Maya’s friends demonstrated great artistry in the decoration of their gingerbread houses which were nothing short of amazing. The girls managed to ingest a healthy dinner in between snacking on construction components and contemporaneous outbreaks of dancing.
Preparations for a gingerbread house decorating party began yesterday with Jeanine baking the wall and roof panels. I fabricated bases made from Styrofoam. Kyle assisted with wall assembly. Today Nicolai and Holly completed roof construction.
CCHS fell far behind in the opening matches only to finish with several falls (a fall = a pin and counts for 6 team points compared to a normal win which counts for 3) and the victory. Nicolai has been bothered by a shoulder injury so the forfeit (also good for 6 team points) was not unwelcome.
Nicolai’s girlfriend, Holly, attended his wrestling match for the first time this morning. Unfortunately, Lowell Tech forfeited at his 112-pound weight class and he did not have a chance to show off for her.
Trimming the Christmas tree was the family project for this evening, a nice way to celebrate my return from Europe. Kyle selected, retrieved, paid for, and put the angel atop a perfect-sized tree for our living room.
After returning to the George Hotel, I went for an extended walk around the adjacent lake enjoying a fresh 4″ snow cover. The night sky was quite beautiful and if not for the frigid temperatures and an early morning flight I could have spent many more hours exploring this beautiful city.
This morning I traveled to Hamburg, Germany for a meeting with our exclusive distributor and family-run business, Klein & More. After a day of work, we enjoyed a simply exceptional meal with the Klein family and got to know them quite well. Each member of their family was simply delightful and it was with no hesitation that I invited each one of them to visit with our family on their next trip to the US.
The timing of my trip to Europe was designed to overlap with the UK office holiday party. The celebration started with a pool tournament in which US/Pan European bragging rights were at stake. I made it to the semi finals but failed to sink the 8 ball for the match when I had the chance. The Canadian who beat me went on to win, securing the victory for North America. The party then moved to a large club where everyone enjoyed a fine 3 course dinner followed by much drinking and dancing. Please try to ignore the silly hats.
Over my lunch break, I made the short walk from our office to Buckingham palace for the changing of the guard ceremony. Quite an elaborate and entertaining affair involving hundreds of participants and a dozen horses with the goal of changing out four guards who are on patrol at any given time.
I opted to walk to the office this morning by way of St. James Park rather than sharing a cab with my colleagues. This afforded me my only day time view of the city and was well worth the effort.
I am traveling with a contingent from the US including my boss and colleagues in finance and sales. After work, we were all invited to attend a holiday party being thrown by our UK public relations and marketing firm. It was held in a very posh underground club in the Covent Garden district. The entrance was totally nondescript with no signage or numbering of any kind. Once inside this private club, however, we were enveloped in elegance and sophistication. After making a dinner of the sushi appetizers, I invited two of my finance colleagues to join me for an extended walking tour. We made our way to Trafalgar Square and then on to the Savoy Hotel and Theater (the only place where it is legal to drive on the right hand side of the road in the UK). From there we walked along the Thames River for spectacular views of the Jewel Tower (Big Ben), Westminster Abbey and the London Eye.
An all-day meeting at iRobot’s UK office was the order of business today. I gave a one-hour presentation covering the changes and future plans for the Product Development organization and listened to presentations from my European colleagues. I came dressed for the cold damp weather even if I stuck out a bit.
I flew to London today for meetings in Europe this week arriving at the Grosvenor House at about 10 PM. With the five-hour time shift to my advantage, I went on a 2-hour midnight walking tour. My first stop was Wellington Arch and then on to Buckingham Palace. There was not a soul in sight allowing me to set up a 20-second exposure that really captured the ambient light beautifully. Next, on to the theater district of Piccadilly Circus and finally back by way of Oxford Circus where miles of ornamental lighting hung above the street.
Maya’s performed both a jazz number, I Want to be a Rockette, and a ballet piece, Scottish Dolls from Coppelia, in her winter dance recital. Maya has inherited the family genes for dancing and was in fine form despite suffering from a cold.
Jeanine danced her way onto the Board of Trustees for our Arrowhead Homeowner’s Association, elected by our neighbors at the annual meeting held at Vincenzo’s Restaurant.
I depart tomorrow for Europe and may not be able to post until my return at the end of the work week.
Today our neighborhood was invaded by a marauding rafter of wild turkeys. Eighteen in total, I was only able to capture a dozen in one frame. Nicolai was too slow to locate bow and arrow thwarting his plan to harvest one of the birds for Christmas dinner.
The varsity wrestling season opened today with a quad meet between Concord-Carlise, Lexington, Tyngsboro, and host Waltham. Nicolai weighed in at 112 pounds but was asked by the coach to wrestle up one weight class at 119 pounds. This is often done to improve the team line up relative to the opponents. Despite the weight disadvantage he was extremely competitive securing one win and coming very close to beating a very talented standout from Tyngsboro.
