How to Bike to the Wheaton Metro Station

Bicycle parking area at Wheaton metro station's east exit.

Informal bicycle parking area at Wheaton metro station's east exit.

Here are photos of the bike parking areas that I mentioned in an earlier post.

I recommend that anyone who drives to the metro (especially from a mile or less away) consider riding their bicycle there instead.  It is great for your health and happiness, for the environment, and saves you money!

To bike to the metro:

1. First, plan your route. Googlemaps has a bicycling directions option so use that to view all of the actual bicycle routes, but don't be afraid to bike directly on side streets and sidewalks of busy roads. We are considered vehicles and can officially go anywhere a car can go except highways.  Using a Googlemaps bike map, click on the "A" on the map & drag it to your starting point.  Then click on the purple suggested route and drag the line to adjust it to other route options. 
2. Try to avoid Georgia Avenue, since biking on it (even on the sidewalk) is loud and rather unpleasant.  Cars speed and there are a lot of pedestrians on the sidewalks.  If Georgia is your quickest route to the metro, consider the small residential roads that run parallel on each side!  These streets do things to calm (slow) car traffic and are perfect for bikes.  Amherst Ave is on the eastern side to the north and south of the metro.  The northwestern side has Grandview Ave and the southwestern side (northern Kensington) has the Mall parking lot.  All of these alternatives to Georgia are quieter and calmer.  I do bike on the sidewalks along Georgia occasionally and it is certainly do-able, just less scenic. 
3. Get a bike and a lock (you may already have these) and just do it!  There is no need for fancy equipment or clothing.  Bike at a moderate pace, go slowly up inclines and coast joyfully down them, and just wear your normal work clothes.  I usually carry a small backpack instead of a shoulder bag since having the weight centered makes my balance more stable. 
• If you aren't in shape, consider biking one way one day, get picked up/walk/take a bus home that night, leave the bike at the metro overnight, use the same way to get back to the metro the next morning, then bike home the second night.  Sufficient rest for your muscles will keep bike commuting fun.
• Also, know that it gets easier as you get more experience. Pretty soon you'll be able to bike your route like it is second nature.
• If the weather is cold wear lots of layers. In the current winter weather I wear long underwear, work clothes, winter boots, a ski jacket, warm hat, & two pairs of gloves.
• Remember to look around as you're riding and breathe in the fresh air on the side streets. Know that you're helping the planet and keeping yourself in shape!
• Those are all the tips I can think of.  Any questions?

Future Plans:

The next step for me may be biking all the way to work in downtown DC.  I haven't done that since moving to Wheaton.  Sometime this spring I will do it and report back.  I think the best route will be to bike on the Sligo Creek Parkway Trail to either Silver Spring downtown or Takoma Park, then catch the Metropolitan Branch Trail the rest of the way to DC.

A good time to bike all the way to work may be the annual Bike to Work Day, Friday, May 17, 2013. I plan to participate in some way, if not biking the 15 miles from home to work, then I will get off the metro at Catholic University and use Capital Bikeshare to go the rest of the way from there.

BTWD is an awesome experience of group goodwill.  I participated several years from my old tiny dwelling place in DC to work.  The event includes bike convoys downtown from many starting points around the DC area and "pit stop" events with speakers, snacks, and giveaways.  The biggest pit stop is at Freedom Plaza in DC.

With any luck an experienced bike commuter from Wheaton, Glenmont, or Kensington (or even Forest Glen) will lead a BTWD convoy downtown that I can join.

The Fate of Wheaton Triangle: How to make the most of the planned new government building

Just up the Pike frequently writes about Wheaton, and a post from today is inspirational. The issue is what will happen to the large parking lot currently located in the southern section of the "Wheaton Triangle."

Map of Wheaton Triangle area from http://www.wheatonmd.org/

As the blog lays out today in "can new MoCo planning HQ catalyze wheaton?"

Last month, the Park and Planning Commission made a nonbinding agreement with Montgomery County to build their new headquarters and a town square on Parking Lot 13 at the corner of Reedie Drive and Grandview Avenue, for which the County Council set aside $55 million last year. 

I totally agree with all of the suggestions in the post, adding street level shops and restaurants with outdoor seating, a display area on the ground floor that the public can see from outside and walk in to visit, and making sure the space around the new building is alive with people at all hours (having plenty of people walking around makes a place safer and better for everyone).

