Lazy Is As Lazy Does???

The Common Hour, in actuality the common 65 minutes scheduled for a campus wide speaker or event every thursday, discussion today was on the impotence of athletics at F&M and, by implication in my opinion, Division III schools in general. One statistic thrown out during the meeting was that the highest average GPA for an interscholastic team last year was around a 3.6 and the lowest 2.6. I was stunned! When do athletes find the time to study???

This got me thinking. I'm not doing terribly as a student but I don't have the same drive and energy for school work that I think I should have. Separately, but perhaps connected, I am one of the laziest people when it comes to physical exercise. I am allergic to gyms, I see no point in traipsing across campus to get sweaty and do laundry faster. But maybe there is a point to the whole exercising thing that I've been missing.

I remember all those Tiger Schulman karate commercials saying that their students improved their bodies and minds, and were able to focus on academics better. I've heard talk about how being on a sports team, or simply sticking to an exercise regimen, can prepare your mind for buckling down and doing work...and in fact give one the drive s/he needs to accomplish it well. If exercising is what I need to get that academic drive back, then I guess I'll never get it back :)

I'm writing this from the Alumni Sports and Fitness Center, covering football practice as the rowers row and the runners run.

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Rev Obama? Articulate Bush? Not Cheating Clinton...lol jk, Questions to Ponder

While I was rushing to get out my apartment earlier I happened to hear a little of President Obama's sermon...I mean speech from the Dr. King service in DC today. I know this has been noted and said before, but the President is at his oratorical best when he is placed behind the wooden stand of a pulpit. His message is just that much more forceful, that much more powerful when he gets into the rhythm and cadence of a southern baptist preacher. If all else fails in his life, he should definitely consider a life in the ministry after his turn in politics is over, he could have a real future there.

After the President's ser...speech came his two immediate predecessors to drum up support for their joint drive for Haiti. What shocked me was that President Bush the younger has regained his ability to make coherant sentences. I did a little yousearch (youtube research) about the now ex-President's infamous inability to speak clearly and I found that he was quite the master speech giver during his 1995 run for the governorship of Texas. If you don't believe me, look videos up from his debates and speeches back then, you will be amazed. So listening to him today make coherant sentences about the immediate needs of Haiti was a refreshing soundbite of vintage Bush...not that I was a supporter in anyway...but I think I can wish him well.

That third question to ponder was simply a joke...not going to touch that topic. As I end this post I am on the NJTurnpike heading south on Megabus to Philly to catch a train to Lancaster...saved $25 over doing the train out of New York straight. Anyways, hope this finds you in good health, ciao. Sent from my Sprint BlackBerry

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The Importance of Rail Travel

As my early morning NJ Transit local pulls into Secaucus Junction, I am reminded of the sheer importence of the rails. I just read a recent article by Vice President Biden about the importence of Amtrak, espicially to him as he famously commuted to and from Wilmington, Delaware on Amtrak everyday. I don't think anyone doubts the inportence of of Amtrak's Northeast Corridor of trains like Acela, the Metroliner, the Pennsylvanian, the Vermonter, etc...but I'm always afraid for the state of Amtrak outside these parts.

My family and I take Amtrak a lot, most frquently the Crescent which runs from New York to New Orleans, but we would always get off at Tuscaloosa, Alabama...no not to go to a Roll Tide football game, but because its the closet stop to my mother's parent's respective homwtowns. Not once have I been on a train that wasn't booked, crowded and filled with people. As a kid n my favorite thing was having a freshly made Amtrak breakfast delivered to me as we pulled into a new station the morning after leaving New York. Service was always courteous and I never had a bad meal.

When Amtrak really gets special is on the routes serviced by the double-decker fleet, which normally run west and south of Chicago, with one exception. Those trains afford you an unparalled view of this country's beauty. When I was 8, my family and I went to Seattle, a 3 day trip from New York. I will never forget the stretch of rail in Montana where there was a corn field on one side, and a field of sunflowers on the other and there was this one lone tree that served as a point of reference. To my little 8 year old self it was like being in a painting...I wish I could experience that again.

I say all that really to say this, the train is not only an amazing experience, but something that is necessary for this country. There are areas in the heartland that are only serviced by Amtrak, albeit maybe 3 or 4 times a week in one direction, but at least it runs. Yes Amtrak can be late, I've had that experience, but so can planes and buses. The difference is you have room to stretch and move around on amtrak. No waiting for the snack service to go by, or being stuck on a confining bus, or sitting in traffic twiddling your thumbs...why do that if you can go in comfort?

As we pull into North Elizabeth, I highly encourage that at some point in your life, you take a long distance trip on Amtrak, it certainly won't be something you forget. Sent from my Sprint BlackBerry

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This is a Test

I am wondering how this system works, so this is my test run. I would love to do some casual blogging so if this works I'll be very happy. Sent from my Sprint BlackBerry

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