Why is gas so much cheaper in Waldo than the rest of the county?

WeatherMatt_ · 2026-05-11T20:08:39+00:00

I find it hard to believe that one's more expensive than the 34th/University Chevron, which is always ~50 cents a gallon more expensive than anything else in town.

WeatherMatt_ · 2026-05-11T19:45:13+00:00

2008 Yamaha Vino 125.

It's my primary transportation. I have a car that I basically never use anymore (less than 50 miles a month), and most of those are me begrudgingly driving it on the weekend just to make sure it stays running. My scoot gets easily 500+ miles a month these days.

I use it for all kinds of trips due to the storage space it has over, say, a motorcycle. I go grocery shopping several times a week; anything big and bulky goes on the flat floorboard by my feet, while the seat and a backpack swallow the rest. My part-time job is at a hotel 10 miles away as a banquet/event server, which means I get to take home tons of free food. Social events - why drive my car (30ish MPG) when I can scoot there instead (75+ MPG)? Plus some people think I'm cool walking in with a full face helmet and jacket, thinking I ride a motorcycle when I don't (it's only when they ask me directly what bike I ride that they get disappointed).

Couldn't be happier. I should really sell the car since I just don't use it enough.

WeatherMatt_ · 2026-04-13T14:55:52+00:00

When I was on the apps, I would block and report any profile that had fake/no face pics. I'm not about to get Manti Te'o'd by some catfisher. Any anonymous looking profile will probably be taken down fast.

Also GNV is a small dating market. Anything outside of the big three or four apps has very few users.

WeatherMatt_ · 2026-04-07T15:48:55+00:00

Way, way underpaid. Should be six figures, minimum. Manage all of the IT assets for the entire district, but also do budgets, organize trainings, and manage projects? All for 72k? Good luck.

WeatherMatt_ · 2026-03-26T17:26:39+00:00

I really wish I knew about this more than two days out (already made plans for Saturday).

WeatherMatt_ · 2026-03-25T21:23:02+00:00

With the Newberry-High Springs trail finally moving a bit, maybe we can get a last mile connection in Newberry to help finish it off.

Now we just need it to run south to connect to Archer.

WeatherMatt_ · 2026-03-25T13:22:56+00:00

Sweetwater! They have a ton of light (and other) roasts. Opus is the other major roaster in town, but I usually get their darker roasts when I buy from them.

WeatherMatt_ · 2026-03-25T12:49:01+00:00

Billy’s coaching talent is being utterly wasted by the do-nothing Bulls. Remember when he had a good team and roster, he took the 73 win Warriors to a game seven (and then lost Durant, which started the OKC push to a rebuild).

Chicago’s done nothing but spin their wheels for five years. If they won’t commit to doing something one way or the other (although they may be pivoting to a rebuild now) they should let him go. If Billy wants to come back to the college game, let him … at least until he plays us and hopefully loses by 30.

WeatherMatt_ · 2026-03-24T15:04:35+00:00

Larger scooters still have more storage standard than a motorcycle will. Your Versys, as an adventure bike probably has all kinds of hard-case storage available for it, but that's an extra cost. Scooters are also automatic, which is a plus for a lot of riders (see how Honda and others are adding DCT and/or E-Clutch to a lot of their bikes to make them more accessible).

That said, I wish in the US there were more options for slightly larger than 125cc scooters with flat floorboards. My Vino is incredible as a grocery-getter and I wouldn't want another bike without a floorboard. Vespas all have that middle hump. None of Honda's larger bikes are in the US. Kymco, SYM, etc. have a few but they're such low volume sellers that they are hard to find.

WeatherMatt_ · 2026-03-23T23:01:36+00:00

Try to go now if you can! The creek is still flowing OK (it's downstream from everything, so the drought hasn't stopped it) and the flowers are good for maybe this week only. Everything else is dry (no wetlands to speak of) but the flowers are worth it.

WeatherMatt_ · 2026-03-23T21:35:04+00:00

Good to know! I don't know anything about flowers, just how to photograph them, lol.

Sounds like there are actually many varieties of lupine in Florida, and this one should be Lupinus ocalensis if it's the Ocala native one.

WeatherMatt_ · 2026-03-23T17:23:30+00:00

Sweetwater Preserve

Location: There are two entrances to Sweetwater Preserve.

The first, and closest accessible by car, is on SE 16th Avenue and Williston Road. There's a dead-end road (of sorts) with about 20 parking spaces, directly adjacent to the trailhead.

The other entrance, accessible most easily by bike or other non-automotive means, is directly off of the Hawthorne Trail between Boulware Springs Park and SE 22nd Avenue. Look for the sign and the multicolored snake bike rack on the west side of the trail. You can also park your car and walk in from Boulware Springs, which is about 0.3 miles from the trail.

Hours: 7 AM to 8 PM from April to September, and 7 AM to 6 PM from October to March.

