Archives for the month of: February, 2010

Lent

February 17, 10 //
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Yesterday was Fat Tuesday, the day that Catholics & other Christians indulge their vices before the fasting & sacrifices of Lent being. I say “fasting & sacrifices” hesitantly because whereas Jesus wandered around in a desert for forty days sustained only by faith, most practicing Christians give up something small, like chocolate, caffeine, or fast food. This, to me, is hardly a real fast. Jews have real fasts. Muslims have real fasts. I bet that many varieties of Hinduism do too. Maybe Lent was a real fast at some point, but devolved into its current state over time. I dunno I’m not a religious historian or a church scholar. I’m not even a Christian, having opted for a hard-line God-And-Freedom-hating atheism. However, I feel that I need a change in my lifestyle, so I’m joining the Lent bandwagon.

I indulged yesterday along with everyone else. I stepped on over to the local brewpub and ordered a delicious “Octorofest” beer and a turkey club sandwich (that had a good amount of ham & bacon as well). That was pretty much the last time I’ll have meat in a while. The goal this season is to eat as little meat as possible, though there are a few exceptions.

The Rules:

  1. Don’t purchase any meat to cook with.
  2. Dont order meat at restaurants if avoidable.
  3. Eating meat is permissible if it was purchased & prepared by someone else and it would be rude to decline.
  4. Eggs & milk are okay
  5. Don’t sweat the small stuff, like rennett or gelatin [update: I'm trying to avoid these too.]
  6. If you must splurge, do so no more than once every two weeks

The rules are basically two can’ts and three cans. The first two are designed to keep me from purchasing meant and perpetuating the industry. The third rule is to keep me from being a douchebag at social gatherings, like Thanksgiving, potlucks, and other dinnerish things. I don’t want to force my practices on others, and I don’t want to offend anyone by not taking what is offered to me in hospitality. The fourth rule is basically me caving in to my appetite. I know that by eating egg & milk products I’m sustaining an indusry that treats its animals horribly, but I figure it is a transitional step for me. I am not prepared to be a vegan at all. This also applies to rule #5. Eating the by-products of the meat industry is not good, but it’s better than going after the primary goods. The animals are slaughtered for their meat, not their cartilage. Best not to be wasteful. [update: see the note above. I'm avoiding things like broth, so I may as well avoid gelatin & the like too. Leather & wool are still in, though.] The last rule is in place because I know that I will be tempted and will probably give in. Hopefully this will minimize it.

Even with all these provisions, I feel that this challenge will be difficult for me. I love beef. I love bacon. I’ve had a long affair with fried chicken things. I’ve been known to live off of fast food. I have no real passions for animal rights or welfare. I just know that reducing my meat intake is good for the environment, probably good for me, and great for the animals. So it’s something I should do.

Valentine’s Day

February 16, 10 //
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Even though Saturday wasn’t that great, Sunday made up for it. Shayna and I went to t spend the day in Berkeley. It’s beautiful. She showed me around campus and we got to see a bit of the city too. Though we drove up from San Jose, most of our actual exploring was by bus or foot. Despite the hills it is a very walkable city.

Berkeley has a very different feel from that of the South Bay. I can’t quite pin down what in particular, though. San Jose has its share of colleges, hippies, swanky yuppie places, etc., but Berkeley just seemed more… vibrant. The surrounding landscape is a bit different too, which may contribute to the sense of otherness I get from it. The air is more fresh there because it is closer to the water. This proximity to the Bay also translates to more foliage.

A complete list of all the places and things that Shayna brought me to would be too long for this entry. Some highlights include the dinosaurs at the VLSB, a really cool bench by the belltower, her old apartment building, the Jitensha Bicycle Studio, and the Free Speech Cafe on campus.

The things we ate that day were also worth mentioning. For lunch we went to Barney’s on Solano Ave. There I had the best turkey burger of my life, and also got to try a very solid BLT. Shayna approved of both. Later on Shayna took me to Smart Alec’s where we split their roasted turkey sandwich with fries and a bowl of chowder. The sandwich was good, but the bread on which it was made stole the show. It’s very chewy and filling. The soup was thick and flavorful, and I was surprised to find out it was completely vegan. And those fries! I don’t know what air-baking is, but it makes the fries delicious.

At the end of the day Shayna and I retired to a nice hotel room at the Holiday Inn Express in Fremont. It was nice to have a place to ourselves without regard to nosy neighbors, grandparents, etc. We got to relax and unwind a bit before going to sleep. I’m really glad she took me to Berkeley. It was easliy the best V-Day I’ve had.

It was a good day

February 15, 10 //
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It was a good day

Originally uploaded by keynell4


Not Awesome

February 13, 10 //
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This has not been my best morning. I got up early today so that I’d have enough time to get to class. 6:31 AM, to be exact. The first thing I did was step into my shower. This was a mistake. The water pressure was very low, and it took a while for he hot water to come on Being cold & naked under a dribbling shower faucet isn’t my idea of fn. Because of this lack of pressure the shower took longer than usual.

When I left the apartment I decided to bike into San Jose. The ride itself wasn’t too bad, but it was cold and I lost feeling in my fingers.

