www.youtube.com/watch?v=J5pPEqmYkKE

As much love as I have for the city, I would go crazy if I couldn’t escape to nature every now and again. Mountain biking, disc golf, just a walk through the woods–I need to get away here and there. Some days that just doesn’t happen, and that’s where a little greenery in the city can help soften the hard lines and times of the concrete jungle. The pictures here are from the model unit in the Gateway building, where I was tasked with putting together some plant material to liven up the roof deck. Every morning I’m afforded the luxury of walking over to water the planters, and I have to be honest, it’s a very relaxing way to start my day. It takes me back to my college days of wandering the rows of the greenhouse watering and pruning (and I didn’t even work there, I just did it for fun). It’s a reminder that despite everything going on around us, there can be a simple existence involving nothing more than sun, water, soil and some photosynthesis (although remembering cell bio, there is nothing simple about it =).

And let’s not forget, soil bacteria can make you happy!

After running home to change I started my journey by heading back up to OTR before sprinting down Race St to the river.

Over-The-Rhine fascinates me even more than it did 3 years ago when I moved here. Majestic Music Hall sitting right across from boarded up treasures labeled with the plight of the neighborhood.

Moving on….

It’s always a nice cruise down race (or walnut) from OTR to Downtown. Once you cross central parkway the lights time up, almost egging you on to pedal faster and hit the river without stopping. Although sometimes I loop around 5chw4r7z’s so I can get a view of QCS.

Being close to the river feels good. Sure, it’s not the cleanest body of water out there, but I did swim in it and live….so I like cruising down to Friendship Park and the Serpentine Wall. I guess the sun knew it was the reason I was out and about…it certainly caught my eye on the south shore….

When I’m that close I always ride over to NKY and back. Something about crossing state lines make any workout seem that much more badass.

Returning to the other side of the river I always face a dilemma: do I ride back through downtown, or torture myself on some hills in Mt. Adams?

Yeah, the hills normally win.

When it really started to get dark I kept my camera in my pocket and just rode. I put my headphones on to drown out the world and got lost in endless pedal strokes. It felt good to just zone out for a while and wear myself down.

The last rays of sun had set and the sky was growing darker by the minute as I cranked down Reading Rd. Living so close to Neon’s can be a great thing, and that night it seemed appropriate to just show up on my bike as opposed to going home and showering first. I ran into a couple of friends (oh neighborhood bar, how I love thee) and enjoyed a pint (or two) before we all remembered it was a school night.

A little break and a few beers can do great things though, and I wasn’t ready to pack it in yet. I know it’s closed, but frankly I just felt like going to hang on the Serpentine Wall…so I did.

One reason not to hang out there at night (besides the fact you will be asked to leave pretty quickly) are the crazy looking bugs that swarm the light poles.

With creepy bug pictures under my belt (was that really necessary, prolly not) and security in my ear, it was time to pack it in for the night. With a gentle ride up Eggleston I was home, completely content with my summer solstice ride.

I was out riding without music, which leaves my head a little clearer to think about stuff (namely, how the hell am I going to rebuild the interior of a house!!!). It was a good time for reflection…which I then started taking literally.

I cruised up into OTR from downtown, figuring the sun was right to get some shots of the detail on my new place.

Right up the street is Rookwood Pottery, who was hosting the first tapping of Christian Moerlein IPA.

At the end of Race St lies a pretty cool church, with an iconic hand pointed towards the sky.

I then rode back down to the riverfront to meet up with the Thursday Night Slow Ride, a member of which informed me they would be at The Banks in 5 minutes. I beat them there, and snapped some photos of Roebling Bridge during the painting.

This was right below the stairway from the bridge down to the street.

The Banks.

I found the group, and we actually rode through the painting tarps on the suspension bridge. It’s not the first time I’ve ridden across the bridge during construction.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=ky-jtmdzBxI

We then cruised from Covington to Newport, and then back to Fountain Square. Oh yeah, and we found the Girls Gone Wild bus down by the Levee.

