The Castrovinci Chronicles

Ringling Brothers and my very own Coup

I just realized something. My dad lived in Wisconsin and my mom lives in Florida. Ok. I realized that a long time ago, but, in Sarasota, FL is where the Ringling Circus keeps their animals during the winter, and Baraboo, WI like 10 minutes from my house is where the Ringling Circus keeps their animals during the summer. That's a crazy coincidence.

The Ringling Estate in Sarasota, FL is a huge mansion once owned by Johns Ringling along with one of the better private art collections in the US. He has these GIGANTIC Ruben paintings. I think there are six in existence, and he has five of them. Amazing. I'm not really that interested in the circus or anything like that, but what a crazy coincidence.

Anyhoo, I was thinking about the younger more savvy students who would like to go to Hopkins and make an impact on the world. I thought to myself: if I were a freshman, and I wanted to have  a unique project the world would talk about for decades to come, what would it be? I thought. I read. I contemplated. I came up with it. A COUP! Take a smaller more unstable country, preferably with a history of Coups and with you and a few savvy friends, some journalists, a few corporate entities, hired mercenaries, and exile government members, and you have yourself a government!

Let's get started.

1. First, you need a map:

2. You need a team of people. Who do you need? Hmmm. Two political science majors, two IR majors, three writing seminars majors, three econ/business majors, a handful of engineers, and of course, no coup is complete without a trusty pre-med. I know it's a bit cli-CHE. (Think about that one for a moment.)

3. Find a country that you can all commit to spending three summers and at least a semester to. All speaking the same language helps. So pick somewhere tropical that has an unpopular government with plenty of exiles.

4. Do your research!

• Writers- Find out how the press works: tv, radio, newspaper. See if you can't get an article published. Make those contacts. Also, hang around different coffee shops, etc to see what journalists you can meet.
• Political Science- Find the political exiles, there must be at least a few. Convince them that when you overtake the country, they will return to their rightful seat of power. This would be easier if they are well liked.
• International Relations- Go find the generals who have been overlooked for promotions in the current regime. Never outwardly suggest that there is a coup, but empower them to think they could do better under other administrations.
• ECON/Business- Find corporate interests who have been shunned out of the country by the current government. Promise them all kinds of things and see if they would be willing to provide you with any resources.
• Engineers- Just know how the country works on the ground level. Utilities, etc. Find if you can't figure out ways to convince people that they could do with a better power system that some corporate entity would love to come build for you with a predatory loan from the World Bank.
• Pre-Med- Be prepared to take on a larger role and have your face with a beret on plastered over the world's t-shirts for decades to come.

5. After your research is done. Get the media machine to work by having your writing networks denounce the atrocities of the government.

6. Get as many lawyers and guns as you can find. Also, buy a plane from an old airline to transport you in.

7. Find out when the dictator is out of the country. Make your move. Follow your plan. Get your corporate buddies in there, set up as many international loans as possible, have the generals overthrow and take over the military, find the propaganda machine, take the palace and the capital with the mercenaries you were able to hire.

8. PLAN B: We can't forget our trusty pre-law student to get us out of jail.

I say this in jest, sort of, but this would be better than any internship you could ever get.

PHIL's PHUN PHACT: The operation into Afghanistan is the farthest inland the US Marine Corps has ever been.

WATER FRONT HOTEL

You are reading the blog of the April 14th Champion of the WTF (Water Front Hotel) Trivia night. Crocodile means worm of the stones. "Popper" is the street name of the drug Amyl Nitrate. JCP was founded by John Cash Penny in Wyoming. I love it. I think I have found my new favorite spot in Baltimore. Trivia starts at around 8:30pm and the quesadillas are half price. WATER FRONT HOTEL. I highly recommend it.

Graduation is coming up. I often find myself thinking, how am I going to entertain my parents when they come down for the weekend? Where will we eat? What will we do? I think I am coming up with an excellent itinerary. Say Friday night to Sunday morning. Where do we go? Well. Let's see...

Friday Dinner: Brewer's Art on Charles Street. Perhaps the most famous bar and restaurant in Baltimore.

Saturday Breakfast: Karma's Cafe in Charles Village. Small place under St. Paul's Court. Great place for coffee.

