Sunday, December 19, 2010
Saturday, November 20, 2010
duckie goes to Maryland
I recently smiled, grinned and chortled my way through Eric Weiner’s ‘Geography of Bliss’ and somewhere within Eric accuses us Americans for being quite obsessed by the business of happiness and that we, more than anyone else, expend sinful levels of energy worrying and chasing after this elusive state. Really? Ritualistic, rarely paralyzing, whole-hearted introspection seems to accompany fall and luckily I’m often too busy to afford much energy for this indulgence.
Remember the suicidal leaves in Monty Python’s ‘Meaning of life’? Well this past week we had a real life skirmish with a similar, hardly funny, real-life equivalent. Our exemplary, yet fragile, team was a hair’s breadth from disintegration; leaving each of us to retreat to our own solitude to contemplate the consequences. What makes us happy? With work at least, the usual suspects get trotted in, each getting a spotlight minute. Money; oh yeah, that’s an easy one. Recognition, thoughtfulness and some regard for the future round up some horribly non-empirical formula for ‘job satisfaction’. Preservation of the team resonated in our skulls; maybe Spock croaked it out best, “The needs of the many….”
Is this it? Is one’s career defined solely by the collective accomplishments of the team? After all I never really ‘got’ the whole “Army of One” concept. But, as luck would have it, the week wasn’t going to end without a dash of Libran-inspired balance. Friday evening, I got to wish bon voyage to our company’s first retiree. Larry graciously, confidently bid us farewell while gently entreating us to someday trace the trail he was about to hike. Here was a man, clearly at the summit of Maslow’s pyramid, this was his day; the culmination of career measured not in decades but in the gathering of friends all at once sad, happy and tearful for his future. So no, no, we don’t get to eventually write our life’s chapters cloaked in the shadow of the Borg collective. Perhaps resistance is somewhat futile, but it does not mean individualism and personal accomplishment are sacrificed either. Congratulations Larry and Betsy; feel no pressure for the role models you fulfill for the rest of us!
p.s. hanging out with my two snortfully, boomy, hilarious work-sisters, Amy and Angel, was super-swell.... as well :)
Remember the suicidal leaves in Monty Python’s ‘Meaning of life’? Well this past week we had a real life skirmish with a similar, hardly funny, real-life equivalent. Our exemplary, yet fragile, team was a hair’s breadth from disintegration; leaving each of us to retreat to our own solitude to contemplate the consequences. What makes us happy? With work at least, the usual suspects get trotted in, each getting a spotlight minute. Money; oh yeah, that’s an easy one. Recognition, thoughtfulness and some regard for the future round up some horribly non-empirical formula for ‘job satisfaction’. Preservation of the team resonated in our skulls; maybe Spock croaked it out best, “The needs of the many….”
Is this it? Is one’s career defined solely by the collective accomplishments of the team? After all I never really ‘got’ the whole “Army of One” concept. But, as luck would have it, the week wasn’t going to end without a dash of Libran-inspired balance. Friday evening, I got to wish bon voyage to our company’s first retiree. Larry graciously, confidently bid us farewell while gently entreating us to someday trace the trail he was about to hike. Here was a man, clearly at the summit of Maslow’s pyramid, this was his day; the culmination of career measured not in decades but in the gathering of friends all at once sad, happy and tearful for his future. So no, no, we don’t get to eventually write our life’s chapters cloaked in the shadow of the Borg collective. Perhaps resistance is somewhat futile, but it does not mean individualism and personal accomplishment are sacrificed either. Congratulations Larry and Betsy; feel no pressure for the role models you fulfill for the rest of us!p.s. hanging out with my two snortfully, boomy, hilarious work-sisters, Amy and Angel, was super-swell.... as well :)
Sunday, October 31, 2010
Duckie goes to a rally
a last minute dash to DC with buddy Sam to take in 
Jon Stewart's rally for the (hopeful) moderates. I said to Sam, "this is like a music festival....minus the mud"....Dad always promoted moderation in all things, and here was a huge rally promoting that very philosophy...how could I not attend? But like Stephen Stromberg's Post commentary concluded...while the diversity was indeed gratifying to see but there was much promotion of personal agenda. This, in itself, was not particularly worrisome, but the sea of posters included a sprinkle of us-vs-them intolerance. I suppose to hate back when hated is an unsurprising reaction.
