Ole DC

I went to our nations capital this weekend. Turns out it was Easter, didn't plan on that but hey, that's what happens when you don't look at a calendar.

I flew. I like to fly. I think it is fun to be in the air. You can meet interesting people. The people watching is great! I like airplanes in general.
These pictures show my major annoyances with people in airports. ATTENTION PEOPLE: you will get on the airplane, please remain calm. Why after the first, "boarding for flight 1129 to wherever will begin shortly" do people jump up from their comfortable seats, cram around the ticket counter, and spill into the hallway of the terminal? This is Delta people you have a boarding zone. it is printed on your boarding pass. you won't get on the plane in a zone that is before yours. you are blocking the way for others to get buy. you are making it difficult for people to walk through the airport. why is this so hard to figure out???? The other annoyance is the giant carry-ons people bring. I know half didn't fit in the little box. Just check your damn bag, there is a big area below our seats that is designed to hold all our stuff. And then you don't have to trip people as you roll your bag through the airport!!

After I arrived bro and I went to meet some of his friends for happy hour. We went to this cool bar called Galaxy Hut. It had a hog feeder in the back that was cut so you could sit inside like a little room. Really neat place. Sorry, no pictures. I don't take pictures of bro's friends without permission, it is DC after all.

At a burger joint, BGR, they had this soda machine. It was a cooperative effort between Coke and Ferrari. It was fun.

The trees were amazing. Bro said these are magnolia trees. Maybe he's right, I don't know. They were every where. I missed the cherry blossoms.

Because it was Easter, bro suggested we go to the Easter Eve service at Georgetown. As he said, "it starts out with a bonfire and they're real live Jesuits, it's actually pretty cool." He was right, but I'm not sure if there is another service with fake dead Jesuits.
The little courtyard was pretty. The petals on the ground made it look like it had snowed pink snow.
The chapel was smaller than I was expecting. It was interesting. I'd never done the whole Catholic routine before. They actually baptized and confirmed some adults. I've always joked about Catholic services with all the stand, sit, stand, kneel, sit, stand, sit, stand, stand, kneel, sit. you get the idea. After the first sit, stand, sit, bro leaned over and said, "fight fight fight." Ever heard that, "stand up sit down fight fight fight" from some kind of cheer? Yes, at 32 and 36 we still act like we are 8 and 12 in church. We make shadow puppets, heat the candles so we can bend them, and comment about people under our breath. We haven't been struck by lightning yet, oh wait.

Easter morning we went to the Udvar-Hazy Center. It is the Air and Space Museum annex. I love walking in to this view of the SR-71. Such an impressive machine.
We also, were able to see Enterprise before it leaves for good. It looks like an orbiter but isn't. It was used as a test vehicle during the design of the Space Transportation System. It is still very impressive. Bro was surprised how big it was in person.
Here he is standing underneath the tail cone. Normally you'd see the engines but this is put on when they will ferry it to a new location. It helps reduce drag as it rides on top of the 747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft. Below is a better picture.

When I first saw an orbiter in person I was surprised how thick the camber of the wing is. I'm talking about the curve, under the flag above.
Mercury and Shuttle together. Both amazing in their own right. I'd fly either in a second if I could. If you have any questions about the pictures, ask. I tried to keep all the technical details out for my readers with a short attention span. However, I doubt you made it this far.
This is a house in bro's hood. They all look this amazing.

Team Katniss

Don't expect there not to be any spoilers in what follows.

I read The Hunger Games, Catching Fire, and Mockingjay in the course of about a week. I was sucked in, to say the least. I was really excited to see the movies once I was informed that was happening.

Really, when I finished, I was very worried the book wouldn't translate well to the silver screen. (do we still ever call it the silver screen?) You see, the book is narrated in first person. Katniss tells us the story from the future. She tells us her feelings about things. She takes time to give us backstory that influences her and explains her actions. The book does have a lot of imagery but we are told what is going on versus shown, most of the time.

Finally, once my accompaniment returned, I went to see it a week after its opening. We were both very excited and we had both read the books.

For the most part, the characters were nailed. The most glaring mistake was Haymitch. He is supposed to be a drunk. Like a major, can't function without it, drunk. He should look rough, worn, weathered, puffy face, drunk. Maybe they were trying to clean this up for the kids. But we aren't supposed to like him. He should be despised by the audience. We are to think, "this guy is the worthless sack that is supposed to help Katniss and Peeta? They'll be dead in 2 seconds."

