teckiblog

What do liberal artists do, anyway?

2009-03-05T15:13:00.002-05:00

As I sit out on the porch on the first truly warm day Chicago has had so far in 2009, I can't help but wonder why I'm sitting here instead of at a desk downtown.

As the president and everyone else has been telling us, 2009 is going to get worse before it gets better. I know there are worse things right now than waiting to see if your boss calls to tell you you should come in today -- after all, you could have no job at all -- but either way, sitting out on the porch, even on a nice day, means not getting paid.

There are a lot of people to blame for my predicament. All the geniuses on Wall Street who sliced and diced bad deals into ever-more-complicated and dangerous securities, all the people who bought bigger houses than they needed with mortgages they couldn't afford to pay, all the government watchdogs who were asleep on the watch while all of that was going on -- but also, let's face it. Me.

Me, the bright kid who thought an English degree would somehow open doors. "Oh, just get any degree," they said at the university. "All employers want to know is that you can be responsible and finish the work."

Turns out, they want more than that. In the end, a degree in English, history, philosophy, womens' studies, etc. is barely worth the paper it's printed on. And the worst of it is, they tell us that we're better than the people who went to trade school and community college, but it's the mechanics, plumbers and nurses who are making the money and contributing to society while the liberal artists are serving up coffee at Starbucks or secretly judging customers' book choices at Barnes and Noble.

Of course, now, everyone's out of a job, degree or not. So I can just get in the breadline with everyone else and blend in. But even when the economy eventually rebounds, there just won't be that much demand for English majors, and the nation's universities are churning out thousands more each semester.

Why they let 18-year-olds make these kinds of life-changing decisions is beyond me. Of course I made a bad choice with English. I was a moron, like any other teenager. I shouldn't have been allowed to make that choice, or at least I should have been given all the facts.

It isn't as if we don't need liberal arts majors, per se. We need to advance the culture, expand our understanding of the world, and add to the world of ideas -- but we don't need the tens of thousands of liberal arts majors who graduate each year. A few hundred, maybe a few thousand a year -- tops. There just isn't that much demand for essays about the psychosexual trauma inherent in Pat the Bunny, or how Battlestar Galactica is a metaphor for modern life.

Nobody needs your intricate knowledge of late twelfth century Romanian culture. There is nothing useful about your interpretations of Southern literature -- yes, even at parties. And no, you're not going to write the Great American Novel.

You'd might as well go get in line for a job building Joe Biden's High-Speed Rail Network. But don't be surpised if all the blue-collar workers you claim to love, yet secretly despise, don't get hired first.

Tecki to US Auto Industry: Drop Dead!

2008-11-12T21:33:00.002-05:00

Whoa, whoa whoa. Don't get the wrong idea. I want to help out the autoworkers. Notice, I did not say "Detroit," just the auto industry.

I'm all for the federal government spending billions of dollars on stuff. After all, I'm a democrat. But throwing good money at three companies that have spent the last decade building cars and trucks no one wants? Eh.

Only the executives at GM, Ford and Chrysler couldn't see this coming. (Gas prices are low again! It's a golden age for SUVs!)

No. I have a better idea. Let the automakers go bankrupt. If they can get out of it on their own, great. They'll be all the stronger for it. That's how capitalism works. Otherwise, we have Toyota, Honda and BMW already building cars right here in the USA.

Use that $25 billion to put the laid off autoworkers back to work rebuilding Detroit. God knows that city needs it. Put them to work digging tunnels for a high-speed subway system, rebuilding city schools, repaving the streets and highways, creating new parks, building wind farms and solar power plants. Spend that money to tear down, renovate or replace all the rundown, abandoned buildings that scar much of Detroit. Hire thousands of the unemployed autoworkers to be new police officers, firefighters, teachers, nurses and EMTs.

As for all those soon-to-be empty factories: Have a firesale and let the foreign automakers -- you know, the ones who are actually making money -- buy them up dirt cheap on the condition that they reopen and put some American autoworkers back on the line. They won't need as many workers as before, of course, but those folks will already be taken care of.

That's how you spread the wealth.

Thanks for ruining autumn, Sarah Palin

2008-09-04T20:46:00.003-04:00

So, am I really the only one who wasn't impressed by Sarah Palin last night? I know the VP candidate's traditional role is to attack the opposition, but she -- and the other speakers -- stirred up a fine steaming bowl of anger and hate.

I know I'm biased, but the message from the democratic convention was that we can work together to make this a better country, that all of us matter, that party isn't as important as country.

The message from the republicans was: RAAAAARRRHHHH!!!!!

And what was all that shit about how community organizers don't do anything? That's the problem with Republicans. They tell you government can't do anything, but when you try to help yourself, they call you a loser.

If being the governor of a state with 670,000 people for almost two years makes her qualified to be president (because, seriously, John McCain is not long for this world), then might I suggest a better running mate for McCain?

Pat McCrory has been mayor of Charlotte for the past 13 years. Charlotte has about as many people as the entire state of Alaska, so if Sarah Palin is qualified to be president, Pat McCrory could be emperor. He's a Republican with quite a bit of support from Democrats, and North Carolina is going to be close this year ...think about it, John. Please, for the love of god. There's still time.

But seriously, I'm signing up to get out the vote in a nearby swing state. According to the Obama Web site, I need to go to Michigan. Gee, I can cross another state off my list of places to visit, and save the world at the same time!

It won't be long before it starts snowing and we're stuck inside until May. All I wanted to do this fall is walk my dog, play bean bag toss, watch the Red Sox barely scrape into the Playoffs and drink some dark, dark beer.

I hate living in interesting times.

More bike-riding assholes in Chicago

2008-09-02T21:48:00.002-04:00

I was crossing Lincoln at Paulina and Roscoe this afternoon when the woman walking in front of me was almost run over by a bike rider who decided to run the red light. If she had started walking one second sooner, he would have hit her.

I guess that whole sting operation when the cops were "clamping down" on bikers who don't follw the rules didn't pan out.

What the hell is a bank for, then?

2008-09-02T21:30:00.002-04:00

Remember when you were a kid and you'd count up all those coins and place them carefully into those little paper rolls? Then you'd take them to the bank, and the smiling teller would take them and hand you real dollar bills?

Remember that?

I do, which is why I cleaned out our two coin mugs, the bowl by the front door and the car, counted out all those stinky coins, rolled them up and lugged the heavy sticks of money in my already heavy bag down to the Loop this morning. I figured it would be easier to just go during lunch than try to run down to the one in our neighborhood after work. Sure the line would be long at lunchtime, but it would be a piece of cake.

But it turns out that Bank of America, or at least the branches in the Loop, don't take coin rolls anymore. The teller looked at the rolls as if I had handed her an astrolabe or a scroll of parchment. After consulting with a guy who looked only slightly older than her, she explained, "We don't have the machine."

What machine? There wasn't a machine when I was 10 years old! This used to be a LaSalle branch, and apparently, Bank of America "took" their machine away. Will there be another machine? Who knows. But there isn't a branch in the entire Loop that can take a roll of coins and turn it into cash. Her solution: "You could take them to a TCF bank."

Yeah, but, uh ... I don't have an account with TCF! I have an account with BofA, the biggest bank in the world, as far as the Charlotte Chamber of Commerce is concerned, and you're telling me I can't get money in exchange for ... money!?

Honestly, most of our money is with a certain Internet bank. the only reason we even have this piddling account with a bricks-and-mortar bank is for exactly this kind of service. I can't just hand my laptop a handfull of coins and expect a 20 dollar bill in return. Apparently, I can't get that from a Bank of America teller either.

Happy Labor Day

2008-09-01T22:12:00.002-04:00

In the South, Labor Day, like most holidays, is a day for professionals, bankers and government workers to cook out and go to the beach. Other people have to work, as is their lot in life.

But apparently not here in the unionized North. All the dry cleaners are closed (Ok, so we should have taken that stuff in last week, but K has places to be!), and most of the restaurants -- at least in our neighborhood.

I tried to take Kayla to the beach to revel in the sand and sunshine, but the traffic was so terrible that we had to turn back. I caught a glimpse of the lake off in the distance, just over the snaking lines of cars stuck in the road looking for a parking space.

People who drive Jeep Wranglers tend to be assholes, or so I've noticed. Maybe you too? Chicago's Finest had blocked off the main entrance to Montrose Beach and we're directing traffic onto Lakeshore toward another entrance. The Wrangler driver in front of me tried to argue with the cops, wasting a lot of time for the rest of us to get stuck in another line. The thing is, this the the Chicago PD. Wearing full uniforms and, for some reason, bulletproof vests (is the beach that dangerous?) in 90 degree weather. If they tell you to turn left, you turn left.

Kayla and I got stuck trying to find a space. Cars crawled along in all directions except out. People and bikers weaved their way between the cars. And there was no parking in sight. A few hearty folks apparently had parked somewhere far outside the park, becuase plenty of people walked in with all of their beach stuff from the other side of Lakeshore. It was kind of like going to Myrtle Beach on Memorial Day weekend, except not as well organized.

We turned around.

Where did all these people come from? Apparently, all the restaurants we tried to eat at this evening. I guess everyone takes the day off and goes straight to the beaches. We ended up eating what were supposed to veggie burgers, but what were really veggie sloppy joes at Orange. I think their brunch is ok, but there's a reason why they're never busy for dinner. If only they had called it a day too. Next year, pizza on the porch.

Ups and downs on the CTA, and the broader implications

2008-07-22T21:23:00.004-04:00

Well, technically I left work 30 minutes early on Monday, but the commuting time was still almost exactly like on Friday, so there's at least a possibility that things have actually improved.

But then I got on the platform at Quincy today and saw a huge crowd on my side of the tracks. Never a good sign. A purple line train crawled in as I was making my way through the crowd to the end of the platform, and a lot of anxious brown line riders kept standing on their toes to see what was coming next.

Oddly enough, the brown line train arrived at more or less the same time it usually does, so I wasn't sure if the crowd was due to a delay or if there was a ballgame. Turns out, it was the delay.

We barely made it away from Quincy before we stopped again, watching the train in front of us stuck in the station ahead. Then again. And again. And again, until we finally made our way, slowly, haltingly around the Loop. Every few minutes our driver would announce his apologies, saying there was a problem at Tower 18 -- there is always a problem at Tower 18, the infamous junction at Lake and Wells that caused this commuter to be late for work more than a few time during the winter.

When we got to Clark & Lake, I could see the dozens of CTA workers directing traffic at the intersection and, for all I know, physically moving the switches themselves. As we grinded around the corner toward Merchandise Mart, I couldn't help but wonder if the transit workers in Beijing or Madrid have to get out and move switches by hand and direct train traffic themselves.

I felt the same way I do when I see crumbling concrete on the freeway, or a burst pipe flooding a major street. Not just here in Chicago, but in a lot of cities lately. As everything we built in the last 100 years or so falls quietly apart, is anyone else asking when we're going to start fixing it?

Bizarro CTA world where the trains run on time?

2008-07-19T17:23:00.002-04:00

Consider this. A man leaves his job on a Friday afternoon at the same time he usually does, right down to the minute. He doesn't run to the train or walk any faster than he normally would. The train arrives at the station at its usual time, and he gets on.

By the time he gets home, he has a sudden realization. His trip, somehow, some way, took 10 minutes less than usual.

Not five or six. 10.

Could it be a mysterious reverse bermuda triangle has developed in the Loop, in which trains are not lost, but somehow sped through the bottlenecks? Was it just dumb luck? Or could it be, that after nearly a year of track work, construction and delays, the CTA has finally, bit by bit, begun to actually show some results?

We'll see Monday whether this is a permanent change or just a one-time mystery.

Best place to buy bean bag game (or, ahem, "cornhole") in Chicago?

2008-06-27T19:54:00.002-04:00

Where do you chicagoans get all these wonderful toys?

K and I were smitten last summer when we saw all the folks out on their sidewalks playing this bean bag game with the unfortunate moniker. People in Charlotte don't do much except go to the mall, Baltimoreans are too mean to want to have fun -- the only place we've lived that had its own local sport was Asheville, but hackeysack was never really my thing.

But cornhole! What fun! (not that kind of fun, you east coasters).

Everyone in Chicago seems to have a set or a friend that does, but where the hell do you buy one -- or, more precisely, one that won't set you back $2,000 pesos. (Using pesos to price things makes things seem cheaper when you convert back to dollars, another nifty trick to survive the coming depression!)

If, and this is a big if, there are any people in Chicago who actually read this stupid blog of mine, do you have any suggestions?

Dunkin Donuts is a bunch of wussies

2008-05-29T20:02:00.003-04:00

What the hell is this nonsense about Dunkin Donuts caving in to Michelle Malkin and her band of pitchfork-wielding right-wingers? Not that I love Rachel Ray and her hyperactive TV personality, but who in their right minds would actually believe:

1: That Rachel Ray supports terrorism
2: That a scarf is anything more than a fashion statement
3: That anyone takes Michelle Malkin seriously

Actually, that last one turned out to be true. What goes on in her warped little mind that makes her see a frickin' Dunks commercial and automatically think "Palestinian Sympathizer!" No one thinks like that. No one. And the fact she managed to get away with publicly accusing an innocent person of supporting terrorism and caused a major company to run away with their tails between their legs is just frightening.

