zia

Monday's dl-ish code led me to start writing a parser. In Scala. Using the example code that implements a small set of parser combinators. So I got sidetracked into seeing what that parser combinator code might look like using this style of syntax. Some re-thinking is in order.

Taking this reminder to heart: Wednesday after work night I took my mountain bike and rode Long Ridge (from Saratoga Gap, where CA-9 crosses the skyline (CA-35) at 2500 feet elevation). The trail is a nice singletrack that doesn't do a whole lot of climbing, and has a few fun down-and-up spots where you need to use some momentum. Hadn't been on that trail in years. Way fun.

Thursday, since the bike was still in the car, I took a small Cupertino tour. There's a small fragment of a new "Saratoga Creek" bike path along Lawrence Expressway; it goes just a mile or two north from Bollinger. And I went over to the cool little BMX park that is on Rainbow, just a bit east of De Anza. Rode maybe a total of 8 or 9 miles. Took an hour. I need to get in better shape. Cupertino does pretty well for bikes: a few nice spots where you can ride from one street to another on little pathways; very well done bike triggers at the stoplights for some of the larger street crossings; and several nice wide streets with little car traffic.

Here's one cool tidbit that I had not previously noticed: city dwellers picture Silicon Valley as this big flat paved expanse, with very little evidence remaining of the natural features that once dominated the landscape. But the creeks are still there, mostly unnoticed, still flowing this time of year. And the birds notice: some of them still tend to use those creeks as their flyways. While near a couple of the creeks (Saratoga Creek and Calabazas Creek in particular), I saw ducks and a few less recognizable birds, flying right along above the creek. I stopped and watched a couple of times, and as far as I could track it, the bird would stay lined up with where the creek was going.