Another Thursday, Fall 2009: Bob talks at University of Pittsburgh
Bob is giving a talk at the top of the hour in the geology department here at the University of Pittsburgh. I'll be walking up the hill to attend the talk. This should be good, I'm looking forward to hearing it.
Thursdays are my long days, starting at eight in the morning at work and going without a break until mid-afternoon, then continuing during choir practice to about ten thirty at night....
Bob's talk will be a refreshing respite in my day.
Labels: California, Pittsburgh, science, soils, walking, work
Why We Need Health Care Reform
Here's one reason why we need health care reform...
There's a statement out there by Stephen Hawking emphasizing that he would not be alive today were it not for Britain's National Health Insurance. Apparently, he said that to counter an advertisement falsely claiming that he would need privatized insurance in addition to the national plan to exist.
Labels: health, science, surprise
Toronto III and IV, August 2009
Yesterday Allan and I took Colleen to the Ontario Science Center after lunch that included sinigang and pad thai and chicken curry. We had fun on the way to KidsPark: seeing the green forest, looking and touching the minerals and rocks, riding the escalators, and coloring outside (and receiving free milk). It was a feat
to turn away from KidsPark...
to the artist's billiard ball contraption. We visited D level, then the mezzanine/Eagle's eye view and the Human Body on E level.
In the end, we returned to KidsPark and the artist's kinetic sculpture,
and visited the Space section before leaving about four hours after arriving.
Colleen had a grand time, and wants to return.
We had Greek food at Allan's home for dinner.
~ ~ ~
Today, the Lolos and Lolas drove Colleen and I to downtown Toronto, where we
drove through Chinatown,
parked, and walked through the mall with Sears.
We then attended the anticipated Mass for Sunday at St. Michael's Cathedral. We sat right by the candles for St. Jude.
We visited two Chinese bakeries for snacks before continuing on to dinner.
Dinner was with Allan, Sonia, Samantha, and Matthew; Christie and Petrie and Colleen, and the two Lolos, two Lolas, and me. We truly enjoyed the Korean barbeque-it-yourself at our tables. Colleen entertained us with songs and fingerplays; she in turn was entertained by Sam's I-pod.
Labels: adventure, Canada, cold, dine, dining, family, games, garden, geology, health, ice cream, international culture, Mass, museum, niece and nephew, photos, science, walking
Pizza and Back to the Future
Yesterday, I went in the morning to physical therapy. After lunch and an afternoon nap, I met up with Christina and Rachel for pizza and a movie---Back to the Future, which I haven't seen since it came out back in the 1980's.
We noted little things about the movie, such as a cameo appearance by Huey Lewis. It bothered us that the character of Doc kept pronouncing GW (gigawatt) differently. But all in all, a wonderful movie...we were joined by Kristen and Daniel and by PJ and Joey before the end of the movie.
Farewells to Rachel ensued, as she is departing Friday for points west.
Labels: cinema, dining, exercise, farewell, languages, science, water exercise
Farewell, Miss Fleming
Found out about the passing of one of my college physics professors, Miss Phyllis Fleming. Here are links to her obituaries from the New York Times and the Boston Globe.
Ms. Fleming made physics fun! She always made a point of chatting with students about physics, college, and life in general. She even listened to us if we had suggestions to improve the lab design. She is one of the reasons I am now a university science instructor myself.
I took advantage of the MIT-Wellesley exchange program (which she started) to attend classes and do research at MIT, experiences I'll not forget.
Brava, Phyllis, for a life well-lived!
We'll miss her grandly, yes, we will.
Labels: farewell, school, science, teaching, Wellesley
Sitting Outside
Sat outside with my neighbors, chatting until post-dusk/pre-dark. Met Mariann, who has her office in the same building Jonathan was in while he was at University of Pittsburgh. Turns out she and I were traveling in the same circles (informal science education) for a while.
Labels: Faith, friends, neighbors, science
This I believe
Found a web log this morning called "This I believe." I went through some of the various headings, in this order:
Respect
Love
Science
Disability
Empathy and Compassion
My favorite posting was one I read under "Empathy & Compassion."
