Gianni's Thoughts

The Blame Game

2011-12-04T15:34:00.000-05:00

I read an article in the Nov. 26 issue of The Economist, titled "A downgrade for Congress".
It begins: "It was not a very ambitious target. All that the congressional "supercommittee" was required to do was to figure out a list of measures that would reduce America's budget deficits by $1.2 trillion over the next ten years. That sounds like a lot, until you realise it is only 0.6% of GDP, not even a quarter of the $5 trillion or so that is really needed to right the books in Washington, and less than 3% of the $44 trillion that the federal goverment is expected to spend over that period. To reach a goal that a business cost-cutter would regard as desultory, the bipartisan committee of 12 senators and congressmen was accorded exceptional powers. Its work was to be subject to a simple up-or-down vote, with no possibility of amendment; and the Senate would not be able to use its power to filibuster. Yet on November 21st, after three months of deliberation, the team was forced to admit that it had failed."

And the Blame Game kicked into high gear, the Democrats blamed the Republicans, the Republicans blamed the Democrats and the public was left shaking our collective heads at the degree of dysfunction we witness daily amongst our elected officials and the partisanship which has been elevated to a new level.

The article concludes with one suggestion why the supercommittee might have failed to meet its goal = no real sense of urgency. "America is not Italy: this week, its ten-year government bonds were trading at well below 2%, the lowest levels for over half a century ..."

Which brings me to the last point I wanted to make regarding the "Blame Game."
I was thoroughly disgusted with all the blame being heaped upon little ole Greece during the summer and early Autumn. Yes, the Greek politicians had managed (mismanaged sounds better) to completely over-leverage their country and had dug a massive hole for themselves -- and the various bankers were all-too-happy to saddle them with bailouts, which, it should be pointed-out, are not "gifts", but rather additional loans with crushing terms. Massive austerity measures were depressing everything and everybody in Greece and the rest of the world was using it as a scapegoat for the mess the Europeans were finding themselves in ... blame it all on the Greeks!

That's where the other shoe dropped. Wait a minute ... perhaps Italy has an economic problem, oh and Spain too. Italy isn't a small economy, like Greece, they are the #3 economy in the Euro zone.
Now all of a sudden the European economic powerhouses are calling an emergency meeting early next week to figure a way out of the looming economic meltdown ...

I wonder who will be blamed next.
More importantly, I hope the Blame Game stops and we start seeing the politicians and the bankers working cooperatively to bring the world economy back to health.

Food, Water, Energy and Population Growth

2011-11-01T09:08:00.000-04:00

I had the opportunity to eat a Primanti"s sandwich last week, which got me thinking ... more on this in a moment.

For those of you who may have not heard of this before, Primanti Brothers is a chain of restaurants in Pittsburgh, who serve a rather unique sandwich that has attained iconic status in this city.
The history behind this sandwich is fun to read, though I have a hard envisioning somebody eating this sandwich with one hand, while driving a truck with the other ... it is simply (huge http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Primanti_Brothers).

We heard on the news a month ago, that Primanti's has been named one of the "manliest" sandwich restaurants in the nation - a rather dubious honor, but one which caused more than a few smiles.
In case you want proof, here is a link to a picture of me eating my Primanti's sandwich - snapped by my sister (https://www.facebook.com/#!/photo.php?fbid=10150373631472512&set=at.66614997511.70714.820847511.820847511&type=1&theater).

Enough with the frivolity however. What triggered this blog post was a story I heard over the weekend, that global population would reach an estimated 7 billion people on Monday, Oct. 31, 2011 and related news stories yesterday and this morning.
You may enjoy watching the video at the top of this story, which helps visualize the growth of the Earth's population over the last few thousand years (http://www.npr.org/2011/10/31/141816460/visualizing-how-a-population-grows-to-7-billion).

The question of how many more people can live on Earth, what some scientists call Earth's carrying capacity, is a very complex one, with many variables potentially coming into play (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carrying_capacity). One way to simplify the equation, is to talk about food, water and energy.

The food part of the equation is how I started this blog post -- meat and animal-derived products require more land and resources than grain-based foods -- the thinking is that as more people around the world enter the middle class, they will want more meat and animal-derived products, which will strain global food production. Improvements in agriculture may be able to offset this increased demand (to a point).

The water part of the equation is one which seems to be more dramatic in some parts of the world than in others. It is fair to say however, that access to clean water for an increasing global population will be a huge problem to overcome in the years to come. Water supply and purification mechanisms, as well as improvements in infrastructure to deliver the clean water to the population with minimal losses (and to remove the dirty water), will be definite areas of attention.

Then there is energy. One news story mentioned that parts of the world which are more developed are currently enjoying "cheap energy" and that the developing world will also want access to the same amount of energy being consumed in the more developed countries. A finite oil and fossil fuel supply is only part of the problem here -- it is also worth considering the energy efficiency of whatever we use which consumes energy and also energy wasted due to carelessness.

One of the areas of my job I truly enjoy, is related to AEVs (Alternative Energy Vehicles) and all the lightweight and energy-efficient materials my company supplies which can decrease the weight of any vehicle while simultaneously increasing their energy-efficiency. If you are interested in finding out more about this, feel free to check-out our Facebook page -- and if you like what you see, kindly click on the "Like" button too (https://www.facebook.com/BayerMaterialScienceAEV). Thanks!

The 118

2011-09-06T18:15:00.001-04:00

I was reminded today of a phrase I heard from Jeffrey Hayzlett (ex-CMO at Kodak).
He was talking about "The Elevator Pitch" - 2.0
He calls it "The 118" -- as in: "you have 118 seconds to get your point across".

His position is that the average adult's attention span is 8 seconds -- that's all the time someone has to make an initial impact. The other 110 seconds, what Jeffrey claims is the average time an elevator ride lasts in NYC, is how long you have to "sell" him/her.

Phrased differently, if you are preparing a long-winded presentation, hoping to impress me, you are approaching this the wrong way.
Obviously, you will not be able to come up with the correct words and to structure your position/proposition in that short a time period without some serious preparation and practice.
... so heads-up, make sure you practice!

I got a cold call today, from someone talking 100-miles-an-hour, hoping to impress me by throwing out names of well known, major companies, who he claimed were clients -- *yawn*!
After 30 seconds he had not even begun to get close to his point, after 120 seconds I still had not heard his value proposition ... so I cut him off.
I explained he had failed to "hook" me, that I was not trying to be rude, however I was very busy and I just did not have the time to sit and listen to the stuff he was rattling off.
It became apparent he was annoying me.

My parting words were that he needed to practice his 118 and I gave Mr. Hayzlett and his book "The Mirror Test" a "plug".
You are welcome Jeffrey.
Now I need to go practice my own 118 ...
Summer vacation is over people, let's get with the program!

The Brink

2011-08-08T20:38:00.000-04:00

A divided government that seems stuck in perpetual gridlock, took the US economy to the brink of default, only to be saved by a last-minute agreement last week.
Apparently this was not enough for Standard & Poors (S&P), the debt rating agency which was not capable of warning about impending problems with Lehman Brothers, or with the mortgage debt crisis a couple of years ago.
S&P downgraded US debt from AAA to AA+ and the stock market which had been having one bad day after another for the past two weeks, had an absolutely horrendous day today. Over the last couple of weeks, the stock market has declined by a figure that is closing-in on 20%.

Meanwhile, the President has a mere 42% approval rating and Congress has a dismal 14% approval rating!
The polls notwithstanding, it should be immediately obvious to even the most casual observer that the citizens of the US do not think any of the politicians are doing anywhere near an acceptable job.

I think it is clear we are not simply approaching the brink of disaster; we are teetering on the very edge. The question before us now is: can any one of the political geniuses figure-out how to keep us from tumbling over that edge?

Adventures in Space

2011-07-08T14:18:00.001-04:00

I experienced a bittersweet moment today, as news arrived that the shuttle Atlantis did manage to lift off from Cape Canaveral for the last time a few hours ago, despite the inclement weather in Florida -- here in Pittsburgh as well, it is overcast and rainy.
I liked this coverage in the Washington Post (http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/atlantis-astronauts-ready-for-final-launch-as-nasa-keeps-watchful-eye-on-cloudy-weather/2011/07/08/gIQA8FcR3H_story.html?wpisrc=al_national).
I also recommend clicking on the second video link for a brief (less than 6 min) history of the Space Shuttle program from the 1st to this the 135th and final flight (http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/remembering-the-shuttle-era/2011/07/01/AG35yStH_video.html).

I have previously blogged about the "Coolest Job Ever", so my personal angle/excitement about the subject should be obvious.
The truth of the matter however, is that the International Space Station is now manned and operational and the only existing means of moving people to/from it are the Russian Soyuz spacecraft. Unfortunately, the Soyuz spacecraft can carry far less in both personnel and payloads/cargo than the Space Shuttles.
Since it will be years before NASA's successor to the Space Shuttle will be operational, I believe the adventures in space (OK, near-Earth orbit if you want to be nit-picky) are just beginning.

From an economic/financial standpoint meanwhile, there will be thousands, if not tens of thousands of people currently employed by NASA, who will be added to the ranks of those seeking employment during these tough economic times. I would like to wish each of them a speedy resolution to their personal adventure as well.

Blurring the Line Between Games and Reality

2011-07-02T20:44:00.002-04:00

Running errands this afternoon, I was driving and listening to the radio.
There was an extremely interesting discussion regarding how games affect us and about the future direction games may be headed in (http://www.onthemedia.org/2011/jul/01/future-gaming/).

Why would this interest me so much you ask?
Because I really enjoy playing games!
One of the lines uttered during the interview by the way, was that while people often play games to escape reality, more and more games are making connections to the real world (that is pretty profound).

One of the people interviewed was Jesse Schell, a professor at the CMU (Carnegie Mellon University - right here in Pittsburgh) Entertainment Technology Center and the CEO of Schell Games. In Prof. Schell's vision of the (near?) future, he sees a time when sensors will become so ubiquitous, that all our actions every day will be recorded, tabulated and assessed. Therefore our everyday actions in the real world, such as brushing our teeth, taking the bus instead of driving our cars, walking instead of driving, or watching certain commercials on TV, will all result in us getting awarded bonus points. In other words our daily actions and habits will be turned into a "game" and the points we earn in the "game" will have real-world implications (such as coupons for things we buy, lower health insurance premiums, or tax credits for the examples listed above).

I know this is a foreboding look at the future and one which does not sound like much fun to some, however Prof. Schell's thesis completely blew my mind. He stated that since all our actions will be recorded and will be available for our children and for future generations to inspect, if the "game" is designed correctly, it may be possible to modify our behaviors and inspire us to become better people than we might have otherwise turned out.

That puts a different spin on the game of Life ... or maybe it does not.

If you want to listen to Prof. Schell's talk entitled "When Games Invade Real Life", just click on the link (http://www.ted.com/talks/jesse_schell_when_games_invade_real_life.html)
** warning it lasts 28 minutes **

Independence

2011-07-01T12:40:00.001-04:00

The long 4th of July weekend is upon us and thoughts naturally turn to the reason behind the holiday.
This holiday commemorates the United States' declaration of independence from Great Britain in 1776, an act considered brazen by many at the time, given Britain's overwhelming military superiority. It also brings to mind other similar acts.

The Greek War of Independence from the Ottoman Empire in 1821 is celebrated on March 25. This began only a few decades after the Americans and perhaps the planners of that war had been heartened and influenced to some extent by the success the Americans ultimately enjoyed in their bid for independence. What I found interesting was the utilization of the media of the day to generate support for the Greeks among the European nations, a fact which ultimately helped lead to the intervention of Russia, France and the United Kingdom on the side of the Greeks against the Ottomans.

In the last few months we have witnessed what has been termed by some the Arab Spring with demonstrations and rebellions taking place in various Arab world nations. What has been interesting has been the utilization of social media by the protesters, to coordinate their activities, generate global support for their causes and provide transparency into the responses employed by the various governments, even when news reporters have not been present.

Ultimately the lesson we can glean is that people don't like to be constrained and they will seek ways to become independent from whatever constrains them. The tools they choose to use are what they have on hand and what they find to be most effective.
In today's world, social media are powerful indeed and they need to be employed by those seeking maximum effectiveness in their quest for independence from whatever is boxing them in.
I wish all my friends a happy Independence Day, however I also want to remind them to "think before you tweet".

Think Before you Click

2011-06-16T16:10:00.000-04:00

A blog entry by Jeff Cole, PR 101 Lesson #106 It Doesn’t Matter What You Were Told In Kindergarten – Sharing Is Not Always A Good Thing ( http://www.pr101.biz/pr-101-lesson-106-it-doesn%e2%80%99t-matter-what-you-were-told-in-kindergarten-sharing-is-not-always-a-good-thing/ ) made me think about the advice I was given some time back when I started my foray into the world of Social Media: "don't drink and tweet."

It sounds deceptively simple and yet it is rather profound. When you create content on the social web, or on the web in general, people will find it/see it, regardless of whether you think it is shielded or not. The word "content" by the way, describes everything from a 140-character tweet, or a comment on a website, to a blog entry, to a picture or video you post.

