Biking in the Burbs

Along the same vein of the last two posts, I have been exploring ways to capture some of my year of urban living in East Brunswick, NJ.

A major facet of this past year has been my bicycle (or rather, my bikes, since the first was stolen). I was on that two wheeler nearly every day. My first bike had a rack and a crate strapped to it. My second had a front basket. They both had high style and a propensity for getting flat tires, and I loved them.

Tonight I decided to bike to the Brunswick Square Mall, otherwise known as the pulsing heart of urban life in my hometown. I slung my computer over my shoulder, got on my dad's bike, and started on the 10-minute ride.

I went from my neighborhood, where colonial two-story homes sit on enormous lots, to the busy two-lane Summerhill Road, home to 7-Eleven and a grey and purple concrete slab that is a medical center. Then I hung a right on Rues Lane, where on one side there are more outsized homes and on the other, a technical college, and then the mall.

Being that I wasn't in a helmet, I tried to keep on the sidewalks. This was difficult since my town saw it fit to install sidewalks, but not connect them to the street with any sort of ramp. The bike across the mall parking lot to the doors of Barnes and Noble took nearly as long as the trip from my home to the lot entrance.

But the best part: I had told my mother I'd be home at around 7, and I wound up staying an hour longer. Sure enough, my mother drove to the mall to offer to spare me from the dangers of the East Brunswick roads and drive me home. I declined and made it home safely alone, although I will admit that a helmet, a light and something reflective are probably all good ideas.