I’m not sure I can say that I’m a fan of Vito Acconci.  I’d like to be, because I know I’ve tried to be at different times in my life, but they usually have gone terribly wrong, and I decide not to like him again for awhile.  He’s one of the great visionaries living in New York, to be sure, and I have nothing but respect for someone who can attempt what he did and be able to move forward into new things.  Every time I’ve tried to follow in his footsteps, it’s gone wrong, which seems to be part of his big plan.

If I had a better video camera, it might help.  I could be sitting in a chair in my top hotel in New York, and speaking to the camera as if the camera were you, and start confessing things, and then breaking into song.  I could also run in a thousand other directions with my words, and make confusing statements, and then things would be funny at the very end when everyone realizes I’m not going to say anything funny at all, but only make you think about watching me, and how that in itself is funny because it is not.  I could tell stories about my leg, and then everyone would be uncomfortable, but the truth is, I need a better camera.

Or a worse one.  Vito Acconci had a nice camera for the time, but to match his look, you’d need an old one, or maybe a super 8 even.  And he had a certain way with people, and it’s one that I just don’t have.  I tried the thing he did with following strangers around, and I ended up in a long relationship with someone I didn’t even like, just because I decided I had to be nice.  It was awful, and I felt bad, and even guilty, and that seemed to be what he knows, too.  I may have learned from all of this, then.  Even though I think it would be great to become an architect, and start designing lots of things, and talk about how we need to rethink things.  I could be someone who encourages people to rethink things, but then again, I’m not so sure.

The Walnut Street Theatre in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania boasts itself as being the oldest in the country. Well, this is difficult to argue since the company was originally established in 1809. And with many things in Philadelphia, there is an incredible history and major cultural significance to this theatre. It’s one thing to say you’ve been around for twenty or thirty, even forty years, which is impressive on its own. But to say you’ve been creating great theatre for two hundred years almost makes you sound like one of the European companies. At any rate, this theatre has been around that long and continues to produce great plays.

The theatre continues to sit in its original location on the corner of Ninth and Walnut Street and the building itself has been recognized as one of the nation’s historic landmarks. The theatre has another major static to brag about and that is the 56,000 season ticket subscribes it has. This is greater than any theatre in the world, which is possibly an even more impressive statement than its being the oldest in the country. Tourists who visit Philadelphia are frequently attracted to major cultural landmarks and you can’t get any more historic and significant than this. Ooops, that’s right, we’re talking about Philadelphia so maybe that’s not true. Regardless, many of the non season subscription holders are coming from their fabulous rooms in one of the area hotels.

Currently the theatre is presenting a production of Elliot A Soldier’s Fugue by Philadelphia native playwright Quiara Alegria Hudes, who is better known for his hit Broadway musical In The Heights. This play deals with a second generation soldier returning from Iraq and making a decision about a return tour. In the process issues of generational differences and father and son relationships are brought up in a journey through generations.

One strange problem that is fairly common in Chevrolet Malibus made in the late 90s is that the car acts like it is flooded right after you add gas to the car. You will have to press the gas pedal down as you start the engine in order to get it to start. The reason this can be an important problem, and one that many people don’t notice at first, is that when this is happening usually the gas mileage becomes terrible. The common cause for this is a faulty fuel pressure regulator. The fuel pressure regulator is a small cylindrical object connected to the fuel rail This is the last part of the engine which gets the fuel. It has a vacuum hose attached and provides the extra pressure against the spring. During acceleration the fuel that enters the regulator is accelerated. This keeps the engine pressure at the ideal and keeps the motor running well. There are other symptoms of this that you may have noticed, and it’s not very hard to take care of if you have a Chevrolet Malibu repair manual . The first things you want to check to make sure this is the case are the tail pipe and the spark plugs. Both of these will have black soot on them if the fuel pressure regulator is having problems. If there is gasoline coming out of the tailpipe you will immediately want to move into the engine to look around in there. Disconnect the vacuum hose from the fuel pressure regulator and check if there is fuel in the hose. If there is, you can end your search for symptoms now and make sure you schedule some Auto repair , either taking the time yourself or with a professional. It is possible for there to be no fuel in the vacuum hose and have the fuel pressure regulator fail, but it happens less often.