In light of the above therefore, it only makes sense to employ common sense rules.
The way I usually describe the decision point when I am sharing my experiences goes something like this -- if you could stomach seeing your content on the front page of the newspaper or on the 6 o'clock newscast, if you wouldn't mind your content discovered by your mother/spouse/friends/boss, then go ahead and click 'OK', or hit 'Enter'. If you feel you can defend it, you are in the clear.
If you find yourself hesitating however, then you ought to rethink the wisdom of creating this content.

As Jeff points out, "Here’s the first thing that we all should remember – social media doesn’t kill careers, people using social media kill careers." If you want proof, you might want to check this link: Rep. Anthony Weiner Resigns ( http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/anthony-weiner-to-resign-thursday/2011/06/16/AGrPONXH_story.html?wpisrc=al_national)
Just keep this in mind therefore and think before you click.

Wise Advice

2011-06-06T13:56:00.000-04:00

I read an excellent article by David Brooks in the NY Times the other day, titled "It's Not About You."
It was directed at all the young people graduating from the various colleges and universities.
He stated: "If you sample some of the commencement addresses being broadcast on C-Span these days, you see that many graduates are told to: Follow your passion, chart your own course, march to the beat of your own drummer, follow your dreams and find yourself. This is the litany of expressive individualism, which is still the dominant note in American culture.

But, of course, this mantra misleads on nearly every front."

The problem today's young people face is figuring- out how the system works, of picking their way in the big world out there and of finding the problem or problems which call out their name, asking for a solution.

David correctly points-out that we typically admire people who display excellence.
Excellence requires repetition, dedication and likely some sacrifice.
The self will stand in the way if we try to pursue excellence and those who excel will find ways of pushing the self aside and relentlessly attacking the problem until it is solved.
This is wise advice indeed.

New and Familiar

2011-05-29T13:46:00.003-04:00

I was driving and changing radio stations this morning.
I switched to a station that was in the middle of interviewing a musician named Ray Davies about his latest album.
His name didn't trigger any particular reaction at first, but then I heard a music clip and the memories suddenly came flooding in.
This was music I used to listen to many years ago -- music I liked -- music by the group The Kinks.

It was New (especially the lyrics from the featured artists) and at the same time very Familiar.

Now I was hooked and listened with interest as the interview progressed and more music was played.

I resolved to go online and listen to the entire interview when I returned home.
Here is a link to the story in case you might be interested: http://www.npr.org/2011/05/29/136656570/ray-davies-thats-what-friends-are-for
I listened to a couple of music clips posted to the website.
Then I purchased a few of the tracks from my favorite online music provider.

Here is another review of the album "See My Friends" with a little more information.
Time to reflect as I listen to my new musical acquisitions.
Ray Davies' music marketers and producers will secretly smile and intone "mission accomplished."
They got me to buy his music after all ...
I am more interested in the lessons taught by this aging rocker however:
a) the passion is still there
b) the respect of all the other musicians who are featured on this album is clear (The Kinks are widely recognized as one of the most influential bands of their era after all)
c) Ray Davies has shown through this album that when you do something you like, even rehashing old favorites in an album which doesn't contain even one new song can create excitement
Nicely played Mr. Davies.

Shameful Behavior by Honda

2011-05-17T11:20:00.004-04:00

A few weeks ago the amber "idiot light" lit-up in the dashboard of my wife's 2002 Honda Odyssey minivan.
Naturally she was concerned, she took it in to the Honda dealer and after paying for a diagnostic test, received the verdict -- "You need a new transmission. Estimated cost is $3600." *gulp!*

Now I know what you're thinking: "it's a nine-year-old vehicle John, you can expect things to need replacement" -- true, but the car has only been driven 73K miles and it has led a very gentle life -- not to mention that there was previously a safety recall for the vehicle's transmission -- and the transmission's 2nd gear had been replaced back in 2004 due to that safety recall.

"Which gear is failing now?" you ask, yeah, 2nd gear again, what a coincidence!

Upon exploring the online world, surprise-surprise, many owners of the same vehicle have faced similar problems.

Here is a simple search on Google: http://www.google.com/#sclient=psy&hl=en&source=hp&q=2002+honda+odyssey+transmission+problem&aq=3&aqi=g5&aql=&oq=&pbx=1&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.&fp=9651d7334bd74320

A few entries from www.carcomplaints.com: http://www.carcomplaints.com/Honda/Odyssey/2002/transmission/transmission_failure.shtml

A few entries from www.hondacarforum.com: http://www.hondacarforum.com/honda-2/10033-honda-odyssey-2002-transmission-problems.html

One more site - www.odysseytransmission.com: http://www.odysseytransmission.com/ProblemCases?msgId=632 << 116 owners of 2002 Honda Odysseys have posted their experiences on this site

Complaining to American Honda resulted in my case being eventually being handled by a Regional Manager named "Walter". I will refrain from making any comments about Walter's personality, or lack thereof ...

At the end of the complaint process, and due to my couple decades of loyalty to Honda vehicles, American Honda's final offer was to cover 55% of the cost of the new transmission, even though they did not acknowledge any problems with 2002 Honda Odyssey transmissions. That left me paying 45% of the transmission cost and after also adding-in replacement costs for some failing suspension components, brought the bill to a bit over $2200.

I will end my rant with a summary.
I have continued buying Honda (and Acura) vehicles over the years because of their solid reputation for quality and reliability. Through this episode and the follow-up research I described however, it has become apparent that Honda has had numerous quality problems with the transmissions on its minivans -- yet it is failing to acknowledge these problems.

Basic business practice Honda: when you have a problem, you acknowledge it and you fix it (your problem means you pay for it), you thank your customers for their loyalty and you hope they will consider your response in the future and remain loyal to your brand.

I will soon be replacing our Honda Odyssey -- do you think I will buy another Honda vehicle?
I don't think so Honda -- and you have no one to blame for it than your own shameful behavior.

Coolest Job Ever

2011-05-04T10:18:00.000-04:00

A smile subconsciously crept across my lips as I read a recent New York Times article:
"With 'Coolest Job Ever' Ending, Astronauts Seek Next Frontier"

I was briefly transported through the mists of memories long forgotten to my early childhood years.
I still remember watching the Apollo 11 moon landing "live" on TV on July 21, 1969 -- yes I was young, but the idea that those guys were walking on the MOON just brushed aside all the childish thoughts competing for attention inside my head and had me riveted to the TV... I remember later building plastic models of the Apollo 11 Atlas V rocket as well as a large model of the 'Eagle' lunar module -- to me at that age, being an Astronaut was indeed the 'Coolest Job Ever'.

Do you remember the answers you gave to the adults who asked you "what do you want to be when you grow up?" through the years?
I think as reality/maturity set-in, my answers evolved somewhat as follows: Astronaut > Fighter Pilot > Airline Pilot > Race Car Driver > Tank Commander ... and eventually my love of the sciences took over and directed me to more reality-based pursuits.

You might wonder, like me, now that the NASA missions are winding down, what will all the Astronauts do?
Reading the NY Times article, it appears there are plenty of opportunities for employment at either agencies which work with NASA, or at private space flight companies.

Incidentally, I've heard the term "Space Tourism" for a few years now, however I still think of it as an idea which is not quite ready for "prime time" yet. Perhaps I am wrong though -- anyone ready for a near Earth orbit experience?

Christos Anesti

2011-04-24T11:54:00.001-04:00

I would like to wish everyone a happy and joyous Easter today.

I am inserting a couple of images from Holy Friday taken in the Holy Cross church.

Epitafios in Holy Cross church at the beginning of the Holy Friday night service.

Procession of the Epitafios in Holy Cross church during the Holy Friday night service.

My daughter had helped decorate the Epitafios with flowers on Friday morning.

One of the more memorable moments of the evening service was that of the Deacon reading the Petitions and the psalms from his e-reader (it looked like a Kindle).

Christ is Risen -- Truly he is Risen

Get Real

2011-04-17T16:14:00.001-04:00

Late last week I heard the news that the ABC network will soon be cancelling two of its daytime dramas: "One Life to Live" and "All My Children" (http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110414/ap_en_ot/us_tv_daytime_dramas).
These types of shows, which air in early afternoon and are affectionately called soap operas, were originally created for radio and targeted/appealed to housewives to sell detergents and other products made by the huge consumer products companies like P&G (Procter & Gamble).

The shows being cancelled were created in 1968 and 1970 respectively -- that is, they have been on the air for over 40 years. During this time, the demographics of the daytime TV audience have changed and these shows were apparently experiencing steadily declining audiences -- approximately 2.5 million viewers were regularly watching each show at last count. The ABC network explained the programming change as an adaptation to the changing face/demographics of daytime TV viewers.

I am definitely not a fan of soap operas, nor am I one to critique evolution in the face of change, however I wonder if this will be a change for the better.
It is being reported that both soap operas will be replaced by "reality TV"-type shows.
"One Life To Live" will be replaced by a health and lifestyle show which will document the weight loss transformation of a different woman each week, while "All My Children" will be replaced by a show about food and nutrition.

More reality TV shows simply amount to another reason why I am happy to be at work when these shows will be airing ...

Shutdown

2011-04-08T19:51:00.002-04:00

It has been all over the news the last few days.
The deadline of midnight tonight (Friday, April 8, 2011) looms over the political landscape, as a Federal government shutdown becomes a possibility.
In a game of political "Brinksmanship" the Republican-controlled Congress is pushing the Democrat-controlled White House to either make drastic budget cuts, or face the prospect of not getting a mid-year budget passed by the deadline, which will shut down the government.

There are an estimated 800,000 Federal workers who may not go to work on Monday and who face the prospect of going without a paycheck.
- Do you need a passport? Sorry, those Federal workers who process passports are likely going to be considered "non-essential" personnel and they will be sent home if the government shuts down.
- Do you feel like visiting a national monument, or one of the national parks? Sorry, the same goes for the folks who work there.
- April 15 is the deadline for Americans to file their 2010 Federal, State (and for some of us Local) tax returns. If you are scheduled to receive a tax refund and you filed your return electronically, you will likely receive a credit to your account, but if you mailed-in your tax return, you could be waiting for that refund check for a long time.

Politicians are trying to score points for their parties, refusing to compromise, all the while weighing how their actions today will affect their re-election campaigns in the future.
Meanwhile hundreds of thousands of people are holding their breaths, hoping for an avoidance of a government shutdown, quite literally at the eleventh hour.
Is this what they call a Democracy?

I think back to the comedian Johnny Carson and the following line which is attributed to him:
"Democracy is buying a big house you can't afford with money you don't have to impress people you wish were dead. And, unlike communism, democracy does not mean having just one ineffective political party; it means having two ineffective political parties."

Renewal

2011-04-04T13:00:00.001-04:00

Last week we had cold weather, even snow, as March came to a close and April began.
Spring, it appeared, was not quite ready to visit Pittsburgh.
Over the weekend the weather got a bit milder and rain replaced the snow.

A little after 6 pm on March 30, 2011 -- the snow is starting to collect on my car as the temperature hovers right above zero.

Today it was downright warm, with a temperature of 70F (21C) as I prepared to leave my office for a lunchtime walk in the woods. The wind was blowing hard and the western horizon looked dark however, so I grabbed an umbrella - just in case the weather turned wet.
Sure enough, about midway through my walk, fat raindrops began to splatter all around me - the umbrella was soon unfurled, as the rain turned into a soaking shower.
The woods began to smell of wet earth and my thoughts turned to nature's renewal.
Leaves will soon be growing on the bare tree branches and all sorts of greenery will spring from the ground as the temperatures rise.

A Daisy's white petals "pop" against the verdant green of the undergrowth in the woods -- June 1, 2010

Nature's impending renewal could serve as a reminder to people perhaps, that it is time to shake-off the extra baggage we might have accumulated over the winter months and renew our outlook as well. I wonder how many will notice and ultimately how many will accept the invitation.

Goodbye Stamps?

2011-03-31T09:33:00.000-04:00

Ten years ago I would have thought this crazy -- no more stamps?

A few years back we were introduced to self-adhesive stamps as a logical, evolutionary, development to the "lick-it-and-stick-it" variety ...

Now we are talking about sending an SMS to the Post Office, getting charged for a stamp and receiving a code in return -- you write the code on the envelope and drop the letter in the mailbox.

You Had a Good Run, OId Stamps: SMS Codes for Postage Coming to Europe
http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/you_had_a_good_run_oid_stamps_sms_codes_for_postag.php

The rate of change (or "evolution" as I like to call it) seems to be ever-accelerating.

I remember collecting stamps when I was younger -- it was a fascinating way to let the imagination roam based on a the tiny images that were printed on those little paper rectangles. Today of course there are so many other ways to expand a person's horizons (think of image search results in thumbnail form as a comparison), that collecting stamps seems very "passe". It will also be pretty hard to do, if no more stamps are being printed...

And yet the romantics among us will undoubtedly pause, reflect and feel some sadness at this latest evolution.

Spring Thoughts

2011-03-21T17:11:00.000-04:00

Today is the first working day of Spring 2011 (Spring officially began last weekend).
While experiencing nature's re-birth, thoughts wander to what the future might have in store for us.
I am not referring to geopolitical changes as much as technology here.

