Peter’s Blog V2

Face masks are a common accessory in Asia.  People in Taiwan wear it to shield themselves from dust, pollens and viruses, and to keep their own sicknesses from spreading to others.  Hong Kong, Japan, and likely other surrounding countries, share the common etiquette in their cultures - something I slowly forgot after moving to the United States.

This morning, for the very first time in the US, I saw somebody wear a face mask in public.

And the second time.  And the third.

The swine flu has hit the US at a threatening level, and NYC has been hit the hardest.  The first couple of cases were discovered right here in Queens, which is also a crowded neighborhood for any virus’s convenience. Morning commute on the Subway is filled with endless surprises even without a pademic warning out there, so no wonder people started taking action to protect themselves.  Hmm. Maybe I should be worried too?

The E and F trains transport a majority of New Yorkers living in Queens and Brooklyn.  Now, for supposed work to “make track improvements”, their service will be reduced during rush hours, until the end of the year.  That’s right - our sucky commute will suck even more until (?) 2010.

Dude, it’s only April!

What should the millions of New Yorkers do about it?  Beloved MTA recommends “allow for more travel time”, meaning “fuck yourself.”

On a blog that I visit frequently, I found a link to the article How To Not Be A Douchebag Tourist In NYC.

(Warning: links on the side of the page may be inappropriate for work)

The article speaks all New Yorkers’ hearts.  But it’s funny to read the massive number of comments, most of which are from “the rest of America” who apparently hate and despise New York.  We understand that New Yorkers behave like assholes, but the outsiders don’t understand the kind of shit we live through everyday.

Another random fact about New York… very few places in the U.S. have over 10k people in one square mile.  The second highest population density is in San Francisco at 16.6k.  New York has 26.4k people per square mile, 60% more dense than San Francisco.

Uncle called and said, “Sean’s visiting New York.  You still remember him, right?”

“Of course,” I said.  But the caveat was, if he still looked like what I remembered, I’d be pretty concerned.  It had been a while.

It was great to meet up again.  Kind of like making a new friend, kind of not.

Last Saturday night, people around the world turned their lights off to conserve energy, in celebration of the Earth Hour 2009.  Click to see some amazing city skyline transitions from light to dark.

I did not hear about this event until Sean and Alice brought it up, when I took them sightseeing and they questioned why the office buildings don’t shut their lights off at night.  Obviously, you don’t see New York in this series of pictures as an Earth Hour participant.