Saturday Lunch: Rayleigh's Oyster Bar in Federal Hill. Walk around the area to see a great piece of southern Baltimore. Dog pub is also a gourmet pizza place with a great atmosphere where you can take your dog!

Saturday Dinner: Waterfront Hotel. In Fell's point, you will see one of the most famous ports in America. This is the area that produced the greatest number of clipper ships in the heyday of sail.

Sunday Brunch: Brunch at the Ambassador. All you can eat Indian Buffet with drinks to match.

I would ultimately avoid the Inner Harbor: a great place, but for the weekend there is so much more to eat in Baltimore with more local flavor.

A bunch has happened since we last met. The Carolina Cup. My birthday. Alumni Weekend. SAE Paddy Murphy Party! The last few weeks have been rather exciting. But no time to write ... being a senior is tough.

PHILS PHUN PHACT: Nouns of assemblage: a smack of jellyfish. A bloat of hippos. A float of crocodiles.

Carolina Cup Part Duex

This past weekend, we left Hopkins on Friday and drove all the way down to South Carolina. I think in another life, I would have been born in the south. Easy for a kid born in New Jersey to say, but the trip was incredible. As I said in the post last year about the cup, this place is another world.

Most people you'll meet at school seem to be from all over but mostly from New Jersey, New York, and California. But when you are standing in line waiting to go to the bathroom and everyone you meet is from South Carolina, there seems to be something slightly refreshing about it. I dunno, maybe it's the general demeanor you take on when you go on vacation: the new experience is cause enough for excitement.

On the way back we stopped at the US Army Special Forces Museum in North Carolina, which was a cool stop. There is something about the military where you can negotiate with Northern Alliance communities, but still destroy tanks.

49 days and counting till the big day when the safety net is gone. The world looks pretty big when the times gets closer.

PHIL'S PHUN PHACT:   The Marine Corps was started by seven guys in a bar before the Revolutionary War. Shouldn't be that surprising as America was basically founded the same way.

Politics

I came to Hopkins and am leaving Hopkins with the idea of working in medicine. But the more I think of it, being a US Congressman would be the sweetest job in the world. Certainly, a senator would be a bit sweeter, but let's not get ahead of ourselves here. The only requirements for being a congressman is to live in the district and be 25. Sounds good to me.

I mean, depending on where  you live, you might need to spend anywhere between $50,000 to $10,000,000 for your campaign. But with record numbers of congressman retiring because of the difficulty of getting re-elected, why not? Certainly, Obama has shaken up young people to make their voices a bit more heard. But how do you get there? Nice schools? Military? Who knows.

Senators invariably come from Ivy Leagues and seem to be senators forever. But I am frankly surprised how many congressmen and senators don't have high school diplomas. Many have GEDs, but most of them are from the state, went to the state school and have worked in the state legislature for a number of years. What a great job: politiking all day.

How about joining the marines, getting your MD, moving to some small town in the middle of Florida. Run for state senate, run for congress, run for governor,  start clandestine wars, have serial affairs, support an invasion and then later say you didn't support it. What fun!

Spring break was OK. Went back to New Jersey where all my friends were and just hung out, went into Philly a bunch. Nothing too exciting. Sort of glad to be back. But it begs the question, what am I going to do with the SEVEN WEEKS I have left?

I say I start a countdown to May 22nd. Anyone who wants to join me in my endeavours, find me.

PHILS PHUN PHACT: New Hampshire  is the Granite State, while Vermont still produces more granite, but it was named first.

JHU_Phil: Favorite things

This week, the students of Hopkins Interactive have decided to change things up a bit, and all present a common blog topic. Through the blogs and the message boards, we really enjoy providing you with a glimpse of our lives at Hopkins while helping reveal to you what might lie in store for you if you decide to become a Hopkins student as well. In addition to detailing life here at Hopkins, we also all enjoy getting to talk about the totally random things that we love. Just like we’ve done with the Off-Topic Discussion Forum of the message boards, we’re taking a break from Hopkins talks and discussing our favorite things.

So here we present our personal answers to a common survey of our favorite things, about the worlds of books, movies, television, and much, much, more. Be warned, we’re about to get REALLY random!

