If you go to www.simpsonizeme.com you can upload a picture of yourself and create a simpson-esque character that sorta, kinda, doesn't look completely unlike you. Well, to be honest, the computer generated version of me wasn't even close. But they let you tweak it after. This was the best I could come up with - this is the Simpsons Brian.

Those of you who know Bryan Pai know that he's started a new job at Sun Edison, the nation's largest solar utility. His role there is to provide integrating analysis for the company's business, technology, and marketing elements - determining project costs and forecasting corporate needs. Sounds like a tall order. He's been busy but really enjoying his new position. Here's a great shot of Bryan on a recent tour of solar installations in New Jersey.

Who else is psyched about ethics reform?

Okay, so besides being elated that Ted Stevens is finally being investigated for being clearly the most "for sale" Senate seat in recent history, I'm really jazzed about the 411-8 vote in the House on the ethics reform bill. I was going to be VERY displeased with my party if the Dems didn't do this and I can't wait for it to pass the Senate later this week. Assuming another large majority passage, Bush (read Cheney) can't even veto it.

I was, of course, let down by the softening of sections of earmarks and bundling, but at least this will set a new baseline. In a couple years - when this feels like the standard - we can hopefully make another push and clean up Congress that much more. It is generally insane to me that we have a governing body that is so clearly broken and corrupt and yet it is still so difficult to fix these open sores on our democracy. I can't believe that people who vote against ethics reform are not immediately ousted by their constituencies. Probably because they're using loopholes to bring home the pork. Maybe, when we eventually get rid of earmarks altogether, we'll have a representative democracy that works the way our founding fathers intended. Maybe.

I hope these efforts, plus the election of a visionary democrat (let's hope such a thing still exists) will mean a more honest government that works in the interests of all the American people for a change.

Does anyone know if Bob Ney is in jail yet. I sure hope so. Oh yeah, and fuck you Ted Stevens and fuck you Jim DeMint. You can both suck it.

Gender Stuff

Sorry this blog has been so bereft of pictures recently. I will try to do better. I had a great weekend, the highlight of which was Saturday night's "Thunderdome" party that Kate and I hosted. We had two tables of gaming fun - including poker (which I lost miserably at), Taboo, Apples to Apples, and Celebrity. Pat, George and I were a Celebrity dream team as we befuddled the ladies with characters like Christopher Lambert, Lucy Lawless, Joe Walsh, and Tron. We'll have to do that again soon.

Sunday was fun too because the band (sans our hardworking, lawyer lead singer) got together and finished a new song. We should have a gig scheduled soon and we're looking forward to playing our music for everybody.

Oh, and I wanted to share this great article I read in the Post this morning about a study of male and female bargaining behavior when getting a new job. It seems that women do bargain less, which leads to lower pay - but that there is actually a good reason for this. In the end, it's an unconscious response to very real double standards. Give it a read: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/07/29/AR2007072900827.html?hpid=moreheadlines

Socially Conscious Shopping

Some friends and I were discussing travel offsets last night. I have never "offset" my travel before but I intend to start. A couple ways you can do this:
1. Pai tells me that Expedia allows you to add offsets to your trip while you book it - cool.
2. At www.terrapass.com you can calculate how many you'll need for your trip and buy offsets. You can also purchase offset gift packages for friends.
3. If you'd like to buy renewable energy for your home or business, check out www.green-e.org
4. Or, to find other really cool renewable energy gifts (such as a solar sholder bag that'll recharge your ipod or cell phone!), check out www.rewarestore.com.

For more great tips using carbon offsets, visit: http://www.treehugger.com/files/2007/07/how-to-green-your-carbon-offsets.php

The Democratic YouTube Debate

So, I just watched the YouTube Democratic candidate debates (http://www.youtube.com/debates). This is the first Dem debate I’ve watched this year. I’ve been avoiding them because I just feel that we’re so far out from the actual election that we aren’t going to hear honest answers that can be converted into policy. We’re far enough away right now that any of these people would have time to modify or transform their stances on any given issue if they feel it will give them a better shot at the candidacy or the white house. It’s disgusting, but true – I have avoided learning about these proposals because there are simply too many trial balloons in the talking points.

However, I really liked the idea of the YouTube debate so I strapped in and finally began my process of selecting a candidate. Here are some of my thoughts:

In general, I was a bit disappointed that the candidates did what they always do – they take each question and restate it as a question that they already have a canned answer for. You could tell who had no chance of winning because they were the only people making bold statements. Still, most of the answers felt flat and uninspiring – which is to be expected when you’re digesting trial balloons.

I was also very disappointed by the slap-dash treatment of environmental concerns – given the importance of this issue today, there should have been a much more coverage to better illustrate the differing viewpoints of the candidates.

My kudos to Anderson Cooper. He kept it rolling with no self-aggrandizement and, in a few situations, hammered at the candidates to force them out of vagary and into a clear statement of policy. Nice job AC!

Gravel – Wow, this guy’s a nutball. I assume he’s trying to look like the firey outsider, but the way he went after Obama made him look more like a junk yard dog. Also, his tax solution to climate change is insane and won’t work. Still, they gave this guy NO airtime and I don’t know why they bothered to have him on. Of course, he used half of his time complaining that he didn’t get more time. Lame ass.

Biden – I like Biden’s no-nonsense way of speaking. I loved his response to Darfur – “Why Darfur? Because we can!” Kick ass. His Iraq policy sounds like the only honest one to me, but it still creates a Yugoslavia-esque state that would be unstable at best.

Kucinich - Kicinich is just hard to take seriously. I mean come on, is DK really going to come into office and pass reparations for slavery? Whether you like the idea or not, it’s a dumb thing to stump on in my opinion. With each answer he tried to sound really inspiring but he was just trying too hard – he ended up looking silly in my opinion.

Clinton – Boy did she use her front runner status well. Hillary knew she had the room to act like a statesman and she did. I thought her answer to the “are you feminine enough?’ question was one of the best answers of the night. I have always felt that HC was a bit disingenuous – more politician than statesman. I think she did a good job of chipping away at that stumbling block in this debate. Her energy answer, while a bit safe, was on the right track.