I hope our officials make a good use of this public space so our community can grow and prosper.

The parking lot in Wheaton Triangle from the northwest corner; the planned site of the new Park and Planning Commission headquarters building. Photo from 2/14/13.

I bicycle commute to the Wheaton metro station

It takes about 12 minutes to bike from home to the metro or 20 minutes to walk.  I have two possible bicycle routes: one is almost totally along Georgia Ave and makes me more stressed than walking.  The other route is through a park and small neighborhood streets.  The problem is that the scenic route takes a solid 12 minutes while the busy street route can take only 7 minutes if I hit the traffic lights right and there aren't a lot of people walking on the sidewalks.  Once the Safeway construction is finished it will be even faster.

Motivation to Bike Commute

The problem is laziness.  I try to give myself messages like that above to feel good about what I'm doing.  Otherwise I mope and feel sorry for myself that I have to put out so much effort to get to work rather than just strolling to the metro stop like I did at the last place I lived.

Wheaton is a decent place in which to bicycle.  This morning I saw two other bikers on my way to work!  One on my street and another in the park.  I often bike past kids and their parents waiting for school buses on street corners and others walking to school together.  That is cute and makes me smile. 

Going through the woods is a beautiful start and end to my day that I really enjoy.  Being in nature has been shown to lower blood pressure, and I really feel some physiological benefit to being in nature.  I try to always be fully present while biking through the park, to look at all the trees and appreciate them during the few minutes I'm biking among them.  That is the best part.

Here is part of the biking and walking trail through beautiful Wheaton Regional Park. 

Biking and walking trail through beautiful Wheaton Regional Park, December 1, 2012. 

Do you know who you vote with? On losing a chance to have the congressional district map fixed.

Wheaton is in Maryland's 8th Congressional District.  Our national representatives are:

Sen. Barbara Mikulski (closest offices to Wheaton are Greenbelt, Hagerstown, & DC)
Sen. Benjamin Cardin (closest offices to Wheaton are Rockville, Bowie, & DC)
Rep. Chris Van Hollen Jr. (office is in Rockville, near the historic downtown)

Here's a map of our oddly shaped, dare I say gerrymandered, district :(

How did things get this way, you ask? By people not noticing incremental changes to the district shapes.  Or by people trusting our reps to do what is best.

Ballot Question 5 in the November 2012 election that would have let Maryland voters reject the newly redistricted map and would have sent a message to our officials that we don't want gerrymandering in our election map.

Less messing around with the district's size and shapes would allow us to vote alongside our geographic neighbors who have similar concerns.

Instead, my vote in Wheaton is lumped in with a voter way up north in rural Maryland on the boarder with Pennsylvania, and in lots of other places I've never set foot.  How are our problems and concerns anywhere near the same? 

Unfortunately, 64% of voters said "yes" on Question 5, approving the new redistricting scheme.  I think this result was due to a lack of publicity about this question and its leading unclear wording on the ballot.  Here is the wording that was used:

"Question 5
Referendum Petition
Congressional Districting Plan (Ch. 1 of the 2011 Special Session)

Establishes the boundaries for the State’s eight United States Congressional Districts based on recent census figures, as required by the United States Constitution.

For the Referred Law
Against the Referred Law"

Confusing much?  Everyone likes the rule of law.  I think that's why they voted for this referendum   Yes to law and no to some unspecified alternative.

There were items on this ballot that people felt passionate about: namely gay marriage rights and President Obama's reelection   A lot of people just went to the polls to make sure their views on these key issues were heard.  Upon encountering Question 5 they would have been sorely confused if they hadn't read about it before they arrived in the voting booth. Or they have just been brainwashed that our officials will do what is best, so why not approve their district plan.

If a map of the Maryland congressional districts could have been included with the item on the ballot, people would have voted against it. Here is a nice interactive map of the districts from http://www.govtrack.us/.  The map above is a screenshot from that page.  Go ahead, scroll around and look at the amazing ways geographic space is cut up to match like-thinking people with each other.

Shopping for Churches - Christian Reformed

Today I went to a new (to me) church on Arcola Ave in Wheaton.  I think it will also be my last time there.  It was Silver Spring Christian Reformed Church. Sounds innocuous, right?  I thought it would be generic Christian, no problem.  Research shows that it has roots in the 1850s in Michigan and Holland.

