Write your story (11/30/2018)

I am in the process of writing a book.  It is a professional non-fiction book, it deals with my life's experiences, my education and work.  I have used some of the materials I write about in workshops that I have given for work.  Moreover, the writing and research associated with it has made me a better teacher in my professional life.  It is a win-win situation.

The problem right now is two fold: discipline and the finale.  But let me explain. The discipline part. Having a full-time job it is difficult for me to allocate a set period each day for me to get my writing in.  Whatever or whoever I read, you always hear discipline is number one, and I agree. My writing time exists of lunch time half hours at Starbucks, afternoon and evenings when I am stuck in a motel room and not too tired from traveling or teaching, some evenings after work, and weekend afternoons when there are no “honey does.”  As you can see it has been a difficult to get a routine established.

Reading what people say about writing, it seems that having a routine is so darn important.  Some even have a ritual before they start writing. One person rights a Buddha statue every morning when he starts in the morning and lays it down when done writing that day.  It seemed that Hemingway never ended a thought at the end of the day, so that he had something he could pick up where he left off the next day and thus never have writer’s block.  Well writing for 20 miniature or so at Starbucks worked for me. I first worked for 10 minutes editing what I wrote the day or days before and than added to it for 10 more minutes.

I took this picture three years ago at my favorite Starbucks, downtown Richmond.  At least three of the gals behind the counter know me so well, that the just ask me if I want the "regular."

This picture was taken this past week.  I often enjoy sitting here, especially when the legislation is in session.   You can sit and watch Senators and Congress men  (and women) sit there and discuss things with each other and with lobbyists.  There are tourists, business folks, government employees and often medical students from VCU who are studying. 

Currently I do have writer’s block it seems. This is partially due to being close to the end and not being sure what all to include or to exclude.  I have written about the things I know most about and I am now at that point of writing about the things that I know, but I haven't dealt with for a couple of years.  It feels like pulling teeth. It is like having put off the inevitable. I had my dessert or the food I like most first and now it's time for the Brussel sprouts (I actually like them, especially with a little mustard, but you get the idea).

But enough complaining.  One thing I learned is that practice makes perfect, or at least less imperfect.  A friend of mine gave me a book (and for the heck I can't remember the name or the author) which told me that every morning when you wake up, you need to have a stream of conscious and sit down and write down words or things that come to mind, regardless whether it makes any sense.  Well, I simply don't have the time for that. During our sermon writing exercise earlier this year at our church, we actually did this at the start of each meeting. We sat down and wrote whatever came to mind for ten minutes. Some made sense, some absolutely not! However, it cleared the mind and helped with the writing process for me.

But even with this blog, I have the occasional writer’s block.  It takes a while for something to hit me. You can see that. As I write this part of my blog post on Sunday afternoon, I think back on this morning's service at our UU church, where our guest minister encouraged us to tell our story.  The more I write my blog over the years, I find that I have more personal stories waiting to be told. These stories are often pulled out of me by things that happen in real time. Like my recent post where I talk about the wildfires, and some of my albeit minor experiences.  That post had gotten long, but there was so much I left out, even my first experience as a firefighter while serving in the Dutch army and we were mobilized to fight a forest fire in Holland. Conversely, I could have told you about the time that we fought savannah fires in Uganda that threatened to burn all the forage on our farm and could starve our cattle.  I need to do that, because that was actually crazy.

You get the message.  I agree with our minister, whether it is a book, blog, or a story you tell your friends or family.  Share it! This week, I shared the "lurid" story of my family with our daughter; the ins and outs, about how screwed up they are. I hinted a bit at it in a previous post. Those stories, writing the current post, the many other posts that I write and the manuscript to my book, they are all therapeutic to me. I am sure something like that can benefit you as well when you try it.  

Procrastinators Unite (5/19/2016)

Why do we procrastinate?  Beats me, and I even do it at times. 

At work there is another deadline looming and man does it get me riled up.  I work in a certificate program that is in place for 17 years or so, and people's certificate expire either on May 31 or November 30.  About 300 every half year.  Their certificate is valid for 3 whole years.  People have certain requirements they have to fulfill to the eligible to recertify, like taking classes during those three years, enter them in a tracking system and pay a small fee.  Well if you look at the date, you know: THE END IS NEAR!  Just today, I already got three emails from people who have not taken one class yet and have 13 days left to get them all in.  Fun!

