"Rochester's bus fares are $1 because..." written by Tinypliny on estrip.org

Category: fact

12/16/09 06:13 - 22ºF - ID#50577

Rochester's bus fares are $1 because...

they scrapped the transfer charges of $0.30 and charge $1 for every ride regardless of however many transfers you might be taking.

Honestly, I would prefer that scheme. I never have that ridiculous quarter AND a five-cent coin or three ten-cents coins anyway and end up paying $1 or $0.50 for transfers. Also, I rarely transfer within city limits or while going to the nearest malls/airport.

I am just a little annoyed that the fares are $1.75 here because of poor management of public transport while our neighbouring city has better sense and judgement.

Oh, and on another note, I derailed someone's lunch plans to go downtown and see if I could catch the Matrix bloke, but all I saw was a white tent. That's it. I couldn't see even the cameras! Unfair. Were they shooting inside or what?

There seemed to be most barricading near the M&T gold-domed bank building.

I am speculating that Henry's crime might well be that he ripped the 24 carat gold leafing off of the dome in broad daylight and chilly winds and didn't wave at Buffalo denizens while scaling the dome.

Yeah, that was off the Intehn3ts.

metalpeter writes at 08:01:10 12/18/09 - Comment #53797: I think there are some ways NFTA could make more money.

I think the train should be expanded. There should be a line (yes a bus does this) that goes to the airport. You get off switch trains and it goes out there. Yes there is a mall shuttle. But you know what would be cool if you could hope on the train and go from mall to mall and get off at a stop and walk up steps and be at the mall, kinda like Toronto. I Include the the downtown mall in this. Yes I know there isn't much left other then the food court. Yes there is a bus that you can take to different schools UB, Canisius and Buffstate but why not have more connections.

I also wonder about if 24 hour service to all stops is possible. I get off work at 3am there is a bus. I know I would pay $3 to walk out of a bar stagering and I walk a block to the #3 or what ever and then it shoots to my part of the city.

uncutsaniflush writes at 10:12:00 12/18/09 - Comment #53769: thanks for the article (e:libertad) . Apparently, RGRT has no debt. That is a very major difference with the NFTA. The NFTA has debt because of the airport and the harbor (and probably mismanagement and corruption - this is Buffalo after all). One of the interesting things mentioned in the NYT article that it costs over $2 a passenger to provide bus service. And if the fare is $1 no matter how many people ride the bus, the farebox will never cover the costs of services provided. Other sources of funds are needed and apparently found.

tinypliny writes at 08:47:35 12/17/09 - Comment #53756: Hmmm... so do you really think that having the metro light rail raises the cost justifiably for Buffalo? Can you think of some means that might actually be better than the existing system for the metro rail?

How about charging all those high schools and colleges that subsidize NFTA's services for their students so heavily, a bit more - just like RGRT? How about cutting some trains? Instead of running every 8/12 minutes, could they run every 15 minutes? Over time, such small measures are bound to add up.

On the same note, I wonder how many fare checkers and police the NFTA employs... Can't they simply install swipe gates at stations like NYC/Delhi and get rid of the checkers altogether and make more money in the long run?

metalpeter writes at 08:01:37 12/17/09 - Comment #53754: What (e:uncut)... Says is correct but see it gets more complex then just that.

In Rochester they let the cops police anything that goes down on the buses. But see here we have and underground train system and NFTA has to pay the people who check for fares. They have to pay the nfta cops and their cars and all of that stuff. Yeah if they wanted to be dicks they could pass that onto the city. Who can't even pay everything now. The other issue is it being underground you think the cops really are going to go down to the underground station.

Back to the ticket checkers since it is on the honor and then they check them, I'm sure people only going a couple stops cheat all the time.

All those other things NFTA is dippid into raises costs so that raises fares.

tinypliny writes at 11:55:13 12/16/09 - Comment #53727: @(e:libertad) I have read that before too - I think you must have posted it before. :)

Someday, you need to explain over lunch about the cultural disdain for long sensible coats here! If you cross the pond, you will find that the sexiest and the most masculine men are often in the longest warmest coats. ;-)

tinypliny writes at 11:32:47 12/16/09 - Comment #53724: (e:uncutsaniflush) - RGRT is making a lot of revenue from charging $1 instead of the $0.25 for each and every transfer! I was talking to an RGRT employee on the bus when I went to Rochester a couple months back. He told me that bus usage is up nearly 40% since they lowered the fare.