Next problem, the pin! For God's sake the pin wasn't just some thing, it was important. It provides a connection to the mayor of district 12, it was given to Katniss by the closest thing she had to a friend that wasn't in love with her. And we learn that it is a symbol of rebellion.

Last big detail you miss in the movie? all this bread stuff. Katniss was starving. her family was starving. her dad was dead. her mom was out of her mind with grief. she was almost dead. she was digging through garbage and without hope. Then, this boy, who she doesn't know, just some boy in her school comes out of his house being beaten by his mother. Katniss knows he is in trouble for ruining bread. in district 12 you don't ruin bread. The baker's son, that has been helping for years drops bread in the oven? This kind of stuff doesn't happen. He tosses most of it to his pigs but after his mother goes inside he tosses bread toward her. he actually noticed her. the girl that was dying. the girl that was hopeless. the girl that was helpless. the girl sitting in the pouring rain waiting to die. he noticed her. and helped her. and sacrificed himself for her. This turns her entire life around. Turns her into the person that will be the Mockingjay, that will take on the Capitol and change the course of history for an entire country. All because this boy tossed her bread.

She doesn't know this immediately obviously but throughout the book we are continually reminded of this. We are shown that this small event becomes a huge event that changes her life forever. You loose all this in the movie.

But it is still a great movie. L thought it was perhaps better than the book. I think we used the details of the book to make the movie better. She and I are looking forward to the next 2 movies.

I encourage you to check out some other discussion over on kidchamp's blog.

Struck by Lightning

If I was reading a blog and saw that title I'd wonder what exciting, unexpected, rare, etc event happened to the author. In this case it isn't any of those, well it was all of them, but I was really struck by lightning.

I was on a bike ride this morning. I noticed that a storm was approaching and figured I would just beat it home if I road for just so many minutes. It was a beautiful day otherwise.

Getting close to home I realized I wouldn't beat the storm and was going to get a bit wet. No worries, that has happened plenty of times before. I noticed the lightning picking up. It was very intense and getting closer.

About a mile from home is a stretch of road that is high in elevation and very open. I was thinking this is not exactly the best place to be in a lightning storm. And that's when I had that staticy feeling. When you rub a balloon on your head, that. Except all over. The next thing was a huge flash all over. I had my head down at the time and managed to see a spiderweb of sparkles on my legs and bike. I have no idea if that's what happened or that's what my brain thought my eyeballs saw. I also saw an arc between my right index finger and brake lever. I'm pretty sure this was real. It felt like being shocked with a spark plug or gas grill ignitor on the tip of my finger. It kicked or I jerked my hand off the bar. The sound of it was just a loud noise. I can't say what it sounded like, just loud.

After, my body was just tingly all over. My finger felt swollen, like there was pressure between the joints. Now, about 6 hours later the finger still feels full for lack of a better term. The right arm also feels like I hit my funny bone only much milder.

It must have been an indirect strike. One of the spindly little parts or just stray voltage along the ground. Otherwise, I think I would have actually been hurt. Also, I think I'd have a visible mark on me someplace.

One interesting bit is that when I reviewed my GPS and heart rate data it showed a spiked heart rate in the place it happened.

So there you go.

Blog Topics

I'm debating about trying to expand the topics I discuss on the blog. I tend to want to tell you guys about things I do. Places I go and new interesting things I do. However, I don't do enough things that fall into that category according to me. I like telling stories and being wordy. To do that I need to have big, full, rich experiences.

I'm thinking I will tell you more about stuff I like and think you should check out. Thoughts?

What's in my Pockets

Thirteen days ago my pal, @ridiculousnikki, posted what's in her purse. She asked her readers to tell her what was in their bag. Being that I don't carry a bag unless I am traveling and it is a suitcase I asked her if she would like to know What's in my Pockets. Turns out she did want to know, so here it goes.

I have different items in my pockets depending on what I'm doing and where I'm going. I'm sticking to the most common 3 occasions. These 3 cover about 98%* of my pocket life and I don't feel getting more complicated or answering any questions that the other 2%* might entail.

First up we have my casual daily wear jean pockets.

Wallet: I use a minimalist wallet. I carry 3 cards, license, sometimes some cash, maybe my gym ID, SAMs membership, odd receipt and such.

Phone: iPhone 4 that "doesn't have an antenna issue" but for some reason needs a case to work. I'm still irritated about that, Apple.

