Category: life

Road Trip

This Thanksgiving, in an effort to save some cash on expensive plane tickets and dog boarding, we decided to rent a car and drive to New England. My love for a good road trip has never dimmed and so of course I was up for it. We even convinced Susan, Lauren’s sister, to fly down here from New York and drive back up there with us. It was all Susan’s idea, and honestly with the exception of me and few other people, no one could understand why she would want to do this. My philosophy was, the more the merrier, and I was glad that she had suggested it. Plus we never get to see her and so even if our time together was crammed in a Dodge Caliber with dog in tow it was time well spent. I’m not sure if she felt that way at the end of the trip but it’s the thought that counts.

We left Atlanta early Tuesday morning and set off for Lambetville, NJ to stay with Lauren’s dad in his apartment there. We made decent time and the back seat (with the dog) of the Dodge turned out to be a real hit, everyone fell asleep when seated there. We arrived in Lamberville around 8:30, 14.5 short hours after we left Atlanta.

Lambertville is a hip little town situated right on the Delaware across from New Hope, Pennsylvania. Lauren and I made it out for a walk along the river in the morning before leaving. From there we headed to Hampton, CT to stay on the farm with Lauren’s mom and Mack. Here we spent our Thanksgiving before heading out on Friday to Newport to spend time with family there. By Saturday our short trip had come to end and it was time to pack up the car and hit the road once again. We were not sure where we were going to stop or stay on Saturday night but we set off just the same. We pondered going to DC to stay with friends and head down 95 but changed our minds somewhere in Virginia. Then we started thinking about finding a dog-friendly hotel in Charlotte but again changed our minds.

Ultimately we trudged through and beat the Sunday traffic by arriving at our house in the middle of the night on Saturday. By the end of it we had added 2,318 miles to the Caliber and see three generations of two sides of Lauren’s family. We’d also eaten more than our fair share and paid our first visit to Lauren’s dad’s new house. In the process we managed to save over $1000 compared to flying and boarding the dog. Now we’re trying to decide whether or not to do it again (to Michigan) in December.

For the Birds

In this age of the internet, most of us are constantly turning to the internet for answers. In that search you are likely to come across multiple sites that provide access to the same type of information, and so the question becomes which one gives me the most accurate information and which are the easiest to use. The latter is a question of particular interest to me. New tools are always being developed to help the user work with the interface to find what their looking for and do so with efficiency.

This is most obvious in looking at the banners and sidebars that act like tables of contents for websites. One of the most useless tools that websites employ must be the sitemap. An example of web design navigation success are breadcrumbs that help you see where you’ve come from or the departments under which the information you are viewing fall.
Alternatively some webpages are designed specifically for getting people to the information they want when they have relatively little to go on. Our recent car search (which ended at a 2003 Jetta) had us trying out a few such web tools that allow you to customize your search by style, number of doors, power accessories, etc. All of these options are fairly familiar to all of us. Not many people have trouble telling you how many doors are on a car. However, in other situations these defining characteristics are not so clear.

We found ourselves in one such situation recently when while playing bocce ball in the back yard we saw an odd bird hopping around back there. Now, imagine going to a site like the used car site and entering wing style. That’s when we came across whatbird.com. This site had a very helpful multistage selection search feature that helped us to finally identify our newest wildlife as the American Woodcock. You can choose from a number of options including call type and there are examples and pictures to help you make your selections. When Matt and I came in from the game I could only describe the bird as a chipmunk with wings. As you could imagine my description was not too helpful in identifying the bird, but thanks to the ingenuity of the tool we succeeded. It turned what felt like ignorance into knowledge.

If you have a web tool that you love please share it.

American Woodcock

Where Accidents = Crashes

The first gas-powered automobile was built in 1885 and just 11 years later the first fatal traffic accident occurred in London (during a demonstration drive). Today the World Health Organization predicts that by 2020 traffic accidents will be the world’s 3rd leading cause of disability and death.

In professional speak no one uses the term accident to refer to traffic incidents. Instead the word crash is used to talk about something that is called an accident by everyone else. Well Saturday night we had a crash. To no fault of our own (I don’t like this phrase) we found ourselves in the unenviable position of explaining our situation to a police officer responding to a 911 call. It’s weird how in almost all of my traffic experiences (both tickets and accidents, I mean crashes) I can remember the music that was playing. In high-school I rear-ended someone on the way home from work in Milford listening to the recently release Bone Thugs Art of War double disk. Once I got a ticket for speeding on Telegraph while rocking out to Madonna.

