Cool Cat

Cool Cat

Tuesday, July 27, 2010

The the-non-representational-devalued-piece-of-over-printed-paper stops here

I'd like to turn this into a t-shirt. Inspired by a quick trip down to Auburn for a talk about state nullification of federal trespasses. The Latin phrase is taken from the Aenied and means "Do not give into evil but proceed ever more boldly against it." It was the lifelong motto of Ludwig von Mises, the central figure of Austrian economics. I believe that the idea of nullification embodies Mises' motto in a very real way. The evil, corrupt, and unending flow of unconstitutional laws and actions perpetrated by the federal government must be stopped, and the states' power of nullification is the last recourse. Indeed, the buck (or, in context, "the devalued piece of over-printed paper") stops with nullification.

Friday, July 16, 2010

gas



How wonderful is it that my dad's gastroenterology practice is called Gastroenterology Associates South? G. A. S. Gas. Pfftbwahaha!

Monday, July 12, 2010

The Royal Peacock

The photoshop cutout feature, with an added layer of the original photo, mashed together with a stolen color scheme in a cool blend mode makes for pretty animal pictures.

376 degrees of San Francisco

Yes, you will need to click on this one. And yes, I did figure out that it is about 16 degrees more than a full circle.

Saturday, July 10, 2010

Springs that Matter





Had some nice sunrise/set moments on my most recent road trip.

The whole experience actually inspired an article in the school newspaper:

Six of us traveled 7,382 miles in a rental Chevy Suburban across 17 of the United States, not including Alabama. The gigantic landscapes put us in our small, insignificant place. Highway 1 dropped our jaws at every turn. Nobody understood San Francisco (we walked around with a confused eyebrow raised). We drove through a tree and down the curviest road in the U.S., as well.

Road trips are important for a few reasons. Firstly, you get to see and experience your own country's geography. The U.S. offers vastly different types of landscapes and climates, shore to shore. After living in the Southeast for a long period of time without traveling, I often forget how different parts of the country can look. In one trip, we saw deserts, massive mountains, wet forests, coastal cliffs, beaches and mediterranean climates. Television and travel magazines can't capture these differences in the same way that a photograph can't capture the humbling sight of a redwood tree. These are healthy additions to a knowledgeable citizen's experiences.

Besides seeing the sights, you meet people from all over the country. There are just as many - if not more - cultures in the U.S. as there are climates. The differences go deeper than minor linguistic variations, which tend to dominate this discussion (one barista did call us out as soon as we uttered "y'all"). The attitudes, dress, art and perceptions of what "America" means were surprisingly different from what I'm used to in the southeast, even from what I expected before the trip. Knowing your country means knowing the people.

You can see the country and meet the people without going by car, though. It may cost more money and require many trips, but you could see the country and meet the people by airplane. However, two other reasons really separate road trips from other types of travel.

Executing a road trip is an experience in itself. It must have a certain degree of planning and spontaneity. Road trips give you great practice in being able to think ahead and go with the flow at the same time. We had to be structured enough to see what we wanted in the time allotted (ok, we missed a class or two) and be flexible enough to be cool about not knowing exactly where we were going or even where we were going to sleep until pulling into a cheap and rather dirty motel. "Arranged chaos" describes it perfectly.

Finally, road trips are important because of the camaraderie and friendship you exercise throughout the trip. Not only do laughter, shared fun, and inside jokes abound, but deeper relational connections are realized. Being with the same five people in such close quarters can be nerve-racking (almost impossible with the wrong people), but the tensions and shared experiences only strengthen the relationships in the end. As Mark Twain brilliantly put it: "I have found out that there ain't no surer way to find out whether you like people or hate them than to travel with them." Take a road trip to see if your friends stand the test. Mine did.