For example I have previously posted my thoughts on Mobile Payments and even mentioned a futuristic Cash-Less Society. It appears Mobile Payments are expected to hit the mainstream at around 2015, while it might take a little longer for the Cash-Less Society concept to take root (2025+).
You might be wondering "How does he know that?" (scroll down)

On the Sustainability/Green front, Fuel Cells are certainly close at hand (a couple of years to hit mainstream), however Smart Meters don't make it to mainstream until 2015 and for Piezoelectricity to be widely used it will likely be past 2020.

On March 9, I posted a link to this excellent infographic to my Facebook page - I just wanted to expand on the concept in this note.
Michell Zappa (michellzappa.com, or @mz on Twitter) has pulled together knowledge from diverse fields to create a vision of what the next 25 years might hold for emerging technologies: http://www.fastcodesign.com/1663367/infographic-of-the-day-the-next-25-years-in-emerging-tech

Like it or hate it, Michell's infographic will definitely make you think.

Luck of the Irish

2011-03-17T10:45:00.000-04:00

Today is St. Patrick's Day.

Irish and "wannabe-Irish" will celebrate, Chicago officials will dye their river green (see picture in above link) and many will find this a great excuse to down a drink or two.
You might also hear people talk about the "Luck of the Irish."

I saw a great blog post by Brian Matt of Altitude today, which catalyzed this blog post of my own:

http://altimeter-blog.altitudeinc.com/bid/35487/Do-you-feel-lucky-Happy-St-Patrick-s-Day

Brian points-out that "luck is the opportunity to seize something before you which results in something positive."

A basic requirement for luck then, is the ability to be open to alternative points of view, to be thinking about possibilities, to "keeping your eyes open." And (as Brian points-out) to also be willing to take calculated risks.

Sounds pretty common-sense to me -- and you don't need to be Irish to practice these habits either.
May the "Luck of the Irish" be with you today and every day of the year.

Seismic Isolation

2011-03-13T20:22:00.001-04:00

Hearing and seeing the stories pouring out of Japan after Friday's massive earthquake, one feels an immense sense of helplessness. You see all these people who's lives were turned completely upside-down and who are sometimes reverting to that most basic of human behaviors -- survival mode.
They naturally will feel shell-shocked, though assistance may be close-at-hand -- I heard that aid is quickly pouring-into Japan from around the world and that this famously closed society is accepting aid even from nations which it typically views with distrust, such as China and S. Korea.
I just heard that there are already seven U.S. Navy warships close to Japan, lending assistance -- including the supercarrier USS Ronald Reagan with its fleet of helicopters.

The title for this post came from a story I heard about earthquake building codes and about how even though buildings are designed to protect lives during truly massive earthquakes, the buildings do not remain serviceable. In other words, even though the buildings might not collapse during the earthquake, thereby saving the lives of their occupants, they will not be inhabitable and will ultimately need to be knocked down and re-built.

The latest Structural Engineering technology apparently revolves around "Building Resiliency" and "Seismic Isolation" of buildings. The former employing novel materials which can better withstand the violent movement of earthquakes and the latter employing devices which serve to isolate the building from the movement of the ground, much like the shock absorbers found in a car.
These technologies, which sound like science fiction, are apparently being employed today.

Designing Buildings to Withstand Earthquakes

Edited on March 15:
I saw another article on the subject of this blog post titled:
Making Buildings Safer with Earthquake Shock Absorbers
Interesting stuff for sure.

Just when you thought ...

2011-03-12T16:36:00.001-05:00

I saw an announcement that the time will change tonight (March 12).
The time will "Spring Forward" by an hour, to compensate for the "Fall Back" experienced last Autumn/Fall.
When you hear that the time will change you naturally think that spring is near.

It seems Mother Nature has other ideas though.
I'm posting some pictures from our March 11 snowfall.
The temperature dropped a degree or two below freezing overnight and the rain that had been falling for the last day or two turned to heavy, wet snow.
It was not a massive snowfall (about 2 inches, or 5 cm), but it certainly served to remind us that spring and the warmer weather do not automatically arrive when the calendar says so.

Transient Signs of Life

2011-02-27T15:55:00.001-05:00

I enjoy walking in the woods -- some might tell you I get a huge kick out of walking rapidly up and down the steep paths among the trees, the activity representing a jolt of energy and motion during a mostly sedentary day.
There are many forms of wildlife to observe during these walks, from the hawks riding the thermal currents, looking for their next meal, to the deer which scamper away at your approach, as do the wild turkeys, the rabbits, the groundhogs, the squirrels and the chipmunks.

During winter, the woods are much quieter than in other seasons, the cold causing the animals to restrict their activities and the snow muffling whatever sounds might exist. As my boots crunch in the snow, I find myself searching for signs of life during my winter walks. I seem to focus on the prints the various critters leave in the snow. These are, of course, among the most temporary of the visible marks these organisms can leave in their wake and this may very well be the reason I find them so interesting.

Human tracks intersect with Wild Turkey tracks on a path in the woods. The size of their prints gives an idea of the physical size of these birds.

What about the marks I leave behind, you might ask. Human footprints in the snow, which can be filled-in by the next snowfall, or erased when the temperature warms-up, represent the transient signs the human lifeforms leave behind as they traverse through the woods. While they do temporarily alter the landscape, at least they don't represent any long-term changes to the environment, like the trash the careless might toss away.

On January 31, I snapped the picture shown here.
The walking trails through the woods are regularly cleared of the snow by the maintenance crews, so that they remain relatively easy to navigate, even when we receive massive snowfalls.
The sun had come out and the temperature had briefly warmed above freezing that day, which had caused the thin layer of uncleared snow to melt off the dark-colored path. Curiously, there were some footprints which remained however -- what caused this phenomenon?
"Elementary my dear Watson", Mr. Holmes would say in explanation.
The weight of a person compresses the snow and causes it to temporarily melt. Of course the thin layer of water in the footprint is surrounded by the colder snow, so it rapidly re-freezes, turning into ice.
When the weather warms-up, the snow melts faster than the ice. Thus the untouched snow on the path melts first, while the icy marks left behind by the few humans who wandered this way linger-on for a while longer, before they too are erased.

More Snow?

2011-02-22T11:07:00.000-05:00

It was painful getting to work today -- Pittsburgh received 8 inches (20 cm) of snow last night and clearing the driveway to move my car out on the street (which took a LONG time) was the easy part of the morning's experience (temp. was 19F or -7C).
School was canceled at 6 am, which is when I started the shoveling.

Once the driveway was clear and the car was uncovered from the snow, I pulled into my neighborhood streets which were surprisingly clear of snow and ice (the local road crews had done a magnificent job).
Then came the hair-raising task of navigating the ice-covered highway to get to work.
I can't remember seeing so many cars that had spun-off the roads in all my years in Pittsburgh.
The snow plow operators and the tow truck drivers will be working overtime to get things back to normal !

And to think that we had 60F (15C) last Friday and thoughts of Spring were in the air ...

Can't Blame the Weather Anymore

2011-02-04T17:30:00.001-05:00

I read an article about "Snow Contracts" which blew my mind.
The premise sounds rather bizarre -- a company purchases a contract and ... bets on the amount of snow that will fall -- or will not fall.

Cashing In On Snowstorms

It used to be that weather was viewed as something beyond people's control - an act of nature.
With "Snow Contracts", business people are attempting to lessen the financial impact of e.g. a severe snowfall, or even an entire winter season and the business interference they can cause.

For example, if a massive blizzard prohibits: 1) your manufacturing facility from making product, 2) your shipping company from delivering the product, or 3) people from driving to your store to buy the product (causing your sales to drop), you can now cover some or all of your losses. This presumes of course that you had the foresight to negotiate a "Snow Contract" a few months in advance...

This winter has been a pretty rough one for people in the US, as well as in other parts of the world.
With the availability of "Snow Contracts", CEOs will have one less excuse for company stockholders, should their business decline.

Show Me the Money

2011-01-30T20:27:00.001-05:00

Crass commercialism entered my thoughts as I pondered the title for this blog post.
The above line from the 1996 film Jerry Maguire, is one that seemed to fit.

I heard a story on the radio this morning that stuck in my head.
In Haiti, over a year has elapsed since the devastating earthquake and the process of rebuilding seems to be barely inching along. People live in sometimes squalid conditions and technology seems very distant. And yet, in the country which used to be the poorest in the Western hemisphere before the earthquake (one can only imagine how much further they receded due to the earthquake), the very modern concept of electronic money, or the use of cell phones as debit cards, seems to be gaining ever widening adoption.

Perhaps it represents the ever accelerating pace of new technology becoming available, or simple economics and convenience -- only a small fraction of the population in Haiti have bank accounts and it costs less to use this service than others currently available on the market -- or the fear of disease agents, such as cholera, which might be transferred with paper money. Perhaps it is all three of these conditions (and more) combined.

Another related article had caught my eye a few days ago. It was titled "The End of Credit Cards is Coming" and it had explained how cell phones are about to take-on the additional role of credit cards (which are a close relative to debit cards mentioned in the Haiti article I made reference to).

Now re-imagine the phrase "Show Me the Money" and think of the image at right (feel free to substitute the image of an iPhone or Android device if you like). Imagine using your cell phone as your virtual wallet and not having to handle paper money and coins again.

In order to complete this little near-future glimpse into the topic of money (and in case you would like one more thing to worry about), I will leave you with one last point. The incredible amount of information stored in our smart-phones and the unparalleled access these little devices could wield in the future is outlined in an article titled: "Your most dangerous possession?"

Snow Days

2011-01-12T14:29:00.000-05:00

How do you know when it is winter in Pittsburgh?
"When it is cold and everything is white" is one answer.
The first major snowfall of 2011 is upon us.

It started yesterday at noon, as I was walking through the woods -- it was clear at first, but it was really cold and you could "smell" the coming snow. Then it started as tiny iceballs which bounced-off the ground, soon to be followed by larger flakes which were falling densely after about 10 minutes.

By the time my walk in the woods was finished, it was snowing hard.

By the afternoon, there were 3-4 inches (5-8 cm) on the ground and it was still snowing hard. All the roads were slippery and traffic was moving very slowly, as the snow plows/salt trucks valiantly tried to clear the major roadways faster than the snow could collect. Once I arrived at my house, I shoveled the driveway, although it continued to snow hard (less snow to shovel in the morning, I figured).

This morning I woke-up early, grabbed the snow shovel and cleared the driveway and sidewalk again - it was around 20F (-7C) and the snow continued to fall, while the wind whipped at any exposed skin. The wind chill was around 10F (-12C). I cleared the snow off the cars and went inside to warm-up and get ready for work. In less than an hour I was ready to leave, however my car needed to be cleaned again, as the snow was collecting at a fast pace.

Less than an hour after I cleaned it of the overnight snow, my car needed to be cleaned again before I could drive.

The schools had a two-hour delay, but a "snow-day" was not declared for our school district.
I slowly ventured out of my neighborhood and was promptly stuck in various traffic jams as cars moved slowly and people tried to get to their jobs.

A Long line of vehicles inches forward more than a mile away from the highway ramp.

Winter in Pittsburgh could also be called snow days.
FYI, the film Snow Day could also be discussed here, however I'll leave that as a subject for another post.

All the Best for 2011

2010-12-31T15:10:00.001-05:00

New Year's Eve -- traditionally a time for reflection -- 365 days in 2010 to think about.
Lots to be thankful for, lots to be sad about, lots to be excited about and lots to worry about -- in other words, this year had it all (for me anyway).
One year older and (one hopes) wiser too.

To all my friends I would like to extend my warmest wishes for 2011.
First and foremost I wish you all good health (something we take for granted all too often).
I would also like to wish you success and happiness too.

For 2011, I have some simple hopes (some might call them resolutions):
I am looking forward to the challenges and the opportunities I am sure the new year will bring.
I hope to be able to do the right things.
I hope to continue learning and expanding my horizons.

I wish you all the best for 2011 !

White Christmas

2010-12-25T14:30:00.001-05:00

Mother Nature helped make the wishes of many children come true this morning by coating Pittsburgh with a blanket of snow and delivering a White Christmas.
The temperature was a few degrees below freezing and we had about an inch (3 cm) on the ground this morning, as I grabbed the shovel to clean the driveway.

I paused during the shoveling and gazed in wonder at a nature-made Christmas tree, outside my house.

The silence was absolute, every sound muffled by the snow -- even the birds and other critters were being quiet. The lyrics to 'Silent Night' came to mind:

Silent Night

Silent night holy night
All is calm, all is bright
Round yon virgin mother and child.
Holy infant so tender and mild,
Sleep in heavenly peace.
Sleep in heavenly peace.

Silent night holy night
Shepherds quake at the sight,
Glories stream from heaven afar,
Heavenly hosts sing alleluia;
Christ the Savior, is born
Christ the Savior, is born.

Silent night holy night
Son of God, love's pure light
Radiant beams from thy holy face,
With the dawn of redeeming grace,
Jesus, Lord, at thy birth.
Jesus, Lord, at thy birth.

The work completed, I snapped a couple more pictures before heading inside to warm-up.

I'd like to wish everyone a merry Christmas.

May all your wishes come true.

Ready for the Holidays?

