on.my.way

word.of.the.day:
rapture - ecstatic joy or delight, joyful ecstasy, the carrying of a person to another place or sphere of existence

r.u.n.n.i.n.g:
i'm just 8 weeks away from the 1/2 marathon, but have managed to build my mileage up to 7.mile runs. barring any injuries, i should be ready to go come race time. i've been able to push my pace faster than i expected, even on the longer runs, so i just may meet or break my goal. i've been running every other day, and gradually adding on the miles, with shorter runs spaced between the building runs. here's a graphical look at my last 10 workouts:as time goes on, i'll start to put two short, speed-building workouts in between the longer runs, but wanted to make sure i had a good mileage base before doing so. whether or not i stay in good enough form to make it to race day (i've been sidelined by stress fractures all too often in the past), i am enjoying the consistency of running in my life, and i actually find myself missing it on my off-days. running is surprisingly therapeutic. i'm excited to feel the rapture of the post-10-mile-zone that i experienced when i was training for a marathon. trust me--it does exist, and it feels great.

on a lighter.note

latin.for.the.day:
nunc est pede libero pulsanda tellus - now is the time to dance footloose upon the earth

i realized that the content of yesterday's post was a little heavy...so i'm lightening it up today with a youtube video from one of my all-time favorite dancers: nick bass. i've had the distinct pleasure of getting to take a hip.hop class from nick, and am blown away by his genius. dancing may not be your thing, but you've got to recognize this guy's talent. and his choreography is unparalleled. without further ado, here's nick bass (in sweatpants) and kenny wormald doing a short segment of marty kudelka's coreography:

dance.is.my.passion.

march.madness:
oh, there's little to say here... my teams have not fared so well this year. major props to michigan state and villanova for the upsets. it's always good to see. the only team i have left in the final four is unc, but luckily i have them winning the championship. though at this point, and due to all of my unfortunate picks, even their wins won't get me very far. ah, here's to the greatness of the unpredictability of the march.madness tournament.

sad.song for a rainy.day

word.of.the.day:
lachrymose - suggestive of or tending to cause tears; mournful

my current view from my window:

i've always insisted that i look forward to rainy days and savor the depth of emotion i feel when i walk through the somber raindrops or peer through a window's rain-soaked tear tracks. just as a sad, tortured song can evoke more emotion in me than a happy melody can produce--a clouded melancholy day stirs up more feelings than a bright sunny day ever could. it is for this reason that my favorite songs are often heavy, sorrowful, lachrymose songs. because sometimes, to feel more is to feel alive...

poem.for.the.day:
henry wadsworth longfellow - the rainy day

the day is cold, and dark, and dreary;
it rains, and the wind is never weary;
the vine still clings to the moldering wall,
but at every gust the dead leaves fall,
and the day is dark and dreary.

my life is cold, and dark, and dreary;
it rains, and the wind is never weary;
my thoughts still cling to the moldering past,
but the hopes of youth fall thick in the blast
and the days are dark and dreary.

be still, sad heart! and cease repining;
behind the clouds is the sun still shining;
thy fate is the common fate of all,
into each life some rain must fall,
some days must be dark and dreary.

song.of.the.day:
one of my favorite songs of all time was covered by the late eva cassidy, an incredibly talented blues/jazz voice who left this world far too young at 33, a result of melanoma. though i've heard her version of 'autumn leaves' more than a hundred times, it never fails to stir up my soul.

song.of.the.day - eva cassidy - autumn leaves

transit network of the week . dc metro

the washington metropolitan area transit authority (wmata), more commonly known as the metro, started in 1976. because of the late start date (nyc and boston's subway systems opened in the late 1800's), dc's metrorail subway system has a few defining features: deeper tunnels (to avoid the underground infrastructure built up over the years) and a few forms of advanced technology (built into the system, as opposed to retro-fitting older transit systems). the dc-area metrobus system is decent, with an new up-and-coming brt network just underway, but in this blog, it's all about the rails.

dc's metrorail has the second highest subway ridership in the united states, after new york city. the metro's network consists of 5 subway lines (red, orange, yellow, green, blue), and 85 stations. the station list includes only one of the region's airports (dca--reagan national), but plans for an extension to iad-dulles airport are being discussed. metrorail offers a high number of transfer points on their routes. most of the metrorail stations are similar in appearance, with their unmistakable high arched concrete ceilings.

