Joan Liu
@joanliu.bsky.social
I walk and bike a lot. Product manager at the MBTA.
Groups strike/boycott for better conditions. I wonder what a publicized strike in which bicyclists purposely drive for everything they would have biked could accomplish.
Though not everyone has cars/license, and I think that some drivers just want everyone to be miserable.
Though not everyone has cars/license, and I think that some drivers just want everyone to be miserable.
November 27, 2025 at 5:18 PM
Groups strike/boycott for better conditions. I wonder what a publicized strike in which bicyclists purposely drive for everything they would have biked could accomplish.
Though not everyone has cars/license, and I think that some drivers just want everyone to be miserable.
Though not everyone has cars/license, and I think that some drivers just want everyone to be miserable.
Reposted by Joan Liu
New Eastbound bus bike lane on Broadway from Mount Vernon Street into Sullivan Station. Still needs some 🟥🎨, but this will make traveling in East Somerville much better 🚌🚲
November 25, 2025 at 7:26 PM
New Eastbound bus bike lane on Broadway from Mount Vernon Street into Sullivan Station. Still needs some 🟥🎨, but this will make traveling in East Somerville much better 🚌🚲
The one seat ride to the airport. 🥰 Slightly faster than the subway, if there's no traffic.
November 21, 2025 at 7:00 AM
The one seat ride to the airport. 🥰 Slightly faster than the subway, if there's no traffic.
This wide street is surprisingly low speed, but chaotic, probably because it's market time and there are lots of pedestrians walking around randomly.
November 21, 2025 at 3:49 AM
This wide street is surprisingly low speed, but chaotic, probably because it's market time and there are lots of pedestrians walking around randomly.
Reposted by Joan Liu
People had questions, like
"Are there apples that taste & crunch like Honeycrisp? But without the existential rage about being alive?"
Yep! Let's talk about them!
"Are there apples that taste & crunch like Honeycrisp? But without the existential rage about being alive?"
Yep! Let's talk about them!
In honor of apple picking season: the secret of why Honeycrisp apples are so expensive!
This tree is angry at being alive and will make it your problem (if you plant it)
This tree is angry at being alive and will make it your problem (if you plant it)
Why Honeycrisp Apples Are EXPENSIVE
YouTube video by Farm to Taber
youtu.be
November 18, 2025 at 8:23 PM
People had questions, like
"Are there apples that taste & crunch like Honeycrisp? But without the existential rage about being alive?"
Yep! Let's talk about them!
"Are there apples that taste & crunch like Honeycrisp? But without the existential rage about being alive?"
Yep! Let's talk about them!
Truly some incredible skill from long ago. How?!
November 18, 2025 at 10:36 PM
Truly some incredible skill from long ago. How?!
"I take full responsibility for my misguided decision to continue communicating with Mr. Epstein"? Just the communication with him and not anything else? 🙄
Larry Summers tells @theharvardcrimson.bsky.social
he’s stepping back from all public commitments in light of his messages with Epstein, saying he is “deeply ashamed” and hopes “to rebuild trust and repair relationships.”
He will continue teaching.
www.thecrimson.com/article/2025...
he’s stepping back from all public commitments in light of his messages with Epstein, saying he is “deeply ashamed” and hopes “to rebuild trust and repair relationships.”
He will continue teaching.
www.thecrimson.com/article/2025...
November 18, 2025 at 11:01 AM
"I take full responsibility for my misguided decision to continue communicating with Mr. Epstein"? Just the communication with him and not anything else? 🙄
Reposted by Joan Liu
oh my god you have to read this until the end www.telos.news/p/part-1-how...
Part 1: How I Found Out
Olivia had just returned from a reporting trip—at least that’s what she told me it was—and her Herschel backpack, the one with the flap that never quite closed properly, was tossed beside our bed, its...
www.telos.news
November 18, 2025 at 1:00 AM
oh my god you have to read this until the end www.telos.news/p/part-1-how...
My cousin's 5-year-old knows more about giving birth than I would've expected. As she was leaving yesterday, she told me that I'm still pregnant (after giving birth to a giant plastic Pikachu*) but the other one is stuck and I'll need surgery, which she'll handle when she sees me next (today). 😆😳
November 18, 2025 at 12:29 AM
My cousin's 5-year-old knows more about giving birth than I would've expected. As she was leaving yesterday, she told me that I'm still pregnant (after giving birth to a giant plastic Pikachu*) but the other one is stuck and I'll need surgery, which she'll handle when she sees me next (today). 😆😳
Look at this cute ladder truck in Keelung, Taiwan. Our American fire engines are oversized!
