I suppose I am quite a romantic, in that I tend to glorify the things that I love. Fall is one of them. The leaves here in Virginia are spectacular, as are the fall colors in Michigan. The beautiful part about the Michigan fall is the contrast between the vibrant autumnal burst of festive colors and the verdant grass lands. The Virginia fall is as colorful as the one I had experienced in Michigan but it does not have the desired effect due to the lack of a green background, although the blue skies are spectacular enough.
You can tell the weather is changing ever so slightly. The bite of the wind is such that the shivers are climbing up my spine early in the morning. The breeze that confronts me as I step out is ever so much more bracing than the same breeze two weeks ago. The humidity has dropped noticeably too, I am no longer covered in sweat whenever I step out of doors.
The smell of autumn is become more noticeable, that scent of cold earth and dead leaves combined with the smell of colder weather to remind me that my favorite time of the year is here, for however fleeting a moment. Of course, cocommittant with the weather are the holidays. Contrary to most, I much prefer Thanksgiving, the forgotten holiday. The holiday that is between Halloween and Christmas, the placeholder holiday. I love it because it comes in the middle of the autumn and it celebrates the harvest, a quaint and agrarian thought, one that we in our industrial age dominant thinking don't appreciate as much as we should.
The thought of giving thanks to nature for the bounty in which we participate comes straight from the heart and not from Wall Street. It is also in line with my Asian roots, of giving thanks to the land for its fertility. To say nothing of roast turkey, giblet gravy, mashed potatoes, and pumpkin pies.
Sunday, October 28, 2007
Sunday, October 14, 2007
Life and Enjoyment
I had about as good a day as anyone is allowed to have. Of course this pretty much depends on what you want and what your interests are. In my old age, I have begun taking to sitting in silence, not quite meditating but just enjoying the silence and solitude very much.
The day started with a late rising. 8:30. A quick shower and a trip to Starbucks for the elixir of the body and mind: coffee and the Sunday New York Times. I sat there and read most of the paper.
I went book shopping, bought nothing. I went grocery shopping, bought a lot. I roamed the landscape of Blacksburg and I went to Boudreaux's for brunch, a wise choice.
I returned to the rental and I read, all afternoon. Sat in the crisp sunshine on the deck and I read and read.
As a side note, if you ever get a chance to read Calvin Trillin's celebratory essay of his wife's life, do it. It is no longer than an extended essay but it is so very touching and oh so very Trillin. This is what love is about. This is one of the many ways that an ideal relationship should be.
It has been a while since I spent an afternoon doing nothing but read. It was enjoyable, surrounded by silence and the sounds of the outdoors. The sun was warm enough to keep me warm while there were enough crispness to the fall day to keep the autumnal smells and distinction fresh in my mind. It was a very good day.
The day started with a late rising. 8:30. A quick shower and a trip to Starbucks for the elixir of the body and mind: coffee and the Sunday New York Times. I sat there and read most of the paper.
I went book shopping, bought nothing. I went grocery shopping, bought a lot. I roamed the landscape of Blacksburg and I went to Boudreaux's for brunch, a wise choice.
I returned to the rental and I read, all afternoon. Sat in the crisp sunshine on the deck and I read and read.
As a side note, if you ever get a chance to read Calvin Trillin's celebratory essay of his wife's life, do it. It is no longer than an extended essay but it is so very touching and oh so very Trillin. This is what love is about. This is one of the many ways that an ideal relationship should be.
It has been a while since I spent an afternoon doing nothing but read. It was enjoyable, surrounded by silence and the sounds of the outdoors. The sun was warm enough to keep me warm while there were enough crispness to the fall day to keep the autumnal smells and distinction fresh in my mind. It was a very good day.
Saturday, October 13, 2007
The more things change, the more they stay the same
Here I was, enjoying a slight respite of froied protabella mushrooms and shrimp risotto at Backstreets, a remarkably good Italian restaurant in Blacksburg when i inadvertently get drawn into the conversations of the next table. Not hard since there was a contingent engineering students taking their nutrition, as I was. How did I know they were engineering students, seeing as I am an engineer, the familiarity factor had a lot to do with it. Besides that of course, there is the difficult to conceal signs: for one thing, there was only one girl amongst a seas of pimply faced boys. The eager waves of inane conversations lapping at the shores of my patience. It seems that engineers have a difficult making themselves understood while dealing with other more social lifeforms, but while they are with their own they tend to open up and talk about...absolutely nothing. It seems geeks don't change through the ages, I know, I are one.