While I was choosing my ideal university I had many things to consider in making that choice. This is a common aspect of many soon to be high school graduates and while choosing a school sounded extremely fascinating before I started the decision process, I soon learned that it was actually pretty tedious and I had consider many elements that I would rather have ignored. One of the primary considerations I had to make before I could even begin my final decision-making was in regards to how I was going to pay for my school. Now do you see why making the decision was much less romantic and much more tedious than I had originally though it would be?

Anyway, determining how I would pay for school was first on the list and then I had to determine which schools had the best college and department for the field I am looking for. Ultimately I want to be a genetic anthropologist, which means I have more years of school than what my initial bachelor degree is going to provide. And while there are plenty of universities that provide quality BA degrees in anthropology I decided I might want to put greater focus on my graduate program. On one hand this made my decision a little easier though it also made me wonder how much of my life was going to be spent in school versus on my actual career. Not to mention, I want to have a family and everything some day, and I don’t have to go to school for that.

It was actually my guidance counselor that suggested I stay here in town for a couple of years and go to the Santa Rosa Junior College. He mentioned that it had some quality programs and classes and a pretty extensive anthropology program. In addition to the quality of the education I would receiver there, I could also get my basic requirements out of the way, could stay at home and save on room and board for two years. In addition, the class fees are minuscule compared to university costs. When I mentioned this to my parents they joked that we would have to spend a couple of nights in one of the Santa Rosa hotels and pretend we were in town to tour the campus. Well, making that decision feels great and it will save me a year or two of decision-making stress. Plus, I’m counting on my instructors there to give me some solid advice and direction on where to go next.

Well if you only have a few hours to enjoy the city before you head in for a good nights sleep at one of Hong Kong’s comfortable hotels than you may be trying to find a place were you can see a lot for a little amount of time. There are some places you can visit but one of the popular areas is Tsim Sha Tsui. There are many nice places to shop in this area of town. They have all the nice designer stores and local flair. There area plenty of places to eat and enjoy a cocktail or two while you relax from the stresses of travel. There are many locals that hang out in the area as well which always tells me something when I am traveling to somewhere new. I like to go where the locals go in hopes of getting the best of the city and country.

Also in the Tsim Sha Tsui area you will find some great cultural attractions. If you are there during the day time you may want to get out and see some history and culture. The Hong Kong Museum of Art has a very large exhibit with over 14,000 pieces. You can have a chance to see the heritage of the Chinese people from ancient China times to current modern times. The ornate Chinese calligraphy is always interesting. They also have a Hong Kong Space Museum in the area near the Hong Kong Cultural Center. See how the Chinese fit into the space world and then catch a live performance of some kind. The Cultural Center hosts all sorts of entertainment from Opera to dance and classical music concerts. If you think those events would take up to much time then you can have some lunch and then take a walk near the Hong Kong Clock Tower and the beautiful park that is around it.

If you’re traveling in America, there are a few place in the country which may feel less like tourism and more like a pilgrimage.   Liberty Island of the National Park Service off of New York City is one of these places.  It’s strange that the country, at times, develops an attitude toward the French (such as when the Congress decided they were no longer going to eat French Fries but Freedom Fries), when the most American of symbols, the Statue of Liberty, was a gift from the French people, dedicated October 28, 1886.  One hundred and ten years after the fact, the statue is a tribute to the signing of the Declaration of Independence and is intended to represent the friendship of our two countries.  For the next one hundred and twenty-four years, the statue has continued to represent the highest ideals of a democratic nation.

As another sign of the times, security is tight around the Statue and so you have to go through two screenings if you want to enter the monument; you also must have a Monument Access ticket; this ticket allows you to visit the museum gallery and the pedestal observation levels.  You can find more information about these passes from the ferry that serves the Statue and Ellis Island.