Dodd – Beyond an above-average response to the race/Katrina question, Dodd showed himself to be a Washington insider looking for a better job. Having voted for the Defense of Marriage act, I thought his answer to the gay marriage questions was hypocritical.

Richardson – Whenever he spoke he went right to no-nonsense statements of exactly what he would do. No trial balloons here – he cut right to the promises. I was particularly inspired by his decisive comments on international leadership.I don’t think his “all out now” approach to Iraq is practical and I strongly disagree with his stance on gun control.

Obama – I was disappointed to see Obama dodge the reparations question. He said “We do need reparations for our public schools!” What a cheap shot. Everyone will clap for the schools and it was an easy out. I really liked the question about how will Obama address being “black enough” and while he had a great answer, it didn’t address the actual question. I loved his answer about meeting with foreign leaders. In all, Obama spoke well and I like his policies as they stand, but I was disappointed that he didn’t answer questions more directly. I think he’s playing it safe right now (which is probably a smart move).

Edwards – Edwards really played the role of the outsider more than I expected. While it may just have been rhetoric, I liked his rhetoric on challenging big business for control of this country. I like his strong stance on universal healthcare and thought that he made excellent (and accurate) comments on energy solutions.

Best question of the night – question 10 – Why is it okay to use religion as a basis to deny marriage rights to gays. This question was just REALLY well phrased and really skewered Edwards good. He looked like an ass. When Obama took up the question he talked about his civil union proposal providing equal benefits. As he spoke the words “separate but equal” drifted through my mind. Not good.

So, after this debate I am still not sure who I will vote for, but I can put them in order of how much I like them and their policies and vibe right now:

1. Barak Obama
2. John Edwards
3. Hillary Clinton
4. Joe Biden

These could change, dramatically even, once I put more time and effort into learning their policies. I guess I’m sucked in now. Let’s hope whoever we pick can whoop their Republican opponent something fierce.

apathy and frustration

So, I've been pretty mood so far this week. None of the moods have been good either. I've been vacillating between apathetic, frustrated, and down-right angry. I don't really get it. I have a busy week, but nothing to difficult - just lots of stuff. I don't have real reason to be angry, but it's just how I feel when I get up. So strange. What's even weirder is that Kate feels the same way. This is really disturbing because she is usually really good at pulling herself out of a funk.

My negativity is not due to a bad weekend. Kate and I went to New York where we partied with our friends and saw our families (it had been a while since I'd closed down a bar). I took the opportunity to help my recently-retired mother purchase and set up computer equipment for her new home office. I think she's going to love working for herself. As a congratulatory gift, Caryn and I got her a really nice pen - a symbol of her new career as a freelance writer.

On Sunday I spoke to mom's church about environmental issues. I even handed out an action plan to give attendees a bunch of great ways to mitigate their environmental impact. If you'd like a copy, email me or leave a note here. The added element of stress there was that Kate's parents came. I wanted to make a good impression there - especially because Kate just told them that we're moving in together (something that Kate's mother wasn't thrilled about). After that we all went to lunch. It went pretty well - Kate's dad and Heinz share a love of German food.

Tonight is Collider practice which I'm looking forward to because music is my favorite past time right now. At the same time, I'm a bit frustrated with my band mates. I'm putting a lot of effort into things like writing new music, scheduling band practices, burning demo cds, and booking gigs. Whenever I ask for help though I don't get much response. I guess I have more interest in doing that kind of stuff than they do, and that's fair enough. I don't mind doing most of the work if I have most of the interest, but it would be nice to see at least some enthusiasm from them since they clearly want to be in the band. I mean, where will the gigs come from if we don't put any effort into getting them?

I've decided that they don't take any initiative because they'll just assume I'll do it for them. To this end, I've decided to put no work into the band (save coming to practice) for the next month or so. I'll see what happens. What do you think? Is this the right way to go? Am I being an ass? How would you approach the situation I'm in - if you wanted to put effort into the band but didn't want to feel like you were banging your head against the wall? I could use some feedback on this one.

Writing a song

Collider is finishing up the writing of two more songs right now. One or two more and we'll have what I would consider a full set.

I've read plenty of web pages and even a book on how to write songs. I've never really been able to apply the step-wise approaches I've read. I don't think you can write out a process that a musician can then easily apply. This is especialy true for anyone writing with a band. In Collider there are various schools of thought as to how we should write. Pat & Bryan would like to see us just get together and jam until something comes out. Tom and I like to write on our own and then present something for the band to fiddle with. We would all like to have the vocals and guitar lines created at the same time so they don't feel slapped together, but none of us know exactly how to DO that. None of these ideas are mutually exclusive and I think we are making great progress.

My next big idea is to start by laying out a song structure FIRST and then composing riffs and guitar lines to fill it. Could be interesting. We'll see.

Big News

So, I've got some big news. Kate and I have decided to move in together! It's strange that this doesn't seem like a bigger step to me. In the past, doing something like this would have been scary. But when it comes to Kate I just don't have a shred of doubt in me so instead of trepidation, it's just pure excitement at the thought of having her around. Rockin.

I had a great weekend. Friday night Kate and I saw Knocked Up - great movie. Then on Saturday I played golf with Sam - we both played really well. Saturday night, Kate and I met up with Mona, Sam and Sam's new guy, Marcello, at 1223 - a posh nightclub on CT ave. They were showing the Live Earth concert on their big screen so at 9pm the place was full of enviros. I guess the place decided to lift their dress code for the event. Later on they switched to the DJ and the five of us danced until about midnight. At that point, the music had just gotten too loud and we left. When we did there were people lined up down the block to get into this place. As I said to Bryan - the women were dressed like they are in Entourage. It was nuts. Not a place we would typically go, but it was fun. To the right is a picture of me standing in one of the club's purple lights as I reenact the final scene from the movie The Highlander. Sunday Kate and I hiked the Billy Goat trail in Great Falls National Park. It was beautiful out, but it was also 97 degrees. It was pretty brutal, but we both enjoyed it anyway.