2010-12-15T16:41:00.002-05:00

You know this thing with the cold is getting very tiresome ... !
And winter doesn't officially begin until December 21 !
We have been under this constant barrage of frigid arctic air for many days now.
It is very cold and windy = a bad combination.
The temperature this morning was 15F (-9C), however when the wind was factored-in (the so-called wind-chill temperature), it felt like 4F (-15C).
Yesterday's high temperature was 16F (-9C), today we will get as warm as 22F (-5C), however we are not expected to get warmer than the freezing mark for the next few days.

With all this in mind, we might have a "white Christmas" after all -- or at least a very cold one.
The good news for me was that the temperature warmed-up to a few degrees above freezing last weekend and I was able to install the various lighted decorations outside my house (they help to put you in a Christmas mood, don't you know?).

Street view at night in the falling snow - reindeer in "liftoff" mode

Driveway/Walkway view - you can also see some neighbors' lighted decorations in the background

Now that the lights are up, all that is required is to actually get into the spirit!
I wish you all a blessed Christmas.

Unseasonably Cold

2010-12-09T09:09:00.001-05:00

It was 18F (-8C) when I left my house this morning of December 9, 2010.
The projected high temperature is 25F (-4C) today.
I was listening to the weatherman who was explaining that so far in the month of December, our temperature has not yet risen above the freezing point and that temperatures are significantly below normal (duh).

A few random thoughts:

The road crews have been busy applying salt to roadways. As a result, cars are covered with gray salt splatter and the car washes likely expect to do a brisk business as soon as people want to see their car's original paint color again.
There are fewer Christmas decorations outside houses (including mine), since the frigid weather makes it so much tougher to string the lights, etc.
People will be in for an unpleasant surprise when they receive their utility bills, as the heaters have had to work overtime to keep us warm.
The walking trails through the woods where I go to stretch my legs are so much quieter these days - even the animals seem to be staying under cover. I expect most creatures see the "walking fool" and wonder why in the world he goes on his walks.

Things will likely change tomorrow, when the temperatures are expected to rise a few degrees above freezing and what falls from the sky will be liquid instead of frozen -- though of course it will certainly freeze later, causing slick roads, heavy, ice-covered tree branches and all sorts of other "un-fun" conditions.

Parting thought: only 16 days until Christmas!

Winter has Arrived

2010-12-01T09:25:00.001-05:00

We woke up to 30F (around -1C) this morning and the weatherman was talking about all the rain from the last 24 hours changing to snow later in the day.
I didn't pay much attention ... I was running late.
Then I stepped outside and noticed the landscape was covered in white.
I snapped a quick picture of my car in the dark, before clearing off the light blanket of wet snow.

The commute in to work was a bit sloppy and the traffic was pretty snarled.
Thankfully there were no accidents or cars that had driven off the road.

First "snow-on-the-ground" of the cold season on the first day of December.
I must admit it looks pretty.
Ask me how I feel about the snow in a couple of months though, and I might have a slightly different opinion...

Even though technically there are still a few weeks left in autumn, I would like to wish everyone a "Good Winter" (Kalo Xeimwna in Greek).

What makes a Fan?

2010-11-28T20:01:00.001-05:00

Saturday seemed pretty ordinary until the opportunity presented itself to go to the 1:00 pm Pittsburgh Penguins hockey game against the visiting Calgary Flames. We are not what you may call a "rabid" Pens fans, however both my daughter and I jumped at the opportunity to attend.
This game was being played at the new Consol Energy Center - a really nice venue, as hockey arenas go.

We wore our Pittsburgh Pens black shirts, braved the wind and the cold (it was around 38F or 3C at noon time) and filed into the arena along with a whole bunch of other fans. This was another sold-out game, so there were plenty of folks there (capacity is stated at over 18,000 and there were folks standing too).

The game started with a 3-0 run by the Penguins, and the fans in the Arena were going wild!

I snapped this picture immediately after the Penguins scored their second goal, while every person in the Arena was on their feet.

Then the Flames came alive. They scored a goal and were really pressuring the Pens. With little time left in the last period, the Flames pulled their goalie and replaced him with another player, so they could outnumber the Pens players, as they tried to score again.

There were mere seconds left in the last period and the Penguins were still leading by a score of 3-1, however they were short-handed, as they had a player in the penalty box - the Flames now had a two-man advantage.
Then I saw the Penguins captain, Sidney Crosby, entering the game.
Time seem to slow down and the thought raced through my head that he just might try to score again (Crosby had scored two of the Pens' three goals in the game at that point, including the 200th goal of his career).

With 37 seconds left to play, Crosby indeed scored an "empty-netter", achieving the elusive hat-trick and setting-off a frenzied celebration in the crowd! Hats rained onto the ice from all directions, as the fans showed their appreciation for Crosby and game was suspended for several minutes, as the Arena crew tried to collect them all.

The game ended with the Penguins winning 4-1, while the excitement was palpable in the crowd.
Here's a link to a recap of the game online.
After the game we walked rapidly through the cold, stopping traffic and savoring the victory.
Maybe we were not quite die-hard fans, but on this day, most Pittsburghers certainly counted themselves as Pittsburgh Penguins fans.

This picture was taken right after the game ended, as the Penguins players were congratulating each other.

Baby It's Cold Outside

2010-11-17T16:17:00.000-05:00

Leaving the house at 7:00 am yesterday, I noticed a pretty thick blanket of fog and it felt quite cold.
My car was covered in what appeared to be rain drops.
Upon closer examination however, it became clear the water on my car was frozen.

I snapped a picture of my car's roof, before I began to scrape the ice off the windshield and windows.

The meteorologists are talking about "freezing precipitation", or "wintry mix" starting tomorrow.
Indian Summer seems to have left us for good.

Thus the title of this blog entry, and a cute little song too: Baby It's Cold Outside
(link to YouTube video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m3H6YE-40xg)

Indian Summer

2010-11-10T21:18:00.002-05:00

Last Saturday we experienced snow flurries in Pittsburgh and a temperature which struggled to reach the high 40'sF (10C). Every night since then the sky has been clear and the temperatures dip down to (or below) freezing. Every morning I scrape ice off my car's windshield -- the meteorologists talk about a "hard frost".

Despite the frigid mornings however, the last few days the weather has been warm and sunny, with temperatures ranging from 60-70F (16-21C). My mid-day walks in the woods are an absolute pleasure and the warmer temperatures provide a chance to wear short-sleeve shirts for a few more days before the cold weather returns with a vengeance.

Traditionally this is called "Indian Summer" and it is a part of autumn I really look forward-to every year.
According to the wikipedia link I inserted above, Indian Summer typically occurs between mid-October and late-November. While the colors on the leaves this year are not as dramatic as in past years, it is the balmy temperatures which really make these days so enjoyable.

The picture was taken in the latter part of October, as I was driving around my neighborhood, when the leaves were still mostly on the trees -- now they are mostly on the ground.

Speaking of driving, the car's heater needs to work in the morning to warm-up the frigid car, while if you drive during midday, you might actually get to use the A/C -- that's another definition of Indian Summer, I guess.
My advice to myself: enjoy it while you can, since the cold and cloudy skies will be here soon enough - and the "white stuff" will not be far behind.

Feel free to follow the link to my Facebook below to see some of the pictures I have taken during autumn in Pittsburgh (and feel free to connect with me while you are there):
http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/album.php?aid=235126&id=820847511

Politicos

2010-11-02T09:33:00.001-04:00

The word "politics" comes from the Greek word "Πολιτικά" (politika), modeled on Aristotle's "affairs of the city", the name of his book on governing and governments, which was rendered in English mid-15 century as Latinized "Polettiques".^[4] Thus it became "politics" in Middle English c. 1520s (see the Concise Oxford Dictionary). The singular "politic" first attested in English 1430 and comes from Middle French "politique", in turn from Latin "politicus",^[5] which is the romanization of the Greek "πολιτικός" (politikos), meaning amongst others "of, for, or relating to citizens", "civil", "civic", "belonging to the state",^[6] in turn from "πολίτης" (polites), "citizen"^[7] and that from "πόλις" (polis), "city".^[8] via Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Politics

As for the title of this blog entry, "politicos" is a word commonly used to describe those who are involved in politics (see above) and in modern Greek it is literally translated as anybody involved in politics, e.g. "a politician".

I posted the following to my Facebook this morning:
OK, I voted this morning -- can we now please stop all the disgusting political advertisements?
Enough is enough I say -- don't these folks have anything better to spend their money on, than slinging mud at each other?

For those of you who live in the U.S., I think you know where I am coming from.
Every time there is an election approaching, the advertisements begin to flood the airwaves and they are decidedly not pretty to watch and/or hear.
Each year it seems these advertisements get worse, as the advertisers strive to attain new levels of shock value -- of course repeated exposure to these advertisements causes sheer disgust in the public, however why should the politicos care about the public - right?

"I just need your vote," the politicos seem to be saying to the public -- "after that, you can leave me alone."

I am also astounded by the economic aspect of the pre-election advertisements.
One estimate I heard calculated that the political advertisements will amount to approximately $3 billion this year!
That's a major "cash burn" and what makes it even more eye-opening is that this kind of money is being spent while we are trying to pull ourselves out of the most serious economic crisis since the Great Depression.
Most politicos like to talk about how they will be better stewards of the public's money than their predecessors, however I don't see them taking aim at this most egregious spending of cash.

Enough of my rant however, Election Day is here, I have cast my vote and I declare to all the politicos out there:
Take your mud and leave me alone ... at least until the 2012 Presidential election approaches, when I expect you will start this all over again with renewed fervor.

Football fever

2010-10-21T17:55:00.001-04:00

Here I sit in my hotel room in Cologne, just returned after a brisk 25 minute walk from the Haxenhaus zum Rheingarten restaurant, when a message causes my Blackberry to buzz.

My friend Brian sent me a message informing me there's a football game on TV -- Bayer Leverkusen is playing against Aris Saloniki - in Saloniki, Greece. This is not American football, rather it is "real" (according to the locals) football, aka soccer.

I am sitting a few kilometers from the Bayer Leverkusen stadium, cheering the lads playing for the team from Saloniki - a city where I lived for a few years when I was younger - something tells me I'm in the minority compared to the rest of the fans in this town.
Memories of going to similar games decades ago wash over me, as I watch the game.
The fans are a churning sea of yellow and black, chanting at the top of their lungs, worked-up to a fever pitch as neither team has managed to score and the game will soon be ending.
Color-wise, it is very reminiscent of Pittsburgh Steelers (American) football games, where black and gold colors dominate the stands and the fans are equally boisterous and loud.

The game finally ends 0 - 0 and the fans are delirious, as the visiting powerhouse club leaves without managing to score any points and has only a scoreless tie to show for its efforts.
I in turn, feel the excitement of cheering for a team, which despite having their trials and tribulations from the last few years escape my conscious, have managed to light some sport-related excitement in me on this chilly night in Germany.

Time Flies!

2010-10-12T16:09:00.001-04:00

Here I am checking my often-overlooked blog and am shocked to discover I have not posted anything since August ... Where has the time gone?
Actually, I have a pretty good idea what happened in September -- my children are still "young" enough that the beginning of the school year can easily be identified as a culprit.
Then there are also work-related things, such as business trips for example, which manage to invade in my personal time.

The main point I want to make however refers to the visualization I frequently see in my mind's eye, of time represented as sand in an hourglass. Sand, which once it has flowed through the narrow opening, is gone and cannot be taken back. The same holds true for time - for once it goes by, it is gone and cannot be recovered. We each have a finite amount of time entrusted to us and we should strive to make the most of it.

What is even more important however is that the world around us will also have changed through time's passing. The dynamic environment we live in does not remain static - it changes based on the actions (or inactions) of everyone else. This point was depicted brilliantly in the "Back to the Future" movies for example, where the time machine was used to go back in time and attempt to alter events, which would then lead to an alternate future.

I think of my children, one in high school, the other in college, and think about how quickly they seem to have grown up. Time sure seems as if it has flown by since they were much younger!
Time has indeed passed, and since I do not have access to a time machine, I can only plan for how I will use my time today and in the future. I hope to use it wisely.

A Question of Speed

2010-08-23T17:41:00.001-04:00

I posted a blog entry a couple of months back about Books and e-Readers.
I ended-up buying an iPad (for my wife), though it is not quite fulfilling eReader duties yet -- that is content for another blog entry however.

This story about Seth Godin giving-up on traditional book publishing brings things into a sharper focus however.
Here is a very well known author who has decided traditional (paper) book publishing is too cumbersome, convoluted, slow and exasperating. He feels it is difficult to get his audience to buy (paper) books, so he is adapting his distribution model.

To quote Stan Schroeder, the article's author, "Paper books aren’t a particularly elegant way to spread an idea in the age of blogs, e-readers and social media."

This news would seem to rock the foundation of the publishing world.
I recently saw these words related to coping with change and feel they fit here:
"We feel uncomfortable about change, however we would be terrified if things stayed as they are."
I'll be curious to see what comes next.

Friend Request

2010-08-17T08:35:00.001-04:00

I was talking to the incoming class of Sustainability MBA students at Duquesne University yesterday about the approaches Bayer MaterialScience is taking towards Sustainability and after fielding their questions, I mentioned that they could reach out to me via social media for any questions that might arise in the future.
I got a few strange looks - like, "aren't you a bit old to be using social media?"