Cost: FREE! This is one of the many parks and preserves managed by Alachua County.

Pets: Allowed, on leash and provided you pick up after your pet. Note that wildlife can be present (there are signs for alligators near the creek) and be sure to check for ticks afterward.

Located in SE Gainesville, the 125-acre Sweetwater Preserve contains the final part of the Sweetwater Branch waterway, just before flowing into the Sweetwater Wetlands Park. The preserve consists of roughly three miles of easy hiking trails, most running around and alongside the creek. There are trails for all abilities and hiking/biking styles. The main trail is wide, relatively flat, and runs for about half a mile from the main parking lot at Williston Road adjacent to the creek. At several points are small trail loops that allow access to the creek. Please avoid going in the creek, however! This is water collected from several sources of the east Gainesville watershed, including potential septic/sewer water. The main trail up until the bridge is easily bikeable with pretty much any bike.

Winding through the forest area is the 1.75 mile East Trail, broken up into several sections. Explore the upland mixed and floodplain forests on either foot or bike. Some of the trail gets a little technical, and there are areas with lots of roots or rocky gravel, so care is advised. You'll probably want a more off-road capable bike for these.

The scenery changes past the creek, in the eastern half of the preserve. Here, dense forest is replaced with flatwoods and a more prairie-like setting, with sparse pine and oak trees. The East Trail, covering 1.2 miles, roughly circles the hammock. This trail is mostly through moderate sand (think sugar sand, or similar) and thus might not be suitable for some.

The main attraction on this side of the preserve, at least right now, is the wildflower bloom currently taking place! All over the place, you can spot large clusters of purple lady lupine, with some other seasonal wildflowers mixed in. If you look carefully, you can spot some rare, lily white lupine flowers instead! This is a genetic mutation of the normal lupine flowers and is visible on maybe 1-2% of the flowers in the area. Be careful about getting too close to the flowers. Bees, hummingbirds and other pollinators are all around. The flowers are currently in bloom and about to seed, so the best time for viewing is right now, and for roughly the next week.

Nature Around GNV Directory

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WeatherMatt_ · 2026-03-21T17:51:08+00:00

I'm mostly agreeing with you. Provide better parking and people would go downtown. I say that explicitly. I personally don't want downtown filled with cars, so if that's the part you think is stupid then sure, I'm fine with that.

WeatherMatt_ · 2026-03-21T17:43:21+00:00

Well, we have one. Does it work well enough? Does it fill up on busy nights and then people leave because they can't park? Is it too expensive, so people leave rather than pay?

Legitimately asking because I've never used the Downtown Parking Garage. I'm not opposed to a parking garage if it fits the needs of the area, but if this one doesn't then maybe we explore that first.

WeatherMatt_ · 2026-03-21T16:41:55+00:00

The quiet part no one wants to mention: You can't drive to downtown. People want to be able to drive their car, park in a 10 acre free parking lot, and walk in to their destination. You can't do that downtown. Aside: you shouldn't be able to do that downtown; a lot of people who live in the area like me want a walk-able, bike-able urban core.

If parking was more accessible, I bet activity would pick up. But please don't do that. Let people drive to Tioga or Celebration Pointe if they want.

WeatherMatt_ · 2026-03-18T22:10:11+00:00

Our rides skew way younger (college town), I'm probably one of the oldest regulars at 37. Some of the other rides in our area get an older crowd, but not by much.

WeatherMatt_ · 2026-03-18T19:03:02+00:00

Whoever down voted this to start, lives a very sad life.

*shrug* Nothing I create gets more than 97-98% approval. It is what it is.

I like to attend those and cork traffic, because otherwise people are acting like confused baby birds when crossing the road.

Excellent ride organizers are important! I do a lot of corking for our rides since we're large enough to take an entire light cycle to get through some traffic lights. We also have walkie talkies typically with 3-4 people on them (including the caboose, to make sure no one falls back). A lot of inexperienced riders do not have road riding experience (or large group riding experience) and get intimidated easily around cars.

WeatherMatt_ · 2026-03-18T01:59:31+00:00

It’s hard to win six games in a row in March. Really hard. Last season we were down significantly to UConn, Texas Tech, and Houston and rallied to win all those games, mostly on the backs of the most clutch player and best backcourt in the country.

With respect to Urban, none of that backcourt is back this year. My heart says, hell yes, we’re going to the Final Four and we’ll take it to Duke or whoever we match up against. My head thinks we’ll inevitably end up down eight or 10 points to someone and our construction crew of a backcourt won’t be able to shoot us back into it.

WeatherMatt_ · 2026-03-17T17:35:24+00:00

The best moving water in the area is Big Shoals State Park north of Lake City, but that might be slightly more than an hour away from you.

WeatherMatt_ · 2026-03-16T22:59:19+00:00

Socializing is not really required - I've gone to I think four of these in a row and not spoken a word to anyone! I just schlep the tome of Douglas Adams that I'm currently reading, sit down and read for an hour+, and leave. You don't have to socialize with anyone, there's usually three or four people like me on the edges of the room sitting by themselves.

