The Speed of Life

The summer solstice just rounded the corner, and with it the days will slowly wane towards earlier and earlier darkness until December. I've been quite busy traveling, hanging out with friends, and generally enjoying life.

Panorama of Meridian Hill Park

I started this post after I got back from Philadelphia where I saw Chairlift perform their second to last show on their "Farewell Tour". It was an amazing show, but very bittersweet. Before that I got to see the green roof of the Department of Transportation Headquarters building as a part of the Earth Day festivities. There was also a bike ride down to Alexandria via the Mount Vernon Trail after that. Easter weekend included the Tax March and the All Souls Good Friday service. A Japanese street festival, a Know Your Rights training, cherry blossoms, the State of the District Address, dinners, gatherings, beautiful days down at the Navy Yard for my lunch break, parents visiting, an 80's party, committing to serve on the Young Souls Board at All Souls, Vespers and Taizé services, choir concerts, days on the green at Meridian Hill Park, movies, an impromptu visit to Asheville, and talks with beautiful people.

It seems like I've finally settled for once in my life. Things are not expiring in another year, things are not going to wrap up, things are not going to go anywhere, or at least from what I can see. And I am totally okay with that. My life is getting better with every step I take, and it's been a while since I've fully felt like this.

A picture of Virginia Hospital Center from when I went to get an x-ray for the chiropractor.

I've been in DC for at least a year now. It's amazing to think that the time has gone that fast. Time is a strange concept. My perception of time seems to go faster when I'm at peace, and seems to crawl when I am in a not so good life situation. I think the main difference is friends. The types, the amount, the trust and faith you are able to put into and receive out of them. I've found my niche. Those people who accept me for who I am, or at least that is what it seems like. (Of course, the perception that they do not accept me is just the lingering depression kicking in telling myself that I'm not allowed to be happy, nor can I be successful.) I finally seem to have things all in a line and have things that are working out for me, but I feel so weird trying to accept the success, especially when there is so much injustice out in the world.

Monthly Square Dance at St. Stephen's & The Incarnation as viewed from above.

My childhood was a good one, with very generous parents who provided quite a lot. It continued throughout college, but as soon as I graduated I joined AmeriCorps, and I got familiar with having no money. I still had the white privilege, the middle-class mentality, but I learned quickly that while money helps find happiness, it does not, by a long shot, mean that a lack of wealth equals a lack of happiness. There are plenty of other opportunities to find value in the world, you just need to know where to look. Check out a public park, a library, or simply sit a minute and be intentional about where you are and why you are there.

Intentionality is something I've started thinking about more and more in my life. I've taken on the role of spiritual chair for the Young Souls Board at All Souls, Unitarian Church, and I am not exactly sure why. Part of me thinks that it may be the best way to try and bring the idea of inentionality into people's lives, and to hold spaces where people can come and be thoughtful about their actions and thoughts. It reminds me of a time I walked in the woods at a retreat I went on called "Winter Escape"

Fossil Beach at Westmoreland State Park where Winter Escape Took Place

I led a hike down to a beach on the Potomac River during the retreat. It was designed to be a slow hike, focusing on the forest around us, and looking at the trees, the rocks, the path, and thinking about it for a little bit. To take the hike intentionally, and actually observing what we saw, rather than think forwardly about where we were going. The main stretch did not actually achieve that goal very well in my opinion. There were a lot of people, and I quickly learned that large crowds are hard to try and focus. After the main hike though there were four of us that decided to do a loop trail back to the cabins, this time really taking our time, and observing the forest around us. There were frequent stops, shared silence, and lots of talking about deeper topics of morality, faith, and life. By the end when we reached the road our legs hurt from taking focused steps through the forest, leaving behind only the memory of our presence and light leaves scattered by our footprints.

My general personal problems and issues have turned from self doubt and seeking reassurance to an outward reach to connect with others, and learn from them, their views, their perspectives. My depression is held well at bay from a killer group of friends, and my spiritual needs are mostly satisfied with the endless landscape of urban Washington DC, and it's many nooks and crannies to explore. The one thing I miss having the most is a car, not so I can get places with more ease, but so I can leave the confines of the urban landscape when I want. Not having a car limits me to as far as the trains can reach, and as far as the buses can take me. There are some cool places to see within those confines, but it isn't the same as being out in the woods of the Appalachian mountains, or the ever stretching forests and wilderness of the Pacific Northwest.

