Not many people realize that communism–at least as it was practiced in the Soviet Union, and today in North Korea–is a religion. I had scoffed at this concept until I went to the Soviet Union as an exchange student myself many years ago. Over my bed, my Ukrainian komsomol roommate had put a picture of [...]
Today, Neil is up at Stanford again, this time to take part in the Stanford Math Tournament. Neil loves the atmosphere and intellectual events at Stanford, and as a result, I seem to be driving him there and back fairly frequently–so frequently that by now I know exactly where the math and engineering buildings are [...]
Here is Neil’s recreation of the Battle of the Crater, or as the Confederacy might have called it, the Great Turkey Shoot
One of the things I absolutely do not miss about public school is the peer pressure–and I’m not talking about the pressure among students, but rather that which other parents put on the others. I’m still surprised with what I let myself get pressured into, one of which was buying Christmas presents for a family [...]
Peter and I are taking a 14-week Bible course: Kelly’ school requires it of all the non-church families like us. It’s kind of like catechism, but not;overtly, it’s to fill us in on the Lutheran lessons our child is learning in class. You know, over in public school, the spirit of Caesar Chavez is faith-healing [...]
Yesterday and today, I volunteered at Kelly’s school. My contract has been held up ( I often fear, permanently), so I finally decided to take advantage of it and do what I’d done years previously–and work on my childrens’ education. Understandably, I was nervous about volunteering. Going into the local neighborhood classroom to volunteer last [...]
Personally, 2009 has been a year full of the unexpected. I got a job; Neil discovered a math community; Kelly went to private school; and Peter may be on the cusp of a new direction. I’m not quite sure what to make of it all, much less what to expect for 2010, but it has [...]
Yes, it has been 6 weeks since I last updated my blog–odd for someone who used to post multiple blog entries a day. Despite my best intentions, my job became became less optional–we depend on it now. That said, the job and I have grown to suit one another, I find the field I’m working [...]
Neil and I finally got back into our PE routine, and took a bike ride around Almaden Lake, just like we had done last Fall.
Last week, Neil went to a full-day camp on the Stanford campus to learn how to do 3D modelling in Maya. He enjoyed the camp, but the week turned out to be an adventure not only about that, but beyond that as well. For one thing, Neil’s friend Bill Gosper lives near Stanford, and he [...]
