Life of Wry

Jim watches Peter teaching an introductory fluids class to about 40 mechanical engineering students. We’re watching on Jim’s phone a lecture Peter delivered a couple months ago, the link of which he finally sent yesterday (just before he left for the airport for his Europe trip with Maya).

Over the past three years of Peter’s PhD studies at UM, Jim and I have listened to hours and hours of his explanations of turbulence, SPOD, perturbations, Navier-Stokes (and more) … and so we are familiar with the cadence, delivery and content — even as we don’t understand a word of it. (I, personally, could listen to him talk all day, even as my eyes glaze over and my mind wanders.) I think we both pick up on his enthusiasm for his subject/s and his insistence that we can absorb this, if he just tries one more time to explain it.

I got a particular kick out of his students’ questions and comments, and Peter’s response to those. I couldn’t really assess their understanding, or the quality of their questions — or his answers — but I liked those interactions a lot.

Peter was a TA this semester for Aaron’s intro fluids class. This was his first opportunity to teach a class (and it was just one class; he took the helm as Aaron was at a conference that week). But he’s been doing office hours, answering students’ questions and helping with homework, all semester. He’s also been helping develop and grade quizzes and reviewing weekly homework. I think it’s been a real eye opener for him, and has been something he’s enjoyed for the most part. It was a real close-up view of the tasks and day-to-day life of a professor. It’s a long way from here to there, if there is a there there, but/and I think he remains motivated to pursue that academic path. We shall see. Jim and I are true bystanders in this journey… Peter is steering his own course. I think the academic life would suit him, but, again, it’s a long row to hoe and a lot could happen in the meantime. For us, it’s all good; he’ll make the right decisions when the time comes.

It was too bad the grad students’ union went on strike part-way through the semester, though. Peter ultimately joined the strike (though was not entirely supportive of the demands they were seeking), but was sorry it happened during his first TA gig. He had to forgo some of his TA tasks, but at least got to lecture a class before the strike began.

Anyway… big thrill for us. He sounded just like our guy, sitting on the couch with us, excitedly explaining his research and answering our dumb questions. But he also sounded like some big fancy grad student giving a lecture to a class of intro students, sounding confident and in command.

How cool is that?

…. in that order!

Here they are…

These two are off to Europe for two weeks together. Could. Not. Be. Happier. They get off the plane bleary-eyed in Amsterdam tomorrow morning and join Solly and his Maya for four days in Amsterdam. Then they’ll head to Paris for a few days, then Toulouse for a few more days, and finish their trip with a bunch more days in Rome. I hope we’ll get snapshots of how things are going (but if we don’t, we’ll get them for a week in August for some Yosemite hiking and can hear all about it then).

And there they go….!!

Peter’s sporting a nice haircut, new shoes (it looks like), a new suitcase (our 25th birthday present to him)… and Maya’s got a wallet-full of “readies” that we gave her for her birthday (a bundle of Euros that I scrounged together from past trips to Europe). They’ve got their accommodations all worked out and their between-city transportation all booked and, if they can avoid the riots in France, should have a pretty great time.

I’m excited for them!

Thanks for the millionth time to Lisa and Claire who are just the best friends we could ever have, who are so very strategically located in Ann Arbor, where they can give these kids birthday parties, take them in during Covid-impacted holidays when travel home is impossible, host their graduation parties, introduce them to fancy Ann Arbor restaurants, everything else in between, and of course take them to the airport when they’re off on their European adventure. AND, send us photos of everything we cannot be on hand for (which is most of this!).

Davis is gearing up for a heat wave. Look at this crazy ten day outlook:

Classic bell curve! Nice job climate gods.

We had hoped we might reach the end of June 2023 without having experienced a single three-digit temp… but it looks like Thursday, June 29 we’ll cross that dreaded line.

But, today, Wednesday, it was still safe for Janet and me to go for a long, exposed walk in the North Davis ditch. It is truly lovely up there; I’m always glad to see new things.. like this turtle walking across our path. This is a wee one… his/her mama looked to be about five yards away and moving at a good clip back into the brush.

As we were fawning over these guys, a giant bullfrog was croaking its head off in the pond (not visible due to the super tall reeds (I assume it was a giant frog, given the decibels coming outa him). Then some little froggies hopped along the trail. Then a trio of horses sauntered by (with riders).

I mean.

We even ran into, and talked to, Larry.. the piano-tuner-turned-bug-photographer (he’s really, really good at this). He was bent over with his long lens buried deep into a bush. His photographs of the ditch’s thriving bug community are amazeballs. Here’s a sample from the North Davis Channel Facebook page.

I have a hard time looking at them (bugs, you know), but I do appreciate the patient, careful, skillful photos. Larry’s got photography chops!

So… a mile or so in the ditch (avoiding all those bugs), then coffee at Peet’s, followed by a walk back through the truly wonderful North Davis Greenbelt. (Yep… those developers back in the 70s and 80s had a very fine vision!)

A very nice Wednesday morning, pre-heatwave walk.

I love today’s pictures.

These flowers are just exploding all over the grounds at Kaiser (where I went to clear my ears, yessiree). It’s really pretty there right now. Good job landscape contractors!