So, random dream scene from this morning: I entered a large gray room. It was the dimensions of a basketball court and about 50 feet to the ceiling. There were no windows - just a big gray box with one set of swinging double doors. There were a mixture of barber chairs, hospital beds, and exercise machines spaced out around the room - in no aparant order or structure. Some people were there to get their hair cut. Others were being tested for diseases. Still others seemed to be doing physical therapy for injuries recieved in Iraq. In my dream before this one I had been Boba Fett, attacking a Star Destroyer so I wasn't really sure which activity I had come to this room for. I decided that it was probably a haircut and sat down in an empty seat. Josh strolled in for a haircut - he always got his hair cut here. Now he had long, black lanky hair down past his shoulders. It had patches of red from a bad highlight job and patches of gray because he was getting old. I made fun of him and flirted with his stylist. Who was going to cut my hair? I looked and saw a woman in an apron smile at me and gesture that she would be there in a minute. It was Catherine Zambito (a girl I knew in high school). She had just finised cutting the hair of Alanna Gino (a girl I used to work with). Alanna's hair was cropped really shot - she looked cute with it that way. Why was she here though - why were any of us in this room? I woke up.

The wrong way to build support

So, this weekend I joined Pat and Tom to go to an outdoor concert put on by a community organization in Mount Pleasant. The concert was to protest (and raise awareness of) a current ban on live music in Mt. Pleasant establishments. There is a concern among some residents that live music clubs will turn Mt. Pleasant into another Adams Morgan and result in dance clubs, noise, increased crime, etc. I went to this outdoor event feeling fully in support of the concept of lifting this ban - thinking that people were entirely overreacting by banning music outright. While I still support that, the event left a decidedly bad taste in my mouth.

The first act (the only one I saw) was a hip hop duo performing with mics and turntables. They were relatively talented, but the lead singer managed to turn me off to the point that I ceased thinking about the issue he was supposedly there to promote. In between each song he harassed the crowd about not dancing or even bobbing their heads - about standing too far away or not rushing to buy their CDs or T-shirts. Even worse, he gave equal time to bemoaning the horror of gentrification and blaming the ills of the neighborhood on anyone who hadn't been born in the same hospital he had.

In fact, I kept a running tally of the groups this man identified as being "against" music in DC. This included all Republicans, white folks, anyone who didn't work in the service industry, people not actually born and raised in the District, and anyone who had moved to Mt. Pleasant in the past three years. The audience was probably 10% black, 40% Latino, and 50% white and, based on the hand survey he took, only a few listenners worked in the service industry. Based on his definitions, most of the people there to support the cause should be against it. This man vacillated between berating the people there to listen to him and hassling them about not dancing and acting more interested in his performance. His special message to the "undercover police officers of color that I know are here" made him seem especially out of kilter with the supposed spirit of the event.

This guy might know something about hip hop, but he doesn't know the first thing about building a coalition. Step one is to define "your side" as broadly as possible so people will feel that your plight is their plight. I left before the end of their act - never having heard about how I can help or even signing a petition. Pity.

DC Planning

Part of the reason I came to NREL was to explore the incredible professional opportunities that come with working at the world's leading organization on renewable energy. A few weeks ago I spoke at a major industry event where decision makers from Fortune 500 companies listened to me speak about the future of renewable energy. Today I landed an even cooler gig. I am going to participate in a working group assisting the DC Department of Environment with their drafting of a new DC energy plan, which will focus on concrete steps the District can take to encourage energy efficiency and the use of renewable energy in the District. I may also get the opportunity to contribute to comprehensive energy legislation to be proposed in the DC Council.

This is the kind of project that I always wanted to be a part of. It's got me quite excited!

RUSH

So, this weekend Pai and I went to see Rush at Nissan Pavilion. This was my sixth time seeing them in concert. This wasn't the best of their shows that I'd seen, but it was certainly no disappointment. Their last tour was their 30th anniversary tour so they indulged the crowd by playing lots of the fans' favorites. This time, they focused much more on their new album. The challenge here is that Amazon screwed up my order so I didn't have the new album before the concert. Even hearing these songs for the first time though, I really liked them.

As I study guitar, play in a band, and immerse myself much more in music theory I listen to music differently. I am hearing what's going on on more levels. It's funny because it has me appreciating complex music (like Rush) more, but it's also got me appreciating super simply music (like Art Brut) more as well. I like that. I like that I enjoy a broader range of music as I learn more about how it's made. We spend so much of our adult lives eliminating options - narrowing our focus - that it feels rejuvenating to actually broaden one of my foci.

Of course, while this was the first Rush concert where I paid more attention to Alex Lifeson than Neil Peart, it was still amazing to watch Neil play his kit with what I can only describe as inspired genius. Why is Neil a genius? Because he can do this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1bIchqJoxFQ&mode=related&search= and this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mkNGne4ZWB4

Been Sick & random updates

Sorry about the delay in posts, but I've been pretty ill. My dad, step mom, sister and nephew were all in town for Fathers day weekend. Evan is the cutest kid I've ever seen in my life. It was so great having him around. Our girlfriend's watched with smirks while Bryan and I did "Dad" duty with the little guy. It was great to see everyone, but Joanne and I both got pretty sick and that put rather a damper on the weekend. I'm better now though - finally.

Yesterday my awesome real estate agent called me up and offered me free tickets to the Nats game. Bryan, Kate and I were joined by Kate's friends Rose and Dave. It was lots of fun, even though the Nats got pretty trounced by the Detroit Tigers. There was also a kid behind me who kept screaming in my year "Triple Play! Get a triple play!!!!" and "Grand Slam!!!" I was seriously ready to slap him. I didn't though - cause I'm such a kind soul. I did get my beer, hot dog, nachos, and ice cream. My digestive system must love me.

On the way to the game I heard from my old friend Mary Santos. She hasn't really returned my calls in the last five months so I didn't really know what her deal was. She says she's been out of the country a lot. Anyway, she was writing to let me know that she got engaged. I'm very happy for her. I am really interested to meet this guy. Mary is a unique individual and I'm curious as to what kind of guy would eventually click with her on that level. Some people seem to fall right into serious relationships with who ever's around. Others need a very particular match in order to really fall in love. I wonder if it's because some people are more complex and have more trouble finding the right one or is it just that other people are just more willing to settle? I'm not sure.

