Comments for Yellow Tent Adventures

Comment on 26 Seconds by Patrick

Patrick — Sun, 18 Jul 2010 18:36:30 +0000

Opt-out is great for the conscientious but it doesn’t account for the importance of default behavior. Particularly when a “free” item is involved. It takes positive effort to go opt out that 90% of people aren’t going to expend if the other option is a book magically showing up that they don’t care about one way or the other.

Opt-in seems much more effective at reducing unnecessary waste than a huge opt-out marketing campaign that A. won’t happen and B. will still probably only reach 20% of users.

Comment on 26 Seconds by Alex

Alex — Sun, 18 Jul 2010 18:34:38 +0000

I agree with Kari. It might be hard to imagine for those of surfing the net from home, but a lot of people in this city don’t have internet at their home or on their phone and still use the phone book. seems like opt-out is pretty easy to do

Comment on 26 Seconds by Kari

Kari — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 19:24:45 +0000

I’m surprised nobody has mentioned the opt-out option. You can find it online at yellowpagesoptout.com.
After entering the site, you enter your zip code and the site lists phone book providers in your area, along with links to opt-out pages on their websites.

A much more convenient option than bringing phone books to city hall. I opted out two years ago and haven’t seen a phone book since.

Comment on 26 Seconds by Beacon Hill Blog » Archive » Beacon Bits: 26 seconds, Three Brothers, and one more photographer

Fri, 16 Jul 2010 04:45:04 +0000

[...] Beacon Hill neighbor Willie Weir has some thoughts about the waste of space and resources that old-style paper phone books have become for many of us. Read his article “26 Seconds” on his blog, Yellow Tent Adventures. [...]

Comment on 26 Seconds by Mike J

Mike J — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 20:56:41 +0000

What a great idea. The only time the directory makes it into our house is if we get one around Halloween time. You can stuff a scary looking dummy with waded up phone book pages. Of course, a head never goes on the dummy. That would be way too nice looking.

Comment on Inspiring the Next Generation of Adventure Cyclists by Ethel MacDonald

Ethel MacDonald — Sun, 30 May 2010 19:35:32 +0000

Willie — (I don’t know how to contact you other than here.) Do you remember old Ethel in Missoula who does solo bike trips mainly in France? I found & use as my e-mail signature the quote from you & mentioned:
“Adventure is rarely determined by the destination you choose, but by the method of travel and the route you take to get there.” Just finished a great 3-week Paris-Amsterdam trip & am again inspired by you & this article to offer presentations to schools. At age 72 I continue to bike ALL my usual shopping, errands, meeting, entertainment trips & constantly try to get other women to do the same. Biking in a country where bikes are an accepted and major form of transportation (Holland, of course) was an enlightening & inspiring experience. You inspire me — and I hope to inspire others. Thanks.

Comment on Inspiring the Next Generation of Adventure Cyclists by Mike J

Mike J — Wed, 26 May 2010 18:43:19 +0000

Willie, great post. I recently found your book at Elliot Bay books in Seattle and set out to read some of it while my wife looked through the children’s section (for hours). I was so enthralled with your book after an hour of reading that I actually bought it. That’s saying a lot coming from a tight wad like me. I’ve been involved with a lot of group or organized rides in the past but I think next year my wife and are are going to give touring a shot. Thanks for the inspiration.

Comment on Google Maps Bike Route Option–Not Ready for Prime Time by Chaz

Chaz — Sat, 10 Apr 2010 18:29:51 +0000

I don’t know – I’ve taken both dearborn and ranier and didn’t find it too problematic. But I tend to take main arterial in areas I dont know that well, I find I get lost a lot less. That’s the problem with bike routes though – they can be so personal based off an individuals preferences. I actually found biking on Aurora in snohomish county to not be that bad, especially since they have the bus lane on the right hand side, but to each their own.

Comment on Bike Culture by Kat Marriner

Kat Marriner — Mon, 05 Apr 2010 16:39:51 +0000

Hi Catherine,
I was thrilled to learn that the BikeExpo Best of Show went to the booth “Hub and Bespoke”. The actual store isn’t opened quite yet, but with its tagline “Bike Your Style”, it promises to cater to cycling as a lifestyle. It will open somewhere in Seattle this spring, I think. In Portland I stopped in a shop called Clever Cycles and it too was more like browsing a boutique with stylish, clever ideas, many appeared to be imports from Europe where they already integrate bicycles into urban life. Check out their web site.

Otherwise, I started thinking about this void of bike accessories for real women in the real world after hearing many stories of bike shops not really addressing the needs of fitting a bicycle to a woman’s body. Salespeople are often so focused on selling sport gear that they are not always listening to the way some people want use their bike for getting around town. They are also missing an opportunity to a potentially much larger audience of people who could turn off their cars and ride bikes for the quick, simple trips around town if they had the right bike and accessories to make that easy.

For my part to raise awareness, I try and wear every day clothes when I’m using by bike for transportation (not long training rides). I noticed college-aged students riding in skinny jeans and not-so-sensible shoes and want to take a cue from them. I used to change my clothes just to ride to the produce stand which is a mile away. I no longer do that. One big help was switching my clip-in pedals back to platforms and added a Power Grip strap so I can wear anything from Uggs (perfect for winter!) to strappy sandals.

Look for an invitation to a women on wheels in heels dinner sometime this spring. I want to take the idea to the streets (and restaurants) and with luck, get people noticing the other gender rides a bike. We can look like we’re “stepping out” on the town instead of “suiting up” to break a sweat.
-Kat

Comment on Walking My Hill by linda

linda — Sun, 04 Apr 2010 02:02:41 +0000

What a beautiful story.