@rachael@social.ridetrans.it
@rachael@social.ridetrans.it avatar

rachael

@rachael@social.ridetrans.it

I live in Seattle with my family and work in tech. I'm also disabled (mostly deaf & blind on one side). I ride the bus, walk or bike most of the time and I care a lot about our transportation system working for everyone. I spend a lot of my not-work time on local advocacy, family stuff, pottery and our unitarian universalist church. Pronouns: They/them

Note: I have multiple accounts and not posting all topics from one account. This one is for Seattle, urbanism & regional political stuff!

This profile is from a federated server and may be incomplete. Browse more on the original instance.

Nondriver, to random
@Nondriver@social.ridetrans.it avatar

Anyone else in Seattle who has been seen at Fred Hutch/SCCA get a letter saying their kid’s data was also stolen in the hack? Only way I’m guessing this could have happened is if Seattle Children’s Hospital records were linked/also breached but I’m not hearing anything from them directly.

rachael,
@rachael@social.ridetrans.it avatar

@Nondriver I got the letter from Fred Hutch (and previously got a mychart notice from UW Medicine because they do have sometimes linked data). I HAVE had work done from SCCA which has Fred Hutch as part of it. It’s exceedingly unclear to me what data actually got taken (and financial stuff I’m not worried about since the last visit at SCCA was like 5 years ago). Great system we have. :/

Andres4NY, to random
@Andres4NY@social.ridetrans.it avatar

Earlier I helped a middle-aged woman who was blind cross the street in front of the Metropolitan Trader Joe's. There's no accessible pedestrian signal there, so she's pretty much on her own as far as figuring out when it's "safe" to go. When the crosswalk was deemed "safe", she was so terrified every time a car (illegally) cut across the crosswalk while we were crossing. It was heartbreaking. Drivers were turning both left AND right across the crosswalk.

rachael,
@rachael@social.ridetrans.it avatar

@Andres4NY there was a period (before cataract surgery) I was using a white cane because even in daylight I had trouble detecting like potholes and tripping hazards. I’d get off at 4th and Jackson northbound stop then walk to the 5th and Jackson stop. people driving routinely would turn right through my path with a couple feet distance (illegal!) to spare. visible white cane swinging back and forth and everything. they didn’t know I could see them turning. just awful.

rachael,
@rachael@social.ridetrans.it avatar

@Andres4NY Yeah I never really god good at using a cane since it was only at night that I had to depend on it. And I’m also fairly hearing impaired (mostly deaf in one ear) so detecting where things are is hard even when there isn’t loud as fuck vehicles.

rachael, to Seattle
@rachael@social.ridetrans.it avatar

G&O Family Cyclery going out of business. 😭

“It is a true thing to say that if your business can’t afford to pay fair wages, your business has no business doing business.”

https://familycyclery.com/blog/goodbye

rachael, to Seattle
@rachael@social.ridetrans.it avatar

OTOH, it’s good that Danny Westneat has a column on how the number of unsheltered folks dying keeps going up every year. OTOH his suggestions for what to do sound an awful lot like “force people to take services” which we know doesn’t work. He also doesn’t at all point out it’s gotten worse under mayors who’ve refused to fully implement policies passed by previous “progressive” councils. A lot more wrong here but those stood out.

https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/king-county-setting-records-for-homeless-deaths-is-becoming-awfully-routine/

Andres4NY, to random
@Andres4NY@social.ridetrans.it avatar

Man, I am having a lot of trouble getting through the second half of The Power Broker. Robert Moses was such a fucking ghoul, and the way everyone looked up to him and modeled future (usually highway) development on his techniques is depressing af.

rachael,
@rachael@social.ridetrans.it avatar

@Andres4NY I skipped this Behind the Bastards when it came out because I just couldn’t but you might “enjoy” it. https://www.iheart.com/podcast/105-behind-the-bastards-29236323/episode/part-one-the-man-who-ruined-99056594/

kingrat, to random
@kingrat@sfba.social avatar

it's very hard to read at the moment.

rachael,
@rachael@social.ridetrans.it avatar

@oowm @kingrat everyday is caturday

rachael, to random
@rachael@social.ridetrans.it avatar

I'm listening to the transportation part of the session preview video and it's just depressing / shocking what legislators are willing to say. https://tvw.org/video/2024-legislative-session-preview-2024011049/?eventID=2024011049

rachael,
@rachael@social.ridetrans.it avatar

I am so mad. Rep. Fey basically said that a lot of the speeding we're seeing especially on highways is due to young white men who think driving is a compute game. Nothing about how decades of culture has told people speeding isn't harming anything and then a pandemic disrupting people's feelings – especially young people's – of safety and connection with communities. It's the video games! Grand Theft Auto came out when exactly?

rachael, to Seattle
@rachael@social.ridetrans.it avatar

Such terrible use of resources (never mind the abject cruelty of it) to continually harass people who have no where to go and other folks who are just trying to build community supports that the city doesn’t provide enough of. https://partyon.xyz/@nullagent/111702572852651734

rachael, to random
@rachael@social.ridetrans.it avatar

Given the news that the cops who murdered Manny Ellis in Tacoma in early 2020 were acquitted, I’m glad I earlier went on a walk along the Mountains to Sound trail to the playground with family along which there was much “fuck cops” graffiti.

rachael, to Seattle
@rachael@social.ridetrans.it avatar

I cannot express how absurd and concerning I find this opinion piece (and underlying government choices) but we’ll start with it being an opinion about election misinformation but it contains misinformation which implies merely handling fentanyl powder is so risky it could kill. But the piece is about some British “AI” surveillance company being used to flag concerning social media posts.

https://www.seattletimes.com/opinion/editorials/wa-elections-officials-need-rapid-data-to-match-misinformation-age/

rachael, to random
@rachael@social.ridetrans.it avatar

I did a “sweep” on my bike with drain clearing tools going south on Beacon Ave from Handord down to Myrtle / Othello then north on the west sidewalk of MLK and Rainier. Bad news: a couple very bad spots with very deep water which I had no chance of clearing (blockage must be below surface drain). Good news: the usually bad drains on much of MLK that I’ve cleared in the past were already clear! Bravo whoever did them! Also I got a nice bit of exercise. :)

Andres4NY, (edited ) to random
@Andres4NY@social.ridetrans.it avatar

I hate derailleurs very much.