What is Dunkin Donuts's response to all of this?

Thank you for sharing your comments. We always appreciate hearing from our customers. As of this past weekend, we are no longer using the online ad featuring Rachael Ray wearing a black-and-white silk scarf with a paisley design. Our decision was based solely on the fact that the possibility of misperception detracted from the intent of the ad, which was to promote iced coffee -- nothing more, nothing less.At Dunkin' Donuts, we value all our customers and are committed to making your experiences with us memorable and pleasant. Thank you, again, for making us aware of your concerns.

That says it right there: "a black-and-white silk scarf with a paisley design."

It's just a scarf. Just a scarf. Just. A. Scarf. Dunkin Donuts did nothing wrong. Rachel Ray did nothing wrong. Her stylist did nothing wrong. There was nothing wrong with the ad whatsoever. There was nothing to misperceive.

If Michelle Malkin and her ilk have such a fit over a scarf, we'd better make sure that nobody tells them that the Arabs invented coffee. The CEO of Dunkin will probably sacrifice his first born son to appease these jackasses.

Dunkin Donuts was afraid of a boycott for running the ad? We should boycott them for taking it down.

No Train

2008-03-31T21:46:00.002-04:00

Today is the first workday without Paulina. The CTA has closed down our train station for a year to do rennovations that should have been done years ago. But, better late than never.

To put a metaphoric spin on things, it rained all day as we each walked farther to get to Addison. The CTA had plenty of workers out on the corners around Paulina to remind us all that the station was closed, in case the signs on the trains, the flyers they've been handing out all month and the big green fence with "Closed" signs all over it weren't enough. They even had the customer service reps from Addison out on the street -- or at least, that must be why nobody was at Addison to help K out when her U-Pass stopped working.

Unfortunately, no one told the Red Eye guy, so no celebrity gossip and quick local news bites while we all waited for the trains at Addison ... and waited to get through the new southbound bottleneck at Belmont and Fullerton.

The Addison station gives a glimpse into the clean, well-lit and spacious station we can look forward to in a year. And now we can watch as they slowly tear down and rebuild Paulina -- since we get to pass by it each day.

Mine eyes have seen the grime

2008-03-08T22:25:00.002-05:00

last month I finally got contacts. This may seem rather vain and materialistic for me, but there is a greater purpose. We've read a lot about how people who want Lasik surgery should try out contacts first to see if you get dry eyes or other discomfort. You can always take out a contact, but surgery is forever.

This whole experiment almost ended as soon as it began. I crammed my left contact up under my eyelid somehow on the first day, then suffered through four days of headaches and blurry focus at work from all the reading I have to do there, finally taking out the contacts in the men's room at work on Friday. I went back to the eye doctor, and she gave me a different brand of contact, and suddenly, everything came together. I'm starting to wonder if maybe she made a mistake and just didn't want to say anything.

Unlike the last pair, it almost feels like I'm not wearing contacts. So now I can go about my day without many of the inconveniences of los lentes, but also without the blissful ignorance. For instance, do you know just how gross the shower stalls are in the men's locker room at the Lake View YMCA? Maybe you already knew, since you don't wear glasses, but I only just found out. At least we each get our own stall ...

But the good seems to outweigh the bad, so far. There's nothing to fog up when I pull my scarf over my nose in the cold, and rain and snow don't blind me when I walk to the train. I want to go to Six Flags now so I can ride a roller coaster without putting a death grip on my glasses.

Time Flies.

2008-03-08T22:15:00.002-05:00

Remember when I used to update this blog pretty much every day? Yeah, that was back when I had a job where I mostly sat around at a computer all day waiting for something to happen. Those were the days. I had another job like that in January, but it only lasted a week. They figured out that it was cheaper to not pay me than to pay me to sit there surfing the web, waiting for them to give me something to do. At least I was all over that Heath Ledger thing when the news broke.

Anyway, back to work again, this time with no time for web surfing. I don't know how I'm going to keep up with this blog, let alone the news, online shopping or music downloads. But, working beats not having money, and being the only income-earner for the first time ever makes that more important now.

It's some what sobering to think of yourself as the breadwinner. Everything depends on you, and suddenly you don't mind so much when the boss comes up to your cubicle and, in that "I'm really trying to be nice, but seriously, you'd better" kind of way, asks if you can work late again tonight.

But, I like money. I only wish I'd realized this back in college. Maybe then I wouldn't have wasted my time wandering around the UNC Charlotte English department and taking tons of useless electives. I mean, History of Jazz was good fun, and I did got to Chapel Hill for the first time (before that mega mall in Durham killed Henderson St.), but has my knowledge of the roots of modern jazz helped me pay the bills, let alone buy an iPhone?

Shit, this post is already longer than all those "how to blog" articles tell you. And I haven't kept the subject simple and concise. What keywords brought you to this post? Charlotte? Money? Work? Phaw. I guess I'll never make a living at this.

Fine Chicago Traditions

2008-02-05T21:47:00.001-05:00

We woke up early today, by which I mean we actually got up when the alarm went off instead of hitting snooze for an hour. What's the big deal?

Super Fat Tuesday! Mardi Gras Superr!

We slogged through the ice and oceans of cold water on the Chicago streets to reach our polling place in the library, where we were promptly ignored until K tried to approach what turned out to be the wrong part of the table. After getting yelled at by a guy who had nothing better to do on a workday than put on a sweater and sit behind a folding table, we registered ourselves.

In the world's most powerful democracy, we uncapped our markers and filled in the little arrows for our candidates. We then inserted our paper ballots into the paper shredder manned by a bored teenager trying to beef up his college applications with "volunteer experience."

Hours later, I sat in the Law School atrium watching election returns on a big screen, eating King Cake and drinking Corona while listening to Kanye West on my iPod and reading in the Atlantic about how the current administration has left one huge mess for whoever survives tonight and makes it alive into November.

Now we're home, sobering up and full of sugar, watching CNN en Espanol pontificate on the elections and listening to a very confused Latina trying to translate Mike Huckabee's folksy sayings into Spanish.

Truly a wonderful day, well worth waking up on time for.

PolarTecki

2008-01-19T14:41:00.000-05:00

I know most of the posts lately, when I bother to post at all, have been about the weather in Chicago. Well, it's frickin cold here. What can I say? Depending on which Web site you trust, it is somewhere between 3 and 4 degrees here. The last time it was this cold in North Carolina was when mastodons roamed the Piedmont.

So what do you do when it's this cold during the day? You train the dog to use the toilet and lock yourself inside. If your dog refuses to cooperate, you bundle up and take her outside long enough to do her business, pick up the frostbitten fingers that broke off while you scooped up her you-know-what and get back inside.

We need to rethink our winter gear. We've already ordered some giant tube things that are supposed to keep our heads and necks warm, and I'm looking into some new gloves that might actually keep out the wind and cold, at least a little. Flannel-lined jeans sound like a good idea, but they look so goofy, I'm just not sure. Another day like this might soften my resolve.

Curb your Enthusiasm

2008-01-06T22:36:00.000-05:00

Why is it that a small city like Concord, NC has a simple, easy-to-use recycling program accessible to just about every resident, but a big, sophisticated city like Chicago still expects me to toss my recycling in with the trash and hope God sorts it all out?

Spending a week in Corncob didn't just inspire me to muse about sidewalks. I also took out the recycling, in a pair of plastic tubs -- one blue, the other green. Compare that to my frustrating trips to the recycling center: the 7 Eleven which has graciously allowed the local recycling coalition to park three big rusting containers in their parking lot.

Since moving here, we have tried to continue to do the right thing, separating our trash from our plastic, glass, metal and paper. And we have crammed these things into the big containers, which are nearly always overflowing, even though we now also must separate our different types of paper into different containers.

Daley constantly touts Chicago's green credentials. We've got a green roof on top of City Hall, don't you know. Of course, you aren't allowed to go up there. But there are other green roofs in the city, too. And we just hosted a big green building conference.

All fine and good, but the mayor of Concord never claims to have a green city or even care that much about the environment, and they still have a better recycling program. If you don't live in one of the handful of wards with blue can recycling, you can either toss your recycling into blue bags that might, maybe, possibly be sorted out from the trash at a city facility -- or drive your newspapers, bottles and cans to the 7 Eleven where there's never enough room for it all.

Chicago produces plenty more garbage than Concord and ought to be better prepared to handle it all. No one here should be allowed to call Southerners hicks as long as places like Concord are more progressive on recycling.

Look Homeward, Angel

2007-12-28T22:02:00.000-05:00

Having spent only about a week back home in Metrolina, we've already driven more than we do in a month in Chicago -- and that's not counting the time spent driving down from the Windy City (13:42, btw. A new best record!)

These are the things that upset me about returning to the ancestral homeland. I have spent more time sitting in a car seat this week than I care to remember. Something that didn't used to be a big deal. But walking around Chicago and hitting the much-maligned CTA each day has changed the way I live to the point that the way I used to live seems almost foreign.

Which is why I was glad to ride the Lynx this week after coming home. The new light rail in Charlotte beats the CTA on cleanliness, quiteness, speed and, well, everything except for being everywhere. But give it time.

While I wait for the next 15-20 years for Charlotte to finish the light-rail system, I can dodge cars while walking the dog in Concord where sidewalks are apparently considered a socialist plot. In our neighborhood in Chicago, you only have to worry about being plowed down by bike riders, not rusty minivans and sparkling new pickup trucks.

I can walk to or from the train for work each day, walk the dog at close to midnight or walk to the store in the middle of the day and be just one of many pedestrians in Chicago. In Concord, I am Legend. Just me and my dog outside while the zombies stay inside watching TV or gaming online.

The urban life is possible here, of course. Just wandering around the city, you can see the new life in Uptown Charlotte and everything popping up around the light rail. There's even a new vegetarian cafe in downtown Concord. Unfortunately, for every townhome built, there's a dozen cookie cutter houses, for every urban village there's 20 strip malls. Things can change. It just takes time.

After the storm

2007-12-05T23:54:00.001-05:00

For those of you back home in NC, or those other places where it just doesn't snow that much, a little taste of our New Chicago Life.

It's on now

2007-11-30T22:23:00.001-05:00

http://www.weather.com/weather/newscenter/alerts/USIL0225?alertId=145464&from=36hr_winterWarn_dailytraveler

Cold. So Cold.

2007-11-29T21:20:00.000-05:00

Coming back to Chicago around midnight after driving all day from Charlotte, we found the apartment freezing cold. Visions of Laura Ingalls struggling through the Long Winter flashed before our eyes as we huddled in bed.

And it's only gotten colder since then.

Today was the first 20 degreeish windy Chicago day. The big day is arriving: Time to get out the new coats we bought from LL Bean. I'll let you know if they really work as well as the Bean says they do.

You'll love this weather when it's -20 in February

2007-11-07T21:45:00.000-05:00

Winter is here. Or, what would pass for the dead of winter in NC. Although I hear they have it quite chilly down there this week too. Unfortunately, this is merely the beginning for us.

K has finally convinced me to turn on the heat. I don't see why we can't go a few more days without. I think I look quite dashing sitting on the couch in a scarf and coat.

Now that it's cold enough to take 15 minutes of preparation just to get the mail from the porch, I've decided to take on a massive painting project in the apartment that requires the windows to be open all day on the weekend while K studies in her office with the door closed and a space heater running while sitting at her desk under a blanket with a heating pad.

I'm not sure what the problem is.

Charlotte stays on track

2007-11-07T21:38:00.000-05:00

Yesterday Mecklenburg County voters decided to take the long view and chose, in overwhelming fashion, to keep the transit tax.

Despite the efforts of an angry and vocal minority to undermine the progress Charlotte has made in the last 10-15 years toward correcting the mistakes of the past, enough people could see through what was really just a selfish campaign fueled more by anger at the Bobcats than by any sensible vision for Charlotte's future.

Charlotte is a banking city and knows a good investment when it sees one. The Light-Rail system, LYNX, and the CATS bus system are poised to play vital roles in the future of Charlotte. I'm glad that, even though I couldn't vote this year, enough people care about Charlotte's future to see this project through.

In your face, libertarians.

Shopping cart derby

2007-10-29T21:57:00.000-04:00

With the CTA, as bedraggled as it is, I don't have to do much driving anymore. Most of my drive time is spent going to the supermarket, Target or some similar location.

Places where Chicagoans love to leave shopping carts sitting around.

Unlike anywhere else I've lived, including rude little Baltimore, Chicago just doesn't seem to feel like walking the few feet to the cart corral, instead leaving carts clustered in parking spaces -- threatening the Prius with their sharp corners and rusty handles.

Just look at them.

Like Sun Drop in Concord and Row Houses in Baltimore, is the shopping cart cluster some kind of folk culture in Chicago? Have I stumbled upon some strange tradition I've yet to decipher?

Or are Chicagoans just laszy jerks when they go to the store?

