Category: Life in General

VDOT Traffic Engineers Appear to Be Stupid

Posted on by chappyshi

In the nearly five years I have been living and/or commuting in Virginia, I have written about the horrors of Route 28 which transits north/south from Route 7 in Sterling to Route 17 near Bealton.  The drivers seem to be insane; changing lanes at the last minute to exit, changing lanes for no reason at all, driving slowly in the fast lane, etc.

Over the years, VDOT (Virginia Department of Transportation for those of you aren’t from the area) has done much to alleviate the congestion on this road most of which has involved overpasses and a fairly ingenious stoplight/traffic pattern at Braddock Road near Route 66.  I will not speak for the nightmare of 28 South of Centreville because I don’t have to use it daily.  If I did,  I’d have killed myself and not written this rant.

Today, while having a beer at the aforementioned Applebees, which I never need to go to again, I heard that one of the three last major overpasses on Route 28 had been completed.  One of them was finished up a few weeks ago.  It was the last light prior to reaching Route 7 heading north…at Nokes Boulevard, which provides access to the Dulles Town Center Mall.  There were two lights prior to that, one of which, Severn Way,  provided access to my last employer.  That light is now gone and the road is blocked.  Now those who wish access to entities on Severn Way have to go round robin to get to the plant from Route 28.

The other light in that area seem superfluous but provides access/egress to a parking lot on the Washington and Old Dominion trail.  We’ll see how long that light lasts…

The ugliness truly still exists at rush hour traveling south on Route 28 to Route 66 which is a major east/west artery in the western D.C. suburbs.  Route 28 was already backing up from the Route 66 ramps to where the new overpass was just completed at Willard Road.  Now, without the stoplight, all traffic is free to cruise under the overpass and back things up even further from Route 66, probably to Route 50  and points north.

This was all predicted by yours truly and others familiar with the commute.  If you take out a bunch of stoplights that, albeit annoying, meter the  traffic on the route, it is all going to get jammed up even worse at the next choke point(s).  In this case, the choke points are: a worthless traffic light giving access to a recreational field (Ellanor C. Lawrence Park)  for northbound traffic and a required light giving access to Braddock Road for northbound traffic.

And so to get to the point, I wasn’t even on Route 28 and I was afflicted.  Coming out of the shopping area I was in, I tried to take a left onto Westfields Boulevard which crosses route 28 between the newly opened overpass  and the Route 66.  Traffic was backed up on my side for people trying to merge on to 28 south.  Traffic was backed up across from me for people trying to merge on to Westfields Boulevard east to get to 28 south.  Traffic was backed up on Westfields Boulevard heading SW for people trying to get to Route 29 South on a shortcut to bypass the backup on 28 south to Routes 28 and 66.  Can you say goat rope?

More On Unscrupulous Restaurant Employees

Posted on by chappyshi

I ordered a beer at a local Applebees.  When I was ready to pay for it, I asked what the damage was.  The barmaid said it was $3.15 with tax.  I put a fiver on the bar and the woman had the balls to ask me if I wanted change!  I said yes of course.  As if I was going to tip the wench 62% on a three dollar tab.  As it was, I tipped her 28%.  She’s dead to me now however.  I’ll never go in there again.

Pissed, But Not in a British Way

Posted on by chappyshi

I was in a rant mode, pissed as it were, on my way home from doing nothing.  (Brits commonly refer to being drunk as being “pissed.”)  Before I could even start on why I was pissed, I got doubly pissed because the music service I signed onto yesterday is not working on my Squeeze Box as it should.  Take that however you wish…

It is a web-based music service, as I guess they all are less, Sirius, called Radioio.  I am getting “404 – page not found” errors.  I have been using a music service, Rhapsody, for more than six years and that error is a new one to me…as far as the music service goes.  It is obviously a common error message encountered when browsing the web.

No matter, I am pissed!

Paddling in Burke Lake Park

Posted on by chappyshi

I had a real nice paddle in Burke Lake a few weeks ago.  It was just an awesome day with perfect weather and not too many people on the water.  I did the circuit pulling all the way into all the little coves exploring and seeing wildlife.  Mostly all I saw were blue herons.  I’ll often see a green heron out there but didn’t see any this trip.

Sidewalk or Bikewalk?

Posted on by chappyshi

I am getting a little pissed off at bicyclists riding on the sidewalk when there is a perfectly good road to ride on.  Mostly they are teens who are too inconsiderate to signal when they are coming up on you and/or to slow down when they are passing you.  I know from plenty of experience that bikes can come up on you with no warning at all and scare the piss out of you when you notice they are right behind or right next to you.