best thing about the metro:
there are a number of 'best things' about the metro, but i think it can all be summed up in passenger experience. upon entering the station, escalators (almost always in operation) take you down into the deep stations. passengers scan/insert their fare cards upon entry and exit of the stations, thus only being charged for their distance traveled (often cheaper fares), and not a flat rate ($2 in ny and boston). once down on the platform, next-train arrival systems tell passengers in exactly how many minutes they can expect the next trains (also available on the wmata website and on your phone), and flashing platform lights indicate approaching trains. all in all, the technology and ease of travel make for an excellent in-station passenger experience.

worst thing about the metro:
i'm going to have to split the 'worst' title between the often long distances between stations, and the unfortunate retro subway car interiors, with their brownish carpet and red/orange/yellow vinyl seat color scheme. in contrast to the cool architecture and the advanced technology of the stations, it feels as though you're taking a time train right through the 70's once you board the subway car. although--it does remind you of the groovy age in which the system was built.

conservation . madness

march.madness:

we've now entered the sweet sixteen, and i'm still hanging on with 14 teams. i'm sitting in a respectable 3rd place in my office pool right now--but unfortunately, i took way too many chances in the first two rounds, so it would be a mathematical impossibility for me to win. (1st and 2nd place have the same final four and championship picks as me, so there's no way to win.) i blame wake forest, florida state, and clemson. (ooooh, i'm never picking clemson again. ouch.)

five.conservation.ideas:

energy conservation is about much more than changing a light bulb... don't get me wrong--compact fluorescent light bulbs are an excellent idea. but don't stop there. here are five transportation-related ideas for conserving energy (and saving $):

• use alternative transportation! (my personal favorite.) so obviously not everyone has access to advanced subway systems...but most cities across the country have access to public bus transportation. there are over 6,000 transit authorities in the us alone.* and using public transportation does more than reduce pollution, it can: save you money, aid in economic development for your community, reduce traffic congestion, give you more productive time (reading, working, or relaxing, instead of driving), increase your safety, and create more jobs in your community. the next time you're driving next to a bus on your way to work, think about all of the benefits of being on that bus, and see how you can fit public transportation into your life.
• don't forget about carpooling! even having just two people in a vehicle cuts pollution and consumption in half. not to mention fuel costs and vehicle maintenance & depreciation.
• thinking beyond public transportation, consider biking or walking (or running or rollerblading or skateboarding...) to get where you need to go. most of the errands we need to accomplish can be done on a bike or on foot. and it's obviously much healthier for you than the alternative. do yourself and your environment a favor.
• plan your trips to conserve miles spent on the road. if you can run two errands in one trip, you could be saving a lot on resources and preventing further pollution. wait a few days until you have more errands to run, so you can consolidate trips and spend fewer miles on the road. plan things out logistically so you minimizing driving.
• buy local! just think--buying foods and goods that are locally grown and made saves significantly on transportation costs. if the products can be delivered from a few miles down the road instead of shipped across the country or world--you're making decisions that ultimately reduce environmental costs.

* publictransportation.org

inaugural song of the day

march.madness commentary:
day one is over, and to summarize: clemson was a bad decision. and minnesota let me down. hard. but the good news is that clemson is the only team that lost that i was counting on winning another game (or two). and texas a&m and maryland were both accurate 'upset' picks. thanks much, gentlemen. according to my office pool, i have 14 points from yesterday, and am tied for 8th place. (and by the same scoring method, president obama has 12 points. in yo face!) today i'm really counting on siena, arizona, dayton, usc, utah st., tennessee, and temple to pull out some upsets. could be a very good (or very bad) day for me.

song of the day:
today is a great day. my reasons are three-fold: 1-it's friday, 2-it's sunny here in boston, and 3-today is the birthday of a very dear friend of mine...one of those friends who has significantly changed the course of my life very much for the better. he is also my source for all things good in music, books, and movies. he has the best.taste.ever. this inaugural song of the day goes out to him. happy birthday, pbjb.

song.of.the.day - css - music is my hot, hot sex

ncaa march madness kicks off

word of the day:
flagrant - shockingly noticeable or evident; glaring; notorious; scandalous
(used in basketball in 'flagrant foul' - an unnecessary and obvious foul that concerns serious unsportsmanlike personal contact with a court opponent)

ncaa march madness officially begins today! i have an office pool bracket, and i get really into it--mainly because being able to justify streaming espn all day at work is awesome. last year i tied for 4th in the office pool. not bad, but i'm hoping to do better this year. i picked some upsets in an attempt to get more points. here's my picks:

my pick for the ncaa champion is unc. (note: i have some family loyalty to duke, so on a personal note--i wouldn't mind seeing unc fall...it's a win-win either way for me.) i found another bracket that looks pretty similar to mine. here's president obama's own hand-written bracket picks:

we have the same choices for final four, play-offs, and champion. and we're only off by two teams in the elite eight and sweet sixteen. not bad, mr. president.

