of the  while   (it's  roughly   aimed   at
wonderful   migrant fruit pickers I  Auckland,    an   hour   north   of
spoke  to  some are uncarred   that  Hamilton).      BUT   the   central
basically  can't/don't  leave their  road/former   highway  has a big  3
Working    Holiday   Visa    shared  metre luxury  cycle path, which can
dormitory   rooms when not picking.  be    entered     from    a    very
So  I would  like to  convince   at  out-of-the-way   luxury cycle  path
least myself whether  it is morally  through a difficult  to reach outer
possible   to bicycle  to and  from  riverbank park in the city.
seasonal  work,  and just in the NZ
countryside  generally.   There are
lots of wild places  I would prefer
to  be for the next ROOPHLOCH   and
just in general.


It  seems  more like a  parody   of
wealth  than paragon.   Like Edward
Scissorhands,   but  the   smallest
houses are five times the size, and
there are also flocks  of miniature
ponies amoungst the topiary.  There
are  old  people   and  exquisitely
winter-tanned      young     people
sauntering    from  visiting  their
ponies    to  the  Mary  Antoinette
strawberry-picker-inspired   rustic
high class cafe and restaurant.   I
went  there  once when the  highway
still   existed   and  neighborhood
wasn't obvious yet. It was possible
to  book  an  expensive   authentic
strawberry   picking experience  in
some  toy  garden   rows  the  cafe
overlooks.

Anyway, this will be the last thing
I will have experienced  if a truck
hits  me when I take the cycle-path
exit  from that neighborhood   onto
Airport Road some hours from now.