I sorta thought dinner was a fail.. but actually, it was only the asparagus that was disappointing — due to a bad bunch that I didn’t examine adequately before throwing it in my basket. The rest was good, esp that herb mix (cilantro, dill, parsley, scallions, lemon, olive oil, s&p). The salmon was broiled and had a soy-mustard glaze, served on brown basmati.

This is my view each night as I shut off lights, close shades and turn in. I like it. The geometry and shadows really appeal to me.

In the span of a week, I 1) heard a gardener friend talk about (boast, really) eating her garlic scapes, 2) heard about Peter and Maya’s fancy graduation celebration dinner, at which they were served garlic scapes, and, today, 3) Mary informed me that we had a good crop of garlic and that she’d harvest it and we could separate out the scapes and eat them!

Until this week, I’d never heard of a garlic scape.

This is this year’s crop of newly harvested garlic:

It’s not a great picture because you can’t see the garlic bulbs… but here’s one of the cut bulbs, ready to be dried out in a paper bag for a while…

And here are the scapes! I will have to do a bit of culinary research to figure out what one does with scapes… but I’ll keep y’all posted!

Our darling son and his darling girlfriend both have birthdays this weekend. They are celebrating duly and I’m just over the moon that they get to do this — have birthdays together and celebrate together. It’s just so sweet. And really.. birthdays a day apart.. how fun!

On a serious note: OhmygodIgavebirthtwentyfiveyearsagoandnowPeterisaquartercenturyoldandislivinghisbestlifeandsoareweashisparentsit’sunbelievableandwonderfulandicouldn’tbeanymoregratefullifeisjustthebest.

So here are a few pics of the sweet and happy birthday pair.

1. Post UM football game, October 2021
2. Chicago, April 2022
3. Chicago, April 2022
4. Maya’s UM architecture graduation, April 2023
5. Maya’s graduation project reception, April 2023
6. Boston T on way to Red Sox game, May 2023
7. Cape Ann with Marty’s dog Riley, May 2023
8. Watching Linea’s ultimate frisbee game, June 2023

I was one of a gazillion folks around the globe watching days of speculation about the fate of that crazy submersible off the coast of Newfoundland, somewhere in the vicinity of the Titanic. I stayed up late a couple of nights waiting for info (no good news).. and then checked in first thing in the mornings hoping they’d been found and brought to the surface in a heroic rescue. The world, feeling ill, watched the oxygen clock tick down and I am sure everyone imagined the claustrophobic horror of days on end cramped in that tiny space, lost at sea, without communication. Stuff of nightmares.

It was determined yesterday that, in fact, there’d been a catastrophic implosion (official term) within a couple hours of the Ocean Gate launch last Sunday, and, thankfully, the crew had perished before they knew what hit them. At least no suffering. But… damn. Just horrific in every way. There were five passengers, including a father and son. They should not have been there.

~~

While David Bowie was talking about a space flight in this song, it works for an underwater journey, as well. It’s haunting.. and a real gut punch.

Ground Control to Major Tom

Ground Control to Major Tom

Take your protein pills and put your helmet on

Ground Control to Major Tom

Commencing countdown, engines on

Check ignition and may God’s love be with you

This is Ground Control to Major Tom

You’ve really made the grade

And the papers want to know whose shirts you wear

Now it’s time to leave the capsule, if you dare

This is Major Tom to Ground Control

I’m stepping through the door

And I’m floating in a most peculiar way

And the stars look very different today

For here am I sitting in a tin can

Far above the world

Planet Earth is blue

And there’s nothing I can do

Though I’m past one hundred thousand miles

I’m feeling very still

And I think my spaceship knows which way to go

Tell my man I love him very much, he knows

Ground Control to Major Tom

Your circuit’s dead, there’s something wrong

Can you hear me, Major Tom?

Can you hear me, Major Tom?

Can you hear me, Major Tom?

Can you hear me, Major Tom?

Can you-

Here am I floating ’round my tin can

Far above the Moon

Planet Earth is blue

And there’s nothing I can do

~~

May they rest in peace.

I go back and forth with this picture.

I believe my first reaction when seeing this picture was who IS that?? Or maybe is was what are we looking at here? When I realized it was my darling, sweet great nephew, I started to laugh at the crazy expression… and then I realized, wait, this poor little guy is terrified! That is a look of terror.

Then I see his dad. John is getting a big kick out of this. It’s a father-son outing and they are on a roller coaster, and, well, roller coasters are super scary. We might all have such an expression.

But I can’t help thinking poor River is traumatized here. Did he maybe start laughing when he realized he was safe? Did his dad’s obvious relaxed demeanor comfort him once the downhill part was over? Did he beg to go on the ride again, and then again? I hope so.

The look in River’s eyes gives me mommy nightmares. I can’t bear a child being that scared. I have been meaning to ask John for more details about this outing.. and will.

In the meantime, here are a few pictures of River in happier, sweeter, gentler, and more confident moments!

Hello, first day of summer!

I cleaned, though didn’t get a chance to lie in, the hammock. And hurray!, it’s ready for service for what will be at least another week of sensational weather.. in the 70s and 80s, in JUNE. I ran into our county supervisor today who said we will surely pay for all this wonderful weather later in the summer! No doubt.

In the meantime, the neighborhood — and I include the creek in that — was just lovely today. Here are a few shots:

(that one above was actually taken a couple weeks ago, but dropping it in here..)