Who is your favorite author?: Hmmm. I would say Atul Gawande, but he didn't write my favorite book, which is Catch-22, or rather, my favorite character who is Milo Minderbinder: the man who can buy an egg for 7 cents and sell it for 5 and still make a profit. I think Sherlock Holmes is pretty sweet. (Phil's Phun Phact: Dr HOUSE is named after the greatest detective of all time, Sherlock HOLMES.) Gawande writes a bunch about medicine for The New Yorker.

What is your favorite website?: Geee. I like to read daily comic strips that are mildly to ferociously inappropriate, so I won't link them here. But everytime I go online, I like to read ADVENTURE JOURNEY. This guy is an "extreme vacationer" and does all kinds of great stuff. Read his eight New Years Resolutions. Pretty sweet.

What is your favorite item in your bedroom?: I have a collection of over 700 books sitting in my room. These range on any topic from medicine to fashion to economics. Anytime I hear something interesting during the day, I go home and read a few pages on it. My goal in life is to know everything, hard part is, the more I learn the more I know I don't know.

What, in your opinion, has been the greatest invention of your time?: Polymerase Chain Reaction for genetic engineering OR Web 2.0. It is unheard of what we can do with the internet these days. Google. Facebook. All this stuff is worth BILLIONS! I am just amazed. It's a great equalizer. Someone needs nothing more than a novel idea and some computer know-how and build up the idea. Of course alot of people thought about this and we subsequently had the dot.com bust, but still...computers are interesting.

What is your favorite news source?: Associated Press, Reuters,BBC. Anyone tells you different they are either a Democrat or a Republican. Think about it.

What is your favorite movie series?: Movie series? Well. It would have to be Indiana Jones. If I could do that but instead of finding artifacts I would do public health stuff....coolest thing ever.But Band of Brothers if we are talking about Mini-Series. The idea of so many different people coming together in a troubled time, etc etc. It was well done, many different angles and types of stories within the series.

What is your favorite time of day?  Why?: I like waking up in the morning and sitting in bed just waiting. I know I have to be somewhere soon, but the bed isthe absolutely most comfortable place in the world. Temperature is perfect. Your position is perfect. The sheets feel nice and heavy. It's a double edge sword however, as I know it must end soon. Unless you blow off a morning class...

Who is your favorite one-hit wonder?: MEN WITHOUT HATS. SAFETY DANCE. Or as they are known today, Men Without Jobs.

Which famous person, living or dead, would you like to have a cup of tea with?: Winston Churchill and discuss what he was thinking about invading Gallipoli. That was when ANZAC forces invaded Northern Turkey during World War One. It was a disaster as the objective was never taken and thousands of people died.

What is your favorite quote?: "Live so that you can look any man in the eye and tell him to go to hell." John D. Rockefeller. I like this quote because as a young man, you are curious how to monitor how well you are doing and where you are going, etc. So, if you are content with yourself and know that you are doing exactly what you want, then nothing else really matters. Think of anyone you admire, and they could look to anyone and tell them to go to hell.

Are you a dog person?  Cat person?  An "other" person?  Why?: Definetely both. I have a cat who just loves to hang out, does his thing, roams about, and is cute when sits on your lap. I also have a dog who I adore, and sheads nothing but love and affection. His day consists of eating and waiting for night time so that someone can shine a laser pointer on the group so he can chase it for hours.

What is your favorite game?: Trivia. I love trivia. I go to James Joyce on Mondays at 7 pm downtown and get my trivia on. I don't know why, and it has only been in the past few months this is the case, but I love trivia for some reason.

Who is your favorite TV villain?: I would say anything that Jeremy Irons does is pretty great and pretty villian like. I was always curious if I could pay Jeremy Irons to follow me around all day and repreat everything I say in his voice.

Where is the one place in the world you would want to visit?: I often wrestle with this one. I have an affinity for Asia, but that's a pretty big place. If I could have a few months and a few grand, I would do a tour all around the Mekong River. (Phil's Phun Phact: The Mekong is the world longest undamed navigable river.)

I suppose I would start in Tibet and then float down through Thailand and Laos around Cambodia and eventually through Vietnam and the Mekong Delta to the Pacific Ocean. I had a great idea to put eye hospitals on river barges and go up and down the Mekong doing cataract surgery. Southeast Asia has the highest prevelance of cataracts in the world and some of the most isolated populations. If I had my wits about me earlier, that would be a great project for a college student...or recent graduate.

