ansoncfit

Picture of Mayor Villaraigosa

Photo I shot of Mayor Villaraigosa talking with members of the Bus Riders Union

As part of my work for greenRELAY, I went to a special meeting of the MTA Board today.  Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa came an hour late and seemed a bit out of it, but he took a couple of minutes after the meeting to chat with members of the Bus Riders Union.

Read Full Post | June 11 2009 | Anson and Swarthmore | No Comments » |

Visit greenRELAY.org

greenRELAY

This summer, I am completing a Lang Opportunity Scholarship project.  Please help by visiting greenrelay.org, commenting on articles, and sharing the site with your friends.

Read Full Post | June 08 2009 | Anson and Swarthmore | No Comments » |

Flying Home

Delta Airlines 757 at Salt Lake City

After finishing my junior year, I am now back in Southern California.

Read Full Post | May 12 2009 | Anson and Swarthmore | No Comments » |

National Train Day

Acela

Today marks the 140th anniversary of the completion of the Transcontinental Railroad.  In celebration, Amtrak hosted National Train Day at 30th Street Station in Philadelphia.  I talked with some members of the National Association of Rail Passengers, picked up some new information on the Silverliner V, saw some great paintings of trains, heard a former Pullman Porter talk about his experiences, and saw Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood.  Probably the most exciting part was the rolling stock tour.  I got to walk through an Acela trainset as well as an old Santa Fe dining car.

[Show as slideshow]

Read Full Post | May 09 2009 | Swarthmore and Transportation News | No Comments » |

Swat Blotter: Armed Intruder

Swarthmore Public Safety

I just received the following email:

SWARTHMORE COLLEGE
Emergency Communication
An armed intruder was discovered in Wharton and has fled. No one was harmed. Police are on the scene. Watch e-mail for further details.

Bad news, especially after last month’s armed robbery.

Read Full Post | May 04 2009 | Swarthmore | No Comments » |

The Return of the Big Chair

The Big Chair of Swarthmore's Parrish Beach

The Big Chair made a suprise return to Parrish Beach this morning.  Clearly, the reports of its death were greatly exaggerated.  The Adirondack Chairs all prostrated themselves in appropriate deference to their master.

Read Full Post | April 29 2009 | Swarthmore | No Comments » |

Cute “Robotic” Social Experiment

I love that we’ll be talking about this in my Cities, Spaces, and Power seminar this week.

Read Full Post | April 27 2009 | Swarthmore | No Comments » |

April Update

It’s been a busy two and half weeks since my last update.  Highlights include the Writing Program’s Annual Spring Speaker, turning in a draft of my Lang Opportunity Scholarship Project Proposal, and a field trip with my Cities and Transportation Systems class.  I also performed my usual tasks for Swarthmore’s spring debate tournament:

$800 worth of Thai food for lunch at Peaslee's debate tournament

Cleaning up the residue of $800 worth of poorly packaged Thai food from the back of the Peaslee Van

Read Full Post | April 26 2009 | Swarthmore | No Comments » |

Springtime

Parrish Beach

The Adirondack Chairs that populate Parrish Beach came into bloom today.  If the lows would stay above forty degrees, I’d be convinced spring is here.

Read Full Post | April 08 2009 | Swarthmore | No Comments » |

Speechwriter and Communications Coach Dr. Nick Morgan to Speak at Swat

Swarthmore’s Writing Associates Program is sponsoring a talk on Thursday by Dr. Nick Morgan.  Dr. Morgan has appeared on the Today Show and was a speechwriter for former Virginia Governor Charles Robb.  He is also the President of Public Words, a communications consulting firm.  Public Words’ blog has some interesting tips on public speaking and communication, including the assertion that “real leaders don’t use Power Point.”  I’m looking forward to hearing what he has to say on Thursday.

Read Full Post | April 07 2009 | Swarthmore | No Comments » |

Parrish Declared Structurally Unsound

Parrish falling into disrepair

Faculty members from the Engineering Department were called in to provide emergency consultation after part of the facade fell off of the rear of Parrish this morning.  They apparently found massive structural defects and believe collapse is imminent.  Non-essential personnel who work in Parrish’s Center Wing were evacuated this afternoon.

Read Full Post | April 01 2009 | Swarthmore | No Comments » |

Hailstorm

Dark clouds behind church

I got caught in yesterday’s crazy hailstorm.  Walking back from church, the sky changed from blue to black in about a minute, and I started getting pelted by dime-sized hail.  At least the rain only lasted three minutes and we didn’t get any of the golf ball-sized hail that Media got – quite the squall.

Pile of hail (pencil for scale)

Read Full Post | March 30 2009 | Swarthmore | No Comments » |