This is one thing we seem to procrastinate very well: :The end of war", where we will save the lives of young men.
This is a quote on the memorial bridge over the James River in Richmond from Browns Island

Frank Partnoy writes in his book “Wait, the Art and Science of Delay” that procrastination may be good, at least when it comes to making a decision.  I can see that, on the battlefield, in sports, and in making stock decisions; maybe even in photography, taking that perfect shot.

Susanna Halonen argues in her blog in Psychology Today that procrastination actually improves your productivity and happiness:

1. You can therefore concentrate on other (important) things and those things are getting done leaving more time for the thing you procrastinate.  (personally I find this a little farfetched, but OK).
2. Unnecessary tasks disappear with procrastination. (I'll buy that).
3. Procrastination shines a light on what is most important to you. (maybe).
4. Procrastination makes you more creative. (Yes, I can really see that).
5. Procrastination helps you make better decisions. (Partnoy agrees with that)
6. Procrastination leads to better apologies. (I like this one, and yes I have seen some good ones, even the ones like "I started my last online course at 10 pm om May 31 and the Internet went down" ... oh well).

But you could be lying to yourself as Dustin Was suggests in his article, and that is often where I see the people that I deal with.  It is so difficult not to call them out, to rub their noses in it.  Tell them they are full of crap!

Why do I procrastinate?  Looking inward, my excuse is often motivation and inspiration, not because I know I would be making better decisions or have better apologies; I don't go to war.  Halonen's point 4 speaks to me; once inspired and once it flows I can be darn creative!  Points 2 and 3 are also up there.  But once I am inspired watch out, then my motivation kicks in higher gear.  Like earlier this week when I was working on a new course that I was designing.  It was fun, I was going strong.

However, I am different, even when I am inspired.  I need to think and mull things over (as I also describe <here>).  Sometimes I only get one or two slides developed in a day and I can just sit there and think of how to the class is going to go; about what is next.  It is fun and sometimes very exhausting.

Oh my god I just came up with a great apology why I procrastinate with the development of a new class!

Roots (2/8/2016)

When I took the photo below of the root my wife told me that it would make a great entry in my next nature blog/journal.  Her comment did not leave the back of my mind for a long time now; it has been more than a week since I took this picture.  It is like planting a seed in one’s mind and watching it germinate and take root (pardon the pun).

This picture was taken in Newport News Park showing an old road cut and how the tree is rooted into the soil (photo take 1/31/2016).

I was at a loss what to write about, except for showing this picture, but then while listening to a program on Post Traumatic Stress Disorder or PTSD on Satellite Radio it all the sudden struck me: what we are now is all rooted on past experiences and we feed on it, whether we like it or not.  Buddha tells us:

“Do not dwell in the past, do not dream of the future, concentrate the mind on the present moment,” 

but it is so damn hard to follow.  If you are like me, it is so difficult to live in the moment sometimes, my mind is all over the place.  (So sorry guys no nature blog while talking about roots)

Listening to that program on PTSD, reminds me of a dear friend who served in Iraq and suffers from PTSD.  I witnessed one of his flashbacks and it was terrible to see a strong grown man have these.  Another acquaintance of mine who served in Afghanistan told me he has them too.  Their current lives are rooted in those past experiences, it has changed them and it’s difficult to escape at times.  My father had them his entire life, after spending time in Hitler's camps.  Interestingly, the doctors were discussing that there are indications that they can now detect PTSD in the tone of voice of PTSD sufferers and maybe even in the content of their saliva. 

Listening to the program, I was immediately taken back to my first experiences in Uganda in 1978, and I was wondering if I am (or my wife and I are) psychologically shaped the way I am (we are) by the events I (we) went through back then, just like the doctors were discussing on the radio.  I know my wife and I had PTSD after we were liberated in May 1979; the strange sound of a toilet flushing sent my wife under the table the first time she heard it, thinking we were being bombed or being shot at.

But even now, just listening to the discussion on the radio gave me flashbacks to that time 37 and 38 years ago.  Suffice it to say, I should have been killed but I escaped getting killed probably four times.  I also still feel guilty for not preventing a young boy from getting killed by an angry mob two days after we arrived in the country.  It’s all too gruesome to describe, but if you like me to, let me know and I can blog about it, one day.

It all came rushing back to me, again.  I wonder if the tone of my voice and my saliva are different from what it would have been if I had not experienced it, or my elevated blood pressure is caused by it or my migraines are partially the result of it.  So yes, I am rooted in the past, and I know I should not dwell on it just as Buddha says, but concentrate on the present and maybe prepare for the future.