On all the dual-use trails  in the area there are signs explicitly restricting bicycle speed limits and requiring that you use a bell or horn to alert those who you are approaching from the rear.  There are no laws in Virginia that say one cannot ride a bicycle on a sidewalk  but they do require that you “give an audible signal before passing.”  Unfortunately there are no signs posted on the sidewalks that make people aware of the regulation.  Perhaps the state thinks that riders will be considerate enough…right!

I Can Pick My Nose. Why Can’t I Pick My Cable Company?

Posted on by chappyshi

Prior to October 31, 2007, if you lived in an apartment complex, you had no choice on who your cable TV service provider was.  On that date, the “FCC voted to retroactively prohibit exclusive agreements between apartment firms and video service (cable) providers,” as noted in this release from the National Multi Housing Council (NMHC).  The NMHC cites all sorts of reasons which the decision was bad for the consumer.  The primary reason is that the apartment complex management companies could purportedly negotiate lower fees for their residents.

I have lived in an “Equity Residential” apartment for four years now.  When I got here, Cox was the cable provider and it still is.  I had, and still have, no other options for cable TV.  I can recall nothing as relates to my agreement with Equity Residential that gives me any benefit or deal with Cox because of that agreement.  All transactions that I have made with Cox have been exclusively through myself, not through Equity Residential.

According to the previously cited release, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit as recently as May 26, 2009, upheld the FCC’s decision.  Yet, a year and half after the initial decision, I still have no options  available to me other than Cox cable in my Equity Residential managed apartment.  Most  galling is the fact that multi housing managerial concerns believe that negotiating an exclusivity agreement for telecom services is best for their renters.  I certainly agree that that might be the case when it comes to utilities, gas and electric, and services such as trash removal, recycling, and landscaping, but for something as personal as TV, the resident has to be able to make the final decision.

Northern Virginia Summer Brewfest, 2009

Posted on by chappyshi

Saturday I went with my sister and brother-in-law, Ed, to the Northern Virginia Summer Brewfest in Leesburg, sponsored at least in part by Vintage 50, a great restaurant and brewpub, also in Leesburg.  The weather was glorious, low 80’s and low humidity.  Parking was a snap which is always good.  Ed was the designated driver.

I have a few bumper stickers, cards, and coasters that were supposed to help me remember what beers I had tasted and whether or not I liked them.  I actually had no beers I didn’t like…probably an oxymoron…  I do remember a couple that didn’t do anything for me,  from the same  brewpub the name of which unfortunately escapes me.  One was an IPA and one was a double-hopped IPA…NOT!  I wish I could remember the brewery so I don’t make the mistake of trying it again.

Breweries We Support:

Breweries We Definitely Do Not Support (They are dead to me!  No links provided to crap!)

  • Anheuser Busch (bought out and shut down Old  Dominion Brewery who brewed Tuppers Hop Pocket Ale and Pilsner).
  • Fordham Brewing Company (partnered with Anheuser Busch to buy out Old Dominon Brewery).  Should be referred to as a “Crap” brewery.

We tasted mostly IPA’s, especially the Tuppers Hop Pocket Ale, which was the first of that we’ve had in nearly a year.  It is now being brewed by the St. George Brewing Company based in Hampton, VA.  I thought the beer need a bit of fine tuning to get it back up to par.  We’ll wait and see what happens…

As to the other beers, I did not take notes as I should have.  I will take a recording device to the next one of these tastings I go to.  I do remember having a very complex, i.e. multiple fruits, Hefeweisen and a quite citrusy IPA.  I do know for sure that I enjoyed Otter Creek’s Imperial IPA.  Though I lived in Vermont for a few years as a kid and go up there a couple of times a year I have never been that hot on Otter Creek.  I have always like the Wolaver’s IPA.

Bottom line, we spend a nice afternoon at a great location, in gorgeous weather, amongst a great crowd, sampling a few very tasty craft brews!

FIOS, Is It Really Worth It?

Posted on by chappyshi

Verizon’s FIOS (fiber optics vice copper to the home) has been touted as God’s gift to digital TV and broadband Internet access.  (Disclaimer, my brother-in-law works for Verizon, does FIOS installs, and has FIOS TV and Internet.)  I have been resonably impressed with the TV service, usability, functionality, on-screen menus, DVR, and such.

However, if one had DirectTV and wanted only FIOS Internet access from Verizon, for example, they would have to pay five dollars per month more for the Internet access if they didn’t bundle IP phone service with the deal.  See it here.  To me this is close to a deal breaker and for posterity, it would be a deal breaker.  I haven’t had a land line for eight or ten years and surely wouldn’t get one to save five bucks a month on Internet access…which is probably what Verizon is betting on.

