Endless Winter

After all the bad weather I encountered in DC, Atlanta and finally in Europe, two things are obvious: the love/joy of cold weather diminishes significantly with age, and secondly, I need to make more north-south trips rather than going back and forth on the east-west axis. Moreover, it is pretty clear also that climate change is quite real, weather shifts have become something common (I remember those early December days when there was a sudden 30 F drop in the temperature, similarly the snow flakes in October, and some of the weird temps we had last June)

Movie Nights

The Holiday season is usually a good opportunity to check out the new releases. Besides seeing the the "squeakquel" of "Alvin and the Chipmunks" with the kids, Avatar was something that I wanted to experience, especially after all the commercials and noise about a cinematic revolution. So, here it is: nice movie, a mixture of a sci-fi, action with a love story lining. Reminded me of Apocalypto and the Last of the Mohicans (although not as bloody) with a Sci-Fi coating. Even though it wasn't really a revolution (except maybe the exquisite quality of the visual effects), it is a nice epic story (about 2 and a half hours) with all the drama and a (very necessary) happy ending.

White Christmass

A penny for your vote

Since now I am in Boston, it is a lot easier to exercise my right and duty to vote in the Romanian Presidential elections 2009. And more over this year things seem to be pretty tight. Although most Romanians do not believe in either of the two candidates left (Basescu and Geoana), still vote in the spirit of choosing the lesser of the two evils. I subscribe to this view; however, I am not even sure why evil is greater, since most of alliances in Romanian politics are purely driven by immediate interests, so something like a "right"-"left" coalition against the "center" shouldn't surprise anyone. At least, very close results (such as 50.33 and 49.66) makes you feel like it was all worthwhile. Hopefully, in a couple of hours they will also have the final results, including the Diaspora votes.

Revisiting Romania

The Fall/Winter season is obviously not the best one to visit Romania. Cold weather and muddy roads contribute tremendously towards a grim & gray vision of it. This time I only got as far as the capital city (Bucharest) and the trip was mainly dictated by a dental emergency, and I barely got to see some family in these short 5 days spent there.

Still, anything is better than nothing. When I think of all the people unable to travel and see their families, 9 hours seem like a little price to pay. Moreover, I am grateful for all these chances and you tend to appreciate them even more. It is always nice to get back to your roots, spend some time with your loved ones and set everything aside at least for a while. Plus, it is a good moment to pause and reflect on where you are now and where you want to get next.

However, not everything went so smoothly: when I left, I wanted to be brave and decided to take the public transport to the airport (Otopeni- OTP) and it was still a hasty decision despite the fact that I left home really early. I ended up getting into a microbus for commuters that left me close to the airport at the main road. Funny enough, that morning one could enjoy the biggest and densest fog that I have seen. Basically, you could not see beyond 2 meters. So after walking for about 10 minutes I still haven' reached anything and I started to panic. However, when I heard the announcements, I realized that I am at 5m from the door of the terminal. Amazing. It was just like in a movie sauna (cause in reality is not that steamy) but the visibility was awful.

Head of The Charles River Regatta

Unfortunately, I forgot all about it. Remembered only today around 3 PM and that only because I saw that this is going to be the last sunny day for a while. So I should get outdoors asap, especially when considering what tough times lie ahead in terms of personal workload. Got to the Charles river pretty late coming from Cambridgeport, which probably wasn't the best itinerary anyways. I managed to take several shots despite the cold, windy weather and the (already) poor light. No more clam chowder for the latecomers; apparently people came as early as noon. Tents were coming down, people was leaving in waves towards Harvard Sq. So, I followed.

The first flakes of Winter

No matter how much (most of us) want to hold on to summer, and this year, even fall would be good for mid-October, winter seems to be closer than ever this year. After the sudden disappearance of summer in mid-August, also fall seems to fall short this year. Today, I notice the first snow flakes making a first appearance within the light drops of rain. Woow, I should get my boots and cap.

Budget Truck - Awfull experience

Well, there are a lot of things to learn every day. And one of them today was to NEVER use Budget Truck again. I would personally advise staying away from them since my experience was truly despicable. Besides the fact that they probably always charge you more than what your reservation shows, they also gave me a bigger truck (at no additional cost:)) just the extra $20-$25 bucks for the gas, this 16 foot big baby was eating the gallon at 10 miles!!).Then, when to return the truck, the guy noticed some scratches on the top right corner of the truck and he pinned that on us. Back in Troy we did not get any inspection, nothing to sign off saying that the truck is in a good shape. Now, since nothing was recorded, everything else (scratches, marks etc.) can be put on us. Fortunately (a) I have a witness (my friend Carlos who drove me to Boston) and (2) pictures that I took on the highway just after entering MA state, showing that the truck was already scratched when we got it in Troy, NY. Those would be two things that I suggest everyone should do before renting from these low-lifes, to make sure they don't pin anything on you as well. Or better yet, just check the other's rates (UHaul, Penske, etc.) since they will guarantee the truck, not like Budget Truck.

