G20 or H1N1

I've been debating back and forth which would make a better blog post- the impending G20 summit that will be happening HERE in Pittsburgh, or the Pandemic flu outbreak that I will inevitably get first of all our family members. I decided on both, since I will have to come back to both later in their own time.

First- G20, it's happening.

For most of our readers, I suspect that G20 will be hosted in Pittsburgh is little more then a ticker headline, so I'd like to add some color to that description. This year's Leader's Meeting will presidents from the world's most influential 20 nations to talk about the issues that they agreed to deal with last year. It is a kind of economic summit, biege in topic, but explosive in its ability to completely derail the entire city's infrastructure. The 20 Presidents (and their motorcades, and their delegates, and their entourage) will be hosted downtown at the convention center. Most of the downtown buildings will be EVACUATED to minimize the security threat- this means office buildings, stores and COLLEGE DORMS. You know what I would do if I had to leave my dorm for 3 days from some money summit? Protest. You know where the "Designated Free Speech Zone" for the summit is? Across the opposite river. Yeah. That's where all the protesters will head. Sure.

Don't get me wrong- I am super excited that this event it taking place here, it will give Pittsburgh a chance to show it's new face to the world, and in some ways is an ideal venue. But I don't yet have faith that anyone in Pittsburgh knows how to approach an angry protest mob. Hopefully this won't be a topic for a future blog post- all I know is the city is going to be gridlocked around motorcade traffic and I am going to work from home.

Pandemic Flu Stalks Nation- H1N1

We've been talking a lot about H1N1 at work, possibly because we have been inundated with carefully worded memos urging us to wash our hands, get plenty of rest and stay home if we have a fever. More likely because H1N1 is already on campus. As I've mentioned before- Pandemic means it spread well- it doesn't mean it kills you any more. There are some predictions that suggest this might change later in flu season (like, cases reported in August is early, long time since the last H1N1 strain was out, ...) but in the meantime, it is just a flu we have a name for.
We also have the first case in the building I work in. Given that I am planning to fly to Spokane this weekend, I am being extra SUPER careful, especially with disease carrying undergrads swarming campus. Not that I ever want to be sick, but knowing that there is a particular germ with a name hanging around makes me feel like I am being stalked.

Matt and I are looking forward to a long weekend in Spokane, to celebrate Papa's Birthday, Matt's birthday and Labor Day! Matt's Mom will be joining us, which means we will be having a no holds barred awesome weekend. I'll also be taking my AWESOME digital voice recorder to collect more family stories, once I get my act together, I'll try to format them for a larger audience.