Downtown Richmond, the roots of this old tree have expanded so much that they are growing over the curb and the sidewalk.  It makes you wonder what they can find there.  I am always amazed by the tenacity of some of these trees.  Looks like someone is trying to feed the tree some Red Bull, I hate people who liter (photo taken 2/9/2016).

Stormwater (11/1/2015)

I have been doing some literature research on the history of stormwater management.  OK, call me a stormwater geek or a stormwater nerd, but I just realized that I have been actually fascinated about it for probably more more than forty years and I never noticed it until this weekend.

It all started in 1972 when I read an article somewhere about an agriculture and reforestation project in the arid mountains of Algeria.  This fascinated me and prompted me to do a literature search on the subject of desert revegetation at my college library in Holland where I found a reference to a new (scientific) book by Michael Evenari and co-authors called: The Negev, The Challenge of a Desert.  It was published in 1971 and I borrowed it through inter-library loan.  It came from the Dutch Library of Congress, it appeared that I was the first one to read it.  I devoured the book.

In this book Evenari and his colleagues describe how the old Bedouin tribes were able not only to survive in the desert but actually to thrive by practicing agriculture in the Negev Desert of what is now Israel.  They built extensive drainage canal systems on hillsides that captured runoff from the sparse winter rainstorms and brought the water down to the agriculture fields.  Very different from what we did with stormwater until the early 2000s; which is, getting rid of it.  At least now we are back to teaching people to conserve stormwater; to conserve it and infiltrate it.

Walking to work in Richmond this morning (11/3/2015), ready to go back out on the road and teach about stormwater management and conservation, and erosion and sediment control. 

I have always credited Evenari for steering me into the field of desert ecology; his book has a chapter on plant survival in the desert environment and it was my first encounter with that subject as well.  Ever since reading that chapter I have been fascinated with plant physiological ecology, in particular the adaptation of plants to stressful environments such as deserts, the subject I specialized in for my PhD.

Events in real life kept reminding me of Evenari's book.  In Yemen I saw some of the same water harvesting practices that he described seeing in the Negev Desert.  I also saw the same plant adaptations in Yemen and in New Mexico as he saw, and it always brought me back to his book.  So much so, that  Evenari's book was one of the first purchases I made on the fledgling Amazon.com years ago, it was a book that always stayed with me.  So yes, it was fun to open it again this weekend and to leaf through it again.

Now 40 year or more later I can credit Evenari for even more than just turning me into an physiological ecologist.  Truth be known, I am more a stormwater geek or nerd now; maybe also thanks to that book, a realization I all the sudden have all out of the blue.  It is fun to see how your life comes full circle, all the way back to stormwater management, the most important subject in the book.  It is amazing how one event, or one book can have such a (subconscious) influence even if you don't realize it then, but only now 40+ years later.  I am sure that many of you have events, books or even radio or television shows that are somehow pivotal to your career or even your life, that you do not realize until many years later.  Cherish those moments, I cherish mine right now.

Richmond (10/5/2015)

It's been an interesting weekend, and we in Virginia had it easy compared to the Carolina's.  Let me explain:

When I took the first picture on Wednesday September 30, the clouds were building and the weather outlook was for a lot of rain and a possible hurricane over the weekend.  Predictions were at the time that hurricane Joaquin was going to come right up (what we call) the main stem of the Chesapeake Bay as a category 1 or maybe even a 2 storm, and for us who lived through hurricane Isabel, we feared the worst.  I took this photo, in anticipation that it would look very different a week later.

A picture of the James River in Downtown Richmond from Brown's Island Park taken on 9/30/2015.

There was this European model out there that was sowing doubt in our mind.  In the past the European hurricane model had been the most reliable, so were were all somewhat skeptical about the initial dire predictions of the other models, and we did not really make many hurricane preparations.  From the look of it some people did, because when the I visited our local Lowe's on Friday after we were sure that the storm was going to pass us by, the return line with people returning unused generators (still in the box) was very long!

The next photograph I took on the 5th of October after the mountain region of Virginia received a lot of rain and you can see that the water is much muddier and that it has risen a lot.  There was a sandbar in front of one of the bridge pilings and that is now underwater; moreover the first section of the piling is almost completely submerged.  What a little rain in the watershed will do!  Actually the week before September 30, the mountainous region of Virginia received close to 8 inches of rain in 2 days (for my non-American readers that is 200 mm) and during the "hurricane weekend" or the weekend before the 5th we got another 2 to 3 inches (50 to 75 mm).  After a little lag time as they call it in hydrology (it takes a few days for all that water to flow down hill), we saw the water levels rise.

