In case you are wondering, I’m still dealing with the aftermath of the wreckage of my SUV. There is a small issue with transferring the title to the salvage yard. We should be able to fix that. The tow truck driver’s insurance company now says he might have insurance after all. How can they not know? I‘m not sure what it all means, other than I am guessing it will somehow cost me time or money or both. In the meantime, the only thing that really sucks about not having a car is grocery shopping. I‘m out of orange juice! And beer. Oh, the horror…
JOB
There is no news to report here, and the only reason I don’t write more about it in my blog is because it would as repetitive as a summer weather forecast in Florida. Let’s see, hot and humid with a chance of thunderstorms? Am I right? Am I right?? Rest assured that, when there is news on the job front, I will crow like a fat rooster to everyone I know. In the meantime, I’m still looking, and still hoping.
QUOTE
You may recall, I am someone who has a fondness for quotes. I still wonder why it is that other people sometimes have a much better way of saying what I am thinking?
Thanks to my parents for a very thoughtful gesture. They sent me a copy of "An Army at Dawn" - part of the Liberation Trilogy written by Rick Atkinson (Link HERE). I became quasi-depressed when I finished "The Day of Battle" (what was I going to read now?), and the timely delivery of the other book ensured that I will have good reading for at least another week or two. Atkinson writes with the kind of historical detail that I love. This morning I read a quote that seemed appropriate and I thought I would share:
It is good medicine to one’s self esteem to meet with serious setbacks at timely intervals.
~British Lieutenant General Kenneth A. N. Anderson, during the Allied campaign in North Africa in 1942
THE PENTAGON (HISTORY LESSON)
The above-mentioned book also made me think about the Pentagon (since, obviously, it discusses some of the goings-on there). The Pentagon, in case you were wondering, is the world's largest office building in terms of floor area. There are 17.5 miles of corridors inside. The sheer size of the building caused staffers during World War II to joke that a Western Union telegram boy had entered on Friday and emerged on Monday as a lieutenant colonel.
The reason it is such a sprawling mass is simple when you think about it; a tall building requires lots of steel girders for support. Steel was too valuable for other needs during World War II when the structure was completed. By keeping it to five stories, the planners and builders minimized the amount of steel necessary. It was constructed with concrete ramps inside instead of elevators. Elevators require steel.
Here is something I never knew; the Pentagon was necessary because the Navy Department had outgrown its facilities to the extent that they were building temporary structures everywhere!
Look carefully at the above photo (courtesy of the US Navy Archives - ca. 1943-44). In the left center distance is the Lincoln Memorial! The buildings in the foreground of this image were, literally, on the lawn of the Washington Monument. The buildings to the left of the reflecting pool occupied the area which is now home to West Potomac Park - the World War I Memorial and the Korean War Memorial. The buildings to the right of the pool cover the area that now contains Constitution Gardens Lake and the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. When this photo was taken, the reflecting pool was still relatively new. Foot bridges across the pool connected the groups of buildings on both sides.
Below - the area as it appears now - from a different angle, and directly overhead:
View Larger Map
When you see how much these buildings had gunked up the National Mall, it makes you appreciate the fact that they packed everything up and moved it across the Potomac to the Pentagon.
FASCINATING
While wandering on M Street in Georgetown, I began hearing a familiar tune played in a very unfamiliar way. I wasn’t sure what to think, but it kept getting louder as I walked. Finally, I recognized the song, and found the source – a street musician standing on a corner playing Led Zeppelin’s Stairway to Heaven. On violin.
FASCINATING, PART II
On Sunday, my trusty bike and I rode the Metro into DC, and spent a few hours cruising around. Since I am still a stranger in this city, and since I still harbor a somewhat irrational fear of getting lost at any moment (although I have taken to venturing out occasionally with no map in my pocket), I continue to notice electrical outlets in public places in case I have a dire need to charge my cell phone. I have already used the previously mentioned outlet in Dupont Circle twice (Link HERE). I was riding by the Verizon Center – the big arena where the Wizards (NBA), Mystics (WNBA) and Capitals (NHL) play, and where major concerts and other events are held. I noticed an older woman, obviously homeless, tucked into a recess formed by a supporting brick column on the front of the building. She had some kind of wheeled cart containing her belongings, and she had turned a newspaper vending rack on its side to use as a chair – with her back leaning against the column. She looked as comfortable as if she were in an office chair, and – here’s the funny part – propped on the cart in front of her, she had an old word processor plugged in to an electrical outlet, and was busy typing away.
At first, all I did was make a mental note of yet another electrical outlet in case of emergency, but, after riding by, I immediately had two regrets. 1) I wished I had stopped to take her picture, if it didn’t embarrass her. It was just such a bizarre sight. She looked like she could have been Andy Rooney’s hard luck younger sister. 2) I wish I had stopped to ask what she was writing. It may have been her memoirs, or a letter to the editor of the Post, or the next great American novel. Or maybe she was just typing “All Work and No Play Make Jane a Dull Girl” over and over. Now I really want to know…
THE BEST OFFICE-MATES
Until today, my last visit to one of my offices (Starbucks) – this time at 2101 P Street – was on Friday. I got a late start on the day because I had to wait at my hovel for an insurance guy to show up with some papers. After getting my coffee, I wandered upstairs and was immediately distressed at the sight of 25 or 30 people sitting there. That many people in a small area always mean a racket that precludes any hope of concentrating and being productive. I continued upstairs to the only table available, and tried to decide if I should even bother unpacking my laptop. Then I noticed something strange.
There wasn’t as much noise as I had anticipated, given the fact that they all appeared to know each other. It was clearly some kind of social gathering, but unusual somehow. I looked more closely. They were all deaf, and signing to each other. I quickly forgave them for the intrusion on my office space, and was actually glad that, by occupying so many chairs, they kept other potentially noisier people from sitting there. As it turns out, I was able to be very productive, once I got accustomed to all the wild gesturing.
Afterthought: Washington DC is home to Gallaudet University (Link HERE) which, according to their website, “leads the world in liberal arts education, career development, and outstanding graduate programs for deaf and hard of hearing undergraduate students.”
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