The other thing that I'm excited about right now is that Kate and I have decided to plan a vacation for this March. We're not sure exactly where yet (researching that is part of the fun) but I think we're going to get scuba certified before we go and spend some of our trip diving. I'm SOOOO psyched for that.

Where's your next vacation?

Great weather

I hope the weather was as nice where you were this weekend as it was here in DC. I took advantage of it for sure. Saturday I played golf with Bryan and Linnea at Fairfax National Golf Club. I played like total crap but Linnea had her best round ever. That evening, Kate and I went to a BBQ at her friend Justin's place. That man knows ribs. On Sunday we joined some of Kate's other friends to watch the Orioles at Camden Yards. While the Rockies did beat the home team we all still had a great time. Sunday night was the final Collider mixing session for our demo, "Practice Makes Perfect." I just have a couple tiny tweaks to make tonight and they'll be posted on our myspace page by tomorrow!

Great clip

I'm not a huge fan of Bill Maher, but this is a great segment: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tvYFvbVi6S0. The hard hitting fact here is that the Bush Administration currently employes 150 lawyers who attended Pat "The Gays are Coming!" Robertson's Regent law school.

In brighter news, recording on the Collider 3 song demo is complete. The band's getting together on Thursday to mix it and then it will be up on our myspace page by Friday: www.myspace.com/colliderdc.

Disturbing Meeting Title

We often have meetings here at NREL's DC office and you will see signs up in the hallway directing visitor to the conference room. This afternoon we have a meeting here titled

"Cradle-to-Grave: Nuclear Future Assurance Workshop."

Now, anyone who's familiar with hazardous waste policy knows the cradle-to-grave concept deals with following a substance from initial development through complete disposal and mitigation. And, I know that this meeting is being held to discuss nuclear power. Still, you could totally have a meeting wit this title at the league of super villains or something.

My atrophied imagination

Kate and I were talking the other night about the loss of creativity. When I was in high school and college I used to write poetry all the time. Now, I don't. I have sat down and tried from time to time (mostly to fuel my last bands need for bad lyrics) and found none of the inspiration I used to feel. I was never a good poet, but there was usually some corner of my imagination that I could stretch and find an interesting concept upon which to write. Where did that go?

Is it because I don't sit down to write as much? Is it because I simply don't do it enough and am out of practice? Has year upon year of 9-5 desk jockeying so sedated my right brain that my creativity has simply atropheyed? I miss my ability to create characters and strange locations off the top of my head and explain them to my friends during one of our many role playing sessions. I miss the amazing variety of possible futures played out in my various day dreams. I still have daydreams but they're usually the same things. I still value them, but I wonder why my imagination has given up on the universe of possibilitities it once explored at an almost break-neck pace.

I have noticed my own limitations in learning as well. Science tells us that children have a much higher capacity to learn new things (like speaking a language or playing a new instrument). As you may know, I am taking guitar lessons. Part of this is learning music theory. It's hard though - harder than it should be. I can almost feel my rather stale brain resist when I try to understand the relationships between concepts. It's frustrating because it makes me feel stupid and I know that I am not stupid.

Perhaps, above all, I am just too settled in my concept of what my future might hold. My father told me the story of his 30th birthday where he looked at his life - corporate job, wife, two kids, house in the suburbs - and wondered "what now?" He stared down the maw of a future with no variety - a set path that left little to creativity and person choice. It scared him and I can understand why. I think somehow we need to embrace the "plans" of our life (like employment, marriage, children) and not resent them for the restrictions they put on our freedom. At the same time, I see it as absolutely vital that we find ways to stretch out and use our creativity, our capacity to learn, the savor of the unknown and unknowable.

We Levite's say "you don't grow old, you stop learning and you become old." I've been feeling old lately. I will redouble my efforts. I will learn some new tricks.

Last Weekend

Hey there,

Sorry about the delayed posting but it's been a busy week. Work has been a full boat and Collider has bee hard at work finishing our demo. Tuesday night should see a final product - I'll let you know when we post it to our MySpace page.

I hope you had a great long weekend. I got a lot of R&R in. Satruday I played golf (Sam, George and I played the par 3 course at Haines Point) and did really well. I hit several greens from the tee and even drained a 25 foot put for a birdie!

Sunday morning Kate and I went to Luray Caverns down by the Shennandoah Valley. Supposedly I was there as a child but don't really remember. It was neat. Kate said "I love being in places that remind you how old the planet really is." I agree - it's easy to get an inflated sense of our own importance in the world, or the importance of things like cars of Lindsay Lohan's train wreck of a life. Being in a place that has been evolving for thousands and thousands of years really helps one keep it all in perspective. My favorite part of the caverns was this really cool standing water that perfectly reflected the stalagtites on the ceiling. It looked like two massive cities facing each other.

The other patrons at Luray were pretty diverse. We were surprised at the number of Indian families. There was also a rather boisterous Vietnamese group. Other than that it was your typical Virginia fare. The crowds were a little annoying while we were trying to enjoy nature's beauty but what're you gonna do, right? I wanted to play pirates but Kate was no fun - she wouldn't even give me one "Arrrrrrrg".

After Luray we went to a camp ground in Shennandoah national park where we were going to camp that night. We had a picnic and then went for a hike to this beutiful waterfall. On our hike back it started to rain. Then it started to rain HARD and the temperature dropped about 25 degrees. We were a mile from our campsite, soaking wet and running on the side of a road when a nice family in a pick up stopped and gave us a lift. Good thing too because a second later it started to hail really hard. The family dropped us off at my car (thank God we hadn't set up the tent already) where we waitend another 20 minutes before the hail storm let up and we could safely drive home (for some reason we didn't feel like camping anymore). Oh well, no camping this time. We went home and chilled out on the couch with some beers and microwaved smores.

