Monumental Movements

Jeremi looks back on a challenging but successful triathlon season; Luca describes his arrival and first weekend in D.C.

Welcome back to Jeremi and Luca’s Newsletter, a weekly update brought to you by two friends on opposite ends of the country, connected by a relentless desire to learn.

The topics may seem random and disjointed (they are), but would it be fun otherwise? Either way, we promise each issue will be filled with insights, learnings, and updates, in what we hope is a good way to stay connected to friends and family.

In this fourth installment, enjoy Luca’s account of his first weekend in D.C. and Jeremi’s reflection on a challenging but successful triathlon season.

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Luca: Moving to Washington, D.C.

On Thursday evening, after a long day of flying and a layover in St. Louis, I gazed out the plane window as our pilot flew the famous “River Visual” approach into ​​DCA—an approach I have flown countless times in flight simulators.

The view included the National Mall, Washington Monument, White House, and Capitol. It was a breathtaking introduction to what I fully expect to be an amazing summer.

The firm landing that followed marked my arrival in Washington, D.C. for my summer internship. I’ll be able to say a lot more about it next week, as the internship details are meant to be kept confidential until I start on Monday.

I immediately noticed the 7 p.m. humid air, a stark contrast to the Bay Area’s crisp, cool evening air. I left the airport with two bags in tow and hailed an Uber to get across the river to the apartment I’m subleasing from a George Washington University student.

After unpacking, I walked toward the White House (just a few blocks away) and enjoyed D.C. as the sun fell beneath the horizon. Only when I stood on the lawn that shoots out from the Capitol, piercing the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial (maybe symbolizing that even our greatest presidents had to answer to the People’s House?), did it hit me that I was on the other side of the country.

Jet-lagged but energetic, Friday consisted of some morning work at a nearby cafe, tours of the National Gallery of Art and National Archives, afternoon calls for the startup I wrote about last week, and an evening grocery run to Trader Joe’s.

Viewing the Declaration of Independence, Constitution, and Bill of Rights at the National Archives was humbling, but the documents’ signatures were especially exciting to me. The fact that I could stand inches away from ink penned by Hamilton, Washington, Jefferson, and Franklin, to name a few, was incredible.

On Saturday I woke up early to beat the summer heat and ran out toward the Potomac River. I hooked down toward the airport and circled back up to the Thomas Jefferson Memorial, where I loved the following quote etched into its southeast portico.

“We might as well require a man to wear still the coat which fitted him when a boy as a civilized society to remain ever under the regimen of their barbarous ancestors.”

In the full quote, Jefferson explains that he is “not an advocate for frequent changes in laws and constitutions, but laws and institutions must go hand in hand with the progress of the human mind.”

After a couple more stops and about seven miles into a nine-mile run, I passed by a large, sprawling federal office building to the southeast of the White House. A message engraved into one of its beautiful limestone facades quickly stood out to me.

“The Department of Commerce assembles here the forces designed by Congress to advance the interests of industry and trade. Through experimental research, the dissemination of knowledge, and administrative vigilance it stimulates the progress of America upon land and sea and in the air and thereby speeds the nation in the march of mankind.”

More on that next Sunday…

The White House, as seen on my second day in D.C.

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Jeremi: Moving, Land and Sea

Don’t you love hearing about Luca’s first weekend in D.C.?? I promise I’ll have a similar story next week (though Livermore, CA is not quite as cool as Capitol Hill); unfortunately, you’ll have to wait until I move down.

In the meantime, this weekend has been one of transition. From finishing finals to moving my stuff out of my dorm, unpacking, and now re-packing for my internship, I’ve found myself reflecting on my freshman year of college.

I have multiple big learnings that I’ve internalized, and I’ll talk more about the others in future weeks. For now, I want to talk about one of the more unexpected learnings for me. It came from joining the Triathlon Club. Hope you enjoy!

Fitness: Do the Hardest Thing, Do it First.

I knew coming into college that I wanted to run early in the mornings. I also wanted to do a number of different activities — rock climbing, volleyball, surfing, and weight-lifting.

Besides some tinkering, I didn’t do any of this. Instead, I found Triathlon Club.

It started as an innocent morning run at 7am with the team. It was raining. We went down to the pier overlooking the ocean, and someone decided we should jump off the pier into the Pacific Ocean. I did a flip. Someone on the team told me to show up to swim practice the next day at 6:30am. And that was that.

I’ve never done any of swimming, biking, or running before (in any organized manner). I was probably the slowest swimmer and biker on our team, and average at running. With a background in bouldering, I had the exact opposite type of fitness that one wants for Triathlon.

But this is exactly what made it so good. I don’t necessarily enjoy swimming, biking, or running, in of itself. But there is something special about waking up at 6am and doing something that beats your ass.

By far, Triathlon practices were the hardest part of my day. I would feel like I was drowning. I would be getting dropped by my teammates on the bike. I was in the slowest lane in the pool. But those hardest parts would be over by 8:30am. And the momentum I gained from practice was remarkable.

I don’t know if I ever did Triathlon for the sake of Triathlon. I did it for the other parts of my life. To push me, to motivate me, to give me a consistent battle that I could fight and win.

Of course, some things came of it. By the time I got invested in Triathlon, I decided I might as well do the races. I raced two sprint distance Triathlons (750m swim, 20k bike, 5k run), and one Olympic distance Triathlon at Nationals (1.6k swim, 40k bike, 10k run).

Stanford Triathlon (Treeathlon)

UCSD Triathlon (Tritonman)

Reflecting, I’m not entirely sure if I want to continue with Triathlon. It’s an injury-prone sport, and it can be grueling on the body. But I remain committed to approaching fitness in this same manner, regardless of the sport.