There was a leader. The others let him do all the talking since they don't want to call attention to themselves. He sat there upon his temporary throne, chattering away about everything and nothing, dispensing mirth and frivolity, expounding on complex and important issues, tell ribald, as ribald a story as maladjusted virgins can tell. And at the same time reinforcing his opinion that he is by the wittiest and clever chap that there had ever lived.
The others added color to his comments when ever their is the slimmest crack in the wall to wall sound of innocuousness. The topics went from music, or what passes for music in geekdom. Monty Python, of course, that is de rigeur for engineers. South Park, the Simpsons, speed metal, collegiate rivalry, and numerous other things I didn't catch. It is good to see that geekdom is happily preserved for posterity. I can rest easy knowing that the preoccupation with stuff no one else cares about persists in the engineer's world. How truly frightening.
There was a leader. The others let him do all the talking since they don't want to call attention to themselves. He sat there upon his temporary throne, chattering away about everything and nothing, dispensing mirth and frivolity, expounding on complex and important issues, tell ribald, as ribald a story as maladjusted virgins can tell. And at the same time reinforcing his opinion that he is by the wittiest and clever chap that there had ever lived.
The others added color to his comments when ever their is the slimmest crack in the wall to wall sound of innocuousness. The topics went from music, or what passes for music in geekdom. Monty Python, of course, that is de rigeur for engineers. South Park, the Simpsons, speed metal, collegiate rivalry, and numerous other things I didn't catch. It is good to see that geekdom is happily preserved for posterity. I can rest easy knowing that the preoccupation with stuff no one else cares about persists in the engineer's world. How truly frightening.
Tuesday, October 2, 2007
Back "Home" Once again
Well, the rental house does seem more like home now, although none of the furniture is mine. I have come to know Blacksburg pretty well. Not a real task, the town is not all that large. The people here are friendly enough. It does seem a little cult like, with all the Hokie loyalty. i don't mind it but I have not seen anything resembling this kind of obsession with the school and symbol, ever. And I went to the U of Illinois. I thought the Illini tribe was bad, they weren't anything.
I have been working here for almost two months now and I have not done much. Not much to do, my boss kind of just does his thing and never ever gives me any info. He runs off to do his own thing and keeps everyone at arms length. I also got a taste of the bureaucracy here. A bureaucracy you ask, but isn't this a startup? Hence my horror and dismay. Startups have no business having a bureaucracy. OY vay.
Mom just got back Sunday from her two weeks in Florida, she seemed to have enjoyed herself, it is always good to be home though. I guess I am too used to not being home because I found myslef enjoying the porch on this house, it overlooks the forest and it is just beautiful here, with the sunlight shining through the leaves and tree branches and the slight woodsy smell out there. Very relaxing, I am supposed to be off looking for housing or something like that, I am just enjoying life and reading. Always lots of reading and commencement of projects, lord knows when I will finish these projects.
Went on my yearly trek to the Industry Application Society Meetings. It was great. My last year as committee chair, the meeting went well and we got a lot done. Spent way too much time in meetings though. This ECCE meeting is going toend up killing me I think.
I have been working here for almost two months now and I have not done much. Not much to do, my boss kind of just does his thing and never ever gives me any info. He runs off to do his own thing and keeps everyone at arms length. I also got a taste of the bureaucracy here. A bureaucracy you ask, but isn't this a startup? Hence my horror and dismay. Startups have no business having a bureaucracy. OY vay.
Mom just got back Sunday from her two weeks in Florida, she seemed to have enjoyed herself, it is always good to be home though. I guess I am too used to not being home because I found myslef enjoying the porch on this house, it overlooks the forest and it is just beautiful here, with the sunlight shining through the leaves and tree branches and the slight woodsy smell out there. Very relaxing, I am supposed to be off looking for housing or something like that, I am just enjoying life and reading. Always lots of reading and commencement of projects, lord knows when I will finish these projects.
