#14 Boston - Return of the I-Pod - September 9, 2006
And I am not talking return as in triumphant, such as the little I-Pod that got lost and found its way back to me. Oh no! We are talking return as in shameful, back to where all the other useless Apple thingies go when they have sufficiently annoyed and stressed out a poor little runner, who just wanted a few little tunes in her ear.
It has been that kind of a week and that kind of a day, and now that the evil instrument and all its accessories have left my house I feel much better. Maybe some day I will buy another one or some cheap knockoff, but for now I am done, D-O-N-E. The darn thing had taken up every spare minute of mine over the past two weeks, wreaked havoc on both my home and work computer, and has outlasted its welcome big time. I will enjoy my marathon pure, look at the historical neighborhoods of Toronto, chat with other newbies and soak up the whole experience rather than closing myself off behind walls of music. All I could think about today was David Henry Thoreau's quote "Simplify, simplify, simplify."
I am not going to delve into the details about my misery all week, but rather tell you a bit about the past weekend, which thankfully was a holiday weekend and provided some much-needed R&R. You must excuse the cryptic style, my right contact lens has either slipped off to the side or fallen out, and I am writing this little update with one eye closed. I think I might have to head over to the Mass Eye and Ear Infirmary for some visual help in the not too distant future.
Friday night - ran 8 miles with my colleague and friend Miguel along the Charles River Esplanade, iced knee, all was good.
Saturday - baked cake (Italian Hazelnut Tart) for party later that evening - excellent result. Still the best German baker at 10 6th Street in Cambridge, MA. Met up with my newly PhD'd friend Josephine to cruise through the Cambridge Antique Market for some window shopping therapy. Re-fueled at Carberry's near Central Square - brightly orange painted spot with fabu pastries and a sighting of the world's tallest female college student. Head over to Rebecca's in Brookline (http://p.vtourist.com/971060-Suburban_Idyll-Brookline.jpg) for farewell party for Chloe who has returned to her native Paris and who can now expect a slew of visitors fairly shortly.
Sunday - peeled Petra out of bed for 20-mile run - longest run for marathon training. Completed 20 miles in rain - arrive muddy but happy at 10 6th Street. Iced knee, ate entire bottle of pain killers (just kidding) and got ready for Red Sox game at Fenway Park. Rain delayed game for 3.5 hours, started at 5:20 PM and took place in the pouring rain. Red Sox stunk big time and the world's two biggest idiots with a combined IQ of, let's say 50, sat in the seats in front of us.
Interesting tidbit: The Red Sox always announce at the beginning of the game that there is a "safety" phone number patrons can call in case "someone is hindering their enjoyment". Shall I list the things that were hindering our enjoyment? The bloody rain for starters, which was relentless, the two dodos in front of us, the beer prices (expected, but still in the hindering category) and the fact that "cotton candy vendor man" never made it to our section. The Red Sox looked like a bunch of amateurs and made us sit there until it was dark. Only after my favorite part of the game when the entire ballpark sings the Neil Diamond classic "Sweet Caroline", did Renee and I take off.
Monday - Labor Day. Celebrating it by staying away from any activity resembling labor. Baked gingerbread and headed for Joanne and Marc's home near Boston College. Lobsters are being humanely killed in kitchen without Petra's presence. I opt out on the lobster race and chose not to meet my food in person before eating it.
That was the weekend pretty much. No museums this time. As of Tuesday evening, when I did my last official "longer" run of six miles, the tapering period prior to the marathon has officially begun. In those last two to three weeks one has to relax, run much less and make sure to arrive on marathon day with well-rested legs. My left knee would not have it any other way. The sports medicine doc will see me again the Monday prior to the big event and I might get one more cortisone shot to make sure the inflammation has subsided. I am looking forward to the actual marathon, but also have been somewhat anxious. This has been a huge part of my life for the past three months - a big commitment. It is now time to do lots of stretching and strengthening exercises and the occasional run (in my case on the elliptical machine, which is kind to the knees).
