An uphill battle

The Lehigh Valley Half Marathon was a great run. The weather was perfect with temperatures at the start in the low 50’s. The backdrop to the course was picturesque with rolling hills to slow me down and a covered bridge along the way. The sparsely scattered spectators were cheering us on and the bands provide distraction from the pain in my knee. The hardest part was the last mile as always. Along with the sharp uphill incline before entering the stadium to the finish line. I managed to sprint the last 30 yards and finish with a reasonable time of 1:52:47, pace 8:37. Looking forward to my next event where I plan on running faster. (Photos were taken along the way unfortunately most were blurry; I also managed to slip someone my camera while running.)

A Spring run

I’ll be in Allentown, Pa this Sunday running the Lehigh Valley Half Marathon. It should be a great race with live bands along the race route and scenic views of PA. Unfortunately, I skimmed on the training a bit, only did one long 12 mile run. My goal is to finish 1:30:49. Wish me luck.

Among the beauty hides the despair

Looking at this photo you only see beauty and tranquility; however that is not the case.
The president of Romania, Traian Basescu, has been suspended by the parliament. He is being accused of corruption and involvement in secret-police activity. Another bleak day for this country after making, what seemed like progress, in January. The EU will no doubt have a problem with this and not release the momentary support that was issued. Money that is desperately needed to rebuild the country. According to Transparency International (a non-governmental organization devoted to fighting corruption)
“Romania is still the most corruption-prone country in the EU” Romanians need to put an end to this otherwise they will never catch up to the other developed European nations. The revolution took place in 89, when will the ethical revolution take place?

Musee de l'Elysee

Dear Photographer,

Your images were shown in the Musee de l'Elysee's exhibit ‘We are all photographers now!’ in the last few days. Enclosed you will find some installation views of your images that show them in the wall.

We also sincerely hope you will visit the museum. The dates of the exhibition ‘All photographers now!’ are from February 8th, 2007 to May 20th, 2007.

From the team at the Musee de l'Elysee

What are hos?

It was strange but endearing at the same time when I had to translate the now famous phrase that got Imus fired, to my parents. At first I had a good laugh and though of the Romanian translation of a ho, a word I never used especially around my folks. However, I had a hard time explaining the second reference of the phrase. It’s not like Romanian is that racially diverse. I tried my best to explain to both of them the meaning and origins behind the insensitive comment. I also realized in a way how disconnected at times my family is from understanding American slang. Growing up I always felt that I was an outcast when it came to American culture. Many things that were part of pop culture along with slang and curse words I was oblivious to. Not having any siblings to learn from or family members that were born and raised here kept me uninformed. As a kid I tried my hardest to pretend at times that I was American and that I did get all the references that were mentioned. But, internally I didn’t and was scared to ask for fear of being ridiculed by the other kids. Over time I came to realized that I’m proud of my unique upbringing and background. So what if I never saw any of the Star Wars movie series or knew all the words to Grease. At least I know where the Black Sea is located and what the E.U stands for. Regardless, there was a time in my life when a ho was just a gardening tool and nothing more.

(photo: An image I took while in Romania last summer)