I was going to wimp out and take the light rail to work today, but now I'll have to ride in to enjoy the sights and smells. Actually, the light rail station has the more dangerous smells: it's almost directly across from one of Sacramento's best high-class bakeries, and one of Sacramento's best low-class donut stands. I swear they purposely blow the smells over to the folks waiting for the train.

What I see on the bike commute: the beautiful old school turned into a community center near my house, a great crepe shoppe (uh-oh, more food), a busy slightly run down area near the freeway, quiet tree-lined residential streets with lovely c. 1900 homes and a few run-down ones, a house that looks c. 1905-15 that's getting completely rebuilt (all outside up, jacked up--it will be interesting to see if they restore it or destroy it with modernization), lots of piles of leaves this time of year in the bike lane-waiting for the yard waste recycle pickup, trash and recycling cans in the bike lane waiting for garbage day, parked cars to watch the doors on, the same older lady almost every day walking the neighborhood looking for aluminum cans to sell, busy cross streets, a little view of a corner of the state capitol, the business buildings of downtown, the Archive Plaza light rail station, and then the big ugly green 1964 monolith that's home for the next 9 hours.

Okay, time to get dressed and go see it!