Went on my yearly trek to the Industry Application Society Meetings. It was great. My last year as committee chair, the meeting went well and we got a lot done. Spent way too much time in meetings though. This ECCE meeting is going toend up killing me I think.
Saturday, September 22, 2007
In New Orleans
My first visit to the Crescent City post Katrina. I don't know what I was expecting but everything seemed fresh or different to me. The airport seemsd less crowded, less hectic. Lots of unused terminals and gates and the chaos that is usually de rigeur at most airports seem to be missing. The airport looked the same though, the shrubs were trimmed and neat and the parking lots were clean and well kept. Like I said, I didn't know what I was expecting.
The trip into town was uneventful. You can see where the neighborhoods have been rebuilt versus those that are still boarded up. The canals and pipes that line the highway have always been there i supposed, but I never noticed them before.
I am staying at the Canal Street Sheraton, the Marriott where I stayed for the AVCA convention a few years ago is right across the street, parts of the Marriott are still boardedup. Harrahs an dthe other Casinos are up and running though.
I started my third visit here with lunch. I had gone on Chowhound and asked for recommendations for places that are open post Katrina and got a slew of recs. I went to Coops for some cajun fare, fried oysters, gumbo, shrimp creole, jambalaya, and red beans and rice. A great lunch. After lunch I went strolling through the French quarter at a more leisurely pace. Decatur street is a major tourist trap, Cafe Du Monde and Jackson Square are both on it. I saw most of it on my way to Coops. It seemed funny to me how the national chains seem to congregate about Canal street and Poydras. House of Blues, Hooters, the major casinos are all right here, in fact the further east you push the more authentic the restaurants seem to be.
I took a walk through Jackson Square, it was a lovely day, a tad humid, but I am in New Orleans so I was prepared for it. The non-tourist focused places were cute, charming, and genuine. They weren't priced that way though. The walk was relaxing and the ethos and rhythm of life in the south seem to envelope me in a warm embrace, kind of welcoming me back to the south. The pace is relaxed because it is just too dang hot to worry about things. I walked along for a few hours and after being thoroughly relaxed, I went back to the hotel to take a nap.
Dinner was at Cochon, the review is on Chowhounds. No need to duplicate myself.
__________________________________________________________________
Why is it that when people talk about people, they always seem to marvel at how some one is able to be him self and never change. The comment is always about how even years after the friendship begins, so-so is the same man as when he was a boy. Isn't stunted growth, emotional or intellectual, necessarily a very bad sign for a person. It just reinforces the mindset of this society, where change or personal growth is viewed with disdain and suspicion. You would want change, especially when comparing the boy with the man. Just a curious observation.
The trip into town was uneventful. You can see where the neighborhoods have been rebuilt versus those that are still boarded up. The canals and pipes that line the highway have always been there i supposed, but I never noticed them before.
I am staying at the Canal Street Sheraton, the Marriott where I stayed for the AVCA convention a few years ago is right across the street, parts of the Marriott are still boardedup. Harrahs an dthe other Casinos are up and running though.
I started my third visit here with lunch. I had gone on Chowhound and asked for recommendations for places that are open post Katrina and got a slew of recs. I went to Coops for some cajun fare, fried oysters, gumbo, shrimp creole, jambalaya, and red beans and rice. A great lunch. After lunch I went strolling through the French quarter at a more leisurely pace. Decatur street is a major tourist trap, Cafe Du Monde and Jackson Square are both on it. I saw most of it on my way to Coops. It seemed funny to me how the national chains seem to congregate about Canal street and Poydras. House of Blues, Hooters, the major casinos are all right here, in fact the further east you push the more authentic the restaurants seem to be.
I took a walk through Jackson Square, it was a lovely day, a tad humid, but I am in New Orleans so I was prepared for it. The non-tourist focused places were cute, charming, and genuine. They weren't priced that way though. The walk was relaxing and the ethos and rhythm of life in the south seem to envelope me in a warm embrace, kind of welcoming me back to the south. The pace is relaxed because it is just too dang hot to worry about things. I walked along for a few hours and after being thoroughly relaxed, I went back to the hotel to take a nap.