I understand that Verizon wants to make money and that bundling phone service with Internet access theoretically is a good deal for the consumer.  Realistically, it is only a good deal if you are still using a seriously outdated landline service that you should have bailed on years ago.  For me, ditching a landline pretty much paid for my Internet access.  Why should those of us who saw years ago how the telecom cards were going to fall be penalized for being early adopters?  Why would we want to pay for a service that we’ve given up and never missed?  Shouldn’t someone like the FCC be investigating these cheesy marketing practices?

Verizon generally has a good thing going with FIOS but the technology is the only thing that saved Verizon in the broadband wars with the cable companies.  FIOS I am sure was conceived as an alternative to DSL which could never compete with cable’s pricepoint speedwise.  From my experience DSL was much less reliable, and often harder to configure, than cable Internet access.  DSL was always, and still is, severely hampered by distance constraints.   If you are located more than 15,000 feet from the nearest  presence of your phone company, you’ll be lucky to get download speeds of .5 Mbps compared to the 15 Mbps for Verizon FIOS’ basic package.  Yet, even with the prevalence of FIOS, cable Internet access still  dominates  in rural areas.  It just isn’t cost effective yet for Verizon to roll out FIOS in rural and small town USA.

Now, I have Cox for Internet access and TV.  I pay for 5 Mbps downloads but often see download speeds similar to those promised by FIOS.  Go to DSL Reports to check your download and upload speeds.  I pay the same amount per month for my Internet access as I would for FIOS’ basic package.  I do not see much in the way of speed differences while web surfing at home as compared to web surfing at my brother-in-laws house.  I don’t know if watching TV and using the Internet at the same time is any different on FIOS than it is on cable.  I assume there are some Quality of Service (QOS) standards that ensure at least that your TV signal has the bandwidth that it needs, even at the expense of Internet access performance.

Nonetheless, at the rates that I get for what I pay,  I can, and do, stream music for hours every day while web surfing and downloading files to my heart’s content.  I can also watch movies on demand from Netflix without any problems.  I guess that what I am trying to say is that  I am not sure that Verizon FIOS is all that, especially if, to save five dollars, I would have to get phone service I’d never use.

Governor Sanford “and Sons”

Posted on by chappyshi

What a freaking cheese dick!  Let’s see if I could get away with this…   I  am the governor of a state in the US.  I tell my staff, I think, that I am going hiking on the Appalachian Trail  for five days and will be out of touch.  Not even my Lieutenant Governor knows how to contact  me or what the chain of command is should I be unreachable, which I have already said would be the case.

To start with, I am such a conservative freak that I refuse nearly $800 million in stimulus funds from the Federal government.  That should really endear me to my constituents!  Then what?  I am actually in Argentina with some woman I met on the Internet…  I must be some kind of God!!!

Out you freaking idiot and out those who must have had some  knowledge your indescretion.  You all make me sick.  I am struggling to find a job and you are just getting away with murder.  Read it and weep.

Calamity Cat

Posted on by chappyshi

My cat, Hamlet, who is 18.5 years old, whom I have I had for 18 years, has always had problems with constipation.  Eight or ten years ago he was at the vets for xrays and a serious enema to get the poop out.  After a few days at the vets, he was still hurting and the vet recommended that I bring him home to see if he would relax and pass the rest of the poop.  Fortunately that did the trick.  He passed a huge turd!

I have been regularly (no pun intended) giving him special food, laxatives, and fiber to keep him loose.  That has generally done the trick but occasionally he has problems dropping a turd.  On Monday, he was in the hurt locker.  He was wandering around my apartment (read “not in the cat box”) trying to take a shit. I watched him do this for a bit.  The poses he struck as he tried to do this were both humorous and painful to watch.  At some points he looked like a turkey in mating season.  Hard to describe but I wasn’t into taking pictures.  Between trying to drop the massive gassive, he would lie down, breath heavily, and occasionally have spasms in his lower body.  Plus he had a wicked hardon for whatever reason.  I called the vets to ask  for an urgent appointment and they were able to get Hamlet in within about 1.5 hours.

Come to find out, he has arthritis in his spine (I  saw the xrays, did not look good) that is causing him pain getting around and particularly when getting in position to urinate or deficate.  This makes me wonder if much of the problem he has had over the years pissing and shitting are related to arthritis that started years ago.  It supposedly can set in in cats 8 to 10 years old…  Once again, Hamlet is 18.5!  Nonetheless, the vet gave him an enema and prescribed medication to reduce the swelling associated with the arthritis and pain killers should they be necessary.

So far Hamlet seems fine.  He is not taking the huge pisses he used to take that soaked a good 25% of the cat box but still hasn’t dropped a turd.  That bothers me a bit.  I had planned to go down to Suffolk, VA, to hang out with my sister Kim, her husband Don,  my brother Reid, and his family but decided I’d best stick around to be sure that Hamlet is okay.  I also did not want to leave my sister Julie responsible for Hamlet after the incident and the new medicinal regime.