Finally, Kate started her new job this week and that's going quite well. Check out her new employer: www.smartgrowthamerica.org/

MS 150

This past weekend was the MS150 bike tour that I do every year. I want to once again thank everyone who contributed to my fundraising efforts. I raised about $730 this year while my biking parter, Bryan Pai, raised around $2,000 (go Bryan!). This year was particularly hard because neither of us had really trained for the ride as we'd done in years past. Also, the strong headwinds this year made going even downhill a challenge sometimes. As tough as it was, I'm once again glad I did it and, oddly enough, I'm not at all sore so I've got no complaints.

I hope some of you will ride with me next year or possibly volunteer at the event. It's time to Start to Finish MS. For more opportunities to work with the National MS Society, please visit. www.msandyou.org

Band stuff

So, last Wednesday we had our second gig at Artomatic. It was once again a blast and we got really positive feedback from the folks there. I thought I played a little sloppy, but I'm understanding that what's important is not playing each part perfectly, but putting on a show that people will enjoy. Mona made up for my few bad notes with lots of stage presense and ending our last song with "I won't buy you chips!" (inside joke, sorry)

Last night, we tried to record our songs two instruments at a time (first the bass & drums then the two guitars). Since my hardward can record two distinct tracks at a time, this will allow us to have our songs in Garage Band with each instrument as a separate track - allowing us to fiddle with level and effects and what-not. Unfortunately, we had problems with the sound board and more generally with our own incompetence. The whole night was pretty much a waste. The good news is that we think we've got it all figured out now and should be good to go to record next week.

audience for the music is one of the things that drives us to makeBeing in a band is a lot of work and it can be frustrating. We all know that there is next to no chance that we're gonna become rich and famous rock stars. So, why do it? Why not just get together and play when we feel like it? That's a hard question to answer. Having our music heard (at gigs or in a recording) is a way for us to share a part of ourselves with other people. Also, knowing that there is an eventual it good. It's more fun if there are stakes, you know? Anyway, I guess there's not a point to it really, it's just something that we all love to do.

Finally, our new MySpace page is up and running. Check it out every once in a while for band updates and to hear our latest tracks: www.myspace.com/colliderdc.

Also, Look how dorky Pat & Tom look in their matching shirts!

The Future Grid

My friend Navid just sent me this cool link to a video on the piezo effect (where you can generate electricity from vibration) that got me thinking about the energy grid of the future. (http://www.flixxy.com/piezo-effect.htm) It will be more complex and more fantastic than what most people can envision today. Our country will not run just on coal & gas but it won't run just on solar either. There is no magic bullet. The grid of the future will be everywhere. We will make power in ways we don't think of now. Some things we might expect:

- There will be an energy efficiency revolution. The cost of saving energy through efficiency improvements is currently about once cent per KWh. Compare that with 6-12 cents to buy it off the grid and this is already a smart idea. Common sense will catch up to us and we will see a major shift in the priority we place on building and product efficiency.
- Coal and gas will still be used, but more for evening out rough spots in the rest of the grid - like spackle on a wall. Clean coal technologies will dramatically reduce the pollution from these plants.
- Conventional renewables (like solar, wind, biomass, and geothermal) will come down radically in price (thanks largely to DOE's long-term, high-risk research) and we will see these sources everywhere - from large centralized power plants in rural areas (like wind tubrines on farm land and solar plants in the desert) to PV roof shingles on every home.
- Solar energy in particular will increase in efficiency and become pervasive and near invisible. Next generation PV house paints will turn any structure into a solar collector and even personal items like backpacks or jackets will serve to wirelessly recharge our personal devices.
- Next generation renewables (like wave & tidal power, cellulosic ethanol, enhanced geothermal, and radical new designs in wind generators) will radically expand our opportunities to capitolize on natural renewable resources like the forces of the sun and moon.
- We will recapture energy that we expend in amazing new ways. From today's "combined heat and power" approaches and regenerative braking found on today's hybrid cars we will discover new ways of recapturing our energy expenditures (see the piezo effect video above for an example). Much like the machines in the movie The Matrix, we will find ways to create power from everyday human behavior (think of how much energy your local gym could supply by turning every exercise bike into a generator!).
- The power system in every building will no longer be one-way. Plugs will have the ability to deliver power or receive it. Every building will be set up to take power from the grid or feed power onto the grid when it is generating a surplus.
- Other technological advances will pave the way for the grid I'm describing. High temperature superconductivity will allow us to generate electricity where it's abundant and deliver it anywhere in the country with almost zero loss due to resistance. Nanotechnology will allow us to greatly increase the efficiency of heat transfer, making power systems more efficient. New composite materials will allow us to build bigger, stronger, lighter planes and wind turbines. Battery storage advances will mean an end to dirty internal combustion engines and a birth to electric cars that can go further, faster, safer than cars of today. These technologies (plus dozens I don't know about) will change the way electric power moves about in our society.

All this is fantastic, but we cannot count on all of this to happen naturally (no matter how much the Bush administration tells you it will). Developing these technologies will require considerable additional funding for Federal and state research, development, and deployment programs. It will require an end to oil & gas subsidies and long-term market support for renewables. It will require public education to show people what role they can play in transforming our energy behavior. It will require an effort as broad as Amercia's resolve in the two World Wars. It will require an urgency and focus equivalent to the Manhattan or Apollo projects. It will require consistency and dedication. It does not require that we wreck our economy - on the contrary, by becoming a leader in energy technologies, America can benefit from the global shift that will take place in this sector.

I don't need to outline the consequences of doing nothing. If you've been paying attention, you already know. I gues you could say I am gravely concerned about our direction but extremely enthusiastic about our potential.

Nadia's Here!

I would like to extend my congratulations to my good friend Jonathan Bayat. Jonathan's wife, Yulia just gave birth to 5 pound, 8 ounce Nadia. Both mother and child are happy and healthy. The Bayat's are in Buenos Aires right now and Jon's going to take a month off of work to be with his family. After that, they're off to Turkmenistan I believe. I think Nadia will have an interesting life.

I'm sure Nadia will inherit her father's creativity and wit, her mother's beauty and kindess, and the intelligence and love of life that they both share. I can't wait to meet her. Congrats to the Bayats!