If the Statue of Liberty is the symbol of the country, then Ellis Island is the physical embodiment of that symbol: The building opened in 1892 on January 1st, and was the main immigration station for America.  It operated for 63 years and processed over twelve million immigrants stepping off steamships and into the United States.  It was abandoned for decades after 1954, but refurbished and turned into a museum in 1990.  Amazingly, forty percent of the American people may track their ancestors through Ellis Island.

For those who have been there, they suggest you find the hotels in New York, boutique or otherwise, in which you want to stay, and then purchase a CityPass for Lady Liberty.  With the CityPass you don’t have to wait in line to purchase tickets, you can board the ferry quickly.  Once you arrive, head directly into the line for the Monument.  If you don’t, you’ll find yourself in a much greater line later; take a stroll around the perimeter of the statue and enjoy the view after you’ve been inside.  If the line is too long outside, then the next best bet is to skip the museum and head on over to the Ellis, which some travelers rate more highly as an experience.

This band isn’t a river, or maybe.  It’s definitely not a short story written by Tantyana Tolstaya, although they get their name from her work.  This is a band from New Hampshire.  It’s a band that decided to move to Austin, because there was supposed to be a great music scene happening there, in 1998.  It turns out to be one of the best moves that anyone could have made, and their fans from around the world are grateful for the move.  We might not know who they are if it hadn’t been for the happy marriage of weirdnesses.  Between their own peculiar rhythms and the ones that naturally play out in the city of Austin, something good got brewed up.

They play all over the world, and have appearances on David Letterman and Conan O’Brien, among others, but it’s definitely worth the price of the ticket to see them in Austin.  Hotels are excellent and available, and it’s easy to get around the city.  Or at least it’s incredible fun.  There’s no other place like it in the country, probably, being one of the most interesting and creative centers around.  It has a certain charm that still attracts young people from all over, looking to make good work without the same pressures offered by the cities on the coasts.  Okkervil River is an original band with an original sound.

It may be slightly unfair to single out Will Sheff, as the front man always gets all the attention.  The truth is, these musicians are all extraordinarily phenomenal, and they have an unusual tightness that always looks like they just strung it together backstage.  The same sense of things about to fall apart is absolutely in the lyrics, and this is where Sheff keeps haunting.  He has an unusual poetic skill that may not translate to the page perfectly, but sung, it’s brilliant stuff.  And to hear them play, one gets the sense of things falling apart right before they come brilliantly back together.

I’ve finally got outside of my hotel room in Columbus after a nasty bout of the stomach flu, or was it something I ate? Anyways, it was time to enjoy the city and I had a few highlights during my weeks stay.

Tuesday, I headed to check out Columbus’s main library, yes, even on a working vacation, I love to be inside a library. Columbus’s library was pretty cool. It’s a working library, which means it meets the needs of the people who use it and not to be like a show piece or a museum like some libraries have a tendency to be. It was full of people and well laid out; I’m thinking maybe the cold weather also had something to do with why the library was full of people, but for me, as long as people are reading, then the world’s a better place for it.

Around the block from the library is the ‘Old Deaf School Park’ along with the ‘Old Deaf School’. The park had a topiary garden that was modeled after ‘Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte’ painted by George Seurat. It was an amazing place, it was so peaceful and it was right in the middle of downtown Columbus! There were people about, even though it was cold out, and I don’t blame them, the park is too inviting.

Wednesday, I met up with some interns at the Buffalo Wild Wings, which wasn’t far from where they work. I got to meet with some interns who started a few weeks ago and got to see how they were fairing with the stresses. It seemed that every one was having a good experience so far. That will be good to report when I get back.

I ended the work week with putting to use, the new laptop and scanner I’ve received from work, I haven’t gotten all the logistics of it yet, but I really do appreciate having the convince of filing my reports via the Internet, so much easier than waiting till I get back to work in Dayton.