Apparently, the $1 fare came at the right time - just before the depression hit the city and many people lost their jobs. He said that at peak hours, there was sometimes no place to stand in the buses and the bus drivers don't even stop at designated stops because they are under instructions not to go beyond a dangerous limit of passengers. Some routes have 2x frequency now because of so many people taking the bus. He said that in the morning, he often sees people dressed to the nines on the bus - headed for their offices at UofR or downtown.

I was in the city at an off-peak afternoon hour and a route that I knew wasn't crowded 2 years back was overflowing in the afternoon! I think I expressed surprise at this and that is why the employee (who was recording passenger statistics on his digital counter clipboard) told me how it was all working!

The NFTA needs to take economics and business lessons from the RGRT.

libertad writes at 11:21:43 12/16/09 - Comment #53722: Since you asked uncut, I searched for this article I had read some time ago. Did you post this before tiny? I think someone did, maybe it was even me but I just can't remember.

:::link:::

As far as winter apparel tiny, I don't think I could wear what you wear and not get beat down. There has to be a better way! BTW, I mean no offense to your coat, for you it works and I imagine you are never cold in it.

uncutsaniflush writes at 08:04:42 12/16/09 - Comment #53716: From what I've heard, one of the reasons NFTA fares are what they are is because it's not just a bus/rail service. They own and operate the airport and the harbor as well. I would love to know how the Rochester Genesee Regional Transportation Authority can manage a $1 fare.

tinypliny writes at 07:22:36 12/16/09 - Comment #53713: You totally dangled the celebrity carrot here yesterday, how could I have ignored that?! Imagine. I was probably within 5 metres of the Matrix man... and he didn't know. *Cue creepy music*

@(e:libertad): You need a heavy-duty down-filled snowcoat reaching your knees or even longer. It keeps you warm and toasty and has enough air trapped to prevent sweating when you are walking fast.

I was talking to one of my officemates today and he told me that there is a cultural barrier against wearing longer coats here. Apparently people think longer coats are only worn by older women. Is that true? That really sounds ridiculously vain.

theecarey writes at 07:08:50 12/16/09 - Comment #53712: good grief woman, I told you there would be nothing to see downtown!:)

The news had some shots and I guess some people made their way in to have a look. Bank robbers coming out of the bank was something that was shown.

libertad writes at 06:47:56 12/16/09 - Comment #53711: That is true! I really could use better clothing for the weather. Today I wore two jackets and was both cold and sweating at the same time!

tinypliny writes at 06:34:03 12/16/09 - Comment #53708: It took us 40 minutes to get from the Theatre stop to the Allen/Medical campus stop on the train today. I don't know why we even bothered taking the train back. I wouldn't have, had I gone alone. I always prefer walking as well. :-)

As the Scandinavians say, there is no such thing as bad weather, only insufficient clothing.

tinypliny writes at 06:30:37 12/16/09 - Comment #53707: They don't realize that more people would take the bus if it were $1. Its all about psychology of paying just a dollar. McD's has it down to a fault. Dollar-menu, 0.99c food etc. NFTA lacks business acumen. They probably might have more than made up their massive deficit if they had actually brains in their executive branch thinking about what goes on in their consumer's heads.

libertad writes at 06:24:30 12/16/09 - Comment #53705: NFTA ridership is way down since increasing fares. I rarely ride the bus and walk almost everywhere even when it is cold. I would probably ride it more if it were less and I didn't have to wait longer than it would take me to walk myself.

Permalink: Rochester_s_bus_fares_are_1_because_.html
Words: 195
Location: Buffalo, NY

Category: eating in

12/14/09 12:50 - 34ºF - ID#50550

It was so good that...

some people declared they could eat it at various intervals ranging from every second (of their lives? in hell? who knows?!) to every other day (in jail? on mars? in a geriatric ward?), and yet some others admitted to tossing 2/3rd of whatever they took discreetly into trash, and the rest were poisoned.

The point is, this recipe is not without its risks. With such variation in human reaction (and there were quite a variety of us at the potluck - from 7-ft palm trees to politically incorrect short pygmies to a graduate horticultural-establishment-management student from Cornell [who knew?!] - and of course the one normal person who threw 2/3rd in the trash, btw), there is a slim chance that you may meet some grotesque fate if you tried it.

Ah, disclaimer out of the way, time for the recipe. Really its just 5 steps.

1. Chop vegetables (Just pick something from across the colour spectrum and you will have a good mix. If you don't have a good knife, the acorn squash can turn into a hand-stuck-in-snowblower-like disaster.)