The best presentation I've ever seen

Hi there,

It was a great weekend. Kate and I ran a 10k on Sunday. Yes, my legs are sore today. Next weekend is my annual MS ride so I'll need to take it easy on my legs and let them recover.

One of the most impressive parts of Gore's movie, An Inconvenient Truth was the presentation itself. The power of information is greatly affected by how its presented. Anyone interested in presenting data should definitely watch this video of a presentation on global health trends. While this is not my area of expertise, this man's presentation makes it absolutely fascinating.
http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/view/id/92

If you're curious, the software he uses to create the moving graphs is called Trendalyzer and was recently aquired by Google. Way cool. I hope I have an opportunity to utilize this at some point.

On AIM again

So, I just downloaded AIM for my work machine. If you're on that, drop me a line (I'm Laden1) or email me your screen name. Rockin.

In other news, on the ONE day I decide to not shave and wear a polo instead of a shirt and tie, my boss decides to pop in from Golden. He looked me up and down and said "are we having a casual day today?" UGH. Oh well, I he and his boss just both gave me big kudos for developing a new approach to strategic planning for EERE so I guess I had some good will stored up.

I hate the whole "let's be uncomfortable in the work place because that's PROFESSIONAL" thing. I wish the necktie had never been invented. I don't care so much in the winter, but when it gets warm out I'd just rather avoid the whole thing. One more incentive to figure out a way to start my own business I guess.

Random Picture Orgy

Hey there,

Some of my dumber friends tell me - I don't want to read things - put up more pictures. Well, I was just pimping out Collider's new MySpace page and trying to get smart on how to put graphics up. In my web journeys I came up with a few visual gems that I thought I'd share with y'all. So, for the illiterate crew, here is a remarkably random set of pics.

Lots of goings on

So, I took Friday off to make it a long weekend - the weather was PERFECT. Pai and I got up early for a bike ride and then played 18 holes of golf in the afternoon. We had a blast. The only hiccup was when I blew a tire about five miles past Vienna. Not having a spare, I had to wait around while Bryan went to go buy me a new one. Golf was made better by the fact that I wasn't keeping score. Also, check out this unfortunate lie on a hole that was under some construction. We decided that David would get relief and not have to play from underneath the tractor.

The rest of the weekend was fun too. Kate and I went to Pat & Terry's Cinco de Mayo party where I defeated a dragon (piniatta) and brought Sweet Tarts and Double Bubble to the land. Sunday night was Collider's first gig at Artomatic. It went really well and we were quite pleased with our sound. Also enjoying it were the eight people there listenning. Oh well, it's Artomatic, we knew there wouldn't be anyone there.

This morning at work I'm popular all of a sudden. A local television station asked me to come on one of their talk shows to discuss the PGE rate hike (I have NO idea why but I can't make it anyway). Also, Johnson Controls has asked me to speak on renewable energy at their annual energy forum in Washington DC. That'll be fun I think.

Restaurant Reviews

Hey there kids,

Everyone get outside this weekend? I hope so. It was the most perfect weekend of the year here in DC. I was able to make the most of it with biking, golf, and walking around capitol hill with Kate, mom & Heinz. So, I've been visiting a lot of restaurants of late and thoughts I would recap a bit for those looking to get a bite to eat in DC. Some recent visits (in order of my favorite to least favorite)

Coppis on U Street. Still one of my all time favorite places, this all-organic Italian place is named for a famous Italian cyclist. Their pizza is outstanding. I also love the lasagna that uses prime cuts of steak instead of ground beef. If you want a seat you pretty much have to have a reservation.

Dakota Cowgirl on 14th. This is hands down the best burger in DC. The servers and bartenders are all really friendly and the place has a hip interior. It's a gay joint so don't go if that'll make you feel uncomfortable. If you're gay, you can work off the burger by dancing upstairs at Ramrod (though I think it's mostly for leather daddies). I took my mom here for an after dinner drink on her birthday. Priceless.

Zaytinya at Gallery Place. We were there for Angela's birthday. The Mediterranean tappas and the service is always outstanding. I love their bar and they now have live belly dancers. Oh, and they take reservations now which is awesome. I highly recommend this place. Also, we were joined by the lovely and talented Silvia with her strapping young boyfriend Yoshi - those two really class up any joint.

Al Crostino on U Street. We went to this small Italian restaurant for Sam's birthday. The food was quite good. It was loud up on the second floor and the wine list left much to be desired but the service was well done.

Jaleo at Gallery Place. This Spanish tappas place is always crowded because DC people love tappas for some reason. The service is fair as is the ambiance. I usually feel tucked into a corner at this place. The food is good but despite having lots of dishes, I can rarely find more than a couple that interest me. This is a good place for vegetarians however – lost of non-meat options.

Tony & Joes at the G-town waterfront. We went there for my Mom's birthday this weekend. We were looking for great view of the harbor but the water is not visible from most the this restaurant. They serve good (if pricey) food in a big dark room that's quiet except for some soft live music. I didn't like the atmosphere of the huge dark room but they receive points for having Benton Lane Pinot on the wine list.

Apex Bar & Grill on U street. This is a brand new restauratn serving mostly American fare and seafood. I did not actually eat here but while the bar is neat, the menu looks entirely too pricey for a place that is essentially a pub. $22 for a piece of fish in a bar?

Enjoying Eastern Market

Ever since I started dating Kate I've been spending more time in her neighborhood - Eastern Market. It's a beautiful capitol hill neighborhood with great architecture, parks, lots of restaurants and the famous Eastern Market for which the area is named. This weekend Kate and I got sandwiches at Eastern Market and then had a picnic at Lincoln Park. We were joined about about 20 frolicking dogs, their owners, some kids, and a few musicians. It was fun. If you have a chance, swing by there some weekend.

New Band Name

After we found that and indie rock band in the UK had already named themselves Aquabox (who woulda thunk it?) we decided to find a new name. The band is very happy with our new name - Collider.

Branding

So, there is no doubt that I am a product of my parents. My father brands BK and my mother brands AmEx. Before becoming a mom, my sister branded hi-tech companies. So, why is it that I am working for NREL doing strategic planning for the Department of Energy's Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy instead of at some marketing firm? Well, for lots of reasons, but I haven't entirely escaped the family business.

