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| Monday, November 30th, 2009 | | 9:09 pm |
| | 8:53 pm |
Gourmet wake
Shortly after Conde Nast announced they were discontinuing Gourmet magazine, Anne had the excellent idea to hold a wake for the magazine... ( More about the wake... ) | | 8:28 pm |
Dustin status
Dustin's a lucky guy. Last week he had follow visits with an orthopedic specialist, a doctor for his concussion as well as a trip to get the stitches from his ear removed. All went well. He was informed he may need some PT once he's healed to help him get his normal gait back. His pelvic fractures aren't moving, so the bone should knit back together without incident. He doesn't appear to have any post concussion symptoms - behavior, ability and memory all seem normal. Dad is beginning to breathe a sigh of relief. | | Friday, November 20th, 2009 | | 9:28 pm |
Dustin update
As most of you probably already know, Dustin was hit by a car on Monday as he was biking to class. For those of you who hadn't heard, he is going to be okay. It looks like there were no injuries that will cause permanent damage. He was going across the second half of a boulevard, hit by a car that was hidden from the view of either driver by a stopped vehicle in the leftmost lane. The driver braked (according to the officer on the scene who interviewed witnesses) and hit Dustin on his right side. According to witnesses he was thrown from the impact. He was knocked unconscious. This occurred at the entrance of St Joseph Mercy Hospital, so emergency response was quick. I was called by a helpful bystander. I still don't know how she got my number. Dustin doesn't recall anything of the accident except for suddenly seeing the car appear just before he was hit. He ended up with a concussion, a broken tail bone, a pelvis cracked in 2 places and scrapes on an elbow as well as his knees and face. Oh, and he needed some stitches in one ear. Evidently a broken tailbone and cracked pelvis are dealt with similar to broken ribs. You can't really immobilize them, so as long as things are set properly, one just moves around slowly and carefully avoiding pain until they heal. We've been told that will be about 6 weeks. The concussion was checked by a specialist and things look okay there. He has a series of follow up appointments early next week to make sure all is well. He's already getting around better than he did just 2-3 days ago. He is taking pain medication that makes a significant difference in his comfort level. He's sleeping well at night, and is pretty much able to take care of himself. His appetite is beginning to return to normal too. Stairs are a bit much yet, so we moved him out of his new basement room back to one on the first floor. For the most part, his bike looks less worse for wear than you would expect. However, there are couple signs that show it was quite an impact. The crank portion of the right pedal is bent so that the pedal itself is almost up against a portion of the frame. That crank is one of the strongest pieces of metal on a bike. He was really lucky, despite the injuries he sustained. He's going to be okay, no permanent damage, not even injuries that are problematic. I think I'll going to go and give him another hug. | | Friday, October 16th, 2009 | | 7:31 pm |
My late to the party thoughts on Obama winning the Nobel
I'm naive when it comes to politics. I know there's a great deal I don't know. I don't know what level of politics may or may not have been involved in the choice made this time. I don't know to what level politics is usually a factor, or if this time it was more or less than usual. Actually, none of us do. I do know that I am not sure whether or not he deserved it. (though I'm sure the criteria used to make that decision changes depending on the times, the world climate and the people making the choice, whether or not those people are willing to admit it. I am not that naive) I do see valid justification for the choice, however. Not in the self-centered view that it's some sort of reward to the American people for electing him, I'm naive enough to think better of the prize committee than that. Besides, rewarding America is not really in vogue out in the world. The justification I see is in the way President O'Bama deals with issues. The language he uses, the manner in which he frames answers. He uses a voice of compromise. Name the last US President who truly did that consistently. That tone has begun to create possibilities that have not previously existed. As said better by someone else, when someone changes the political climate, just by being, it has significance. When that change is away from conflict and towards peace, it has meaning.
