You might have noticed a red graphic over there in the sidebar that reads “Change Congress” with four stars below. It is actually a link to a website that asks both citizens and candidates to take a simple pledge. The goal of the pledge is make Congress better by removing improper dependence from the system.

This will help explain what I am talking about:

One thing I was really looking forward to when we moved to Oregon was purchasing bikes. There wasn’t really any obstacles to getting bikes in Fullerton, California, but it just didn’t feel right. We could have road them to the park, around the downtown neighborhoods and, with a little courage, the grocer, pharmacist and movie theater were even realistic.

The only hang-up was work. That is what we used the car for the most. I didn’t feel safe riding it to work at the university and no one would argue that riding down Harbor, over the 91, past Disneyland to the hotel was a safe commuting option for Emily. And as often as I fantasized about a light-rail/street car line — making a circuit from CSUF down Chapman, turning South on Harbor traveling past Disneyland to the Block@Orange, the Orange circle then North along the 55 corridor back to CSUF — it wasn’t going to happen this decade.

The spring after the car accident, we did look into bikes. We had already decided that we were not buying a car to replace the Civic. Who needs more loans when you already have university debt to carry around. We read a lot online, gleaned advice from CleverChimp (now CleverCycles) and got suggestions from The Bicycle Lane. We were so close to buying but we opted to save our money and finally move North like we had been talking about for years.

Finally last summer, after moving to Beaverton, we bought ponies. We managed several weekend fun rides, and I got in the habit of riding to the pharmacist and library. And light-rail was covering Emily’s commute into downtown Portland. Still, most errands and trips were in the Volvo which was quickly showing its age.

Our recent move into central Beaverton has made a huge difference however. We are now in a much better location for relying on our ponies for errands. The new apartment is a very brief walk form the MAX for Emily. Our ride to the grocer, bank, bookstore, gym, dry cleaner and movie theater is five to ten minutes. Pleasant, level rides with bike lanes and traffic signal sensors just for bikes too. I am officially addicted to errands by bike, even the last minute, “Wouldn’t wine with dinner be great.” or “We’re out of garlic!”.

Along with this we have been enjoying the car-lite results. We are averaging 25-miles a week on the Volvo, or about 100-miles a month. It makes gas prices way less bothersome. My new challenge for the year is to put less than 2,000-miles on the car between April 1st and December 31st. The average American will drive about 9,375-miles in the same stretch of time. It will be fun to see how we do. Wish us luck and safe riding.

And at the low-end of dining, Red Fish Blue Fish, situated in a shipping crate on the docks is by far the best food in a hurray around Victoria (though they have a location in Vancouver too). Serving generous portions of fish and chips, salmon or oyster sandwiches, and my favorite — Edamame Tacones.

I had never heard of mushy peas before but I love them. They came along side my bangers & mash at Old Irish Times and I couldn’t pass up trying the edamame version on offer at Red Fish Blue Fish. Stuffed into a tortilla with bean sprouts, lemon-pickled onions and chili adobo, mushy edamame is basically cooked edamame, mashed with butter, cream, salt and pepper. I’m sure Red Fish Blue Fish had there own variation, but they are so yummy.

The architectural notion of the little restaurant also fascinated me. I have seen plenty of articles in the architecture press describing residential uses for standardized shipping crates, those things you see stacked two high on trains. But this was a first in person encounter for me. It is a must see (and eat!) in Victoria.

I couldn’t explain to you what that means, other than to say that it was very tasty. The best high-end restaurant we dined at on our trip was by far Chambar in Vancouver. Among its many quirks are the numerous menus (we were handed in the course of the evening.)

Wes Giesbrecht makes beautiful wooden mosaics that hang like tapestry. Another great find from the trip to Granville Island in Vancouver, British Columbia. We found his work at The Wood Co-op and it is composed of small wood tiles, about 1-inch sq. and 0.25-inch thick. The tiles are stained but not varnished or painted, so the color comes from the variety of woods used. They are then glued to a fabric substrate, though not to each other. As a result, the mosaic can be rolled up like a tapestry or thick rug.