i started a nike+ running challenge so ncaa fans can log miles for their teams. sign up if you have a nike+ sensor! here's the real-time standings:

transit network of the week . toronto

ah, toronto. your clean air, your diversity, your fashion, your brisk winters, your harbour, your cn tower, your svelte men, your row houses, your hockey, your bike lanes and pedestrian paths, your beer...a fine city to be sure. oh but your transit--quite possibly my favorite part about toronto.

transportation options on toronto's transit network include: subway, bus, brt (bus rapid transit), ferry service, and trolley cars. the numerous transit options in toronto are actually (and unfortunately) provided by several different companies:

• the toronto transit commission (ttc) is the third largest transit authority in north america (second to nyc and mexico city). ttc offers subway, bus, and streetcar transportation alternatives. (hooray for streetcars!) there are 4 ttc subway lines (tip: call them by their name, not their color.) subway stops are about 500m apart in downtown toronto. a single trip is $2.75, with discounts for token use.
• go transit (government of ontario) provides rail and bus solutions in the greater toronto and hamilton area. their hub is union station on the waterfront in downtown toronto. they operate 7 commuter rail lines, with the lakeshore lines having the highest ridership. the vast majority of go transit rail and bus passenger trips are to and from downtown toronto (96% of rail and 70% of bus trips).
• york region transit (yrt) offers bus and brt service for the york region north of toronto. their successful brt line, called viva, offers passengers faster trips (with dedicated bus lanes, transit signal priority, etc.). viva connects to the ttc subway line at finch station (on the yonge-university-spadina line), as well as downsview station (y-u-s line) and don mills station (sheppard line).
• other regional transit agencies include mississaugua transit, brampton transit, and durham region transit.
  

best part about toronto transit: the tiny fare coins. they're smaller than a dime (see photo). how many places still use coins for transit? everyone's got electronic ticketing and smart cards now...but toronoto keeps it old school. and speaking of old school, you should see their fare coin dispensers. i love it that they're sticking with it.

worst part about toronto transit: airport access. it takes somewhere around an hour and a half to get to the airport from downtown toronto, with a transit mode change (subway to bus) happening somewhere along the way. there are private bus company options, offering a faster (less than one hour) trip with no transfers for ~$20 cad one-way. to solve this obvious problem, there are plans for a high speed rail link (union-pearson) from downtown to the airport, but the project has not yet been approved.

a portrait of the artist as a young man . joyce

latin phrase for the day:
pax super totum sanguinarium globum — peace over the whole bloody globe (taken from a portrait of the artist as a young man...)

james joyce is a talented irish author, perhaps known best for writing ulysses. the main character of a portrait of the artist... is stephen dedalus, who is considered to be joyce's alter-ego. stephen's life closely parallels joyce's; stephen attended the same schools (clongowes wood college, belvadere college, and university college in dublin), comes from a similar family background (respected catholic parents, financial instability), and goes on to paris to become a writer, just as joyce did in 1902.

it's important to identify inspirations for the character in order to better understand the book. the main character's name is stephen dedalus, which represents two figures: st.stephen, and daedelus, a figure in greek mythology.

* st.stephen was stoned to death for falsely being accused of speaking out against God and moses. st.stephen is considered the first christian martyr. st.stephen had an important vision of the father and the son that were exemplary of his religious beliefs.

*daedalus attempted to leave the island of crete with his son icarus by creating wings from feathers and wax. when icarus flew too close to the sun, the wax melted, and he fell into the sea.

quick rundown of the book: stephen dedalus grows up attending a strict irish catholic school during a time of political tension in ireland. after changing schools, stephen falls to regularly visiting prostitutes in dublin at the young age of 16. he continues a downward moral spiral until he is awakened at a retreat by a fiery series of speeches about the evils of sin and hell, becomes afraid, and eventually repents for his sins. he reaches the opposite extreme and practices a devout and pious lifestyle, eventually leading to his school's dean encouraging stephen to join the priesthood. stephen considers the offer, but after seeing a beautiful young girl at the beach, decides that he takes pleasure in true beauty, and cannot live a life of self-denial as a priest. he goes on to university, and through engaging conversations with his friends, strengthens his passion for writing, and his strong desire to live life free of the constraints of religion, country, and family. in the end of the book, stephen decides to leave ireland for paris, to pursue his love for art and writing. in the last chapter, stephen watches a scene of birds flying overhead, and the reader imagines that he is desiring wings to fly away from ireland and pursue a new life.

