The 4th July, Eastern Market, and Road House

Happy Birthday America!!!!

I spent the night in Alexandria at Norm and Virginia’s place. It was nice not waking up in a dorm. After a fantastic breakfast of Crab cake Eggs Benedict (Words cannot express how good this was, I literally made inappropriate sounds), I headed back to dorm for the late shift on the 4th.

Although in the five years that I have been associated with the program I have been able to effectively been able to dodge July 4th duty I was asked to help this year. I guess that’s fair. We packed a picnic dinner and headed to Antietam National Battle Field in Maryland for a concert by the Maryland Symphony Orchestra and fireworks. Everyone enjoyed themselves. Some chatted, others played catch with the football or Frisbee, another group walked the battlefield, and I …, napped. The concert was great and the fireworks were spectacular!

Sunday, July 5th
I spent the day with Norm and Virginal. We ate lunch at the newest Matchbox location in south of Capital Hill. Their mini-burgers set the standard for all others to live by.

Afterwards we walked over to Eastern Market to shop for the fixings’ for the dinner I was cooking later that evening. The market area was incredible. So much to see, do, buy, and EAT! They have just finished remodeling the whole place after it burnt down in the early hours at the end of April of 2007.

Link to Washington Post Story about the fire

They had clothing, flowers, artwork, and all kinds of other things around the area of the enclosed market. Inside the market there was every kind of food conceivable. I had no problem picking up all of the items that I needed for the feast I was preparing.

Link to Washington Post Story about the reopening

After we returned the house I cooked up the food and we enjoyed our meal. The evening entertainment was the movie Road House starring Patrick “Pain don’t hurt” Swayze. Pure gold folks. I must have watched that movie a million times the summer after college. Dalton the Cooler (Bouncer) was part Rocky, part Buddha in a dumb movie sort of way. Long live the Double Deuce. I embedded a little Road House to wet your palette.

Update: Week of June 28th to July 3rd

I apologize to all of the blog readers, all three of you, for my lack of posts. My summer has been pretty busy and lots of fun. In year’s past I have used the blog to fill you in on the School of Public Service. Well the actual best way to keep up with that the official blog that our program keeps. It has lots of photos and background information on our speakers, activities, and case studies. (That’s one of the things keeping me busy). There is a link to it on the right hand column of this blog, but in case here is the link also.

http://www.schoolofpublicservice.blogspot.org/

Outside NBC Studios before Meet the Press

Sunday, June 28th
As always it was exciting for the students and I to watch a filming of Meet the Press. The guests for the show we watched were great. The first part of the show featured and interview with David Axelrod, then there was a discussion of the status of the Republican Party with Mitt Romney and Lindsey Graham. The last half hour featured a political roundtable which featured Dee Dee Myers, E.J. Dionne.


The rest of the day students and teachers read up for their case studies and then broke into individual groups for dinner. My group went to 2 Amy’s, a great pizza place around the corner from the Albans. We had a great meal and better discussion.

Monday, June 29th

We celebrate Sanko’s birthday at the Quarterdeck in Arlington. Blue Crabs are good lovin’! That’s four years in a row!!!!

Tuesday, June 30th

Main Hall at the Naval Academy

Our group went to the Naval Academy in Annapolis for the day. We were hosted by Dr. Wrage, who teaches Political Science at the Academy. It was a great visit, we toured the school first then Dr. Wrage led the students in a case study about Navy seals in Afghanistan. The students were great and they really seamed to enjoy Dr. Wrage’s teaching style and expertise.

Dr. Wrage giving a tour of the Naval Academy before class

After class everyone was given the afternoon free to get some lunch on their own and tour downtown “Naptown”. (Annapolis). I met up with Chris Ch. We go back pretty far, his dad and mine worked together at Int. Paper and he and my sister worked together there as well. We met for lunch at the great little Irish Pub where we enjoyed a few pints of the “Black Stuff” and a sandwich. It was great catching up. I LOVE meeting up with friends in random cities and spots. It was great catching up.

Old Town Annapolis

Arlington National Cemetery

Marine Corps Sunset Parade

Wednesday, July 1st

Spent a day in DC leisure. I walked about three miles through the Cleveland Park neighborhood of Upper NW. Then after a faculty meeting prepped for the case study that I was teaching on Friday about General Patreaus in Mosul at one of my favorite book stores/coffee shops in DC, Politics and Prose. In the evening I cooked dinner for Norm and Virginia at their house.

The greatest bookstore .., ever!