The James River on October 5, 2015.

As of the writing of this blog (10/8/2015) the water level in the river is back to the level of the first picture.  Again, this is nothing compared to what the people in South Carolina are going through.  My hearth goes out to them.  The climatological extremes seem to be getting more frequent, fires out west, floods in the east.  As predicted, global warming is slowly expressing itself isn't it?

Richmond (2/2/2015)

My lunchtime walk in Richmond today took me along Main Street.  It is a little deviation from what I usually do (either Capitol Square or Browns Island), and I'll probably will have to pay the price.  I did not log as many steps on my FitBit as I usually do during my lunchtime walks.  So it looks like I will need a long evening walk, in addition to tonight's yoga.  But it had been raining pretty heavy, and I just did not wanted to get caught in a downpour.

But the walk was good.  Actually, the sun came out and I was struck by the very colorful streetscape that popped up.

It was just after a heavy rainstorm and the air was clean, the streets were still wet and the sun came through the clouds.  I love the different textures, and colors here.  It is amazing you can sometimes walk by a scene for years (I have been passing by this place regularly for almost 6 years now), and all the sudden it strikes you as photogenic and special.  I am not sure if you have to be in a certain psychological state to see it or if it was the weather and the way the sun fell on the buildings, but today it spoke to me.

Actually, Sub Central is one of my favorite lunch places.  The serve killer french fries (killer in all the good and bad connotations, being that they taste great, but also that they are probably not the best for your health).  I have not tried the Asian place, but bought flowers and tried the restaurant on the corner.  All pretty reasonable and decent places to spend your money, but Sub Central is the place I go to when I am traveling that afternoon and need a full belly for my drive.

This picture could be somewhat emblematic of a fairly vigorous downtown; although I'm struck about the fact that there are no people in this picture.  It was taken around 1 pm, right at the end of lunch hour and you would expect it to be crowded.  Oh well.  Being European, I like the hustle and bustle of a vibrant downtown, but even here in Richmond, one block removed from Capitol Square, it seems somewhat deserted.  I have been in this area in the evening, and there is even less going on in this area at that time.  I am happy to report that some of the buildings around here are being converted into urban housing, but my major issue would be groceries.  One gal that works with me lives in the area, and she shops at a local drug store and a seven eleven down the street.  I'm sure it is more expensive and very basic, and hopefully a grocery store or specialty food stores will follow the redevelopment of downtown, otherwise it will not be very attractive to live here.  I really would not want to shop for my food at these places.  Moreover, if I live downtown, I would not want to get on a bus or in a car to go to the nearest grocery store to buy food.  That would defeat the purpose of moving downtown, close to my work.

Richmond (1/21/2015)

Sometimes the simplest pictures give you the most joy.  Moreover, some pictures just beg to be taken because of its composition and simplicity.

Let's talk about the joy first.  I think a lot of people can rejoice with me about the gas prices.  I need a full tank every 4 days or so.  This is because of the large commuting distance I have to work.  Today I paid $1.86 per gallon of gas, and last week I bought it for $1.66 at Costco.  That is half the price that I paid a half year ago.  Considering I have a 16 gallon tank, I am currently not spending (some call it saving) approximately $30 per week.  That really helps the family budget.  I think a lot of Americans are experiencing this joy, in particular those that have a small income.  Most have not seen a wage hike in years, and it looks like there is absolutely no willingness to give us one in the near future.  Our law makers only seem to look out for the big guys; the people that fund their re-election campaign.

Oh well, enough politicking.  People often ask me why I don't move closer to my work.  For one, if you have been reading my blog, you know what a great "back yard" I have.  Granted it is actually Newport News Park, but my back yard runs right into it (guess you can still see the old fence), but in reality I have a 8000+ acre back yard.  And I don't have to mow it!  On top of that, the section behind our home is a nature preserve for the Mabee salamander.  Nothing better in curing my nature deficit disorder.  Regular readers also know how much I love Yorktown, the river, the Chesapeake Bay and sailing. Finally, I am a nomad, as my blog's name mentions.  I travel a lot and I am in Richmond maybe two or three days per week on average.  So yes, I burn a lot of gas and I am happy with the low prices.