Just a few more to catch up

2007-10-29T21:52:00.000-04:00

The Red Sox Win! The Red Sox Win!

Coming off of a rather frustrating weekend of paint-related customer service nightmares, this win really helped to lift my mood. The inevitablity of the win was, although strange, not such a bad fit.

Sure, a Game 6 or 7 nailbiter would have been more exciting, but this team has the best record in baseball, has worked hard over more than 160 games and, quite frankly, has a lot of catching up to do.

I just hope the Sox don't repeat the pattern of the last century: Winning 5 out of the first 15 World Series in the 20th century, them going 86 years without. But, even so, that means there are at least 3 more left this century.

Why did I log on?

2007-10-24T23:44:00.000-04:00

You ever log on to Blogger with some great idea for a post, then forget what it was?

The good thing is this lack of a purpose doesn't necessarily have to ruin the general quality and flow of my blog. I could just keep typing and see what words come out, not having to worry about disappointing anyone.

It sure is getting cold up here. Yep. Like, really cold.

The Red Sox sure are beating up on the Rockies, huh?

I like peanut butter.

I love that dirty water

2007-10-22T21:12:00.000-04:00

Watching game 7 last night was nerve-wracking.

You see, Boston has a way of screwing these things up in a big way, 2004 notwithstanding.

So I was nervous, even when the Red Sox were in double digits and Cleveland was still at 2.

But you have to believe.

The two best teams in baseball fought it out all the way to 7 games. But I was sick of Fox playing "Cleveland Rocks" every 10 minutes from games 2-4.

Another great comeback story. And now on to the WS.

It's probably time to start campaigning

2007-10-17T20:38:00.001-04:00

With November just around the corner, it's time to get serious about the presidential election. can you believe, it's almost a whole year until the election? That there are still more than 365 days left before this finally ends?

God.

Well, as the second year of campaigning begins, it's probably time to start paying attention. Besides, I think the Democratic debate scheduled for our apartment is coming up soon. Need to find some vegan junk Kucinich can eat and make room for all the Secret Service and staffers. I just hope Kayla doesn't get excited. We don't need an incident ...

Note to Bill Richardson: Puedes contestar nuestras preguntas en espanol si quieres. De verdad, queremos que lo hagas.

Note to Dodd: If you have extra tickets to Fenway for the World Series, you have my vote!

I checked the calendar. There really is just one.

2007-10-08T22:00:00.001-04:00

Who knew October was about more than pumpkin beer and free candy?

I only just started paying attention to baseball a year ago, and I can't understand why it took me so long to start watching. Seeing the Cubs collapse after such a promising season was kind of sad, but we're committed Red Sox fans, so their sweep of the Angels more than made up for it.

Maybe I could have been watching when the Red Sox won the World Series in 2004, instead of just watching the DVD three years later.

I guess I'll just have to settle for watching them win this year.

Oxford American Music Issue 2007

2007-10-08T21:49:00.000-04:00

After several weekends of wandering around Chicago bookstores looking for it, I finally decided to to make use of the telephone and call the Border's on Michigan Avenue. It took the girl a while to get back to me after saying she'd go look for it, which made me a bit nervous, but my annual hunt has proven successful!

26 smokin tunes covering the broad and complex spectrum of Southern music. I'm no expert, i don't spend hours digging through the LPs and CDs at the grungiest, most ironic music store I can find (You know who you are), but these yearly albums consistently yield a fantastic, eclectic mix of great music spanning decades, races and genres and geography.

If you like good music, buy it.

Uh ... how does this affect our Super Bowl chances?

2007-10-08T21:37:00.001-04:00

Oh Jake.

The Panthers did manage to beat New Orleans without him on Sunday, but you'd think it might have been a little easier to beat a team that hasn't actually won yet this season.

I knew this was going to be a rough season, but ... man.

I suppose it's possible that this could shake things up and give some unknown the chance to come out of the shadows and rock the rest of the season.

Yeah. That's it!

At least I have the Red Sox to fall back on. I'm not sur eif I should root for the Yankees to win this game to keep the series going for as long as possible to wear the winner out, or just hope for a quick end.

Watching sports is hard.

iPods and Rotten Apples

2007-10-07T16:17:00.000-04:00

I love my iPod. Really, it's pretty much the coolest thing I've ever owned, it's convenient and works seamlessly.

It should, since it's practically brand new.

Technically we got the iPod as a gift more than a year ago, but after several problems with the original suddenly refusing to work for weeks at a time, we finally gave up and drove down to Charlotte from Concord in July to replace it. We figured the long trip would be worth it, since we were getting ready to move up here to Chicago and wouldn't have time to have a replacement delivered.

After waiting 45 minutes just for an appointment with one of their black-shirted "Geniuses," we had the opportunity to have this certified Apple expert click the on-off button and hold down the menu and select buttons like it says on the Web site, then tell us it doesn't work and we'd need a replacement.

Uh, yeah.

He then told us it would cost $29 to replace our iPod, even though it was still under the original 1-year warranty. (Fortunately, we had just bought the extended warranty, but I still don't understand how Apple can charge me $30 to replace their defective product. Even if it's for shipping and handling, isn't it their job to suck up the costs in the name of customer service?)

But I digress. So I tell Mr. Genius with the backward baseball cap, "But hey I have the extended warranty." "Oh, no problem, we can get you a replacement right now." Great, right?

Well, even though I ordered the warranty online, and this is a cutting-edge technology company, he tells me I can't activate the warranty until the warranty package comes in the mail. So he can't help us. Seriously.

I definitely don't need a genius to tell me what every other customer service rep has ever told me "Uh, sorry, I can't help you."

We should have argued our case, but hungry and frustrated we returned home, where I proceeded to get lost in Apple's confusing customer service Web site before finally getting tangled in their Phone Tree. Once I reached a live human being, he told me he could activate my new warranty over the phone without the package and send us a box so we could replace the iPod. All I needed to do was open the e-mail with my order confirmation and read him a number. Something the Genius at the store could have done, since the store is, big shock, filled with computers.

I explain to the phone guy that we are moving in 2 weeks, and he says no problem, becuase the new iPod will arrive in 10 days -- plenty of time. Even despite some issues with DHL, we managed to send the old iPod back to Apple in time.

But then they decide to tell me that, since the iPod was engraved, it will actually take 2 more weeks to send the replacement ipod, since all the engraving is done in China. (Something the guy on the phone knew when he told me it would take just 10 days). Apparently even though there are plenty of places to get a cigar case engraved for Father's Day, only China has ipod engraving technology.

So after several angry phone calls to change the delivery address to Chicago, and missed delivery dates, we finally get our replacement iPod. And like I said, it's great.

But despite several phone calls to complain about my treatment, I have received nothing more than empty apologies and no results.

I am absolutely apalled at the way we were treated by Apple throughout the process, from the unhelpful store clerk with an attitude to the uninformed phone help to the fact that Apple actually expected us to shell out $30 to replace their broken product. And judging by the way Steve Jobs and his minions have treated iPhone customers lately, I can only deduce that this terrible attitude comes directly from the top.

The only way Apple gets away with their awful customer service is because they know people will always want the next cool thing. Apple isn't the revolutionary start-up it was when it broadcast that "1984" ad during the Super Bowl. It's just another monolithic, indifferent corporation like any other. That shift is bound to come back to bite them in the end.

Your T-Shirt is so Ironic!

2007-10-07T15:59:00.001-04:00

Southwest Airline's wardrobe police have been busy lately, having already told two women to cover up their apparently skimpy outfits before boarding a plane. A couple of sad moments for an airline that started with stewardesses in miniskirts and gogo boots.

Now a guy has been acosted, thist time not for showing too much skin but for the words on his T-Shirt.

I have to admit, my collection of ironic printed Ts is pretty extensive, but I've made the effort to keep the words and images I walk around in at the G-Rated level. I've seen plenty of guys walking around with words and pictures printed on their chests that would make a sailor blush. And if I had kids, I wouldn't want them to see these words everywhere they go.

What really bothers me about the Master Baiter T-Shirt is not simply the vulgar inuendo, but the fact that the guys who buy them think 1) I'm so clever and/or 2) I'm expressing myself.

First, unless you actually printed the shirt yourself, you aren't clever. And it's not even that funny anyway. And what are you expressing, anyway? Your middle school sense of humor?

I don't know if it's really Southwest's job to police our clothing, but I'm glad someone has brought attention to the fact that some of these shirts are just plain wrong. Just because we can print just about any vulgar, crude thing on our clothing, doesn't mean we should. it takes all the fun out of the better shirts.

Charlotte Transit, the view from Chicago

2007-10-04T22:16:00.000-04:00

Some of the comments I've seen swirling around the transit tax issue in Charlotte seem based on the theory that pro-transit people are either trying to take away people's cars or bulldoze their front yards. The same rumors and acusations were common in 1998 when we decided to create the tax.

This conspiracy theory sets up an unnecessary conflict between urban and suburban cultures, and threatens to do serious damage to my home city.

No one wants your car, and I don't really care how big your yard is. Public transit isn't about taking your car away or forcing you to live in a highrise. It's about giving all people a real choice of how they want to live and how they want to get around.

We've lived in Chicago for two months now, and we have driven less than 300 miles since moving in, thanks to the CTA. Notice that I said driven. We still have our car, and yes we do use it. But because we have an extensive transit system here, we can decide: Do we use transit or not, do we own two cars or one, or none at all?

Unfortunately, living in Charlotte and Asheville, there was no choice: Two cars for two people. We managed to get by with one car in Baltimore by living two blocks from where K worked, but it was incredibly inconvenient whenever the normal routine was altered.

Building Light Rail in Charlotte isn't about taking away your car, it's about letting the rest of us get rid of one, or both, of our own. It's about using your car and transit together for different trips. Take the train to work, drive to the supermarket. Take the train to the Panthers game, but drive out to SouthPark.

We have that kind of freedom here, why can't Charlotte have it too?

Speaking of the Chicago transit funding debacle

2007-09-24T22:03:00.000-04:00

I remember reading last year about how there are only two transit systems in the world that actually operate in the black. Unfortunately, I can't figure out where that article is now, so I'm not sure which cities they are. I believe they are Tokyo and Hong Kong.

Fortunately, the identity of the cities is not important. The way they pay for their public transit is. Two words: real estate.

The model works thusly: The transit system owns plenty of the land within walking distance of its train stations, develops said land into apartments, condos, offices and retail, then pumps most of the profits back into the transit system. It's a self-perpetuating cycle. The transit attracts the development, the development then attracts more riders to the transit.

Chicago would do well to copy this strategy wherever possible. Obviously the CTA doesn't own much land near its stations, but some properties must be ripe for the building. The empty lot next to where the CTA is going to build the new Paulina station would be an excellent place for a new restaurant with offices above it. If they soundproof the building well enough they could even build apartments.

And the CTA isn't the only agency that could take advantage of this. I walk by METRA's Ogilvie Transportation Center every day on the way to work. It takes up a few city blocks in the West Loop, which is supposedly growing. How hard would it be to build a new office tower on top of the train station? Perhaps even condos and/or a hotel above the offices, with a great view of the skyline and the Chicago river.

Dunkin Donuts stands in the subway just aren't going to cut it. Even Chicago can eat only so many Boston Creams.

This is a city that reversed the course of a river just because it could. Plus, Chicago is known for its innovative architecture, and this would be an excellent challenge to some of the city's best firms.

And it would keep my 30 day passes from jumping to $84 a month.

Where's the Bumblebee Man and the Dancing Girls?

2007-09-20T22:45:00.001-04:00

Speaking of cable, why is it that CNN en Espanol is so much better than CNN en ingles?

There was a time, and yes I'm old enough to remember, when CNN was the channel you watched for real news. Having lived without cable for about half a decade, I was surprised by just how ridiculous and angry it's become. The pundits shout and hawk their books, the news is all Paris Hilton and car crashes, and the morning anchor's legs get more air time than the actual news.

At the same time, CNN en Espanol is serious, produces in-depth stories, covers news from around the world and touches on important issues. Nothing like the news on Univision, with Walter Mercado's drag act, the dancing girls on the sports shows -- that's Spanish news. Right?

The folks in Atlanta need to learn some Spanish and start watching their canale hermana for some tips on how to do a news broadcast.

A la Carte Cable

2007-09-20T22:23:00.000-04:00

Over the summer we had the chance to watch a lot of cable in the basement in Cornbob, and when looking into what kind of internet to get in Chicago, we happened upon a billboard touting a deal on cable.

And so for the last month or so we've been alternatelty surfing the web and wondering why we're paying for 90 channels we don't really watch.

So what the hell ever happened to this whole cable a la carte program the FCC was all giddy about last year or so? The only thing that any agency run by the Bush administration has done that I actually agree with is meeting the same success as the war.

Right now we're paying for about 90 channels, but only watch 10 at most. But there are other channels out there I'd like to have, but don't. So why can't I just pay for the channels I want to watch?

