Bench Henge

You'll find this inviting spot on Coleman Road in San José, not far from Almaden Expressway. It is not a bus stop. Four benches are clustered in a semi-circle facing the five-lane thoroughfare and a light post adorned with a "No Stopping" sign (not the Guadalupe Creek, which runs behind them). A gravel path leads here from some nearby apartment buildings; was this "park" some sort of deal related to that development? I should pack a lunch and sit here one day, just to see how passers-by react.

One of the things I appreciate about biking with our club is the depth of local knowledge. Today's route passed through the Blossom Valley neighborhood, which I had not visited before, on the way to climbing Bernal Road through a section of Santa Teresa County Park. At the top of Bernal sits IBM's Almaden Research Center, and we stopped short of that (private property). It is a modest climb, but my legs were protesting after yesterday's flogging. I learned that this land was all part of Rancho Santa Teresa, part of a 10,000 acre land grant from the Mexican Government to José Joaquin Bernal in 1834.

Traffic was light, as people prepared to party around today's big football game. This year I remembered to record it, so I could check out the much-vaunted commercials. (I fast-forwarded through the football parts.) Not being the targeted demographic, I was resoundingly disappointed. Commercials for three different job-hunting sites? Are there any job openings these days? I did enjoy the half-time show; it looked like Bruce and the band had a genuinely good time.