I know it’s a shitty picture, but it’s true. Life. Happens. Here. At least my life.

“Get up big boy, I’ve got a job for you. Smitty’s is on fire, so get up there see what’s going on.” my boss said as I scrambled around looking for jeans and a shirt to throw on.

I grabbed my cameras (still and Flip) and ran down to the garage to get my hard hat and safety glasses out of my car. I walked a few blocks north to see a plethora of pump and ladder tracks dousing 1425-35 Vine with water.

Sheets of water poured over the top of 1425, evidence that there were even more trucks on Republic dumping water forward.

Next the fire department turned a couple of hoses on 1433 Vine, essentially using the water pressure to knock down the second story masonry wall.

The poor tile work on 1431 didn’t stand a chance.

Parvis Lofts (the apartments NorthPointe Group [my company] and HGC are building from 1401-1423 Vine) took on water in the basement as it came pouring through the foundation wall between our building and Smitty’s. 1419, 21, and 23 all took on about 3 feet of water, although thanks to the new drainage system that was put in all of the water was out before we even got pumps down there.

We sustained a little damage to the top of 1423, and we won’t know about smoke damage until we can get in the building, which will be tomorrow at the earliest.

Smitty’s storefront and signage looked depressing covered in debris and dripping with water.

One of the biggest tragedies is the loss of the four story building 1429 vine.

The three story to the south was also badly damaged.

We got up on a lift to check out the roof of the building.

While the buildings may have appeared salvagable from the front, the view from the rear shows the extent of the fire and water damage. The demolition contractor was moving piles of debris while the fire department hosed down the still smoldering wreckage.

By the time I left they had demolished the smaller buildings and were evaluating the situation at 1425-29.

Here are some other shots from the scene. I also took about 45 minutes of video with the Flip cam and I’ll edit that together for another post. In the end it’s just a sad day for some great OTR properties.

This year I made progress. I’ll have to save the full glory for next year (Baby Steps) because-like last year-I got caught up in Friday’s beautiful weather and went for a run. But I kept it short, and while I missed the Bockfest parade, I certainly got my fill of Bock beer.

Arnold’s, on the other hand got their fill of people.

What I imagine (or at least hope) Laura, Pam, and the other Bartender who's name I don't know were thinking

Drunk Monk*

*Please note this was around 8pm, and the Monk may or may not have been drunk, but entering that establishment I imagine he was there soon.

Moving on to Mr. Pitifuls.

We passed Jack Potts on the way, the existence of which I was completely unaware of. For someone that lives a block away, I really don’t get up Main St. much it seems. That’s all bound to change when Neon’s opens this summer. But I digress…

It was actually less crowded than Arnold's I swear

Cheers to mini decorative drinks

I took some people new to the city out and about, and we all had a great time. There were a few people that drove downtown to meet us, and as the end of the night approached, I couldn’t help but think about those poor souls having to either sleep on a couch or temper their drinking to pilot a vehicle home. Chalk it up as another win for life in Cincinnati’s center city.

Bockfest was roaring the whole time, aided by the phenomenal weather we had. Which means one of two things as far as your Monday is concerned, either A) You, like me, had such a good time all weekend, that it’s hard to be anything other than happy today or B) you had a great time, but that simply adds to the depression you’re feeling now that you’re back on the grind.

I enjoyed Bockfest a lot, and I’ll post about it more tomorrow, but the highlight of the weekend for me was the 11 mile bike ride I went on Sunday, hitting Downtown, OTR, Newport, Mt. Adams, and Eden Park, all the while snapping pictures.

My first stop was The Banks/QCS to get a few photos of the ongoing construction.

Next I rode over to Newport to stop in Reser bikes for a little air (and because I love saying I went riding in a couple states).

Then it was back to the Ohio side to tackle Mt. Adams and Eden Park

Music Hall and the heart of OTR as seen from the Ida St. Bridge

Then it was back downtown for a few more QCS shots.

The remnants of a great season of ice skating

I hope you were able to go out an enjoy the great weather like I did!