What is your favorite guilty pleasure?: Sex and the City. I dunno, I just think it's well written. I had a friend who would watch every episode, and I got into it. Girls are often impressed when I can trump their knowledge of the show.

To finish this survey, we will be stealing questions used at the end of every broadcast of Inside the Actor’s Studio. James Lipton, the host of the show, always finishes each interview with a questionnaire invented by the great Bernard Pebo. Here goes:

- What is your favorite word? ABSCOND! When telling a story on how someone took something from you, this word adds far more drama. "Then she absconded with my sandals, fleeing into the night!"

- What is your least favorite word? Baby. "Hey baby? Can you help me with something?" Ahhhhh. I would rather wait in line at the DMV than here someone call someone else baby.

- What turns you on (creatively, spiritually or emotionally)? A girl who can seamlessly make a double entandre.

- What turns you off? Striped shirts. Blow outs. Saying "Dog" or "Man" a lot. Telling over exaggerated stories that use the word literally ending in "we almost died!" People who recommend you go for sushi everytime you need a meal. Calling a party "sick," describe someone as "solid," and people who ask "you goin out tonight?"

- What sound or noise do you love? I love sitting under a porch slightly damp and listening to the rain.

- What sound or noise do you hate? When two people see each other who are forced to say hello to someone else. "OOOHHHHH HEEEYYYYY! HOW ARE YOUUUUU? I HAVEN'T SEEN YOU IN FOREVER!" Yeah, cause you two are not friends, you can just hear the akward in the room...you can even taste it.

- What profession would you like to attempt? Professor. I think I would be good at it, I can talk about alot of stuff and I think it would be generally interesting. I feel like there are plenty of people working out the world's problems, but never enough people to describe it to the rest of the world.

- What profession would you absolutely not like to attempt? I would never like to be a political guru. I hate talking heads who come on from a seemingly reputable institute, come tell you what's wrong with what you believe as they collect papers and all sorts of nonsense without holding office or serving in the military. Not all are like this, I realize, but people who are really into politics but make a career not running for office really infuriates me.

- Finally, if Heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the Pearly Gates? Hello Phil. I thought you would be here sooner!

To comment or debate any of my answers, or just to share your views and continue the discussion with me, be sure to hear over to my personal message board thread! I look forward to hearing from my reader. And as always, if you have any Hopkins-related questions, don’t hesitate to ask them there as well.

McCAIN! I can't believe you let me down.

Ok. Public Health nerd over here. Some people want to make money, I don't want people to die prematurely.

This is the week to end all weeks for me at school, I just need to get through this so this entry will be limited. I know you all can't wait till I post my favorite things. BUT!

Vaccines are a currency of public health. Lately there have been controversies about their link to autism because of:

1) a combination of Measles Mumps and Rubella (German Measles)

2) the mercury containing compound Thimerosal

Really, for me the jury is out on the relationship. Because we have such a loose definition of Autism to begin with and large environmental studies like these are difficult to conduct to gain definitive results, who knows.

But the recent court case in Atlanta did not show a connection between vaccines/thimerosal and Autism, but that the vaccine could have exacerbated (injured) a previously existing genetic condition of Mitochondrial Disease. Careful when you read headlines.

Why put Thimerosal, a Mercury containing compound in vaccines? The real cost in production of vaccines lies in its packaging. If I can use a larger bottle to hold more vaccine, that will reduce the cost of production. The problem is, when I have multiple doses, it increases the risk of infectious because of contamination. It was introduced in the 1930s because 12 of 21 kids died of a common source staph infection. It has since been recommended to remove it as a precaution in the 1990s.

How this affects the rest of the world. Well, it makes vaccines more expensive and groups like UNICEF have a more difficult time vaccinating. What's more pressing in a refugee camp in Nigeria, Autism or measles?

McCain lost my vote the other day by subscribing to the tenuous scientific relationship between Autism and vaccines. I can imagine what he would do with faulty intelligence on WMDs. Too soon?

Don't be surprised if people vaccine their kids less and more children die because America has lost its "herd immunity." Look that one up. The simple fact is, more children die in regions where there is a lower vaccination rate ... ALL OVER THE WORLD. If we stop vaccinating in the US because we have some pseudo-amnesia, we will one day open our morgues to scores of children who died needlessly from a disease like measles or tetanus.

