近距离内射合集

I鈥檓 a walker. I walk 3 to 6 miles every day, sometimes more.

At my age, walking is the best form of exercise possible. Running is too hard on the knees. Going to a gym is boring. Sometimes I ride my bike, but there are too few good streets near me that are safe for bicycles and don鈥檛 require a long uphill climb (a problem of living in a river valley). Sometimes I hike in the mountains.

Mostly I walk. I walk almost everywhere I go. I walk to the University of New Mexico鈥檚 Zimmerman Library as often as three times a week. I walk to a nearby grocery. I walk to Hyder Park. I walk twice a week to Central New Mexico Community College, where I鈥檓 taking a Spanish class. I walk to the Guild Theater to watch a movie or to restaurants along Central Avenue. I walk to a Catholic school where I鈥檝e volunteered.

I rarely drive and only use my car when it鈥檚 not possible to get where I鈥檓 going in a reasonable amount of time on foot. Many weeks, I drive only once 鈥� to do big shopping at a supermarket. Some weeks I don鈥檛 drive at all. A tank of gas will last me a few months. I wish Albuquerque was the sort of city where it was more feasible to live without a car.

But walking in Albuquerque in summer is challenging because it鈥檚 so hot and the sun is oppressive most of the day. I鈥檓 pale, so I burn easily and I鈥檝e had a few minor cases of skin cancer in the past, so I need to be careful about that. I know many people walk early in the morning to avoid the worst heat of the day. I sometimes do that, but my brain works best in the morning, so I feel I should be at my desk early, working.

Part of the reason it鈥檚 hard to walk in summer in Albuquerque is because there are so few trees along the streets and sidewalks. The sun is more of a problem for me than the heat 鈥� 100 degrees in the shade isn鈥檛 so bad 鈥� so if I could walk continually in the shade, or mostly, I could walk any time.

But that鈥檚 not possible in Albuquerque. On the streets near where I live, in a typical block, there is shade in front of two or three, or, at best, a half dozen houses. There are even fewer trees along commercial streets. Shade is always sporadic. Most of the time, you鈥檙e forced to walk in the sun from dawn till dusk.

Because of that, the streets are largely without pedestrians most of the day, except during that brief period just before sunset when temperatures are more tolerable and the sun is easier to avoid. Why not make that possible at other times?

Silver Avenue from Yale Boulevard west to Presbyterian Hospital, one of my regular walking routes, is lined with trees. I suspect the city has created that because there are sprinklers in all the curb strips that turn on automatically. The city, I think, has decided to make Silver Avenue a tree boulevard, as it is sometimes called. It鈥檚 a wonderful street because of the trees. I very rarely have to walk in the sun on Silver. Even at 2 p.m., it is possible to walk mostly in the shade.

Why not do that elsewhere? Why not everywhere?

There is no better or cheaper way to improve the quality of life in a city than to plant trees. And, no, it wouldn鈥檛 be an unwise use of water in a desert region. Native trees wouldn鈥檛 need to be watered artificially once established.

The benefits of such a street tree program would be many. Trees absorb carbon dioxide, so they slow climate change. They reduce the urban heat island effect that is bad for everyone, especially people living on the street. They slow runoff. They improve air quality and reduce energy use. They make the city more attractive. They increase property values. Who doesn鈥檛 prefer a home with trees out front? Planting more street trees would also increase social interaction because that would enable people to go outdoors more often.

Albuquerque has a tree planting program, Let鈥檚 Plant Albuquerque, but it is not focused on street trees.

It should be. The Albuquerque Bernalillo County Water Authority, which is part of that program, will pay residents one-fourth of the cost of planting a tree, but I have to wonder if a government agency should be paying residents to plant a tree in their backyards.

Why not refocus that program to encourage the planting of trees along our streets, which would have a greater benefit to the public?

The city could establish as a long-term goal 鈥� to be implemented over 10 or 20 years 鈥� to plant trees along both sides of every street in the city. Considering what we spend on other urban services, such as policing or paving, that would be a comparatively minor expense and a worthwhile use of taxpayer money.

Imagine what Albuquerque would be like if every street in every neighborhood was lined with trees and where the sidewalks were shaded continuously. That is a future worth pursuing.

Blake Gumprecht was a longtime geographer at the University of New Hampshire and other universities. He is the author of three books and is now working on a book about the Navajo Long Walk.