Labels: accessibility, blogs, dreams, international culture, love, philosophical, science
Ground Hog Day 2009; Clean Coal
So I awoke, tuned into the radio (which described the Steelers win last night), and soon after there was a live broadcast from Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania....during which the Ground Hog (a.k.a. Ground Pig) noted that the Steelers had won (again), and that he saw his shadow, indicating six more weeks of winter.
Check out this website out for a quiz on Punxsutawney Phil, the groundhog.
~~~~~
I had received a mass email encouraging President Obama to not focus on "clean coal." Note that coal CAN be burned cleanly, if the proper scrubber technology is utilized (such as developed by Dave, the husband of a friend). This reduces acid rain.
Labels: cold, email, EPA, international culture, Pittsburgh, rain, science, seasons, Superbowl, weather, Wellesley
Confused Forsythia Flowers
This Saturday I was having a discussion about the fall season. This past week we had temperatures ranging from freezing to the high 60's Fahrenheit (the next day). I commented that I have seen the rose bushes/shrubs on Fifth Avenue, and some had still had blossoms remaining on them. My friend had commented that he had seen the "forsythia blooming this week,"
They're spring flowers! I exclaimed.
"Poor flowers," he said, "They're confused."
Labels: biology, garden, global warming, science, seasons, soils, St. Paul Cathedral, surprise, weather
Russet and Gold...
The landscape of trees about Pittsburgh consists of russet and gold tones, primarily. There is still that verdant tree across my building at work, on the north side of the Cathedral of Learning---same as last year.
~~~~~
Spoke with my friend, C, this afternoon/tonight, who teaches French near Paris to 16-year-olds. It was refreshing to talk with her.
Labels: biology, color, science, seasons, surprise
Hallowe'en 2008
After work today I headed to chez Beatrice et Solomon for dinner with them and their parents and Nana and Papa. We dined on butternut squash soup, rice with General Tso's tofu, chicken in white sauce and stuffing with cranberry juice. Beatrice trick or treated behind Nana and Papa's doors on the first floor, I handed out mini Milky Way bars to the children who appeared at the front door, and we dressed Beata and Solomon as little clowns for trick or treating at Carnegie Mellon University. We visited the Science and Humanities Scholars' floor, and Beatrice enjoyed this immensely. William took a pic of a poster on their floor. On the first floor, K, a student dressed in a "SAVE DARFUR" T-shirt, encouraged her to take some candy and to take a UNICEF box for trick or treat.
Before dinner, I called Mom to hear updates about their voyage through Eurasia.
Labels: Carnegie, family, family-Marissa, international culture, school, science, seasons, student, surgery, surprise
Midterms Week, Fall 2008
So, midterms week is upon us again. Last night, after administering my midterm, I helped Michele and Tom out with setting up theirs, and stopped by to chat with Becky.
Today, I had lunch with Mom and Dad after administering my Tuesday morning midterm. A long (2 hour) nap followed. Then a call from Roberta W., a good friend from my days working at the Carnegie Institute. Stopped in St. Paul Cathedral, while a group from St. Ferdinand's was visiting...mentioned Phyllis and also Fr. Steve.
Just returned from my hip exercises at the gym. Today I did:
stationary bicycle (10 minutes)
pool exercises (~45 mins)
pool exercises consisted of
water walking (20 min)
water sidestepping (12 mins)
plies and releves (20 x 3)
front, side, back (both sides, 15 @ side)
lunges (3 x 20 sec each)
Now I am relaxing by checking my email before dinner.
Labels: BAD, biology, Carnegie, Church, exercise, Ireland, pool, school, science, St. Paul Cathedral, student, surprise, water exercise, work
First Draft Reworking II
I'm spending ~two hours at Hillman library editing, moving text, and annotating my 3rd version of my manuscript since reviewer's comments...I want to make certain that it flows for Irene when she reads it. I have until the 5th to rework it, but don't want to take that long with it, as she has the manuscript only until the 14th. I want to get the bulk of this done by the end of August, as my lab teaching starts up again then.
