Delay...

So if you didn't see j's blog, our ultrasound has been delayed to next week due to insurance issues. So we'll find the sex out then (as if we didn't already know). Getting a little anxious now, j did find a doppler ultrasound at work and checked the heartbeat. Everything still sounds great. We'll know more next week.

In other news, just got back form Lake Tahoe on Sunday, where I attended the ASME Summer Bioengineering Conference. Kinda took me back to my roots in Mechanical Engineering, although I insist that they would revoke my degree if they tested my ME knowledge now. My talk apparently went well, but I'm a terrible judge of that myself.

The best part of this conference was that pretty much everyday only had about 6-7 hours of conference meetings and the rest was open for free time. On Thursday, we were done around 2, so we went to a ropes course. While this mostly reminded me how out of shape/weak I am, it was still fun. Did one that pretty much zapped my arms in my 2nd and a half run (I did one as an example run, but they didn't let me finish). So I didn't try anything too difficult after that. Cindy of course made us all look stupid she climbed everything attempted.


Looking up at Cindy


Looking down from the top

On Friday, we rented kayaks and went out into Lake Tahoe for an hour. Then returned to the Squaw Creek Village to watch BEDrock play (a cover band comprised of professors from the BioEngineering Division of ASME). I had to bail to practice for my talk, which was in the final session of the weekend. Saturday night ended with some swimming as I finally went to bed at midnight, only to have to catch a shuttle to the airport at 4am. I took the earliest flight I could so I could be at home with my wife. It was a fun conference, but I was happy to return.

In other news, I suddenly suck in softball (1/3 1r 2rbi, 1 error + 2 plays I could have made if I could track a line drive). Hopefully this ends soon, I play again on Thursday. Strangely, I'll probably be best served sticking to SS, never thought I would say that. j has her triathlon coming up on Saturday, and t should be coming in this weekend. Looking forward to it.

My Buddy Max

When I was a kid, I remember on occasion asking for a dog. My Mom told me that I could get a dog when I had my own house. Therefore, a week after returning from our honeymoon, j and I adopted Max from the KY Humane Society. We were down between Max and a border collie, but Max was so chill and cute that we had to have him.

We soon learned that Max was probably given up at 5 years old because of some anxiety issues (thunderstorms, diesel trucks, his shadow...). So after some destroyed furniture and carpet, we learned how to manage him a little better. And while we thought him as pretty chill, he did show some lightning fast reflexes in the first couple weeks that we had him, to the shock of both of us and some baby bunnies.

Having such a cute dog led to me getting hit on by guys in Chicago, yet many people on the streets of Philly have actively sought the opposite sidewalk when seeing me with him. I guess they didn't know that he was a Chowerd (They told us he was Chow and German Shepherd).

Sadly, over the last 6 months, Max's strength and weight have rapidly diminished. Since last year, his weight was down about a third. We ran some tests and tried some different medicines, but nothing seemed to help. So today, j and I had to say goodbye to Max, 17 days before the 7 year anniversary of his adoption. I will greatly miss my buddy, our morning and evening walks, and his companionship, especially on nights when j is on call. He was a very good boy.

There's no more to Holden Caulfield.

I listened to a Podcast recently (of 'This American Life' if my memory serves me well) where a director was complaining about having to do DVD commentaries and explain the entire movie, all the camera angles, etc.. His argument was that a little bit a of work by the viewer or a little bit of ambiguity was good for art. That way you can get different interpretation and someone else might discern a different lesson.

Today, news has it the JD Salinger has filed a suit to prevent publication of an up-coming book on Holden Caufield 60 years later. I don't really believe in restricting speech, but I do get his sense that someone's interpretation of his work of art can sully the original. And I don't believe that you should really profit on someone else's idea without bringing anything new to the table. I haven't read the book in question, and never plan to. I do really like the line attributed to Salinger though:

"There's no more to Holden Caulfield. Read the book again. It's all there," the court filing quotes Salinger as saying in 1980. "Holden Caulfield is only a frozen moment in time."

I think he's right. Maybe I will read it again.