Secondly, the picture it self.  I find far too often we take pictures of family or beautiful vistas.  That is all good, but what about recording mundane life.  I know sociologists, historians and archaeologist love discovering shopping lists that are more than 100 years old.  Even better are receipts that are that old or older.  Those types of documents are invaluable in developing a mental picture how people lived in those days.  I understand dairies in which people recorded the price of something they bought are invaluable.  I wonder when these types of people look back to our times what they'll see: screen captures of amazon.com pages?  So yes, I do think it is important that we have some photographic record of what life was all about, even a picture of pumping gas.  I do think it is important to document some of the mundane elements in addition to all the pictures of vistas and of people playing and having fun.

To me this picture has some classic composition elements in it.  I love the repetition in it: the vertical posts, the curved metal styles and even the pumps.  Moreover, the base of the columns, the pumps, styles and the trash can are in a diagonal.  Somewhat classic elements.  By no means is this a high quality photograph, but is has some of the elements of composition in it.

On an end note, yes gas is cheap, and I realize not all people are happy.  If you are an oil worker, a land owner who relies on any royalty payments, or you depend on business from these people, I'm sorry that your income is now even lower.  But I assure you this shall pass and prices will go up again.

James River (12/1/2014)

I posted a small write up on the James River approximately 9 months ago (click here if you like to see that one).  However, here I go again.  It was such a beautiful day on Monday that I had to go for a walk that took me again along the James river in Richmond.  It was great to meditate on the old railroad bridge that juts out over part of the river and think about the force of that water and about where all those drops of water have been.  You can think about where the drop was introduced into the watershed, or even become more philosophical about it and wonder where those molecules have been in the past.  Were they in a drop of sweat that was beading up on the forehead of Leonardo da Vinci or where have those molecules been in the past.  I have mused about things like this before in a blog I did that I called George Washington's shovel.  But water is an amazing thing; without it life is not possible.  Moreover, the way it freezes is important.  If it froze like any other substance would when it cools down, life would be impossible.

We teach that of all the water in the world only 6% is available to us.  All the other water is locked up in ways that we cannot get to it.  Of the 5.85% is in the oceans, leaving only 0.15% usable/fresh water.  Of this fresh water two thirds of it is locked up in glaciers and the remaining is either groundwater or fresh water.  In other words 0.05% of the water on earth is available to us for consumption.  I guess this is why I am always a bit upset when I watch people water their lawns, and especially so when they do it with valuable drinking water.  It is such a waste in my eyes.

Anyway, this another picture of the James.  One of these days I am going to create an extensive post on the river; showing pictures of it's origin (headwaters) to it's outfall into the Bay.  The picture below shows the jumble of the various bridges that go across the river: the road bridge and the I-95 bridge in the far back; the old pilings of a railroad bridge to Petersburg within the back a railroad bridge to Danvville and on the side the main track from Lynchburg.  A virtual spaghetti bowl of bridges and ruins of bridges.  What amazes me that they were able to build them on the spot where the river goes over the fall line.  Just looking at the force f the water amazes me.

Richmond (11/19/2014)

Working in the center of Richmond can always result into some excitement, especially during my lunch-time walks.  On Wednesday their was a climate/clean energy rally on capital square and I took these photos while looking at the proceedings.

It was kind of ironic that is was about the coldest day of the current fall, temperatures were 10 to 20 degrees below normal, and I am sure it probably fueled to fire of some of the climate change deniers.  Yes it was cold, and that is exactly what is predicted by researchers on climate change.  I've seen right wing pundits on TV telling me we are going into an ice age and all kinds of other propaganda.  The Washington Post has an interesting article on what's going on (see my link above), and during my dentist visit, I found an article in Scientific American (December 2014 issue) that describes the Polar Vortex in great detail.

I am sure that others will try to find fault with discussions on climate change/global warming, but so be it.  I do not think there is one climate scientist who would be be upset if they are proven wrong; who would want to see/experience global warming.  These same people that question global warming are constantly talking about the economy and want to protect those same children and grand children from the mounting debt (which is not proven either), but then turn around and question global warming.  I rather be safe than sorry.  I am just amazed that people are willing to play chicken with their future and the future of their children and grand children in both cases.