i think that just as st.stephen's vision of the father and son represented his religious piety, stephen dedalus's observation of the beautiful young girl at the beach represents his enlightenment of the rejection of religion and self-denial. st.stephen is considered a martyr to religion; perhaps stephen dedalus can be considered a martyr to art.

the parallels between daedelus and stephen dedalus are clear in that they are both envisioning a life away from the island to which they are bound, and are attempting to find wings so that they may fly away. while daedelus's wings are crafted from materials, stephen's wings are crafted through experience and growth. joyce ends the book in a place of hope for what is to come for stephen, but perhaps he is afraid that his fate will be the same as icarus.

writing style: this is the kind of book where i needed to go back and re-read sentences and paragraphs, in order to differentiate and recall characters, and make sense of certain parts of the plot. joyce is known for his 'stream-of-consciousness' writing, which is present in this book, and reaches a new level later in his writing in ulysses. i think that kind of writing is refreshing here--joyce does it well.

themes: growing up catholic, repentance, questioning religion, rejecting catholicism, coming of age, irish upbringing, expatriotism...

my rating (out of 10): 7+ - i recognize that it is a very well-written book, but i think it needs a second read in order to capture more of the meaning. perhaps it will achieve a higher score for me the next time around. in short, it's a 7 with more potential.

running for the irish

(running) word of the day:
cursorial - adapted for running

i ran an easy 5k race for st. patrick's day this weekend, and beat my goal by a full minute*. however, the majority of the ~5,000 runners seemed to be more focused on 1-their festive apparel, and 2-the beer after the race. always makes a race more fun when competitiveness isn't palpable.

*i should throw in a disclaimer here that i am, by no stretch of the imagination, a fast runner. i do, however, greatly enjoy running, and like to set time & distance goals for myself as i train--even though i am not particularly cursorial.

i'm running a half marathon race in 10 weeks, so my training for that is underway. i ran a 10k race a few weeks ago, and had a slow pace of 9:30-minute miles (finish time: 59:00). however, with the 5k race this weekend, i upped my pace to 8:40-minute miles and finished just under 27:00. my current goal for the half marathon is 9:30-minute miles, which equates to a 2:04:30 finish time. i hope to be able to adjust the goal as my training progresses, but we'll see...

i just purchased a nike+ sensor that has made tracking my training and running results much easier. the sensor tracks my time, distance, pace, and calories burned, and plots the information on my ipod while i'm running, as well as on the nikeplus website. there's a lot of great features there (shown above). the sensor needs to be calibrated, and unfortunately as it is just a pedometer, is not completely accurate for distances or speed, since step size can vary with speed and incline for hill running. however, i'm pleased with the general time and distance calculations, and thrilled with the online data analysis capabilities. the sensors are only about $30, and can be purchased with a $10 shoelace attachment, if your shoes aren't nike brand.

i've been a believer in nike shoes my entire running life (20+ years), but just made my first non-nike running shoe purchase. so far it seems to have been a good decision. my change of loyalty was solely based upon comfort, which i couldn't possibly deny as i ran down the street outside of marathon sports with a nike on my right foot and a mizuno on my left. i winced when i found out my only in-store option for the shoes was pink, but assured myself that appearence is of minimal concern when it comes to a good running shoe. my new shoes are mizuno wave rider 12s, and they have what appears to be flames on the sides, which i'm convinced makes them faster.

suum cuique

word of the day:
prolix - tending to speak or write at excessive length.

latin phrase for the day:
suum cuique - to each his own

following the 'how to write your first blog guidelines' (outlined here):
* who you are:
---- TE: transportation engineer, travel enthusiast, tap(dance) entertainer, too empathetic
* why you are blogging:
---- everyone's got something to say, and i decided it was high time i made my somethings publicly available to anyone who wants to read it.
* what you will be blogging about:
---- all the things i love: transit, music, energy conservation, running, languages, and most importantly: etc.
* how i can leave feedback:
---- well, captive reader, that is entirely up to you.