The view from the admissions office at Warren Wilson College, with mountains in the background.

Do I miss things about places I've been before? Sure. I'm coming to realize that the key is that I don't miss them more than my desire to stay where I am currently. The Northwest was difficult because of the rain and the social isolation for the first year I was there. I was lonely, and while I loved what I did as a job, I did not like the culture in which I worked, and I sought a more charitable atmosphere fitting for the AmeriCorps position I had taken. I also felt miserable because I had just come from college, which I missed dearly. I cried alone in my bed in the Pacific Northwest many a night looking back on the four amazing years I had at Warren Wilson College. The rain and cloudiness of the winter only drove me deeper into depression as I longed for any kind of social contact that I had back in college. So of course I missed college more than where I was in the Northwest.

Moving back East did help with my mental state a bit, and really helped being closer to those that I loved. Then DC happened, and I'm quickly returning to "college levels" of social life and interaction. I see friends almost daily, and I'm loving every single moment of it. It's been a while since I've felt at ease and peace. Who knew it would come in the nation's capital?

The Tidal Basin during Cherry Blossom time.

Meridian Hill Park

There are so many sounds to a city. One would think it would only be human voices and automobiles punctuated by the occasional construction site. But there is much more tucked away among the urban trees and green spaces. One example in DC is Meridian Hill park.

Meridian Hill Park, or depending on who you ask- Malcolm X Park, is a central main green space in Northern DC. The central grass mall is the remnant of an old military installation during the Civil War, and after was bought and developed into a park among the rapidly expanding and developing northern neighborhoods. Eventually the National Park Service acquired the land and got to work building the fountains at the base of the lawn, along with different statues and installations. The result included beautiful waterfalls cascading down to W Street.

Picture from my vantage point of sitting on the wall of the waterfall looking down towards W Street.

One of the most notable sounds on the weekends are the drum circles at the grand terrace on the end of the lawn above the waterfall. The drum circles go for hours, their beats constantly emanating across the lawn and bouncing off the walls of the nearby rowhouses and embassies. I danced to these drums once, which if you know me, is something you'll rarely see me do unless I'm absolutely comfortable.

Another one of the sounds you'll hear around the park are the clicking and whirling of bicycle gears as they whiz past along the straightaway paths. Bicycle culture is huge in DC. Sometimes it seems like everyone and their dogs are riding bikes. And I include myself and my dog (if I had one) in that category. I've found a new excitement in bike riding, and every time I go out for a ride it is still a new and exciting experience that I don't think I will ever lose it's charm.

A lot of people play volleyball, frisbee, and other outdoor sports during the weekend. The sound of the volleyball hitting people's arms almost takes on a rhythmic regularity, sometimes lining up with the drum circles, becoming a part of the mesh. Other sounds like the hula-hoops, badminton, and frisbees have a much quieter effect on the landscape, but without them the picture would be incomplete.

A view from the bench looking out on the grass mall. there are groups farther down doing some sort of activity.

Finally, some of the smallest sounds are some of the most curious. The buzzing and crunching of the wildlife. Bees are only discernible on the micro scale due to their small size. Their wings produce a radically unique frequency, sounding unlike anything else I've ever heard. Sit long enough on a bench and you will get squirrels that get brave and will walk up and around you, chomping on acorns, their squeaks and clicks sounding larger than what they actually are.

Finally, at the close of the day, the sun sets behind the local high-rises, giving a new tone, hue, and clarity to everything. The light is a warm blue, with the clouds transitioning to their signature fire colors. All of a sudden 16th Street is clearly visible beyond the trees with the rooftops of cars showing as they drive by. It's almost like the beauty of the sun and the blue sky obscures and floods out the details and contrasts of the landscape. The trees have more definition, and the eyes slowly auto-adjust for the continuous loss of light. The evening is wrapping up, but those drum circles are still going.

Philadelphia, Fort Worth (Dallas) & Houston: Trash to Trains & Everything in Between

It has been quite a while. A couple of months actually.

When I was on official "work" travel, I found myself with a couple of hours of downtime to start to put some of my thoughts down on some digital paper.

I'll actually start where I found myself up in Philadelphia for New Years, and then soon after again for a birthday party. I didn't realize I'd come to like Philly so much. So many parts of the city are in such stark urban contrast to Washington DC that I cannot help but keep visiting and experiencing the total opposites in cleanliness, income, and geography.