More picsises here
Monday, October 11, 2010
and before you know it....
The red-eye is rough, Megan saves me from the baggage carousel, Janoskis for breakfast, cat-nap and back to the job.......twas fun, rest of the pictures here
Sunday, October 10, 2010
yesterday, today, tomorrow....
a bit of catch-up here.....yesterday was only very slightly productive(!). Got laundry done, headed out to Henderson and squared-away the storage unit...managed to fingerprint myself. Spent more time than I prolly should've in bed. Lunch at KJs, dinner at Penang. Neither was particularly spectacular.
Woke up this morning and headed out to the dunes with the folk from Sunbuggy.
Our guide, Sergio take a group of us tromping through the sand, washes and whop-de-dos. Awesome fun. This could be a place to test the DVR, they say they've tried it but the sand kills the machines and the never seem to last more than 2-3 runs.
Head back to the speedway on the Uly to check out the Porsches. Lunch at the Taco truck. Next time beef...not pollo for my soft-shell. YUM. Took a short spin out to Red Rocks Conservation Area....some girl told me that was the place to go for curvy canyon roads....trudat.....excepting my little fubarb about going when the touristas are about. Still, a very pretty jaunt within minutes of Vegas. Teeny tiny dose of rocks if you will.....
Got back to my hotel to discover they've checked me out....pleading doesn't help. I'm not happy with the folk at the front desk, it was obvious they erred. Being booted out of hotels seems to be theme...bleh but what to do?
Anyway, it is 330pm, I've a ticket to a show at the MGM at 700pm and there were few sub $300/night rooms that weren't in Henderson or Summerlin. So I type this from the Hooter's hotel....kinda scary but it is directly across the street from the MGM and I had enough time to switch hotels, get a shower, run across the street to get my ticket and grab dinner.
Chow came from a rather posh-looking 'Seablue' where the grub was quite tasty (it must take effort to screw up Paella) and over the Muzak I heard George Michael crooning 'Father Figure'....I remember when I first came to Morgantown how the classic rock station dominated the airwaves. Having learned that this was because of the demographic with the disposable income helped make sense of all that 70s pop I heard. Does this mean that today's equivalent are those who frame music from the early 80s with nostalgia?
So Ka was my first Cirque de Soleil show. What a treat, everything from the music, dance, stage (yes, stage) was quite fantastic. Worth the price of admission...oBTW, tix4less will get you 30% off...on 'day of'.
Sunday has the 'end of vacation' quality....all the more serious with calls to/from work. Ah well, all good things must come to an end. Stash the bike, a little more fun, quick bite at my one trip to a buffet (to the musical stylings of Boy George) and it is time to fly
"People keep asking where I'm from, been here 25 years....from Italy...got laid off from Lockheed Martin...aerospace industry you know"
"had fun tonight?......anywhere else?....massage parlor?"
"she wants to work 7 days a week!.... all we eat is rice and fish"
"you know Sadies? are you from Albuquerque?"
"life's different here, a man should be in charge of his family.....you know?"
"not a good night for a ride eh?"
"sorry we're all sold out"
"if you eat all of it, I'll buy you dinner"
"bueno....."
It's been fun:
Woke up this morning and headed out to the dunes with the folk from Sunbuggy.
Our guide, Sergio take a group of us tromping through the sand, washes and whop-de-dos. Awesome fun. This could be a place to test the DVR, they say they've tried it but the sand kills the machines and the never seem to last more than 2-3 runs.Head back to the speedway on the Uly to check out the Porsches. Lunch at the Taco truck. Next time beef...not pollo for my soft-shell. YUM. Took a short spin out to Red Rocks Conservation Area....some girl told me that was the place to go for curvy canyon roads....trudat.....excepting my little fubarb about going when the touristas are about. Still, a very pretty jaunt within minutes of Vegas. Teeny tiny dose of rocks if you will.....
Got back to my hotel to discover they've checked me out....pleading doesn't help. I'm not happy with the folk at the front desk, it was obvious they erred. Being booted out of hotels seems to be theme...bleh but what to do?
Anyway, it is 330pm, I've a ticket to a show at the MGM at 700pm and there were few sub $300/night rooms that weren't in Henderson or Summerlin. So I type this from the Hooter's hotel....kinda scary but it is directly across the street from the MGM and I had enough time to switch hotels, get a shower, run across the street to get my ticket and grab dinner.
