"Just Say No to Socialism"

For those of you who are having trouble coping with the recently passed health care legislation and don't think it is a waste of taxpayer money for 14+ states to file suit against it over sovereignty issues (totally bullshit by the way), here is a recent find of mine:

This morning I was awoken by my alarm clock powered by electricity generated by the public power monopoly regulated by the United States Department of Energy. I then took a shower in the clean water provided by the municipal water utility. After that, I turned on the TV to one of the Federal Communications Commission regulated channels to see what the National Weather Service of the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration determined the weather was going to be like using satellites designed, built, and launched by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. I watched this while eating my breakfast of United States Department of Agriculture inspected food and taking the drugs which have been determined as safe by the Food and Drug Administration.

At the appropriate time as regulated by the United States congress and kept accurate by the National Institute of Standards and Technology and the United States Naval Observatory, I get into my National Highway Traffic Safety Administration approved automobile and set out to work on the roads built by the local, state, and federal Departments of Transportation, possibly stopping to purchase additional fuel of a quality level determined by the Environmental Protection Agency, using legal tender issued by the Federal Reserve Bank. On the way out the door I deposit any mail I have to be sent out via the United States Postal Service and drop the kids off at the public school.

After work, I drive my NHTSA car back home on DOT roads, to my house which has not burned down in my absence because of the state and local building codes and fire marshal's inspection, and which has not been plundered of all its valuables thanks to the local police department.

I then log onto the internet which was developed by the defense advanced research projects administration and post on freerepublic.com and fox news forums about how socialsism in medicine is bad because the government can't do anything right.

**Found via Facebook, from: http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3154974&userid=71425#post363694598

Happy Saint Patty's Day

McCANN families are descendants of the Mac Anna (Mac Annadh) sept which anciently held sway on the southern shore of Lough Neagh, over a territory in the north of the present county Armagh. The McCanns are fairly numerous today in that region and have been dispersed to other parts of Ulster, into Connacht, and southwards into Leinster. The name meant 'the son of the wolf-cub' and they were Lords of Clanbrassel, County Armagh. Ireland was one of the earliest countries to evolve a system of hereditary surnames. They came into being as early as 1000.

http://www.4crests.com/mccann-coat-of-arms.html

Also:

This notable Irish surname is an Anglicized form of the Old Gaelic "MacCana", a patronymic of the personal byname "Cana", from "cano", wolf cub. Traditionally, Irish family names are taken from the heads of tribes, revered elders, or some illustrious warrior, and are usually prefixed by "Mac", son of, or "O", denoting "grandson, male descendant of. The territory of this great sept lay on the southern shores of Lough Neagh, and the MacCanas were lords of Clanbrassil, a district in County Armagh originally occupied by the O'Garveys. Several members of the sept are described in the "Annals of the Four Masters"; the last to be mentioned in the Annals was killed in 1260. Donnell MacCanna, Chief of Clanbrassil, was recorded in 1598, and the surname is still widespread in the vicinity of Lough Neagh, though uncommon elsewhere. On October 11th 1687, Patrick McCann and Ann McBride were married at Clones, County Monaghan. The famous poem "O'Donnell Abu" was written by Michael Joseph MacCann (1824 - 1883), and seventy-eight persons bearing the name McCann appear on a "List of Irish Famine Immigrants Arriving at the Port of New York", between the years 1846 to 1851. A Coat of Arms granted to the M(a)cCann family is an azure shield with gold fretty, on a silver fess a red boar passant, the Crest being a salmon naiant proper. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Amhlaibh Mac Canna, "a pillar of chivalry and vigor in Cinel Eoghain", which was dated 1155, in the "Annals of the Four Masters", during the reign of Turlough Mor O'Conor, High King of Ireland, 1119 - 1156. Surnames became necessary when governments introduced personal taxation. In England this was known as Poll Tax. Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to "develop" often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.

http://www.surnamedb.com/surname.aspx?name=McCann

May y'r troubles be less

and y'r blessings be more

and nothing but happiness

come t'rough your door.

And,

May Saint Patrick drive away the snakes wherever you are!

Progress & Pittsburgh

A 5' + icicle hanging off our roof over the deck-- sheesh

Not a whole lot of new adventures these days, just muscling along. I am STILL getting used to the "normalsy" of my new surroundings and activities- is that crazy?

In thesis news, I have completely re-written the introduction I had over a year ago, re-organized my outline and chapter ordering (and focus), and started my first chapter (again). I feel like it has been a few giant steps backwards and eeking forwards-- but, at least the movement is again forward, and with momentum no less.

Speaking of thesis progress, I hope to have the time and motivation next week while on a trip to Pittsburgh. No, it is most definitely not a leisure trip. My mom is having neurosurgery-- on Friday. Of course I'm worried (I was worried when Nate had a benign cyst removed from his hand a few years back), but it isn't as scary as it sounds (or so I keep telling myself). Her brain is fine, although she could do with some memory and hearing gains.... (ha...). It is a nerve problem that has ailed her for years on one side of her face. It has caused her alot of grief through many endured treatments of shots, therapies, and tests. For her, it has become dehabilitating on a daily basis. It has been a problem for so long and worsened that doing research on possible surgical fixes was the logical next step, and a long time coming. According to her, they make a small incision behind her ear, do some twisting around and wrapping of various nerve strands and try to unblock and un-irritate whatever-it-is, and get out. No head-shaving, no "fuss". Apparently this hospital that she will be treated at both pioneered and perfected this procedure, hence the sojourn to Pittsburgh.