Saturday, we stumbled upon one of the new Kanye tracks as we left Atlantic Station and traveled east on 16th (blue) to get back on to 85S and head home. Then all of a sudden I think I heard Lauren say something and I looked up and to my left to see headlights “coming right for us.” The driver was traveling noticeably fast and quite obviously outside the intended route as he crossed over the median and into the side of our car (red). Both of us were thrown to our right and our car quickly came to a stop. I hopped out quickly after looking back to see where the car had gone. I thought for sure that this guy was drunk out of his mind and about to make a run for it. I wanted to get the plate number and was already on with 911 when I got out.

Both Lauren and I were ok, and the guy did stop his car and remained at the scene. He was completely sober and driving a newish Nissan (Sentra maybe?). He was pretty upset about the whole thing, not with us, of course but was pissed off at his own poor judgment. I’ve been there before and it is not fun. Once the cops showed up we pushed our car to the side of the road and waited for what is casually called (by everyone who does not own your car) a ‘wrecker’.

Now we’re waiting to see what the insurance company decides to do with the car and in the meantime driving around in a 2008 Dodge Nitro (Hummer lite). Sty tuned to find out more. We’re both doing fine.

The Flow

One of the first things I ever made for Lauren was a model of a bacteriophage. I took a large bolt for the tail and then soldered together legs and the head (I think it’s an icosahedron). I didn’t know much about public health but knew she had a biology background and this structure was the one thing I remembered from biology. I spent a few hours in my parents basement assembling it amidst some questioning and odd glances. She says she still has it packed away in some boxes at her mom’s.

Later I dabbled in furniture, and again made Lauren a piece as a gift. I remember spending hours here and there over the course of weeks on these pieces. Searching for the right fabric, talking to people about how to do things, which tools to use; muddling my way through, but enjoying it the whole time. Compare this feeling top the one I get while doing an obligated task, cutting the grass for example. My mind wanders to what I can do next or dwells on a distaste for the task I am faced with. This Monday as I was cutting the grass and listening to This American Life on my iPod, I was delighted to hear someone talk about this state where time seems to stand still as you focus on your craft.

It turns out that there is a psychological term for this; the flow. It was termed by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi. It’s a state that I can definitely recall entering but have not tried to formalize in my head. It’s satisfying to hear the scientific recognition of something that is so enjoyable. The radio story poses the question of whether this feeling is lost once the task you enjoy so much becomes your job. I highly suggest you give it a listen. The link is at the end of this post and it’s the third act of the show.

I’ll leave you with the product of the last time I think Lauren stepped into the flow.
The Flow
This American Life: Meet the Pros

Kimsey Creek, Rabun Gap, Tilt and Steripen

I’m having trouble writing, if at all eloquently, about my experiences lately but I thought I’d briefly describe this weekend.

This weekend was a whirlwind trip up to northern Georgia that included gourmet camping food, hours of puzzle work and introductions to many new friends (including one magic pen). Without classes on Fridays and a classless Monday and Tuesday thanks to fall break, I took off midday for Rabun Gap and Sam’s cabin in the woods. It was a pleasant surprise to head north to a cabin and for once end up in a home. It includes all the amenities of the rentals and is rather spacious but is more welcoming and has much more personality than cookie cutter rentals. The walls are decorated with art from around the world and are not the generic ‘mountain’ motif that I’ve come to expect from north Georgia cabins. It was also nice to spend some time working on a jigsaw puzzle (an memorable family habit of mine).

We stayed up late and started to pack and plan for our hike and camp the next day. Everyone played a part in making it a great camping trip. Hats off to Rupesh for finding the spot and the route. Eight of us set off to Standing Indian Campground in North Carolina and started on a 6 mile hike into our site somewhere on the Appalachian Trail and atop a mountain. Marcus prepared a lot of food, including a delicious salmon risotto and a wonderful herbed egg biscuit with brie. Rishi carried a two liter of ginger ale all the way to the top. Sam got us all together and managed macaroni and cheese without milk or butter. Nick and Audrey somehow strapped a tent onto a pack and remembered chlorine tablets.

