I took Jeanine on a date this afternoon. We enjoyed a nice walk through the Rolling Meadows part of Boxborough Conservation Land followed by lunch at Twin Seafood in Acton. I had planned to watch Maya compete in the Nordic Skiing State Meet being held at Prospect Mountain in Vermont today. Failure to coordinate with Jeanine left me with only the BMW i3 this morning. Its 81-mile range was no match for the 234-mile roundtrip.

I spent the bulk of the day shopping for and installing a new microwave oven. Ours bit the dust last night after a less-than-impressive service life of ten years. I quickly abandoned my attempt to repair it when I discovered thermal damage to several major internal components. Unable to locate a similar size unit to mount underneath a corner kitchen cabinet, I had to settle for a slightly larger countertop unit. I built a small pedestal to position the microwave in its original position. With this distraction out of the way, I prepared another piece of shop equipment for sale. This bad boy sold in one day and took three of us to move out of my shop.
 

I decided it was time for this site to get a new look. I am still working through some technical issues but I hope followers will enjoy the larger images and cleaner design.

While Maya was participating in her team project evaluation and interview, I had a few hours of free time. I decided to walk over to the Wellesley College campus where Olin students are encouraged to take liberal arts electives. They also have access to the full curriculum at Babson and Brandeis. The grounds and buildings are quite beautiful and the 6 mile round trip would have been ideal if not for a couple of brief but intense rain showers.

Candidate’s weekend ended with an awards dinner followed by an entertaining performance by the school’s fire arts club.

The admission process to the Olin College of Engineering is unlike any other, as is their approach to teaching.  First they screen their total pool of applicants down to 225 finalists which they invite to one of three Candidate’s Weekends. During the 2 day event, they expose potential students to “the Olin Way” and evaluate them during a fun but rigorous team project-based assessment and individual interview. Although candidates are vying for one of only 81 available spots, the atmosphere is light and highly collegial. Having worked with a number of Olin graduates, I know the quality of engineers produced by the program.  It was fascinating to learn about their revolutionary approach to teaching engineering and I will say without reservation that it is the best (by far) that I have ever seen at any school.

I photographed these swans from a prone position for close to half an hour before getting the symmetrical shot with reflection I was hoping for.  These birds really are magnificently graceful and it was relaxing to watch them as they swam about in search of food. Most of Great Meadows remains frozen so the pair were restricted to a small area near the shore that has opened up. 

Jeanine and I took advantage of delightful weather to enjoy a 3.5-mile walk starting at French’s Meadow near downtown Concord. We have been exploring new neighborhoods in search of potential land or homes for sale that meet our downsizing criteria.  No luck so far.  We did come across a cute little pump house owned by Concord Water Works, however

When she is not at one of the Open Table facilities, meeting with potential donors, or attending operations meetings, Jeanine works from our dining room which serves as her home office.  Do not assume that the smile on her face meant that she was happy to see me. Milliseconds after I snapped this image she ordered me to leave the room and chastised me for interrupting her work.  I returned to my office where I spent a good portion of the day booking travel and lodging for a father-daughter trip I will take with Maya immediately after she graduates in June.  Originally we had planned to go to New Zealand but June is really not the best month for visiting the southern hemisphere.  Instead we will be spending 20 days in Ecuador, 8 on board a small catamaran touring the Galapagos Islands.

My mother, whose sense of humor should be apparent from the recent photo above, forwarded me the following quotation. I liked it so much I felt compelled to repost it here.

I think women are foolish to pretend they are equal to men. They are far superior and always have been. Whatever you give a woman, she will make greater. If you give her sperm, she will give you a baby. If you give her a house, she will give you a home. If you give her groceries, she will give you a meal. If you give her a smile, she will give you her heart. She multiplies and enlarges what is given to her. So, if you give her any crap, be ready to receive a ton of shit!

– William Golding (British novelist, playwright, poet, Nobel laureate, and author of Lord of the Flies; 1911-1993)

Jeanine and I participated in the Stand Up For Science rally held in Copley Square this afternoon. We have found it increasingly difficult to stand by as evidence based scientific analysis is undermined by those with political or economic motives. How many climate change deniers would be comfortable flying on planes designed using “alternative” science? After the rally, we enjoyed an extended walk through downtown Boston along the Freedom Trail.