Friday, July 3rd

After a great class I had the good fortune to have my students hear from Paul Ignatius, former Secretary of the Navy, and father of David Ignatius, author and columnist for the Washington Post. He sat in on my class, I thought I was going to brick my pants when he walked in, but after class he was extremely complimentary of the students and me. It was nice to hear.

The students made their way to a Nats-Braves game and I enjoyed some R & R at Norm’s place in Alexandria. I readied the home for the impending party. It was great to enjoy a teen free evening and morning. Met some cool folks. Fran, a friend through Norm, was hosting two thru walkers on the Appalachian Trail or AT. A friend of mine had done that and it was great to hear their stories.

The first week is done already?

After the Supreme Court Visit

The first week of the School of Public Service has passed and in my opinion passed well. The students worked three case studies that ranged from scandal and mistreatment of US veterans at Walter Reed hospital to potential ethical violations by the a major TV network. They researched, prepared, and argued a current Supreme Court case (their ruling nearly mirrored the real Supreme Court Decision). The class of 09’ visited the local federal court and toured the Supreme Court with the current Clerk of the Court, William Suter. They also took a twilight tour of the monuments along the National Mall led by yours truly. They are a splendid group, who are a joy to teach and hang out with. The only downer of the week was getting rained out from an outdoor showing of “Footloose” on Friday night.

The Jefferson Memorial right before sunset

I’ve been pretty busy teaching three case studies and prepping for another one this next week. I have managed to catch a showing of Transformer 2 and catch up with an old college friend for a little night life in the district. I’ve been “busy” but being able to squeeze a nap in every day while working is still quite good.

Outside the Washing Post after meeting with Pulitzer Prize winner Dana Priest

A decent diddy by TJ.

The Pulitzer Prize and the Transformers

Anyone who knows me, and specifically has lived with me knows my love of newspapers. I have always enjoyed the Washington Post and in the last five years where I “summer in DC”, I have grown to love it even more. Well today our group went to the offices of the Washington Post to meet with Dana Priest who won a Pulitzer Prize for her series on Walter Reed Medical Hospital last year, which we studied in class the previous day.

Her talk was informative and illuminating. She spoke of how she and her colleagues go about their research, establish contacts, and how release of the stories is sometimes negotiated with people all the way to the White House. It’s nice to hear from a reporter and newspaper that take their role as the “4th branch” of the government seriously. She spoke of the provisions that the US Constitution provides for the press.

She was passioned and the students asked great questions which makes me feel good as one of the teachers that prepped them for the meeting. She also spoke of the dedication of the Post’s staff, especially in times of crisis. She talked about the devastating crash that occurred on the Red Line of the Metro earlier this week and how those who were not even on the clock worked the story. I’ll include one of the stories from today that was both heartbreaking and heartwarming.

After returning to the Albans campus the students heard from Stuart Gerson prepped for their moot court case that they will be doing tomorrow. The case they are arguing is Safford Unified School District v. Redding(Click on the case for breakdown) which centers on the constitutionality of strip-searching a student at a public school in search of drugs. Every year the program picks a great case. The students really get into it.

I skipped dinner to meet up with Bill to continue a tradition started in high school. We went and saw Transformers 2: The Rise of the Fallen. Awesome, simply awesome. Although short on plot it was heavy on violence, special ops, and of course Megan Fox running. This makes the third Transformers Bill S. and I have seen together. Three? You say. Let’s not forget the first cartoon movie that came out in the late 80’s with the awesome theme song, “You’ve got the touch”. Well back in our Cathedral Prep days Billy, Phil K, and myself went to see the original in the theater. We were the only people there above 15 without children present. Two summers ago Bill and I saw the latest “Original” and tonight we completed the trilogy.

I am going to embed two YouTube clips for your enjoyment of the main them song from the true original movie and a scene from Boogie Nights, yes Boogie Nights. If you watch both you’ll see why.

The Stan Bush version fromt he original movie

Dirk Diggler's version

Let the learning begin!

After a wonderful stay/visit with Bill I moved into the dorms on Sunday morning. I can’t believe that we have known each other for almost 25 years. Wow, I’m old. I digress. I always look forward to meeting the group each year. Every year they are great and this year they are no different. These kids come from Massachusetts to California and Texas to Montana. A very impressive bunch.

I reprised my role as grill master for the opening cookout. SPS even bought a new grill for festivities. I love cooking in general and grilling specifically. Everyone seemed to enjoy the food and the acoustical stylings of one of the St. Albans added to the enjoyment of the evening.

Prepping for class

As of this entry I have already taught two case studies. The first was a collection of ten vignettes of where the group was to decide when, if ever, it was OK to lie in various scenarios. From government officials both elected and appointed to various quasi government operatives and even the press. The discussion was lively and intellectual.