Those other 80 channels are just a bunch of freeloaders, hoping that my love of those 10 channels will be enough to subsidize their terrible programming. If I could pay just for the channels I want, I might actually watch more TV. In fact, there might even be more channels I like, since they'd all have to compete for audiences instead of just riding on the coattails of those dozen or so channels that don't suck.

I don't suppose RCN wants to be that first company to stick its neck out.

How many candles?

2007-09-20T20:11:00.001-04:00

So it was recently made known to me that I am actually not 28 years old as I had thought, but rather 29.

I'm not really sure how I managed to forget this particular fun fact about myself, but it does make a lot more sense, since being born in 1978 would mean I hit a nice, round 10 every year that ends in 8.

So somehow I managed to lose a whole year, which seems about par for the course, since we seem to keep losing things around here. Some photos, some clothes, 365 days, a few really nice pens.

I don't know how to approach this whole 30 thing. It's the new 20, but I was kind of a screw up in my early 20s, so maybe that makes this a do-over decade? Is the fact that I lost a year proof of my old age, or just more evidence of my clumsly record-keeping?

Yeah, when you turn 30 it really makes you start to think about things ...

Weather Watch

2007-09-18T22:23:00.000-04:00

Well, forget what I said about it getting cold in Chicago already. It's, like, 84 degrees out and I'm wearing shorts. We even turned the air conditioner back on for the first time in about a week and a half.

This time last week I was pulling my sweaters out of storage.

But this too shall pass, and we'll begin to see the real Chicago fall. The weather can't fool us. We'll begin looking for our new arctic coats this weekend. Until then, it's good to walk around under those bright blue skies and think, "I love Chicago!"

For now.

Big Weekend part 2: Uff-Dah!

2007-09-18T22:03:00.000-04:00

With the DMV behind us, we made the long drive even further from home, past the city limits out into the mysterious nether regions of the Chicagoland Suburbs. Our goal was to reach the blue and yellow Swedish mecca of inexpensive-yet-quality furnishings.

It had been about 3 years or so since our last trip to IKEA, that time in White Marsh, MD, and we had finally managed to forget how overwhelming it can be. We were ready.

The big blue box called to us as the Prius wound its way through the maze of highways. We were ready to be amazed by the Swedish technology and elegantly functional design. We gazed, stupifyed, at the escalators made FOR YOUR SHOPPING CART. Seriously, the Nordic peoples are far ahead of us in retail technology. We must overtake them or face destru -- hey, cool, it looks like a whole apartment in here!

What? Oh, it's crowded too. Those Swedes may make cool furniture and warm bedding, but they pack it all in so tight that no one can get around with a shopping cart. The circular design of the multilevel store had the look of a modern, cosmopolitan, Eurpoean version of the circles of Hell.

You need a plan when you go to IKEA. (Folks in the Charlotte area, keep this in mind when the new one opens.) If you don't know exactly what you want, you'll end up buying all sorts of things. We did well on that part. Not having much money also helps. What we didn't figure on was a plan of attack. We just wandered aimlessly amid the artful wall hangings, functional-yet-stylish kitchenware and other fine things while getting progressively more anxious until giving up to eat Swedish apple cake.

Thus refreshed, we bought an excellent new comforter that will defintely keep us warm this winter (It's really three in one, awesome!), a knife and collander and a really nice kitchen table. We then merely had to wait through a line at the register rivaled only by those at the DMV we;d just left before being able to cart our things to the car and make the long, long journey back home on overcroweded toll roads.

There are some other things we'd like to get at IKEA, and we just found an coupon we'd meant to bring with us. Maybe in a year we'll be up to the task. I do like that table, though.

Big Weekend part I: What's the yellow circle mean?

2007-09-18T21:46:00.000-04:00

It is official. We woke up early on Saturday, gathered all the pertinent paperwork, and a little extra just in case, and drove out to the Chicago West Illinois DMV office to finally make ourselves legal.

We'd been living in the state of Illinois sin documentos since August. Really, though, we meant to go to the DMV right away, but I kinda sorta lost the NC car title, and we had to write a check, fill out a form, get it notarized and wait 3 weeks for the NC DMV to send us a copy of the NC title so we could turn it in to pay more money to get a new Illinois title.

Oh, and the matter of the driver's licenses. What fun!

We expected a mob scene like at the Mondawmin Mall DMV office in Baltimore, and the line was discouraging. But then we got hearded into a shorter line being formed just for tag and title, and things proceeded quickly under the guidance of loud and unhelpful employees who wouldn't answer questions. So far, shitty, but typical.

But then we entered into a -- relatively -- well-oiled machine that included at least a few surprisingly pleasant cogs. Like the woman who advised me on what kind of coat to wear for a Chicago winter, or the woman who politely refused to tell me which one of us did better on the written driver's test.

One thing we learned is that if one of the multiple choice answers is "All of the Above," that's the one -- no matter what the DMV book says.

We have moved six times in the last seven years and have, consequently, had to go to a lot of DMV offices. I can say for sure that, despite the long lines and other rude employees, the Illinois DMV is pretty efficient. Normally only about a quarter of the workstations at a DMV office are open, but every single one had someone in it. Now, it's up to God or the fates or some mystical force whether you walk up to the one with the the cheerful employee or the deranged one, but at least it's fast -- well, faster.

Red means stop.

2007-09-12T22:06:00.000-04:00

It's just been over a month since we moved to Chicago, and it was nice at first to see all the people biking around the city. Getting exercise, cutting down on pollution -- what's not to love? I've always tried to be careful when driving near bikers, and I support adding bike lanes to city streets.

But after just a few days of watching bike riders flying through red lights and stop signs, weaving in and out of traffic and nearly getting themselves killed or causing accidents -- I'm not so sure.

Bike riders complain all the time about how they don't get any respect, how they want to be treated like any other drivers on the road. Well, when it suits them, anyway.

You can't act like a driver one second and a pedestrian the next. Follow the rules of the road, or walk like the rest of us.

Old Man Winter's on his w-- oh wait. He's here

2007-09-11T21:41:00.000-04:00

What happened? I was wearing shorts and a T-shirt yesterday, and all of a sudden it's freezing cold this morning. I figured we'd have at least a few good weeks of that nice, warmish-cool weather here in Chicago -- the kind when you turn off the AC and open some windows, but still wear sandals outside.

Well, boy. I ain't from around here. According to some co-workers, this is pretty much how the seasons are in the Windy City (did I mention it's also windy?). One day it's hot, the next it's cold.

Very efficient, really. If only there had been a little warning, though.

Dog Days at Montrose Beach

2007-09-03T14:55:00.000-04:00

I'm not sure how things ended up this way, but we actually had to move several hundred miles futher inland in order for Kayla to finally go to the beach. Chicago may not let people legally bring their dogs to outdoor cafes yet, but there are several dog parks throughout the city.

Quality varies from tiny paved squares next to the L tracks to the dog beach at Montrose, sectioned off from the people beach to the south. I don't know if it was simply the Labor Day holiday or if the dog beach is always this popular, but it was crowded.

Considering her shy, homeschoolgirl act whenever we've taken her to other dog parks, I figured that the sheer number of dogs would once again intimidate her into sticking by us. Instead, Kayla ran and jumped and even swam just a bit in the lake.

Maybe she's always been waiting to go to the beach.

Wait, can we go back to Mexico?

2007-08-30T22:24:00.001-04:00

Seriously, this whole working full-time thing isn't so great. They expect you to stay there, for like 8 hours or something, and you can't just surf the Web either.

The work itself isn't a problem, and this place has tons of snacks and great coffee.

But, can't we just go back to Mexico, study Spanish, eat tacos and take pictures of the goats and colorful buildings? Remember the posts from Mexico City? Wasn't that fun?

You know it was, which is why I'm making the following offer:

We all know you loved reading our Mexico blog. Probably the highlight of many a day. At the same time, writing that blog was the highlight of our days.

So if you would all just send regular cash donations care of this blog, we can go back and have more fun adventures for you to read about. And remember, just because it's 12 pesos to the dollar doesn't mean things cost less there, so don't skimp. Well, okay. The beer is cheaper, but I want Mexican cable and a DVD player this time.

Gracias.

RE: August 28-30

2007-08-30T22:23:00.001-04:00

Man. Fucking Yankees.

Report from Tecki Storm Center 9

2007-08-25T15:36:00.000-04:00

As many of you know, a ginormous storm struck the city of Chicago on Thursday. Only now can I fully report the harrowing events of that night.

It was a bright, sunny day in Chicago. The heat was beating down on us as we travelled to the Law School campus to buy K's books. Even as we rode the L home, there was no sign of the trouble to come.

We got home, and I started doing the dishes that had piled up from the morning. After a few minutes, rain started to lightly sprinkle the window by the sink, and lightening flashed somewhere in the distance.

Before I could remember whether it was true that lightning can strike you through the pipes in the sink, the sky exploded, pounding the house with sheets of rain and driving winds. I decided to stop doing the dishes.

A car alarm went off behind the house, and I opened the door to see if it was ours, and the wind blew the door open. I walked out on our porch, confirmed that the car was in good shape -- then I noticed that it was raining from the ceiling, and I saw that the trap door that leads to the roof was gone. I braved the wet ladder to find the trap door gone, possibly for good.

In front of the house, hurricane-like winds threatened to knock down trees and powerlines, and the power went out. K, fortunately, was on the phone with C, so she didn't notice the danger we were in.

We were forced to cook on the gas stove without the benefit of a timer or even electric light, but somehow managed to get some sustenance. It was when we sat down to eat that we noticed: water was coming in from the window -- but it was closed! Thinking on our feet, we grabbed some old towels and layed them carefully in front of the window, soaking up the dripping torrent.

Fearing a flood, we opened up our emergency plan from Baltimore. Without the Huxtables' SUV to tow our car to the outskirts of town, most of the plan was hopelessly out of date. Fortunately, we salvaged some parts of the plan and packed Kayla into the giant blue Rubbermaid container to float her out to safety. Getting her in wasn't easy, as she didn't seem to trust the container's seaworthiness, but we finally threw some treats inside and she stopped struggling.

We had a hard time dragging the container down the stairs and out the door, but we finally made it outside into the lightly drizzling storm. Trees were down and other people's cars were crushed. We managed to float the container and Kayla over the puddles forming on the streets and pushed on, carefully stepping over wet leaves and broken branches, to reach the Whole Foods.

We picked up a Red Eye newspaper box and threw it through the plate glass window, startling the employees and customers in line at the registers. K ran through the aisles, grabbing ice, artisanal cheeses, environmentally friendly facial moisturizer and small-batch craft beers. I stood by the window with a shard of glass to ward off the criminal element. Everyone else there, obviously in shock from the disaster, stood and stared at us as we loaded up the container, trying to keep Kayla from jumping back out, then heaved it back outside through the broken window.

The rain was picking up again by then, and we decided to go back inside. We dragged the container, now much heavier with all the provisions, back up the stairs and locked our doors to keep out looters.

With no power, no cable and no phone, we had no word from the outside world. How long before the storm would pass? Had the city completely broken down? When would the president send in the army to restore order and rescue us?

Tired from our adventure, we threw the ice in the fridge and freezer to protect the artisanal cheese and chill the beer, then decided to go to bed. We huddled together in fear, eventually falling asleep to the gentle sound of the rain falling against the roof.

You can tell by this post that we survived that terrible night. Let this be a lesson to you: Make sure you update your emergency plans, and keep a clear head. It could happen to you.

In the Loop

2007-08-21T21:08:00.000-04:00

Took another trip down to the Loop today, this time for a job interview at a staffing agency. Nice people, we'll see what happens. It's always a bit disappointing leaving a staffing agency, since you never know if they really will "get back to you."

Walking around downtown Chicago in a business suit with a courier bag slung over my shoulder, I certainly looked important and employed, at least to the homeless people asking me for money. Seeing the look of mistrust on the T-shirted and beared young men off to do hip things, I realized that I was the man. Sorry, The Man. I don't really mind as much as I thought I would.

All those big tall buildings and Dunkin' Donuts stores beckon. I wonder which ones I'll end up in (both office and donut shop, equally important). This job hunt doesn't seem as disheartening or desperate as those in the past. Having experience this time, and a much bigger job market, helps.

Another interview tomorrow, this one for a job that actually exists right now. Hopefully I won't screw up, since it sounds like a good one. I won't say more just so I won't jinx it.

I can say this. I can't wait for the CTA to finish rebuilding all these stations to fit longer trains, because I have seen too many people, I've been one, get left behind by a full train after waiting too long in the first place.

City Life.

WHAAAAAT????!?!

2007-08-18T17:00:00.000-04:00

THE AIRPLANES ARE ROARING OVERHEAD! CAN'T HEAR YOU!!

WHAT DO YOU MEAN THE SHOW IS TWO DAYS LONG??!!

Death From Above

2007-08-18T11:42:00.000-04:00

Sitting at my little folding table/desk in the ManNook yesterday, everything was pretty quiet, shaping up to be another long day of job searching, letter writing and desperation.

Then the fighter jets started buzzing the neighborhood.

One after another, jets zoomed loudly overhead, rattling the windows and setting off car alarms. Hicks that we are, we rushed to the windows each time the rumbling started and watched military fighters twisting in the air.

