fallingwater

My last weekend in West Virginia was spent as all others, not in West Virginia. My rental car careened up and down the twisting roads of West Virginia, and across the softer hills of Pennsylvania, to finally arrive in Pittsburgh. There, Mike and I ventured to Fallingwater, a remarkable demonstration of design.

The home is nestled in a forest, on a brook. Warm and bright, the home seems bigger than its footprint, yet cozy and inviting. It is the essence of design, unobtrusive nor showy. Nothing less would be expected from the signature home of the preeminent 20th century American architect.

I've not reviewed the photos, but there might be a new Six Pictures tonight. Be sure to hold your breath. Only three good photos. Alas.

another weekend away

This is likely my final weekend in Charleston, though I won't return home from here. But as with all previous weekends, I'm skipping town for the brighter lights of a bigger city. Once again, Pittsburgh, ho!

no joy in bloggville

One of the best blogs out there and the most entertaining baseball blog Bat-Girl is shutting down. So good was this Twins blog that it's termination merits a story in the Strib. I encourage all chabel.net readers to head to Bat-Girl and soak up all the archives.

damn you Yahoo!!

Most major and exciting soccer games are played in Europe, making watching such games live problematic. Today's Champions League game is a case in point. The game aired live at 2:30 EST, but will be replayed tonight on ESPN Classic. With just an hour between the end of the game and the end of work, I'd been making an effort to avoid sports sites.

When I went to yahoo.com to check my e-mail, however, my efforts were ruined. There, just below a headline about the season finale of "Lost" (how a TV show merits a "news" headline is a topic for a different day), was an announcement of the result. With rare exception, I won't watch a game knowing the outcome.

So much for my plans this evening.

last night's simpsons

Oft amusing, last night's season finale of The Simpsons was something else. Excoriating the press, government and most of all Fox, it was the most overtly political, and radical episode of broadcast television I've ever seen. Most compelling was Kent Brockman delivering this speech:

Friends, the press and the government are in bed together in an embrace so intimate and wrong they could spoon on a twin mattress and still have room for Ted Koppel.

Journalists used to question the reasons for war and expose abuse of power. Now, like toothless babies they suckle on the sugary teat of misinformation and poop it into the diaper we call the six-o'clock news.

Demand more of your government!

Demand more of your press!

A cartoon now offers the most prescient political and social commentary, and too often the only such insight. Such is the depth of decay of our culture.

nothing to see here

According to the latest data from the National Climatic Data Center:

The combined global land and ocean surface temperature for April was the third warmest on record (1.19°F/0.66°C above the 20th century mean). For the January-April year-to-date period, the global surface temperature ranked warmest on record....
During the past century, global surface temperatures have increased at a rate near 0.11°F (0.06°C) per decade, but the rate of increase has been three times larger since 1976, or 0.32°F (0.18°C) per decade...
(emphasis added)

nothing to see here

According to the National Climatic Data Center:

The combined global land and ocean surface temperature for April was the third warmest on record (1.19°F/0.66°C above the 20th century mean). For the January-April year-to-date period, the global surface temperature ranked warmest on record....
During the past century, global surface temperatures have increased at a rate near 0.11°F (0.06°C) per decade, but the rate of increase has been three times larger since 1976, or 0.32°F (0.18°C) per decade, with some of the largest temperature increases occurring in the high latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere.
(emphasis added)

10 years later

The music was too loud, the drinks too expensive. But about half my high school class showed up to have the same conversation over and over again:

Hey! Great to see you! What are you up to these days? Oh yeah? I also have a job. Anyway, good talking to you.

Snark notwithstanding, it was good to see a few people, and almost nobody looks substantially different. In another ten years I suspect that will have changed, and hopefully by then either my hearing will have improved or a quieter venue will be chosen.

the NBA playoff exhaust

Just as last year, I am enthralled by the NBA playoffs. Life in a hotel, particularly in Charleston, WV, is drab. So I turn to sport to consume my attention.

The Spurs/Suns series is full of great players and good team play, drama and skill. Last year I had the benefit of enjoying the Western Conference games while living in the Central Time Zone (New Orleans). Games would end around 11:00, 11:30 if particularly dramatic.

