They're gone.
All the ducks in Lafayette Park are gone.
The grounds-crew there is in the process of cleaning out the eastern pond, presumably as part of Inauguration Day preparations (which are messing with my lunchtime walk bigtime).
The pond is empty.
I want to know where the ducks went.
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Monday, November 24, 2008
Optimism as a revolutionary act
I'm not talking about Obama.
I was thinking about Lloyd Dobler (because Ehren confessed during our "favorite movies" staff meeting that Lloyd Dobler is his role model).
I was thinking about Lloyd Dobler (because Ehren confessed during our "favorite movies" staff meeting that Lloyd Dobler is his role model).
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Ducklings, hope, and gambling
There are ducks in Lafayette Park. I am looking cheerfully forward to the spring, when I imagine there will be ducklings.
My favorite thing about the election results is that I feel they are a triumph for hope over fear, for optimism over doomsaying, and for dreams over nightmares.
My least favorite thing about the election results is that Maryland voters approved the slot machine referendum. I've been getting gradually more disapproving about gambling, including lotteries and slot machines. I feel like they are an amusement for the rich and a tax for the poor. Since much of the slot machine revenues are supposed to go into school coffers, I hope the schools teach kids enough math that they grow up to never risk their grocery money on slots.
My favorite thing about the election results is that I feel they are a triumph for hope over fear, for optimism over doomsaying, and for dreams over nightmares.
My least favorite thing about the election results is that Maryland voters approved the slot machine referendum. I've been getting gradually more disapproving about gambling, including lotteries and slot machines. I feel like they are an amusement for the rich and a tax for the poor. Since much of the slot machine revenues are supposed to go into school coffers, I hope the schools teach kids enough math that they grow up to never risk their grocery money on slots.
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Compliant?
At acupuncture this morning my Chinese doctor said I was "very compliant." I initially let it pass, but honestly I was a bit hurt. Crestfallen. Insulted, even. Compliant, me? No! I am belligerent and sturdy! Compliance is weak and sheeplike. I object to being expected to comply with things, because so often the things I'm complying with make no practical sense and have no positive effect. Compliance to me implies complicity, tacit acceptance of a corrupt and/or irrational system.
So I asked him what he meant, and said "Oh--I meant that you're not doing this halfway. You're actually following my suggestions very thoroughly. I said to eat fish, rice, and vegetables for a week, and that's what you've done--you didn't give up after three days because you really wanted a burger."
"Oh," said I, mollified. "That's not compliance. That's commitment."
So I asked him what he meant, and said "Oh--I meant that you're not doing this halfway. You're actually following my suggestions very thoroughly. I said to eat fish, rice, and vegetables for a week, and that's what you've done--you didn't give up after three days because you really wanted a burger."
"Oh," said I, mollified. "That's not compliance. That's commitment."
Monday, October 27, 2008
Walk today
2.0656 miles, according to gmaps pedometer (which, FYI, has a really old satellite photo; it's from before Pennsylvania Avenue was closed to traffic, which happened in 1995).
Saw a white squirrel with a dark undercoat.
There are no mailboxes in that 2 miles, but there are at least 4 water fountains.
Saw a white squirrel with a dark undercoat.
There are no mailboxes in that 2 miles, but there are at least 4 water fountains.
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
Sidewalk rant
I took it into my head this afternoon to try to walk all the way home from my doctor's office, it being a beautiful day. I was pretty sure the walk was less than 4 miles, and I got out of my appointment just before 4pm, and I was wearing sturdy shoes. So I set out.
Problem: once you get past the Grosvenor Metro station on southbound Rockville Pike, the sidewalk ends. Sort of. Not definitively. There are bits of sidewalk, enough that I tried going a couple of different ways before I gave up and took the path of least resistance, which was Beach Drive to the Rock Creek trail. I asked a fellow walker if she knew where it let out, and she told me that it hits Cedar Lane. I expressed my dismay that I had been unable to walk to Medical Center from Grosvenor along Rockville Pike, and she expressed sympathetic outrage. "It's like we're not supposed to be walking." So I found Cedar Lane, walked up hill and down, past Stone Ridge to Rockville Pike.