Chow came from a rather posh-looking 'Seablue' where the grub was quite tasty (it must take effort to screw up Paella) and over the Muzak I heard George Michael crooning 'Father Figure'....I remember when I first came to Morgantown how the classic rock station dominated the airwaves. Having learned that this was because of the demographic with the disposable income helped make sense of all that 70s pop I heard. Does this mean that today's equivalent are those who frame music from the early 80s with nostalgia?So Ka was my first Cirque de Soleil show. What a treat, everything from the music, dance, stage (yes, stage) was quite fantastic. Worth the price of admission...oBTW, tix4less will get you 30% off...on 'day of'.
Sunday has the 'end of vacation' quality....all the more serious with calls to/from work. Ah well, all good things must come to an end. Stash the bike, a little more fun, quick bite at my one trip to a buffet (to the musical stylings of Boy George) and it is time to fly
"People keep asking where I'm from, been here 25 years....from Italy...got laid off from Lockheed Martin...aerospace industry you know"
"had fun tonight?......anywhere else?....massage parlor?"
"she wants to work 7 days a week!.... all we eat is rice and fish"
"you know Sadies? are you from Albuquerque?"
"life's different here, a man should be in charge of his family.....you know?"
"not a good night for a ride eh?"
"sorry we're all sold out"
"if you eat all of it, I'll buy you dinner"
"bueno....."
It's been fun:
- people watching 'everywhere'
- chowing down on Vegas eats
- chatting with cabbies
Friday, October 8, 2010
Elvis has left...
....finally rode out of Tuba City yesterday...the girls looked like they were almost sorry to see me 
leave....haha...rode into Grand Canyon and stopped over at a half-dozen overlooks....too many people ....should've gone to the north rim. Yeah, yeah coulda-woulda-shoulda. Still, if one tried hard enough (and kept the earplugs inserted), it was possible to spend a peaceful moment with mother nature. I stop by the post office to mail home some goodies, the chatter of the morning is the tornado action from yesterday. Grabbed a quick lunch at the grocery store and head west. Stopped by the aviation museum at the GC Valle airport, a little treat in the middle of nowhere and received a tour McArthur's Connie....nice! That's the galley to the left....
The steed is running well, sustained 90mph have not
seemed to brought back the dreaded run-skip malady. Keep your fingers crossed. I pass a Porsche ferrying trailer on the way inbound, must remember to stop by the speedway..
VEGAS baby!
Pho @ Saigon 81, my old place is gone but there seems to be a sizable Chinatown around Spring Mountain Road. It is nice to leave dinner decisions to your olfactory senses. :)
Chatted with a CBR riding, veteran lass from Baton Rouge; add lemons and oranges to your boil also, a skewered can of corn works well too. Thanks Andy!
Laundry this morning, must not forget to stop by the storage building........
leave....haha...rode into Grand Canyon and stopped over at a half-dozen overlooks....too many people ....should've gone to the north rim. Yeah, yeah coulda-woulda-shoulda. Still, if one tried hard enough (and kept the earplugs inserted), it was possible to spend a peaceful moment with mother nature. I stop by the post office to mail home some goodies, the chatter of the morning is the tornado action from yesterday. Grabbed a quick lunch at the grocery store and head west. Stopped by the aviation museum at the GC Valle airport, a little treat in the middle of nowhere and received a tour McArthur's Connie....nice! That's the galley to the left....The steed is running well, sustained 90mph have not
seemed to brought back the dreaded run-skip malady. Keep your fingers crossed. I pass a Porsche ferrying trailer on the way inbound, must remember to stop by the speedway..VEGAS baby!
Pho @ Saigon 81, my old place is gone but there seems to be a sizable Chinatown around Spring Mountain Road. It is nice to leave dinner decisions to your olfactory senses. :)
Chatted with a CBR riding, veteran lass from Baton Rouge; add lemons and oranges to your boil also, a skewered can of corn works well too. Thanks Andy!
Laundry this morning, must not forget to stop by the storage building........
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
hunkered down
in Tuba City today. Sitting at 4-corners yesterday (on the phone with the shop), I had the opportunity to survey the grey skies around me. 