To paint a picture: Philadelphia city is mostly located between the Schuylkill and Delaware Rivers, with parts fanning northward like a Wi-Fi symbol from Central City, and other neighborhoods radiating westward up from the banks and slopes of the Schuylkill. I haven't been to too many parts of the city, but of the parts I have seen: Most are trashy and unkempt. There is usually some form of paper garbage blowing around, with other unsightly objects in unlit street corners of abandoned buildings. The household income is significantly lower than that of DC, meaning there is a lot less in taxes being invested into the city to keep things clean and maintained. DC hovers around $93,294, whereas Philadelphia sits around $65,123. (Source) Philadelphia also has a lot less intentional green space. I was in Manayunk where the extremely tight townhouses and steep hillside only channeled the wind to bring in anything light enough to fly. I did end up taking the transit, as you do when you're in a new place, and the difference in trolley versus high speed versus Regional Rail shows the income stratification among the city and the suburbs.

The streetcars of Philadelphia have been preserved, to some degree, and still robustly serve the city. They are bleached from the sun, and old and worn from almost 40 years of service now. The routes serve Southwest Philadelphia along with a line serving some Northeastern neighborhoods. They all come together in Center City in tunnels that link them to the high speed intercity lines as well as the commuter rail and Amtrak. The lines are rickety (in good streetcar fashion) and are usually filled with people of color from some of the lower income neighborhoods in the city.

The high speed lines are faster, but serve some of the harder hit industrially collapsed areas of North and South Philadelphia. The lines are much more cluttered and dirty than the trolleys, but they also hold more people, and have their own dedicated tracks.

Finally, there is the Regional Rail. Have you ever seen the scene of Children of Men where Theo is riding into the city and the armored train he is on is being pelted by people throwing things as it passes? My ride into Philadelphia from Manayunk had that same feeling of the high class train offering protection and isolation from the urban wastes it was passing through. (There wasn't actually anybody throwing things at the train though. Just to clear that up.)

Regional Rail does not stop many places in Philadelphia proper. Granted, the goal is to ferry in commuters from the suburbs, but there is much more than simple geography as a difference. Regional Rail cars are painfully clean and sanitized, and have comfortable front and back facing seats (as opposed to seats on the sides looking in on the car.) When I boarded I was no longer the only young white guy on the car. So many faces and mannerisms matched mine, it took me a couple of seconds to remember I was in Philadelphia and not Washington DC. Most of the line was elevated; even the physicality of the train was elevated so it was looking down on the city as it came in.



Now onto Texas. Texas is an entirely different type of animal. I have been through Texas before, but didn't really stop to smell the roses. I was hightailing it over to New Orleans to enjoy some drinking and debauchery with my sweetheart and other college friends and affiliates. (Public drinking all. It's a raucous thing.) So here I am, first serious time in Texas. My first stop, and hotel, is located directly in downtown Fort Worth. I don't think I can gush enough about Fort Worth and Sundance Square:

Imagine you are driving across a flat plain with suburbs in all directions; each house nearly identical in design, color, and shape. Then you roll into this generic looking downtown, complete with a couple of skyscrapers and parking garages. But as soon as you get out of the car and go out to dinner, your entire perspective changes. Instead of wide streets and large buildings blocking out the sun, you are greeted by just enough open space to make it not feel cluttered, and neon signs and beautiful streets with lights hanging across pedestrian walkways into a central square. It was nowhere close to what I was expecting from my first experience in Texas.

It's warm, but not humid, and the breeze is just nice enough to walk about with a jacket without being overheated. The fountains are on, the soft light radiating around the square. People out on the patios drinking and enjoying their dinner and evening. It is quite a sight.

The city is very clean, very concise, and just very well kept up for that clean folksy Sunday's best dress look. There are lots of neon signs everywhere for all the businesses, so it's obviously a motif that the city and development corporation has done to bring together the look-and-feel of the town. I like it. I ended up getting dinner and a couple of beers with co-workers and relaxing out on the square enjoying the company and food.

I took a bikeshare from the hotel down to the old train station. Yeah, it was a 20 minute walk, but I wanted to give B-Cycle a try. Also I just wanted to do some biking.

I also remembered that the Omni hotel chain got started in the Dallas/Fort Worth region.