Julia impressed me the most when she revealed her magic water sterilizing pen and produced clean water for us all. The product is called Steripen and it produces UV light that kills bacteria and other organisms in water that you can collect from streams. Lauren says it’s a SkyMall type of thing, but I would very seriously consider purchasing this. We’re in the middle of a drought here and water wasn’t flowing as it normally does which gave Rupe’s pump a few problems but Steripen produced liter after liter of clean water without trouble. It worked for her in Ethiopia and it worked again in North Carolina.

In any event, our loop was completed by another six mile hike back to the parking lot. Where an ice cold Tilt awaited us. It was a beautiful weekend. Good times, good weather, the leaves starting to turn, and good people. Mali even made it along for her second ever camping trip and managed to scare the crap out of several outsiders as well as several members of our group. Enjoy the photos and next time, Lauren, you have to come along.

http://picasaweb.google.com/s/c/bin/slideshow.swf

Steripen
where we went
Tilt

Water

I did not originally want to post about this, even though Lauren passed it along with the message “put it on your blog.” However, in class today while discussing the affect of society/culture on the idea of ‘necessities’ the statement was made that even if we (public health do-gooders ie. World Health Organization) wanted to put a (one) glass of clean water in front of every person on earth, we couldn’t do it. Not even for one day, let along daily. We’re not in a position to ready it, prep it, distribute it; we’re not even closer than some others. So who is the closest to being able to perform such a task? Probably, Coca-Cola, makers of what one professor (the same who made this point) refers to as a candy bar in a bottle.

Interesting, but it says nothing about what I didn’t want to show on here…

Today it came to my attention that Stone Mountain (a nearby rock formation/outdoor park/laser show venue/Confederate Mount Rushmore) is going to be offering a snow-covered winter wonderland to Atlanta locals, complete with real snow. So, during the worst drought on record in Georgia, a snow-making machine will use 38 gallons of water a minute from the local piped water supply. They’ve decided to use the municipal water instead of water from the park’s lake, to ensure snow of blinding white purity. Also, it makes very little (thermal) sense to put such an event in November. Perhaps they expect less rain and a better turn out with slightly warmer weather than in February, but I shake when I try to justify it.

In Vietnam, I attended something similar that was part of a large park. It was housed in a warehouse and it was complete with ice sculptures. They provided coats for people upon entry and gave people an opportunity to throw their first (and probably only) snowball ever. You would exit into the balmy 90 degree heat with the feeling that what you had just experienced was a bit less fun than all the effort was worth.

This morning, after reading an article about the Stone Mountain situation in the local paper I found out that Coca-Cola is putting it on. It appeared that they had already begun snow production and that the exhibit was not meant to open until November. That seems like a lot of water. However, the article was updated at 3:00 today after the park and Coke agreed to halt the snow production and the attraction due to significant criticism.

It seems the most twisted of ironies that a company that would employ such disregard for environmental circumstances for a promotional stunt employs the same poster-endangered species as the climate change activists.

The Article
Stone Mountain

Thursday
<a href="
http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/living/stories/2007/10/04/snow_1004b_2DOT.html&#8221; target=”_blank”>The Follow-up Article

Libraries

Though the libraries don’t really move they do pop up around the city in new locations. This is another great idea that has been promulgated in Bogotá: that of the (not sure what to call it) book stand. In an effort to promote literacy and reading among citizens the city has designed and operates mobile libraries. I only passed a couple of these but they were intriguing. This one was at the National University, not a place I would expect you need another library or would be looking to improve literacy. I knew that they had invested a lot of money and architectural knowledge in new library buildings. Penalosa, especially, sees these as public/shared space where people can come together and equity is improved.

They’ve also combined the library with the park, once again emphasizing this focus on public space and combining it with their literacy objectives. The sign reads “A stop for books, for parks.” The yellow panels open up when an attendant is there and there are books in there. It all works through the city library system so if you have a card issued at the main library you can get books from any of the stands, Gratis! (Free!). Also, not sure if you can return them anywhere or if you have to bring them back to the same stand. Colombian commenters, help me out here.

I like this idea and everytime I think about libraries I say to myself (aloud) “that’s so cool, you can just go there and get books for free, what a great idea.” But then I never go and get books. I look at material on the internet, download articles, or buy a magazine. That’s not even mentioning all the reading for school I have and never get to. So…. would this idea work here in the US, not to increase literacy but just to get people to pick up books more, which I guess is ‘increasing literacy’?