Wish me luck on send good vibes my way on September 24th when I will cruise through the streets of lovely Toronto. My friend Ruth will have to fill her freezer with ice cream and stock up on movies - that is all we will do post-race!!!
It is Saturday night, and I have to say Goodbye now. "Sean of the Dead" is in the DVD player and from what I have seen so far, it is pretty funny. Add a bottle of Smthwick's (thanks Elaine, muchas gracias) and I will be ready for bed in no time.
I am adding a funny bit for your enjoyment at the end (a classic, but one of favorites)
All my best from a very sunny and warm Boston (where it is 10:15 PM and still 71 degrees).
pet:)
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Apple and GM
At a recent computer expo (COMDEX), Bill Gates reportedly compared the computer industry with the auto industry and stated, "If GM had kept up with technology like the computer industry has, we would all be driving $25.00 cars that got 1,000 miles to the gallon".
In response to Bill's comments, General Motors issued a press release stating: If GM had developed technology like Microsoft, we would all be driving cars with the following characteristics:
1. For no reason whatsoever, your car would crash twice a day.
2. Every time they repainted the lines in the road, you would have to buy a new car.
3. Occasionally your car would die on the freeway for no reason. You would have to pull over to the side of the road, close all of the windows, shut off the car, restart it, and! reopen the windows before you could continue. For some reason you would simply accept this.
4. Occasionally, executing a maneuver such as a left turn would cause your car to shut down and refuse to restart, in which case you would have to reinstall the engine.
5. Macintosh would make a car that was powered by the sun, was reliable, five times as fast and twice as easy to drive - but would run on only five percent of the roads.
6. The oil, water temperature, and alternator warning lights would all be replaced by a single "This Car Has Performed An Illegal Operation" warning light.
7. The airbag system would ask "Are you sure?" before deploying.
8. Occasionally, for no reason whatsoever, your car would lock you out and refuse to let you in until you simultaneously lifted the door handle, turned the key and grabbed hold of the radio antenna.
9. Every time a new car was introduced car buyers would have to learn how to drive all over again because none of the controls would operate in the same manner as the old car.
10. You'd have to press the "Start" button to turn the engine off.
It has been that kind of a week and that kind of a day, and now that the evil instrument and all its accessories have left my house I feel much better. Maybe some day I will buy another one or some cheap knockoff, but for now I am done, D-O-N-E. The darn thing had taken up every spare minute of mine over the past two weeks, wreaked havoc on both my home and work computer, and has outlasted its welcome big time. I will enjoy my marathon pure, look at the historical neighborhoods of Toronto, chat with other newbies and soak up the whole experience rather than closing myself off behind walls of music. All I could think about today was David Henry Thoreau's quote "Simplify, simplify, simplify."
I am not going to delve into the details about my misery all week, but rather tell you a bit about the past weekend, which thankfully was a holiday weekend and provided some much-needed R&R. You must excuse the cryptic style, my right contact lens has either slipped off to the side or fallen out, and I am writing this little update with one eye closed. I think I might have to head over to the Mass Eye and Ear Infirmary for some visual help in the not too distant future.
Friday night - ran 8 miles with my colleague and friend Miguel along the Charles River Esplanade, iced knee, all was good.
Saturday - baked cake (Italian Hazelnut Tart) for party later that evening - excellent result. Still the best German baker at 10 6th Street in Cambridge, MA. Met up with my newly PhD'd friend Josephine to cruise through the Cambridge Antique Market for some window shopping therapy. Re-fueled at Carberry's near Central Square - brightly orange painted spot with fabu pastries and a sighting of the world's tallest female college student. Head over to Rebecca's in Brookline (http://p.vtourist.com/971060-Suburban_Idyll-Brookline.jpg) for farewell party for Chloe who has returned to her native Paris and who can now expect a slew of visitors fairly shortly.
