myPics: Madonna of the Trail

On a recent work trip to DC, I made a visit out to Bethesda. I took the Metro from Union Station and walked to my appointment.  My stroll to Woodmont Avenue surprisingly took me past one of the Madonna of the Trail status.  Since I'm a big transportation-ophile, I had read about this series of statues set up along the the National Old Trails Road, also known as Ocean-to-Ocean Highway.

From Wikipedia, the Madonna of the Trail is a series of 12 monuments dedicated to the spirit of pioneer women in the United States. The monuments were commissioned by the National Society of Daughters of the American Revolution (NSDAR). The NSDAR placed the monuments along the National Old Trails Road which extended from Bethesda, Maryland, to Upland, California (The much of the route of the route follows the old National Road and the Santa Fe Trail in the West.) There is a moment - dedicated to the spirit of pioneer women in the United States and serves as symbol of the courage and faith of the women who conquered the wilderness and establishing permanent homes -  in each of the states that National Old Trails Road passed through.

myPics: A Detail of Washington, DC, at Night

I spend last week in Virginia and made the trip to DC as well.  I played an evening tourist, visiting the Lincoln Memorial, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial and the National World War II Memorial. I was memorized by the grandeur of the memorial, in scope and in style.

This is a detail of the Freedom Wall is on the west side of the memorial. The wall has 4,048 gold stars, each representing 100 Americans who died in the war. In front of the wall lies the message "Here we mark the price of freedom."

Earthquake - a Wikipedia article

Today the east coast felt a noticeable earthquake from North Carolina to Ontario.  According to government sources, the quake was centered near Mineral, VA about 40 northwest of Richmond.  Through twitter and the iPhone, my colleagues and I were able to confirm what we felt in a matter of minutes from the safety of outside our building.

What remains funny to me is the development of the Wikipedia article from its anonymous contributors.

At the end of the Impact section: "Barack Obama transformed into a robot"

This inaccuracy was noted and edited out, probably multiple times before I refreshed to read the updated version.

Casualties: 9001 squirrels

That's a lot of dead squirrels.  I have a difficult time believing that many rodents died; they seem to be able to sense an upcoming disaster and tend to act accordingly.

A more credible version

It seems that after several iterations, the anonymous authors and editors have been able to cite the appropriate stories to bring credibility to the article.  For the latest version, visit the page directly at 2011 Virginia earthquake. It's amazing how fast social media works.

Freeform Forum: ...I just hate travelers: Getting Out of Your Seat

When I finally got into Union Station, I checked in, tweeting that I don’t mind traveling; I just hate travelers.

I love to travel and its twofold journey: the process of getting to a destination and the exploration of that destination.  This love of the trek helps to explains why I understand Songlines.  However, travelers, on the other hand, can really tick me off.

When I travel, I am mindful of my actions and that my actions can affect others.  As common travelers, we’re packed into tight planes and crowded train platforms. We’re driving up and down the same congested freeways. We’re waiting in line for the same outcome. 

I wanted to take a few moments to vent about the lack of travel etiquette and remind my follow travelers to make the trip enjoyable for all, including your neighbors.  I wish that the in-flight magazines and Arrive: The Magazine for Northeast Business Travelers (Amtrak’s magazine) would explicitly have an etiquette column to remind travelers how to behave.

Travel etiquette: When getting up out of your seat on a train or a plane, do not use the seatback in front of you to support your weight. Push yourself out of your seat by supporting yourself on the armrest of your own seat.

This is one of my biggest pet peeves of all.  While it may be one of human’s natural instincts to reach out immediately in front of oneself to lift one out of a seat on a plane or train, this behavior must stop.

It is irksome to be reading a riveting passage in book, lip syncing to the latest pop hit, playing the last level of Angry Birds or drifting off into a nap and to have your seatback pulled away from your torso and bringing you down with it.

This last trip to DC on Amtrak really got my ire up. I was hoping to get on the quiet car to zone out.  I noticed that there were plenty of available seats there.  I took one, settled in and felt that I was in heaven.  Two hours of listening to my iPhone, not worrying about people talking on the phone or too loud, would deliver me in Washington ready and energized for my event. 

I sat in front of a recently retired couple, who I discerned to the best of my ability were traveling down to Richmond from outside of New York. They looked very happy for their new chapter in life and enjoying their ride so far.  However, this couple got up seven times during the two hour trip and always used my seatback to leverage themselves out of the seat.  Perhaps I should have addressed them after the third time.  But who wants to start a conflict on the quiet car, isn’t they why we’re all there - to avoid talking? Needless to say, my solace was gone and made me quite the crankpants to write this entry. 

I watched their behavior and they both looked fit and active to be able to push themselves up out of their seats.  They walked around the train very steadily during the train's more rocky moments.  I think they should have known better, too. 

I’m asking my fellow travelers to be aware: everything that you do while traveling can and will affect others. If you can't be aware, I'll tell you what you're doing wrong and how to improve.