Lip balm: ChapStick Moisturizer or Medicated. I like the medicated better but I find it difficult to find.

Change: 4 quarters and a Presidential Dollar Coin. I like having a bit of change in my pockets. It helps prevent a $10 parking ticket on occasion. The quarter thing started in middle school. Mom always sent Bro and I to school with a quarter so we could call home if we needed to. That was back when cell phones were in a huge bag and pay phones were still in the schools and they cost 25 cents to place a call. The PDC I carry because almost everything costs over a dollar and the coin is easier to carry than a wadded up dollar bill or 4 additional quarters. I wish we'd just stop printing dollar bills altogether. Coins are so much more economical.

Car key: My car is a push to start ignition. IT IS AWESOME.

Mint: Life Saver mint. I like these but don't buy them. I pick one up at the accountant and at dance class. Sometimes I have one in my pocket sometimes I don't. I can't stand the red and white mints, they are too sweet.

Morgan Silver Dollar: This is a 7 tail-feather 1881 Morgan Silver Dollar minted in San Francisco. It was given to me by a roommate that worked at a bank. I started carrying it because of a story BF told me about his grandfather carrying one everyday. By the end it was a worn smooth piece of silver**. Thought it was neat so I started carrying this one. It's starting to wear a hole through my pocket and people think the imprint is something else. I need to learn how to patch my pocket.

Work pockets. I'm going to skip the repeats.

Work keys: 3 PO box keys, work door key, and one I don't know what it is for.

Knife: Ka Bar MULE pocket knife. It is really really sharp.

Suit pockets for church.

Handkerchief: Irish linen, every guy should carry one when he wears a suit. Just because.

There you have it. That is what is in my pockets.

*All stats are within the statistical error of my own made up perception.

**That's the way I remember the story. Some details might be wrong.

photos by me and illustration uncredited from the world wide web

Groundhog 2012

A couple Sundays ago was my almost annual running of the TLC's Groundhog 10k. It is almost annual because Stephen and I missed it for his wedding reception last year. I think that is an excused absence.

The race is held underground in the Hunt Midwest Subtropolis. It was a giant limestone mine that has been turned into the largest underground business complex (according to the owners). It has a post office and a bunch of businesses built in this thing. And roads. Yes, roads underground that are big enough for semis! You can watch a little promo video on that link up there and see a truck in this thing to give you an idea of the size. I bet you're thinking something like, 'wow semis under ground. that is big.' Well it gets bigger, areas have TRAIN TRACKS. BIG.

In a place that big why not have a race at the end of January. They hold a 5k and a 10k. The 5k is one lap of the place and the 10k is 2 laps. In terms of racing it is a great place. 60-65 degrees, virtually completely flat, no wind. It really makes for an amazing experience. My only two faults for it are a couple tight turns that we have to take and a sewage smell in one area that lasts for about 25 meters.

Stephen and I arrive an hour or so before the start so we can pick up our packets, pin our numbers, and warm up. I also had some quality time checking out a lady that I was too chicken to talk to until after the race. I think she was too young anyway.

Our plan was to not blow out the first few miles and pick up the pace to the end. When we started my legs didn't really get moving and Stephen was out in front of me quickly. I got up to speed and kept the distance between us constant for a few miles. Other runners around me were stomping, panting, gasping, falling back, and just generally losing it. I have noticed in a certain range of paces you have the people that have been running for awhile yet haven't figured out how to start at a sustainable pace. I used to do this and eventually they'll learn.

Around mile 4 I started to notice I wasn't in good shape. Mile 5 I slowed pathetically but was able to start to pick it back up right at the end. Stephen finished ahead of me in 117th place with a time of 45:11.8. And I ended up finishing 149th in 46:50.1. In our age group we were 21st and 25th. A total of 1172 people ran the 10k against us.

Now for a few pictures. These below are interesting just because you can see one complete stride in the series. I like seeing how I run. How I think I run vs how it looks. How much I swing my arms. How my feet land. I can see why my soles wear out the way they do. I still need to get my elbows in and swing my arms only forward and back. I have too much cross body motion.

And now for the ladies, you can drool over a picture of Stephen and his awesome legs. Just be careful to not drool directly into your keyboard. And he is TAKEN, so don't ask. Also, his W will kill you then I will.

photos copied from Action Sports Images, LLC

Merry Christmas!

Nothing like taking the Christmas photo on Christmas Eve! Let's just call this early for next year.