October 31, 2005
Halloween in Small Town New England
I was home in Piney Point this weekend
taking care of all kinds of stuff and winterizing the house for
monthly visits only. The drive back on I-95 was hell - it had
to be a full moon as the were four major accidents which extended my
normal 8 hour drive to 13. I just relaxed, opening the
"star-roof "on the new bimmer while listening to eclectic music from
the NYC airwaves (best free music in the world).
I got back to my hotel at 2 am and
emailed my client that I'd be late that morning. My furnished
rented flat was finally complete and I move in tomorrow. The owner
is an icon of the community and owns an art studio (and much of the
town as well).
When I mentioned I brought a new
bimmer, he made a point to personally hang a photo of an M5 he had
brought in Germany in 1985. I have never rented a flat that
was so tastefully decorated (although the owner tells me they are
all "prints" and not originals). I mean, of course they are
prints, but what incredible treatment.
I got the keys today and I
started unloading the stuff I brought from Piney Point tonight.
Naturally, I
met my downstairs neighbors (who happen to be from Tampa Bay as well
arriving a week before me) and then the magic began.
It is Halloween, and my timing was
perfect for unloading my stuff on this quiet street off Main Street. The area was bustling with kids and their
parents (I mean kids everywhere) making the rounds to collect the goods.
Does this happen in LA or Tampa or DC?
I don't know, but I bet not, at least not like a small town in New
England. All I know is that the weather
was perfect and I have not seen a better representation of the
glorious kid-ritual of Halloween since I was a kid. If only
the wonderful autumn weather would last (last least for a few more
weeks). If not, let winter begin.
OK, as of tomorrow, I'll have no
broadband link until November 9. Until then, I'll be working
on the Don Laing Story update, with a new chapter every month (yeah
right).
Oh, my little flat in Bennington is
just perfect, a hop a away from "downtown." Come back in Mid-November.
October 28, 2005
The Art of Walking - Savannah Revisited (So Briefly)
My Neighbor's House on York Street
(subject of my envy)
My former email buddy,
Tom Peters, with whom
I have less and less in common these days, still remains in close
agreement with me in the power of "the walk." He travels the world,
and "the walk" is a very important source of renewal for him, as well
as for me.
Most of his walks center around the 5-star hotel he happens to be staying in - but what the hell, he's a
busy guy and sure has no time to take a cab to real world locations.
Anyway, why would he risk dimming his ever-so-bright view of his
bubble world - or risk getting his butt shot at?
I merely hop
around the country, and walk anywhere I can, although I'm a bit more
temperamental in terms of the ideal walking temperature (50-75 degrees
F). Winter in Vermont will prove a challenge!
Recently I was heading south on I-95 from Piney
Point to Feather Sound when I took a very spontaneous turn off to
Savannah. I drove past Gulfstream, my old client, and everything
looked about the same (the parking lot full of cars on a Sunday).
I'm driving on Bay Street, heading to the historic district.
Just after
passing under the Talmage Bridge, I notice the city finally
condemned the horrific Projects that bordered the historic district. Great, I thought,
wondering where they put all the people that once lived there.
Bay Street Projects - The Savannah to Forget
(and tear down soon)
I get downtown with an overwhelming
feeling that I had left Savannah just yesterday - and a longing not to leave
again. I drive to my old house on York Street and park.
The weather is perfect; sunny and a breezy 80 degrees. People
are everywhere. Nothing has changed in
the neighborhood except for a sign proclaiming that they finally are
going to restore the ugly building on Abercorn & York! The
Chinese restaurant menu is still in the window just below the
official notice.
My old home, which has since gone
through hundreds-of-thousands-of-dollars of restorations, looks
untouched on the outside (by plan of the city). I walk past my old watering hole,
17 Hundred 90,
remembering the unmarked door to the pub being 32 steps from my
front door (I counted).
This great food establishment is named
after the year it was built!