I really think this is a sign of the times.  We have liberals and conservatives and they are so entrenched that a compromise is not possible any longer.  We have a bunch of congress men/women and senators in Washington who's mission it was "to make Obama a one term president", and when that did not work, they are fighting everything the democrats propose.  This is followed up with a push back from the democratic party, and compromise is gone.  It has become of fight of principals instead of a fight for what is good for the country and the people living in it.  I really think this lack of compromise; the disrespect for education and educated people (educated elite) or rich people; the rise in college costs; and the shrinking of the middle class are going the be the downfall of our country and turn it into a third world country that much like Russia is only noticed when it flexes its  military muscle.

Oh well, enough politics for today.  If you are a regular reader, you I do not politic that often.  But if you are interested, just open the labels tab and look for the keyword politics and you'll find a few more posts).  Guess the energy demonstration did that to me.  This group consisted on people against the proposed pipeline, clean energy people, people for sustainable energy, global warming people etc.  A diverse group, and hopefully a group with a variety of political leanings, a true compromise; although I doubt it.

Richmond (10/29/2014)

The one nice thing about working downtown in a larger city is often the sheer choice of places to eat lunch; although, there seemed to have been less choice when I started working in Richmond 5 years ago.  Yes you still have your Wendy’s, Hardy’s, Subways and Quiznos, but I think I have seen other places open, and then also, there has been an explosion of food carts.  Your choice is amazing, from an Indian food cart, to authentic Mexican tacos, to a Thai cart, a cart with more gourmet-like tacos, to carts that serve all kinds of wraps and salads.  It is really neat.  Contrast this with recent fights they had in Newport News about the placement of food cart placement.  I really wish there were more, as long as they are safe; but that is probably self regulating at least when they don’t kill their customers.

Regular readers of this blog know that I love to go for a walk during lunch time and I am always amazed by some of the big lines at these carts.  It is the social place to be; every so now and then on my walks I run into people I know.  They are patiently standing in a line at a cart and it is fun to talk to them for a bit.  Other times, the people standing in line take up more than half the sidewalk and it is difficult to walk.  But then on the sidewalk on the other side of the street are all the smokers and that’s a pain as well.   Breathing in secondhand smoke has been moved from the work/office environment to the environment where people do their lunch-time exercise or wait in line at food carts.  Somewhat ironic I would think, and it is the reason why I often escape to the park along the James River, or I walk around capitol square.  I need my walk and very often my Starbucks fix. 

Finally, another thing that is fairly common on the streets around lunch time are the beggars.  It is a shame that we still have people that need to collect money on the streets.  There is a lady who sells wilted roses, a guy without legs and your assortment of beggars that sit on the curb smoking cigarettes.  Being an ex-smoker, I do not think I would give to smokers in support of their habit, over food.  Others may say that giving them money support their begging habit and makes them lazy (see the article by Robert Reich that I reference below).  But so be it.  It is just sad to see that in a country as this there is still such a discrepancy in income or maybe a lack of income for some that people still need to beg.  It is a harsh reality, and it still makes me feel uncomfortable seeing them.  It amazes me too that there is such a lack of compassion and empathy (see also the article by Robert Reich).

Anyway, this is my entry to the weekly challenge by Cee Neuner.  This week’s challenge was to photograph feet.  Maybe not the best picture, but all these people are waiting at one of the favorite food carts in the area.  I like to take a picture at the time the challenge comes out.  This is not my best, but it shows what I meant when writing about the carts.  Actually amazing that everyone has their own space in this photograph and that there is obviously very little interaction going on in line.  To me everyone appears to be lonely in a crowd.

Richmond (10/2/2014)

Every day when I drive home from Richmond I pass by this wonderful mural/graffiti.  Richmond has a few and I see two of them on a daily basis.  Not sure if this one is offensive to some, but I love it.  To me it is a mixture of a caricature of a large superstore that uses the smiley face as their symbol and really neat avantgarde art.  Today I had just read the new challenge by Cee Neuner that I so now and then participate in.  This week's challenge was the color yellow and I thought this fits.  The photo was taken on the fly, through the roof of my car so pardon the quality; I just thought it was fun.  I just wish there was more art like this around where I live or travel, but I always smile when I drive by there on the way home.

Richmond (9/17/2014)

Staying with the Richmond theme (yes I am not traveling today, just commuting); one of my favorite lunch-time walks is along the James River.  It is wonderful to see the powerful river going over what we call the fault line.  The fault line is the transition zone between what we call the Piedmont and the Coastal Plane.  Interestingly enough, it is also where a lot of the major industrial cities are on the east coast.  I can imagine cities like Columbia, SC; Rocky Mount, NC; Petersburg, Richmond and Fredericksburg in Virginia; and last but not least Washington, DC (or at least slightly west of DC).