Well, the truth is that I now use social media more than ever - and statistics indicate that this domain, which used to belong to the young, is now being embraced more and more by their parents (people my age).
As I have begun to understand and use the privacy controls on Facebook for example, I have been expanding my friends and contacts lists (each groups only sees the content I want them to see).
I always get a kick when I see: "you have X new friend requests" and I check-out the profiles of the people who have sent me these requests.

It really brought a smile to my face therefore, when I recently saw this picture:

Why shouldn't the church also adopt humor and modern communication pathways for getting its message out?

By the way, here is a link to my profile on Facebook (feel free to send me a friend request):
Gianni's profile

The Right to Protest

2010-08-09T14:44:00.002-04:00

I have returned from a brief visit to Greece and Cyprus.
Being in Athens the past week was not very "fun"...
The truck drivers were on strike when we arrived and as a result, fresh fruit and produce was getting scarce in the markets.
Worse, the gas stations were running out of gas since the tank truck drivers were also on strike and the lines of cars waiting to fill-up their gas tanks at those stations which still had gas were sometimes obscenely long. Tempers were rising along with the summer temperatures.

"Vacation time" for Greeks arrives with the beginning of August and the truck driver's strike seemed aimed at creating the maximum degree of discomfort to the public who were attempting to leave on their summer vacations - not to mention any foreign tourists who decided to visit Greece.
I heard hotel bookings were being cancelled en-masse and the vacancy rates at many prime destinations were running around 50%.

I forgot to mention the air traffic controller's strike during the last two weeks, which delayed many flights departing from Greece and Cyprus (the main way people depart Cyprus in through Greece).
Since flights were being delayed, planes were late arriving and the next flights (which required those same planes) were delayed as well.

I really enjoy using the Athens Metro when I visit - it is a marked improvement over the bus routes I remember using when I was young.
I heard that workers at the Metro will also be continuing a strike however -- once everybody returns from their summer vacations.

Why the public tolerates the strikes by those groups mentioned above, as well as by others is beyond me. Greece depends on a well-run tourism machine to bring in some sorely needed cash during the summer months and the situation seems to be deteriorating compared to my visits in years past.
Truly a sad sight to behold.

I am not contesting worker's right to protest, however I cannot support those workers who cause discomfort to their fellow citizens through acts such as the strikes mentioned above.
I guess I can pray for a miracle...

Take the A-Train

2010-07-21T10:15:00.000-04:00

As I prepare to make a brief visit to Greece, I came across an article that brought into stark focus the enormity of the economic problems this country is wrestling with.

Hellenic Railways is drowning in debt -- its debt is estimated at $13 billion, or 5% of Greece's gross domestic product. It is losing 3 million Euros a day!

With that type of debt load you can begin imagining the types of drastic measures that will need to be taken.
These measures will definitely be unpopular.
More popular rage will undoubtedly be forthcoming.
The people who are responsible for this mess will probably evade being held accountable.

Why should I care?
It has to do with family history.
My paternal grandfather was an employee of Hellenic Railways, back when the trains were the main means of transportation within Greece. He was a railway man, proud of the company he worked for and I still remember his pocket chronograph, a token of his many years of service at the railway.
Grandpa Gianni would surely be distressed at the state of the company he once worked for.

Since I'm feeling sentimental, here's a link to an old-time, train-related, jazz tune with the same title as this post from the legendary Duke Ellington -- Take the A-Train.

Opportunity

2010-06-28T11:16:00.000-04:00

The objective was vague.
The resources meager, to non-existent.
The location was challenging.
The visibility would be minimal.
It could have been viewed as a dead-end job.
Something best left untouched.

And yet he cherished a challenge.
He saw potential in all "opportunities."
He could visualize success.
He accepted the assignment.
He forged ahead down that less-traveled road.

Ten years later, the situation is markedly changed.
The improvement impressive.
The future encouraging.
The road, though still challenging, seems to be easier to travel.

I met the man a week ago.
I was impressed.
His name is Athenagoras.

I Love a Good Book

2010-06-20T22:07:00.000-04:00

I have fond memories of reading -- way back to my early years, when I remember reading just about anything written by Jules Verne and checking-out every one of The Hardy Boys Mysteries from the library ...
Paperbacks, hardcover books, I remember their varied shapes, their cover art (or lack thereof), their lightness or heft, their flexibility or stiffness, even their smell.

Now I find myself considering an e-reader like the Kindle from Amazon.
I am even considering an I-Pad, though if I get one, it will likely be used for more than just reading books.

The point is that electronic books are becoming more and more common and as I ponder which books I might take with me on a trip, I also wonder if in the not too distant future I might be carrying an e-reader instead.

Along with myself, many others are also likely considering the move to e-books and this can only mean the gradual decline of printing books on paper. Someday, books made of paper may only be a distant memory and I can imagine a future where "books" are simply electronic files, stored in microscopic drives, or even in "the cloud".

I think back to the golden age of Archaeology and all we have learned through the deciphering of hieroglyphics, etchings on stones and clay tablets, or markings on papyri and parchments.
Can you imagine archaeologists in the future digging through piles of electronic data instead of manuscripts and various tomes? It may be progress, but I don't have to like it.

Canoes & Kayaks

2010-06-06T22:08:00.000-04:00

As I had previously mentioned in my "Being Green" blog entry, Saturday June 5 was World Environment Day. Pittsburgh was selected as the North American host city for events surrounding World Environment Day, so there were all sorts of activities going-on around town.

Friday night we had thunderstorms in the area and Saturday they continued unabated. Lots of rain was falling. Events related to World Environment Day taking place in the David L Lawrence convention center might have been continuing on schedule, however anyone with outdoor plans would rightly have expected a washout.

I had heard of a special event planned for Saturday morning. There was a Guinness World Record for the largest raft of Canoes/Kayaks - the record was for 1,104 (joined by people holding their hands onto the various crafts) set in Inlet, NY. Pittsburghers decided to break the record. Over 2,300 had registered for the event - but that was before the storms rolled in. Would the record stand?

Well, it seems over 1,800 people actually showed-up, put their kayaks and canoes in the rivers (a bit earlier than planned due to the storms) and held-on for a minimum of 30 seconds to set a new world record. Then they quickly got out of the water and tried to stay dry as the skies opened-up! The local news channels liked this story too.

I love the quote of the day, captured on Twitter: "last time there were this many paddlers on these rivers, we spoke French" (a reference to the early 1700s when this area was first colonized by the French -- it was finally captured by the British after the French and Indian War in 1763).

Remembering

2010-06-03T14:55:00.000-04:00

May 31 was Memorial Day - a holiday to honor those who gave their lives for their country. Traditionally, the people remembered in this holiday were those who died in the great conflicts of the 20th century - World War I, World War II, Korea, Vietnam.

There are others however, who have died in more recent years.
There have been over 6000 members of the armed forces of the US and other allied countries who have died in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan (224 from the UK in Afghanistan and 126 from the UK in Iraq for example). There have also been many thousands of civilian casualties. This CNN website contains a lot of information about the casualties in these two conflicts.

The majority of these casualties were young people, just getting started in their lives and one can only wonder at the potential they held within them. There were those too, who had families and even children. It is those children, orphaned by the loss of a parent in a faraway land, in a war they don't understand, for whom I feel the most empathy.

The casualties in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are the most recent and thus their loss impacts us the most. Their memories have not been dulled by the passing of time. Their loved ones continue to talk about them as if they are still around. This is one holiday that ensures we remember those who made the ultimate sacrifice for their country.

Pay-Up!

2010-05-30T17:26:00.001-04:00

I was at the store and I took my purchase to the checkout register, I swiped my card, signed the little electronic pad and I was on my way. The transaction was cleared in milliseconds and my credit card was charged with the appropriate amount.

I thought back to the last week -- when was the last time I used cash to pay for something?
If not this past week, how about the week before?
You see where I am going with this, right?
Cash is fast becoming a form of payment I use less and less.

At the end of the month the credit card statement will arrive and if I want to avoid the finance charges, I will pay for it in full -- pay for it how?
In the past, I would write a check and mail it in to the bank.
You noticed I indicated this was how things used to work.
Now I am equally likely to make an electronic payment - the funds instantaneously transferring from my bank account to the account of the bank that issued the credit card to me.

The above payment method bypasses the Post Office (and all the delays associated with using it).
It also means I will write fewer checks, and thus I will need to order new checks less often ... or never.

Lest you think I am a strange futurist who rapidly embraces all the latest technologies, I freely admit I am typically a "late-adopter", at least for technology that involves money.
This means there are many more like me who are now warming-up to this technology and even more "early adopters" who already use it. What might this mean then?

I have already mentioned the rapidly declining volume of mail in the US Post Office in a previous blog entry.
The other day I read that check printing orders are also rapidly declining -- people are simply writing fewer checks.

Now check this out -- the latest app for your smartphone even comes with a peripheral credit card scanner that attaches to the headphone jack (read the story about the app for the iPad here). Credit card transactions will now be easier than ever and you can even send money electronically to people and establishments (and receive receipts through e-mail or SMS) -- who needs cash?

Do you remember the days when you had to physically take your bills to the bank to get them paid?

Can you hear me now?

2010-05-23T20:23:00.003-04:00

Among the many changes which seem to be coming our way at what seems to be an ever-increasing speed is likely going to be the demise of the good old fashioned telephone.

Most people I know have a land line and a cell phone - some more than one.
"Why keep the land line?" is a question more and more people (especially the younger folks) are asking with increased frequency - and they are deciding they don't need it (and its associated expense) after all.

A cell phone allows you to call anyone in the US and most companies don't even charge calls against your monthly minute allotment if you call people who use the same cell phone provider.

You say you call overseas?
I remember a few years back, calling friends and relatives overseas - the phone company charges were high and the conversations were typically brief - it was expensive after all.
More recently, third-party providers began offering overseas calling plans at a fraction of what the phone companies used to charge - and the calls got longer.

Then came VOIP (Voice Over Internet Protocol) and companies like Vonage and Skype. Now you can make calls to anyone (in the case of Skype, they can even be video calls) and there is no need for a land line.

Even the phone in my office is now a VOIP variant. Calling colleagues in other parts of the world who are similarly equipped is a snap and the monthly bill is much lower.

The tagline from the Verizon (local land line, cell phone and internet provider) commercial echoes in my ears "...can you hear me now?"
(and if you can hear me, I wonder what kind of device you are using)

News and new Media

2010-05-16T22:06:00.000-04:00

One of the sights from Athens which seems to be etched in my mind is of many kiosks, festooned with newspapers and magazines. There is typically a dizzying array of printed matter pinned to the outside of one of these kiosks, fluttering in the breeze - such a common scene there.

In the US, one would find a similar (though in my humble opinion more sterile) setup in the typical newsstand. Once again, a multitude of newspapers and magazines can be found here, all printed on paper - what some might consider a waste of natural resources (e.g. trees).

I would like to ask each of you however, when was the last time you got your news from a newspaper or magazine, sitting in your favorite chair? What about TV? What about online? The experts seem to indicate that social media is going to supersede the more traditional media and the antiquated news delivery mechanisms they use.

Young people today do not subscribe to newspapers and magazines - they see no value in this, as printed news is "old news". e-Readers seem to be popping-up everywhere. From Amazon's Kindle to the i Pad and of course there's the old standby of taking your laptop to the WiFi-equipped coffee shop to catch-up on the news while you sip your favorite beverage. I heard one expert proclaim that, in the US at least, the newsstand will disappear within ten years. It may take a bit longer in Greece, however I think a similar shift will take place over there.

It appears traditional media is facing a critical point in its history. The economic recession has forced various newspapers and magazines around the world to close, or be sold. Many others are barely hanging-on. The staff at these publications are facing a very real possibility of seeing their profession sliding towards extinction. As is always the case when facing massive change, many resist, refusing to accept the dynamics behind the shift observed in the last few years. Others however, are beginning to see the writing on the wall and are already positioning themselves to evolve. The latter are the more intelligent ones in my opinion.
The choice is not very complicated really - evolve and survive, or resist and perish.

Marathon

2010-05-01T19:14:00.000-04:00

May 1 - May Day in most parts of the world, but here it is not a holiday, just another Saturday.
In the US, Labor Day is a holiday reserved for the end of summer - celebrated on the first Monday of September (this year on September 6) and May Day is just not celebrated.

The weatherman spoke of showers and thunderstorms arriving later in the day and the grass needed to be mowed, so I got out and took care of it in the morning, while the sun was shining.

Meanwhile this was also "Move Out Day" at Pitt (University of Pittsburgh), however our son was giving his last final this morning (yes, they have finals on the weekends now), so we decided to wait until noon to drive to the dormitory and help him move out. Road maintenance/construction (always taking place when the weather is nice) ensured there were delays as we navigated the congested roads.

Once we arrived at Pitt, there were cars, vans and SUVs parked everywhere. A crazy ballet of students, siblings and parents, all carrying stuff, was taking place and we joined-in. Viewed from above, it may have looked like an ant colony busily moving about. A couple of hours later, we had packed everything into our vehicles - literally every inch of space was used - and we were reassuring ourselves we would not allow our son to bring so much stuff with him when he returns in August (famous last words).

We are happy we managed to complete the move today, since tomorrow, May 2, is the Pittsburgh Marathon and there will be many road closures, making transit to Oakland much more difficult. Adding to that, the weather forecast for tomorrow is for severe thunderstorms and that will just add to the unpleasantness.
As for me, I feel like I ran a mini-marathon today - I'll let the runners do their part tomorrow.