Unfortunately I am equally fascinated this year, but sleeping in West Virginia, where the games end after midnight. Each night I make an effort to resist the games' thrills, fail, and forgo blissful slumber. I now rely on increasing amounts of caffeine to make it through the day, though at some point this will all catch up to me.

more on the three car family

Earlier today I wondered if this morning's Strib article was accurate in citing the "typical three-car family," as the measure for claiming the cost to an average family was $250 to $500. Turns out that isn't the problem. Again, from the story:

...a gas-tax increase and other revenue hikes that would cost a typical three-car family in the Twin Cities between $250 and $500 a year.

The proposed gas tax hike is 2.5 cents per gallon. For the gas tax increase to cost a family $250, that family would need to consume 10,000 gallons of gas per year.

While the story may be technically accurate, factoring in registration costs, the story is written to imply the gas tax would be the major burden. With the state legislature preparing to vote to override the veto, a vote that by all reports will be very close, it is highly irresponsible of the Star Tribune to mislead its readers.

Jerry Fallwell (1933-2007)

at least one is an SUV

From this morning's Strib:

Minnesota legislators set the course for a historic showdown with Gov. Tim Pawlenty, approving a transportation bill that features a gas-tax increase and other revenue hikes that would cost a typical three-car family in the Twin Cities between $250 and $500 a year.

What is typical about a three-car family? Hard to understand why Minnesota faces transportation problems.

dear senator coleman

Tomorrow the Senate will vote on a Reid-Feingold amendment that would (if somehow enacted into law) end the war. No longer unrepresented as a resident of Washington, I feel it is incumbent on me to make up for lost time and contact my representatives whenever possible. This is one such time:

I strongly urge Senator Coleman to support the Reid-Feingold amendment to WRDA tomorrow. If adopted, the amendment would be a major step toward ending the catastrophe that is Iraq. Senator, you have for too long blindly followed the leadership of your party, as our nation has sunk deeper and deeper into this morass. Show some courage and do the right thing.

An aside, Sen. Coleman's web comment form choked when I didn't submit a prefix, and hitting 'back' to rectify the error cleared the form. That's some poor web design. It'll be good to get rid of this clown in a year.

braves 9, pirates 2

As they tend to, the Pirates lost Saturday night's game against the Braves. We departed in the seventh after the Braves pitcher lost his no-hitter.

PNC Park is a delight, with the skyline seeming shooting up from behind centerfield. Because of the Pirates perpetual dismal play fans are enticed to games with gifts. So when I return, Bobblehead Jose Guillen (picked up a few summers ago at RFK) will be very excited to have a new friend:

Bobblehead Ronnie Paulino.

one week in

Though I’ve been in Charleston for a week, I’ve not yet a feel for the town. I moved out of a hotel in a strip mall south of town and into one more centrally located last night, finally giving me an opportunity to explore on foot. Downtown Charleston is quiet; shops concentrate around a few central streets.

The disaster itself is slow. Spending my days in the office, away from affected areas makes it a challenge to appreciate the scale of the damage. While I enjoy the writing, working at ground zero offers a bit more fulfillment.

Now, though, with my day off I head to Pittsburgh for a ballgame, a bobblehead and a balcony overlooking the city.

damn Yankees

In case there weren't enough reasons to hate the New York Yankess, now they are forcing patrons to remain in place during the obnoxious seventh inning stretch playing of "God Bless America." With chains.
(via Deadspin)

worst job ever

A deer lay by the side of the road, decapitated. It had been hit by a car, but that didn't explain it's headlessness. Arriving to work, I learned that they remove the head of dead deer to test them for chronic wasting disease. Why they leave the headless carcass remains a mystery.

West Virginia, here I come

Just when I thought the boredom would overwhelm me, my phone rings and I begin hastily packing.

hole upgrades

I’ve classed up the hole in my backyard by lining it with a cheap plastic border. Hopefully this inspires the seeds to grow.

pants off weekend

Friday I dropped my pants for little reason outside the Bowl-a-Thon. No wanting to be left out, Saturday CJ got into the act.