My mom flew out there yesterday, a family friend is meeting her there today after a slew of prep-tests appointments, and my dad and I are flying out on Thursday. He'll stay through the surgery on Friday and the weekend, then come home. I will stay out there all next week while she recovers and awaits the removal of stitches the following Friday. Assuming we get the OK from the docs, we fly home a week and a day after the surgery once the observation week is over. I think we'll mostly be lying around, shopping, and for my part- hopefully doing some reading and writing.

My family has always been weird when it comes to "serious" events and it has always bothered me. Like, when my little brother got run over by a car and (luckily, only) had his collar-bone broken (nevermind his bicycle...), I was in Greece for the summer (this was 2004). I came home several weeks later, only to find out then after being shocked by the sight of him in a lovely sling. It is like they try to keep things quiet to "protect" us, but to me, that leaves little option for social support. I'd rather have things out in the open and have the support networks ready. I know my mom's surgery is "routine," but every surgery comes with risk. So anyway, I am worried, but I am also glad that if it is successful then she has a 90+% rate of having a better quality of life. I am also glad that I am able to go with her and support her. A year or more ago that may not have been possible due to other work/school committments. So, it is good timing in a way because she has someone to keep her company nearly the whole time.

Anyway, if I'm on edge this week, that is probably why. Until Friday is over, my stress level will probably not abate, despite all of the continuous reassurances.

Well, keep us in your thoughts this week and next and I'll try to post sometime while I'm out in Pittsburgh. Will have a laptop available, so email if you feel like it :)

Varietal blend, please

Tilly, the unlikely cat

Happy belated holiday scramble, everyone.

Above is a picture from Nate's annual company holiday party, 2009 (which is held conveniently the first weekend in December, providing plenty of time to make holiday pictures to give out). We didn't actually have a tree of our own, so we borrowed theirs.... So Merry Christmas, Happy Human Light, Happy Verdukian-mas, or whatever else you celebrate-- hope it was grand.

In December, Nate and I adopted Tilly the cat - a kindly 14 year old I never thought I'd have trapsing around anywhere near my dwelling. I've always been mildly-moderately allergic to cats, so I was hesitant at first-- not to mention totally biased against hissing, self-centered felines. I grew up with dogs, and friends with cats which I avoided as much as possible. I've always regarded cats with a certain disdain, probably stemming from their general attitude towards their owners (spiteful and territorial) as well as owners who wantonly or seldomly vacuumed their seemingly endless amount of fur (gross and bad for us allergic folks). I just assumed that sweet and gentle cats didn't exist, nor did I care, thinking all that hair was not manageable. Well folks- I was wrong on both accounts.

Tilly was formerly my mother-in-law's cat, but due to certain circumstances Nate and I decided to take her in. Ever since I met Tilly (more than 8 years ago now....whew!), I have always been fond of her, a feeling which always provided me with a certain amount of internal conflict. We decided to take her in on a trial-basis, to start. It has been nearly 2 months now and I actually feel as though I've adjusted, provided regular vacuumings, dustings, and brushings occur. She has really been nice to have around and has given a little lift or energy to my spirit, which I haven't felt since my last pet dog, Sam, passed away in 2000. It is truly lovely to have that extra loving presence around again! Even... if it is 8am Saturday morning and she is "moo-ing" or "quacking" outside our bedroom door to be fed! (She does indeed make the weirdest noises!!)

Over the holiday months, I was able to get a bit more organized with not only "things" (e.g. finding & setting up furniture, opening & emptying moving boxes), but also with Nate's and my routines. Nate has gotten settled into going into an office in khakis and sweaters again, as opposed to sweatpants and sweatshirts in a home office. It has been kind of a switch for us because I have been home alot doing other things. I used to commute away from home daily and he stayed in, or telecommuted. Try that one out sometime. Ugh.

I have taken up 2 major activities in the last month: 1) a part-time internship at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts (MIA), and 2) a resumption of my master's thesis project, which has been on hiatus for about a year and a half. #2 is all I have left of my degree program, so it is about time I made it official. This is what will be occupying most of my time through this year. I want to finally finish and in the meantime, hopefully, get my feet wet again in the Twin Cities museum/arts/culture job scene. Hopefully by December, something will look promising and the economy will have picked up enough to offer me something here, and not force me to look elsewhere. Never say never, but Nate and I currently are not keen on moving again anytime soon...

It really has been nice to be back to Minnesota-- in numerous ways. We had a series of in-law family issues right away in November/December that we got thrown into the moment we got to town, it seems; the holidays, of course, which was a social marathon; familiarity of place and people which I haven't had in 3+ years; and ability to have casual encounters and gatherings with family and friends, which I've missed. It is cliche, but until you've lived far away, it is hard to explain how much it means to just "be around" again for important events; I feel that I savour those moments just a lil bit more.

Of course, I won't deny that reuniting with the various MN clans hasn't been entirely pleasant and easy. I think since I've been gone for several years, I started to idealize in some small way what it would be like to "come home" again. I have tried to remain vigilant to this tendency, but I have felt a bit of this welling up within me. I believe I am comfortably past the young adult stage of "coming home to mom and dad;" I think that fantasy has faded in the last few years. I think everyone must go through this in some way (mostly in your 20's I suppose), and I've accepted it as a good change with room for more.

