First, let me say thank you to those that came out to the Happy Hour on Tuesday! It was good to see you face-to-face. There was some discussion about lane width and LOS in San Rafael, my pie-in-the-sky ideas about cycle tracks, and some consideration of how to focus development into downtown Santa Rosa. Apologies if you missed the sign, but I'm glad at least some of you recognized my smiling face. The (in)famous John Parnell was supposed to show, but, alas, had a family to attend to. Next time, expect it at the Mayflower at 4th & D; no need to brave the punishing 29. Second, you should notice a few new links over on the right-hand side of the blog. They are:

Pedestrian Observations: Written by mathematician Alon Levy, Pedestrian Observations is a heady, technical blog on transit and urban design that always produces solid work. The commentariat is intelligent, well-informed, and just as interesting to read as Alon himself.
Human Transit: Written by transit consultant Jarrett Walker, Human Transit is his professional blog, dealing with the basic, underlying issues that form how we understand transit design and policy.
Planetizen: Not really a blog, Planetizen is a blog and a news links page, with articles on urban and transportation affairs from across the world.

Lastly, I'm back in DC. I have a few irons in the fire that may or may not pan out for the blog, such as a new contributor and some small-time syndication beyond Patch. If you want to contribute a tip, idea, or article, send me an email at thegreatermarin [at] gmail.com.

It was encouraging to see Marin doing its thing, and I can't wait to go back. Until then, you'll always find me here.