Scouting for accommodation in Boston

Boston seems a lot nicer once you get to Cambridge. On my last visit, I had an interview at Harvard and I was in and out real quick. Red line, silver line, Logan, Albany, not much to see and touch. This time I actually got to experience Boston. From the daily commute (I was staying in Natick with a friend, 45 min to South Station) to the peripheral neighborhoods (Quincy, Medford etc.) I tried everything. Back Bay is really nice with its fancy old boulevards and close to most things. The MIT/Kendall area suffers tremendously in terms of image since (I assume) it was (and still is, to some extent) a crowded former industrial area of Cambridge. Still, you read in the local papers how much is coming up these days. So no surprise, here I found some really bad and pricey prices (amazingly contradictory!). Getting the weekly Charlie pass helps so much to move around Boston. Just tap or slide and your problems are over. Worthwhile even for my three and a half days in Boston. Speaking of transport, this time, Megabus was a trully inspired choice. That even after they’ve change the schedule on me (on the same day I got an email that my bus is going to leave earlier from NYC); I was already on my way to NYC, so there was nothing to do but to wait for the next one. Being among the first on the ten people line in the middle of the week has its perks, beside the awesome price ($5 one way)…talking about the table with 4 chairs facing each other that helps with your overheating lap from the laptop usage. Obviously, free wireless and plugs get their fair share of appreciation. My adventure in searching for a place was indeed as the MIT housing website and person responsible coined it: “you will see everything from the bad, ugly and even weird”. And I did. Started with some mixed apartments in the Watertown; I really liked the area, also quick access to Harvard Sq. via fast buses (73 and 71 lines). Remained an option until the last day. Then scouted a bit of the Cambridge/Kendall area, Central Square and Lechmere. Not good. Overprices. Shady. Didn’t enjoy but still part of the overall experience. Finally, made my way to the popular (among students) Somerville: Davis Square was really nice, and I saw great places close to Teele Square. Hope started to emerge and once you have a back-up, I started brainstorming about a decision, although on the third day I managed to see some more places in Somerville, Cambridge and even Quincy area, after a long T ride and walk in the neighborhood. Some practical advices: 1. Get there on weekdays (people are at home and you can maximize better the search days if you include weekends). 2 Do zones (e.g. Somerville in one day; Cambridge the other, etc); 3. Go beyond the common newbie naivity (I want a place near Harvard or MIT): the red T line works flawlessly (especially off peak hours; otherwise, it’s not that peachy); Cambridge has bike lanes which is great; plus, MTBA trains are working great either from the South Station or the Back Bay one; finally, having your personal car gets you even further (suburbs, etc) although the costs might be pretty high in the Boston area…so leave it outside. 4. Check out the sites of universities for adds (I did Berklee and MIT, ask for help from friends etc) besides the main source (craigslist, for me). Many times I felt that the landlords were interviewing me before showing me the house. Obviously coming to MIT gets many eyes rolling (for appreciation, I hope) so flash your credentials to them, make them work. Finally, act relaxed but interested, even if you’re not. Being polite brings a lot. Your purpose is to find a place but nasty-ness you will not bring you closer to your final goal. Just be patient, persistent and SMART. You will get there.

Magical 09/09/09

Yes, it is magical. and yes, it is today. Article on Yahoo:Modern numerologists - who operate outside the realm of real science - believe that mystical significance or vibrations can be assigned to each numeral one through nine, and different combinations of the digits produce tangible results in life depending on their application. As the final numeral, the number nine holds special rank. It is associated with forgiveness, compassion and success on the positive side as well as arrogance and self-righteousness on the negative, according to numerologists. Though usually discredited as bogus, numerologists do have a famous predecessor to look to. Pythagoras, the Greek mathematician and father of the famous theorem, is also credited with popularizing numerology in ancient times. "Pythagoras most of all seems to have honored and advanced the study concerned with numbers, having taken it away from the use of merchants and likening all things to numbers," wrote Aristoxenus, an ancient Greek historian, in the 4th century B.C. As part of his obsession with numbers both mathematically and divine, and like many mathematicians before and since, Pythagoras noted that nine in particular had many unique properties. Any grade-schooler could tell you, for example, that the sum of the two-digits resulting from nine multiplied by any other single-digit number will equal nine. So 9x3=27, and 2+7=9. Multiply nine by any two, three or four-digit number and the sums of those will also break down to nine. For example: 9x62 = 558; 5+5+8=18; 1+8=9. Sept. 9 also happens to be the 252nd day of the year (2 + 5 +2)...