| | Tuesday, September 22nd, 2009 | | 2:08 am |
Iphone goodness
Anne and I made our way home from Chilicon yesterday, starting out in the late afternoon. Before we even got to the freeway entrance (actually, a frustrating half mile from the freeway entrance) we found ourselves in a backup that took 30 minutes to roll our way through. We continued on speedily after that - until we got three miles into Michigan and found ourselves in another backup. This one looked at least as bad, with no end in sight. I decided to take my chances with the local exit instead of waiting in the backup. Here's where the iphone came in. I don't have any special map or traffic applications on it, but I handed it to Anne and suggested we try the Maps app it comes with. This turned out to be a boon. It tracked exactly where we were, showing roads nearby. Not only that, it highlighted in red the area of the freeway that was backed up! Getting off the freeway turned out to be the prudent action because the backup was at least 5 miles long. With the assistance of the Maps app, we were able to take a parallel side road, continue on it until after the backup was clear and then take an appropriate cross street to reconnect with the freeway. It was a lovely experience. | | Tuesday, August 18th, 2009 | | 3:37 pm |
For those of you planning to be in attendance at Windycon in November... ( Alinea ) | | Sunday, July 19th, 2009 | | 11:16 pm |
House Party goodness is over until next year. Thanks to everyone who was able to make it this weekend. Many people got the chance to catch up with friends they hadn't seen in quite a while, myself included, and that was very gratifying - to see and take part in. There was a visit to Greenfield village by some, the Ann Arbor art fair by others. Perhaps next year we can manage an expedition to John King used books. Get your lists ready. I had the best house guests. People making breakfast, cleaning up every time I turned around, showing up with food and drink. Thank you for helping make things go so smoothly. ...and I got to show off my granddaughter to more people! | | Saturday, June 27th, 2009 | | 8:43 am |
My very own iphone - and a call for app recommendations
Last week I finally took the plunge and got myself an iphone, thanks in part to a generous birthday gift from Anne. I've been waiting for one device to replace my phone and pda, and decided the iphone will do the job. Now I'm on the hunt for the best apps to add (and in the process of figuring out how to get my palm and hotmail contacts transferred over). So this is a request to those of you who know of such things. I'd like to hear what your favorite apps are and why, what unexpected apps do you now have that you wouldn't give up for anything, what interesting apps have caught your eye. I'm also looking for specific recommendations for a password app and a good dictionary. Thanks in advance! | | Tuesday, May 19th, 2009 | | 12:33 pm |
House Party dates
The dates for my House Party will be July 15th - 19th this year.
As always, out of town guests are encouraged to attend, for whatever portion of those days you are able.
If I remember correctly, Hania has reserved the sun room this year, and Michaele and Roger are planning
to attend as well.
There will be a new room available this year. The room across from the downstairs bathroom will be
finished by then. That will make a total of 5 beds available if absolutely needed (thank Dustin for the
fifth bed).
There will be the usual Friday evening gathering with lots of munchies available, as well as the Saturday afternoon barbecue. I hope many of you can make it!
| | Wednesday, April 15th, 2009 | | 8:54 pm |
I've been quiet here for awhile. Let's catch up... ( Read more... ) | | Sunday, February 15th, 2009 | | 10:02 am |
By popular demand, here's my 25 random things about me list... 1) Green is my favorite color 2) I was born in Canada 3) I will always regret not getting to a Blues Brothers concert 4) My Jetta is the only brand new car I have ever owned 5) I eat dark chocolate almost daily 6) I was asked to go out for wrestling in high school 7) I have been a Maid of Honor 8) I have successfully executed a jump shot, massey and carom 9) The first time I was in a plane, I jumped out 10) My queue is as old as Dustin 11) I'd like to be more adventurous 12) Ostrich is tasty 13) I once had a USCF rating 14) I find big cities exciting 15) I'm a graduate of the est training 16) I worry almost daily about my ability to support myself in retirement 17) I know how to kerf and dado 18) I like to challenge the "impossible" in little ways 19) My Dad was an alcoholic 20) I have delusions of being a showman of some kind 21) I can be pretty self critical 22) I own hundreds (literally) of Star Trek figures 23) I overimbibed and was detained on my 18th birthday. 24) I'm attempting bonsai 25) Isabel is the first pet I got to choose for myself | | Tuesday, January 20th, 2009 | | 11:23 pm |
Not just your average meme...