For my own bikes, I've always used fixed gear bikes or three speed sturmey-archer hubs. For the family cargo bikes, NuVinci/Enviolo hubs (with twist shifters).

My Yuba Kombi has a 9-speed cassette/derailleur with trigger shifter. I love the shifter, but hate the derailleur.

So I'm wondering if I just get another (expensive, heavy, twist shifter) or try out a Shimano 8 (cheaper, lighter, trigger shifter)? Complicating factor being the BBS02 motor.

rachael,
@rachael@social.ridetrans.it avatar

@Andres4NY My other bikes before the GSD were shimano hubs. I love them. 7 or 8 gear so I don’t think they are the affine but I would assume that’s even better.

rachael, to Seattle
@rachael@social.ridetrans.it avatar

“Four and a half years after Seattle approved a roughly $90 million plan to convert surplus military land at Fort Lawton into affordable housing and park space, the project has yet to break ground, the cost estimate has passed $160 million and the city is rethinking how to proceed, if at all.”

😭

https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/politics/seattle-wavers-on-fort-lawton-housing-as-years-pass-cost-estimate-soars/

rachael, to Seattle
@rachael@social.ridetrans.it avatar

"JVP welcomes reported temporary cessation in violence and return of Israeli and Palestinian women and children, and calls for a permanent ceasefire"

https://www.jewishvoiceforpeace.org/2023/11/21/breaking-temporary-ceasefire/

rachael, to incarcerated
@rachael@social.ridetrans.it avatar

Our punitive “justice” system is absurd.

Article title: “New mothers can stay with their babies at this Washington prison”

My angry query: Why are we putting pregnant women in prison at all when they haven’t committed a violent crime?! I am not sure I can finish a feel-good article about how some moms get time with their babies while in job training in prison for non-violent offenses no one should be in prisons (if I even believed prisons were necessary).

https://crosscut.com/politics/2023/11/new-mothers-can-stay-their-babies-washington-prison

rachael, to random
@rachael@social.ridetrans.it avatar

I am going to have to visit Germany just so I can ride this suspended train thing. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wuppertal_Schwebebahn

rachael, to Seattle
@rachael@social.ridetrans.it avatar

Are you feeling a little depressed at the state of, well, everything? A good way to process that is to do something to help your community. Cascade Bicycle Club hosts regular rides to deliver or transport food. Tomorrow there’s one in SODO to Chinatown/ID. Maybe you can take part of your morning and get food that might go to waste to people who need it? https://volunteer.cascade.org/acts/console.php?console_type=event_list&event_id=4132&console_id=0100

rachael, to Seattle
@rachael@social.ridetrans.it avatar

The City of Seattle under Mayor Harrell is threatening churches with fines if they don’t kick unhoused people off the church’s own land.

https://southseattleemerald.com/2023/10/19/opinion-city-officials-believe-the-only-good-homeless-person-is-a-dead-homeless-person/

Andres4NY, to random
@Andres4NY@social.ridetrans.it avatar

ah for fuck's sake the 11yo gave the 6yo covid. this shit is never gonna end

rachael,
@rachael@social.ridetrans.it avatar

@Andres4NY The near complete lack of seeming effort on ventilation is just so utterly baffling. :/

rachael, to Seattle
@rachael@social.ridetrans.it avatar

A pharmacy (Bartell’s) not having a public toilet when they are offering vaccination appointments where you have to wait nearly half an hour after your appointment time is (a) a violation of city law and (b) discriminatory towards those with health issues needing frequent toilet access. I get that they have staffing issues and other priorities that can delay appointments but it’s not acceptable that so many businesses don’t have public toilets.

rachael,
@rachael@social.ridetrans.it avatar

@jonobie In theory it’s part of city building code for places that admit the public. it is routinely ignored except by eg restaurants and bars. the tunnel transit stations should all have public toilets per this code — similar code in Auburn and other outlying suburban towns forced Sound Transit to put restrooms in at Sounder stations.

https://www.seattle.gov/documents/Departments/SDCI/Codes/SeattleBuildingCode/2018SBCChapter29.pdf

rachael, to Seattle
@rachael@social.ridetrans.it avatar

Seattle Public Utilities is asking folks to conserve water due to the rains not arriving yet and the state being in drought conditions. I think this is the first time since I moved here that they’ve asked this?

https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/environment/seattle-public-utilities-asks-customers-to-conserve-water-amid-drought/

rachael, to random
@rachael@social.ridetrans.it avatar

Our Mastodon server here — https://social.ridetrans.it — will be updating to the next major version soon when the admins have some time at odd hours because it’s a BIG update! Here’s a post (links to a blog) on what’s changing with the new version. There’s a lot of improvements. The big “flagship” servers like mastodon.social as well as many others have been running on this latest software for a while so it should be pretty robust! https://aus.social/@shlee/111101657147217693

rachael,
@rachael@social.ridetrans.it avatar

  • role badges will appear again in the web interface. this is useful since it can let us mark who is an admin or moderator more clearly. :)

  • when reporting a post for violating rules, the report can be sent not just to us here on our instance but also to the moderators of multiple remote instances involved in the conversation.

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