November 16, 2025 at 2:47 AM
Look at this cute ladder truck in Keelung, Taiwan. Our American fire engines are oversized!
My mom decided the best way to ask me to help reimburse her family was to switch from text to phone call and start rattling off non-round numbers associated with family members and also a long story about how two numbers need confirmation because _she_ didn't write it down when it was told to her. 🤦♀️
November 16, 2025 at 1:22 AM
My mom decided the best way to ask me to help reimburse her family was to switch from text to phone call and start rattling off non-round numbers associated with family members and also a long story about how two numbers need confirmation because _she_ didn't write it down when it was told to her. 🤦♀️
Reposted by Joan Liu
🚰 There is a MASSIVE issue facing Somerville that is getting way too little attention, probably because it sounds very technical: our Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO) plan.
And specifically, how we pay for it. Here's my Resolution for tonight, and below is an explainer 1/
And specifically, how we pay for it. Here's my Resolution for tonight, and below is an explainer 1/
November 13, 2025 at 4:29 PM
🚰 There is a MASSIVE issue facing Somerville that is getting way too little attention, probably because it sounds very technical: our Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO) plan.
And specifically, how we pay for it. Here's my Resolution for tonight, and below is an explainer 1/
And specifically, how we pay for it. Here's my Resolution for tonight, and below is an explainer 1/
Reposted by Joan Liu
Aurora in Somerville, MA
November 12, 2025 at 2:15 AM
Aurora in Somerville, MA
Reposted by Joan Liu
In 1912, the U.S. and Canada weren't allies—in fact, the Speaker of the U.S. House advocated for the violent overthrow of Canada to cheers in Congress.
But Boston's response to the devastating Halifax Explosion in 1917 changed everything, forging a deep alliance between our cities.
1/
But Boston's response to the devastating Halifax Explosion in 1917 changed everything, forging a deep alliance between our cities.
1/
November 10, 2025 at 3:46 PM
In 1912, the U.S. and Canada weren't allies—in fact, the Speaker of the U.S. House advocated for the violent overthrow of Canada to cheers in Congress.
But Boston's response to the devastating Halifax Explosion in 1917 changed everything, forging a deep alliance between our cities.
1/
But Boston's response to the devastating Halifax Explosion in 1917 changed everything, forging a deep alliance between our cities.
1/
Mystic Way makeover is getting close. Fence is down!!
November 10, 2025 at 3:49 PM
Mystic Way makeover is getting close. Fence is down!!
McGrath highway creates terrible environments but I do love biking on Gilman St under McGrath on a sunny fall morning. Your eyes adjust to the shade, but then adjusts when you emerge, making the red leaves even more brilliant.
November 10, 2025 at 3:46 PM
McGrath highway creates terrible environments but I do love biking on Gilman St under McGrath on a sunny fall morning. Your eyes adjust to the shade, but then adjusts when you emerge, making the red leaves even more brilliant.
Reposted by Joan Liu
Peter Coviello isn't on Bluesky, but this definitely should be: lithub.com/maybe-dont-t...
Maybe Don’t Talk to the New York Times About Zohran Mamdani
It’s remarkable, the people you’ll hear from. Teach for even a little while at an expensive institution—the term they tend to prefer is “elite”—and odds are that eventually someone who was a studen…
lithub.com
November 7, 2025 at 5:50 PM
Peter Coviello isn't on Bluesky, but this definitely should be: lithub.com/maybe-dont-t...
Reposted by Joan Liu
Editorial: Bike Lane Hating Politicians Keep On Losing -
As it turns out, a considerable number of informed voters understand that if we actually want less traffic, we need to design streets that favor more efficient modes of transportation.
#mapoli
mass.streetsblog.org/2025/11/05/e...
As it turns out, a considerable number of informed voters understand that if we actually want less traffic, we need to design streets that favor more efficient modes of transportation.
#mapoli
mass.streetsblog.org/2025/11/05/e...