We are currently helping our clients (the Planning, Analysis, and Evaluation office) in their planning process for the next fiscal year. My proposal is that PAE needs to build its internal brand. I thought you might get a kick out of this exerpt from an email I sent to my team:

"As you can probably tell, I am a believer in the power of branding. It is important to create positive expectations about the quality and usefulness of your product. When you spend some time selling yourself, you can then spend much less time selling each individual product you offer - the consumer is predisposed to trust your products. This results in considerable economies of scale. When the Assistant Secretary comes to think of PAE as a source of valuable products, they will need to expend much less effort demonstrating the value of things like the planning summit, risk modeling, or anything else we would like him to focus on. Branding is not easy though. It requires discipline and consistency and can be undermined MUCH more quickly than it can be built."

You can take the boy out of the marketing family but you can't take the marketing out of the boy.

Artomatic

This Saturday I went to Artomatic - DC's month-long arts festival featurring every artistic medium you can think of from painting, to movies to freak shows (http://www.artomatic.org/). We had a total blast. If you're in DC - go to Artomatic. If you're there on May 6th or May 16th you can see my new band play at 9pm on the Electric Stage.

And now - in response to popular demand - here is another Evan pic:

KATE's BIRTHDAY!

Today, the lovely Katheryn turns 27. I had flowers (lillies, roses, birds of paradise) sent to her office and I'll be seeing her tonight. I can't wait. Hmmm...no real reason for a blog post. Oh well.

To salvage this post I'll make a useful recommedation. If you haven't been to the Building Museum in DC, I highly suggest it. If only to feel how serene it is to stand in that building's great hall (pictured right). Kate and I were there last weekend. In addition to being an amazing building, they have some neat building-related exhibits and the coolest gift shop in all of DC. Go in the next couple months and you can see the Green Home exhibit which focuses on sustainable residential design.

Triumph and Tragedy

This week there is both triumph and tragedy. The triumph is that my nephew Evan is a doorstop no more! The young lad has crawled for the first time! Of course, the proud mother (my sister) will now need to deal with something that can not only cry, but can now cry in various locations without third part intervention. Hopefully for her, parenting challenges will continue to come one at a time so they can be mastered before a new one arises.

The tragedy is the loss of one of my favorite authors. Kurt Vonnegut died yesterday at the age of 84. I was not first introduced to Vonnegut in an English class (though I eventually met him there as well). I originally read Slaughter House Five because no one could explain to me what it was about. Having eventually read all of his books, I can say that this applied to most of them. I can’t really tell you what a Vonnegut book is about – I can only tell you to read it. I did not like everything he ever wrote, but I liked most of it. Vonnegut’s stories help you see reality from a different angle. They help you realize that it is only reality is you accept it as such. Vonnegut was one of the major influences in what I consider my healthy skepticism of anything base enough to become a “social norm”.

My favorite of his short stories, The Powder Blue Dragon, is a story about a poor boy who saves up enough money to purchase an expensive sports car (the Maritima Freschatti) and then destroys it. He kills it with speed – fusing the brand new engine by dropping the hammer and quietly urging it on “explode…..explode”. Why work two jobs for years and years to buy something that you’ll just destroy? It was the car that made him feel inadequate. It was the dream of owning such a car that made him want to be something other than what he was. By killing it, he killed his own inadequacies and was able to live in his own reality without torment. This story spoke to me and I reread it frequently. So, in honor of this great author and reluctant philosopher, let’s all find one thing that we’ve taken for granted for too long and say “bullshit!”

Aquabox

So, the band is finally formed. Aquabox is Mona (vocals), Pat (guitar), Brian (guitar), Tom (bass), and Bryan (drums). We just recorded a demo track of "Nothing Now" that we'll use as our submission to play at Artomatic - a DC arts festival featuring every medium imaginable (www.artomatic.org).

Our original idea was to play very simple rock with lots of swagger. Since then, that concept has evolved a bit and our music has become more layered. We're going to try to stay as simple as possible though moving forward. We believe that the combination of driving rock, played well, and fronted by a chick with a killer voice is a winning combination. Too many people try to deviate from that equation and they get stuff that is too poppy, too arty, too Evanescency or whatever. Here's hoping we can keep it straightforward and just rock some asses.

The Greatest Thing Ever

Check out what my sister (master quilter) has hung over her son's crib. Clearly the boy will be raised properly. Now, without offending Caryn's Christian sensibilities, I'll say that I think raising one's child by the code of the Jedi is pretty much the best way to ensure a kind, generous, well-adjusted member of society. Religions are often full of carrots and sticks telling us why we should do certain things or act a certain way. But why do we really adhere to certain standards of behavior? Simple - because they work. If you are a good person, good things come your way. Not because of karma per se, but because people like being around nice people. People like doing business with honest people. No one respects a quitter. And, frankly, reality doesn't listen to excuses. Do or do not - there is no try.

New Singer, new amp!

This was a great weekend. Pai and I did a really nice 25 mile ride on Satruday. We ended the ride by going through downtown which was a mess because of the Cherry Blossoms. It's amazing how far your stamina can fall over the winter. Oh well, time to build it back up! That night we went and saw the movie 300. This movie had a higher ab-to-plot ratio than scientists have previously speculated to be possible (hence debunking the long-held "Sparconi Ab Principle"). It had several cool scenes and VERY impressive visual effects. Other than that, it was a poor, green-screened man's Gladiator.

On Sunday the band jammed with our new singer Mona for the second time. She's outstanding! She has some hesitation about joining a band (she had a bad experience with her last group) but we're hoping to convince her to join us officially. Also, remember that warranty check for my guitar? I spent it on a sweet new amp! This thing has more power than I'll ever need. I played through it on Sunday and we all agree that it sounds wonderful.