Kyle was feeling a little under the weather today. Nothing like a little dose of Hannah to cheer him up. She is good medicine for Kyle.
This morning I enjoyed a pastel sunrise. Morning light like this is common here but it only lasts for a few minutes.
Maya is now playing indoor soccer at a sports center which I pass each day on the way to and from work. Her game this evening ended at 7PM which coincided perfectly with my return commute. Her team won 6-3 due in no small part to her two friends Emma and Lucy who were part of our car pool. Maya had a terrific game demonstrating some fine ball control and strong shots.
Airing today is the Oprah Winfrey show to which Jeanine’s book group was invited. I had hoped to post some photos from the viewing party that Jeanine organized for her friends this afternoon. Alas, none were taken nor was the show recorded. Instead, I had to settle for close ups of a new floral arrangement that I found in the kitchen this evening.
The lighting of the Concord Christmas Tree brings out the entire town. Downtown traffic is suspended while a small parade ushers in Santa Claus who throws the switch to illuminate the live tree while residents enjoy each other’s company.
This evening Jeanine and I attended two parties. The first, a surprise birthday celebration for a dear friend, and the second a grand holiday gathering.
An unusually long day at work today with no time for photography so I decided to look back one decade to see what was happening then. Jeanine and I were on a weekend getaway to Columbus, Ohio with baby Maya.
Jeanine and members of her book group were featured in the Concord Journal which came out today. Although I was very happy for her, I was equally disappointed that we did not make the Police Log for our weekend call which resulted in the arrest of a drunk driver.
When our kids have friends over to the house they can rest assured that their mother will whip something up for them to eat. In this case, Jeanine prepares brownies for Kyle and his buddies and their girlfriends. I love this about her and hope the children appreciate how lucky they are to have a mom who makes their home so welcoming.
Before his friends arrived, I had an engaging hour long discussion with Kyle on a broad range of subjects. Not so much a father-son chat but rather a great conversation between two adults. We discussed everything from current events (WikiLeaks, nuclear proliferation) to running a business (his experience with Yard Dogs, his new business concepts, my education and which parts apply to my job today) to attributes of a life well lived (remaining healthy, making the world a better place, the relative importance of money) to his emerging interests (computer programming, psychology, game theory). I will long remember this chat and hope he will as well. I look forward to our next one.
Wrestling practice for Nicolai started this week and I thought I would humor him with this photo of one of my first matches. The head and arm throw was my signature move and you can see that I began practicing it at a very early age on my marginally cooperative brother.
A buff is a stretchy lightweight fabric in the shape of a cylinder that can be converted into a hat, neck warmer, bandanna, sun shade, balaclava, or Bennie cap. It is part of my adventure travel kit and has been to the tops of mountains, the bottom of caves, inside slot canyons, free falling through the atmosphere, white water rafting, sea kayaking, rappelling down waterfalls, and chasing wildlife through the backcountry. Of all the places this buff has been, however, it has never looked as good as it does on Miss Maya’s noggin where she placed it this morning after fashioning a cap out of it.
Kyle’s friend Adam spent part of the afternoon here. He is an exceptionally talented pianist and treated us to a brief recital. Nicolai in recent months has been spending close to an hour a day on the piano working on a few songs and compositions. It has been nice to have the house full of music at this time of the year.
Before leaving for home we made a brief visit to the waterfront and the Salem Maritime National Historical Site just in time to catch golden light at the Derby Wharf. Docked here is the Friendship of Salem, a replica of a 1797 East Indiaman that made 15 voyages during her career to Batvia, India, China, South America, the Caribbean, England, Germany, the Mediterranian, and Russia before she was captured as a prize of war by the British in September 1812.
Photography of the Forbidden City exhibit was not permitted but this restriction did not apply to the permanent collections which include a very eclectic combination of maritime and oceanic art, Japanese, Chinese, Indian, Korean, American, African, and native American art. Pictured here is a scale model of the Queen Elizabeth, a wedding gown sculpture created from sea shells, and three wooden figureheads from 18th and 19th century seagoing vessels.
Jeanine and I visited the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem this afternoon for a rare cultural enrichment date without the kids. The museum is featuring The Emperor’s Private Paradise: Treasures from the Forbidden City. On public display for the first time ever are the contents of the Qianlong Emperor’s (r.1736-1796) private retreat, the Qianlong Garden (also known as the Tranquility and Longevity Palace Garden) which lies deep within the immense imperial complex. In his time, he was among the richest, most powerful men in the world. A connoisseur, scholar and devout Buddhist, he created a luxurious garden compound to serve throughout his retirement as a secluded place of contemplation, repose and entertainment.
