What I'm On About Today (Saturday)

Just a few things I've spotted lately that I thought were interesting, funny, and odd:

In Positive Economic Sign, Walmart Customers Killing Each Other to Buy Shit

"The Sinking Euro."  Wondering if the Euro will survive

World's First Pee-controlled Video Game Opens In London Bar

What I'm On About Today

Just a few things I've spotted lately that I thought were interesting:

American Express will give you $25 for spending money this Saturday at a small merchant.

Poll finds that those who watch Fox News know less about the news than those who watch no news at all.

Forbes has a neat interactive, online graphic that lets you select a county and then it tells the migration trends to/from that county, such as where people went, how many, and so on.

Canada is going to stop making paper money.

Sunshine, Please. Please!

Another foggy, rainy, sunless morning in DC.  Just like yesterday was and just like tomorrow is predicted to be.  I like a rainy day here and there, but not a whole week.  Come on, just a peek of sun, please.

The view from this morning:

What the Hell Is Going On In California?

If you haven't seen the appalling video coming yesterday out of Davis, California, you must take a look.  Basically, student protesters are sitting on the university's quad, arms linked.  It's pretty much basic civil disobedience, nonviolent to a fault.  Along come the Davis and UC Davis police in what I can only describe as an unprovoked attack.  Photos of the attack are here at the town's newspaper.

This blogger excellently captures the mood of the attacking officer, how he sadistically hoses the students in the face, at point-blank range, with pepper spray.  It's truly, truly disturbing.  These are the people who are supposed to be protecting the students?  As an alum of UC Davis, I find this shameful

In a perfect example of high irony, I went to the UC Davis website to see what spin the university is putting on this, the lead on their site was totally unrelated to yesterday's attack and stated "A Community That Embraces Civility."  What?!  This is what it says:

A community that embraces civility

UC Davis is a proud community filled with innovators, risk takers, artists, scholars and dreamers. For a century, together, we’ve contributed to California while helping to address some of the world’s most pressing issues.

Platinum No More: Final Thoughts on My Mileage Run

Finally, this morning, the final miles from my mileage run of last weekend posted to my account and my status changed over from Platinum to Diamond. Mission successfully completed.

Some observations I made about myself and mileage running:  my inability to be able to sleep on a plane is a real handicap; as long as there isn't a screaming child, obnoxious adult, or something along those lines, I like to be in an airplane; and, I like to be on-the-go enough that I don't mind being on-the-go to nowhere

The main lesson I learned is that, if I go on a pure mileage run again in the future, I'd prefer to stick to a domestic itinerary, just to avoid overnight flights.  I'm not opposed to the idea of a pure mileage run but I'm more inclined to take a trip somewhere for just a day or two instead.  I like the idea of breaking up the longer stretches of flying. Many professional mileage runners will fly to their destination and return immediately, never leaving the airport.  I actually had this option:  I could have arrived at noon and left on a flight just 45 minutes later.  When I arrived in Warsaw I was so happy I'd not tried that approach.  I may have gone crazy; crazier, that is.  I admire their endurance but it'd make me miserable.

I am glad I tried mileage running.  And, of course, I'm glad for my Diamond status and all of the extra bonus miles that are headed my way.  It was a fun experience and makes for a great story. I'm the only one I know personally who can say "I went to Seattle and then Poland for the weekend." I'm also likely the only person I know who'd even want to say such a thing!

Diamond Day In Warasaw

Another cold, chilly, damp November day in Warsaw.  At the airport on the way back home.  With my flight from Paris home I'll make my status goal and complete my mission.  :-)

Interestingly enough, happy to get back on a plane and head off to a new adventure.  I was so exhausted yesterday afternoon that I was unsure if I'd be ready.  But, after a great night's sleep, I'm ready to go again. Here's hoping for a smooth connection, smooth flights, and a safe trip home.

A photo looking out across the city from the Executive Floor, taken this morning on my way back from breakfast:

If It's Saturday, It Must Be Poland

As I type I'm in a cold, dark, and dreary Poland.  But, alas, it's not as bad as it sounds:  it's not raining (nor snowing), I've "done" Warsaw before, so I can forego scurrying from sight to sight without too much guilt, and, perhaps most importantly, I like the cold.  Only problem today is that I didn't pack for it because I was trying to economize space.

To back-up a bit, my flight from Seattle to Paris was packed-in, cheek-to-jowl, completely sold-out.  I lucked out, though:  the infant ten rows back slept most of the flight; the two children in the row behind me (one about three and the other five), were about the best-behaved children I've ever seen, and my seat mate was completely okay.

We pushed back on-time and landed at such a time that we should have been on-time.  Of course, this being CDG (though they're not the only airport that does this), you never know when you're going to end up with stairs and a bus instead of a jetway.  We got the stairs and a bus, which adds precious minutes that I didn't have to spare:  the geniuses at Air France consider an hour enough of a connection time.  An hour to clear passport control, change concourses (a fifteen minute affair on its own), reclear security, and find the gate.  Because I hopped the passport control and security queues, and because I sprinted, I made it.  Just.  The flight was uneventful and not very full.

At the airport in Warsaw, I stopped into the lounge for a quick snack, stopped past the Air France office to sort out my seats for Sunday's flights, and taxied into Warsaw.  The ride was only about 10USD and twenty minutes.

The Warsaw Hilton is a newer hotel tower, 26 stories.  The staff were welcoming, the room was nice enough, and it felt good to be able to get out of my clothes an into a shower.  To bed early tonight to try to compensate for zero sleep last night.  All in all I've been satisfied with my first mileage run.  Let's see what tomorrow brings!

View from my room at the Hilton:

Four o'clock in Warsaw (nearly sunset, actually) and the back of the Hilton:

Going Nowhere Fast

Yesterday, day one of my mileage run, came off without incident.  As I type I'm relaxing in the SkyClub in Seattle, awaiting departure of my flight to Paris.

The biggest hassle of my first day, as is often the case when flying out of BWI, is just the chore of getting to BWI.  In the past, I've taken the train from Union Station to the BWI station.  That would have meant taking the Blue/Orange Lines to Metro Center, then the Red Line to Union Station, then the MARC train to the BWI Rail Station, then the shuttle to the terminal, still a few miles distant from the train.

I thought I'd try something new this time and get the Green Line out to Greenbelt, and then the 30B bus, which goes directly to the airport.  First the bus was late by about fifteen minutes; then, the traffic was horrific.  It took us almost an hour to go the 23 miles from the metro station to the airport; we arrived about 40 minutes late.  I was so glad that I allowed what I thought would have been a ridiculous abundance of time to make it up there.  Had I not, I may have missed my flight and thrown the whole trip off.  I don't know which is less difficult, the bus or the train.  Either way, getting to BWI remains a chore to be avoided.

At any rate our flight loaded up and the boarding door was closed about ten minutes early.  We then sat at the gate for another twenty minutes waiting to push back.  Eventually we took off for a smooth and uneventful flight out to Salt Lake.  The only thing missing was an upgrade:  as I boarded I was #17 of about 60.  I wasn't surprised, though, since it was a Thursday night and the flight was packed to the gills.

Changing in Salt Lake was problem-free, as it usually is.  I made a quick pass through the SkyClub and then on to the gate.  The flight was boarding as I walked up.  I'd been upgraded about a week before departure day, so I boarded with First, had a seat, and relaxed for the flight to Seattle.

I made it to the Doubletree on the shuttle, checked-in, and was soon off to sleep.  It had been a long, tiring day.

Now for the next part of the adventure...