The Nina, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria

I'm currently in Washington, DC and it's really been an awesome trip. I've been to DC a number of times - 2 of those occasions was as a tourist. I did the whole Mall thing and saw the Capitol Hill/Union Station/Washington Monument blah blah blah deal like most tourists do. The pic is me in front of the reflection pond...Forest! Jenny


But I must say, this time was the first time that I cared at all. I was very deeply moved at the Lincoln Memorial. And seeing the Changing of the Guards at the Arlington Cemetary was phenomenal....

But I had a thought at one point. The tour guide was telling us about how the three rings around the Union Station (or something like that) represent the three ships that Columbus sailed to the U.S., "and those three ships were (let's say it together) The Nina, the Pinta, and The Santa Maria." And I found myself saying it right along with him.

Why the hell is some portion of my brain being utilized for such uselessness??? I really sat and thought how I can benefit from such information. It probably won't make anyone any money, save any lives, provide any source of comfort for anyone -- nothing. Yet I know it. So many of us do. But do we all know the basis of the platforms for the current presidential candidates? Are we well-informed of what's going on in global politics? Some of us know it all. But really, most of us are pretty clueless on a lot of subject matters that actually have some importance.

I can sum all this up with a point and go on to talk about how our school systems are ass-backward and our priorities are all messed up. But really, I just wanted to rant about the fact that I'm pissed off that I am the beholder of such useless historical facts.