The advantage of being located near the fault line is cheep energy.  In Richmond the river drops more than 100 feet, and enterprising individuals figured out how to harness that energy.  They built canals to keep the water high and then make it drop through water wheels etc in order to generate energy.  At the same time the canals allowed boat traffic further inland through a lock system.

Historic features abound along the river and I just took this picture to juxtapose the old and the modern.  The cobble stones remind me of my home country (the Netherlands or Holland); as a biker, I have to think the famous race from Paris to Roubaix, a bike race over cobbles like this.  You can see the footprint of an older building and in the background of the picture you have a very modern building and the more conventional building of Dominion Energy.  Nice to see this contrast between old and new.  I really like new, very modern looking buildings, but the old is attractive as well.

Richmond (9/16/2014)

This week I am teaching in Richmond; kind of like a home game, with the exception that it was away from the office in the Science Museum.  I always enjoy teaching there, the place is vibrant with school children and other people who are at least mildly interested in the sciences.  Moreover, I was teaching in the "science room" where the walls have all kinds of details on the geology of Virginia.  I find this very appropriate given I am teaching courses in Erosion and Sediment Control and Stormwater.  It really is great to be out of the office and to be teaching.

The science museum is in the old train station, and when I lived in Cincinnati, that exactly where that science museum was as well.  They are majestic buildings and while it is a shame that these buildings are no longer used for trains, or train traffic has so declined and only one or two trains stop there every day, it is great to see them re-purposed rather that being torn down.  Still, it is a pity that this country is so car oriented and anti public transport.  I really love the U.S., but there are things I would want to improve.  I had a long discussion over lunch today with my fellow teacher, and yes we need to keep history and tradition in mind, but that does not mean we cannot improve where we see some inadequacies.  This photo is somewhat symbolic for this, there is a globe in front of the museum; somewhat symbolic of what I mean.  We are part of a greater world and should not be isolationistic in our thoughts and actions.

Richmond (8/25/2014)

Traveling later in the day to Charlottesville, I decided to go have lunch at my favorite restaurant, to find it was closed for the month of August.  So I decided to walk on and go to my second favorite place in the "fan."  I really used to enjoy my lunchtime walks in the "fan", but since we moved offices my daily walks moved further up town. It was nice to be back and somehow I liked what I saw in this picture; a more European feeling downtown.  I have nothing really profound to say about this, other than I like the cobblestones, the old building and the mature trees.  Just a nice composition in my eyes.

Richmond (8/19/2014)

After eating my lunch at my desk, I generally try to get a lunch time walk in: good for the digestion, great in clearing the mind (sometimes), and good for the total steps I try to accumulate each day.  Regular readers know I am one of those fitbit junkies that David Sedaris wrote about in the New Yorker.

Well today I decided to walk by the line of television trucks that are lined up along 7^th street here in Richmond; all trying to cover the McDonald trial.  As regular readers of my blog know, I write a bit about my travels throughout the state, although they have been less lately; regular life; my hobbies (mostly sailing); nature or things that relate to nature; and an occasional gripe on politics, or may be better the polarization of politicized issues such as the environment and global warming.  I have come to the conclusion that the Supreme Court was wrong when they decided that “companies are people too.”  I really think big money is to blame for all the political impasse, controversy, polarization and anger that I see in this country.  It’s a shame, this is such a great country, and at this time in history no one seems to be able to get along.

Oh well, getting down off my soap box, I had to take a photograph of the lineup of television trucks along the street.  I even saw the vehicle of my favorite TV station in Norfolk in the lineup.  In the plaza there are lots of empty tripods, I guess that is where a certain television station or anchor put his or her claim on a few square feet to broadcast the latest and the greatest from. 

But getting back to money and politics, for those of you who are not from Virginia, judging from the television vehicles, the entire state is glued to their television sets to hear the latest and the greatest from the “trial of the century.”  Our ex-governor is on trial for allegedly taking bribes or shall we say loans from an owner of a pharmaceutical company in the hope that he would push this somewhat unproven supplement.  From the reports it seems that the ex-governor claims that it is all his wife’s doing and that he is Mr. Clean and Mr. Trustable.  No idea what the results are going to be of this trials, but one thing seems for sure: this marriage cannot be saved.  I am putting my money on the prediction that the governor and his wife will file for divorce after the trial.  The Virginia soap opera will continue.  With this photograph I just want to document that a trial is going on and the obvious excitement it evokes, at least among the journalists.