Danger Zone

So, last night I drove Kate to the airport. She's off to spend a week in the Dominican Republic. She's be hanging out, seeing the country, and learning to surf. My concern is that she'll be doing it all by herself. Now, this is one very smart, independent lady. Still, she's by herself and speaks not a lick of Spanish. I'm not gonna torture myself, but I am definitely concerned. I'm sure she'll have a blast and comes home safely. That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

So, on the weirder side - my guitar (pictured right) crapped out on me last night. I tried to repair it myself but to no avail. Good thing I've got a full one year warranty right? So I call up the warranty place, tell them what's wrong and they say this: "We've decided that it would cost more to repair your guitar than to simply refund your money so we'll be sending you a Guitar Center credit for what you paid for it." They never even LOOKED at it - just from my description over the phone.

Thing is - they don't even want me to send the guitar back - they just want to pay me off and forget it. Sweet! I'm going to take the guitar to Chuck Levins in Wheaton this weekend and see how much it would cost to fix. Regardless, I now have $370 in Guitar Center cash to blow. Since my amp is totally fine I might just get me another guitar. HA.

Athletic Excellence

So, this weekend was one of athletic excellence. Friday night I went bowling with Angela, Joe & Carol, and Yoshi and the incomparable Miss Silvia. It appears that after exactly three gin and tonics, I can just throw strike after strike. Weird. If I were an alcoholic, I could totally be on the pro tour. After the bowling we went out to do more drinking.

Unfortunately, once I start drinking gin I sometimes forget to stop. For that reason, Saturday became a couch marathon. I was able to make it out to see the Irish band O'Tasty that several of my friends play in (they were fantastic) but I had not a drop of alcohol on St. Patrick's Day.

On Sunday morning, Kate and I were up early and ran an 8k run with some of her friends and 3500 other folks. The course ran around downtown DC where the streets had been blocked off for the event. There were all the beautiful views of downtown DC plus bagpipers about every mile or so. It was fun. At the end they had food and Irish step dancers.

Of course, all of this reminds me that it will soon be biking season again! I am going to warm up the Team Roadhog biking machine. In the meantime, think about whether you will be willing to ride with us on May 20-21 to fight MS. Details soon.

So mad that this wasn't my idea

So, I'm talking to my mom about her job at American Express and a company that would like AmEx to help them track the carbon emissions related to their business travel. At this point it hits me - why not have a credit card that, instead of air miles, cancels the carbon footprint of your spending??? It's a genius idea that will make somebody a LOT of money and do great things for the environment.

Of course, just like my weatherproof bike stereo, most great ideas are already in the works by someone just a little bit quicker than yourself. Indeed, that very day a press article came out about Bright Plant. This card, the brain child of two recent college grads, will take 1% of your purchases and use it to fund carbon offsets. Initially, they are going to fund new wind power projects. The card comes out in May and will, for now on, handle the bulk of my spending. If only I'd thought of this two years ago! For more information, visit http://brightpla.net/.

Calling all poets

So, I’ve been writing a lot of music for the new band. We have four or five songs done and a few more in the works. The problem is that we don’t have lyrics for any of these tracks. Back in the Lavajet days I did a lot of lyric writing. Now, it seems, I am having a bout of writer’s block. I almost feel like I have lot my ability to write poetry. I used to write all the time in high school and college. Sure, it wasn’t great stuff, but it doesn’t need to be. 99% of poetry is crap, but that’s okay. It was MY crap – my random thoughts or abstract concepts laid out in a hopefully interesting way. Now I can’t even write bad poetry! Is it the endless meetings I attend? The tracking of statements of work and task numbers? Does owning a home and thinking about “settling down” rob us of that part of our creative self? God, I hope not. I will keep hacking away and hopefully get past this rough patch of non-inspiration.

In the meantime, if you’ve got any of your own words/poetry/lyrics you’d be willing to share with me, that would help give me something to write to.

Throw the book at her!

So, I just read a story about two 19 year old, seemingly affluent white girls who robbed a bank and were then captured after a brief car chase. The mother of Ashley Miller (one of the alleged robbers) went on Good Morning America to tell America that her daughter was not a bandit, but simply a "little girl that made a bad choice." Funny, just last week four black kids (ranging from ages 14 to 17) were arrested in DC for a stabbing. Why did I not see one of THEIR parents on Good Morning America? Were they just little boys who fell in with the wrong crowd?

By even having this woman on their show, Good Morning American was supporting this double standard we have in society that when white kids (especially females) commit crimes they have been somehow corrupted and are not at fault. Meanwhile, when black kids (especially male) commit crimes they are dangerous criminals who must be removed from society so all those white girls can walk the streets safely once more. I think it's disgusting that a 14 year old black boy will probably go to prison because his friends stabbed someone while these two LEGALLY ADULT young women will likely be treated like mischievous little rascals and be given a slap on the hand so they can get on with their lives at some nice, mostly white, university.

We can't have it both ways. We can't expect minorities to embrace mainstream American mores if we are going to apply different standards of behavior to them. We can't claim to support women's lib and then treat young women with kid gloves when it comes to the legal system. I will wait to hear about the outcome of both of these cases. I sincerely hope that I am wrong and that justice will be done - justice that punishes the crimes fairly and protects the rights of the accused. I hope this is done using the same standards in both cases. I am hopeful, but not optimistic.

Chihuly

Kate and I were in Miami for the Presidents Day Weekend, visiting my dad and step-mom. It was dad's birthday on Sunday so it was great that I could be down there with him. It was unusually cool for Miami with temperatures in the mid-50's. It was so funny watching the local weather with images of frozen temperature guages and talk about when will this frigid weather be over. Meanwhile, I had to dig my car out of solid ice to get to the airport in DC. While we were there we visited Fairchild Gardens (http://www.fairchildgarden.org/), a beautiful botanical garden where there is an extensive exhibit of Chihuly glass art. It was really speactacular. Dad and I shot over a hundred pictures each. Here are just a few:










Beyond that, the band auditioned a singer last night. He was good. He can sing and has no problem with lyrics. My problem is that he's a pretty serious guy. I am not sure I want serious lyrics. If we keep it fun and light and stupid, it just feels like having fun. If we start playing songs about regret and fallen angels then I just feel like we're another marginal rock band that doesn't realize that nobody cares. I dunno, you can't have it all. I could sing the silly lyrics, but then we're stuck with my voice and that's really not something you want to pay to hear. We'll keep looking though, who knows.