When I got to the lightrail station the train was about to leave, so I quickly boarded without paying. This was a mistake. As soon as I placed my bike onto the rack I was greeted by a VTA officer asking for my ticket. I didn’t have one, so I was cited. This was truly the only time I’ve not paid my fare on the VTA, and now it will be my last time too. The officer said that I need to visit the courthouse in Santa Clara and that the fee will range from fifty to upwards of two-hundred something dollars.

Once I got to SJSU I parked my bike and headed to class. Professor Hasan was nowhere to found. Jim, one of the classmates mentioned that he could not longer find the course section on MySJSU, nor did it show up on his class schedule. It may have been cancelled. So much for my Academic future. We all waited twenty minutes and left.

Just got to Shayna’s. Maybe the rest of the day will be better.

[Update: I emailed the professor twice, each time receiving no response. I understand having to cancel a class, but please let us know next time, Zaki Hasan and the collective heads of the Communications Dept at SJSU. I really needed this class so I could meet the qualifications to transfer to SJSU and finish my degree. Any hopes for doing that this year are pretty much shot.]

Solitary Saturday

February 6, 10 //
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Today was one of my best solitary Saturdays that I’ve had in a good long while. Shayna was with her friends at Lake Tahoe today, leaving me to fend for myself. I didn’t mind too much. It would have been nice to join her in the snow, but I had something to keep me here: class! After a week of striking out at each COMM 20 class I was finally able to join a section that wasn’t full. The fact that this session meets for three hours each Saturday morning probably has a lot do with my ability to enroll. When I showed up this morning there were only five students attending!

The class itself seemed to go well enough. The professor is very actie and engaging, and appears passionate about the subject (or at least as passionate as one can bee on a Saturday morning). The students, on the other hand, were all very quiet. Granted, two of them don’t speak English natively, so that’s understandable, but the other two don’t share that circumstance. I feel as if I was the most outspoken person in the group, a first for me. Normally I’m content to sit there and absorb the lecture.

One of the students, Jim, does seem to me more energetic [addition: moreso than the others], just not used to being as interactive. In our exercise today he revealed that he’s in the ROTC program for the Air Force and looking to work in “Air Battle Management.” He comes off as a nice enough guy, but I’m reading right-ish political vibes from him.

Another guy, Jeff, is also interesting. He’s an engineer, but is disillusioned with his profession. He’s also a cyclist, which i thought was cool, but he rides for one-hundred miles at a time, which means he’s probably a spandex person. He also seems to be very straightforward and serious. I’m concerned that we won’t get along and that he thinks I’m some kind of wannabe hippie (which isn’t untrue).

After class I biked down to Shayna’s grandmother’s house to pick up the fram pump that I had forgotten to bring back the other night. Her grandmother saw me on the porch and invited me in. We had tea together and pleasant conversation. I like that Shayna’s family and I get along. I’m not used to being even remotely lose to a family that isn’t my own.

When Shayna’s grandmother left I headed back downtown to a bike shop [specifically: Bicycle Express] to have my bar tape replaced. The work was to take a while, so I bummed around downtown an ended up meeting a nice guy by the name of Milton. He was waiting for his date, Mark, who was running a little bit late, so Milton and I hung out for a bit before Mark arrivd. What I remember about Milton: He lives in Palo Alto, is frustrated with the “underground, subcultural” natre of the gay dating scene in the South Bay. He was pursuing an academic career in literature and likes to ride around in his ‘84 Miyata road bike. He also hates overly commercial places that conflict with local traditional aesthetics [note: I think I've got a picture of the place on my phone]. His date, Mark, is originally from Ottowa. I didn’t get to speak with him much, but Milton seemed fond of him. They met on Craigslist and neither of them are sketchy. Perhaps this will be some kind of internet dating success story.

There was some kind of civil rights thing going on at the library that I caught the tail end of. Before they all left to march I got a few pictures in.

The ride home was beautiful. The hills were green and splashed with just enough sunlight from the patchy sky. Everything was so pretty that I had to stop a few times just to take it all in. I tried to take a few pictures with my phone, but they never turn out well. Next time I’ll bring my nice camera along.

The Grind

February 1, 10 //
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It’s back to the grind. Normally I don’t like that phrase but today, perhaps, it is appropriate. I’m caught between the giant millstones of ennui and inevitability.

[omitted: Non-profit organization] didn’t work out. They wanted me to come work for them, but I can’t afford the drop in pay, and the notion that I could lose my job in a heartbeat is unsettling. I do not like my current situation, but it may be the best option to stay in it and ride out this recession. I really wish I had more options.

Classes started up last week at SJSU and as an Open University student, I’ve been struggling to find a public speaking class that isn’t already full. Tonight was my second trek to downtown San Jose and I’ve come back home empty-handed. If I can’t find a communications class soon any hopes that I have for matriculating in the fall are shot; I need this class in order to transfer.

I met a guy on the lightrail today who has Surly’s Long Haul Trucker. He was decked out in a windbreaker, reflective vest, reflective pant-cuff retainers, and helmet-mounted lights. I imagine that he’s a very visible rider. He appeared to be a little nerdy [addition: and very softspoken!], but this guy is now my new bike hero. I should have told him about Bike Party, but I hadn’t thought to at the time. It’d be cool to see him there.

Sleep Calls.