Dinner was at Cochon, the review is on Chowhounds. No need to duplicate myself.
__________________________________________________________________
Why is it that when people talk about people, they always seem to marvel at how some one is able to be him self and never change. The comment is always about how even years after the friendship begins, so-so is the same man as when he was a boy. Isn't stunted growth, emotional or intellectual, necessarily a very bad sign for a person. It just reinforces the mindset of this society, where change or personal growth is viewed with disdain and suspicion. You would want change, especially when comparing the boy with the man. Just a curious observation.
Tuesday, September 11, 2007
Ruminations on 9/11
If there ever is a day that deserves to be somber, today is the day. Hard to believe that it has been six years since that horror filled day. The survivors and the relatives of those who had lost their lives all gathered to commemorate the day. The pains in their eyes, tears, and sobbing shoulders tells the story of the ultimate loss, of a pain that seem unsurvivable, a loss that is indescribable. The news outlets run about busily to capture the encapsulating moment, touch, or look, the one act of tenderness, grief, or confusion which - to them - neatly and tidily sums up the day. But it is to no avail, no amount of gestures can summarize the tsunami wave of emotions of the day.
Jarringly juxtoposing on this day is the testimony of General Patraeous and Ambassador Crocker at the senate chambers, swiftly and feverishly disguising an undisguisable civil war with spin. So we have on the one hand a day marked by brutal and searing pain in New York, Pennsylvania, and DC, while at the same time we have clones saving their own hides along whatever is left of the least of our presidents reputation, such as it is. God, if he exists, has usurped the Lenny Bruce sense of irony and unleashed it on this day.
Perhaps the day in 2001 is still too close to us, perhaps the facts have yet to be consumed, digested, and regurgitated. For I yearn to see and understand something profound that has thrust forward in the ensuing six years, but I look into a void. Perhaps I am looking - like the news outlets - for a summation, a piece of brilliance which, if not explain it all, can make it all seem less convoluted and wrong.
It must be good to live the life of a simple mind. Facile explanations and dogmatic recitations of shopworn and trite pronouncements roll off their memory effortlessly and fall easily into their mouths, the cognizant mind need not participate. As I sit and hear Bush, Giuliani, and Bloomberg mindlessly, numbingly recite the neocon tautologies, I get a sick and sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach, the speeches are reminiscent - so familiar are they that I can almost recite them by rote- of facist and communist dogma. I hope the resident of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue does not sleep well tonight. I hope he lays awake tonight in a pool of his own sweat, realizing with immense shame of the massively wasted opportunity and good will that he has wrought after this day six years ago. I hope he feels the pains of the many who died young and hopeful while at the beck and call of the weak and feeble leaders of our nation in service for a cause that is neither noble nor relevant to those events that happened six years ago today I doubt his all will bother him. Single celled creatures have no conscience or feelings about the lives of their fellow men. Drunk frat boys are not capable of self examination.
Jarringly juxtoposing on this day is the testimony of General Patraeous and Ambassador Crocker at the senate chambers, swiftly and feverishly disguising an undisguisable civil war with spin. So we have on the one hand a day marked by brutal and searing pain in New York, Pennsylvania, and DC, while at the same time we have clones saving their own hides along whatever is left of the least of our presidents reputation, such as it is. God, if he exists, has usurped the Lenny Bruce sense of irony and unleashed it on this day.
Perhaps the day in 2001 is still too close to us, perhaps the facts have yet to be consumed, digested, and regurgitated. For I yearn to see and understand something profound that has thrust forward in the ensuing six years, but I look into a void. Perhaps I am looking - like the news outlets - for a summation, a piece of brilliance which, if not explain it all, can make it all seem less convoluted and wrong.
