Followers of this blog will recall a recent post about the wisdom of giving a woman a toaster as a Valentine’s Day present. For the record, our new toaster, which arrived today, is neither a gift to Jeanine nor connected to Valentine’s Day in any way. Maya enjoyed first toasting honors and we split the perfectly browned English muffin. Bread is lowered and lifted automatically and toasted with digital precision as a countdown timer indicates the time remaining.

UPDATE: After 12 years of daily use, this toaster is still running strong but we are retiring it nonetheless. Despite its functionality, toasting times are significantly longer than any toaster I have ever used.

Nicolai and I visited Brandeis University for the first in a series of college tours he will be taking this week. Pictured here is the iconic 4 story Usen Castle perched upon Boston Rock. Built in 1928, during the Depression Era, the castle was designed to create an aura of mystique. It was built from the outside in from artist sketches of Windsor Castle because blueprints of the original were denied. As a result, it has a wide variety of pie-shaped rooms, unusual passageways, and secret rooms. It provides housing for sophomores, a pottery studio, a student lounge, and Chum’s Coffee House. Unfortunately, we had a terrible campus tour guide who left us with a very unfavorable impression of the school. Despite a great reputation for social justice (one of the strong draws for us) it is not likely to make Nicolai’s shortlist.

I suggested to Nicolai that we photograph his “wrestling season” body for posterity. He initially rejected the idea but then warmed to it after remembering body building photos of my father taken in his prime. The only catch is that he made me promise not to post them on the blog. The torso and head series came out beautifully and really highlight his ripped abs and massive arms. This one of his back was taken as something of an after thought and I did not take care to light it as well. Naturally, it is the only one which he has subsequently approved for posting.

Jeanine was in the mood to dine out this evening and suggested we go to the Red Lentil. It is a tiny vegetarian restaurant in Watertown. They prepare a cauliflower appetizer that is beyond delicious. It is amazing how many wonderful restaurants are within a 15 minute drive of our house. I already have food prepared by the best chef in Boston so do not feel as compelled as Jeanine to dine out but it does make for a nice change of pace and interruption free conversation.

People employed at iRobot are among the smartest I have ever had the privilege to work with. The only turkeys I have ever encountered are this rafter of five that were systematically working their way across the parking lot this morning when I arrived. It would have taken little effort to capture one of these birds as they did not regard my motionless body as a threat. When I leaned over for a low-angle perspective they decided to head in a different direction.

This week’s Concord Journal just arrived with a nice story covering last weekend’s D2 State Wrestling Tournament in which Nicolai is pictured on the front page of the sports section. This will be the last such coverage this year as Nico has decided not to wrestle at All-States. Making weight has been a struggle all season and not something he wanted to extend for another 2 weeks. He is already back to his nominal weight of 125 pounds, a far stretch from his 106 pound weight class. Even more of a factor in his decision, however, was the fact that he was the only member of his team to qualify. As such he would have to train at distant Winchester High School every day with wrestlers from other teams. For Nicolai, wrestling has always been as much about camaraderie as it has been about the sport. We can only respect his decision and look forward to next season when we hope he will select a less ambitious weight class to compete at. He concludes this year’s season with a 19-1 record (13 by pin, 3 by tech fall, 3 by decision), outstanding wrestler honors and 1st place finish at sectionals, and third place at the D2 State Tournament.

Nala surveys our backyard to ensure it is free from squirrels, wild turkeys, skunks, geese, deer, woodchucks, foxes, other dogs and cats. Her level of barking and whining at the door is a function of the proximity of these would be intruders to the house. The approach of a masked man carrying a crowbar, however, would more likely lead to enthusiastic tail wagging. It is amazing to me how much love and adoration this otherwise talent-less creature enjoys. I receive no such attention when I lie around the house all day and pee in the backyard.

It took many years to learn but I finally figured out that giving a woman a toaster for Valentine’s Day, no matter how nice or how much we needed one, is just a bad idea. In point of fact, I have discovered it is never acceptable to give a woman a gift for any occasion which can be used in the performance of a chore or from which you will derive some benefit. Note to sons, please take to heart this hard-won wisdom. Alright, I never actually gave Jeanine a toaster but some of my gifts have come close. This year my Valentine gave me a book entitled The 5 Love Languages (couples who understand each other’s love language hold a priceless advantage in the quest for love that lasts a lifetime). Note to daughter, men like toasters.

