Why This Pedestrian Loves the Cycle Track

King Street Cycle Track crossing Ke‘eaumoku.
Photo credit: Hawaii Bicycling League (hbl.org)

The King Street cycle track opened with a lot of moans and groans late 2014. Many people, namely drivers, were confused by the two-way protected bike lane. I was super excited. Super excited. As a former commuter bicyclist in Tucson, the new lane provided hope that Honolulu would finally get the cycling infrastructure it deserved as an overcrowded city.

I knew the cycle track would be exciting as a cyclist. I never knew I'd appreciate it so much as a pedestrian.

Just so you know, I am a pedestrian. Sure, we all are at some point of life, even if it's just to walk to our cars. But, me, I'm like a permanent pedestrian. Long story short (ask me in person sometime and I'll tell you; it's really not at all exciting), I don't drive places, I walk, run, bicycle or get a ride from someone else there.

As a perma-pedestrian, I have come to observe some pretty terrible driving manners. I've had cars edging IN to driveways as if I was somehow a burden walking quickly on a designated sidewalk. I've had cars edging OUT of driveways forget that while you need not look both ways for car traffic, pedestrians could, indeed, be walking in both directions on a sidewalk. I've had to look twice crossing a street on a green, looking for cars taking right-hand turns too quickly with no regard to pedestrian signals. The worst is when a car patiently and kindly waits for me to cross a driveway, only for the car behind it to honk angrily.

A couple of weeks ago, I decided - probably out of pure laziness, believe it or not - that I would start running home as my exercise. The run from work to home clocks in about 3.3 miles. It's short enough to walk if I need to and long enough to get a minimum 30 minutes of cardio in.

My running commute takes me along 1.3 miles of the 2-mile cycle track, about 65% of the protected bike lane. I thought the thing I'd notice most was more bad driving etiquette (sorry, drivers, I've seen how you treat even us law-abiding cyclists). But instead, I've noticed how great the cycle track is - not just for cyclists - but for pedestrians on the sidewalks!

Cycle track between Alapa‘i and Ward. In the past I've had
to battle with cyclists riding where I walked. Now we
all - pedestrians, cyclists, and cars have our own spaces.
Photo credit: C&C of Honolulu (honolulu.gov)

I no longer have to worry of cyclists bowling me over on the sidewalk. I've noticed that drivers are not just more alert to cyclists, but also to pedestrians. After five or six runs along King Street, it's a rare occasion for a car to edge in or out without checking for both cyclists and pedestrians. I don't worry about cars taking a left-hook without looking for pedestrians and cyclists. Cars seem a bit more patient and cautious all around. And in turn, I feel a lot better about following the rules too, waiting at the intersection when the hand is blinking to let the patiently waiting cars make their turn.

There have been the occasion outliers, like the guy today who blocked not only the entire sidewalk, but also part of the cycle track to try and get out of a Jack in the Box, nonetheless (btw, he went from Jack in the Box to a Zippy's - at least he went up in the world). But, there are always those guys. And, nothing's ever perfect.

When it comes to running and cycling, I can be defensive in the loudest way possible, yelling and throwing my hands up. But, I think in large part due to the cycle track, when I run home now, the only throwing I'm doing is of shakas to say mahalo to all the drivers and cyclists alike who manage to travel on King Street with some semblance of harmony. It's nice. It makes the run home as pleasant as any run mostly uphill can be.

Thanks, King Street cycle track. This shaka's for you.

What's in a Name?

Last month, my husband and I had a big beautiful wedding. It was a perfect day, filled with food, beverages, a gorgeous sunset off of Waikiki, and of course all the people we love. We were so happy to celebrate with so many people who got us to where we are today. But, I couldn't help but observe the social experiment in the days following our wedding when we finally opened our (very generous) gifts.

The experiment was in unpacking the bag full of cards we got.

Many of them said Keopu and Jason. Others carried our silly couple nickname, Ublitz (a cross between his Ubay and my Reelitz). A few had talked to us before and knew to write Reelitz-Ubay. There were a good amount though that addressed it to us as Jason and Keopu Ubay. And even fewer wrote Mr. and Mrs. Jason Ubay.

Who wrote what typically suggested which of us they knew best. Sometimes, it indicated at what point in our lives they got to know one or both of us. For example, friends from a specific circle that got to know both of us well were definitely the Ublitz cards. Every now and then, though, how a guest addressed us suggested less history and more expectation. It was no surprise that many close to Jason were the ones who addressed it to Jason and Keopu Ubay because, of course, they would want to see the Ubay family name to continue through us.

So let's just set the record straight: we are Jason Ubay and Keopu Reelitz most times. We're Jason and Keopu Ubay, if that's what you prefer to call us. And legally, we're Jason and Keopu Reelitz-Ubay. It turns out this whole name (and identity) thing is pretty complicated.

Jason and I had a lot of discussions after we got engaged. I told him I really liked my family name. He said I didn't need to change it. I asked if he would change his name. He said no. I talked to him about the experiences of women (particularly in mixed race couples) whose names were different than their children's. He suggested we keep our own names and hyphenate kids' names. I suggested we both change our names and get the mana (power) of both families. He said no again.

Then, one day, as we got closer, he told me he had made up his mind - we should both change our names. I was a kid on Christmas day! We wouldn't have to pick our identities. We'd create new ones for our life together.

And how has it been? We're still negotiating those identities and spaces. We've decided to keep our own names professionally, both being writers and knowing the power of a byline. But, when it comes to being a family unit, we're the Reelitz-Ubays.

People react to what I call our hyphenation action in different ways. There are a lot of "wows" and a few "how modern of you" reactions. The guy at the DMV did a double-take when he looked at our marriage certificate. He was a pretty stereotypical DMV worker when I stepped up to him, stone-faced and not one for conversation. But, when he noticed Jason had also changed his name, he looked up and asked about it, even said "good for you guys" and "congratulations" by the end.

One fascinating trend we've noticed is that people care way more about a woman changing her name than a man changing his. I've been asked 23098235908 times. Jason cannot recall a time when he was asked if he was changing his name or even if I was changing mine. I'll leave that social commentary for another time.

The expectations part of our names - what we'll live up to - will always be a space of negotiation. But at the end of the day, it's really about how you know us. My closest friends will likely only ever call me Reelitz (or Ublitz). And, Jason's mom will probably always call us Jason and Keopu Ubay, and that's okay by me. If I could make one request though, try not to call me Mrs. Jason Ubay - I am neither bald, nor Filipino, and Jason would look terrible with long hair.If all else fails, you can just call me Keopu.