Lost

Today I had the unfortunate experience of reliving a childhood horror as an adult. I got lost. Of course we’ve all been lost at some point, even in our adults lives: trying to find the way to a remote location on some mountain roads, or renting a car on a business trip. It’s also often a good way to see a new place, just go get a little lost and walk around. Usually this does not cause too much panic and is easily resolved. Even a wrong turn to what seems like a bad part of town is pretty easy to get out of. Now we’re mobile and well connected. We carry cell phones that memorize numbers for us, gps that tells us where to go. Seldom do we feel that ‘lost’ feeling.

My memories of being lost take me directly to K-Mart. I’m not even sure if it ever really happened or if it was at K-Mart but I imagine having to go to someone that works there or a desk and ask them to page my mother. And I am probably crying. After that I am never really sure how I am received. For some reason, half of my fear of being lost is trying to explain how it all happened to the people who are (possibly) looking for you. Luckily, everything usually turns out ok but I can’t help but think that I did something wrong. What I realized today is that this is especially true as an adult.

Perhaps it’s because I should be able to take care of myself, resolve situations on my own, that I felt so foolish when it happened today. For the last two days I have been visiting parks all over the city to take photos for my work here. I have a taxi driver who drives from place to place, but is not completely familiar with where we’re going. Today I set off into a large park and asked him to meet me in-between two other parks three blocks away. I became disoriented as I walked around the park taking photos. One edge of the park twisted to the match contours of a river, the other filled some empty space in-between blocks.

I choose the meeting spot because it would be easy to recognize as the two parks were directly across the street from each other. As I left the big park and headed a couple blocks to what I thought was west I encountered some trouble finding my destination. Here I began to realize what was going to happen should I fail to find the parks. Soon, I was lost trying to figure out how to use the names of the parks I was heading for and the one number I knew to find my driver. I found several parks but not the two I was looking for as I walked back and forth between where I expected the parks and where I last saw someone I knew; stopping along the way to try and call the number. After three attempts I was able to get someone and get another number for my boss, who hired the driver. After more walking, contemplating my location and the whereabouts of my driver and pondering curiously what was being done by others involved, I eventually reached my boss on the phone. My plan was to ask her for the driver’s number but she had already talked to him, called my roommate, was driving around looking for me and (may have) called the police. Finally I met the driver back where he had dropped me off.

Walking around and searching for what may have been two hours, I never felt scared or even lost. The whole time I knew where I was in relation to where I started, I knew I could get home if it got dark, I just didn’t know where the parks were or how to call off the manhunt. The most anxious part of the experience was being found. I braced myself for a good yelling at. It never really came, but for a moment I sensed that the driver wanted to lay into me. I’m sure he (Pedro) was glad to find me and felt some relief but also I think it’s easy for people to react with anger after they’ve spent so much energy worrying about someone and everything turns out ok. Especially for something sa stupid as this. Certainly, I feel horrible for making everyone worry and panic a bit. And this is the worst part of getting lost. I’ve tried to apologize for troubling everyone but still I feel really guilty and completely incompetent. This is the part that K-Mart and today have and that a stroll around a new place doesn’t. You’re lost to others. My apologies again. If I could do it all over again (Tuesday), I’d have Perdo wait where he let me out.

Pet Peeve


I am unable to completely form the reasons why but one thing in particular has recently been getting on my nerves to such a level that I felt I must get it off my chest. It’s people brushing their teeth at work. It may be that I just want some privacy with this one particular bathroom here at the University. My sense of entitlement may also be heightened due to the fact that this particular bathroom comes with a key so that access is limited to faculty and gringos (apparently). Equally perplexing is my inability to remove myself from situations. Why can I not just turn around and leave the bathroom when I see the tube of toothpaste sitting next to the sink? Well, you know what they say.

I’m sure, though, that the people doing the teeth-brushing are thinking the same thing perhaps to an even greater degree of frustration, however, I doubt any of them have gone so far as to publish their displeasure on the world wide web. But who wants someone intruding on their oral hygiene regimen to do their own dirty business. Their own pride and expectations for privacy, as professors (a position of some distinction), must be even more sensitive to the interference of a ‘younger’ extranjero who may or may not be struggling with the gastronomic variations he’s being exposed to. All this while engaging in the intimate act of brushing ones teeth.

I can grasp the reasons for bringing the toothbrush to work and getting that done in the middle of the day. That it is such a completely innocent and respectable action is the reason I do not completely understand my disposition to the practice. So, I am thinking that sometime this week I am going to flip my own script and brush my teeth at work. I will let you know how it goes.

Forbes Article on Such Etiquette