2. Toss in peanut oil, coarse ground cumin, salt and coconut shreds. Put into oven at around 150 - 175 degrees C (For you non-metric weirdos :

-

) Wait for the onions to turn very very slightly caramelized at the tips. Don't let the veggies burn - keep a watch. Roast the garlic cloves whole. (What? You couldn't spot garlic in that picture? Look again!)

3. Chop a bunch of fresh coriander (Sorry, (e:Paul)!), smash the roasted garlic into it. Mix in garam masala (Dry-roasted and ground: 5 (coriander seeds): 2 (black peppercorns): 2 (cumin): 2-3 cloves: Dried red chillies to taste: 2 (unroasted cardamom): 1 (dried mango powder/amchur) Mix in chopped green onions, and cooked garbanzo beans (Canned garbanzo is just gooey - you need to go the dried-beans-soak-6hrs-and-cook way. I heard that some canned garbanzo packs come with an additional risk of botulin sometimes - so its up to you).

4. Mix it all in with the roasted vegetables and give it another go in the oven - same temperature, till onions are a bit more caramelized, maybe 10-15 more minutes (Or you could skip the roasting-again bit, because its really murdering the veggies a bit more at this point).

5. Sprinkle with a mixture of toasted nuts (peanuts and cashewnuts) and crispy potato shreds with red chillie powder and salt). Serve.

666. Step back and watch the ill-effects on your unsuspecting victims.

PS: Heh, yes, the garlic cloves were not really visible in that picture. I figured you deserved at least a nice headache for reading the recipe, especially considering the wealth of emotions the people at the party ended up with. You are welcome.

PPS: No, I am SO not sorry.

Permalink: It_was_so_good_that_.html
Words: 467
Location: Buffalo, NY

Category: science

12/11/09 04:08 - 20ºF - ID#50540

That whooshing sound from the piano!

I listen to a lot of classical piano, and I have always been bothered by that whooshing sound between keystrokes that I can always hear (but some of my friends and my brother can never hear!)

In a distracted moment today, I learned that it is the sound of the open strings vibrating against the soundboard of an acoustic piano. So, THAT'S where it comes from!

In some recordings, they specifically place the recording equipment close to the soundboard because it gives the richest sound output - however the drawback is the whooshing sound... which apparently, not many people can hear.

The frequency of this "whooshing" is very low - hovering around 20-25 Hz. Some human ears can't pick up sounds in this frequency and auditory scientists speculate that the range of frequency hearing is genetically determined.

Fascinating, huh?!

tinypliny writes at 08:17:25 12/12/09 - Comment #53607: hehehe ;-)

paul writes at 07:30:09 12/12/09 - Comment #53606: freak! just kidding. I will have to check it out and see.

tinypliny writes at 09:40:00 12/11/09 - Comment #53596: I didn't know that! How interesting. So I guess I prefer the audience version of the recording!

And about Gould - I KNOW!!! I think its adorable that you can hear him in a sort of low croon when he is tuning the pieces internally!

uncutsaniflush writes at 09:07:08 12/11/09 - Comment #53595: (e:tinypliny) - During my time spent in recording studios, I learned that many sound engineers seek out the sound that you refer to as "whoosh". They consider it part of the natural sound of the piano box and think that it adds richness to the sound. If memory serves correctly, the idea to reproduce the sound of the piano that pianist experiences. On other hand, some sound engineers feel that a piano should be recorded so that it sounds it does from the audience in a concert hall - so no sound of the box and no whooshing.

My "problem" with classical piano is Glenn Gould. In some of his recordings you can hear him humming (for lack of a better word) as he plays.

jenks writes at 05:24:23 12/11/09 - Comment #53587: Oh, OK, so you're saying I'm more evolved (i.e. more advanced)? Ok, I can handle that.

;)

tinypliny writes at 05:14:28 12/11/09 - Comment #53586: Maybe this undercuts my evil intent, but its interesting to analyze what this really means. As you probably know, lower frequencies are travel farther than high frequencies.

And there is that popular science observation that Elephants can actually hear the lower frequencies rather than feel them - and they use this fact to communicate across the wilderness of Africa.

As humans, we live closer to each other, we don't hunt anymore, our societies have little to do with predation and danger awareness as probably mammals in the wild do.