I think the changes that have actually been hardest have been with my peers, not my family. My peers are at the age where major life changes are happening-- marriages, children, jobs/careers, education (and disparity therein), establishing geographical roots (or not), and establishment of our adult selves. I really think the last change is the most significant because not only are we establishing who we are, who we want to be, and how we want to be seen, but we are also establishing how we react to the choices and changes of others. I feel as though I've learned quite a bit in these fields over the last couple years, both stumbling and maturing along the way. This subject has been pervasive in my thoughts lately and the only blanket statement or mantra I seem to be able to convince myself of is that acceptance and understanding are really the key ingredients. We are all individuals with our own paths, expectations may or may not be met (often because they're wrong or misguided), and regardless of what anyone says, you have to do what makes YOU happy. We all make our own happiness, so we should be willing to accept the choices of others seeking their own happiness. Apologies and forgiveness will always be necessary components; we're all human and self-centered and stupid sometimes. It takes two to disagree and two to forgive.

If that seems a bit contemplative, it is. It's good to get it out there and see how it sounds. I don't want to make light of it because I have put quite a bit of thought into it and feel minutely more at peace with those thoughts now.

Time will tell what adventures I'll have next.

Winter = blank

So, I have pretty much abandoned my writing since October due to moving cross-country, (yet again), getting settled, the holiday marathon, and getting organized generally.
I think maybe I will get back to writing; I miss it, although I wasn't sure if I would or not, honestly. I think I've been craving it-- like a good, long run or cold beer in July. I think there is still a space for this blog in my routine, regardless of whether or not and how often anyone actually visits this virtual space in the web land to read my thoughts. I think it has become less about the digital-neo-narcissism that is attached to the blogger age, and has now more become about some sort of existential release of information, whether i am aware of its purpose at the moment of composition or not. Plain terms: helps me sort things out when other sounding boards are absent or less attractive at the moment.

So yeah, next time I can do the blah-bitty-blah update, but for now just wanted to get that out there. :)

Happy New Year, this LAST year of the decade. Get it right, people.

Happy 28th to Nate and off to Shenandoah, then "home"

A lil update:

Nate's birthday was yesterday and he turned a whopping 28... so Happy Birthday! <3

Nate and I are going on a nice, long weekend to Virginia to do some site-seeing and camping. We're headed to Charlottesville first, to see Thomas Jefferson's Monticello and then to the University of Virginia, where the school's mall was modeled after Monticello and designed by Jefferson. These beautiful landscapes (so i hear and look forward to seeing!) were used as models for the design of the University of Minnesota's Northrup Mall, of which I am very familiar...! :)
Then, we're headed into the woods for a few days in Shenandoah National Park, which boasts the nation's first official "park-way"... and the densest population of black bears in the US. ha!
Then, we're going to stop by Gettysburg (in PA) on the way home.

This is one trip we couldn't miss before moving back to MN.
Speaking of that, we will be back in the Cities by the week of October 19th, so we will see you all then!!

Not sure how much time I will have to post between now and then, so you'll be hearing from me again probably at the end of October once Nate and I are all set up in Edina.

Looking forward to Virginia and then to Minnesota...Goodbye soon to Philadelphia!

CAR!!!

A happy day has fallen upon Nate and I:
We have finally bought ourselves a new car! Our road warrior, the '94 Sentra is still going, but we realize that it could really die at any moment and we need a second one. We fell in love with the Ford Fusion a couple years ago, the last year I heard a 2010 model was going to be Hybrid, and we were pretty much sold as soon as we could get it together, pocket-book-wise. Here is a pic of what it will look like and we will get it (factory-ordered) in October once we're back in Minnesota.
YAY!!! Yet another adult milestone... sigh... :)

RIP my rollerblades

You have been good to me over the last decade and I will miss you. On to better (and nicer) blades I guess.






More pics:

Boston, Cape Cod, end of some things...beginnings of others...

So, I got another year older last month. Yup. It was a pretty pithy showing on the celebrations side of things. Not even a cake. I received one single card (Nate) and one single book as a gift (thanks Bob!). Is this what happens when you start to get old? I got alot of really nice email/Facebook/text birthday wishes and my mom and dad (and Bob) both called me several times. :) Steven sent me a nice birthday text-- I guess that's the next generation thing to do. My parents, who have always (and I mean ALWAYS) been on the ball about birthdays, sent me a nice, fat check about 2 weeks later. I forgive them because they had their hands full with a couple garage sales and selling/closing on my Grampa's house in St. Paul. I haven't been around in MN lately for all the hectic'ness, but it has been palpable when I've talked to them on the phone in between everything. My point of the whole matter is that as a kid birthdays were fabulous, full-day celebrations (from which I have many great memories), but now that I'm an "adult" things are starting to change to a more laid-back style of things. We make our own fun I guess! Oh, growing "pains".....

Now don't be feeling bad for me or anything; Nate and I had a grand trip to Boston and Cape Cod over the weekend of my birthday. It was pretty fun and nice to get away from Philly and work and the routine for an extended weekend of 5 days or so. We did the "Freedom Trail" which is about a 6ish mile long walk through the city along a pre-destined path at and between various historical sites such as the Bunker Hill monument, Quincy Markey, historic cemeteries, wharves, Paul Revere's house, and the Harbor. We also visited the Harvard University campus, stopping in at the Natural History Museum. We walked around the famed Harvard Yard (Hah-vahd Yah-d, as they say) and rubbed the bronze toe of memorialized Mr. Harvard. We also went to one of the many meccas of my academic world, the Boston Museum of Fine Arts. I didn't drag Nate around toooooo much.....I swear. We took the T to and from our hotel and around town everywhere we didn't walk, which was great. I swear I am going to miss great mass transit the most about the east coast. Oh, Twin Cities.....your myopia is so pathetic.... At least the LR is expanding--- finally....