It must be good to live the life of a simple mind. Facile explanations and dogmatic recitations of shopworn and trite pronouncements roll off their memory effortlessly and fall easily into their mouths, the cognizant mind need not participate. As I sit and hear Bush, Giuliani, and Bloomberg mindlessly, numbingly recite the neocon tautologies, I get a sick and sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach, the speeches are reminiscent - so familiar are they that I can almost recite them by rote- of facist and communist dogma. I hope the resident of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue does not sleep well tonight. I hope he lays awake tonight in a pool of his own sweat, realizing with immense shame of the massively wasted opportunity and good will that he has wrought after this day six years ago. I hope he feels the pains of the many who died young and hopeful while at the beck and call of the weak and feeble leaders of our nation in service for a cause that is neither noble nor relevant to those events that happened six years ago today I doubt his all will bother him. Single celled creatures have no conscience or feelings about the lives of their fellow men. Drunk frat boys are not capable of self examination.
Sunday, September 2, 2007
Back in Blacksburg
I returned to Blacksburg today. Got in at around noon and I moved into a rental house the company had rented. Partly for me and partly for the guys in DC to stay in when they come down. Its pretty nice but they only have basic cable. )&^&%&$&%(^. Anyways, guess I will get lots of reading done now.
The house itself is great, it is a split level and its amply furnished. The furnishings are a little old but it ain't my dime so what do I care. One pisser is that the house is still on the market so I am having to keep it tidy. Those of you who know me well can start snickering now. It will be challenging to say the least. Good thing is that I won't have much to mess up. I have the upstairs and the other guys, whenever they show up will have the downstairs. Another good thing is free wifi. Gotta love it.
The lab has been in a tizzy since the tools started to show up. We are in the middle of trying to put a couple of big monster machines together. Not fun, especially if you have to hauk them up the elevators. The life of a start up. Oh well.
OK, I am pooped. I'll talk to y'all later.
The house itself is great, it is a split level and its amply furnished. The furnishings are a little old but it ain't my dime so what do I care. One pisser is that the house is still on the market so I am having to keep it tidy. Those of you who know me well can start snickering now. It will be challenging to say the least. Good thing is that I won't have much to mess up. I have the upstairs and the other guys, whenever they show up will have the downstairs. Another good thing is free wifi. Gotta love it.
The lab has been in a tizzy since the tools started to show up. We are in the middle of trying to put a couple of big monster machines together. Not fun, especially if you have to hauk them up the elevators. The life of a start up. Oh well.
OK, I am pooped. I'll talk to y'all later.
Saturday, September 1, 2007
Back in Ann Arbor
Well, back in Ann Arbor for the Labor Day weekend. No knock against Blacksburg, but one very severe crimp on my style is the lack of a decent bookstore in town. There is a Barnes and Nobles, but its a Barnes and Nobles. They do have a Books a Million, hadn't gone in yet but it doesn't really get my heart racing.
First thing after I got into town was to go to Borders, not so much to buys books, I can get that on Amazon andPowells, but to be around mounds of books and to revel in the atomosphere. That is one thing Barnes and Nobles never got right. Borders did for a while, until they started to lose money. The ethos in the bookstore is often more important than the books themselves. The kind of people in there, the dawdlers, the vicarious readers, the book sniffers, the brownian motion browsers, the flutterby butterflies, and the time killers are a determining factor. The type sof books, the relative chaos of the store itself, the cloggedness of its aisles, the relative sqeekiness of the floorboards, and the level of disgust of the carpeting, all contribute to the desirability of the book shopping experience.
Even though the weather is still stinking hot here, the smell of fall is ever so slightly impinging on the heat and the humidity. You can distinctly hear the excitement over the football season. The energy is palpable. Here in Michigan the sacrificial lamb for the home opener is Appalachian State of North Carolina. A Division I-AA powerhouse. I shared a ride from the airport to home with an Appalachian State fan. A self professed redneck, this fellow and I traded tales through the half hour ride. Somehow it came out that he was staying at a hotel close to the Detroit Wayne County Airport. Why was he heading for Ann Arbor on a Friday afternoon, some of his redneck buddies were at a campus bar in Ann Arbor waiting for him to come and get drunk with them.
I couldn't help but think of him and his unseen buddies today as Apalachian State Mountaineers of Boone North Carolina upset the Big 10 powerhouse, formerly pretender to the national championship at the Big House with six seconds to go. God love the Davids of the world, the Goliaths need the humility lessons.