Being Green

2010-04-25T18:43:00.001-04:00

Earth Day was April 22.
This year was the 40th anniversary of it's celebration.
Some say one of the catalysts for this event was the fact the Cuyahoga river, in Cleveland, caught on fire - in 1969.
I certainly heard about this a lot when I was in college in Cleveland in the early-to-mid 80's.
Earth Day was also a catalyst of sorts for a variety of environmental awareness activities, leading-up to WED on June 5.

Pittsburgh has been selected as the North American host city by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). There are multiple events planned in Pittsburgh which will culminate with the Global "Water Matters" conference on June 3 and World Environment Day (WED) on June 5. Events will be held in the David L. Lawrence Convention Center, North America's first LEED-certified (gold) convention center and the largest "green" building in the world.

Closer to home, I'm already getting tired of mowing my lawn and it is only April!
Despite the cold and record snowfall this winter, the grass has sprung-up again, as green as ever, and the spring rains make it grow at a really fast pace. If you do not mow it a minimum of once a week, you risk damaging it when you cut it later (and you cut off too much of each grass blade).

Related to this, I read a great tweet on my Twitter stream last week, though I don't remember who posted it: "Working on your lawn a bit in the spring, ensures more hard work throughout the summer."
Humor helps in this situation.

Virtual Wanderings

2010-04-17T15:21:00.000-04:00

My daughter needs to compose a travel diary for a school project.
Each student was given a hypothetical sum of money (budget) and told to select their destination (somewhere in N. America), make travel arrangements, find lodging, create an itinerary for a seven-day stay at this destination and keep a diary of daily impressions, visits, etc. Of course she has to stay within her budget too.

Without any direction from me, she chose Charleston, SC as her destination.
She found a low price airfare on a travel website and after considerable research, found a hotel with reasonable prices and accommodations - she even made a list of (actual) restaurants she would visit and estimated how much she would be spending on food.

We lived in Charleston for almost eight years in the 90s, so when it came to the itinerary, she came to me to give her ideas. Going from memory, I started numbering a variety of places for her to visit and things she could do. She took notes, as she was much too young to remember any of these when we lived there. As a next step, she will continue to do her online research, find more information about each destination or activity, including any fees associated with it, and start writing about this fictional trip.

I am looking-on, trying not to interfere too much, amazed at how much information she has been able to uncover online and how much detail she is fleshing-out in her travel diary from her virtual wanderings in this place we used to call home.

Once upon a time, when I was only a few years older than she currently is, I would satisfy my desire for wanderlust by loading a backpack with my stuff and heading-off for one of the Greek islands. The degree of planning back then was typically limited to word-of-mouth and sometimes on a travel guide that listed mostly historical sites (which I found quite boring in those days). I am amazed at the degree of information that has been made available in the intervening thirty or so years and can only begin to imagine what the next thirty years will bring.

Airport Shuffle

2010-04-11T18:36:00.001-04:00

I was waiting at a US Airways gate in the Charlotte Douglas International airport (in Charlotte, NC) yesterday for my flight to Pittsburgh to depart. It was a rather monotonous Saturday afternoon, when first one and then a second of the electric carts you typically see transporting elderly or handicapped individuals zoomed up to the gate next to ours.

Three police officers got off the first one and a couple of paramedics got off the second one, which was also equipped with a wheeled stretcher, just like those used with ambulances. Something was up!

Seconds later the door leading to the skyway opened and a couple of individuals with "Charlotte Fire Department" emblazoned on their shirts entered the gate area. We had a "full house" of emergency responders in the gate area now - a couple of them were already wearing the disposable gloves worn when treating accident victims. My guess was that a passenger on an inbound plane must have experienced some type of emergency during the flight and they were summoned to treat this individual.

I quietly snapped a picture as they milled-around waiting for a plane to land (they typically do not appreciate being photographed).

Once a plane had landed, they rushed on board and reappeared a few minutes later, helping a middle aged woman walk to the cart and carrying her hand luggage. What seemed interesting was that the woman seemed perfectly capable of walking on her own, however they insisted she be strapped onto the stretcher, which was subsequently placed on the electric cart and they all zoomed off.

Minutes later, as the rest of the passengers were getting off the plane a very old woman emerged and another electric cart appeared to take her to Baggage Claim - a nice courtesy to an elderly passenger.

Interesting to see the degree of readiness these emergency responders exhibited.
It is good to know they are there, though I hope their services are not required often.

Shaken

2010-04-05T22:55:00.000-04:00

Another earthquake struck today ... this time it struck near Mexicali, Mexico and it registered a 7.2 on the Richter scale.

Experts tell us this one was about five times stronger than the one that struck Haiti in January, yet there were only a handful of buildings that collapsed - one was a parking garage in Mexicali - while several buildings (on both sides of the border) were damaged and will need to be repaired before they can be used again.
Loss of life reported so far - two dead (and less than 50 injured).

Why such a disparate difference in damage and casualties between these two earthquakes?

Could it only be the substantially stricter building codes (and the enforcement of those building codes)?
If so, the Haiti earthquake seems all the more tragic.
So much 'preventable' human suffering and subsequent misery...

The Cure

2010-04-01T08:13:00.004-04:00

I borrowed this quote from Jane Perdue's (@hrgoddess on Twitter) Twitter stream:

"The cure for anything is salt water - sweat, tears, or the sea." ~Isak Dinesen

Why does this quote speak to me?
- Is it the fact that I enjoy gardening/landscaping (and the sweat equity that goes with these activities) as a means of "escape"?
- Is it the psychological condition I find myself in these days before Easter?
- Is it my love of the sea, travel, exploring new places (whether by boat or on foot)?

Maybe the correct answer (like in many multiple choice questions) is "all of the above."

@ sign

2010-03-25T08:23:00.003-04:00

I heard on the radio that the MoMA (Museum of Modern Art) in NY acquired the @ sign for its department of architecture and design as a great example of modern design. The @ sign is of course ubiquitous today, with e-mail taking a role of ever-increasing importance as a means of communication.

The surprising news however is this is not a new symbol - it was being used since the middle ages to signify the preposition "at" while using fewer pen strokes. Venetian and Portuguese merchants in the 17th century used the symbol to signify "unit price". In the 20th century it was being used by accountants and had found its way into the teletype keyboard when it was "discovered" by Ray Tomlinson (a computer scientist) in 1971. He had been contracted by the US government and was working on what would eventually become e-mail. He used the @ symbol to make the e-mail address shorter and boosted this once-obscure symbol into modern day consciousness.

Mail

2010-03-25T08:05:00.004-04:00

The US Post Office is swimming in red ink.
Repeated postage price hikes over the last few years have not managed to bring a balance to the equation and it is now facing budget deficits approaching $4B.
Meanwhile, the amount of mail in the system is decreasing, as people have switched to electronic delivery of documents and are using online tools such as e-banking.

One approach being considered is to eliminate Saturday mail delivery.
I mention this because it is one of the most obvious differences when I compare my mail experiences in the US vs. say in Greece.

Eliminating Saturday mail delivery may be slightly less convenient, however it will bring the experiences of people in the US closer to those of people in other parts of the world.
It will also save a bunch of money and will actually provide the Post Office with a smaller carbon footprint.
I think I can live with that.

Water II

2010-03-14T16:26:00.001-04:00

Water is a strange and marvelous substance. It is an amazingly powerful solvent and scientists tell us that life on Earth is due to the existence of this simple molecule in wide abundance on this planet. We humans are made up of about 70% water and depend on water for our survival, but too much water can lead to various catastrophes, such as floods for example (see my previous post titled "Water" or today's news about the Red river flooding).

Is Global Warming real?
If so, we may see a dramatic change in the Earth's shorelines during our lifetimes, due to rising sea-levels, fueled by the melting of ice. This might also be explained as the release of many, many water molecules which were previously kept frozen in ice and "out of circulation" so to speak.

Futurists tell us that as the global population continues to grow, clean water will be in short supply at some point in the future. Water conservation efforts are under way all over the US and the days when a large, lush, dark green lawn was a highly desirable status symbol may soon be behind us (and I for one, will not complain about that).

As I take another sip of water from my glass, marveling at its clean taste, I wonder where the various water molecules in that glass of water may have been since they were created. As Lawrence Krauss describes in his book Atom:
"... It (an oxygen atom located in a water molecule) could have been in a drop of sweat dripping from Michael Jordan's nose as he leapt for a basketball in the final game of his career, or in a large wave that is about to strike land after traveling 4,000 miles through the Pacific Ocean."
It could just as easily have coursed through the veins of a famous person - or more likely, if you embrace the laws of probability - those of one of the many, many types of insects that roam this Earth.

Wherever the molecules of water may have been in the past, I hope all of us can aspire to maintain a supply of abundant, clean water for generations to come.

Water

2010-03-14T15:17:00.000-04:00

The weekend came and is (almost) gone, the cold rain keeps falling, but the flooding that was widely expected seems to have spared us.

The record-breaking snowfall from the last few weeks has finally melted and the landscape is no longer a monochromatic white.
The cleanup is ongoing. In my yard today I was trudging through the cold mud, collecting the large branches that had been splintered-off the trees by the massive weight of the snow we received. I cut them into meter-long pieces and bundled them together at the curb, so the trash collectors will pick them up (if you don't make it easy for them, they may just leave them there).

Pittsburgh is, among other things, called the city of three rivers, since the Allegheny and the Monongahela meet right by downtown Pittsburgh to form the Ohio river. Well, the Allegheny and Monongahela rivers are each fed by all the snowmelt from the region and each is at - or near - flood stage. Add to this the fact that we have been experiencing a steady rainfall since Friday night, which of course adds to the water load on the rivers, and you can understand why our mayor declared a state of emergency for the city on Friday. He may, at 30 years old, be one of the youngest mayors of a major American city, however he seems to have a team of wise advisers to give him guidance.

It appears then, that the region managed to avoid any major flooding.
Many people who live in flood-prone areas will breathe a sigh of relief.
Those who spent hours preparing for a potential invasion of angry water can now stand-down.
The state of emergency should be lifted soon.
Better to have been safe than sorry they will say.

Fix It!

2010-03-06T12:05:00.000-05:00

I came across this website called SeeClickFix that proposes a radical concept: allow people to document non-emergency problems in their community and have those problems reported to the authorities that can take care of them.

With the proliferation of camera-equipped and GPS-enabled smartphones, the concept is simple:
- download the SeeClickFix application for your smartphone
- when you see a problem, open the application, snap a picture and it is Geo-tagged and e-mailed to the appropriate city authority for the location where the picture was taken
- check the website and see how many complaints are received for the same problem and how soon it is fixed

What types of problems are people reporting?
It started with potholes in the streets - a problem we are very familiar with here in Pittsburgh after the snowplows try to clear the streets of snow - and has progressed to anything people find offensive: garbage, graffiti, damaged streetlights, etc.

This tool gives citizens a means of quickly highlighting what bothers them and it also allows city departments to rapidly get a feeling for what the citizens find most offensive. In other words it is a "win-win" situation in my mind: citizens get engaged and city planners focus their limited resources on what bothers citizens the most - what a concept!

Technological challenge

2010-02-27T14:55:00.000-05:00

When we moved to Pittsburgh a decade ago, we decided to get Dish Network (satellite TV), due to the extremely poor reception of "over-the-air" TV here (many hills and valleys). The receiver dish is not large (maybe 40 cm diameter), however it needs to have an unobstructed view of a certain part of the sky, where the transmitting satellite is located in geosynchronous orbit.

The installer attached the dish to the side of the house. He failed to notice a young fir tree in a landscaped area however, which was located close to the line-of-sight of the receiver. As the tree grew over the next few years, it's branches spread out and soon encroached on the dish's line-of-sight to the satellite, thus the signal was lost and we also lost TV reception.

When we called the repair crew, they decided to re-locate the satellite dish onto the house's roof, where it would have an unobstructed view of the sky. It was a very difficult climb up to the roof, but the installer insisted it was the best option. Things worked great up until the latest mega-blizzard (Snowpocalypse as some have called it) that we experienced in early February. The roof was covered with many inches of snow and the snow was so deep, that it also managed to cover at least half of the satellite dish - no satellite signal meant no TV reception was possible. We waited a couple of days for the snow to melt, however it just kept snowing and piling more and more snow on the roof. We resorted to listening to the radio - just like in the old days - but it soon got "old".

With the transition to digital TV all across the US on June 12, 2009, even if we could manage to somehow "find" a weak TV signal with an antenna, we would still need to get the required digital converter box to be able to watch TV. After 10 days without TV, we decided to call the service crew. They arrived and told us the best option was to relocate the satellite antenna somewhere where it would both have an unobstructed view of the sky and where it would be within relatively easy reach, in case we needed to clean snow and ice deposited by some future storm off of it. Thus it was relocated onto the side of the house and we are keeping our fingers crossed the third time will be the charm and we will not need to relocate it again.

Snow

2010-02-17T22:53:00.001-05:00

Have you heard the latest 4-letter word?
It is spelled S-N-O-W and I'm hearing more and more people in this area who are disgusted by it.