After Boston, we drove down along the coast, stopping in Plymouth, Massachussetts. There we saw the enshrined Plymouth Rock and picked up some delicious salt water taffy before moving on to the Cape. We took the full drive down the Cape through the National Park as far as you can drive without a 4-wheel-drive vehicle and a special "drive-on-sand" permit. There were plenty of Cape regulars with their jeeps and SUVs plugging along the sand to get out closer to the solitude of the lighthouses and farther away from civilization along the seashore. Back on the Park circuit, the road was nearly enclosed on both sides by sand dunes, which I haven't seen since I was west of the Rockies. Very beautiful country and I finally understand for myself the allure of bunking up in a tiny tin, cape-side shack that probably costs thousands to rent for even a week-- just to have a lil piece of the ocean and quiet for a while.

I should add that we probably spent more money that weekend on finding the best local seafood joints we could, than lodging and gasoline. I can honestly say that I had some of the best clam chowder and oysters while we were on this trip. I do have to say, though, that a local place just up the street from us in Philly actually wins the best mussels award so far!

I learned a bit about the arrangement of some more of the New England states, which I could not have explained before this trip. To get to Boston from from Philly (and back), you have to go through New Jersey, then a tiny bit of New York, then Connecticut, then Rhode Island, then Massachussetts. It's crazy how conglomerated so many states are, at least to me, a midwesterner. It -- very literally, because we timed it -- took us 38 minutes to cross the entire state of Rhode Island!!! And that was the LONG way (from SW to NE corners)!!! Myth confirmed! That was pretty awesome. I also have heard (especially now these days since Philly is just over the border from NJ) that New Jersey is often called the "armpit of America," but I found the Garden State to be the most pleasant drive on the trip next to the Cape. The Garden State Parkway was also a great alternative to having to drive through the heart of NYC to get around the Big Apple to get to Connecticut. All in all, our road warrior, the '94 Nissan Sentra held up well and continues to carry us to amazing places. Here's hoping we can get that Ford Fusion Hybrid soon........(we're currently working on that!!)

With the cash I got for my birthday, I decided to spend it on an awesome gadget I read about in one of my favorite mags: Wired. I RARELY read about a new techie gadget and say to myself, "I HAVE to have this!!," but for some reason this one just jumped out at me and stuck. I went ahead and bought myself a Nike+. Currently somewhere in USPS or UPS land, my gadget is going to attach to my shoe and another bit my ipod, and then when I go for runs, track data about my running that I can upload to a computer program and track my progress (or lack thereof...). I've always wanted a better way to motivate myself and I've read tons of good things about this gadget, so, here's hoping for an awesome new toy!! If you've tried this thingy, let me know how you liked it (or not). :)

This month is the concluding month of my 10-month long internship with the Near Eastern Section at Penn. I'll be happy to have gotten great professional experience and made some great new contacts, but I'll be equally as happy to get to scratch the itch that is getting away from my supervisor. However, I asked to stay on for the month of September (and maybe part of October until we move) to work (read: volunteer) with the Loans Registrar, whom I've become acquainted with and like. This is one area of museum registration and collections management that I've been dying to more of, that is, work with loans (of objects/artefacts to and from other museum institutions, for ye laypeople). There is alot of work that goes into organizing and making loans happen in a museum, including but not limited to dealing with US (and foreign) customs, (often international) shipping, agricultural depts, etc. For instance, what do you do if it is your job to get an object back that belongs to your museum for which the period of the loan (per the contract) has expired, the borrowing museum has poorly planned finances and now has no money to ship (or courier) it back to you (more than 2,000 miles away across an ocean), and the object is a 1,000 pound, life-sized Buddha statue, and the US Dept of Agric. tells you that you can only ship it in a crate made out of a certain type of wood? Yes, people, this is what I want to learn more about and would love to do professionally, for real. I want to build my skills! So that's what I'll be doing in September and I'm looking forward to it. :)

Nate and I are also apartment hunting in the west metro area for October, so if you know of anything that sounds good, let me know!

Here's some recent pics:

Me, doing a lil dance cuz I'm so happy to be at the Cape!

Nate and Plymouth Rock

Me, at Ye Olde Union Oyster House, one of the Kennedy hang-outs

Boston Harbor and downtown Boston

Nate and I in front of the original (not the replica!) Cheers bar!

Lyon Days of Summer

So recently Nate and I have been pretty busy, which is the way it should be in the summertime.

My "little" brother Steven graduated from high school this spring, so Nate and I both flew back in mid-June to celebrate at his grad party. This "quadrupled" (or more) as a good trip to celebrate my other brother's birthday, Father's Day, and Nate's sister Liz's August departure to China to teach English for a year near the city of Xi'an (well-known for its archaeological wonder the 'Terracotta Army'). Besides all of these celebrations, we did a lil apartment hunting around Lake Calhoun, which is where we want to live this fall when we move back. It will make Nate's work commute short and my access to downtown and transit (and JOBS) pretty good too. It was nice and weird to visit the "Cities," as we call it, knowing that we would be going back.