Just another day in the big city? Anti-terror drills by the Air Force? Rich Chicagoans commuting by private jet? Anything seemed possible, but it was all just noisy preparations for the Air & Water Show taking place today.

With bad weather on the way and K's natural fear of big crowds, we won't be going. Besides, we've had enough already.

Sun to rise in morning

2007-08-15T22:33:00.000-04:00

I have only been living in Chicago for little more that 2 weeks, but I already know that this headline isn't necessary:

Construction to affect service along CTA lines

We've heard quite a bit about how the Boston T is much better, and we've experienced even better train systems, say in Barcelona or Mexico City.

I wasn't really sure what to think of the L. The above-ground rail lines don't do much for the property values, I'm sure. And they don't really provide enough shelter from the weather, considering that the summers, so far, are incredibly hot and rainy and that the winters are brutal.

But, I still kinda like it. Watching the trains rattle down the line over Paulina, and the people and cars on the streets underneath -- like those little matchbox city sets with every type of vehicle.

Only a wee bit dirtier.

What I did today

2007-08-15T22:27:00.001-04:00

We have unloaded all of the boxes that were piled up on the back porch into a recycling dumpster in the 7/11 parking lot. I had to have K direct me out of the parking pad becuase I couldn't see beyond the boxes piled in the back seat of the Prius.

We've also managed to fill up the house's 2 trash cans again only 2 days after trash day. Although, the girl who moved out of the apartment had something to do with that as well. Turns out all her stuff has been sitting in the basement since the 3rd, waiting for her to pick it up and head west to LA. She and her boyfriend came today to pick it up, blocking the Prius in the parking pad so that we couldn't leave for the recycling center until after it had started to rain.

But, the porch is cleared out -- mostly. A few things still need to be thrown out. I'm not sure what to do with the porch. It is entirely enclosed with what appears to be simple plywood, except for two medium-sized windows. It isn't much to look at, and the landlord really, really wants to finish painting it white. I really, really don't think it will look any more inviting, but whatever. More windows would definitely help.

Sweet Home Chicago

2007-08-13T17:00:00.000-04:00

The only problem with living in a neighborhood surrounded by great restaurants and stores is not having an income to patronize them with.

We have set down our roots once more, this time in the City of Big Shoulders. The drive up wasn't so bad, although by the end of the first day of our caravan everyone was making mistakes, so we stopped at a Super 8 somewhere in Indiana that allows dogs. The pet policy and the free body wash were the only highlights, but at least nobody broke into the moving van overnight.

Traffic was moving right along until we hit the Chicago Skyway and all other freeways as we wound our way into the city. Even the underfunded CTA trains delayed by massive renovation and construction projects were moving faster.

Once the three guys we hired to carry everything upstairs were done, we unpacked for three days. Some people told us we'd be ready to get rid of it all after a year without our stuff, but as we opened each box and unwrapped the contents, it was like Christmas. Sure there are a few things we need to take to Goodwill (or whatever they have here), but on the whole we're happy to have our own stuff again.

Our apartment is within walking distance of several stores, bars and restaurants, a pharmacy, vet, groceries and the El. Only, we have to be careful just how much we enjoy it all at the moment, with me unemployed and K's student loans unavailable for a couple more weeks.

And so here I am, blogging for you people when I should be looking for a job, right? Well, yes.

What the hell.

What will they do next?!

2007-07-13T19:44:00.000-04:00

Wasps Menace State Department Headquarters

-- I always thought they were more of a threat to housing prices in the few affordable neighborhoods still remaining in the district. I don't know what the big deal is though. Quite frankly, Foggy Bottom could use a few more Paneras and Starbucks.

Chicagoland

2007-07-13T17:41:00.000-04:00

We got a taste of Chicago last week as we went apartment hunting. Fortunately we did not go to the festival, or we would be counting ourselves among the many who got sick from food at one booth.

Turns out Chicago is bigger than Charlotte or Baltimore, maybe even both of them combined, so we weren't prepared for the long train ride from the airport to our hotel in Evanston (a northern suburb), and had to frantically call to cancel or postpone appointments we had naively made for that day. After wandering around the city for hours, we had managed to look at only one apartment we had come to see. The good news is that we got our money's worth out of our 7-day transit passes by the end of the second day.

Things were looking bleak when one landlord just sort of, you know, forgot to tell us he had already rented out the apartment we had made an appointment to see. Bummed out and a little pissed, we wandered around the same neighborhood for a while and just happened to find a smaller place much closer to the L and to the little neighborhood downtown. We called the number on the For Rent sign, made an appointment for 2 hours later, ate dinner and got us an apartment.

Well, technically we have applied for the apartment. The landlord had to leave town on business the next day and told us that he'd send the lease in about a week -- but he did take down the sign on the door, so that means we're in, right?

With the whole purpose of our trip accomplished and 4 full days left before our flight home, we spent the rest of the time exploring the city in heat, rain and wind (Not always at the same time) and got to know our soon-to-be new home.

What features does the iphone provide?

2007-06-29T16:52:00.000-04:00

Comes with 98 different ringtones, each a recording of Steve Jobs explaining how cool and visionary Steve Jobs is

GPS feature automaticaly refers to user as the center of the universe

Uses a complex algorithim to determine which friends' calls should be answered based on how cool they are

Automatically deducts ridiculous sum of money from your bank account

Ignores the irony of you making fun of people who camped out for days to see the Star Wars prequels after you waited days at SouthPark to buy a new phone

makes you feel like James Bond, despite lousy job and bad haircut

Spank your inner child

2007-06-28T21:49:00.000-04:00

K was at work the other night and overheard the managers, both young republicans, deeply engaged in a discussion of which car they would rather buy if they had all the money in the world: a Bently or a Lamborghini. they couldn't agree on a car, so they asked K what she thought.

"I'd really like a new Prius, the one with the new body style."

This response, of course, elicited moans and groans. How could anyone want that car when they could have any car in the world?

And it hit her: Republicans are like spoiled children.

Really, we've all known it for a long time. the republican party appeals to America's spoiled inner child. Want new freeways without a tax increase? You betcha! In fact, we'll cut all your taxes and still give you whatever you want. Now, let's go to war without any of you actually having to sacrifice anything.

That's why they hate liberals so much. We're the adults. We tell them they have to share the wealth by opening midnight basketball courts for poor kids, that SUVs caouse demage to the environment, or that they can't have their war without someone getting hurt -- then they just pout, get mad and turn up the O'Riley factor so loud it drowns us out.

Toby Keith is a jackass

2007-06-21T19:43:00.000-04:00

I hate Nashville country. You know me. I listen to WNCW, have tons of Johnny Cash and Hank Sr on the ipod, and faithfully buy the Oxford American music issue every summer. So I was never a big fan of Mr. Keith to begin with.

When he said on the Colbert Report that he still wouldn't set aside his differences with the Dixie Chicks over certain comments about the relative sense of shame of being from the same state as the president on the eve of an unjustifiable war -- well, whatever. Big surprise.

But the thing he said next has been sticking in my craw. "I don't have to apologize for my patriotism."

I can't stand these fat-headed conservatives who think they have the monopoly on patriotism. as defined by them, patriotism is blindly following the president (oh, unless he's a democrat), looking the other way while the military is slowly being bled to death in Iraq, and calling French Fries, Freedom Fries.

I think. Yeah, I think an apology is in order. Actually. And that new song of his? Musical soft porn to make your mother blush, sir.

the Cup de Goooooold

2007-06-21T19:25:00.000-04:00

I'm thinking I won't be going to South Africa for the next World Cup. We expect a lot of things to be going on in the Steadtecki household by 2010. law school graduation, moving (again), possibly a baby, the 200th anniversary of Mexican independence in Guanajuato (Reserve your hotel room now.).

So it's good that the US is plowing through the Gold Cup series. The Yanquis already knocked out several latino teams, and now face Little America in the semi-finals. I can't help but wonder, as K pointed out, that it seems strange that both countries from el Norte just happened to end up facing each other in the semi-final. It's almost as if the CONCACAF folks don't like the idea of an all-North-American championship. Maybe this was part of NAFTA, like the US-Canadian-Mexican beer specials at Casa Grande.

Anyway, I don't mind so much. If the US beats Canada tonight, and Mexico beats Guadaloupe (seriously?), we can see a rematch of the pre-season opener between the big rivals, all played against the backdrop of an intense national controversy over immigration.

I don't know about you, but plan on grabbing a good table at La Unica on Sunday if all goes well.

It's just too bad we don't already live in Chicago.

Mea culpa

2007-06-21T19:20:00.000-04:00

Okay.

I think it's time I apologized for the absolutly lame and, quite frankly, bad posts lately.

I mean, fat people. There was something in there, I swear. But somewhere between driving home from the data entry cave and sitting down at the computer, I lost it. Sorry.

And that thing on how the US isn't so bad after all, well. Could have been better.

But, seriously. I'm ready now.

I knew it.

2007-06-15T19:55:00.001-04:00

I have hated crocs from the beginning. from the matronly white women with big hats who wear them in the garden, to the aging hippies who wander around in them while sipping Starbucks Frappucinos, toDooglas, the tool who ruined a week and a half of our time in Mexico, I have always said that crocs are of the devil.

Chunky Monkies

2007-06-14T19:30:00.000-04:00

I don't think it's okay to just make fun of fat people. As a former "person of heavier stature," I can recall the way some people treated me, especially in school.

But, a little shame goes a long way. Like today, in the breakroom at the office where I'm temping. Someone announced that there was leftover ice cream and pizza from a day camp they are running this week, and it didn't take much for the breakroom to fill up.

I waited a while before leaving the confines of my work area to fill my water bottle so the crowds would die down. Even then there were still people milling about, and above the music on my ipod I could clearly hear more than one person say "Oh, I shoudn't ..." then do it anyway.

Self control is not a bad thing. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to the ice cream place around the corner to silently judge all the fat people in line in front of me.

THis Land is My Land

2007-05-23T21:08:00.001-04:00

I don't like to rant and rave much anymore. Must be a product of aging. And living in Mexico for awhile without a regular job helped mellow me out a bit. Every once in a while, something just sticks in your craw, tho', and there's no denying it. Still, I will try to keep myself from going overboard.

Over the last few years, starting in college, I've encountered plenty of people who more or less share the same political standing as I do. During this time I've come to realize just what it is much of America hates about us liberals. No one is really against universal healthcare or a living wage. Most folks think oil is a big problem. And a lot of folks are beginning to see that global warming could, just maybe, be a real threat.

Many people are passionately against reproductive rights and gay marriage, but these folks don't make up a majority of the population, yet it seems sometimes like the majority of folks really hate us. Why?

Because, like me, they're tired of hearing about everything that's wrong with our culture. Fast food, violent movies, lazy children and SUVs are not the end-all and be-all of what it means to be American. Many of my fellow liberals, some personal acquaintences in particular, equate America with all the wrongs in the world.

I am thinking of one person in particular as I write this. This person spent most of the time complaining about America and Americans, but could speak no wrong about foreign countries they had visited. They spent most of their time hanging out with other self-loathing Americans or with foreigners who shared the same view. All this Uncle Sam bashing feeding off of itself.

But, no nation is pure and good. The Spanish erradicated the Native Americans long before the British set foot in Jamestown. The British opressed the Irish. The Chinese continue to opress the Tibetans. Opressed Arabs, tired of living in slums and being treated like second-class citizens, were rioting in France not that long ago. Muslim fundamentalists are killing innocent people all around the world. We Americans have done worse and better.

Woody Guthrie could see what was wrong with America while still loving the land, its people and our ideals. He criticized rich factory owners who abused their workers, he sang about corruption in the government and opposed racism and sexism. He also supported the war effort in WWII, wrote "This Land is Your Land" and elevated the people of this country. I'd like to think of myself as coming from the same place.

This is the nation that killed the Indians, enslaved the Blacks and is destroying the environment. It's also the country that gave my great-grandparents a new opportunity, saved the world from fascism and created rock and roll.

On the whole, in comparison with other countries, that's not so bad.

On the to-do list

2007-05-21T20:17:00.000-04:00

Three months into our new life in the states, and things are good. Like any non-native speaker, we need to continue practicing our Spanish. Even so, it's time to start looking at all those other things on the to-do list.

As I've continued growing up, I've begun to note things that seem to be a mark of, well, let's not say maturity, but at least being a grown-up.

In addition to the Spanish and parallel parking, there's also the tile-laying and other handy things I've learned on the Great Basement Upgrade of 'Aught 7, but there are certain skills that separate a guy from a man.

Things to learn:

How to play pool -- for real this time (thanks to Rich and Marc for trying that one night at Pat's Time for One More)
How to mix drinks like a bartender
How to play poker and spades -- without freaking out every time we play K's mom
How baseball works
How football works
How soccer works
How to change a tire -- theoretically I do know this, but I've only ever watched my dad do it
How to carry a conversation that doesn't devolve into politics or references to The Simpsons
How to get out of situations I don't want to be in

That's probably not all I need to learn, but it's a start. Anyone have other suggestions?