Class time

The second case study was a collection of stories from the expose by Dana Priest on the Walter Reed Medical Center scandal that dominates the front pages of the Washington Post for weeks last year. The discussion highlighted the difficulties of inter and intra agency communication and how it adversely affected our nation’s veterans. The article also serves as a prep for our visit to Washington Post on Wednesday where we will tour the newsroom and having a discussion with Pulitzer Prize winning journalist Dana Priest.

I’m very busy but having lots of fun!

Tales of the Road

It’s Tuesday evening and I’m sitting in the courtyard of the senior circle of St. Albans listening to bells of the National Cathedral chime away. It’s a glorious 78 degrees and some of the SPS class of 09’ is playing badminton.

After a crazy trip up to DC things have calmed down and made for a spectacular time.

I began my journey to DC last Wednesday afternoon. It was great driving weather until I hot Knoxville where I met with tornados and torrential down pours. It really only screwed with driving for about an hour, it seemed once I turned up I-81 the weather cleared. After vowing to get at least out of Tennessee on the first leg of the journey, that’s @7 hours plus, I found a hotel with my trusty iPhone in the hamlet of Bristol, Va. I got in, got to sleep, and was able to take off in the morning ahead of schedule, or so I thought.

About 15 minutes into the ride I noticed my BRAND NEW tires pulling heavily to the left and after about a minute of, “This can’t be happening” a car pulled up next to me and mimed, “your tire is flat”. I pulled off the highway as soon as safely possible and was able to park in an industrial park. The was a “Wide Load” crew resting and they were nice enough to offer help fill up my tire with air. The air left nearly as quickly as it was put in.

So I’m in nowhere Virginia with a flat tire, I’m screwed. I called AAA; they were as helpful as blind man in a scavenger hunt. So I turned to the love of my life, my iPhone, or iLeen, as I call her. I did a Google search for tire/auto shops and with the help of the iPhone’s GPS feature found a shop 4 miles away. The search results connect automatically to a phone number. I called; spoke to a helpful woman named Sara, and after changing to the spare tire made my way to Main Street USA in rural Virginia. Mel, the shop manager, and Sara were a breath of fresh air. They checked my tire and rim and realized that I needed a new tire because the last place did not replace the air valve. They were quick, efficient, and soooo helpful. They made a potentially horrible situation almost pleasant. I was fixed and on my way in less than 45 minutes.

Nationals baseball

The national pastime in the nation's capital. Harris won the game in the bottom of the 12th inning with a walk off home run. Since I have begun my trip to DC the Nats have won 4 in a row, coincidence?

A great Saturday in the nation's capital!

Having a great time in DC so far. I met three of my former students who live and work here out for a few drinks in the capital hill area of town last night.

Slept in and the we made put way out to the burbs for a going away crab boil for Rex and his family who are moving to Wisconsin. The maryland blue crabs were delicous.

I'm at the Nationals game right now on a beuatiful evening on DC. Good times.

Pete out.

On the road again

It's always bittersweet leaving Memphis for my ramblings each summer.
My summers are always fun and rewarding.

I can't wait for the School of Public Service to start at St. Albans.

Staying in Bristol, VA for the night after getting 8 hours on the
road. The weather was great except for torrential rains for about 45
minutes around Knoxville. The rains subsided and the storms made for a
fantastic night sky.

Peace out from Virginia! I'll be in DC by the afternoon.
Sent from my iPhone

The Friday Night Storm

We had a crazy storm run through Memphis around 5pm this afternoon. Heavy rain, hail, tornado warnings and watches. The storm knocked over a bunch of trees and power all over town (my building was fine). Over 120,000 homes n Memphis are without power as of 11pm tonight, with some estimates of a week for restoration.

So after the storm breaks Weiss heads over to my place to watch the movie "In Bruges", awesome dark comedy. In the middle of the movie he looks out the window and sees a rainbow. It was weird to see such a beautiful sight while seeing and hearing emergency trucks all over town.

Two views from my condo window.

After the movie we went up to the roof and caught these views. Only nature could produce something so destructive and beautiful at the same time. Here are some pics, they don't do the scene justice.

The sun begins to set on the Mississippi.

Wow!

It was one of the best sunsets I have seen.

Sunset

Yesterday was a very good day. The weather in Memphis was uncharateristically cool, a high of 80. I read most of the day, had lunch with Truk, rooftop beers with Big Kat and Steph, and then a small snack at my favorite local watering hole, Bardog. Good times...., good times.