I guess it was a lil bit of solidification that, yes, we are indeed going 'home.' I think in many ways it made me (and Nate too) more conflicted about the decision to do so, rather than easier. I think in our chosen group of peers and generally with many Gen X'ers (is that the right one?? I can never figure out which Gen I am exactly), the need, and often necessity, to explore and live/work cross-country (or abroad, as the case may be) is often so much emphasized and considered a 'desirable' quality both professionally and socially. It has always felt to me that I have alienated alot of my older (and some same generation) family members with all of my traveling and living away from home. I got over that part. However, it is strange in a sense to "come home," as if doing so is viewed as making a concession or fulfilling our destined status quo. It may still take some time, but I think I am slowly accepting that our next geographical status is not such a thing, but rather a bending to both the economic will of the country (and globe, for that matter) as well as our underlying desire to end up near family. It just is happening much sooner than I think we both wanted, but these things cannot always be helped. Nor do things always work out the way you plan. When we made the decision to come out to Philly, it was late July/early August 2008---- about 2 months shy of the total economic meltdown. I'm lucky I was in the job market earlier last year and even secured anything at all before that meltdown. There's no way we could have known how hard it would be for either of us to secure a new job upon landing here, that is-- Nate by the end of 2008 and me by August 2009. Right now, mentioning that you are on the market for a job is pretty much a joke. And trust me, Nate TRIED to get a job. I know, because I hardly saw him in the evenings between November and April/May while he was glued to his computer searching for something. Not to mention several close, but unsucessful interviews, which in a better market would have landed him a job several times over, I believe. Anyway, our best recourse, through luck and strategy, has been for Nate to keep the job he has (quite a premium on KEEPING your job....) and return from contract to salary status (in-office) in October/November after our move. I'll be on the market again for something new and do some descending or lateral professional movement with internships (unpaid) until I find something "good." That's the plan anyway, and we all know how often Plan A's are stuck to. A work in progress is what I see in our future.

Last weekend (the weekend after our MN trip), our Lyon friends, Nicki and Dusty, came to visit us for a long weekend from NYC. I've known Dustin since our days in undergrad and then got to know both during grad school in MO. They moved out to NYC so Dustin could go to seminary at St. Vlad's in Yonkers, and so we FINALLY got together out here on the E. coast! We did a bunch of touristy stuff, but taking it easy too. We went to the Morris Arboretum which is just up the street from us and which Nate and I saw last fall with all the beautiful colors. This time, the huge rose garden was in full bloom, which was gorgeous. We also went to see Independence Hall, which when my parents were here in February ended up being evacuated mid-tour due to a gas leak (thanks Steven.....), so we were forced to find other entertainment and miss half the Hall! This time we got the FULL tour, as well as saw some of the original copies of important American documents such as the Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Confederation, and the Constitution. We also went into an old U.S. bank building converted into a portrait gallery full of images of historically famous Americans. Of course, we saw the Liberty Bell (for me, my 3rd time) which is always fun.

Furthermore, in the greater Independence Park area there is the historical American Philosophical Society's building, which happens to be right next to Indep. Hall. The APS is a well-established, great society of learning, science, other things. Their website (http://www.amphilsoc.org/) gives a description of their society as, "An eminent scholarly organization of international reputation, the American Philosophical Society promotes useful knowledge in the sciences and humanities through excellence in scholarly research, professional meetings, publications, library resources, and community outreach. This country's first learned society, the APS has played an important role in American cultural and intellectual life for over 250 years." Established through the advocacy of Benjamin Franklin, the Society has many recognizable founding members, such as George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, John Marshall, James Madison, and Thomas Paine. As a learned society dedicated to the investigation of scientific, natural, and technological knowledge, the APS is an important founding establishment of the United States. Another quote from the APS website states, "The enlightened terms of the Society's charter and the location of Philosophical Hall adjacent to the seat of government clearly illustrate how closely the new nation linked learning and freedom, regarding each as the support and protection of the other." I bring this all up because they had a really wonderful, small exhibition on the documents which Charles Darwin left behind. Of course, the name 'Darwin' always stirs the pot in a mixed crowd, unfortunately. It was a one-room gallery with displays of the hand-illustrated and often hand-written scientific notebooks from Darwin's many projects and voyages, as well as other texts from contemporary naturalists and explorers. It also included some interesting mechanical inventions from Darwin's time, too. All in all, it was a nice lil exhibition, from which I gleaned something new-- that is to say "learned something."

Having said all this, it was not a surprise that the exhibition turned off some tourists and park-go'ers, albeit incredibly unfortunate and ignorant on their parts. I have to report one woman's irrational and rude behavior toward one of the gallery attendants and in front of all those perusing the gallery. She walked into the foyer of the gallery and demanded to know what Darwin had to do with Independence Hall, the Constitution, and America. "Why is this here and what does THIS have to do with the Constitution?!?" is one question she practically yelled at a gallery employee handing out gallery guides. I couldn't hear what the employee said from across the gallery, probably because she was talking at a normal volume. Whatever she said to mollify the crazy, ignorant woman apparently didn't entice her to stroll in and see for herself. She stormed out, husband (presumably) and child in tow. It was pretty ridiculous. And, it was obvious that throughout the gallery, people were incredulous and whispering to one another about what happened. After this incident, I reflected about what had happened and deemed her just another dumb American who perpetuates ignorance on the basis of not inquiring for oneself new and different ("foreign") information. People like her tend to only listen to and read the words of others with whom they already (think) they agree. That is NOT learning and what does that teach your kids about learning? You learn nothing about the "other" side (which of course, is a polarization view, rather than a broad spectrum view), except perhaps what other, already like-minded people tell you, which is often distorted through an opinionated, dogmatic, agenda-based lens. To truly learn, one must read and listen to the words of others with whom they feel they may not agree or understand. This incites analytical and independent thinking, and thereby, learning. The APS building, to answer her heated inquiries, has been there nearly as long as Independence Hall. It is a free society of learning. It is exercising its rights to publish that knowledge to a hopefully learning-hungry (democratic re-)public wanting to exercise its rights to be educated and understand the world around them in as many ways as they can. These are the reasons why the yelling woman was wrong to walk out of an exhibit she thought didn't belong. However, by the same token, she was also well within her rights to exercise her freedom to believe what she wishes. It goes both ways (or no one gets freedoms) and I guess we all have to learn to accept that. You might say I learned a little more about what liberty in America is that day.