Kidding aside, I have started to read the book and as is generally the case I have a lot to learn.

Maya will be visiting China as part of a cultural exchange program later this year. To do so, she must obtain a Chinese visa which requires two passport-size photos. My photographic services were requested and I was happy to comply since Maya is more likely to shun the camera than to pose for it these days. Just this weekend while dining at a restaurant, I noticed Maya resting her chin on her (emptied) upside-down water glass. I thought this would make a nice photo and placed my camera into position for the shot. When she ascertained my intent she began gyrating her head, making faces, and sticking her tongue out to ruin the image. She was extremely pleased with her strategy until I informed her minutes into these antics that I had switched my camera into video mode and had recorded the entire bobblehead routine. The result is too embarrassing to post but will be the source of gut-busting laughter for years to come.

Each Sunday we try to do a Skype video call with Kyle. Today we noticed he is sporting a new high-speed haircut. I have been after him for a while to send a photo that I could use for the blog. When I asked him for one of his new haircut, he started in with a lame story about being so busy it would take a while (this while holding in his hand an iPhone that could complete the capture and transmission in about 15 seconds). I decided to take matters into my own hands and did a quick screen capture which you see posted here. Kyle seems to be doing OK this term although he reports that his programming class is not going that well. He has opted, wisely I think, to not rush a fraternity at this time while he continues to rehab his various sports injuries (he had two ice packs on during our chat). Jeanine and Maya will be visiting him in the next few weeks and I regret that work obligations will prevent me from joining them.

Winning all three of his matches today, Nicolai clawed out a 3rd place finish in the Division 2 State Wrestling Championship securing the only podium position for CCHS. He demonstrated great composure and strategy as he faced two highly regarded grapplers in the final rounds. He is pictured here using one of his favorite holds while looking up to check the time and score. We are all very proud of the way Nicolai shook off his only loss of the season to finish in such fine form. Maya insisted on attending all his matches, even though the event consumed most of the day. Jeanine texted Kyle constantly to keep him abreast of his brother’s progress. By virtue of his finishing position, Nico has qualified to wrestle at All States in 2 weeks time. He is going to take a couple of days to decide if he will enter or not. He has grown weary of cutting weight and the prospect of practicing alone for two more weeks is not something he looks forward to with much enthusiasm. On the other hand, it is a once or twice in a lifetime opportunity and the chance to shatter yet another barrier.

Nicolai left the house this morning still a pound overweight for the Division 2 State Wrestling tournament which begins today. Not good, but considering he was 6 over last night it could have been worse. He won his opening round with a first-period pin advancing his record to 15-0 with 14 by pin or technical fall. He faced a talented opponent in the second round and suffered his first loss of the season 10-3. Nicolai did not look sharp or wrestle well. Fortunately, he was able to bounce back and won his third match by a technical fall (point differential reaches 15) which allows him to advance to the consolation rounds tomorrow. The top six finishers of this tournament qualify for All States (D1, D2, D3). He will need to win at least one of three matches to advance.

Each morning, I generally spend the hour from 5AM to 6AM at my computer. This is when I usually write my blog entries and process photos that I have taken. For the past few months I have been trimming down and organizing my photo collection so that I can find images with greater ease. This week I have been going through my collection of ariel photographs taken from commercial aircraft. Most are best viewed in large format and do not translate well to the computer screen so I don’t often post them. This one of the Colorado River was taken above the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area in Utah.

Jeanine and I had the great pleasure of celebrating the 50th birthday of our good friend Susan Reynolds this evening. The soiree, hosted by her parents, was held at the Legal Harborside and attended by some 50 close friends. The measure of a life well lived may well be the positive impact one has on the people and world around you. Judging by the toasts she received, there can be little doubt that Susan has enriched the lives of everyone she has ever known. Her circle of friends is as eclectic and diverse as any I know. With each new dinner course, guests moved to a new table for a chance to mingle with each other. My present to Susan, pictured here with her adoring dad, was a slideshow of photos from the evening.