Condo Living at the Claridge House

The Claridge House

Condo living in Memphis is a nice thing. I just celebrated my 5th anniversary of living downtown in the Claridge House. My condo was built in 1924 and for a long time it was one of THE places to stay and hang out in Memphis. The condo association just finished a rooftop deck this past month. I freakin' love it. I'm there all the time. There was a nice write up about the condo in the Commercial Appeal this past Sunday.

Here are some photos and the article.

Memphis history meets modern convenience in Claridge House

By John Wood
Sunday, May 31, 2009

If you have a taste for Memphis history and an appetite for all of the exciting Downtown activities, then you may want to consider living at the Claridge House Condominiums, located in the heart of Downtown Memphis at Main and Adams.

Best known prior to conversion as the Claridge Hotel, this 17-floor structure that was originally built in 1924 served as a focal point of Memphis social life for more than three decades -- hosting such well-known performers as the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra and the King himself, Elvis Presley.

Positioned directly on the trolley line next to Memphis City Hall and close to AutoZone Park, Beale Street, FedExForum, the new University of Memphis Law School that is opening in December and Cook Convention Center, Claridge House is one of the most convenient residential locations in the Downtown area.

And Claridge House is an even better place to live today, now that a 900-square-foot deck has been added to the roof level to provide residents with a grand view of the Mississippi River, the Government Plaza fountains, the Hernando DeSoto (I-40) Bridge, The Pyramid and all of Downtown Memphis.

"It is so nice to just relax on the new deck and take in the view," said Sandy Meloni, Crye-Leike sales agent for Claridge House Condominiums. "Our Claridge House board played a big part in building this deck, but many others contributed their personal time to fulfill the dream. Two of our residents, Bob Jacobson of Code Solutions Group and Gary Meloni of S. Meloni Metal Products, who has been in the stair and railing manufacturing business for more than 40 years, gave freely of their expertise and volunteered hundreds of hours of their personal time to help manage the project to completion."

As a testament to the appeal of the Claridge House, only one of the 158 units involved in the conversion is still available for sale, but as Sandy Meloni is quick to point out, there are a few resale units available for people who would like to live at the Claridge House.

"Claridge House is only a block and a half away from the location of the new U of M Law School, and we've already had three law students purchase a home here," Meloni explained. "It's pretty obvious they see the advantages of living at the Claridge House."

Besides the new roof deck, residents enjoy many of the other amenities of the Claridge House, like the stainless steel indoor swimming pool, the hot tub and fitness center that is available 24/7, the party room that comes complete with big screen TV, a bar and catering kitchen, and lots of space for invited guests. Built in a segment of the 17th floor of the Claridge House that originally was a rooftop party area, the history of this party room is as grand and extensive as the views of Memphis from its windows.

For more information about the Claridge House Condominiums or possibly to take in the view from the new roof deck, call Sandy Meloni at 218-4416. She'll be happy to arrange a tour of the building and as well as the studios and the one- and two-bedroom units that are still available for purchase at the Claridge House.

Farmer's Market at Central Station in downtown Memphis

After a grand time last night on the rooftop deck of my condo with some friends I woke up this morning and made my way over to the Memphis Farmer's Market at Central Station downtown. Other than buying some bread I had no specific shopping list but I knew I wanted to find enough things to make a meal for Sunday evening. I had a great morning to shop and people watch. I ran into a bunch of people. I ended up picking up some bread, goat cheese, olive tapenade spread, sweet potatoes, strawberries, and mixed greens.

So here will be the menu for Sunday:

Grilled Rosemary bread with olive oil, tomatoes, and Parmesan cheese.
Mixed greens with strawberries, walnuts, and a raspberry vinaigrette.
Sweet potatoes with brown sugar and butter.
Butterflied chicken breasts stuffed with goat cheese and olive tapenade.
Vanilla Ice Cream with strawberries

About 90% of the menu was purchased at the Farmer’s Market.

Summer is here!!!!!

Here are some photos of the scene at the Farmer's Market

The Summer of John

I love being a teacher. Although the summer has not officially begun; I have three out service days I have begun the process of preparing for nearly three months of unfettered “Pete Time”. For instance, this past week I was paid to go to dinner “On the Hill” in St. Louis and go to a Cubs/Cards game at the new Busch Stadium. Despite being sans beer because I was chaperoning the 8th grade trip. I was none the less paid to go on vacation.

A view of the Arch from below

I was glad to get home and look forward to closing up the school year so I can officially begin the yearly endeavor known as the “Summer of John”. For those who are not Seinfeld fans here is the contextual reference.