Getting around town some more and to some of the other close-by cities is still on Nate's and my to-do list before the fall. Right now we are tentatively planning a trip to Boston for my birthday weekend, and I also really want to go to VA to see Monticello, Jefferson's estate just outside DC. Of course, we want to go to NYC and visit the Lyons and downtown, but that will proly come in August/September. I wonder if we have enough weekends to fit it all in!!

Stay tuned and here are some fun pics from our summer adventures!

hat boxes in Independence Hall for those crazy, old hats the early American men wore!

Benjamin Franklin

Nate and I at the arboretum

Nate listening to nature

Dustin, Nate and I in front of the giant twigs sculpture at the arboretum

Something fun

A - Age: One quarter century (but not much longer...)
B - Bed size: Queen, but no frame yet :(
C - Chore you hate: dusting during pollen season
D - Dog's name: Pig (totally theoretical for my future pug)
E - Essential start your day item: cold juice and hot coffee
F - Favorite color(s): purple and green
G - Gold or Silver: white gold, but gold good for heirlooms
H - Height: 5'4"
I - Instruments you play(ed): violin, piano, (oh so briefly) guitar
J - Job title: on official paperwork "assistant curator," but I'm actually the Kevorkian (no, not the crazy one) Foundation sponsored Intern in the Near Eastern Section
K - Kid(s): Can't I get younger instead of older? maybe one day I'll push my own strollers
L - Living arrangements: apartment in a building full of musty old folks
M - Mom's name: "Mom"
N - Nicknames: Chris, Chrismas, and even "Chrissy" by a few (but you gota be special for that one!)
O - Overnight hospital stay other than birth: don't think so, but I did bring a college roommate for an emergency, overnight stay once when she came wailing in pain into my room
P - Pet Peeve(s) - clueless retards talking on the phone while driving
Q - Quote from a movie: "the dude abides"
R - Right or left handed: right, mostly, but due to many hand issues, i'm pretty darn good with my left at most things
S - Siblings: 2 younger brothers (plus, 3 brothers-in-law, 2 sisters-in-law)
T - Time you wake up: varies, is there coffee? these days- between 7 and 9
U - Underwear: wah? yes, i wear this. I did have a college friend who didn't wear underwear when she didnt have time to do laundry...with jeans!
V - Vegetable you dislike: cooked carrots, canned corn (fish bait!), canned green beans, creamed spinach (why??)
W - Weather preference: 70, sunny, slight breeze
X - X-rays you've had: how many? hmmm... oh so many- hands, knees, shins, ankles- and there was one creepy chest x-ray to check for TB in an Athenian clinic (required to renew student visa)
Y - Yesterday's best moment: Nate telling me to try my new computer (or rather, my 8 year old one, which he updated- yippee!)
Z - Zoo favorite: elephants, penguins

Old Faithful

Yes, Old Faithful.  And I don't mean the faucet; I mean Nate and his continued ability to entertain me, even at the cost of soaking everything in our bathroom....!

This is a picture of Nate from last night shortly after his little mishap.  I was in the living room enjoying the latest movie version of Pride and Prejudice (with Kiera Knightly, and might I say that the BBC mini-series version is 10x better).  I had been upset earlier because our apt management has successfully sucked for the last several days (and months, but whose counting?), which included a planned, but unwarned water shut-off (VERY bad move) and then one of our bathroom faucets started to drip worse as a result of whatever they had been doing during the water shut-off.  So, they sent a maintenance man to fix it.  He made a mess, didn't pick up after himself, put the knobs on backwards, and "fixed" it so good that you had to turn the knobs at least a full half turn before water came out-- pretty bad handyman.  

Enter Nate.  Nate, sensing my frustration decided, like any good husband, that maybe he could try to fix it himself.  I don't believe in this, since we are paying good rent to have someone do this for us.  Well, whatever- I was preoccupied and didn't really care.  After a little while of hearing some tinkering and thoughtful shuffling coming from the other end of the apt, I suddenly hear a HUGE "whoooooooooossshhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!" and "ssssssshhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!"  Sounds like something exploded....with water.

I didn't hear any sounds really, besides quick shuffling and clinking and the ceasing of the large water rushing noise.  No yelling or yelping or cries for help or larges sighs.  Ok, well, maybe he's got it under control.  Maybe it sounded worse than it is, especially since I have my movie volume cranked up.  Maybe I just imagined it....

Curiosity got the better of me, of course, so I hit Pause and hollared back to the strangely silent apt, swearing I hear lots of dripping.  "Are you OK Nate?  What happened?  Did you fix it?"  As I write this now, I am giggling but then-- oh boy, I was beginning to wonder.

I unwrapped myself from my confortable couch position, slipped on my slippers and walked back to find Nate.  And what a state I found him in.  Soaked-- himself, his head, his glasses, the counter, the big mirror, the ceiling, the floor, all my "prettying products."  And, Nate is just standing there, pretty much in shock-- not running for a towel or yelling for me.  Instead, I'm staring at him and beginning to laugh uncontrollably, not helping either, while he turns away semi-giggling and in husbandly shame.  "How the hell did you do this?!  What happened?"  A lowly, and whiny "I don't know....." was the response.  "Where's my camera?" I think once I get a hold of myself.  

Nate is standing in a pool of water all around him.  The culprit: an open faucet head which erupted like a holy font, baptising Nate in all the wonder that is home maintenance and plumbing knowledge.  He says, luckily, that he turned the water off beforehand, but I'm not entirely sure I believe him.  Either way, I grabbed some towels and handed them off and basically said "have fun," while continuing to laugh uncontrollably and assess the situation by watching the guilty accept what he has to do to clean up his mess, as well as slowly accept that what he did was pretty awesome and hilarious.