Labels: accessibility, encyclopedia, science, teaching, work, writing
LA Earthquake 5.8
I saw breaking news about a 5.8 earthquake in the Los Angeles area...
~~~
4:45 pm EDT
...which has been revised to 5.4...
~~~~
2:00 to 2:22 pm, PDT
My friend, who works at the USGS at Pasadena, emailed me:
it was a pretty good little shake! It got my attention,
and I got ready for further action!
And my uncle wrote:
Things went back to normal here at work,
a few minutes after the quake. We
didn’t even evacuate our building.
~~~~~
~8:23pm, PDT
My friend and a current Southern California geology professor emailed me:
All is fine except I was a little rattled! I was giving a test
to 17 adult students who got panicky with the shaking
which lasted at least 6 seconds. I remember yelling
"extra credit" as a joke and then telling them to get under the tables.
When I looked up a few seconds later every student was under their lab bench.
Amazing. I wish that they would always be so well behaved! We all hurried out
onto the lawn away from the building. And then we saw a big cloud from a landslide
on Cucamonga Peak. It was more than 15 minutes before the last of the dust settled
on the mountain.
Labels: science, soils, stress, surprise
Time with Solomon
For the late morning and early afternoon today, Solomon spent time with Lola and me. We sang songs, and played games, and watched him roll over and get in prime crawling position. We fed him one+ bottles and he slept for about an hour. Marissa and Beatrice returned from the Pittsburgh Children's Museum at about 2:30 pm and we enjoyed a short time with them before Dad and I departed for our afternoon pursuits, mine at UPMC and Dad's at the library.
Labels: health, library, niece and nephew, research, science, work
A Group Meeting
This afternoon I attended a research group meeting at University of Pittsburgh Medical Center's Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic. We discussed a research article in Molecular Psychiatry that discussed human blood genetic biomarkers related to mood. This led to a general discussion of mental health research.
Labels: accessibility, health, research, science, Wellesley, work
FAAP Picnic 2008, Building Picnic 2008
Yesterday we enjoyed the FAAP Annual Picnic, complete with roasted lechon and rice; grilled hamburgers and hot dogs; and potluck salads, main dishes, and desserts. There was a contest for best potluck items, and All Clad pots were the prizes. We brought green bean casserole and red strawberry orange jello salad with mandarin oranges. (Marissa made berry crisp.)
William, Marissa, Beatrice, and Solomon met Jun and Arnie and Carol, all chemistry graduate students who prompted Beatrice with questions (and whom I had earlier tried to recruit for choir). While Solomon enjoyed a bottle with Lola, Beatrice, her mom and dad and I took off to go to the swings! Beatrice chortled joyfully while swinging...
Auntie Mimi: Is this as fun as Kennywood?
Beatrice: Yeah.
William interviewed Beatrice while on the swing.
Soon after eating William and Marissa and family departed, as the kids were very hot and sweaty.
A little later, the sky opened up and the winds blew, causing all to take cover under the one shelter and shrieks to arise from the edges of the shelter with each change in wind direction. Voting was orderly and straightforward. Dad and Tito Larry P. partook of the games, and they donated their winnings. Dad diagnosed a Colles fracture. We departed soon after, while it was still raining lightly. We got $15+ of gasoline (4.0 gallons) on the way home, happy with the price of $3.99
~~~
The building picnic had fewer attendees than last year, probably due to the weather. I sat next to Martha M., Ann L., and spoke with John, a newcomer to the building on the floor above me. Dinner was potato and pretzel chips; grilled chicken, hot dogs, and hamburgers; potato salad, bow tie pasta salad, cole slaw, and fruit salad; and bottled water or sodas. A bevy of desserts (of which I had a pecan pie bar) rounded out the meal. I enjoyed myself, and felt fully stuffed at the end of the meal.
