state of the union

So I'm taking a break from Tripping all day (went to Freer Museum and DuPont) to share a few thoughts before I head out to watch the State of the Union address....



As I was walking back home on the National Mall, there was a practice entrance for the President. Sirens. A million cars. Military men (I saw no women). Before Obama makes his grand entrance, the Capitol will be brimming with people... men will be armed and ready at the top of the Capitol dome. My friend said, "Right now, we are the are in the safest and most dangerous place." How true.

Some people gather to listen. Some people gather to watch. We all gather. For support? To applaud? To critique? Ablaze are the American people. Each have his/her own set of ideals about how money should be spent, when we should pull out of Afghanistan, if homosexuals should be allowed to marry, and why we are in the "state" we are in. How? When? If? Why? No clear solution exists.

My phone is buzzing. I have million things to say, but for now, I will say goodbye. Watch our President speak. Take into account his words. Know that he is human. We are human. You are human. I am human. We all make mistakes, and as we do, we strive to be better, to correct our wrongdoings, and to move with the speed of life.

Peace,
GTB

what could you Live Without?

Before a run down the Mall this morning, I was reading the NYT and came across the following Op-Ed article about letting go of something you have so someone else has it a little better...

www.nytimes.com/2010/01/24/opinion/24kristof.html?em

Now for my picture:


Caption: On the way to take a Trip to DuPont, I saw this woman rocking back and forth next to Union Station, a major metro/Amtrack stop in DC near the Hill. To be honest, I noticed her Eeyore stuffed animal first. Then, I saw her.

The Washington Post reported last year that 6,228 people live in DC. Of these 6,228 people, 3,934 are considered "unaccompanied single" people while the remaining 2, 294 people are in families... some are children.

Why are they homeless? Laziness, some say. Others point to a bad economic climate. Maybe the reason is the expansion of the transitional housing programs in the city. One thing I can bet is that they did not wake up one morning and decide to be homeless. The woman outside of Union Station did not throw away all her belongings save her Eeyore and Tigger and hit the streets to rock on the concrete blocks, to gaze off into the distance. I've noticed on many of my Trips that the homeless who are sitting alone are often looking at something I cannot see. I wonder what it is.

Word on the street is that everyone is in pursuit of the "American Dream." The ease at which one achieves this dream varies from person to person; some are born into a reality of the Dream wherein they go their merry ways while others aren't even aware that achieving said dream is possible. Circumstances differ. Talents differ. People differ. Those who are born and greeted with open doors of opportunity sometimes end up the biggest failures. Others who are born to nothing become the biggest successes. What astonishes me most is the failure of the privileged to acknowledge that not everyone can wake up to a Dream come true. Unexpected events happen to people who are on a path of prosperity, and all of a sudden, the magic carpet disappears, the roof falls in, and the streets become home.

Forgive me for soapboxing (I promised not to), but the article really struck a chord with me. Sometimes it takes a young, hopeful set of eyes to refocus the worn out eyes of the traveled. Seeing past a problem or "situation" (as some call it) takes strength and understanding that humanity is never fair... neither is life.

I leave you with a quote from Gatsby: "In my younger and more vulnerable years my father gave me some advice that I've been turning over in my mind ever since. 'Whenever you feel like criticizing any one,' he told me, 'just remember that all the people in this world haven't had the advantages you've had.'"

Don't forget others less fortunate than you in your Trips. What could you live without? Sometimes it's easier to Trip with less baggage, anyway...

Let Go and Dream on,
GTB

day in day out

Confession: I don't have a picture for today's post.


Blank space










That's my picture for today Nothing to fill the void It's weird not having something on which to base one's perspective No period No comma No picture No face No name No one Black White You Me Us Trippers

A million things have happened since our last Trip documentation. Politically, emotionally, intellectually... a lot is going on in this world. Floods. Earthquakes. Overturned laws. New faces. New names. This Tripper will get better at documentation, but for now, consider the void. Consider the empty space. How do you want to fill it?

We're all filling blank spaces; every day, something opens up, or gives way, or dies... and in its absence, someone must find a replacement. Each day opens doors for a new generation of thoughts, ideas, people, and with one generation's beginning, another generation ends. We're all in the process of ending. Beginnings and endings have the same outcome; what matters most is the time in between. The promise of significance is what matters most. The hope that filling voids or making up for shortcomings is what elevates each generation to the next level. It's the hope that this generation will be the best generation.... It's the hope that we can, in fact, learn from the mistakes of yesterday. That lesson alone makes us confident that tomorrow and tomorrow's people will be better.

So here's to blank space and tomorrow.

Fill the void,
GTB

the missing man

"All the lives we could live, all the people we will never know, never will be, they are everywhere. That is what the world is."

- Aleksandar Hemon, the lazarus project



On a Day Trip to Georgetown, I came across a missing man. I walked past his shoes, turned around, and went back; there sat (or stood, should I say) his shoes, but the man was no where to be found. In true Tripper-style, I took a picture of the shoes in case I came across the man. As of now, he is still missing.

Continuing on my own way, I began to think of people's missing pieces, or missing people who leave behind their pieces. In all the world, people lose and find pieces every minute - We lose and find each other... We lose and find ourselves. Some people lose love; others lose maps. Some people lose people; others lose keys. Some lose direction; others lose their shoes. But it is in losing and getting lost that one finds and is found...

As for the man - maybe he needed better fitting shoes. As for the shoes - I went back yesterday to see if they were still there, and they weren't. New man maybe? I may never meet this missing man, and I definitely will never live in his shoes.... but we did cross paths on the sidewalk one day. Everywhere are missing people that you and I will never know, but that's the beauty of the world.

SO, here's to getting lost and being found...

Get lost,
GTB

look UP

Not an incredibly eventful day for The Tripper. A run down the Mall took me to the Washington Monument.

Sent via BlackBerry by AT&T

I think sometimes we forget to look up. Life is all about perspective. What's in front of us or behind us doesn't always present the best answers to our greatest questions. Oftentimes it's what's just above our reach that opens the biggest doors. So don't forget to look up when tunnel vision takes over... in this case, the sky is the limit I guess one could say.

Ciao for now,
GTB

Stay on board for OVERHEARD, and find out what to do if life gives you lemons...

Enough with the introductions

One of my dear friends just informed me that my socialite name is Georgina Tippy Bouvier. I'll take it.

Welcome to The Day Tripper. The Tripper's aim is not to soapbox, nor is it to preach to choirs. We have enough of that stuff as is. The Day Tripper varies from day to day, as does life, you, me, etc. So instead of taking "so long to find out" (as some day trippers tend to tease those who follow them), this Day Tripper will feature day-to-day in raw format. You'll get what you see - no more, no less. The Tripper does not promise, however, that some views won't be a little skewed.



The Tripper will feature photos, music, links, opinions, fashion, inquiries, polls... and is open to suggestions. No one Day Trip is like another. You may not chose to Day Trip daily, but on the days you click on the ticket to ride, feel free to jump in with ideas, opinions, and future Day Trip wishes. Everyone wants to go somewhere; everyone wants to escape the norm to experience a taste of something different. We're all in this together.

Look forward to Day Tripping with you.

Best,
GTB