Great news!

Great news! I got a job with Patch.com, a hyper-local news site that will be launching a Gaithersburg site very soon. I’ll be the local editor.

Also, as you probably know if you’re reading this, I haven’t updated this blog in a while. Since the last time I did, a lot has happened.

The new job, obviously. Maggie moved in with me. She got a new job. Etc.

But when I logged in i noticed I’ve been getting an average of about 115 page views per day for the past few weeks.

What?

Turns out in September 2009 I wrote a post about Tyra Banks. It was a response to an article where she talked to Larry King about how she liked to look at herself naked in the mirror.

The keyworkds I used have driven traffic to my site in growing numbers every since. Ooops.

Well, it’s a sad state of things, but a good lesson in the power of keywords.

I’ll try and be more dilligent about udating so the traffic to my site will be a little more, er, legitimate.

Locals and Tourists #7 (GTWA #8): Washington, DC

Locals and Tourists #7 (GTWA #8): Washington, DC, originally uploaded by Eric Fischer.

This is an amazing project mapping where two groups of people – locals and tourists – take pictures in major metropolitan areas.
Very cool!

This weekend is stacking up…

This weekend is stacking up to be a good one.

Good like this cake that Maggie made. Mmmm…

I shove off into traffic in two hours and try to make my way through Memorial Day storm surge. Tonight is Maggie’s sister’s grad school grad party at the Kutztown Tavern, and frankly, I’m pretty excited about it.

I’ll do my level best to balance documenting and enjoying the event. In other production news, I’m narrowing in on finishing a promo video for Studio 413, my dad’s photography and design shop. I really like how it’s coming together so far.

Anyway, after the party I’ll be helping Maggie pack her things and begin the process of getting her schtuff to MD. It promises to be a most-of-the-weekend affair if we want it done properly, which we do.

Then, on Tuesday, she starts at Fluffy Thoughts.

This is a good sign…

This is a good sign. After my run last night I am still ambulatory today. A little sore in the calf area, but that’s all.

This ought to solve the sore feet problem.

Er, nevermind.

*****

I did three laps of the 1.2 mile loop near my house and probably could have done another as the ol’ gams were feeling strong. But instead of stressing my muscles and joints too much I decided to push the cardiovascular system instead. I wasn’t exactly doing wind-sprints, but I definitely redlined it on the way up the .25 mile hill at the end.

We’ll see what happens tomorrow. I’m planning on another run to kick off the weekend, since there will be no time to exercise on Friday. Maybe I’ll go for that 4.8 miler to test myself a bit.

I read somewhere that cycling decreases bone density. As a former racer, I know this to be true. I can’t even count the number of times I’ve watched a pro hit the pavement and shatter like a Ming vase. They become extremely brittle. Makes sense: the muscles soak up nutrients and there is no impact causing the bones to rebuild and strengthen.

Running is supposed to reverse this. Impact reverberations, and such, increases bone density. Well, in the end, I feel better after running, so I’ll do it regardless of the health benefits.

I maintain that running is one of the most miserable activities ever concieved of by man or God. But I’m an English major, so the rich and multi-layered symbolism of it sweetens the whole pot. And it’s probaby why I continue to do it.

I’m curious what your opinions are on running. Comment it up, readers.

I put together this video…

I put together this video last night of my ride to the office and back on Bike to Work Day, which was Friday. Feedback is welcome. Sorry about the wind noise.

Also, today is Geek Pride Day. I won’t say whether I think I should be celebrating or not. That would be kind of like giving yourself a nickname. The USA Today has the following information.

Below is a list of the the “rights of geeks,” created on the first Geek Pride Day in 2006:

1. The right to be even geekier.

2. The right to not leave your house.

3. The right to not like football or any other sport.

4. The right to associate with other nerds.

5. The right to have few friends (or none at all).

6. The right to have as many geeky friends as you want.

7. The right to be out of style.

8. The right to be overweight and short-sighted.

9. The right to show off your geekiness.

10. The right to take over the world.

Biked to Work Day…

Biked to Work Day is halfway complete. I’m here.

….

Don’t tell anyone I’m blogging at work.

Gorgeous day out and so far my legs aren’t complete crap from my run last night. My feet took a fair beating, but they’re funtional.

We’ll see what tomorrow brings.

Well one thing it will bring is a trip to McClean to see the Fluffy Thoughts bakery where Maggie will start working in June. Who’s excited? I know I am.

Then Sunday we have reservations for tea in Annapolis. Schweet!

Tomrrow is Bike to Work Day…

Tomorrow is Bike to Work Day, and yes, I’ll be rolling in.

That is, if I can even walk in the morning. Feeling the need for exercise I went for a 3.5 mile run tonight. Why do I do these things? In the strangely prophetic words of The Mask, “Somebody stop me!”

On the bright side, this is the first moment I’ve caught the Tour of California on television. A lot happened today in the cycling world. Tainted Amish racer Floyd Landis admitted, after spending $2 million defending himself in court and writing a freakin’ book proclaiming his innocence, that he did, in fact, dope.

Dope.

But what’s more, he implicated Lance Armstrong and virtually every American cyclist who has achieved a modicum of fame since Armstrong stormed back from cancer. Armstrong of course denied it vehemently, as he does every time someone accuses him of doping. No one in the history of sport has been drug tested more than LA. No one. And Armstrong has never tested positive other than once for a cold medicine he had a doctor’s note for.

So then in the Tour of California today, Armstrong crashed. On his face. He had to abandon, and now he’s got nothing to do for the next few days but deny he’s a cheat. And those next few days are going to be very interesting. Doping is a nuanced problem in cycling because it is widespread at the top levels, close to universal, yet it’s not discussed. So when all the top guys are doping, it’s not really cheating, is it? It’s just necessary if you want to be competitive. Then for the poor, er, dopes who get caught, it’s standard operating procedure to deny on your mother/bible/life/child that you’ve never touched the stuff.

Oh brother. Stay tuned.

New bike lanes in D.C. not ready for primetime – wtop.com

 

 

 

 

New bike lanes in D.C. not ready for primetime – wtop.com

.

Well it was a nice try.

The problem with America…

The problem with America goes something like this:
“Hm, my pants are tight. There must be something wrong with my pants. I’ll buy new ones.”

Almost got brained by a deer…

Almost got brained by a deer last night while riding along Great Seneca highway. The chucker jumped out of the woods, froze as she realized what she’d done, honked, lowered her head, then decided against the bull-fight tactic and pranced back into the woods.

I removed my hear from my upper sinuses and continued on my way.

So… not that I’m making excuses, but I got a late start today and didn’t ride to work.

Shut up, I know. Bike to Work Day is tomorrow anyway, so I’ll get my act together by then.

On a weirder note, the Post has this story about a khat bust in VA. Police seized 130 lbs of it.

Khat is that narcotic shrub you see indiginous peoples gnawing on in those National Geographic specials. It’s why they, who have never seen a pair of Nikes, are smiling warmly at 50 grand of camera equipment and lights invading their hovels like some sort of electric space ship.

I wonder if there is really a large enough khat market in Fairfax County to support that kind of bulk.