Hahvahd

2007-05-03T12:11:00.000-04:00

K is now officially on the Harvard wait list.

They advise you to act as though you weren't getting in, so that's what we've been doing.

If anyone happens to have any dirt on any members of the admissions board at Harvard Law, now would be the time to give it up.

So, we'll see. Either way, we are going to live in a great city, and K gets a great education.

Turns out that Teckidad always wanted to go to Northwestern. And, her grandmother always wanted her to go to Harvard. So either way, she's living out some family member's dream.

Back by popular demand! (Thanks Marc)

2007-05-03T11:51:00.000-04:00

Having recently learned that my reader has been sitting on the edge of his seat axiously waiting for my return to the Web, I've decided to restart this here blog thing.

Our return from Mexico was not the end of our travels, as some of you may know. Almost as soon as we retrieved our laundry from her parent's dryer, K and I were off again to visit law schools in DC, Virginia and our beloved Carolina del Norte. I won't bore you with the details, but fast-forward to an award letter from Northwestern University in Chicago offering practically a full scholarship and we were on a plane to the Windy City. within days.

Chicago was great, if a bit cold (it's just three winters, it's just three winters) and the university was impressive. So much so that we are all but ready to load up a truck and move to the north side of Chicago by the end of July. Some nice neighborhoods up there, and plenty of hardwood floors and exposed brick walls.

In the meantime I've been slowly remodeling the basement apartment in la casa de mis suegros, under the tutelage of my father-in-law. The old red carpet installed by the previous owners is slowly disappearing, being replaced by sturdy tile. We were inspired by our time in Mexico, where even the driveways are tiled. When we swept the floor in our apartment in Valenciana and realized how much dirt you can really track onto a floor, we vowed never again to have a carpeted floor.

Ademas, I quickly realized that all Mexican men seem to know how to do many, many things. Fix cars, tile floors, blacksmithing, you name it. Even Orlando, who would not strike you as the sterotypical macho mexicano, was a teacher who repaired and programmed computers on the side. Faced with this image and my own lack of usefull skills (Copyeditors will be the first left outside the walls to die when the revolution comes) I realized I needed to upgrade my skillset.

While I've been in the basement, K has been volunteering at the local WIC program as a translator. We've also gone down the the Community Free Clinic in Corncob. For the first few nights, there were only a handful of spanish-speaking patients. The other translators kept telling us they were usually so busy that sometimes doctors were chasing them down for help. We didn't really believe it until one night when we ran all over the building from room to room to pharmacy. Each time we approach a latino patient (actually, mostly latinas) they alsways look at us funny, like "What's this white boy going to do, use flashcards?" But so far we've done fine.

I've had some temp work at the Hospice in K-Town. Should have more soon. Also applied at the Buckstar down the road where the suegros like to go. Mas dinero, por favor. As much as I like getting in touch with my masculine self working on the basement, I'd also like to have an income again.

Children of Men

2007-01-27T14:18:00.000-05:00

While it was all fine and good for so many Mexican directors and filmakers to be nominated for so many Oscars this year, as we read the news back here in Guanajuato we felt as though the veil was finally being lifted from our eyes.

I had previously thought that the best picture of the year would actually receive a nomination for Best Picture. Sure some politics usually get in the way and a lesser movie actually wins, but the deserving film would at least be nominated.

Not in 2007. How could a relatively mediocre movie like Babel receive so many nominations, and a devastatingly well-made movie like Children of Men receive so few? The tale of a future gone bad, where humanity has lost al hope in the face of worldwide sterility and a neverending war on terror is quite probably the greatest movie I have, or could hope to have, seen in my life.

The entire cast, lead by Clive Owen, puts out a powerful performance, and the possible future the movie creates for us is terrifingly real, with threads of terror and government abuse, as well as the slow collapse of global civilization. Can a movie whose best scene is when Brad Pitt cries on the phone really beat a movie where British tanks open fire on an apartment building full of innocent families in the name of fear and loathing?

Apparently it has.

Selma Hayek is right to be proud I guess, but she needs to calm down.

So Long, Springfield

2006-12-26T18:30:00.000-05:00

Sitting in a movie theater in Puebla, Mexico, waiting for the 19 minutes of commercials and previews to end, I was dismayed to see what I'm sure many of you already knew was coming soon:

The Simpsons Movie.

I had always heard the rumors over the last few years, of course. But having been somewhat off the grid lately, it took me by surprise.

It's sad that it has finally come to this. But the signs were there. About four or five years ago the show had started to run out of steam with jokes and plots too easily forgotten -- well, by most people anyway.

But I really thought they had pulled through in the last two years. Not sure what had happened. A new creative team perhaps? Either way, it looked like the show was displaying some of its former glory. Certainly not shark-jumping time.

But I guess not. Just as all other TV shows before, both good and bad, The Simpsons will likely not last much beyond the movie's closing weekend. It has been a good run, after all.

Maybe they'll still do the Halloween specials each year.

The Year in Sports

2006-12-18T16:37:00.000-05:00

Things didn't go so well for Tecki this year in the Wide World of Sports.

Boston fell apart toward the end of the season and didn't make it to the playoffs, and the Panthers are pretty much on the same path. DC United struggled all the way to the semifinals before losing to New England. Even Barcelona lost the Club Champions Cup in Japan.

There's still hope for the Bobcats, though ...

Whatever city we end up moving to this year had better have a winning team, good Law School or no.

A great day for everbody

2006-11-10T16:11:00.000-05:00

Being an ex-pat in Mexico makes it hard to keep up with all the news coming in from the elections, and the good news just keeps coming.

Rumsfeld out, democrats in. Charlie Taylor loses his grip on my beautiful mountains, O'Malley as governor of Mary Land, even our district 8 in Corncob has a teeny tiny chance of going blue. (but I'm not holding my breath, except when I walk though a tunnel here.)

And even just now I find out that Virginia is turning a nice shade of blue in the senate for sure.

For certain, everyone here seems just a little bit nicer to us now. The guy at our copy shop was ecstatic when we told him we´re democrats. K told him it was a good day for us, and he replied: It's a good day for everyone!

So is it? God only knows, but if D$ could come down from the chandeliers for just a moment, I'm sure he'd repeat his wisdom of a month ago: We'll still be going toward the cliffs, just at 50 mph instead of 150. And that's from a guy who really, really thought Kucinich had a chance.

Immigration reform is more likely, and maybe, just maybe there's some light at the end of the Iraq tunnel. Maybe. But even as they celebrate, the dems are falling back into form.

The blue party has always been fractious and a little neurotic, so compromises will surely have to be made, but that's for backroom deals late a night with boxes of pizza and gallons of whiskey. In public, can we get Pelosi to do more than offer a concesion speech at her victory rally?

We won! We surrender!

Words and Palabras

2006-10-13T16:44:00.000-04:00

Words shape reality, and I wonder how things would be in the states if newspapers there used "invest" instead of "spend" when they report on government projects. After all, who likes to spend anything? Maybe all those libertarians in Charlotte would finally shut up if we called the light-rail an investment. Well, probably not, since they hate spending money on principle.

But how would the repubicans fare if we said the government was investing in afterschool programs, public transit and education? Would it be as easy for them to cut programs for the poor or public works?

Spanish has a way of tearing away the veneer of English words and getting right at the heart of things. For instance, sprawl is called "desorganisacion urbana." We ought to be using the same precise language when we fight powerful developers who want to plop their stripmalls and freeways in our cities.

We are still trying to learn, and hope to make more sense of the language. I think I'm starting to like it.

Si yo fuera gorbernador de Carolina del Norte

2006-10-12T18:19:00.000-04:00

Education has been on our minds lately. Partly because we are, essentially, back in school, and partly because being in another country for so long can bring a new perspective on your own. Also, having lived in Baltimore for 2 years prior to this, we had a good view of the general disnitegration of public education in America. As we walk to and from the city, the conversation usually ends up as a discussion of what we ought ot do with schools back home.

We tend to pride ourselves on valuing education. Certainly school is compulsory to a much older age in the US than in other countries, Mexico included, but what good is compulsory education in a rundown school with overworked, underpaid teachers? We say we value education, but we aren't willing to spend the money. So our schools fall apart, our best teachers leave the profession tired and frustrated after a few years, and our students fall further behind.

So, if I were governor of North Carolina, or whatever state we end up in, I'd put forth the following:

Pay teachers what they're worth: Who wants to stay in a profession that prevents them from ever owning a house of their own or paying off their student loans? Maybe then we can talk about requiring teachers to get master's degrees. After all, if you had a choice between going to school for 6 years to become a teacher or a lawyer, which one would you choose?

Hire more of them: The most students K ever had in one semester at a private school was 64. The most our neighbor, a public school teacher, had was 156. Which teacher is going to be able to help the ones who need the most attention?

Compulsory bilingual classes: Starting in kindergarten, all the way through 12th grade. This isn't Mayberry folks. We're not just competing for businesses and jobs with Richmond and Atlanta anymore. We're fighting with Barcelona, London, New Dehli and Shanghai. We can't be the only ones in the room who speak just one language.

History: Did you know the $ sign originated in the Spanish colonies? And, hey, what the hell was the Mexican-American war anyway? All I ever got was a paragraph and a picture of James K Polk. How can we not know the history of our 2 closest neighbors? Americans know next to nothing about Mexico and Canada, and we're the losers. Better, in-depth American history coupled with extensive North American history can corect that.

Of course, there is so much more that needs to be done, but this is a start.

Stay on Track

2006-10-03T20:27:00.000-04:00

So I leave the country for a little while and I find out some pack of libertarian jackals have decided to try to repeal the transit tax. Turns out they don't want to face the fact that they live in a city, not some cute little tax-free small town in some idyllic Ayn Rand oil painting. Oh look, there's Tara S. kicking a dog.

You can't have a city that depends on only one form of transportation. It just won't work, and I'm tired of having to pound the truth into you people. If you don't like paying taxes for huge public works projects, you need to move. Wyoming has almost nobody around. You can shoot your guns at photos of FDR all day there and no one will try to infringe on your right to act like a moron on your own personal property.

But when you live in a major metropolitan area with about 1 million other people, you have to learn to share, and to pitch in from time to time. Things cost money folks. Roads, schools and rails aren't free, but they are all most definitely necessary.

The Great Wall of Texas

2006-10-01T15:33:00.000-04:00

Could the republicanos please stop trying to make living in Mexico harder for us?

Sitting in the bus station in San Miguel I got to read all about the big wall they want to build along the border. The post got it right, this will do nothing more than harm our relationship with Mexico, which has gotten to be pretty high on my priority list lately, and damage the environment without doing fuck-all to actually solve the problem.

Instead of trying to build pointless barriers, we need to be working together to figure out how to make things better for both countries. Good fences don't always make good neighbors.

The Law of Mediocrity

2006-09-15T14:08:00.000-04:00

Hola chicos y chicas.

After two weeks in Mexico, I have managed to shake off all the negative and positive stereotypes people have filled my head with, and begun to look at the country through my own eyes.

The negatives are obvious enough if you ever watch American movies or TV or listen to a lot of music. But no, we haven't met any banditos, people here aren't lazy or trying to rip us off, and things are no more dirty than in Nueva York or Baltimore.

But, I also have to say that all this talk about how polite everyone is and the nice slow pace, and especially the super-well-behaved kids has also, sadly, turned out to be falso. At least in GTO, only the old folks move slow. Everyone is in a big hurry, ready to push you off the narrow sidewalks into oncoming traffic in a heartbeat. Kind of like NYC, but with smaller sidewalks and without crosswalks or traffic signals to give a sense of efficency. In fact, if you think Mexico is slow, it is more likely because things just don't work quite as well as they should, not because folks aren't in a hurry.

And kids here are just like those in the other United States. Some good kids, some rude ones, all is the same.

The longer I am here the more apparent it becomes that people are about the same everywhere. The same mix of friendly, rude, polite, clueless, angry, happy and all the rest. Just with a different accent.

This is something I have always suspected, but as I travel more, I find more evidence. Cultures are different, values are different -- to a certain extent -- but people are people, and that's bueno.

Crash course in NCness

2006-08-20T18:54:00.000-04:00

Went four wheelin' today.

Just around C&S's yard, on the one they bought for the kid, but it was enough for us.

Then S took us each on a ride on the big one. Probably the best way to be welcomed back to North Carolina after two years up North is on the back of a high-speed four-wheeler with your arms wrapped around the sweaty midsection of a good friend.

The dustbin of history

2006-08-20T18:48:00.000-04:00

I thought going through all of my childhood things at my parents' house would be sad, if not traumatic.

A few hours and several hefty bags later, I was relieved of this notion. Very little was spared, save for the comicbook collection, a Route 66 sign and a Transformer I was going to give to Goodwill today, but turns out might be worth something on eBay.

I filled two of their recycling bins with old school papers, notebooks, newspapers and posters, plus folded boxes whose contents should have been tossed years ago. Anything that wasn't slated for charity or recycling ended up in the giant City of Charlotte garbage can -- filled almost to capacity.