Editorial: Bike Lane Haters Keep On Losing - Streetsblog Massachusetts
As it turns out, a considerable number of informed voters understand that if we actually want less traffic, we need to design streets that favor more efficient modes of transportation.
mass.streetsblog.org
November 5, 2025 at 1:07 PM
Editorial: Bike Lane Hating Politicians Keep On Losing -
As it turns out, a considerable number of informed voters understand that if we actually want less traffic, we need to design streets that favor more efficient modes of transportation.
#mapoli
mass.streetsblog.org/2025/11/05/e...
As it turns out, a considerable number of informed voters understand that if we actually want less traffic, we need to design streets that favor more efficient modes of transportation.
#mapoli
mass.streetsblog.org/2025/11/05/e...
Reposted by Joan Liu
If anyone is interested in the actual process behind how @johnhawkinson.bsky.social and other volunteers produce the "early results" for Cambridge City Council election #1s, I did a writeup of the process by which dozens of folks helped people get results last night.
www.reddit.com/r/CambridgeM...
www.reddit.com/r/CambridgeM...
From the CambridgeMA community on Reddit: how we got "early results" last night
Explore this post and more from the CambridgeMA community
www.reddit.com
November 5, 2025 at 6:45 PM
If anyone is interested in the actual process behind how @johnhawkinson.bsky.social and other volunteers produce the "early results" for Cambridge City Council election #1s, I did a writeup of the process by which dozens of folks helped people get results last night.
www.reddit.com/r/CambridgeM...
www.reddit.com/r/CambridgeM...
Whelp, thought it was just a Mississippi experience but this weekend an old lady from Cambridge, MA remarked that I spoke English without an accent and she could understand me.
November 4, 2025 at 1:46 PM
Whelp, thought it was just a Mississippi experience but this weekend an old lady from Cambridge, MA remarked that I spoke English without an accent and she could understand me.
Reposted by Joan Liu
Japan's "Mundane Halloween" costume contest is back!
Each year website DailyPortalZ holds a contest where people dress up as something super duper ordinary.
Here's a thread of some of my favorites from the 2025 contest!
#MundaneHalloween
Each year website DailyPortalZ holds a contest where people dress up as something super duper ordinary.
Here's a thread of some of my favorites from the 2025 contest!
#MundaneHalloween
November 2, 2025 at 9:15 AM
Japan's "Mundane Halloween" costume contest is back!
Each year website DailyPortalZ holds a contest where people dress up as something super duper ordinary.
Here's a thread of some of my favorites from the 2025 contest!
#MundaneHalloween
Each year website DailyPortalZ holds a contest where people dress up as something super duper ordinary.
Here's a thread of some of my favorites from the 2025 contest!
#MundaneHalloween
Reposted by Joan Liu
Reposted by Joan Liu
AAA really will come pick up your bike, they aren’t lying.
The driver, when we arrived at Belmont Wheelworks, asked if he could take a picture, saying “It’s my first bike!”
The driver, when we arrived at Belmont Wheelworks, asked if he could take a picture, saying “It’s my first bike!”
October 30, 2025 at 11:52 PM
AAA really will come pick up your bike, they aren’t lying.
The driver, when we arrived at Belmont Wheelworks, asked if he could take a picture, saying “It’s my first bike!”
The driver, when we arrived at Belmont Wheelworks, asked if he could take a picture, saying “It’s my first bike!”
Got a recall notification from the grocery store informing me I may have bought peaches that have been recalled due to potential listeria. Except the timeframe was over a month ago. Didn't think peaches lasted that long.
October 30, 2025 at 10:45 PM
Got a recall notification from the grocery store informing me I may have bought peaches that have been recalled due to potential listeria. Except the timeframe was over a month ago. Didn't think peaches lasted that long.
I felt irrationally proud/ecstatic that I chained together a workout, a grocery store stop, a liquor store, and a Brazilian meat market trip, by bike, on Monday, in less than two hours. Especially the lock my bike at the liquor store and run across the street to the market bit.
After having been car-dependent for nearly 20 years, I am absolutely loving living in a 15 minute city
I honestly have no idea why anyone* would be against being able to walk everywhere
*unless you were beholden to the petrochemical industry of course
I honestly have no idea why anyone* would be against being able to walk everywhere
*unless you were beholden to the petrochemical industry of course
October 29, 2025 at 5:39 PM
I felt irrationally proud/ecstatic that I chained together a workout, a grocery store stop, a liquor store, and a Brazilian meat market trip, by bike, on Monday, in less than two hours. Especially the lock my bike at the liquor store and run across the street to the market bit.