My Brothers Come to Town

For those of you unaware, my brothers came to town last weekend. We had quite a blast of course (literally, in fact; well, virtually). Most of our down time, i.e. when we were not sleeping, eating, or mountain biking, was spent in close-quarters warfare. Call of Duty 4 offers about 10 different venues for shooting, blowing-up, or if you're me, lying in wait in a corner either to be sniped away or to score a surprise kill. Some other rookie tactics of mine include trying to jump over bullets, army-crawling all over the map, and dropping grenades as I die. I never won a match.

Even if I suffered defeat and humiliation on the television, I felt a little more confident on the singletrack trails just north of my house, where Robbie, Jonathan, and I biked. It was a beautiful day. After settling into our saddles, we had a reasonably adventurous and daring time hopping logs and rocks, dodging trees, etc. While all of us suffered some injuries, I think Robbie's scrapes and bruises from his regular launches over his handlebars were the most spectacular. All three of us called out obstacles that we had climbed, or that had felled us, declaring victory or warning the others, respectively. A great time, altogether, although none of us could ever shake the feeling that we were headed the wrong direction on the trails...

Needless to say, we had plenty to eat. In addition to trying out the Q Shack, Mapleview Farm's ice cream, and a couple brunch locations, we visited Outback Steakhouse on Saturday night after biking (and after having lunch around 4). We had to wait a while for our table (by the way, Jonathan, can you get me that puzzle program for my iTouch?), but it was all business after sitting down. Our waitress took our drink orders, then asked whether we wanted to "start with a bloomin' onion." The brothers and I: "Um, no, but we'd like three shrimps on the barbie, please." A bloomin' onion? Only one? She then brought us a demi-baguette (not really the right word for the place) of pumpernickel. Jonathan graciously cut it into three pieces, and we scarfed it down in a minute. The waitress returned and, after we asked for more bread, said, "Oh, that was dumb of me to only bring one." She came right back with two more loaves.

Thanks Robbie and Jonathan. It was fun, in addition to being a great man-fix of meat, the outdoors, and video games (not the usual fare at the JIP house in Carrboro).

My Town

The joke among most people who live outside of Carrboro, NC, or the few dissidents within, is that I live in a town called "The People's Republic of Carrboro." It might be hyperbole; I've met many people enchanted by Marx, but few by Mao. To provide an illustration and let you judge for yourself, here is an account of my daily trip to work. I live in the middle of Carrboro and walk less than a quarter mile to work every day. After walking by a few old mill-town houses, I come upon Weaver Street, where I work. I pass the following business: two spas, an acupuncturist, a massage therapist, the Balanced Movement yoga studio, the Dispute Resolution Center, the Wellness Alliance, which is a house converted to hold another acupuncturist, a craniosacral therapist, a homeopath, a psychotherapist, among more psychologists and masseuses. Admittedly, I also pass a smattering of more conventional businesses, e.g. Great Clips and the Carrboro Citizen newspaper (wait until you read it, though).

I will note that Carrboro has another nickname, "The Paris of the Piedmont."

I can't say that I mind living in such a free-spirited place; I have access to great food, good coffee shops, and kind neighbors--who may not know that I have a different sense of our "comradeship." It's quiet at night and people ride bikes and jog everywhere.

If you have any good stories or questions about Carrboro, I would like to hear them.

Inaugural Post

I have been vacillating (and procrastinating) for a while about whether to start a blog. Reasons not to blog include: it seems presumptuous to act like people care to read all about me; it takes time; and I risk offending someone or writing more about someone or some organization than they would prefer that I share. Reasons to blog include: I can update many people about my life and thoughts and I can have a soapbox. Obviously I've chosen to blog, so please let me know whether you have any problems with what I write. I hope to have links and more interesting posts soon.