Service started at 11 with a few nice hymns (there were a lot of hymns at this service), readings, prayers, and then the sermon.  It was "Little Christ's" - starting with a reference to Lewis Carroll's book on religion, which was nice.  Then he said we are all Little Christ's, which sounded good.  Reminded me of in Buddhism how we all have a Buddha Nature that we need to connect with and dwell in to live happy fulfilling lives.  From there it all went off track badly, according to me.  I try to separate politics from religion, and keep my spiritual life apart and more holy than my everyday beliefs.  The pastor today was a guest preacher from Vienna, VA.  Early in the sermon he mentioned that Jan 22 was the 40th anniversary of Roe vs Wade (a celebration I hadn't noticed passing).  That was his excuse for anti-choice rhetoric at a couple of different points in the sermon.  The first time was relatively short so I gave him the benefit of the doubt and kept paying attention respectfully.  The second time was longer and totally put me off.

I have a problem with older men and other people who will never be in the shoes of a distraught woman considering a pregnancy passing judgement on them.  What happened to freedom for all?  How can they pretend to know what is best for people whose shoes they've never walked in?  This was the first time I've ever heard a preacher talk about this issue directly from the pulpit.  Shocking for me.

When I first arrived I talked briefly to the woman that I sat next to.  She was also in her 30s and we seemed to have a lot in common, so i thought that was a good sign.  She must have also been visiting because after the sermon she totally got up and walked out.  I considered following her, but thought I may as well stay till the end since it was nearly over anyways.  Neither one of us donated when they passed around the offering request after the sermon.  Every other time I've gone to church service I have dropped money in, but this time it felt wrong to donate even a little bit of money to this church since it might use it in ways that are wrong to me.

I've been exploring a different Wheaton area church each Sunday, so stay tuned for other reviews!  I have two others that I've visited and not yet written about -- will add them soon in new posts!

Gardeners -- Seed Swap at Brookside Gardens this weekend

This weekend Wheaton will have an annual Washington Gardener Seed Exchange, on Saturday, January 26, 2013 at Brookside Gardens.  It costs $15 per person, but that includes lots of free seeds (a wide variety in smaller quantities, which is what you need to plant a real garden), talks (one sounds really good on “Starting Vegetable and Flower Seeds Under Florescent Lights”), and networking time.  It is 12:30-4pm with registration starting at noon.  I hope to attend and meet other local vegetable gardeners.

As noted on the Wheaton Patch, "The seed swap is a fundamental part of human history. Seeds were one of the first commodities valued and traded. Today, modern gardeners collect and exchange seeds for many reasons ranging from cultivating rare, heirloom varieties to basic thrift."  It is certainly cheaper to get free seeds than to order them from a seed catalog!

More info is on the Washington Gardener's website (the organizing magazine).

We're supposed to get a snow storm this Friday, so if that happens there is a telephone number on this pdf to call to see if the swap is still happening.  If it does snow I plan to walk around the neighborhood and take photos!  It would be my first snow in Wheaton.

Another great gardening resource is Rooting DC, a free, all-day gardening forum taking place February 23, 2013, 9am - 4:30pm.  It is an annual gathering that I will certainly attend, for gardeners (mostly veggie) from DC and the larger local area.  I've been a few years in the past and it is always great.  It usually ends with a big giveaway of one-year expired seeds that are donated to the organizers.  Older seeds can no longer be sold but still grow when planted!  Just plant a little more than you otherwise would to account for them being older.

Starting a local blog

Wheaton's location from an online profile.

I'm a fairly new resident of Wheaton, MD and want to compile resources about this community online for the benefit of all.

We have a "Patch" local news page.  It is a good place to keep up with country government meetings and the results of those meetings, read about local crime, and learn about some upcoming events.

A good blog about Silver Spring is Just Up the Pike by Dan Reed, referring to Rockville Columbia Pike that runs through Silver Spring.  Pike is an old fashioned word for road.  The author grew up in Silver Spring and is passionate about the area.

I find that the blog Greater Greater Washington includes a lot of content about Silver Spring, MD and enough of that relates to Wheaton too that I include it here.

I'm starting this blog partially in response to the sorry state of the two other blogs I know of that are about Wheaton: Wheaton Calling (Good name! Not updated since April 2012!!) and Good Eatin' in Wheaton (another good name, not updated since May 2012).

So this, Another Day in Wheaton will be another blog about that wonderful area. Updated more often, optimistic, and attentive to our community.