Via ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) kgkofmel The first five people to respond to this post will get something made by me. It will be about or tailored to those five lucky "victims." This offer does have some restrictions and limitations: - I make no guarantees that you will like what I make! - What I create will be just for you. - It'll be done this year - You have no clue what it's going to be. It may be fiction. It may be poetry. It may be a program, or a proof. Or even an extremely short piece of music. I may bake you something and mail it to you. Who knows? Not you, that's for sure! - I reserve the right to do something extremely strange. The catch? Oh, the catch is that you have to put this in your journal as well, if you expect me to do something for you! | | 10:18 pm |
I cried today. I made it a point to watch the inauguration. My timing was uncharacteristically good because I turned it on about 5 minutes before the event began, missing whatever preamble FOX had to say (but I must say I appreciated their coverage - they let the events unfold without comment). Dianne Feinstein was something of an MC for the event and during her opening remarks, I found myself suddenly in tears - tears that sporadically came and went during the rest of the ceremony. When it was clear that Barack Obama had won on election night, I was pleased, in a mostly intellectual way. But the strength and depth of my emotions today took me by surprise and left me asking myself from where they came. I can never come close to having a sense how the African American population of our country feels to have Mr. Obama as president, but I can tell, that at least for now they feel more included, more a real part of this country than ever before. That is part of it. Also, there is, for me, a sense that the people of this country feel a little more connected to one another. There's a bit more sense of community in the air - and that is a very good thing. That is part of it. Most of all though, those tears came from a renewed sense of hope. Hope that our country's leadership might once more, more often than not, make good, moral and longsighted decisions in foreign policy. Hope that instead of playing the part of arrogant bully, we find paths of partnership, foster compromise and lead by example. Hope that divisiveness will lessen, certain basic tenets of law restored and new ideas, politically unpopular options be given a chance. Hope that maybe, just maybe we can eventually truly come together as one nation (under God, or not). I hadn't realized how diminished my hopes had been. Thank you all for helping to awaken them again. Current Mood:  hopeful | | Sunday, January 18th, 2009 | | 7:17 pm |
Party at ConFusion
I'll be hosting a Firefly/Serenity party at ConFusion on Saturday. If you're attending ConFusion, please stop by. We'll have a variety of food and drink, including mudder's milk, as well as some folks in costume (your host for sure). There will be the ubiquitous Confusion ribbons available (appropriately themed), a few unusual food items (one can find interesting things at the Asian market - no I didn't get the live eel), and some marginally themed decor. Come on by. | | Tuesday, January 13th, 2009 | | 11:58 pm |
Apropos of nothing... I've been playing pool on a league for a little over 2 years now. It was something I did for a couple years as a teenager (we had a small but decent table in the basement) and got re-interested when friends started playing on Friday nights about 7 years ago. david_jordan and I even went to a weekend pool school a little over 5 years ago so we could learn the basics correctly and build from there. I really enjoy the physics of it and I can get pretty focused while playing, everything else will kind of drop away. I am now to the point where I can run the table once in awhile and when I'm playing well can make most of the shots I try. I'd like to get better, perhaps to the point where I'd have a chance to do well in local tournaments and I think that's something that's achievable. But I find myself at a familiar place - wondering if it really makes sense to devote the extra time to get there. I've been here before with other things, chess and archery are a couple that come to mind. Woodworking may get to that point as well. In some ways, I guess you could say I'm a dabbler. I get to a certain point with an endeavor, then for whatever reason don't choose to make it a more 'serious' endeavor. As a result, I know a little bit about a number of skills/hobbies, but not a great deal about any of them nor get to any great sense of accomplishment with them, for the most part. Hmmm, I started out just wanting to bring to light that pool is a hobby of mind, but find myself coming around to something that's been bothering me - that I don't have any activities that I'm engaged in that I feel passionately about. I haven't figured out the whys and wherefores of that yet, but I'm working on it. | | 4:19 pm |
Fantasy IslandIt didn't take me long to come up with a workable scenario... I could get someone to manage the rental of my home. I could tell them I'm fairly tech savvy and could post stuff online about my stay, keep a log, lots of photos. During the interview I could explain how I never missed a Jacques Cousteau special as a child, use my stay there as an opportunity to finish getting fit, maybe even go native a little bit, spearing fish for dinner, that sort of thing. I could take up surfing.... I even have some good ideas for putting together the 60 second video clip they are asking in lieu of resumes. It could open with me in the foreground and the current foot of snow picturesquely behind me... (this scenario conceived while shovelling snow) | | Tuesday, January 6th, 2009 | | 9:52 pm |
My musical interests only get my attention haphazardly, but I always enjoy it when they do. It's only been in the past year for instance that I purchased my first Beatles album, same with U2 and The Who. I like to think I have eclectic tastes, but I know I have a way to go before that's really true. Today I heard that Ron Asheton of the Stooges was found dead earlier today, nearby in Ann Arbor. I also learned the Stooges was formed in Ann Arbor in 1967. I think it's well past time for me to add a Stooges album to my music library. Current Mood: awareCurrent Music: Gimme Danger - Iggy Pop and the Stooges | | Monday, August 25th, 2008 | | 10:59 pm |
Copied from markbernstein, copied from maiac... The quick version - I got 6 of 34. Current Mood: tweeked curious | | Sunday, August 24th, 2008 | | 2:40 am |
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