The next afternoon we ended up wrapping up our work interviews early, so I decided to head over on the Trinity Railway Express (TRE) to Dallas. Dallas and Fort Worth are not too far apart on the map, about 30 miles or so, and the two cities have a commuter railway between them. I didn't know what to expect, but I was pleasantly surprised for it being a regional commuter train in Texas. (Which I didn't think Texas had any of those.) The cars were the same style as the MARC train cars between DC and Baltimore: Bi-level, with doors on either end of each car. Most trains were only two cars in length, but the fact that they had a train at all is the important part. The difference between MARC trains and TRE trains is that the TRE trains had tables.

I'm really glad I left through the T&P Station rather than through the Intermodal Center because I got to see this beautiful building with all of it's guild and heavy geometric art-deco architecture,

Tables.

You wouldn't believe the difference tables makes on a regional commuter line. They give you space to work (on free Wi-Fi provided in the train), along with a structure to lean on and use so you're not awkwardly carrying things in your lap. Tables also get rid of seat dividers (because of the need to slide in and out) and make train seats much more comfortable. TL:DR- Tables = good.

Once in Dallas, I saw the John F. Kennedy assassination site, and then checked out Klyde Warren Park. I had gotten two recommendations to go see this park, so I knew I had to check it out. I took the DART light rail train up from Union Station to a connection with the M Line, a heritage streetcar line. (In actuality I could have just walked to the park from the light rail line, but come on. Who doesn't want to see a heritage streetcar?)

TRE & DART Together at Union Station

Founders Plaza and the JFK Memorial

Another shot of Union Station, this time empty.

The M-Line Trolley Car

Klyde Warren Park is a strange green oasis in the concrete fabric of Dallas. It's literally a park they built on top of the interstate. The greenspace gives Pedestrians a ton of space for lawns, and includes its own restaurant/patio (conveniently sponsored by Southwest Airlines!) The space was actually being used too! There were families playing soccer on the lawns, people sitting on the benches and talking, kids in the playground area, and there was even a free books & games area for older kids. There was a fair share of artwork and sculptures too, seeing as though the park is adjacent to the local art museum.

Panorama of Downtown Dallas from the park.

Southwest Airlines Patio

Table games and space for lunch at one end of the park. Past the nature you can see a stream of cars entering flowing under the park during evening rush hour.

Rib Structure Things with Lights on one side of the park.

Entrance sign to Klyde Warren Park

After the park and memorial I was getting hungry, so I stopped by the Pizza Lounge to get some dinner. The Pizza Lounge is located in Fair Park, right across from the DART Light Rail Station. I didn't know then, but apparently Fair Park is considered a "dangerous"/sketchy part of town. I didn't find it at all strange, but I did notice a running theme throughout the weekend. I would go off on adventures and my co-workers would give me a side eye like I was crazy. I can't say for certain, but I can definitely tell it has something to do with race and perception of transit in general (be it bus, rail, or otherwise) being a "dirty" place, where only those who use it are the ones who have to use it, and therefore you should ignore using it unless you absolutely have to. Time after time I saw actual physical repulsion from my co-workers when I mentioned taking the train and bus into the city (whether it be the "nice" commuter train to Dallas, or the 102 IAH Express from the hotel (more on that later) to Downtown Houston.

On that note: Houston. I don't know what to think about Houston. The drive in on the bus reminded me of my taxi ride into Barcelona. When I was driving into Barcelona the highway we took into the city provided the perfect views and driving introduction to the city. From the airport the taxi climbed a hill which was lined with taller office buildings; pedestrian & auto bridges crossing every now and then broke up the warm Mediterranean sun. The taxi then popped out on the other side of the hill in an almost cartoonish and comic-y way. The city stretched before us with it's tiled roofs and sharp modern skyscrapers. I was kind of star-struck by that time, and I can't remember much of the actual surface streets of the city. (But I would get to know that in due time with my study abroad trip.)

Houston was the same feeling, but with different content. The bus crested a hill on the highway, and the downtown was right there, it's skyscrapers... lining the horizon? It was something that I had never seen before. The simple and sheer amount of buildings taller than 11 stories is something I'm not use to here in The District. I looked around and there were other skyscrapers off in the distance, the far flung suburb cities of Houston that I did not realize were suburb cities instead of suburb suburbs. I knew the city was big, but I wasn't expecting it to be that large.