Sunday - peeled Petra out of bed for 20-mile run - longest run for marathon training. Completed 20 miles in rain - arrive muddy but happy at 10 6th Street. Iced knee, ate entire bottle of pain killers (just kidding) and got ready for Red Sox game at Fenway Park. Rain delayed game for 3.5 hours, started at 5:20 PM and took place in the pouring rain. Red Sox stunk big time and the world's two biggest idiots with a combined IQ of, let's say 50, sat in the seats in front of us.
Interesting tidbit: The Red Sox always announce at the beginning of the game that there is a "safety" phone number patrons can call in case "someone is hindering their enjoyment". Shall I list the things that were hindering our enjoyment? The bloody rain for starters, which was relentless, the two dodos in front of us, the beer prices (expected, but still in the hindering category) and the fact that "cotton candy vendor man" never made it to our section. The Red Sox looked like a bunch of amateurs and made us sit there until it was dark. Only after my favorite part of the game when the entire ballpark sings the Neil Diamond classic "Sweet Caroline", did Renee and I take off.
Monday - Labor Day. Celebrating it by staying away from any activity resembling labor. Baked gingerbread and headed for Joanne and Marc's home near Boston College. Lobsters are being humanely killed in kitchen without Petra's presence. I opt out on the lobster race and chose not to meet my food in person before eating it.
That was the weekend pretty much. No museums this time. As of Tuesday evening, when I did my last official "longer" run of six miles, the tapering period prior to the marathon has officially begun. In those last two to three weeks one has to relax, run much less and make sure to arrive on marathon day with well-rested legs. My left knee would not have it any other way. The sports medicine doc will see me again the Monday prior to the big event and I might get one more cortisone shot to make sure the inflammation has subsided. I am looking forward to the actual marathon, but also have been somewhat anxious. This has been a huge part of my life for the past three months - a big commitment. It is now time to do lots of stretching and strengthening exercises and the occasional run (in my case on the elliptical machine, which is kind to the knees).
Wish me luck on send good vibes my way on September 24th when I will cruise through the streets of lovely Toronto. My friend Ruth will have to fill her freezer with ice cream and stock up on movies - that is all we will do post-race!!!
It is Saturday night, and I have to say Goodbye now. "Sean of the Dead" is in the DVD player and from what I have seen so far, it is pretty funny. Add a bottle of Smthwick's (thanks Elaine, muchas gracias) and I will be ready for bed in no time.
I am adding a funny bit for your enjoyment at the end (a classic, but one of favorites)
All my best from a very sunny and warm Boston (where it is 10:15 PM and still 71 degrees).
pet:)
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Apple and GM
At a recent computer expo (COMDEX), Bill Gates reportedly compared the computer industry with the auto industry and stated, "If GM had kept up with technology like the computer industry has, we would all be driving $25.00 cars that got 1,000 miles to the gallon".
In response to Bill's comments, General Motors issued a press release stating: If GM had developed technology like Microsoft, we would all be driving cars with the following characteristics:
1. For no reason whatsoever, your car would crash twice a day.
2. Every time they repainted the lines in the road, you would have to buy a new car.
3. Occasionally your car would die on the freeway for no reason. You would have to pull over to the side of the road, close all of the windows, shut off the car, restart it, and! reopen the windows before you could continue. For some reason you would simply accept this.
4. Occasionally, executing a maneuver such as a left turn would cause your car to shut down and refuse to restart, in which case you would have to reinstall the engine.
5. Macintosh would make a car that was powered by the sun, was reliable, five times as fast and twice as easy to drive - but would run on only five percent of the roads.
6. The oil, water temperature, and alternator warning lights would all be replaced by a single "This Car Has Performed An Illegal Operation" warning light.
7. The airbag system would ask "Are you sure?" before deploying.
8. Occasionally, for no reason whatsoever, your car would lock you out and refuse to let you in until you simultaneously lifted the door handle, turned the key and grabbed hold of the radio antenna.
9. Every time a new car was introduced car buyers would have to learn how to drive all over again because none of the controls would operate in the same manner as the old car.
10. You'd have to press the "Start" button to turn the engine off.
posted by My Boston at
7:42 PM
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