When you love your daughter and your daughter loves otters and your wife excitedly summons you to observe one rambling across the backyard what do you do?  You immediately grab a camera and start tracking it through the snow hoping to return with a decent photo. In my case, I was wearing a bathrobe at the time and had to change before launching my pursuit. Despite the head start, I was able to track it over the frozen pond behind our house and spotted it briefly on the far bank. Traversing the pond was easy; not so the foot-deep snow on either side which provided an exceptional workout.  I missed getting the shot I was hoping for but did return with a couple of photos from our neighborhood.  A little research based on the footprints and stride patterns revealed that I was actually chasing a fishercat and not the river otter I so badly wanted it to be.

For the past week, Jeanine has been suffering from a pinched nerve in her neck.  Her shoulder and neck muscles have completely knotted in an attempt to protect her neck. She has seen the chiropractor twice, a masseuse once, and I have been giving her daily massages. Last night the muscle tension translated into an unbearable headache that was so painful she could hardly sleep. Today I took her to the doctor who prescribed a steroid to reduce the inflammation. After the appointment, we went on a walk to Warner’s Pond and then checked out a few listings for a possible future downsized home.

As part of our ongoing downsizing effort, I listed my horizontal mortising machine for sale on Craig’s List.  This is a partially home built tool that I used extensively when making a pair of bunk beds for the kids many years ago.  I obtained a surplus X-Y table with Z lift and married it to a spare router that I had.  I then built a wood stand on casters to complete the project. I will be sad to part with this tool but it has been over a decade since I last used it and I should think that is pretty good justification for letting it go.

Conditions could not have been more ideal for the last regular season Nordic ski race of the season. Maya was back in action having sat out the last few races due to an injured hamstring muscle. She finished 24th in a field of 101, not too bad considering all the training she has missed. Her team placed second overall and will compete in the state-wide meet, tentatively scheduled for this Friday. All my photos of both the men’s and women’s races can be found at this link.

We received another 8 inches of snow last night making for a total accumulation over the past two days of 14 inches. After snow blowing the driveway early this morning I set out to capture some winter snowscapes. I wound up at the Old North Bridge which proved to be the most photogenic of my destinations. The patterns in the ice were unlike those I had ever seen before.

Since the 7th grade, Maya and Jeanine have been participating in the National Charity League. The mission of the NCL is to foster mother-daughter relationships in a philanthropic organization committed to community service, leadership development, and cultural experiences.  Despite the onset of a major snowstorm, their “Groovy” themed meeting was not canceled this evening forcing them to brave the elements in their knee-high boots.
 

Jeanine and I spent the evening at an intimate birthday celebration for dear friend Susan Reynolds hosted at her new apartment in downtown West Concord.  Her joie de vivre is infectious and I enjoyed our brief conversation on the merits of dating men half her age.

Jeanine was quoted several times in the article pictured above which appeared on the cover of this week’s Concord Journal. I took the photo they used and it includes my mother who was working as a volunteer while visiting for Thanksgiving.

Although it rained for most of the day, I was determined to get to the North Cascades National Park. The road into the park’s interior was closed (due to risk of avalanche) at Newhalem Crag but the 2-hour drive was well worth the scene I found there.  I also found some very nice subjects outside the park.  Winds were gusting to 50mph in some places and while I was taking the photo of the trees below I could hear trees and huge branches coming down left and right. Needless to say, I did not pause long for the shot.

Non-stop rain and gray skies were the only items on the menu today. I spent the bulk of my time indoors but at least I had a nice view from my window.

I set out this morning to visit and photograph Franklin Falls. My friend Cindy had done so twice in as many weeks and I was hooked when she showed me her beautiful photos of the partially frozen cascade. The road to the trailhead was closed due to snow adding 4 miles to the normal 2 mile hike.  There was a distinct footpath tramped into the snow which seemed passable so I stashed the car under an overpass and started hiking at about 7am.

The further up I hiked, the narrower the path became and the deeper the snow. I passed a couple of cars which didn’t look like they were going anywhere anytime soon.  About a mile and a half in, the “path” was all but swallowed by last nights snowfall.  The virgin snow was so deep that I could not lift my leg out high enough to take the next step. Cindy had loaned me some crampons but at this point what I really needed was a pair of snowshoes.

I knew pressing on would be futile and I had not even reached the trail head. Logic rarely prevails over emotion when I am faced with an obstacle in the way of a photo I want. Today, I wisely decided to turnaround and try my luck with a waterfall at a lower altitude.

Snoqualmie Falls were on my way back to Seattle and you can drive right up to the upper viewing platform.  A short 1 mile hike takes you to river level and there was only a few inches of snow on the ground. Not the frozen scene I was hoping for at Franklin Falls but images I would be happy with on any other day.