It was a lovely walk, but it was 5.25 miles instead of 3.8 (thanks to the Gmap Pedometer), and I didn't have any water and I felt a bit panicky not always knowing where I was or how much longer it would take me to get home.
There should be sidewalks. Or there should be big giant signs saying that the sidewalk is ending and to go another way. Or preferably, a sign at the Grosvenor Metro pedestrian access point that says "no thru pedestrians to Medical Center".
Problem: once you get past the Grosvenor Metro station on southbound Rockville Pike, the sidewalk ends. Sort of. Not definitively. There are bits of sidewalk, enough that I tried going a couple of different ways before I gave up and took the path of least resistance, which was Beach Drive to the Rock Creek trail. I asked a fellow walker if she knew where it let out, and she told me that it hits Cedar Lane. I expressed my dismay that I had been unable to walk to Medical Center from Grosvenor along Rockville Pike, and she expressed sympathetic outrage. "It's like we're not supposed to be walking." So I found Cedar Lane, walked up hill and down, past Stone Ridge to Rockville Pike.
It was a lovely walk, but it was 5.25 miles instead of 3.8 (thanks to the Gmap Pedometer), and I didn't have any water and I felt a bit panicky not always knowing where I was or how much longer it would take me to get home.
There should be sidewalks. Or there should be big giant signs saying that the sidewalk is ending and to go another way. Or preferably, a sign at the Grosvenor Metro pedestrian access point that says "no thru pedestrians to Medical Center".
Friday, October 17, 2008
Outrage, skepticism, and joy
Outrage, courtesy of my Chinese doctor[1]: A really interesting BBC television program about modern politics, specifically U.S. Neoconservatives and Islamic Radicals and their insidious mythmaking, called "The Power of Nightmares". (It's 3 hours in total; I'm only linking to the first episode.)
Skepticism, thanks to Conall: It's very sweet, but I'm not sure it's a hedgehog.
Joy: There's a foundation for toast!! Well, toasters, actually. People who want to make a museum about toasters. But still, it's a "Choose Toast" thing.[2] (I read about this in Saveur yesterday.)
[1] He's not Chinese. He's English. But he's my healthcare provider who uses Chinese herbal treatment, acupuncture, and various kinds of bodywork. It's his fault that I'm driving myself crazy trying not to cross my ankles (which is my default sitting style but is apparently a big part of why my knees hurt most of the time).
[2] About 5 years ago, some reports came out about carcinogens that get created by various high-heat cooking methods, including roasting, grilling, and toasting. (You can Google it yourself.) I was pretty outraged at the thought of people choosing to avoid the joys of the best foods around, like grilled meat and toasty toast. (I have always prefered toast to bread. Even lousy bread can make OK toast. Good bread makes fabulous toast.) So I wanted a bumpersticker that said "Choose Toast", because it would confuse other people and express something I hold dear, namely, that fear of death shouldn't interfere with enjoyment of life.
Skepticism, thanks to Conall: It's very sweet, but I'm not sure it's a hedgehog.
Joy: There's a foundation for toast!! Well, toasters, actually. People who want to make a museum about toasters. But still, it's a "Choose Toast" thing.[2] (I read about this in Saveur yesterday.)
[1] He's not Chinese. He's English. But he's my healthcare provider who uses Chinese herbal treatment, acupuncture, and various kinds of bodywork. It's his fault that I'm driving myself crazy trying not to cross my ankles (which is my default sitting style but is apparently a big part of why my knees hurt most of the time).
[2] About 5 years ago, some reports came out about carcinogens that get created by various high-heat cooking methods, including roasting, grilling, and toasting. (You can Google it yourself.) I was pretty outraged at the thought of people choosing to avoid the joys of the best foods around, like grilled meat and toasty toast. (I have always prefered toast to bread. Even lousy bread can make OK toast. Good bread makes fabulous toast.) So I wanted a bumpersticker that said "Choose Toast", because it would confuse other people and express something I hold dear, namely, that fear of death shouldn't interfere with enjoyment of life.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)