So I took a few pictures to document my findings and went back to my movie, intermittantly laughing between scenes about the drama in my own home.

That night I stood on cold tile to wash up for bed while my soaking wet bathroom rugs hung to dry.  But I didn't mind....  Thoughts of Old Faithful distracted me.

After crawling into bed, and chatting with Nate, I couldn't help but laugh some more as we fell asleep.  He credited his "cat-like reflexes" (his words) with saving the bathroom from further, certain ruin.  I laughed some more and drifted off.

Here are some more pictures:

MN again

So we are pretty sure we are coming back to the Twin Cities in the fall....
Just wanted to post a lil heads up since I have been so slow to update the latest. I will this week sometime because I have some fun pics to post from a historic prison!!

employment for nate

I just wanted to make an update that Nate has 2 (count them: 2) job interviews this week. One on Tuesday and one on Friday.

Fingers crossed?



Time for bed.

zzz...

Nate's in the kitchen making triple chocolate cookies, while I'm sitting here at my desk in the office writing this and hardly able to stay awake.

I have already laid out my clothes for tomorrow for work, I'm buying my lunch tomorrow (too tired to make my own, despite the mental nagging to be thrifty as usual), I just cleaned my dresser mirror which Nate and his dad so kindly put up for me today while I was at work (Terry, Nate's dad, was in town for a day for a work conference), I thought about doing some yoga but scrapped that knowing full well that during the mediatation exercise I would just fall asleep on my bedroom rug like I used to in yoga class....(relaxation, people!), LOST is recording on the DVR and I'm not so sure I'm gona make it through tonight's episode with this serious case of the sleepies, and I, quite frankly, didn't feel like doing anything in which I would have to exert myself, except perhaps brushing my teeth a little early, but that seemed pointless too, seeing as though I would doubtless need to taste-test what comes out of the oven in a little while.

....

Speaking of taste-testing, Nate just brought me the bowl and spoon to lick from all the premium chocolate he melted....mmmm....ghiradelli....mmmm... What a nice husband. :)

....

Anyway, I am totally drained and it is only Wednesday. For the last three days I have been delusional, thinking it was Friday at various points of the day while at work. I'm not usually this catatonic at work; who knows. I think I'm just tired in general and hit a temporary wall. There are several things that seem to be contributing to my fatigue, and they all seem like reasonable excuses, which I'm sure someone could validate for me. First, Nate didn't get that second job he applied for and so hoped to get-- big poo poo on that one. Then, we didn't know until last Friday whether or not he would be employed past yesterday (his company extended his contract another quarter, so til end of June--- yippeee!, but wait- there's more...). We still don't know what we are going to do long term for employment and whether or not his company will take him back (and back on salary) if we decide to 'retreat' from this economic bust back to Minnesota. We live in a constant state of flux, and have for about a year now-- it is getting pretty damn old and stressful.
Second, my supervisor caused me to hit an emotional/professional wall on Monday. I was so upset by some of the things she said to me and how she said them that I could have clobbered her. Instead, I went up to my office, away from her, and called to complain to Nate, then subsequently was consoled by a close colleague who is starting to see and feel some of the supervisor's shit as well. Don't get me wrong, I love my job; I just hate it when one person really ruins much of the experience by getting under your skin. Thicker skin? I'm working on that, but how thick must it really be? I am not a crocodile, nor do I thick that should be necessary. Stand up to the little....., and risk an all out brawl in which my future employment references could be sabotaged? Not good either.

I'm ranting because I'm tired. This chocolate helps pretty awesomely though...

Maybe I'll go brush my teeth after all.

Flurries of thought

So- the "free" flow of thought begins.
Recently, much has been going on at the same time as nothing- know what I mean?

Nate has been job searching, which has been the focus of most of his free time, including a promising interview that he did this morning for a cartographic programming company in downtown Philly. We also just got back from a 4-day weekend in MN, most of which was spent in Rochester for Nate's brother Isaac's wedding. Despite being surrounded by crazy in-laws, I had alot of fun, and they seem to all know who I am--FINALLY. Only took 6 years and a public marriage ceremony- funny how that works. Guess they'd be pretty embarassed if they couldn't pick me out of a crowd after attending our wedding....haha...

Me, I'm plugging along at my job/internship and enjoying my work, while attempting to dodge and ignore the shortcomings of my supervisor. I am still uneasy publishing much on this on the 'world wide web', so suffice it to say (yet again), that she is a struggle some days. I just mind my own business and stay occupied in my duties and enjoy the company of others and what I'm learning while I'm here.

My family came to visit a few weekends ago, which was nice, but I believe I mentioned that in the last post. We probably won't see family again until at least June for Steven's (my brother's) high school graduation, so it was a good mini-visit. We did stay one night in the cities with my parents while in MN last weekend, though- so that was pleasant too. That time I got to see Bob, despite his own busy schedule. He's busy with work alot, trying not to get laid off his new job. So, I respect that.

I feel as though I've had some pretty thoughtful last few weeks regarding jobs/moving/where to live. Nate has started the dialogue of a possible contract extension with his current job, in case he can't find employment out here. We would probably, of course, have to give an assurance that we'd come back to MN after our lease/my job is up to do this, and we would have to be willing to give up any East Coast plans. He tells me his job interview today went really well and that he likes the company so far, so maybe Philly IS our fate, for now? I feel like we have to go where the jobs are (those that still exist), and right now we don't really know where that is yet and it is driving me crazy. I am also conflicted as to whether or not I want to stay out in Philadelphia after my job is done. It is much farther than Missouri was (not a reasonable driving distance at 2 days...), and I think I may be finally getting to that point where I want to pick somewhere and just stay there. I miss having my social network in MN, even if I don't always take advantage of it- theyare/it is there. Nate and I really have no ties in PA, so that's the easy choice. However, we possibly have more job opportunity out here, which makes the immediate decision tough. Stay for a couple years, then move on? One thing I can say for sure is: I am sick and tired of being so itinerant. We need to pick something and have it done. Maybe that's just me being more comfortable with decisions made rather than having have a decision to make. Well, there's my thoughts on this current mind-num(b)er.