I walk to a few familiar adjacent
Squares, seeing some vital new signs of restoration, and finally
past the police station - all within yards of my old home. I
even trek briefly into the ancient
Colonial Park Cemetery
- photos later.
Funny how this car seems so current in
Savannah
I'm thinking, I have to get back to
Tampa Bay tonight. I reluctantly get in my car, taking one
last drive west on York Street, stopping in the
President Quarters
parking lot to snap a last photo of my old home. I fondly
recall the craziness of St. Patrick's Day and the 4th of July! What a
wondrous time I had in the city of the
garden of good and evil!
It was 9/11 that forced my eventual departure, to my regret,
but that move landed me in Piney Point with a new project at the
Naval Air Systems Command.
.
214 York Street - My Old Home (narrow
row house to the left - all three floors and six fireplaces)
I force myself back to the road, but
first drive up and down the streets and boulevards - remembering so
many unique buildings, settings, views and circumstances. Finally I
pass
Clary's Cafe
and can't resist stopping. I have the "usual" one last time - a
club sandwich, fries and a cherry coke - Savannah Style of course.
I drive out of town on Abercorn
passing memory after memory - finally hitting I-95. I get home
to Tampa Bay very late, but so what.
Next time, for sure, I must call my dear
distant friend Annie in advance so we can have lunch together.
Last time I saw her, ironically was at the 17 Hundred 90!
Now that's a walk!
October 27, 2005
Principle Based Actions
I embrace the concept of principle
based actions - given they are based on solid positive foundation.
I, for example, use my turn-signal 100% of the time, even if I
should be on I-80 traveling through Nebraska at 2:00 AM without
another car in sight. I always seek to inquire more about an
individual than telling him or her about myself. I have
dozens, if not hundreds of little principles buried in my psychic,
many not readily obvious to me.
I can't say I recall all of the 10
commandants as well as I did as a child. I bet I can get 7 of 10,
but not necessarily in the right order. I mean, it's no big
deal - all common sense kind of things, except for maybe the "one
god" thing. Odd how God is so opposed to any competition. Capitalism
embraces it, at least collectively.
In my view, three powerful biblical
concepts beat the hell out of the 10 C's:
1. Do unto others . . .
2. Turn the other cheek . . .
3. Judge not . . .
It's sad that the fundamentalists of
the world have lost touch with such concepts. They'd never admit to
it of course, but it is clear and evident from their actions over
the decades, if not the centuries.
Take the concepts of "thou shall not
commit adultery" vs. thou "shall not kill." One is absolute in
the fundamentalist mindset and the other ambiguous.
One would think that the act of
killing has a greater moral ramification than acting stupidly on a
biological urge. But in the fundamentalism mindset, that seems
not the case. The commandant is "Thou shall not kill." That is
an absolute. Fundamentalists seem to have all sorts of
exceptions. I wonder if Christ and Allah are a little confused over
the abhorrent behavior of their self-proclaimed best followers?
I've been here in Vermont less than
two weeks, but I sense something very unique about these people.
They care; they seem to buy into concepts 1, 2 and 3 - I mean not
everyone, but in a very general sense that I've not seen anywhere
else in this country (and I've been a lot of places).
Imagine if the
fundamentalists of the world could do the same!
Odd, there is only one quote I can
recall from Marx: "Religion is the opiate of the masses."
Maybe the world is overdue for a little "cold turkey."
Interesting:
in this little town, I opted for a drive rather than returning to my
hotel room tonight. At the intersection of the two main
streets was a silent lantern-lit peace gathering - handfuls of
people on each corner of the street saying nothing to nobody.
It was powerful. Maybe the
spirit of the Moose has something to do with it.
October 26, 2005
OH NO - I'm not ready, I'm not ready!
Sure it's no blizzard, but I was
hoping for, at least, a few weeks of cool, sunny autumn weather to
enjoy the colors. But NO - cold, icy and snow.
Fortunately the forecast looks hopeful for the weekend.
