Resting and catching up continues here at TopoFusion HQ (aka a card table with a computer on it).
Today I found myself at the ‘La Cholla Corporate Center.’ The waiting room’s every detail seemed designed as a space begging you to leave. Everything from uncomfortable chairs to horrid “Soft” rock blasting from a ghetto in the corner, under a fake plastic plant. In traditional Tucson style, the AC was cranked up, making it 60 degrees despite the fact that it was barely 60 outside. I opted for a walk instead of a wait.
I placed a bet with myself. Surely this brand new, chic, modern ‘corporate center’ (read mini-mall with doctors, lawyers and businesses intead of retail stores), would have such progressive features as: a nice place to sit, perhaps in the shade, a sidewalk to walk on, and, probably, a bike rack.
Of course I am knee deep in sarcasm as my fingers dance on the keyboard. I neither expected nor found any of the above. There wasn’t a reasonable place to even entertain the thought of locking up a bike–except a handicap parking sign. As I walked around (in parking lots mainly), people gave me strange looks, especially the construction workers. Doesn’t this guy understand this is the land of the car? We designed this place to be unsafe and unsightly for walking.
I decided to see how far the nearest place to sit was. I walked up to the traffic light to cross La Cholla, narrowly avoiding a collision with yet-another-driver-who-is-in-a-hurry (YADWIIAH). How european–they installed a useless roundabout in the middle of the parking lot, where I almost got killed. They forgot to include the european sidewalk, unfortunately.
As I pushed the button for the green walking man I wondered if I was the first person to ever walk across this street. To the west there was a Super Walmart, a half a mile (literally) of parking lot away. The only way to get there was through the parking lot. At last my quest was complete–there were a few tables outside a starbucks, only available to paying customers.
They’ve all come to look for America. I’m heading out for a foothills ride.
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