It is possible that through evolution, we have progressively lost the gene-expression needed to hear the low frequencies - or maybe the allele controlling the trait is recessive. So hearing or not hearing these kind of sounds is merely an indication of what kind of population we share our genetics with, and where in the evolutionary tree we diverged from the parent population in Africa - and of course, which alleles we received from our parents and whether they are homozygous or heterozygous for the trait. :)

tinypliny writes at 04:50:28 12/11/09 - Comment #53583: Yes, that was my total evil intent.

jenks writes at 04:37:48 12/11/09 - Comment #53580: Gee thanks Tiny.
Now I feel insecure about my inferior ears that can't hear that sound.

GREAT.

Permalink: That_whooshing_sound_from_the_piano_.html
Words: 141
Location: Buffalo, NY

Category: science

12/09/09 07:05 - 38ºF - ID#50517

SoyMilk Vs Fat-Free Milk: Nutrition Data

I keep thinking about getting another delicious carton of Soymilk ((e:tinypliny,50430)) but it is really just a very impractical and unwise obsession. The comparative nutrition charts show just why soymilk is not the rational choice.

Sunrich Soymilk 1 Serving.

It has added sugar (cane juice), vanilla flavour and carrageenan (a plant-based gum). I have never added these to my regular milk - why would I want to drink them now? Especially sugar?

Upstate Farms Fat-Free Milk 1 Serving.

Fat-free milk wins hands down in terms of higher quality of nutrients, clear-cut essential ingredients and no added sugar.

Take that, lizard brain.

PS: AAAAAAAargh. I still want it. This is getting so ridiculous! Anyone want to talk me out of this madness?!
PPS: Worse, I now want to get Biscoff Speculoos to dunk in them! Nice going. :/

tinypliny writes at 08:47:48 12/10/09 - Comment #53523: Soy has isoflavones that have a structure similar to the hormone, Estrogen. However, some animal studies have shown that the actions of these phytoestrogens (estrogens from plants) are not exactly the same as estrogens from animal sources.

But the jury is out on this one because
a) Whatever epidemiological studies have been done are all inconclusive if taken together (some indicate decreased risk and others indicate increased risk).
b) Some later cell-culture studies have seen that phytoestrogens act on the same signaling receptors and pathways as estrogens do.

There is an ecological argument that soy is protective against breast cancer because it is common in the diets of women from South-East Asia and these women have low breast cancer incidence/prevalence rates. However, it would be a stretch to say that these low rates are because of soy consumption because their diets and environment are also completely different when compared with Caucasian women or African-American women.

libertad writes at 07:00:28 12/10/09 - Comment #53520: Can too much soy lead to breast cancer?

tinypliny writes at 10:13:25 12/09/09 - Comment #53516: What is this - like a tit-for-tat evil thought induction??! You actually made me search stores that retail this light brand and I just found out the Tops, Niagara Street sells an unsweetened version!!

I want to go to there....

And just you wait, I am going to get you for this.

Jim, you are my sole friend in the morass of temptation!

theecarey writes at 08:44:23 12/09/09 - Comment #53514: when I drink cow milk it is always skim; I like the watery taste :) Hated milk as a kid (parents always bought "2%", most friends had "whole") and didn't know there were differences in milk until I had, in my 8 year old opinion, a "good" cup of milk at a friends house. I was so blown away that I made sure to remember what was different about it. Happened to be that it was Skim. 1% is the max I will go before it gets thick and gross feeling in my mouth.

Now, for soy milk, for much of the same reason, I prefer the Silk brand light plain
or light vanilla. :::link:::

check them out, and you might find that you can continue with your soy milk obsession.

Now I feel like a drug pusher. hehe

jim writes at 08:09:15 12/09/09 - Comment #53511: SOY MILK: THE DEVIL'S JUICE

tinypliny writes at 07:43:11 12/09/09 - Comment #53510: Um yeah... how is that supposed to talk me out of buying soymilk?

heidi writes at 07:33:22 12/09/09 - Comment #53509: What's the difference between fat free milk and water besides calories? Ew ew ew. Milk is supposed to be white, not blue or clear.

Permalink: SoyMilk_Vs_Fat_Free_Milk_Nutrition_Data.html
Words: 139
Location: Buffalo, NY

Category: art

12/09/09 04:17 - 43ºF - ID#50514

The Pink Glove Dance

The Pink Glove dance was choreographed in St. Vincent Medical Centre, Portland, Oregon for the Medline glove division as a fundraiser for cancer awareness.

I love the sheer energy of everyone in the dance.

As a bonus for promoting their pink gloves, when this video gathers one million hits, apparently the glove company will be making a contribution to the St. Vincent hospital, as well as offering free mammograms for the community around the hospital.