PHIL'S PHUN PHACT: VACCINES WORK.

MORE OF A PHOTO ESSAY.

The view from my roof. This is looking down St. Paul Street to the North. That is Union Memorial Hospital to the right and the Marylander apartment building on the far right.
 

Another view from my roof. This is looking south down St. Paul Street into the city and toward the Inner Harbor.
 

ANOTHER! view from my roof. This is looking at campus to the west. You can see the engineering quad over the tree cover. Homewood  dorms are in the sort of foreground, and Shriver hall is the spire you see.
 

Just thought this was an interesting juxtaposition. When I go to Florida, the fauna are much different from those in Wisconsin. I mean, it's not that interesting, but the polar opposites are. No pun intended.
These guys are at the deep-sea fishing dock...chillin out.
 

These guys are literally chillin in Wisconsin. I'm hilarious.
 

Not exactly fishing this time.
 

And of course, Brewster. I put a sweatshirt on him. He wasn't exactly thrilled.
 

Not too much new in the world of Phil. I have papers due and things to do.

I saw the movie "The Bucket List" the other day and thought to myself, what an excellent idea before I leave school. What things would I like to accomplish? What activities will come through this next year that I can never go to again? As an economist would say, how can I maximize utility with my limited number of time, money and fairly set calender?

A few things to look forward to this year:

March 29th: Carolina Cup- Huge road trip down to Camden, SC to go to a horse race. About 20 people went last year, I expect double that this year.

Paddy Murphy Party: My fraternity takes over Levering quad for a band, food, drinks, etc. A good time and in concert with alumni weekend. Big party, everyone's welcome.

Skydiving: My buddy started a skydiving club that goes about twice a month. The initial dives are a bit expensive, but one day, more likely in April, it seems like something I should do while we're still around.

President's Garden: I did this freshman year in the spring, and indeed it is tranquil. Going to Old Man Brody's house sometime in the late evening. Strolling through campus with no one around, and sitting on his fountain with a few friends.

Montana: I have never been on a road trip this long, and my buddy lives out there and presumably needs to bring his car back. He has a ranch and likes to go hunting. We shall see.

There is also a long list of places downtown I want to go. Smaller activities, other horse races, spring breaks, etc. More to come. I'll see if I can't write up a formal list when I get closer.

Phil's Phun Phact: The word "lucky" was rarely used in I Love Lucy scripts. That's because the show's sponsor, Philip Morris, was in competition with Lucky Strike cigarettes at the time.

Public Health.

I love Public Health. Love it. As a pre-med, there really isn't a better major out there. Biological or physical sciences are all fine and dandy, but medicine is both a science and an art. So context more than content can be absent from that education.

The real problems in healthcare can probably be more quickly fixed with a JD as opposed to an MD. Of course we have the Bloomberg School of Public Health, which is the best in the world by far. You know what I learned the other day? If I were a bit more far sighted I would have done this. You can get a certificate from Bloomberg because you are required to take classes there you Senior year.

Basically, if you get classes all within the same vein, that can qualify as getting a certificate. So why wouldn't you?! Same money, same classes, just a bit more organized. I probably would have done this Health Preparedness. Oh well.

I have been thinking more and more about my studies specifically. It's interesting the way people present their ideas and motivations for wanting to go into the field, no pun intended. On the one hand you have the counters. These are people who have a study design and want a bunch of degrees to go out on more a curiosity basis and literally go study a population and count the number of sick people or dying people or at risk people, etc. These are more academics who get money, go out, come back and have lovely PowerPoints to show everyone for years after the fact.

Then there are those who are driven with passion, perhaps senselessly at times. I was overseas with a fellow who  went on  tirades about having to help the indigent around us, and indeed there were plenty of poor children, orphans, etc. But look bro, I'm glad your on my team, but it's raining out and you can't pass the ball. Governments have tried and failed hundreds of times (not to negate their success, however) and I'm afraid more than good intentions need to used to help these people out. I'm glad some people have everything Ghandi ever said memorized, however, he's no longer around. The AK-47 and AIDS ruin the world now.

Then there are those who want the danger and romance of going "into the field" and perhaps getting shot at a little bit. They love the idea of returning home a martyr telling the their friends and family how much they don't understand about the world. What do you think someone living in a war-zone wants? You think it's another optimistic person who will share with them their plight? NO. They want to not die, just like the rest of us, and I would be amazed that your going would be the most effective use of yours or their time.