Fortunately my day ended on an extremely joyful note. Lisa, almost one year old, is the daughter of Nora and Simon. Possibly the cutest baby in the world (after Kyle, Nico and Maya) I joined her for dinner this evening. I was Nora’s mentor while she was attending MIT and we have stayed in touch ever since.  She just left Microsoft for Facebook and is in California for 2 weeks of training. Although I did miss seeing her, I was thrilled to have Lisa all to myself for almost two hours while Simon prepared a home made Peruvian dinner fit for a king. Little surprise given her parents, Lisa is a baby Einstein. I thoroughly enjoyed “conversing” with her as she instructed me in the use of three different remote controls, discussed her first day at daycare, and showed me where all the Cheerios in the house were hidden. She will be walking within two weeks and I would have had her up and running this evening if not for fear of Nora’s wrath had this day arrived while she was away.

My plans to visit the North Cascades National Park today were thwarted by a snow “event” in the Seattle area.  Schools and many businesses were closed due to the uncharacteristic three-inch accumulation (a mere dusting by Boston standards).  At higher elevations, it was quadruple that amount closing several major mountain roadways. On the bright side, this afforded me more time with close friends Cindy and Rob, pictured with Shasta on our walk through their Frink Park neighborhood. We were joined that evening by their friends Tom and Linda for a delightful dinner at a modern Lebanese restaurant, Mamnoon. Afterward, we toured the Starbucks Reserve Roastery; think highly caffeinated version of a normal Starbucks in a posh space twenty times larger.

Earlier in the day I walked from my downtown hotel to historic Pike Place Market, always a great destination for photography.

I flew to Seattle this morning arriving in time to watch the Super Bowl at a sports bar near my hotel. I am not a fan of American football but always make a point of watching the championship game.  Today’s game will be one for the history books.  For some reason, the people here do not seem to like the Patriots and I was part of a VERY small contingent of New England supporters. Sorry I was not back home to celebrate with all the folks who must be going crazy right now.

Maya napping on the couch this afternoon after sleeping in this morning. Who would not be exhausted having to carry all that hair around? I neglected to mention that she went shopping today with her mother.  Unlike most girls her age, Maya has little interest in spending time, energy or money on clothing.  That said, she has excellent taste and returned with some very fashionable items; all purchased on sale.

I leave for Seattle tomorrow morning and am hoping to spend some time in the North Cascades National Park, weather permitting.  I am going to miss watching the Super Bowl with Jeanine. Although neither of us follow football it is the one game we watch each season (as much for the commercials as anything else) and has become something of a ritual for us. To make up for our separation, we previewed several commercials which are already available online.  My favorite is from Audi. Bravo!

As technology marches forward, I constantly seek to optimize my photography gear for image quality and size. Pictured above are three different camera/lens combinations that will shoot in the telephoto range. From top to bottom (Canon 5DM4 / 100-400mm; Sony a6300 / 105-450mm; Sony RX10M3 / 24-600mm). Each represents the state of the art for their sensor size (full frame / APS-C / 1″). Comparing weight and cost we have (89.3oz, 46.7oz, 40.0oz) / ($5.5K/$2.0K/$1.5K).  I spent some time today doing side-by-side testing. As you might expect, the biggest and most expensive combination produced the highest image quality and the smallest and least expensive the lowest image quality.  The differences, however, are no where near as dramatic as the price range.  For the near term, I am going to keep all three sets as my testing made a case for each camera. My favorite/go-to combination is the Canon provided I do not have to carry it very far. When I will be traveling or hiking, the medium size Sony goes into my bag. If I am birding or kayaking, the small Sony is my first choice.

Jeanine hosted her writer’s group monthly meeting this afternoon. Before it was over it morphed into a birthday celebration for one of its members. I was summoned to capture the moment and accepted payment for services rendered in the form of chocolate cake, a very satisfactory arrangement.

Jeanine and I enjoyed a nice long walk on the Minuteman Trail this morning. It afforded us an opportunity to discuss a number of important topics including where and when we would be moving from our current home.  We are committed to downsizing once Maya has left for college.  Our house was a good fit for a family of five but is not an environmentally sound choice for a pair of empty nesters.  Given Jeanine’s work and our community of friends it is most likely we will choose to remain in the immediate vicinity and that we will put the house on the market in the spring of 2018. Until then we will start looking for a suitable one fireplace home (we currently have five).