Labels: Beatrice, berries, children, Choir, economy, friends, neighbors, niece and nephew, Philippines, photos, Pilipino culture, Pittsburgh, rain, science, St. Paul Cathedral, transportation, water, weather
Rest Day
Yesterday was a rest day. I rested my hips by doing a lot of resting (sitting, lying about), spent ~three hours at Hillman Library/computer lab, and used crutches when I had to get about. I printed my teaching schedule for fall semester, and let my friends know that Jonathan had filed his dissertation yesterday, making him officially "Dr. Jonathan."
Labels: BAD, biology, celebration, Choir, Church, friends, health, library, Pittsburgh, school, science, sleep, St. Paul Cathedral, surgery, surprise, teaching, work
Happy Campers
"Attention all campers!..." Does anyone remember a book entitled From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler ? This book was the basis of many Camp-In programs at various museums across our great country. I was fortunate to have been the co-coordinator of a CI-3 (one of the top 3 Camp-In programs nationwide) program on the East Coast. I've also attended Soils Science 105 (a course then taught jointly through the University of California, Davis and Berkeley campuses), and was a key researcher on several remote field trips I co-organized with NASA, the University of California at Riverside, and CICESE in Baja California. If not a happy camper, I was an organized camper...
Were all campers during my grown-up camping experiences happy campers? I must say that most were. However, the children and adults during Camp-Ins weren't always happy campers, and it was a challenge as my job as coordinator to ensure a happy camping experience. I'd like to think that most everyone who entered the museum portals for a weekend Camp-In experience exited with a good experience (albeit less sleep).
Camp-In experiences are totally different than childhood sleep-away camp experiences, which the linked article discusses. Camp-In experiences are held indoors; in sometime-familiar surroundings; with other children and adults who are part of your family, class, or youth group; and are heavily programmed by the education department of the museum; thus, basically ensuring a positive experience.
Good camp experiences stick with you---I saw it in Fr. Tom, when he delivered his last homily as Parochial Vicar of St. Paul Cathedral. He spoke of leaving the campsite better than when you arrived. Wait, good camp experiences transform you.
Is it time to pack up and go camping yet?
Labels: camping, children, Church, excited, museum, organizing, read, science, St. Paul Cathedral, student, work
"First" Campfire and Mountain Pie Party 2008
Last night Jen, Brian, and I drove to Houston to partake of Ken, Maggie, and Drew's First Third of July Campfire and Mountain Pie Party. Ken has been doing campfire/mountain pie parties since then-Pittsburgh Mayor Sophie Maslov announced Third of July celebrations back in the day. In fact, two years ago Jen, Bri, and I attended their campfire engagement party...but this is the first one for him and Maggie and eight-month-old Drew. There was the usual fare at their new home: Hot Dawgs, S'mores, dough boys, and the ubiquitous mountain pies. Jen kindly made a chocolate/cherry one for me. The rain rain rain came down down down, and the rain rain rain came down down down....It was great to chat with Ken and Maggie, and to see Drew; since I had not seen their family since the beginning of January 2008. Drew is a big eight-month-old, in the 75 percentile, and at 22 pounds plus, he is about the length and weight of my twenty-month old niece Beatrice! He is also not a slender child, being somewhat chunky and long. As we departed, we noted that he looked so sweet slumbering in Maggie's arms.
I described the view of the fireworks to the west of I 79 as we drove past the cars pulled over on both sides of the highway. Jen appreciated the described view as we whizzed north on the wet pavement. I am thankful for my friends from CAC. When they suggested that I join the Club again, I insisted that I have become too busy with the Church....
~~~
What to do about me? Jen has decided to set me up with an acquaintance of hers. Her last attempt to set me up failed, as the other party was "afraid of getting hurt again." I told them the story of my declination of a proposal when I was younger, citing our irreconcilable difference, a difference that our friend Anjali wholeheartedly agreed was fully irreconcilable and that she agreed would elicit a denial from her, too.
Despite all this, I remain open to possibilities...I also am prepared resign myself to a life of teaching, alone, as I am fully happy and feel fulfilled as a mentor to young people in this capacity.
Labels: Beatrice, Blind, CAC, career, celebration, children, Christmas, Church, dreams, friends, list, love, outside, painting, science, transportation, weather, work