Richmond (7/29/2014)

During my lunch-time walk through Richmond city center I had a new spring in my step.  It was in the high 70s or low 80s; which is amazing for the end of July.  I was at home yesterday, out of commission, when the news came about two momentous events in the city.

 

For one, Virginia's rule on same sex marriage was overturned.  Secondly, the trial of our new ex governor and his wife had started.

 

Considering the marriage ban, I am happy to see that one repealed.  I really have a big issue in policing what goes on at home or denying people the right to get married.  Yes, you can see all the arguments on television, but having committed gay friends, I can not understand why we deny them the chance to get married.  Both partners from one couple who are close friends needed an operation in the past few years. Everything went fine, but I just can't imagine if something went wrong.  Interestingly, a talking head on TV was telling us that it was against the will of the majority Virginians.  This is such a fluent issue (thanks to programs on television including HGTV) that I am not sure if that guy was correct.

 

On the governor and his wife, the jury will decide whether they were just stupid, greedy or corrupt.  I have no opinion.  During my life I have lived in countries with corruption and it is interesting.  In Uganda I was able to bribe soldiers on a road block with one or two cigarettes.  In Yemen, it took four beers to buy off a soldier at a road block who discovered all the illegal alcoholic beverages we bought on the black market and were smuggling home. I'm sure that bigger bribes were paid, but we operated on a much lower level.

 

What the governor did will be decided on by a jury, but one thing is for sure:  Yesterday was a new beginning of politics I our state.  Things will never be the same again!  This photo of the state Capitol and the cranes behind it symbolizes this new beginning for me; building on a new and better future.

 

Richmond (6/25/2014)

One of the photo blogs that I follow (Cee’s Photography) posted a challenge of wanting you to dig through your achieves and post a picture showing straight lines.  Working downtown Richmond this is not really such a huge challenge, with all those tall buildings.  So I decided to photograph some straight lines during my lunch-time walk today.  But nothing really stuck out.

Sitting behind my desk, it just occurred to me that I have a straight line overdose just looking out of my office window.  So that is my photo of today; the view from my office.  An oddball photo, but fun for a change.

Richmond (6/24/2014)

The weather is still unbelievably nice for this late in June.  Temperatures at home are in the low 80s or in European terms in the high 20s centigrade (my blog has a lot of visitors from Russia and Germany).  In Richmond it is a bit warmer, but still very bearable.  People you talk to mention that sooner or later “we’ll have to pay for it.”  While I do not think the weather gods act like that, we all know that weather is all about averages and that over the years these averages have been going up.  So yes, the statistics tell us that we will have to pay for it; although I do not think that is the reason we called it “sadistic” in grad school.

Anyway it was just nice to go for my lunch-time walk.  Downtown Richmond is a great place to get some exercise and clear the brain fog.  I either walk along the river or try to hit Capitol Square.  Going to Capitol Square you see all kinds of things: lunch carts, beggars, street musicians, business women and men, and yes a lot of government employees. 

Yesterday, the steps of the Governor’s mansion were full of people for a photo-op.  Today there was just a black SUV parked in front of the steps.  The Governor was either on his way out or in, probably a good thing.

Politics in this state are a mess; very much like what is going on in Washington, DC.  There is just too much polarization and too little cooperation and compromise.  It still amazes me that ordinary people allow politicians to do this, basically to their long-term detriment, but to the benifit of their deep-pocketed donors.  Oh well.

So my walk today took me to capitol square, where I took this picture.  It does not symbolize anything; I just thought it made a pretty shot.  It was just nice to get out.  And yes, I had sun screen on!

Richmond (6/4/2014)

We had meeting in Richmond on Wednesday, and I went for a brief walk during lunch.  It was a nice day, but amazingly quiet downtown.  You would think more people would want to get out and enjoy the outside.

Richmond (4/17/2014)

Had a great walk during my lunch half hour today.  I walked down to the James over 7^th street; and once at the river I went right instead of my usual left.  Near the Belvidere Bridge I walked up the hill to the Virginia War Memorial  and then over 2^nd to Main and then back to the office.  A nice invigorating 35 minute walk.  My FitBit told me that I climbed as much as 20 flights of stairs, just what the doctor ordered I guess.  Took some nice pictures of the river etc, but this one stood out to me.  I just like the colors, the composition and just the feel of it.  It was taken near 2^nd and Main.  They are paving all over town for the collegiate world bicycling championships in early May.