If nocturnal teeth grinding to the point of fracture were an Olympic sport, I would be a champion  This morning I had the gold crown pictured here added to my collection.  When compressed air was used to dry the underlying tooth before applying adhesive, I experienced a level of pain not known to me in all my life.  The dentist was surprised by my reaction but said it was not uncommon to have a hypersensitivity to hot or cold temperatures. If the 3-second blast of air had gone on for another second, I swear I would have lost consciousness.

Note to Children:  Consistent use of a night guard will prevent subsequent misery if you suffer from bruxism (the official term).

I enjoyed dinner with my new boss, Paolo (pictured on the right), and several colleagues (not all pictured) at Papa Razzi’s this evening. Such gatherings help to create strong working and personal relationships, especially important given that Paolo is based in Pasadena.

Jeanine and Maya have decided to join Nico and I on our visit to Barcelona next week. Predictably, Maya’s passport has expired since her trip to India. In order to get an expedited passport for a minor, both parents must appear in person at a US Passport office. Fortunately, Boston has such an office which is where the three of us found ourselves this morning. Because it is a federal building, security is very tight. Before passing through the metal detector we were asked if we were carrying any weapons and to put all metal objects through an x-ray machine. We answered no and complied. Apparently, my 3 inch pocket tool (folding pliers, screw drivers, scissors, tiny knife, etc.) is considered a weapon and was summarily confiscated. During the ensuing “conversation” the only response I got was, “this happens all the time.” No kidding. Try posting a sign with pictures of non-weapons you plan to confiscate; problem solved. Maya and Jeanine wisely reminded me that I could afford a replacement tool and dragged me onwards. We arrived early enough to be at the head of the line as we entered the passport office and were finished with our business in less than 15 minutes.

Pictured above is the 5-story atrium where we enjoyed a light breakfast before heading to the passport office. The entire facade and ceiling are painted on flat surfaces. At first glance you would swear that all the details were real.

With only two healthy subs, my soccer team was lucky to walk away from our contest with Belmont this morning having secured a scoreless tie. Despite earlier forecasts to the contrary, it was cold with periods of steady rain. I sustained a cracked rib early in the match which did nothing but add misery to the damp, cold conditions. I collided with an opponent while pursuing a 50/50 ball. We both went to ground and somehow his knee wound up clipping me under my rightarmpitt. I have cracked several ribs over the course of my life and I know to expect agony any time I sneeze, cough, or laugh for the next several weeks. Fortunately, it should not prevent me from continuing to play.

Later, the day turned beautiful and I found time to give Maya, now 14, her first proper driving lesson. She was a surprisingly fast learner and by the end of an hour was driving confidently around our neighborhood. She feathers the brakes as if she has been driving for years and didn’t once forget to signal a turn.

Nicolai got his first exposure to sled hockey this morning when we visited the 10th Annual USA Disabled Hockey Festival at the New England Sports Center in Marlborough Massachusetts. We were invited by future Paralympian, Noah Grove, one of his teammates from the US National Amputee Soccer team to check out the sport. Noah, arguably the best player in the tournament, scored a total of 13 goals. He feels Nicolai would be very successful in the sport and is encouraging him to give it a try.

This evening, the entire family, joined by my mother and Jeanine’s sister, Susan, attended Open Table’s annual fundraiser. This is the first major event organized under Jeanine’s leadership as the recently installed President. The gala featured an Iron Chef style competition for appetizers and entrees and a Cake Boss inspired dessert contest. Distinguished judges selected winning teams while guests enjoyed food prepared by Open Table volunteers. The entire evening proved to be an overwhelming success and the charity brought in ~$20,000 for the benefit of those in our community who know hunger. I was the official photographer for the event, assisted by both Nicolai and Maya, and will be posting a full collection of photos in the coming days.

Adding to the celebration was the fact that today is Jeanine’s 51st birthday. You have never heard “Happy Birthday” sung by a larger or more enthusiastic crowd. I could not have planned a more perfect birthday party if I tried and all I had to do was show up with my camera.

iRobot has embarked on a facility upgrade project to transform our rather industrial-looking environment into something more modern and high-tech. To accommodate the associated construction, many employees need to vacate their current locations. I am one of a group that needs to make an interim move and then a final move in a couple of months. Today I packed up my things, removed my artwork from the walls, and relocated to the first floor. I have done some good work in this office and am sad to leave it behind.

Nico and Jeanine were in New York City today attending the Kicking + Screening Film Festival where Nico participated in a panel discussion and did a half dozen press interviews. The folks at Powerade submitted the 2m version of Nico’s Story to the festival which included it in their short documentary line up.

His interview with Mashable, which gets 30+ million viewers per month is already online.  An interview he did with Coca Cola was also posted yesterday.

Just in an article from Today.com

Among her many talents, my mother is a skilled calligrapher.  This evening she set out to create place tags for the big Open Table fundraising event happening this weekend. There can be little doubt about which parent was the source of my manual dexterity and sense of style.  Maya also contributed to the effort through her clever idea for an ad hoc light table.

At iRobot we give departing employees a royalsend-offf and in this case a proper roasting. Gerry, our VP of Product Management, joined the company almost exactly when I did and I have really enjoyed working with him over the years. He is headed to Fort Collins, CO and I hope to see him again one day while visiting Nicolai at Colorado College.

Nico travels to NYC on Thursday to attend the Kicking & Screening Film Festival held at the Tribeca Cinemas. He will be present for Q&A and media interviews after the screening of Nico, a two-minute documentary about his life on the soccer pitch, filmed almost exclusively by his dear old dad.  Jeanine will accompany him and I will be sending her with a nice camera to capture the event.  An interview with him about his participation can be found on the K&S Blog.

Winter snows have given way to spring rains and it is nice to get out forlunchtimee walks again. I find that my post soccer game muscle soreness dissipates more quickly when I exercise the day after a match.

At eighty-five, my mother shows no signs of slowing down and is as beautiful as the day my father married her. I hope I age as well as she has although my soccer performance this morning did little to suggest that would be the case. I need to shed at least 15 pounds and build back my cardio fitness at the very least. Our season opener match was against our arch rival Acton-Boxborough. In the ten years I have played for Concord United we have never beaten them. Today we broke that pattern with a well earned 2-0 win suggesting we might have a shot at the Division 1 title this year.

Few things are more photogenic than ballerinas. Today I spent 7 hours photographing Maya and her fellow students during their tech rehearsal, dress rehearsal, and spring performance. I was completely exhausted after capturing 1500 images without a break for food or water. Eighty percent of my photographs wound up in the trash. The remaining ones can be seen at this link. I am very pleased with the results and hope they will bring joy to many families.

My mother arrived today and will be visiting us for a few days. We had occasion to look through the collection of old family photos I have digitized over the years. In this one, my dad is front and center, I am to his right, and my brother is seated on my mother’s lap. As we studied the photo, my mother pointed out an interesting fact. Nearly 50 years after it was taken, two of the pictured people got married to each other. Also in this photo is the mother of the bride and the brother of the groom and they are married to each other adding further to the improbability of this image. Difficult to wrap your head around these relationships and further complicated if I tell you that the newlyweds are not blood relatives.