John Adams

I finished John Adams by David McCullough today and, I’m moved.  It’s left me thinking about mortality.  Adams finished his life content that he’d worked as hard as he could, that he’d done  his best.

That must be a nice way to end it.

Impossible Germany

For Keely, because:

Fundamental problem
All need to face
This is important
But I know you’re not listening
No I know you’re not listening

 

From the goldfish bowl (Thank Ani).

The last time I heard this song, which is everytime I hear this song; I remember what it means, then I immediately forget.

Some people. Sheesh.

This week, I have thrice experienced people at their worst.  What’s with the world?

On Friday, I was running in Memorial Park, and I stopped at a water fountain for some rehydration.  There were two water fountains, as you may know if you run on the running trail in MP.  This woman was filling her water bottle at the fountain while her children played around her.  One, on top of the fountain she was filling her bottle from and one practically in the other fountain.  I ran up, clearly sweating, and stood there.  The woman looked at me, and went on filling her bottle.  She never once asked her children to get out of the way so other people could use the fountain, and she never once chided them that the fountain is not for shoes.

Then, Saturday, I checked my account on eHarmony as I apparently had a message from another member.  The eHarmony process is a series on questions that you go through before you can just send “emails” through the site.  This member and I were at the point where we could ask “essay” questions, where the interogator chooses or makes up questions that the interogee can respond to with a paragraph.   Here are the questions I was asked:

1. Are you worried that I am too short or you are too tall?

2. Where are you in getting your degree?  Did you go back to school or are you continuing something you started before?

3. Can you afford a girl?  Do you work at all or do you just go to school?

The first two are not that big of a deal, but I can’t believe that someone who didn’t know me asked about my financial picture.  I closed out communication so that I won’t be getting any more messages from her.  Not just because she is so rude to ask the question, but also because I don’t think a person who is concerned about that this early on is someone I need to date.

Then the last.  I share a little culpability here, but I think the egregiousness of the behavior of the other individual far out-strips my behavior.  I was driving down a one lane portion of Memorial Drive during rush hour.  I have a small 2-door Civic.  This guy in a Lincoln Navigator comes up behind me, clearly annoyed by my mere 5 miles over the speed limit.  He tailgated me for a long portion of the road we shared.  Think about that for a second, because his car out weighs my car by probably atleast twice as much.  If I had to stop suddenly, he could have plowed me under.  I get really annoyed when people do that, so when he whizzed past me doing way over the speed limit at a light, I got out of his way and gave him the finger. 

Now, this is the part I can’t get over.

We turned on to a two lane road.  He apparently realized I was flipping him off, so he brakes hard, pulling into my lane to force me to stop.  When I braked harder, and pulled into the opposite lane to avoid hitting him from behind, he manuevers to stay in front of me.  I managed not to hit him, but once we came to a complete stop, he flips me off.  Then floors it out of there doing atleast 50.  You endangered our lives for that?!?!  You effing child!

That’s the world we live in.

 

Recession is as Recession does

There has been a flurry of economic “rhetoric” in the media lately, and today is no exception.  Today, the Labor department announced that nonfarm payrolls fell again, thus unemployment has risen to 5.1%.  If you listen to the Cable New Nitwits, you might think the sky was falling.  It’s not.  Any unemployment rate below 6% is excellent.  Sure, we’re in a recession, but the data shows that firms had already cut production, lowering inventories, before the recession began, so the “big axe” isn’t going to come, ceteris paribus.  This recession is not going to be like the 80’s where unemployment was upwards of 8%. 

Wilco Update

Great show despite Tweedy’s cold, and a few over euthusiastic fans.  They played a lot of their early stuff especially from Being There and A.M.

I wanted to add that the thing I noticed at this show that I’d not really been fully conscious of before is: Glenn Kotche is an amazing drummer.  He is now safely within my list of top 5 working drummers.  Niels Kline is also an outstanding guitarist, definately someone to see perform.

Infinite Series and Impossible Germany

The Wilco concert is tonight!  Woohoo!

 We started talking about infinite series in calculus class, today.  Infinite series reminds me of Zeno’s paradox.  Zeno, not to be confused with Xenu, proposed that motion was impossible because one must reach the half-way point before reaching the goal, and half the half-way point before the half-way point, ad infinitum.  Of course, we all know motion is possible, so therein lies the paradox.  One solution to Zeno’s paradox involves taking the limit of an infinite series of the distance/time function, f(t) = d(t).  I’m really much more interested in Zeno’s paradox, though, for the philosophical implications.  So learning about this subject should be interesting.

 In the meantime, here is another, Wilco video.

Marathon

I ran my second ever marathon, today.  Final time: 3:52, an improvement over last year of about 15 mins.

Wilco Live!

I got tickets to see Wilco in March at the Verizon Wireless.  They didn’t come through Houston the last time the tour took them to Texas, so I was worried that I’d not get to see them.  Their latest album is an absolute masterpiece.  The video is one of my favorites songs off the new album, Sky Blue Sky.  So without fiurther adieu…Wilco!

Finally, Finals.

Calculus final was yesterday–I feel pretty good about it.   Intro to Stats and Data Analysis, today, I should be good there.  Microeconomics is tomorrow, then I’m D-O-N-E.  I will be taking a nice relaxing run tomorrow, then spending some much needed off time, doing things that don’t require a lot of brain power–like drinking a bottle of wine and some 2 Below.

I can’t believe it’s almost Christmas, and the marathon soon after.  I hope I’m ready, I’ve been a little tepid at training, so hopefully I’ll do well.