First thing after I got into town was to go to Borders, not so much to buys books, I can get that on Amazon andPowells, but to be around mounds of books and to revel in the atomosphere. That is one thing Barnes and Nobles never got right. Borders did for a while, until they started to lose money. The ethos in the bookstore is often more important than the books themselves. The kind of people in there, the dawdlers, the vicarious readers, the book sniffers, the brownian motion browsers, the flutterby butterflies, and the time killers are a determining factor. The type sof books, the relative chaos of the store itself, the cloggedness of its aisles, the relative sqeekiness of the floorboards, and the level of disgust of the carpeting, all contribute to the desirability of the book shopping experience.
Even though the weather is still stinking hot here, the smell of fall is ever so slightly impinging on the heat and the humidity. You can distinctly hear the excitement over the football season. The energy is palpable. Here in Michigan the sacrificial lamb for the home opener is Appalachian State of North Carolina. A Division I-AA powerhouse. I shared a ride from the airport to home with an Appalachian State fan. A self professed redneck, this fellow and I traded tales through the half hour ride. Somehow it came out that he was staying at a hotel close to the Detroit Wayne County Airport. Why was he heading for Ann Arbor on a Friday afternoon, some of his redneck buddies were at a campus bar in Ann Arbor waiting for him to come and get drunk with them.
I couldn't help but think of him and his unseen buddies today as Apalachian State Mountaineers of Boone North Carolina upset the Big 10 powerhouse, formerly pretender to the national championship at the Big House with six seconds to go. God love the Davids of the world, the Goliaths need the humility lessons.
Wednesday, August 29, 2007
OK, I'll bite
Michael Vick. OK, there, I said it.
The national media barrage is interesting isn't it. NOT!! How do you enjoy the sports press falling all over themselves attempting to defend him and then pull a 180 when it comes out that Vick had executed dogs. Then the lunatics come out of the bushes, the national pundits start to excoriate Vick about what he did, as they should. But to compare him to Hitler, to Stalin, to Mao? How about comparing him to serial rapists and and Charles Manson? I love dogs as much as the next guy but for Christ sake, you are talking about dead dogs versus dead people. If you were to put innocent anonymous people up against innocent anonymous dogs, you are saying that you would prefer the dog's life to the person's life?
This world is crazy.
_______________________________________________________________
More news stuff. Miss Teenage South Carolina. What was she thinking. OK, maybe she wasn't thinking. Poor kid. Maybe we need to give remedial thinking to beauty contestants.
The national media barrage is interesting isn't it. NOT!! How do you enjoy the sports press falling all over themselves attempting to defend him and then pull a 180 when it comes out that Vick had executed dogs. Then the lunatics come out of the bushes, the national pundits start to excoriate Vick about what he did, as they should. But to compare him to Hitler, to Stalin, to Mao? How about comparing him to serial rapists and and Charles Manson? I love dogs as much as the next guy but for Christ sake, you are talking about dead dogs versus dead people. If you were to put innocent anonymous people up against innocent anonymous dogs, you are saying that you would prefer the dog's life to the person's life?
This world is crazy.
_______________________________________________________________
More news stuff. Miss Teenage South Carolina. What was she thinking. OK, maybe she wasn't thinking. Poor kid. Maybe we need to give remedial thinking to beauty contestants.
Tuesday, August 28, 2007
Blacksburg, Virginia
So, I am now in Blacksburg Virginia, starting out on my new job. This is a startup, something I thought I was prepared for, but apparently not because everything needs to be done, we need testing, procedures, equipment, design rules, flow of information, and a million other things. This does not make me feel secure, but then again, that was the intent, to break out and do something different in motors because the old way is not working and the old ways are dying despite all of our best efforts.
To make things worse, I am not all that fond of Blacksburg. Not much Chowhounding opportunities, not a decent bookstroe around, in a college town yet. Not much Chinese culture, and its a red state. I still have confidence in the company and I need to make it all happen, which is what I had intended to do, but it keeps making me second guess my decision.
Mind you I am not about to quit, I am just going through one of my millions of moments of doubt. The work can be so good, and I guess the attraction is the promise of success, but it is so hard to predict the future. Of course not everything is negative here, there are interesting work and there are smart people I work with, and as if right now we have funding so we can do it up right.