Yesterday's sliver of sunshine has vaporized, so despite the challenging news from home, I wasn't particularly eager to tickle the rain-swollen clouds. Jim hadn't scored tickets to the Phish show, the skies westward appeared the least menacing so guess which direction I fled?! It all seemed like a great idea.... for forty miles. Turns out, Arizona was about to be treated to a storm to make the Weather Channel folks jump for joy. Well, lightning storms are spectacular on TV and downright majestic in real-life. Rolling down the road without a Faraday cage though, made for a bone chilling experience as each lightning strike vibrated up the handlebars. (i swiped the pic from accuweather....same storm)
Well, I pulled into Tuba City soaking like a drowned rat and secured a room at the Hopi run Moenkopi Hotel. A couple in Harley shirts ahead of me looked over with pity as I stood in my personal-puddle, tonight they were in their Suburban. Tomorrow's weather promised an encore performance and I stayed on...albeit now booted to the deluxe suite.
Next day I wandered around a little in the afternoon. Like Chinle, begging dogs abound. The receptionist had guided me to a movie theater but alas it was no more. Picking between Subway and Chinese takeout, I opted for the latter. This was just a slightly surreal experience. Previously I had wondered about how new proprietors of Chinese takeouts in WV felt....well.....I wonder if opening one up on a reservation is any more bizarre. I wonder why I even wonder....just like the regulars at the takeout in Harrisville, WV....the regulars here cycle in-and-out. Ain't assimilation great?
Tuba City is some fringe of your typical American small town....pre-WallyWorld to be certain. Yesterday at Canyon de Chelly, I really felt a twinge of the same feeling as when I saw the kids in Rio deJaneiro.
I want to believe there's hope, it just seemed bleak. Sally hanging out with her family while they entertained the tourists....well, perhaps they've the last laugh. One thing Sally said though, people used to be friendly, helpful. The arrival of the government check though seemed to change the people. Now favors and helpful gestures have a price attached. What is it said about good intentions?
The lackadaisical attitude though certainly makes me feel like an impatient yankee. Here, 'Indian time' is not dissimilar to 'Island time'...haha!
Sunset in the painted desert....
Yesterday's sliver of sunshine has vaporized, so despite the challenging news from home, I wasn't particularly eager to tickle the rain-swollen clouds. Jim hadn't scored tickets to the Phish show, the skies westward appeared the least menacing so guess which direction I fled?! It all seemed like a great idea.... for forty miles. Turns out, Arizona was about to be treated to a storm to make the Weather Channel folks jump for joy. Well, lightning storms are spectacular on TV and downright majestic in real-life. Rolling down the road without a Faraday cage though, made for a bone chilling experience as each lightning strike vibrated up the handlebars. (i swiped the pic from accuweather....same storm)Well, I pulled into Tuba City soaking like a drowned rat and secured a room at the Hopi run Moenkopi Hotel. A couple in Harley shirts ahead of me looked over with pity as I stood in my personal-puddle, tonight they were in their Suburban. Tomorrow's weather promised an encore performance and I stayed on...albeit now booted to the deluxe suite.
Next day I wandered around a little in the afternoon. Like Chinle, begging dogs abound. The receptionist had guided me to a movie theater but alas it was no more. Picking between Subway and Chinese takeout, I opted for the latter. This was just a slightly surreal experience. Previously I had wondered about how new proprietors of Chinese takeouts in WV felt....well.....I wonder if opening one up on a reservation is any more bizarre. I wonder why I even wonder....just like the regulars at the takeout in Harrisville, WV....the regulars here cycle in-and-out. Ain't assimilation great?
Tuba City is some fringe of your typical American small town....pre-WallyWorld to be certain. Yesterday at Canyon de Chelly, I really felt a twinge of the same feeling as when I saw the kids in Rio deJaneiro.
I want to believe there's hope, it just seemed bleak. Sally hanging out with her family while they entertained the tourists....well, perhaps they've the last laugh. One thing Sally said though, people used to be friendly, helpful. The arrival of the government check though seemed to change the people. Now favors and helpful gestures have a price attached. What is it said about good intentions?The lackadaisical attitude though certainly makes me feel like an impatient yankee. Here, 'Indian time' is not dissimilar to 'Island time'...haha!
Sunset in the painted desert....
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