Look homeward. To unload the detritus of your youth and get a fresh start. It's like leaving home all over again.

Building, and rebuilding, a mystery

2006-08-18T21:05:00.000-04:00

We stopped at the alma mater to drop off some ridiculous forms K needs filled out by the dean of students office to apply for law school. No idea why these forms are necessary, but I guess this is just preparation for a long career dealing with unnecessary paperwork and bureaucrats.

All these high schoolers were wandering around campus carrying furniture and bags full of books. Some kind of summer camp, as far as we could tell. Strange, though. Classes should be starting soon. I hope they get those kids off campus before the students show up. They'll need time to clean up the dorms.

Anyway, what the hell is up with the Atkins library? We drive along to the visitor deck near Cone, and they've stripped the library tower. Better waterproofing they say. Why weren't these bricks put up in the first place, or did they not learn their lessons from the staircase they built and had to tear up 6 years ago because it wasn't up to code?

They've been working on this library since before I was a freshman. It looked like a scene from a war movie during my orientation and was a constant source of frustration for most of my matriculation. They finally got it looking pretty good, and now they figure out that the fake bricks weren't keeping out the rain.

Damn. Those kids were sure young.

Those Talladega Nights

2006-08-16T22:16:00.000-04:00

We just got back from seeing Talladega Nights with C&S.

Was it a great movie? No.

Did I like it? Yes.

Will I ever intentionally see it again? Probably not.

But at that moment, returning to the Great NC after two years, watching a NASCAR-themed movie in a historic theater in Kannapolis with Cheerwine and a bucket of popcorn.

Like driving down the New Jersey Turnpike and Born to Run comes on the radio.

Perfect.

Hanging off the back of the iBandwagon

2006-08-15T10:55:00.000-04:00

The gift of an iPod is an excellent gift indeed.

Not only was I able to rescue my iTunes from work before leaving, but Dr. H and LG put tons of their own music on it in special playlists just for us.

The fun of the iPod is second only to its usefulness in unwanted social situations. I took the iPod to the dealership while waiting for the oil change and all that, and no one bothered me the whole time.

It's like a sonic forcefield.

I only wish we had brought it to the DMV.

Hard times at the DMV

2006-08-15T10:44:00.000-04:00

We bit the bullet and went to the DMV yesterday to get our affairs in order so we can officially become North Carolinians again. Even the Concord DMV is pretty busy, and it probably didn't help that we got there around lunch time.

Other than the long wait, the only problem was the guy sitting next to us who wanted to tell us his whole life story. He regaled us with stories of unpaid car insurance, past car wrecks and the ongoing saga of dealing with an irresponsible tenant.

This went on for much less time than it seemed, I'm sure, but by then we were desparately watching the sign by the testing room, hoping that either his number or ours would suddenly appear. K didn't get to leave until after he started telling us about how he hadn't dated in more than 6 years.

I had to endure more before his number came up.

When I got to the testing room, I noticed K taking the computer test. Shit. Do I have to do that?

But then, I figured she probably asked to take the test to see how well she could do while waiting for the machine to spit out her license.

It took me all of five minutes to finish up. Turns out that my old NC license from before moving to Mary Land wasn't set to expire until next year, so they just treated this like I was getting a duplicate. Didn't even have to take the sign test.

K, on the other hand, had an expired NC license and thought that the sign for two-way traffic with median meant "Triangle Ahead."

Well, not really. And she aced the computer test, which she says a trained monkey with brain damamge could pass. So yeah, we feel reeeeal safe on the roads in NC now.

Getting the tag and title, though expensive, was quick. And, with a trip to Toyota for an oil change and state inspection, we were finally, officially, in NC again.

All of which was made easier to tolerate with the new iPod.

So it begins

2006-08-13T17:40:00.000-04:00

Panthers beat Bills, 14-13

A good day to be in Carolina.

So long Mary Land

2006-08-13T10:08:00.000-04:00

Our final journey from the Free State to the Great NC was about 180 degrees from every other trip we'd taken since moving to Maryland. Rather than pack the car the night before and wake up at 3 in the morning to avoid the DC/Richmond clusterfucks, we stayed up late Friday night to visit friends as part of out farewell tour of the Mid-Atlantic and finished packing in the morning.

There was more laundry than I'd realized, and we still had to clean the Undisclosed Location for our hostess. It didn't help that I still don't know how to properly set the alarm on my cellphone, leading us to wake up late.

We had brunch at 10 with Dr. Huxtable, Lawyergirl was visiting her family in PA, and said our goodbyes. He made a good point, that we shouldn't be sad about leaving since our friendship has reached the point where it can endure even great distances. A good note to leave Charm City on.

Of course, the city was more reluctant to let us go. We hit every single red light between the end of I-83 and the beginning of I-395 at Camden Yards. And away we went to the District to visit El Raton and D one last time.

We snacked on cheese, bread and coffee, enjoying lively conversation and preparing for Mexico. It was a fun time for all, complete with photos, and not a hint of sadness. After all, we lived on opposite sides of the country for three years. This is nothing new.

And so we hit the road in earnest this time, thinking that breaking up the drive would make it easier. But I-95 is the busiest highway in the US, and made sure to let us know that. It was stop and go from the Mixing Bowl almost all the way to Richmond, and we didn't get to Corncob until well after dark.

We arrived home to find that our dog does indeed remember us, but she's made herself a little friend in our absence. She plays with K's parents' new cat, who follows her around when they're not playing. They even got into the bed with us last night, the cat climbing all over us for quite a long time before settling in for the night.

We are disturbed by this new development.

One for the Lorax

2006-08-09T12:15:00.000-04:00

It's time we start seeing the city for the trees.

The recent heatwave brought to mind an issue that's occupied me for some time now. Namely, how to get more trees into the city. Walk from a shady block to an unshaded one and you'll know what I mean. More than just decorations for suburban yards, trees shade cars and pedestrians, keep cooling costs down for houses and other buildings, filter air pollution and reduce stormwater runoff.

Walking and driving around the greater Baltimore metro area, I'm surprised at just how many places here could, and should, have more trees. Too many treeless yards, too many sidewalks exposed to the sun. Highway medians and shoulders covered only in grass, if that.

Expanding the tree canopy in cities like Baltimore can drive down overall temperatures, helping to reduce the need for air conditioning during much of the summer, even during heatwaves. Paved streets, sidewalks and parking lots, plus tall buildings and lots of brick and concrete, radiate heat like an outdoor oven. We will have to redesign tall buildings to use less energy and absorb less heat, but as for everything else, all we need are a few more trees.

This is especially important with the impending BGE rate hike in Maryland, but applies throughout the country. Obviously a densely packed neighborhood like Hampden can't have as many trees as Roland Park, but the extra shade provided by tree-lined streets would still provide some relief from the heat that would otherwise be radiating off streets, sidewalks and buildings. And make the area more pleasant, to boot.

Air filters are increasingly popular in offices and houses, so why not apply the same logic to the outdoors? Trees filter air pollution at the local level and, coupled with other pollution-fighting techniques, can greatly improve residents' health and quality of life. Additionally, runoff from this area is killing the Chesapeake Bay. More trees means less poison flowing into the bay.

Baltimore, especially, has plenty of room for trees. The city should require builders to preserve more of the canopy and create incentives for property owners of all kinds (homes, businesses and others) to plant trees themselves. Baltimore can take the initiative by planting trees on all city-owned property and along the rights of way of every street and thoroughfare in the city limits. In addition, the city can also work with conservation groups to purchase and protect the few remaining urban forests in the city, setting them aside as mini nature preserves.

New trees alone won't turn the worst neighborhoods in Baltimore into safe and friendly places, it won't reduce traffic and won't turn failing city schools into elite prep. schools. But with global warming looming over the city, as well as blackouts and heat-related deaths becoming as common in summer as fireflies and cookouts, every little thing helps.

Joe Joe was a man who thought he was a democrat

2006-08-09T09:30:00.000-04:00

Not that I live in Connecticut or anything, so maybe it's not my responsibility to say this, but could someone just slap Joe Lieberman, hand him a highball and sit him down in a comfy chair?

His aggressive response to losing this primary, as opposed to the half-hearted dissent to losing/winning the 2000 election, is astounding.

The fact that he is willing to jeopardize a democratic victory in November, after being rejected by democratic voters in a fair and legal primary election, shows that Joe Lieberman deserved to lose the primary. The main beef of Lamont and his supporters was that Lieberman doesn't represent them or their values anymore. Insisting that he will ignore the results of the democratic primary and run as an independent just underscores the fact that Lieberman really doesn't represent democratic voters in Connecticut, thereby strengthening Lamont's case.

I mean, don't Connecticut democrats have the right to choose a candidate who actually shares their views? Lieberman seems to think that he deserves to win simply because he's been in office for so long already.

It's time, Joe. Things have changed. Besides, the Senate elevators are packed with staffers and tourists now. Just not the same as it used to be.

Better than roving gangs of 8-year-olds

2006-08-07T11:18:00.000-04:00

Just in time for my sudden interest in sports.

So, this is probably news only to me, but I still found it worth noting. Good to see that Clay Aiken and his new haircut aren't the only ones representing the Green and Gold nowadays:

UNCC alumnus continues shutout streak

ART STAPLETON, The Record (Hackensack N.J.)

NEW YORK - On a day the Mets made yet another financial investment in one of their future stars, John Maine once again pitched like one.

He blanked Philadelphia for six innings and the offense did the rest Sunday night in an 8-1 victory, increasing the largest divisional lead in the majors to 13 games in front of a crowd of 39,144 at Shea Stadium and a national television audience.

With Mike Pelfrey biding his time in the minors and Brian Bannister on a rehab assignment, Maine, a former Charlotte 49ers standout Baltimore drafted in the sixth round in 2002, continued to show why the Mets were forced to not only keep him here, but in their starting rotation.

Butterstick

2006-08-07T10:55:00.000-04:00

It would have been sad indeed if we lived so close to DC for so long and never once got to see Butterstick (a.k.a "Tai Shan") before leaving. And so it was that we found ourselves maneuvering through the crowds of tourists to catch a glimpse of His Cuteness.

The day started out fine with one last trip to the Waverly Farmers' Market to take pictures, smell the smells and bask in the memories. Then we made our way to Hampden to enjoy one last meal at Golden West. K had it all planned out: We'd order her two favorite dishes, the Breakfast Burrito and the French Toast.

Only they were out of toast.

Despite this setback, we still managed to gather up the strength to drive to DC and park illicitly in Mt. Pleasant. One last time with the Golden Lion Tamarinds. One last time not seeing the Orangutans climbing the ropes over head. And off to the panda exhibit to see them sleeping. Just sitting there.

Man.

We decided to take a walk and come back, reliving memories of zoo trips past. These last few weeks before The Big Move have been filled with last times. We'd probably been to the National Zoo more times than is normal for a couple without kids, but we always had fun. One of the perks of living in Baltimore is being so close to DC.

And then we saw the Pandas again, and they were awake. Oh. My. God. He's jumping, running, falling off of things, bouncing around like a happy little poofball. Not a bad way to end our last zoo trip.

Buy me some peanuts and cracker jacks

2006-08-02T12:03:00.000-04:00

Dr. H and LG got us tickets to last nights Orioles game against the Mariners, compliments of The Firm. Stuck in Gotham City dealing with some legal emergency or something, LG couldn't make it. But the Intrepid Teacher's Assistant stepped in to take her place.

It's been just over 2 years since we planted our flag in Baltimore, and this was one of those Essential Baltimore Experiences we knew we had to have before unplanting it (like drinking Natty Boh - check!). I hadn't been to Camden Yards since taking a tour as but a wee Tecki on a family trip to Baltimore. Even though I had little interest in sports in general, or baseball specifically, I had always thought it would be nice to watch a game there.

The Firm has some sweet seats, right above the Visitors' dugout, so we felt like pretty important people. The heat fell upon us like a hot, wet blanket with a heat index of 105. But K had the foresight to bring a cooler full of water, so we were well-prepared. The sunset brought little relief, and the hot night reminded us of Vegas in July. If I had even wanted to pay $6 for a bottle of American beer, the heat would have dissuaded me of that desire.

But the game was great and, I think, I managed some good pictures using the Sport feature on the camera. Zoom not so good, but hey.

And by great, I mean the Os actually won. Whether it was well-played, I have no idea. But, either way, turns out we must be a good luck charm. Too bad we're only just now realizing this. Maybe this means Leon's soccer team will be champions in Mexico this year.

One highlight of the night was when Dr. H harassed a Mariners fan who plopped down in the seat in front of him without paying for it. A truly Baltimore experience.

Take me out to the ball game

2006-07-25T16:19:00.000-04:00

Having only recently become enamored of the Beautiful Game, I've noticed plenty of anti-soccer sentiment on this side of the Atlantic and Rio Grande. Soccer's certainly not for everyone. I haven't thought about it myself since elementary school. But the amazing vitriol people in the states spew towards futbol ranges on the absurd.