I can hack it, I recover pretty quickly, but my poor mom keeps wanting to move somewhere and settling into her old age, meanwhile I am dragging her all over the place. Guilt, what a feeling.
To make things worse, I am not all that fond of Blacksburg. Not much Chowhounding opportunities, not a decent bookstroe around, in a college town yet. Not much Chinese culture, and its a red state. I still have confidence in the company and I need to make it all happen, which is what I had intended to do, but it keeps making me second guess my decision.
Mind you I am not about to quit, I am just going through one of my millions of moments of doubt. The work can be so good, and I guess the attraction is the promise of success, but it is so hard to predict the future. Of course not everything is negative here, there are interesting work and there are smart people I work with, and as if right now we have funding so we can do it up right.
I can hack it, I recover pretty quickly, but my poor mom keeps wanting to move somewhere and settling into her old age, meanwhile I am dragging her all over the place. Guilt, what a feeling.
Sunday, August 26, 2007
Strange thing
I went to eat at a Subway here in Blacksburg last night. They now have an interactive screen with a credit card swipe, so if the line is long you can use the touchscreen to order your subs, the first screen is a menu with all the food that they have and then you work your way down the options systematically.
On the one hand I was intrigued by the technology and the application of the technology. Ont he other hand, the concept was a little abhorent, just from a service point of view. How is it that the economy is is a headlong rush towards service and yet, less and less service is being given to the customer. Very strange.
On the one hand I was intrigued by the technology and the application of the technology. Ont he other hand, the concept was a little abhorent, just from a service point of view. How is it that the economy is is a headlong rush towards service and yet, less and less service is being given to the customer. Very strange.
Wednesday, August 22, 2007
Its a start
Have you ever had the feeling that you are just too full of words, that there is an ocean of verbiage beating against your skull like waves beating on an earthen dam, ready to disintegrate the feeble obstacle at any time. That is how I am feeling these days. I would like to articulate intelligently, smoothly and easily, but I am often thwarted by my lack of coherence and my lack of attention, the words come painfully and and slowly. Sometimes I wonder if I have ADD. Well, this is my attempt at putting this down and seeing if I can get my head screwed on straight. I am trying not to be trite and inconsequential. The writing might be a little choppy, it is as close to extemporaneous as I can allow in my type A anal retentiveness, Jack Kerouac would not be impressed, as a matter of fact, Jack may just hand me a bottle and tell me to relax.
I hope this is interesting, I will also try to be timely. The topics will be whatever attracts my attention. It might be literature, music, sports, politics, philosophy, art, or current events. I don't know what I'll talk about until I talk about it.
As for the name of the blog. My handle for the last few years has been Phaedrus. First and foremost, Phaedrus was a Roman fabulist. He was also a character in Plato's dialogues. The conversation was between Socrates and Phaedrus, involving the nature of love and of rhetoric.
My Phaedrus comes from Robert Pirsig's anti-establishment novel Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance. Phaedrus is the protagonist and Pirsig's alter ego. I loved that book, it literally changed my life and inspired my love of critical thinking and the idea of quality. It made me a lot more thoughtful and perhaps less analytical and rational as I was trained to be as an engineer.
Anyways, I named the blod Phaedrus' Mind because Phaedrus is what I aspire to and this is my mind dump.
I hope this is interesting, I will also try to be timely. The topics will be whatever attracts my attention. It might be literature, music, sports, politics, philosophy, art, or current events. I don't know what I'll talk about until I talk about it.
As for the name of the blog. My handle for the last few years has been Phaedrus. First and foremost, Phaedrus was a Roman fabulist. He was also a character in Plato's dialogues. The conversation was between Socrates and Phaedrus, involving the nature of love and of rhetoric.
My Phaedrus comes from Robert Pirsig's anti-establishment novel Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance. Phaedrus is the protagonist and Pirsig's alter ego. I loved that book, it literally changed my life and inspired my love of critical thinking and the idea of quality. It made me a lot more thoughtful and perhaps less analytical and rational as I was trained to be as an engineer.
Anyways, I named the blod Phaedrus' Mind because Phaedrus is what I aspire to and this is my mind dump.
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