iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

David Bickford @exit2lef.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

Impressive moonrise over Piestewa Peak in #Phoenix. The smaller lights are headlamps worn by nighttime hikers on the way up to the summit.

a rising full moon illuminating a cloudy sky behind a mountain ridge

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David Bickford @exit2lef.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

Nice to see Park(ing) Day revived in #Phoenix for 2026 by my friends at @urbanphxproject.bsky.social and allied organizations. I wish I could have organized a thematic spot and participated all day, but work got in the way. At least I got to visit with everyone on Third Street during my lunch break.

Park(ing) Day participants lining Third Street looking north toward Arizona State University's Health North building in downtown Phoenix

Park(ing) Day participants lining Third Street looking south towards the Sheraton Hotel in downtown Phoenix.

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David Bickford @exit2lef.bsky.social · 23/08/2026

Regularly scheduled rants about drive-thrus and bad city planning have been interrupted to bring you this amazing cactus super bloom in my front yard. Although the current high pressure system is producing only oppressive heat, storms back in July must have done something to bring about this bounty.

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David Bickford @exit2lef.bsky.social · 21/08/2026

Of course it’s “city approved.” Our current #Phoenix mayor and city council, civil servants, and village planning committees seem unwilling to say no to drive-thru blight just about anywhere, even near schools and light rail stations where is there is likely to be high levels of pedestrian traffic.

Sign advertising a new “city approved” drive-through at 7th Avenue and Dunlap Avenue in Phoenix

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David Bickford @exit2lef.bsky.social · 06/08/2026

Scenes like this are why I'm glad Salad And Go has Salad And Gone Away, although the rapid transition to Dutch Bros. will continue the drive-thru blight.

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David Bickford @exit2lef.bsky.social · 28/04/2026

Disappointed to see guards telling people not to sit on these planters while waiting at @repgregstanton.bsky.social Central Station because they're private property. This seems outside the spirit, if not the letter, of the developer's agreement with @cityofphoenixaz.bsky.social and @valleymetro.org.

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David Bickford @exit2lef.bsky.social · 11/12/2025

And I have fond memories of this from three decades ago.

The band U2 standing next to multi-colored East German Trabant car.

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David Bickford @exit2lef.bsky.social · 27/11/2025

The colors are different, but otherwise the team’s new logo isn’t much different than the actual transit agency’s.

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David Bickford @exit2lef.bsky.social · 05/10/2025

Know anyone who’s scared of public transportation? If you want to give them nightmares, show them this scary train at Spirit Halloween right by the real train at 19th Ave / Camelback in #phoenix. It’s a pretty impressive display, more so than I’d expect for a store open only a few months a year.

Mock rail car with broken windows and a zombie nun standing to the left.

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David Bickford @exit2lef.bsky.social · 29/09/2025

Highlights of the weekend: Thoroughly good: Watching the Mercury win the WNBA semifinals before enjoying a good dinner at Obon's new location in downtown #Phoenix Bittersweet: Enjoying one last visit to the Gilbert Farmers Market before its unfortunate relocation to a giant parking lot in Chandler

The entrance to the Gilbert Farmers Market under cloudy skies

The Phoenix Mercury and Minnesota Lynx during the final game in the WNBA semifinals

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David Bickford @exit2lef.bsky.social · 04/08/2025

That used to be a tongue-in cheek slogan of this defunct account back in the pre-Musk Twitter days:

Screenshot of a defunct Twitter account: Vehicular Cycling
@VehicularCyclin
Hate bicycle lanes, hate shoulders, hate sidepaths and if we are discussing bicycle infrastructure on the internet.....then I hate you too.

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David Bickford @exit2lef.bsky.social · 03/08/2025

I visited Legoland at Arizona Mills yesterday. They have Lego versions of local landmarks, including this group of bicyclists pedaling by Chase Field on 3rd St. I wonder if someone at Lego is trying to shame #Phoenix into making the proposed 3rd St. bikeway happen by manifesting the plan in bricks.

Lego figures of people of bicycles pedaling past a Lego version of Chase Field in downtown Phoenix.

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David Bickford @exit2lef.bsky.social · 24/06/2025

The wait on my bicycle to cross 16th Street seemed way too long this morning until I noticed this chalk writing next to me on the sidewalk.

Chalk writing on the sidewalk saying “Are we great yet? Cuz I just feel embarrassed.”

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David Bickford @exit2lef.bsky.social · 20/06/2025

After two weeks of mostly cool and comfortable travel in New England, it’s time to depart just before the heat wave and go home to slightly cooler than normal temperatures. “It’s a dry heat,” is often just a cliche, but I’m going to appreciate having nearly the same temperatures with lower humidity.

Screenshot of a 10-day weather forecast for Phoenix with high temperatures around 100 degrees Fahrenheit.

Screenshot of a 10-day weather forecast for Windsor Locks, Connecticut, with high temperatures approaching 100 degrees Fahrenheit.

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David Bickford @exit2lef.bsky.social · 14/06/2025

Took advantage of my #CNU33 lunch break to join the #nokings rally at the Rhode Island State Capitol. Festive despite the serious subject matter and today’s terrible news from Minnesota. Happy to be participating in the cool drizzle of #Providence rather than the intense heat of #Phoenix right now.

Bib Bird standing outside the Rhode Island State Capitol

Woman wearing a crown and holding a sign saying “No Kings, Only Queens” outside the Rhode Island State Capitol

Rhode Island State Capitol surrounded by peaceful protesters

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David Bickford @exit2lef.bsky.social · 12/06/2025

Once conference down, one to go. Impressed with all the positive change in #Providence since my last visit, especially 195 Park and the pedestrian bridge that replaced the relocated highway. So many people out strolling, doing yoga, playing chess, eating ice cream, and enjoying today’s nice weather.

View of the Providence skyline from the pedestrian bridge over the river

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