The entrance to Intercontinental Airport, and where our hotel was. Pedestrian infrastructure was terrible, but at least it was there. It was also convenient the bus picked up right across the street from our hotel.

The 102 IAH Express was, at least for the rush commute hours, a Greyhound style bus with plush seats, reading lights, and high clearance. Made for a very posh ride into town.

When I got into downtown I took it on recommendation to check out the Menil Collection, a private stash of art free and open to the public in the middle of the Montrose residential neighborhood not far from downtown. One hop, skip, and jump on the light rail to a local bus and I was there. Well, there may have been risking of life and limb on some really terrible pedestrian infrastructure along the way, but heck! It's Houston, what else was I expecting?

One close up example of tree routes in the sidewalk.

A large view of basically a bricked goat path.

Did find this gem on my way over though.
(Text reads: "Chicken Torta Sliders/ Can't Deporta The Torta/ <<We love you this much>>")

 The art collection was quite nice, with many impacting pieces. All of it was housed in an architectural "prairie style" house with a very boxed shape, low floors and risers leading up to the building. I actually spent some time going to other little galleries sprinkled around the neighborhood, including a collection of copies of a no longer surviving original portrait of a saint from the 18th century called the Fabiola Project. Another gallery, the Cy Twombly Gallery, included exhibits made out of paint, drywall, wood, and other construction materials. I wasn't able to see the Rothko Chapel, but I did get some photos of the monument to the Reverend Doctor Martin Luther King Jr. outside titled "The Broken Obelisk":

The Broken Obelisk

The outside of the Rothko Chapel with a group doing Tai Chi outside.
The actual chapel itself was closed for a special service.

After enjoying some art I headed back to downtown to an underground beer garden and restaurant court called The Conservatory. There were literal plants on the walls, and all of the eateries were local establishments. The bar also had over 60 types of beer, including a couple of varieties of cider, one of which was a cider that was aged in rum barrels, which I enjoyed quite a lot. Of course I rode the bus and light rail back, and enjoyed every minute of it:

The caption above the entrance to The Conservatory. Text reads "No Ragrets", intentionally misspelled to pay homage to a meme of a tattoo which was misspelled. I'm also assuming it's referencing the fact The Conservatory is a bar where people go to have fun times and get inebriated.

That amazing cider I was talking about along with my dinner of black bean & vegetable crepes, carrots, and pretzel chips with beer mustard. Houston has some serious food game.

Shot of the Houston Metrorail pulling into the station. (I actually needed that train but didn't get there in time. It's a good thing the trains run more often than evening WMATA service!)

These suckers are slick. Shiny grey, all clean and streamlined design. Portland's MAX could take some pointers.

After food I waltzed over a couple of blocks to the bus stop to catch the ridiculously late running 102 IAH Express back to my hotel. (The bus runs until 1:30 AM! Granted it takes about 45 minutes to get out to the airport, but that's better than what Dulles is offering here in the DC metro area.) On my way over I took in the sites of Houston at night. It wasn't as glitzy or dazzling as Fort Worth, nor was it stock-market-banking-feeling as Dallas. Houston confused me. It's almost as if it is too big of a city (population wise and simple land area wise) to try and compare it to anything else. The city itself has a footprint of 667 square miles. It is uniquely Texan, Cajun (influenced from the gulf), Latinx (due to the massive numbers of immigrants coming into the city), and independent. Houston is considered the wild-west when it comes to zoning, which is how it's gotten to be so large. I can't tell if regulation-less environment and freedom for development is a positive or negative for innovation and growth.

Metrorail in Motion

The light rail tracks through downtown following Main Street.

I finally arrived back in DC and began processing the entire trip. I was in Texas for an entire work week, and I tasted what work travel was like. I think I like it? It allows me to go out and experience wherever we are working at night, and lets me experience new things, which is one of my favorite things to do. I might be okay with this indefinite commitment of a job for a while if it lets me do cool things like this.

Panorama of Mount Pleasant the Sunday after an All Souls service after I returned.

If you made it to the end, thank you so much for reading. I know this was a longer post, but I hope you enjoyed the pictures and narrative. I know I haven't kept up with this blog for a while, but getting and settling into a new job has been quite tenuous, although I've liked it quite a lot. I'll try to keep up with it a little more now that I am a little more settled in, so expect some other cool stuff soon.