Groundhog Day was Feb. 2 and unfortunately Punxsutawney Phil (the very rotund prognosticator groundhog) saw his shadow that morning, which according to lore means we can expect six more weeks of Winter.

The Pittsburgh area got hit with around 2 feet (60 cm) of snow between Feb. 5 and 6.
Then we received another 8 inches (20 cm) of snow on Feb. 9 and 10.
It has been a week since then and every day we get a bit more snow - sometimes a dusting, sometimes an inch or two (5 cm) - like this morning for example.
My morning routine now is to shovel the driveway, clear the snow off the cars and then carefully negotiate the sloppy roadways to and from work (this morning's commute was twice as long as it normally takes).

Meanwhile our temperature has not been above freezing since late January.
All this snow is not going away - it is just getting piled on top of the older snow and the snowbanks are getting quite large.

The landscape is white and "cabin fever" is very real - it is palpable in this area.
Quite a few folks are planning getaways to warmer places - meanwhile those of us who are still here eagerly await the coming of Spring.

Forecast for tomorrow ... more snow.

Spelunking

2010-02-07T16:55:00.000-05:00

I heard a story on the radio while driving the other day, which I found interesting enough to write about it here.

The story discussed the limitations of electronic communications between people underground (e.g. in a cave) and those on the surface. Alexander Kendrick, a 16-year old boy from Los Alamos, New Mexico, working on his science fair project, invented a device that allows text messages to be sent via low frequency radio waves from deep within the Earth. He won the 2009 International Science Fair competition.

This story brought back memories from a few decades back, when along with some other adventurous young people from our local Eagle scout troup, we explored a couple of caves in Greece. A number of impressive caves have been discovered in the southern parts of the Peloponnese peninsula in Greece, most famous among them the Diros cave, which is typically experienced by visitors on a boat. After visiting the Diros cave, we ended-up exploring a cave near the village of Harouda in Mani - a cave we entered and exited using a rope ladder, since the only way in was by descending around 20 meters into the main chamber through the collapsed cave roof.

I still remember the unpleasant surprise caused by the discovery of a colony of black scorpions which were nesting in the rock pile caused by the collapsed cave roof -- the exact spot we landed-on as soon as we got off the rope ladder. None of us were stung by the scorpions during that adventure, but it just drove home the point that when mishaps happen under ground, it might be important to be able to communicate with the folks on the surface.

I think what caused me to be even more interested in this story however is the fact that this young man was working on his science project! I have already helped judge one science fair at a local school and I am also helping my daughter prepare for her science project as well.
I think this is a story that would be fun to point-out to all the young people who think that these science fairs are just boring affairs...

Godparents

2010-01-31T12:30:00.000-05:00

This Sunday's service at our church was dedicated to Godparents and their Godchildren.
Naturally, I thought of my Goddaughter, who lives far away in sunny Orlando, Florida.
We had brilliant sunshine today, which reminded me of Orlando and combined with the snow still on the ground, made it necessary to wear sunglasses when driving. That is where our similarities ended however, as our high temperature will struggle to get to 25F (-4C), while in Orlando the high is expected to reach 60F (16C).

I also thought of my childrens' Godparents - one lost her life in a car accident many years ago and the other lives in faraway Cyprus. Godparents have a special bond with their Godchildren and are tasked with stepping-in to perform parental duties should their Godchildren need them.
Godparents are like an insurance policy for their Godchildren and those who have them are lucky indeed.

Thoughts also turn to all the children orphaned from the recent devastating earthquake in Haiti. There are reports in the news media of young children surviving on their own, of gangs trafficking in children and of orphanages being overwhelmed with the sheer numbers of orphaned children. One hopes these children had Godparents and somehow these surrogate parents may have survived and can assist them in this hour of dire need.

My dearest Goddaughter, I love you and am here for you, should you ever need me.

Moving

2010-01-19T20:38:00.000-05:00

Monday was Martin Luther King Day, during which government offices, Banks, the Post Office and the schools were closed (but of course most people, myself included, were working).
Tuesday, Jan. 19 -- this morning we learned that a plane-load of orphans from Haiti arrived at the Pittsburgh airport, where they were greeted by various politicos (who were working today).

The orphans had been transported from Haiti in the pre-dawn hours on a military flight, which took them to Homestead AFB in Florida and from there a chartered plane brought them to Pittsburgh.
From the airport they were whisked to Children's Hospital (downtown), where after undergoing physical exams, several were picked-up by various adopting families that came from all over the U.S. to pick them up, while the remainder were placed in foster care.

These were 53 orphans whose adoption process had begun months, or for some, even years ago and whose adoption was accelerated by the earthquake in Haiti, which resulted in the collapse of their orphanage. A happy ending to cap the sadness they experienced up to now in their young lives and the misery and terror they experienced the last few days.

The news reports indicate there are approximately 900 such pending adoptions of orphans from Haiti, which are at some stage of the adoption process.
One only wonders however, how many more children were added to the ranks of the orphans in Haiti by the earthquake from a week ago and when they might experience their own happy ending to the nightmare they now find themselves trapped in.

Catalyst

2010-01-17T20:08:00.001-05:00

The last few days the attention of the world has been riveted on the impoverished island of Haiti and the unimaginable degree of death and destruction caused by the earthquake there.
Shocking as it might seem, it was reported that the initial emergency responders could hardly land on the single strip of the airport that no longer had any air traffic control tower - and once they landed, they found it very hard to maneuver in the streets, which were clogged with debris and bodies, further complicating their rescue efforts.

I heard one appeal that asked not for emergency relief supplies, but for cash donations, as the island's infrastructure was so badly damaged and the logistics for moving materiel so complicated, that the relief agencies preferred not to have to sort and distribute donations "in kind".
The relief agency donation mechanisms also seem to have entered the 21st century, with widespread adoption of $10 donations performed by sending a text message to a special number. The Red Cross was reporting that they were receiving millions of dollars in donations daily through this mechanism.

The mind starts to wonder why a nation sitting on a major tectonic fault did not have a more robust engineering standard for their building construction. The counterargument I heard was that this is the poorest nation in the Western hemisphere and demanding such building codes was a bit too much to ask for.
I can understand the poor trying to skirt any potential building codes that might have existed as they attempted to create a roof over their heads any way they could. When I see the symbols of government, such as the presidential palace, and of the church, such as the national cathedral, when I see hospitals and the UN offices destroyed by the earthquake however, I wonder why these important buildings were not built to a higher standard.

As the days grind on and the relief supplies slowly arrive and get distributed to the survivors, as the medical care slowly reaches the injured, as the people of Haiti absorb another massive catastrophe and begin rebuilding their lives, I hope the rest of us take a moment to reflect.

The lives of every one of us are in a balance more delicate than we care to admit. It might be a violent act of nature, or an act of man, and we could find ourselves facing the same, or worse, fate as the people of Haiti. Maybe the events we witnessed over the last few days will act as a catalyst to make us ask the important questions:
- Are we proud of the way we have lived our lives?
- Have we made a difference?
If we do not like the answers to these questions, we should strive to improve ourselves.

DIY Fun

2010-01-01T22:30:00.000-05:00

I bought the house we are living in in 2000 when we moved to Pittsburgh. It was a new construction.
Now after 9 years, certain things need to gradually be repaired.
An example was the shower in our bathroom, which had started to drip. The obvious fix for this would be to replace the O-rings.

All the faucets and bathroom fixtures in the house are Moen brand - the reason I mention this is that when installed in a new home construction, Moen provides a warranty for as long as the original home purchaser owns the home.

Therefore I called Moen customer service and described the problem - they mailed me the necessary parts and instructions on how to change the O-rings.
Now it was time to "play plumber" - something I've done before, but which I'm not very good at.
After shutting off the water supply, I took apart the shower assembly (not a trivial task) and replaced the various O-rings on the shower cartridge.
While attempting to re-assemble the shower however, I found that I could not quite get the cartridge pushed in all the way into the receptacle.
I repeated the steps over and over again, however the same frustrating result was obtained.

In desperation, I used my trusted hammer to try to hammer the cartridge back into the assembly. This did not work either, so dejectedly I called Moen's customer service number and talked with a representative. He pointed-out that if there was any residual water in the receptacle it would prevent the cartridge from seating fully. Too bad the instructions did not mention this ...

Once the receptacle was dry, the cartridge body did indeed seat fully and I was able to secure it in place and restore water service.
The shower now worked as it was supposed to and did not drip or leak. All I had to do was install the handle and it would be good as new.

The handle however would not install over the tip of the cartridge. It seems that while trying to force the cartridge into the receptacle, I had managed to deform the tip enough that the precisely machined handle would no longer fit. More calls to the customer service number followed, more replacement parts were sent out and the repair was finally completed but with significant delay.

The lesson from all this -- while DIY may be possible by the average person and might even be perceived as fun by some, I think I need much more practice before I can be counted in the ranks of the latter group.

Winter Wonderland

2009-12-19T16:57:00.001-05:00

"Pittsburgh will be spared the full blow of this winter storm ..." were the words of the weatherman from the local newscast on Friday as he showed the states and cities that were about to be clobbered by the coming storm to our South.
Fast forward to Saturday morning (a day full of planned activities by the way), when we woke up to find everything covered in white outside. Another weatherperson on the morning news was saying how we should feel lucky we "only got 8-9 cm of snow"since states like Virginia and cities like Washington DC and New York City were expected to get as much as 30 cm from this storm.

Here is what it looked like as I stood on my front porch, looking at my neighborhood (my driveway is at the bottom of the picture and the road goes across the middle of the picture at an angle - see the yellow fire hydrant at the edge of the road).
I walked outside and started shoveling my driveway, trying to clear a path to the street which was still impassable at the time.
The snow was still falling, but I was simply trying to clear-up the majority of the snow at that point.

Soon I heard the rumble of the snow plow going up and down the street, clearing snow and spreading salt behind it.
The street was now navigable and I only needed to clear my driveway to enable us to actually attempt to drive on it.

The closer I got to the end of the driveway, the wetter and heavier the accumulated snow became (partially melted by the salt from the snow plow). Eventually the path was cleared and it was time to clear the sidewalks and the pathway to the front of the house. It took about two hours and the falling snow was starting to turn the areas I had cleared white again. It was time to deploy the salt, which was sprinkled on the the surfaces and started working right away, since it was about -2C, still warm enough for salt to be effective.

This is the view of the end result from the sidewalk (standing by the yellow fire hydrant).
My son Greg had to take his last two final exams at Pitt today (yes, they also give finals on Saturday I found out) and we planned to go pick him up in the afternoon.
Unfortunately each municipality is responsible for snow removal on their streets and others were not as efficient as our own local folks.
Still, my wife employed a slow and steady pace and managed to go to the university and bring him home without any mishaps.
Now we get to sit back and relax, perhaps we might even have a white Christmas...

Foundation

2009-12-18T17:32:00.000-05:00

My friend Mike (Mihalis) passed-away last Saturday.
He had been suffering from prostate cancer which had metastasized to his bones. A long-practicing Anesthesiologist, he had no misconceptions as to the diagnosis, nor his prospects. What amazed me was the calmness with which he described his illness and how he had made peace with himself.

I remember when I had first met him at our parish church, following a Sunday service, while we were sitting in the social hall.
Greek Orthodox churches in the US are quite different from their counterparts in Greece. Here the entire Greek community comes together around the church and there is a whole social scene that plays-out in parallel to the religious experience.
When Mike had asked me what I did and I answered I was involved with Marketing, he went on to say he was going to seek my advice about how to best market his Foundation. We talked about many things over the years, however we never got around to discussing this specific topic.

This week, following his passing, we found out a bit more about Mike's Foundation: the Christian Orthodox Monastery Preservation Foundation. Mike had visited many monasteries throughout the world in the last twenty years and he had been truly touched by the monastic way of life. He had used a large portion of his net worth to create a perpetual endowment fund for his Foundation when he financed it in 2001. The goal of Mike's Foundation is "to provide the means whereby monastic communities can preserve, practice, perpetuate and proclaim their unique way of life through the development of tangible and effective projects, programs and activities of a philanthropic, educational and evangelistic nature."

A number of monasteries have already benefited from this Foundation and it's work will be continued, being carried-forth by our parish priest, father John.
I couldn't help but be awed by the calm, quiet and unassuming way in which Mike had made sure that he could continue to aid monasteries throughout the world, helping them create the basis, or groundwork, the foundation so to speak, for continuing to spread the message of Christian Orthodoxy.
May God rest his soul.

A Fool for All Seasons

2009-12-12T22:17:00.000-05:00

A couple of years ago I decided to walk to meetings that take place in different buildings around our campus, rather than drive. I figured a little bit of exercise would do me good. While this is fairly easy to do when the weather is nice, the weather this past week provided some challenges.

Friday morning was not typical for early December: temperature was around -7C, the wind was blowing at 30-50 km/h and the wind chill temperature was calculated to be around -15C. While Pittsburgh had been spared the massive snowfall that was recorded to our North and Winter was still officially about a week away according to the calendar, it certainly felt wintry when I began my walk.

Distance to the building I was headed for was about 0.5 km and as I walked there, I saw various co-workers driving by in their cars, giving me strange looks. Once the meeting was completed, I decided to expand my "stroll" and take the 1.5 km nature trail before returning to my office.
A friend who sometimes walks on the nature trail with me stopped his car as I was leaving the parking lot, rolled down the window and asked if I needed a ride back to my office. "No thanks, I'd like to get some fresh air and clear my head" was my response. He laughed as he drove off.