That's all I got- a 15 minute respite from work, so I better get back to it.

"Go knit your own sweater, Boss Lady!"

So, if you watch the show Big Love, you will recognize this line as that of Margene, from Season Two. I was watching it earlier and I can't get that line out of my head. It's hilarious!


I would like to note that every day when I walk down the corridor to my apartment all the way at one end of my building, I swear I am inhaling huge plumes of maple and brown sugar oatmeal air from my geriatric neighbors--- and I mean EVERY day. Just thought I'd let you in on a little bit of my olfactory experiences here in Philly. Also, the old folks in the building I'm pretty sure use the apt lobby as their 'gathering place' most afternoons and evenings, which I notice when I'm walking through after work. I swear I'm living in a nursing home sometimes. Why do they have a work-out gym, then? Why did all these old ppl choose MY apt building? Perhaps, how did Nate and I end up in THEIR building is the more appropriate question.

Ahh, ruminations.

So, I now have three younger 'minions' that I supervise on a daily/weekly basis at work. One volunteer intern and two workstudy students are now listening to my crazy-talk and doing what I tell them to do, and believing the nonsense that comes out of my mouth. It's kinda fun, actually (yes, yes, of course it is good experience, but that's beside the point). One girl is a senior undergraduate at Penn, and a freshman at Penn, and the other guy somewhere between freshman and senior at Penn. I 'supervise' these 3 "kids" three times per week. There is also another volunteer intern girl with whom I ocassionally share office space and is nice to talk to; she is a recent Bryn Mawr grad (B.A.) and keeps me from simply talking to myself most days. Having more people around besides my own supervisor is a NICE and very welcome change. I haven't wanted to blab a whole lot about my supervisor, for good or bad, on my blog-- because you never know who's reading this-- it is public and she is my employer. I WOULD like to get a good reference in the future so it is probably best not to say much, or one day I might be upset and say something I regret. Either way, my supervisor is not my 'friend', so I have to respect that line. Sorry kids. I will say that as I am at Penn longer, my relationships with the Museum folk get better as I get to know them.

Back to my minions....

Basically, they help me inventory objects for a big project I am working on. They are really doubling and tripling my efforts and I can hardly keep up on the back end of things I need to do after that part of the project is done. So, I am very thankful for them and they are helping me immensely. Without them, I would be doing it all by myself. Currently, we are working with objects from the Late Bronze Age site of Hasanlu in Northwest Iran, specifically the metal finds. Examples are weapons, horse accoutrements (decoration and armor), battle armor (e.g. shields, helmets), bronze vessels, figurines, jewelry etc. Mostly the objects relate to war time material and are pretty awesome stuff. Think about it-- arrowheads and maceheads and spearpoints the likely took part in the destruction of the site sometime between 1200-900 BC (and that includes the many people that were involved). I think I am gona need a face mask soon though because the metal dust is getting pretty bad. Overall though, it keeps my job interesting and keeps the interns interested.

My family is coming to visit a week from Friday for a few days, sans Bob :( Bob has to work, so I guess I can respect that... :) I am looking forward to finally doing some serious site-seeing as well as visiting. Yay!

Here are a few recent photos to give this post some color:



View over the Schuylkill River looking toward downtown, riding the train to work-- the name of the river is pronounced, as far as I have surmised, as: "school-kull". Those damn Pennsylvania Dutch make learning place names EXTREMELY tough.

Pulling in to 30th St. Station at the butt-crack of dawn

Me, sleeping in front of some Roman pottery.....

Types of weapons found at Hasanlu (not an actual photo of artifacts, photo of a public poster)

Modern map of MiddleEast: Hasanlu is just on the southern side of the lake in the NW corner of Iran, just south and west of modern Tabriz (click on pic for better resolution)

Dilinquency - so sorry

So this post is quite honestly to hold you over until I can write another entry, a better one that is... Having entirely succumbed to the holiday laziness bug, I have not written since Thanksgiving. Although, with some excuse due to traveling and busy holiday schedules, here is my "catch-up" post.
Enjoy the "new-post-bait"!


The view from my office window at the Penn Museum (the immediate building is some of the Museum building, and the buildings beyond are part of Univ. of Penn's campus).

My office from the window side. The parrot was there when I arrived, so I adopted him.

My window facade. Man, I really know how to pick a dark and dreary day for pictures.

My office as I first walk into it.

Nate and I at the annual LSS Datasystems holiday party in Minnesota, the first weekend of December (2008). Update: Nate's company officially extended his contract until the end of March (2009), so he has some more time to find a new job out here in Philly! LSS just couldn't live without him! :) (P.S. Sorry about the red-eye --- freaky!)

Our first Thanksgiving (well, married one anyway)

Here is Nate, proud as a peacock - or, make that a turkey.
Plus, we took some 'before' and 'after' photos of ourselves.


Nate with his first turkey.

MMMMMMmmmm........

Our spread.

"Before"

"After"

Absolutely AMAZING Autumn photos

About 2 weeks ago now, Nate and I went to Morris Arboretum, which is about a couple miles north of us in Philly. This is what we saw! And Happy Thanksgiving to you all!