They say the way to succeed as a blogger is to use shocking headlines. Now you have mine.

And it’s true. This morning at the Seattle airport, I had a very pleasant experience going through Securty, and no, I am not referring to an especially loving pat-down. Because I am a Special Person, I got to go through the new TSA Pre screening…”pre” as in “pre-check.” (BTW, does the “pre-” really add anything in the word “pre-approved”?) They put you onto an extra-specially short line — you get pulled out of the First Class line to go on a yet-shorter line. There they tell you to keep your belt and shoes on, keep your laptop in your bag, leave the change in your pocket, and please feel free to keep your spring jacket on. They do want the cellphone to come out of your pocket. And then they put you through a plain old scanner that doesn’t take nude pictures of you and post them on the Internet on a Tranny Grannies page (a long story).

I was able to register for the TSA Pre program because I’d already gone through a pretty extensive screening to become part of the Global Entry program. The Global Entry program lets me go through Customs at some airports by sticking my head into a vending machine. I signed up for that program after getting a security clearance from the feds. If you are part of Global Entry, registering for the TSA Pre program just takes a quick trip to the Web. If you’re not, there’s some other process.

So, for Special People like me, the TSA Pre program is great. But it’s hardly a scalable solution. And, yes, I do feel like a traitor to species when I go on that specially short line. Still: It’s a specially short line! I’m only human!

3 Comments »

The Illinois state legislature has declared Pluto a planet.

Ah, when will the madness stop? The delicious, delicious madness.

[Tags: pluto taxonomy everything_is_miscellaneous illinois ]

13 Comments »

David Isenberg, exercising his freedom to disconnect, has posted photos from his trip to Antarctica here, here, and here.

Meanwhile, there’s still time to sign up for David’s Freedom to Connect conference, March 30-31, in Silver Spring MD (a subway ride from DC). It’s a terrific get-together and learning-fest for those who think that pervasive access to an open Internet is important and do-able. It attracts a whole bunch of the do-ers. I try not to miss it.

[Tags: antarctica david_isenberg isen freedom_to_connect net_neutrality broadband ]

Be the first to comment »

In 2000, I wrote about Gong Di Lin, a fake-meat veggie restaurant. I went back tonight. It’s moved a few blocks. The place is now bright rather than dingy. But it’s still delicious, with a huge menu of foods, from chicken to jellyfish to intestines to “man-made horse feet.” I had Szichuan “chicken,” fried rice with “pork” and a very big bottle of beer. (80 yuan, or about US$12.) The man at the table next to me struck up a conversation — very friendly witha beautiful young teenage son. (I noticed many fathers with sons as I walked for 6 hours today. Maybe that’s only because I brought our son to Beijing when he was about that boy’s age.)

I can’t find the address of its new venue, so ask someone. But, if you walk down Wangfujing St., the big pedestrian shopping mall with all the fancy shops, and if you cross Quianmen East St. going south, it’s just a few buildings down. Unfortunately for us Westerners, the sign is Chinese-only. So, like I say, ask someone. You’ll be glad.

[Tags: beijing vegetarian_restaurants ]

4 Comments »

I built up on my nerve and successfully used the old-fashioned elevator at the hotel I’m at in Frankfurt. It’s a continuous, and continuously-moving, loop of open cubicles, large enough for two skinny people, or one American. No waiting, no doors. You step in as an empty compartment approaches and hop out as it moves past your floor.

The clerk assures me that there have been no injuries, although it seems easy to hurt yourself: mis-time your exit and you will be part way between the elevator and the floor as the elevator moves on. I’m surprised the lobby isn’t littered with severed arms and torsos split cleanly in two.

On the other hand, I only got in once the clerk assured me that if I panicked and was unable to force myself to hop out, it doesn’t turn the compartments upside down at the top of the loop.

Damn thrilled-crazed Europeans!

[Tags: elevators europe human_vegematics ]

27 Comments »

I’m about to begin a 4-city, 3-country, 7-day around the world trip, from Germany to China to Vancouver, arriving home on the morning of Election Day. And you know what I’d really like to find? A printable statement that explains in Chinese that I am a vegetarian, that I don’t eat any animals, including fish or shellfish, or anything made with animals (including fish juice in sauce, animal juice in soup, etc.). Any one have a quick pointer before I leave in a couple of hours?

[Tags: vegetarian ]

13 Comments »

Las Vegas Hilton in-room phone answering system interaction:

“Press U for user options.”
[You press U (= numeral 8)]
“User Options: Press X to exit user options.”

The war in Iraq? Sartre’s idea of bourgeois freedom? How I feel when I run into someone whose name I can’t remember who asks me, “Remember me?”?

[Tags: user_interface_design ]

1 Comment »

Often, on the back of a ‘Do Not Disturb’ sign is a ‘Make Up My Room Now’ message of some sort. But, now matter how they phrase it, isn’t it the same as an “I’m Out, So This Would Be a Good to Rob Me, Especially If You Are Squeamish about Violence” sign?

11 Comments »

I’m in Milan for an afternoon, and then in Madrid for some part of a day, and then home. Blogging may be lighter than usual.

I’ve been in Milan several times before. Every time I see it, it seems like a different city. I’m not sure if it’s seasonal, because of the accidents of the parts of town I see, or one of the great pleasures of a failing memory. But, my, what a beautiful city it was this afternoon! [Tags: travel milan ]

3 Comments »

The Velveteen Rabbi is in Jerusalem, shopping in the Mechana Yehuda market.

[Tags: velveteen_rabbi jerusalem travel_writing ]

1 Comment »