Many of them complain that soccer is boring. But that can't be it, because plenty of good ol' American sports are boring, too. Chief among them Baseball. After all, you can say soccer is just a bunch of guys running around without scoring, but Baseball is just a bunch of guys standing in the heat waiting for something to happen. Seems to me that Lacrosse is just rich Mid Atlantic prep schoolers hitting each other with big sticks. And I'll never understand the obsession with watching people play Poker on TV.

But people can openly enjoy those games without fear of reprisal.

The problem lies, unfortunately, in the fact that Europeans love it. I mean, they Love it. Oh, and all those brown folks stealing our fruit-picking and janitorial jobs. So the equation is obvious, if you love soccer, you must hate America. And you're gay. Definitely. Gay and a democrat. A gay, Spanish-speaking democratic terrorist. Who hates America.

Or that's the impression I get online. I say we should live and let live. I mean, at least the World Cup actually involves the World, while the World Series theoretically involves two countries, but usually only one.

BTW: Go Red Sox!

Best Birthday Ever

2006-07-24T10:55:00.000-04:00

So, I'm a big sucker.

"Let's see Clerks II on Saturday! I have to work that morning, but D&S can give you a ride."

Imagine my surprise when we got to The Senator and went upstairs, ostensibly to see an exhibit on Natty Boh, and had my picture taken like a celebrity by Dr. Huxtable.

Friends of all kinds, from baltimore and parts yonder (those delayed by an overturned dumptruck on I-95) to greet me and wish me well into my 28th year. With lots of pizza and falafel and an excellent selection of drinks.

We watched the aforementioned movie from the air conditioned comfort and splendor of our own private skybox, an experience not marred in the least by the fact that the auditorium below was practically empty. I felt like the president of BoA, or at least some small company. I enjoyed the rush of exclusivity when going in and out of the PRIVATE door from the lobby, while the common folk milled about.

The Natty Boh documentary later was the perfect ending. They were giving out free Boh in the lobby, so I was able to finally sample "The Drinking Man's Water" without paying for it. It would have been a shame to live here for 2 years and not at least try it. I didn't finish it. But at least I tasted it.

Many thanks to K for putting all of this together. I had no idea what was happening. This was a perfect weekend!

And thanks to Dr. Huxtable and Lawyergirl for all their help in making it possible, and to D&S for being such good liars.

Bush and Denny on a fieldtrip

2006-07-17T15:15:00.000-04:00

I really don't have anything funny to say here. I think the photo speaks for itself.

Katie Couric is a harbinger of ... uh ... what?

2006-07-17T12:59:00.000-04:00

If you're like me, you've been awating Katie Couric's impending Anchorship at CBS with more that a little trepidation. We've watched the news slide downhill into the soft, mushy world of infotainment for years now, and putting Katie C. in Ed Murrow's old seat would seal the deal, so to speak.

Or will it?

Couric herself says no. Seems she was losing patience with reporters who wanted to know how she would dress for her debut and what her hobbies are. She itched to change the subject, according to the Boston Globe, and was glad to explain how she'd been traveling the country to hear what us regular folks want from our news machines.

"They want more perspective, more stories put in historical context. They want us to go a little bit deeper," Couric said. "We also heard that the news is too depressing. Obviously, we can't sugarcoat [things] , but we can be more solution-oriented.

"Sometimes we assume that people know a lot more than they really do. So I'd like to not just do the news of today but take a broader look at the ramifications" of the news.

What could this mean? Has CBS bowed to the pressure of a thousand liberal bloggers? Or are we about to recieve in-depth, historically contextual reporting on Laura Bush's wardrobe?

It sounds like Katie wants to be remembered as Couric. We'll see what happens.

The one where you kick the ball, but can't touch it

2006-07-17T11:07:00.000-04:00

Okay. I get it now.

After a month of World Cup madness, I finally get why people love this game the world over.

So help me, I even watched a DC United game on TV a few days ago (Turns out the undisclosed location has a bit of cable). After all those years of seeing their posters on the Metro during summer vacation.

And good news, since we'll soon be in the land of futbol.

Law School Forum

2006-07-17T09:37:00.000-04:00

Pretty intense. Lots of fresh-out-of-college types with no idea how to dress. Guys in cargo shorts and polos, girls in tank tops. Times like these when we realize just how dumb we used to be.

K was sick the whole time, but carried herself well. I mapped out the room so we could hit all the schools she was interested in. Bang, boom, zoom. And a good thing too, since she ran out of steam suddenly and we had to leave earlier than expected.

Good talk with the folks at Wisconsin, and we loved Madison when we visited on our honeymoon. She's out of their league, LSAT wise, but she really was impressed by all their programs and the people at the table.

Hit all the NC schools, Chapel Hill, Duke and Wake. All good. UC Davis has childcare for law students -- not that I'm sayin', I'm just sayin'. U Penn is top 10 and in a big urban area, good clinics and relationship with community. I think they have housing options too. Too many brochures all around. Gonna have to take time to read up on all of them.

And Harvard. I mean, you can't not apply when you're K. It would violate the laws of nature, or something.

Where, O where is the #61 Bus?

2006-07-13T15:56:00.000-04:00

K is stranded in Charles Village waiting for a bus. And it's about to rain.

The bus was supposed to arrive at her stop at about 3:20, she called me at 3:30 to vent, and the bus still hadn't shown up by 3:40 when she hung up.

Oh, and she has a tutoring appointment at 3:30. Or had.

So the MTA may have just cost us quite a bit of money.

And she's had to deal with a particularly rude driver more than once on this route, when she's actually able to catch the bus.

The #61 bus is one of those lines the MTA wants to terminate. They say there aren't enough passengers to justify running it. Is it possible there aren't enough passengers because of the terrible service? After all, the bus only runs about every 20 to 30 minutes, except during rush hour, and it can't even stick to that already inconvenient schedule.

It's almost as if the MTA wants to alienate riders and potential riders so they can shut it down. It's really too bad, because the buses are actually nice enough once you get on.

Well, I guess it won't be our problem for much longer ...

Watching the World Cup in Little Italy.

2006-07-09T22:05:00.000-04:00

"Yeah, baby. We already got the flag up and everything!"

And we were lucky to get reservations at Ciao Bella to see the Cup, since the trickle of people became a torrent just before the game began. K and I felt like impostors, a pollack and an Irish-English hybrid with just a smidgen of (gasp!) French Canadian in her blood. Fortunately, no one asked to see our papers, and we had our own Italian American along to vouch for us.

Fact is, most folks there probably don't speak a lick of Italian beyond what they learned on The Sopranos, although we did have a real, honest-to-god Italian couple sitting at the table in front of us. And were they happy when that last Penalty Kick flew in. Most folks there seemed happy to be there, but a few guys, one already sporting a black eye, kept shouting at the French players.

The whole place erupted in cheers and ecstatic shouting, flags flew into the air from bags and purses, and we got the hell out before anything could happen. Not that anything did. As soon as we hit the street, a couple of guys on a Vespa sped past, honking their horn and waving a big Italian tricolor. Horns honked, people cheered in the streets. High fives for all, whether real Italian or just Italian for a day.

No better place in the US to watch Italy beat France, except maybe Boston or New York. But hey, we finally found something to like about Baltimore.

As for me, it was great to finally pick the right team. After a month of watching more soccer than I've ever watched before, of sitting helpless as the US, Polish and Mexican teams all went down in flames, finally that GOOOOOOOAAAAAAALLLLLL!!!!! went in the right net. And it doesn't hurt the US team that they actually managed to keep the eventual World Cup winners to a tie.

So, you mean I have to wait another 4 years for more?

Viva Italia!

2006-07-06T09:24:00.000-04:00

I'm not one of those Freedom Fries types, the kind who boycotted all things Francophile after Chirac opposed the Iraq war. In fact, not only were the French right ot oppose the war, but I'd love to visit Paris one day. It is one of the centers of Western culture, after all.

But I still wanted them to lose yesterday. I mean, seriously. The French annoy me. They think of themselves as the pinnacle of Western Civilization, just like we do. Yeah, thanks for the help during the Revolution and all, and for designing Washington, DC. But seriously. the attitude is a little much.

Of course, the Italians probably think they're better than us too. But they aren't such jerks about it.

So, viva Italia. Word.

Lime Time in Baltimore

2006-07-05T11:58:00.000-04:00

Check out Lime in "Lower Federal Hill" (formerly Locust Point). Tiny place, and the lime-green decor can get a little old, but never been to a place where they bring out free tequila shots in place of chips and salsa. It's basically a bar with limited table seating. The wide selection of tequilas makes it hard to choose, but the margaritas are excellent -- or so K says. Danged designated-driverness.

We had second thoughts when we saw the tiny menu, about the size of the bar itself, had no vegetarian entrees. But the waitress cheerfully announced that we could have non-meat versions of the quesadilla and burrito. The tiny kitchen, essentially the back bar, had us a little worried we were about to re-hash our Tomate experience in Barcelona, where the kitchen was a microwave behind a partition near the cash register.

But surprise! The food was excellent. Probably the best Mexican food we've had in Baltimore since Blue Agave went to shit. Although, that's not a fair comparison, since Blue Agave at its peak served a kind of gourmet Mexican food. Lime makes no pretenses in that direction. And I just remembered the good food at Arcos in Upper Fell's Point, or whatever they're calling it nowadays. Either way, Lime's food was shockingly good.

The only real quibble is that our waitress just ... disappeared for a while. Not that we were in a hurry, and it was certainly better than a hovering waitress who won't leave you alone. But, we kinda like to pay when we want to pay. Y'know?

Post-Fourth Ruminations

2006-07-05T09:33:00.000-04:00

The lack of a computer over the last 5 days of vacation put this blog to a griding halt, and now I'm back at work, so this will just be a quick blast of commentary for my own sake more than yours.

Supposedly, Sam Walton's wife told him years ago to never open a store in a big city. She couldn't stand the idea of living in a town of more than 10,000 people -- at the most. I've come to realize than I possess the opposite desire. The idea of living in a tiny little town, or spending more than a few days in one, creates a creeping sense of dread and impending boredom in me. Of course, having friends nearby helps. And I guess I can see the alure to some folks, but as for me, I think I'd prefer never to live in a city smaller than Asheville. About 74,000 people, I think. No wonder I hate Wal-Mart.

Baltimore's public transit sucks. I mean, really. And this is from a guy who avidly supports transit. The buses run 40 minutes apart, the light rail closes up shop far too early, and the Web site is absolutely terrible and uninformative.

Went to the Roland Park 4th of July parade. Got there a little late and found the grandstand empty while John Phillip Souza blasted from the loud speakers. The parade had already moved one, looking as if the rich white folks had finally decided to take back the streets in a lolling blaze of red white and blue glory. The mass of children, dogs, bikes, small cars and stollers wound down the Avenue to one of the churches, where bomb pops and water bottles were handed out for free, like a bunch of America-hating socialists. I have never done drugs in my life, but if ever there was a time when chemicals could have enhanced an event ... at elast there was a dog wearing a flag bandana.

Post-Interstate: The next 50 years

2006-06-29T10:10:00.000-04:00

As we commemorate the founding of our Interstate Freeway system, it's time to look to the future.

For all intents and purposes, the Freeway system is finished. A few spurs and beltways are under construction, but all the original freeway routes are complete. Other than widening some roads and general maintenance, the greatest public peacetime construction project in the history of the United States is done. Now what?

As our urban freeways clog up with traffic, air pollution increases and oil prices become more unstable, it's time to do for public transit what we did for cars 50 years ago. The federal government threw money at freeways, providing 90% of construction costs for each project. Meanwhile, cities and states have to fight tooth and nail to get, maybe, 50% federal funding for transit projects. Washington love spending money, so let's at least throw some in the right direction.

America needs a high-speed interstate rail system to connect our major cities. And each state would benefit greatly from intercity and regional rail systems to take the pressure off their crowded roads. Most of us only have one way to move. Our public transit systems are underfunded, and our communities are built in a way that discourages walking or using transit. By supporting transit today in the same way the government supported highways 50 years ago, we can give all Americans a real choice in how to get around.

And at the same time, we can still improve the freeway system. Too many neighborhoods, especially poor black ones, were devastated to build freeways. These roads cut through our cities like great asphalt scars. Wherever possible, we need to bury these roads and rebuild the urban fabric.

Some freeways run below street level in cities, such as portions of I-83 in Baltimore, and can be covered up, or "capped." New development can then be built over them. Essentially a tunnel after the fact. Others, when feasible, ought to be re-routed through tunnels to free up land above for urban redevelopment.

In this way, we can have the best of both worlds. A freway system admired the world over, and a public transit system of equal merit.

Ghana defeats Brazil in Amazing Upset!

2006-06-27T15:52:00.000-04:00

Yeah.

Anyway.

I don't know much about soccer, but that seemed a wee bit like a lopsided match-up. I mean, I was pulling for Ghana.

Not to win. No, no. I may be an American, but I know Brazil is the powerhouse. But, I mean, I kinda hoped they might score, y'know ... one goal.

But, being at work, I didn't get to actually see the game, except for the last few minutes at the Comcast kisosk at the Mall. So, for all I know, they did their darndest.

Oh well.