I have been quite busy the last few weeks. The good news is that pass quickly, the bad news is that I’m exhausted. I understand that much of the exhaustion stems from self made work and fun but it’s still quite real. In the last three weeks here is a brief summation of activities both professional and personal.

1. Taught and graded the 5 paragraph research paper process to 65 eighth graders.
2. Helped coach the “H” middle school track team to its first championship in four years.
3. Planned, set up, cooked, and partied my way through another fine BBQ Fest with the folks at Magically Piglicious.


"Guarding" the booth



4. Helped coach the varsity track team to a second place finish at the West Regional Championship.
5. Revisited my role as best man for a wedding on the Mississippi River during BBQ Fest.
6. Reviewed for, gave, and grader the 8th Grade World History Exam
7. Attended Baccalaureate and Graduation for the “H” class of 2009
8. Chaperoned 65 eighth grade trip to St. Louis(Photos).
9. Helped coach the varsity track team to a 7th place finish at the State Championship in
10. Murphreesboro, TN with one of my throwers was able to launch the shot a personal best of 34’4.5” to garner a 4th place finish.(photos)
11. Visited some friends in the “Boro” and was able to catch up.

As the “Summer of John” begins so to does Pete Big Bear emerge for his hibernation to begin his blogging. The only for sure items on the calendar for Pete are a return to the St. Albans School of Public Service and an extended stay in Erie, Pa to visit with the family.

Longer, more detalied background for the "Summer of George"

A good afternoon

Is there anything better than this view and good beer?

Ruminatbions aout the Southland in the spring time

I’m a middle aged man who still get’s a spring break; here’s a brief recap of mine.

I headed to Atlanta to visit some of the college friends. I stayed with my old roommate Owen, his wife Amy, and their daughter Emily. Great visit. While I was there I got to hang out the Charley H, and his brother, and got to see Stephen U. It was a very chill weekend. Some of the highlights, besides the company of course, were a trip to the Atlanta Zoo with Owen and Emily, great show at Smith’s Olde Bar, Ryan Adams concert at the Tabernacle, and lots of hanging out and relaxing.

Let me say that if you are ever in Atlanta and get to see a show at the Tabernacle, GO! The venue is phenomenal for both sight and sound. It is one of the most aesthetically and acoustically pleasing venues I’ve ever been to. On a side note I heard a great R and B, funked up version of the Cheers theme at Smith’s Olde Bat. I don’t know the name of the act, sorry.

There is nothing that clears my head and satisfies my soul like a great road trip. The drive from Atlanta fit the previous statement. I had just picked up the new Springsteen and Indigo Girls Albums on iTunes and I thoroughly enjoyed both. I knew it was going to be a great trip when I found a Dunkin Donuts on the way out of town. I mean seriously, how can anything beat a sunny day, clear roads, a Dunkin’ Donut with an extra large coffee, and great tunes for a 5 plus hour ride. On a particularly desolate part of Highway 78 in Alabama I switched music modes to some of Bon Jovi’s Greatest Hits. Judge all you want it was awesome.

The best part of the drive was pit stop in Holly Springs for lunch at a place called Phillips Grocery. It’s an old sundry store past the square and it has saliva generating burgers in a Mom and Pop atmosphere. I expected to have Atticus Finch wander in at any time.

How I found should probably be another entry altogether. Let me first state emphatically and a bit disturbingly that I LOVE my iPhone. Why I held out for long is beyond me. Second, I have to also thank Facebook for finding the place. Yes, I’m one of those people. I do not spend hours on the FB hanging out and wasting my time but I use the mobile version on my iPhone. Here was a reason that FB works, for me at least.

I just got finished “Livin’ on a prayer” with Bon Jovi and realized I had not eaten since my donut (ok two donuts) on the outskirts of Atlanta so I was I hungry, shocker. I’m in no mood to spoil the mojo I had going on by eating at some McFranchize so I get on FB and post, “Anyone know a good, old school, mom and pop, BBQ or burger joint, between Tupelo and Holly Springs, MS. Within an hour I get two great suggestions. The winning suggestion was by an old college friend who now runs a winery and lives in the Napa Valley. He states, “Phillips Grocery, best burgers in the world!” So I get on my trusty iPhone, Google the place, get an address, and let the GPS function of the phone, map out the directions to the place. An hour later, burger orgasm was achieved.

Head clear, belly full, and staring a week off of work staring me in the face. Good times..., good times

I love the new rooftop deck of my condo!

Enough said.

The Cardinals with Ryan Adams at the Tabernacle in Atlanta

Live from the Tabernacle

Enjoying a nice visit with Owen, Amy, and little Em. Catching a great
show at an awesome venue called the Tabernacle.

Sent from my iPhone