Meanwhile my friends in Clearwater
(all safe having dodged the worst of Wilma) are rubbing it in a bit
- sunny and high 70's for the weeks ahead. Ah, the things we
do to earn a living.
The reality is, in spite of the
weather, I'm a having a fun, relaxed adventure here. What a
great little town, with lots of great food and good people.
Let it snow, let it snow, let is snow!
October 23, 2005
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
Ugly - Boeing X-32B
The Ugly: I've been to the Air Museum outside of
Gate 1 at the Navel Air Systems Command more than a few times.
But today I drove by on my way back to Vermont and found a gem:
Boeing's competition for the JSF.
I recall when the contract award went
to Boeing's rival, Lockheed-Martin, it was based on technical merit,
so they said. But the reality is that this is one of the
ugliest aircraft ever built. It, indeed, looks like a bullfrog
croaking. In spite of its appearance, it is one hell of a
carbon composite work-of-art. Let it rest in peace at Pax
River. Boeing definitely should stick to what they know best:
commercial aircraft.
Thus my new project in Vermont is for
the really beautiful Dreamliner, Boeing's 787 - a small piece of it
anyway.
So it's late and here's the brief
update: October 7, I finished up my last day with my Clearwater
client. I acquired so much stuff during my 18 months in
Florida that I had to rent a truck to haul it all back to Piney
Point. I now have five beds for my three bedroom house on the
Potomac!
The Good: October 15, I picked up my new BMW
325xi - my trusty little pickup truck could no-way-in-hell handle
yet another winter in New England and is now happily retired to
Potomac Beach.
The 325xi is all-wheel-drive, with
heated leather seats and will handle a Vermont winter well. It is a
bit under-powered, by BMW standards, but perfect for my needs and
one-hell-of-a fun drive.
My new 325xi
The Bad:
Wilma. More Survivor's guilt - my prayers to all my friends
in Florida - I hope they all ride out the storm in safety and their
lives return to normal as soon as possible.
October 2, 2005
Past, Present and Future
Like most folks, I like to take
advantage of a bargain. So last week at Borders, I pick up a
map and when the receipt pops out, a 3-tiered 25% discount good
anytime this weekend: 1 book, 1 CD and 1 DVD. Of course
it is just a marketing ploy to get you back to the store on a
regular basis, but 25% is a fair amount given what all this stuff
costs now-a-days.
So I'm in kind of a nostalgic mode
having read about Jim Morrison's early days in Clearwater and his
first love Mary
Werbelow in the
St. Pete Times.
Mary was the inspiration for "This
is the End". Jim (on the right) looks a bit
like Beaver Cleaver. Great Story and I don't think it has gone
national.
So I missed the PBS special on Dylan's
early days and decide to pickup the DVD for 25% off. I don't
buy DVD's as a rule because I am a loyal Netflix customer, but what
the heck, this is Dylan. I watch/listen and love that fact
that the Dylan of today acknowledges he would do almost anything to
ensure his success of the past. I had no clue of all the fan's
hatred when he went "electric." I guess I was too young.
So I roll around in the past a bit
thinking about Jim and Bob and the woman that impacted their lives.
This is good - not like listening to some dumb-ass oldies station.
This is good that Bob and Jim are still remembered.
Joan Baaz (on the
left) has not changed course for 40 years and is still active (as of
last week in DC) in the anti-war movement - bless her heart. I
wonder if she and Bobby still talk?
I was moved learning these little
tidbits of Bob and Jim this last week. But I also picked up on
a bit of the present and the future with my CD and book choices, all
to save 25%.
David Grey's
Slow Motion plants me
firmly in the present (although he's a throwback of sorts); and Ray
Kurzweil's
The Singularity is Near
is an almost hauntingly picture of the future. More on the
present and future later. Right now I'm enjoying the past, and my
25% savings on a great DVD, CD and book!
Pictures of my old home in historic
Savannah coming as well.
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