some of the anxiety the news is causing is in anticipation of what September is going to be like this year. 10 years means a million specials and re-running of news.

Oh god. I hadn't even thought of that.

I have to go to Boston next month, and I'm having an extraordinary amount of difficulty in figuring out how to get there. I hate to fly, what with security checks, seats that my ass barely fits into, cramped spaces filled with other humans, my growing sense of crowd anxiety (I know where it's coming from but that doesn't make it go away), rigid schedules that don't fit what I'd prefer to be doing, and the fact that our reimbursement is capped at $520, an insanely small amount that will only cover my airline ticket if I fly at dreadfully early hours of the morning out of an airport that's in another city. I'd rather drive, except it's 11 hours if there are no traffic jams and god help me if there are. I could take the train, which would also be 11 hours, but I could, theoretically, relax. I've only ever taken a train once before, but I recall actually being more bored than relaxed after a couple hours. It's hard for me to relax with strangers around and me being alone and having to carry my shit with me every time I leave my seat.

Driving a comfortable rental car with my music playing, being able to stop whenever I want, being able to carry whatever I want with me and leave on my own schedule, trumps everything - until I'm stuck in a traffic jam and yelling "why the fuck didn't I fly?" I don't know. This decision shouldn't be so hard.

As much as I love trains, one thing about them is that freight has priority, which means you can get really long delays. Like 12 hours on occasion. This varies a lot with route, so if somebody on the board knows the quirks of your particular route, that might help you decide.

Mark Bittman is such a drama queen. I didn't see much in there that counters Teppy's analysis from a week or so ago. He just seems to hate McDonald's and fast food culture, really. He's a bit of a food elitist in my opinion.

Yeah, I read that and was a bit taken aback--I mean, yes, it'd be nice if you could get skim milk instead of weird "cream", but the rest of it sounds fine. (Though honestly, if it's only ten calories less than an egg mc muffin, I'd just as soon have one of those--more protein for my morning start, which is what I've had trouble with the oatmeal for!)

ETA: And Zen's route shouldn't be freight train interrupted, except possibly at the beginning (am I remembering Virignia right, Zen?). DC-NYC-BOS is pretty well traveled, Amtrak wise, and they even have semi-speedy trains (Acela) that cost extra (and aren't all that much faster, but are unlikely to end up behind a freight train)

ND,

Mark Bittman is such a drama queen.

No doubt. He has also abandoned his cooking column for a new food blog and so he is an evangelist now.

There is nothing worse than an evangelist. Also, remember news channels don't call who's smartest...they call who's always around...the David Frums of the world get called back cause they've got their hands in the air even when their answers are wrong.

Hivemind opinion--I have one of these metal wig stands: [link]

Is TSA going to let me fly with it?

Mark Bittman is such a drama queen. I didn't see much in there that counters Teppy's analysis from a week or so ago. He just seems to hate McDonald's and fast food culture, really. He's a bit of a food elitist in my opinion.

Nora already said what I would have about Bittman. He's annoying at best, but on this specific issue, he's sanctimonious, pearl-clutching, and inflammatory. He says nothing to actually put the oatmeal's nutritional content in context, and that allows him to pontificate his ass off. I noted that only a few people in the comments were willing to point out that the ingredients he was decrying as horrific were, actually, pretty common and pretty healthy.

I'm on the iPod, and typing is annoying, so I'll end my screed here.

I have a variety of silly hats, but they are more for display than wear. I don't really wear hats, but I want to start.

metal wig stand...Is TSA going to let me fly with it?

Should be no problem in a checked bag, but in carry-on? Maybe, maybe not. It is subject to whim: [link] "To ensure travelers' security, Transportation Security Officers (TSOs) may determine that an item not on the Prohibited Items List is prohibited."