Its good to hear about companies finding creative ways of using social media for donating to healthcare. A month back it was the #beatcancer experiment on Twitter - for every tweet, 1c was donated to 3 cancer research/care institutions. It didn't amount to much in the end (~$6K) but it was a nice gesture and good way to get people involved.

Permalink: The_Pink_Glove_Dance.html
Words: 138
Location: Buffalo, NY
Last Modified: 08/20/12 02:21

Category: grocery

12/06/09 06:58 - 33ºF - ID#50484

Question for e:JBeatty: Pandan

(e:JBeatty), have you seen Pandan at any store in Buffalo city?

From this

I really want to make Pandan-flavoured milk but I don't know where to find it... Any ideas?

PS: Pandan smells like a rustic wonderful variant of natural vanilla. Vanilla essence just doesn't reach the subtlety that is Pandan.

Permalink: Question_for_e_JBeatty_Pandan.html
Words: 61
Location: Buffalo, NY

Category: grocery

12/06/09 04:05 - 34ºF - ID#50480

Wegmans on Prospect Avenue?

Really? Is there a Wegmans on Prospect Avenue as Google Maps seems to think?

Why have I never seen it? This is the parking lot at the back of the Tops Building. Maybe Weggies has a storage unit there? Does anyone know?

Permalink: Wegmans_on_Prospect_Avenue_.html
Words: 44
Location: Buffalo, NY

Category: art

12/03/09 04:44 - 45ºF - ID#50449

Dances of the world... served on ice.

Transicelated by Meryl Davis and Charlie White...

Eastern European Waltz
Tchaikovsky

Bollywood Medley
Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy, Gulzar
Ismail Darbar, Nusrat Badr

Western European Waltz
Strauss

East European Opera
Alexander Borodin

Western European Opera
Camille Saint-Saens, Ferdinand Lemaire

Broadway
Andrew Lloyd Webber

Permalink: Dances_of_the_world_served_on_ice_.html
Words: 58
Location: Buffalo, NY

Category: art

12/02/09 07:21 - 45ºF - ID#50441

Back in Baroque.

In love with the costumes, the dances and the music! :)

Permalink: Back_in_Baroque_.html
Words: 26
Location: Buffalo, NY

Category: eating in

12/01/09 08:28 - 42ºF - ID#50430

Hook, Line and Sinker.

Went shopping with a friend recently (you know who you are and I know you are reading, heheh) and somehow this ended up in both of our groceries...

All I can say is. OH. MY. This thing is DELICIOUS! Gulped it down in two days flat. Needless to say, I won't be buying it any more because if I did I won't fit through my flat door in approximately a week or maybe less, who knows...

tinypliny writes at 09:46:31 12/01/09 - Comment #53275

Soy milk + Cinnamony oatmealish stuff* = Heaven

I think some Kashi stuff meets the criteria. Pity, I hate the sugar in cereal enough to avoid all cereal. But really, if you eat cinnamony cereal, you need to try the combo. I think they would go smashingly well together!

I drink close to 2 gallons of milk every week to get the requisite amount of calcium, protein and fat-soluble vitamins in my diet. I am not lactose-intolerant or overly convinced about the apparent ill-effects of milk - so however much I like this soymilk, getting hooked to a non-dairy product like this is a bit of a concern.

This particular brand of soymilk is equivalent to 3% milk. However, the calcium in it is supplemented calcium carbonate - not the best bioavailable form of calcium. The protein in it is a complete protein but I am not sure how it stacks up in comparison to the animal-sourced protein from milk - I am guessing not very well.

joshua writes at 09:07:42 12/01/09 - Comment #53271: I've been making soy chais. F Spot and their $5 pricetag! I really don't think I'd ever pour this stuff over cereal, however. I'm not so much of a non-dairy nut that I can't enjoy a little lowfat milk.

tinypliny writes at 08:52:34 12/01/09 - Comment #53264: But it already has sugar - organic cane sugar and vanilla... Maybe you haven't tried this brand? I can almost swear they put some addictive drug in it because it made me walk all the way to the grocery store directly from work in the horrible muddly slush - before I could shake its influence off and double back home.

If you saw someone bundled up in a snowcoat swearing at all the puddles running about in circles around Delaware and Elmwood today evening, it was me. And trying to avoid buying another box of the above was the primary reason for the craziness.

janelle writes at 08:47:09 12/01/09 - Comment #53263: I WANT to like soymilk, but the only way I've been able to enjoy it is with thoroughly unhealthy amounts of sugar added to it.