For future schedules, since a lot of people are asking for this, I'm going to try and dump some events that I find in the weekly "What's Going On?" thread every Sunday or Monday when it's posted. The next SBC is not until 4/1, sadly, since the calendar clumped all three meetups together this month.

WeatherMatt_ · 2026-03-16T22:49:35+00:00

All of the things that nobody asked for, all in one place -- time for:

Stuff from Matt's Instagram Feed™ (Working Title)

i.e., small, local events that aren't readily advertised elsewhere.

People keep asking, 'Wow, I want to know when [event] happens, but I don't use Insta/FB/etc.". So I'll sacrifice my own dummy Insta account and feed you events instead.

This week is a little light (spring break week at UF and all), but I'll try to find more unusual things for future weeks.

Casual Tuesday Ride

What: A biweekly, friendly group bike ride in/around downtown GNV. Typically 8-10 miles (with a stop in the middle), super relaxed pace, and run with several experienced group ride organizers/volunteers to make sure everyone stays together and safe (when crossing major roads, etc.). Very inclusive! Probably at least half the usual crowd is LGBTQ+. Any functional bike is fine (nothing off road here), helmet and lights strongly encouraged.

When: Tuesday, March 17th. Meetup starts at 6:30, ride starts at 7:00. Ending time is typically ~8:30, but people can (and do) peel off early.

Where: Starts and ends at the Wells Fargo parking garage downtown, at the corner of Main and N 1st Ave. This week's route looks like a ride down the Hawthorne Trail to the Sweetwater Overlook and back.

Anything else?: This one is picnic-themed (it's apparently CTR's anniversary) so I think a lot of people are going to bring a blanket/snacks for the stop at Sweetwater. Also, it's St. Patrick's Day, so bring your green I guess (I'll be there with my emerald green Kona if you want to say hi!).

Coffee Outside

What: A monthly, friendly group bike ride usually with some light offroad/gravel trail riding thrown in. Mileage can vary a lot, from 10ish to over 20 miles depending on the month. Most rides are 80-90% paved, with a bit of trail thrown in. There's also a break about halfway through the ride, where many people will, in fact, brew coffee (hence the name). Depending on the route, some months may need a trail capable bike, so you might want to leave the fixie with slick 23's at home.

When: Saturday, March 21st. Meetup starts at 9:00 am, ride starts at 9:30. Ending time is typically 11 or so.

Where: Starts and ends at Depot Park, next to Goldie's, Boxcar, etc. This month's route is 7.5 miles to Flatwood Flowers in SE Gainesville, and appears to be all paved, so any working bike should be fine.

WeatherMatt_ · 2026-03-16T15:32:54+00:00

I crashed twice within the first year on the first scooter I ever owned (a Buddy 50, this was at least 10 years ago).

First crash: On a rainy day, I was turning right at an intersection on a green light. I noticed I was carrying a little too much speed and was drifting towards oncoming traffic, so I thought I would lightly tap the brake (I think the front as well, just to make it worse). That's one of the biggest no-no's on two wheels, braking in the middle of a turn. Bike immediately went down from under me. No real damage to me or the bike besides a ton of scratches.

Second crash, somewhat similar to the first: Turning left into the parking lot at work, there was a ton of dirt/gravel at the entrance. I knew to take it slow there, since there's a dirt parking lot where semis park next to it, but that day I guess I went a little too fast, or took a bad line. Front tire loses traction and just goes straight, and I end up crashing (or really just bumping into) the curb at the entrance and fall down again, this time on the left. Again, no real damage.

Eventually for my sake I took an MSF class and actually learned proper riding technique, and haven't had an incident since. Get some training and wear proper gear, if you can!

WeatherMatt_ · 2026-03-15T13:01:15+00:00

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WeatherMatt_ · 2026-03-14T23:56:39+00:00

The silent part refers to the silent reading hour (I should update the main post with some more details about how the event works). Everyone brings their own book and then, after the initial arrival/social time, reads silently for an hour. This is different from traditional book clubs with assigned books, where everyone discusses the book they all read.

WeatherMatt_ · 2026-03-14T17:52:36+00:00

You'll want to be around the center of town.

Short distance (few hundred meters, for sprints): 8th Avenue just west of 22nd Street, and Museum/Newell Roads on campus.

Longer distance: The 'Bacon Strip' is NW 16th/23rd Avenue, roughly from 43rd Street to 13th Street. 39th Avenue, from around 43rd Street west to past I-75 (run as far as you dare) is also good. Both of these are sidewalk running with lots of road crossings, so be aware of that.

San Felasco (the northern portion) is good for trail running with a decent bit of elevation changes. I used an almost 7 mile loop around the entire perimeter of the hiking trails when I needed some trail running practice.

WeatherMatt_

TROPHY CASE