So how do I look at it?

People ask, what do you want to do? Well, like other people here, I want to be a doctor. Ok. Then they ask (I hate this question), why do you want to be a doctor? How come no one asks that of pre-law students? Is it assumed they are in it for the money, and pre-med kids should be in if for others? Well, ok, why do you want to be a doctor? I want to help people.

Good one. No you don't. You can't want to be something for an altruistic purpose. That is a contradiction to me. You want to be a doctor because you think you have the social capital to deal with the gravest and most dire needs of humanity. It's a completely selfish endeavor.

So why do I want to be a doctor? I guess I don't. My goal in life is the eliminate (or come as close as possible) excess deaths derived from a population's vulnerability. To me, being a doctor is the most comprehensive way to accomplish that. Although, I'm not so certain anymore. 

Public health man. It's like medicine in context.

Phil's Phun Phact: George Washington originally wanted to join the British Navy, but his mother wouldn't let him. So he became a surveyor instead.

Maybe I am an idiot.

Have you ever had an assignment or started a chapter in a textbook and all of a sudden you have NO clue what is going on? It's a very abrupt change, and it doesn't happen too often, but when it does you feel like an idiot. I am currently in a class like that. Everyone around me is asking questions and talking about their own experiences, and I am there with no clue what is occurring.

We got this homework assignment and the teacher wrote to everyone how excellent they had done, and I look at it and couldn't even find any questions to be answered. The teacher is fabulous and is actually the founder of the International Health Department at Bloomberg. He is and oldie, but goodie. He knows everything. EVERYTHING.

However, I feel accomplished when I put my name on the paper correctly. I hope I'm not slipping.

I like my classes. Taking one on Corporations and Public Health. The teacher actually is making me consider going to law school.

Vaccine Policy Issues: It's amazing how the US government allocates and determines who will get the first rounds of vaccines.

International Organizations: I am convinced these things do nothing so far, however, we shall see.

Disasters in Public Health: I feel like this could be what I go into in life. We shall see. Basically, if you are going out into the field, don't get on a motorcycle. They have the highest mortality rate of even weirdo diseases. What does FEMA do and all that sort of good stuff. I really like these kids of disaster classes.

Another day, another dollar...

Phil's Phun Phact: Juneau, Alaska is the largest state capital in the country. The city itself isn't that large, but they consider the 1000 km^2 iceberg next to the city in city limits.

Phil's Question of the Week: What are all the countries that end in Y?

Madame Librarian...

When I run an office of some type in the future, my office staff, assistants, etc. will probably be exclusively librarians. I love librarians. Today I was genuinely impressed by my trip to speak with the Public Health Librarian in the Hampton House at Bloomberg. I looked for a book on the computer, found the number, then looked for it on the shelf...couldn't find it.

So, I went to the librarian and asked. She asked what the title of the book was. I had no clue, but I did know the author. She said real quick, "would it be blah blah blah, by any chance?" Yes. Yes it was. This is not a common book mind you. And not only that, without batting an eye, she walked over to the exact shelf I was looking at for ten minutes and found not one, but three copies of the book in question.

I was impressed at either how dumb I am, or how astute these Madames of the stacks are.

Hopkins has a BUNCH of libraries to experience:

Milton S. Eisenhower- The main one on the Homewood campus. Goes 5 floors under ground, so in case we are bombed, class will go on (and it just looks better).

William Henry Welch- If I were Henry Welch, I would want more than a library, but it's still pretty sweet.  But they do have free coffee.

 

Peabody Library- Never been there, heard its amazing.

SAIS Library- Never been there, but heard it's great too. It's in Washington, DC.

Anyhoo.

Tonight is the first night of fraternity rush. This means that anyone interested in rushing a fraternity goes to this information session where all the groups have a table set up. They can go around and sign up for the fraternities they like. Then over the next week, each house has a series of events from poker nights to pizza to what have you. At the end, if the group likes the kid, they will offer him a "bid" to join and then pledging begins.

Phil's Phun Phact: GMT 8 time zone is the most populated with over 1.3 billion people living there. This time zone includes China's east coast, Taiwan through Malaysia.