Bike sharing first came to Dallas at Fair Park in 2014 under the city's cunning plan to encourage more cycling by putting its first bike-share racks in a place few people go and allowing them to rent a bike and ride ... well, nowhere, basically, before heading back to the fixed racks. "Dallas Unveils World's Saddest Bike Sharing Program" was the headline on our story announcing the program. Garland-based company VBikes took a slightly different tactic — call it "the not stupid one" — this summer when it opened its bike-sharing system in Dallas. First, it put their bikes where people are — in Klyde Warren Park, for instance. Second, it uses an app-based system that lets users wave their phones over a bike's smart lock, ride it wherever they want and leave it there. Lastly, VBikes priced it right. While the city charged $5 for the first 30 minutes and $2.50 per hour after for the privilege of riding in circles around Fair Park, VBikes are $1 an hour with a limit of 10 hours per day. The bikes are GPS equipped, and the company's goal is to eventually have enough bikes in the city so you're never more than a half-mile from one, meaning you won't necessarily ride somewhere and get stranded because someone used your bike while you stopped off to shop or drink. Imagine that: a bike sharing system in Dallas that turns bikes into a usable mode of transportation. Wonder if the guys behind the company would be interested in managing other services in Dallas, like City Hall.

Imagine a grocery store that offers name brands at prices cheaper than Walmart while also being fair to its employees. This is not a dream, shoppers; this is an actual place you can visit 24 hours a day. It is Winco, where you can fill a cart to the brim with produce, bulk foods, fresh baked goods, meat, beer and anything else that's on a typical shopping list, and walk out with a receipt for less than $200 without using any kind of rewards card. (It doesn't have them.) The employee-owned, Idaho-based grocery chain has opened nine locations in North Texas since 2015. The most convenient one to Dallas is just across LBJ Freeway in Garland. The chain cuts costs by asking you to bag your own groceries (bags provided), and it doesn't accept credit cards, only debit. But unlike Aldi, there are lots of options, the quality of the merchandise is indistinguishable from more expensive stores, and Winco even carries some organic brands.