Once I arrived back at my office about 30 minutes later, my face red from the wind and the cold, my glasses fogging-up from the condensation, I saw that same friend in the hallway. He asked if I had taken the nature trail and I told him I had. He laughed again and said it was too cold for that and that I was a "braver fool" than he. We chuckled good-naturedly, but I could tell from his tone he was also slightly envious.

As my body began to warm-up and I got down to business, I found I was re-energized and felt pretty good. When nature throws a challenge like that and you can respond, it has a way of making you feel good.

Some might shake their heads and wonder if I've lost my mind. I just know that they can call me a fool, but it won't change the way I feel once I have overcome a challenge - even a relatively minor one like this.

Extreme Sport

2009-11-28T20:03:00.000-05:00

A long time ago in a neighborhood far, far away, a couple of high school kids decided to take skateboarding to the next level...
The events I will describe transpired in the late 1970's and it should be pointed-out there were very few kids who skateboarded in Athens at the time.
My cousin Stefanos and I, having mastered the basics of skateboarding were getting to the point where we were experimenting to see if we could push the boundaries of what could be done on a skateboard.

We would go down the steep sidewalks and roadways of the foothills of Mt. Hymettus sitting, kneeling, or finding other ways to use our skateboards in ways they were not originally designed to be used. We invariably went too fast and ended-up performing various experiments which tested the "coefficient of friction" between asphalt and various materials: polyurethane skateboard wheels, athletic shoe soles, jeans, copper rivets (if the aforementioned jeans happened to be riveted), leather (skateboarding gloves), even human skin (not by design, I should point out).
These feats, while resulting in various bumps, abrasions and bruises, did not end-up inflicting any permanent bodily injury.

Since this was before the time video became mainstream and well before the advent of "Reality TV" our feats were not captured on video, nor broadcast to any network.

Fast-forward about 30 years, where every kid can now capture video on their cell phone and broadcast it to various channels on the internet for almost instantaneous consumption.

A friend forwarded the attached link to a video of what was christened "Asphalt Sledding" in Switzerland.

While we did not go that far in our younger years, I feel the need to salute this guy because he's exhibiting the same passion for speed and uses a definitely wacky conveyance to satisfy it.

Sports Psychology

2009-11-22T20:45:00.000-05:00

The Pittsburgh Steelers football team won Superbowl XLIII (played on Feb. 1, 2009).
This was the sixth Superbowl victory for the Pittsburgh Steelers, the most of any team, and the Steelers were proclaimed the best team in football.

(the picture at left was taken outside of Heinz Field, the home of the Pittsburgh Steelers)

A type of euphoria suffused through Pittsburgh, such that despite the cold winter and the economic meltdown, had people here in a relatively jovial mood.

Then the Pittsburgh Penguins hockey team started playing better toward the end of their season and ended-up winning the Stanley Cup on June 21, 2009. The Penguins were thus crowned the best hockey team in the US and Canada - and all through the summer Pittsburgh took on a new "glow".

(the picture at left is from a game we attended when they played the Florida Panthers on Oct. 23, 2009)

Most towns would be ecstatic at winning the championship of one of the four main spectator sports in America: football, baseball, basketball, or hockey. Pittsburgh teams won two of those titles in the same year - and it felt good!

This Fall, Steelers football started again, but the champions from a few months back haven't looked quite as tough as last year. Last Sunday they lost a heartbreaker to the Cincinnati Bengals and today they lost in overtime to the Kansas City Chiefs. Their record this year is 6 wins and 4 losses and they will have to fight hard to get into the playoffs.

It will be a tough week of practice ahead as they will play the Baltimore Ravens next Sunday (the fact they will play in Baltimore will make it an even tougher game). My guess is that the mood in the city might be a bit subdued this week.

Thanksgiving will be here in a few days and maybe that will lift the spirits of this town.
Pittsburgh has a lot to be thankful for this year, and maybe the Steelers will also win a few more games.

Walking for our Heart

2009-11-15T16:14:00.000-05:00

The American Heart Association's annual Heart Walk was a great opportunity to get out and stretch those legs on October 17. I don't happen to think of a 5-k walk as anything major, but to people who are used to driving everywhere, it may be a bit more of a challenge.

The starting point for the walk in Pittsburgh was Heinz Field, the home of the Pittsburgh Steelers football team. This is the team that won the Superbowl last year (in February 2009), though they are not playing quite so well this year. The temperature was 36F (2C) that day, with overcast skies and drizzle.

There were plenty of people from Bayer participating in the Heart Walk (including "yours truly"), all wearing red T-shirts over our coats, including the flag-bearer for the Bayer team, Mr. Sergio Kyriakis.

After waiting for around two hours as various VIPs gave speeches, we finally got started and it really felt good to walk and get a chance to warm-up.

Great scenery accompanied us on our walk, since the route followed the bank of the river for the second half of the walk, as we returned to the stadium. Here is a view at Point state park (aka The Point). This is where the Allegheny and Monongahella rivers meet (coming from the left in this picture) and join to form the Ohio river (going to the right).
The fountain at The Point sometimes has the water dyed in different colors - on this occasion it was dyed pink to promote breast cancer awareness.
You can also see the yellow Fort Pitt bridge and the tunnel by the same name behind it - this is one of the main thoroughfares into downtown Pittsburgh. The steep hill that rises on the far side of the river is called Mt. Washington, as it is said this was where Gen. George Washington, early in his career, scoped-out the British-occupied Fort Pitt (which was located where The Point now is located). There are some great restaurants on Mt. Washington, which in addition to outstanding food, also offer an amazing view.

Great views, good times and we also managed to raise some money for the American Heart Association - I call that a "win".

It's Good for You

2009-11-08T18:53:00.000-05:00

One of the small pleasures I enjoy every day is a lunchtime walk through the woods in the rolling hills that surround the place where I work. This routine started about a year-and-a-half ago, as a means of helping me get some exercise during my mostly sedentary day. A program at work encourages employees to get-up and walk, get the blood pumping so to speak - and I took advantage of it. I even bought a pedometer, so I can count how many steps I take every day - setting goals for myself and seeing if I can meet (or even sometimes exceed) them.

There are also some other advantages to being outside on a daily basis though.
You get to see nature up-close and sometimes, if you are lucky, you also catch some glimpses of the wildlife that makes its home in the woods.

The pictures above were taken a week apart, mid-to-late October.
The groundhog was eyeballing me warily and skittered off into the woods as soon as I took the picture, while the particularly tame pair of deer (you can only see the tail end of the second), nonchalantly walked deeper into the forest when they noticed me stopping to take their picture.

What I also find enjoyable is seeing the forest change with the seasons. When I took the picture at the very top of this post in mid-October, the leaves of the Burning Bushes had just changed from their regular deep green color to the bright red you see - those leaves are now gone, the bushes standing bare.

All the pictures in this post show the colors of Fall, which will soon give way to the drab browns and even the whites of winter.
When I took the picture at left on October 30, my footsteps crunching through a thick layer of leaves with every step, the yellows and reds of the leaves were starting to turn to brown, signifying that the present act of nature's amazing color show was being completed.

That is OK by me, I have enjoyed the Fall color show and I am looking forward to the upcoming Winter show.

I have also come to the end of this post with a simple conclusion. Walking in the woods is good for me - for my body and my mind. It grants me a brief period of exertion and a chance to clear my head. It is a feast for my eyes (which I try to capture with my camera) and a chance to marshal and re-prioritize all the various thoughts, tasks and ideas running through my head.
It gives me a chance to escape into nature, while still being able to return to my office to resume my work in a timely manner - a blessing I am not too sure many of my colleagues grasp.

Diametrically Opposite

2009-10-17T15:31:00.000-04:00

I was in Miami Beach for the 2009 IDSA international conference a couple of weeks ago and had a few hours to experience this playground of the rich and famous. I was staying in a small hotel in the Art Deco district and when I wasn't at the conference, I had the opportunity to walk along the beach and the main "drag" (Collins Ave.).

Exotic cars and obviously well-heeled folks could be seen at every corner.
As I interpreted the various sights and sounds, it became obvious that people came here from all over the world to play and to be seen. And many others came to see them, to admire them.

The beaches were truly beautiful and walking there in the early morning the sight was surreal - plus the heat+humidity were still tolerable in those early hours.
This was also the time when another contingent of Miami Beach residents could be seen.
They seemed to exist in the periphery - while there were quite a few of them, they weren't always visible, or so obvious, during the day.
They could not be missed in the early morning hours however.
Sleeping on benches, beside the lifeguard shacks, beneath the Palm trees, or even right on the beach's sand.
Before the hustle and bustle of the new day caused them to seek refuge elsewhere.

All of them human beings, all co-existing on the same narrow sliver of sand at the edge of the Atlantic Ocean.
Two groups which appear to be on diametrically opposite ends of the socioeconomic spectrum.

Ancestral Thoughts

2009-09-05T20:17:00.002-04:00

Appropriation of Statues

We fashion statues with materials
from statues fashioned
by other older craftsmen,
we fashion poems with words
from poems written
in other times by other poets,
we fashion lives with feelings, events
that other people before us
had experienced.
We appropriate works, modify
plans, change perspectives
invent something new
fashion things entirely ours
always leaving traces
of an earlier origin.
We go on putting our names
beside other names
even those
that we'd like to erase.

Titos Patrikios (1928 - )

I happened upon this poem in the book my father gave me this summer (A Century of Greek Poetry 1900-2000, Bilingual Edition). I was thinking of the statue of Makrygiannis (above) which I photographed close to the Acropolis Metro stop this summer after visiting the New Acropolis Museum.

Speaking of the museum, when the Persians sacked ancient Athens in 480 BC, the previous temples built upon the rock of the Acropolis were destroyed and their remains were later used by the Athenians to build the foundations of the classic temples and the defensive walls around the Acropolis. Pieces of many wonderful statues and earlier works have been unearthed and can be seen on display in the New Acropolis Museum.

Back to Makrygiannis (1797-1864) - he was a Greek merchant, military officer, politician and author, best known today for his Memoirs. Starting from humble origins, he joined the Greek struggle for independence, achieving the rank of general and leading his men to notable victories. Following Greek independence, he had a tumultuous public career, playing a prominent part in the granting of the first Constitution of the Kingdom of Greece and later being sentenced to death and pardoned (Wikipedia).

He was uneducated, yet he did some pretty amazing things in his time and the whole area at the base of the Acropolis is today called Makrygianni (hence the statue). He used his common sense and the bits and pieces he picked-up along the way; ancestral thoughts and works that were put to new use - a lesson well worth remembering.

Education

2009-08-22T18:18:00.000-04:00

My son moves-in at his dormitory at the University of Pittsburgh next week. Freshmen get to move-in a week ahead of all the other students, to familiarize themselves with the campus.

The University of Pittsburgh (aka Pitt) mascot is the Panther - all their athletic teams are called the Panthers. This statue of a Panther is located outside the Pitt Student Union on Forbes Ave.

University education - the next step towards broadening a young person's horizons and moving beyond the basics taught in high school.

He gets a chance to explore options and focus on what he feels is important - to make-up his mind about what matters.

I wish him the wisdom to chose clearly.

Burning Rubber

2009-08-15T16:59:00.001-04:00

My car failed the annual safety and emissions inspection.
The tires were too worn-out ...
Might it be that the wide tires my car requires wear-out too soon?
I certainly don't feel like I am pushing the car to its limits, driving aggressively and all that.

- The stock Michelin MXV tires lasted about a year-and-a-half (13,670 miles).
- Then I bought a set of Avon Tech M550 tyres (British spelling) - they lasted one year and one month (8,380 miles) - AVOID these tires at all costs!
- The third set I bought were a set of Yokohama Avid H4S tires - they lasted one year and nine months (15,470 miles).
- Now I just bought the fourth set - they are Michelin Pilot A/S Plus tires - all this on a car that is four-and-a-half years old and has a total of only 37,520 miles on the odometer!

The tires seem to be wearing-out much too fast under what I can only describe as "normal" driving conditions.
My guess is that the tire manufacturers have figured-out how to make their tires wear-out faster, so that the drivers will need to replace them more often.
I'll apologize if I sound like a conspiracy theorist -- I think the proof I supplied above speaks for itself.

How to Say it

2009-08-11T21:10:00.001-04:00

My first blog entry ... what to write?
Explore my motivation to create a blog perhaps.
Well, that is easy - to record some random thoughts, to help make some sense of all the varied inputs, to leave some breadcrumbs which might help me find the way.

I looked-up the U2 song "One" today, prompted by a post from my cousin Stavroula, and discovered the Mary J Blige version on YouTube. While I had heard the U2 version of this song many times before, I was riveted by this particular performance. This performance was different, this one made it past my ears and the auditory apparatus in my head, this performance went deeper.
I felt there was such emotion in this recording and I thought of the title for this first blog entry - I thought, they found out "How to Say it", how to connect with me.

But before I forget, I need to present a disclaimer (I work too much with attorneys): the thoughts presented here are solely my own and are not associated, nor do they represent positions held by my employer