I enjoyed my vacation day by indulging in a little creative photography. This image was not made with Photoshop. I carefully deposited water drops on a plate of glass. The drops act like small inverting lenses which I focused on a framed photo of Maya which was positioned below.
Today I put down my camera and simply enjoyed being immersed in family as we celebrated Christmas day with each other. We enjoyed Jeanine’s famous popovers for breakfast before beginning to share gifts. We took our time, enjoying each surprise, which occupied us well into the afternoon. Jeanine’s sister Susan, who we are always delighted to spend the holidays with, brought the movie Saint Ralph with her. This uplifting story of a boy in pursuit of a miracle made for a perfect finish to our celebration. Having spent the better part of the day nibbling on snacks and treats we unanimously opted to postpone Christmas dinner until tomorrow.
It would not be Christmas Eve without Zeppole Balls. These fried spheres of dough are coated with honey and sprinkles. They have been a part of my Christmas tradition since I was a small child (50 years). Jeanine prepared the dough, Maya and Nicolai working as a team formed the balls, and I did the deep frying. A more recent tradition (only 20 years) has been dining out after Church service. We were joined this year by the Budris family at Chang An’s our preferred Christmas Eve restaurant.
Jeanine’s sister Susan drove down from Burlington, VT and will be spending the holidays with us. Celebrating Christmas with family makes the holiday that much more wonderful and we are thrilled she is here. If the weather cooperates next week I hope to get her out on the Sudbury River for her first kayaking experience. Launching from a dock and wearing the proper clothing is the key to enjoying kayaking during the winter months. Throw in a couple of inches of wet snow and you have the makings for a winter wonderland on the water.
Nicolai has been invited to become a provisional member of Team USA by the American Amputee Soccer Association. They have been following his career since we contacted them years ago and he is now of the size, age and skill to compete at the international level. Nicolai has distinguished himself on the field against 2 legged opponents. It will be very interesting to see how he fares against other one legged players. Sadly, the popularity of amputee soccer has been on the rise due to the increased use of improvised explosive devices and the effects of natural disasters such as the earthquake in Haiti. Provisional membership is essentially an invitation to practice and compete with the national team. Full membership is conferred if a player is deemed sufficiently skilled to join the starting roster. I took this portrait of Nicolai for the Amputee Soccer website and we are looking forward to his first opportunity to play with the team.
Yesterday Nicolai received some very encouraging news during a second opinion consultation regarding his cervical spine disc issues. Although the initial bulging disc and congenital defect findings were confirmed, the new doctor, based on an additional x-ray view, offered two welcomed observations. First, that he saw no reason why Nico could not continue to play soccer. Second, that should Nicolai decide to wrestle he was at no greater risk than his opponent of paralysis. The doctor still recommended against wrestling, however, because Nico will eventually suffer permanent nerve damage and associated loss of strength in his arm if he continues to get stingers. New testing was ordered to confirm the revised diagnosis/prognosis and we are planning to get a third opinion to validate these latest findings. With the threat of paralysis off the table Nico is hell bent on wrestling. We discussed the situation and have agreed, for the moment, to allow him to begin practicing with the team provided he does extra work to strengthening his neck muscles. Should he suffer any further stingers we will reevaluate the decision.
Although it will be several weeks before Nico is ready to compete, the team was in action this evening against Lincoln Sudbury. I photographed the varsity dual meet for the team’s soon to be published brochure while Jeanine manned the concession stand.
Kyle is feeling much better and no less intelligent than last week when his four wisdom teeth were removed. I am not sure which was more painful, the multiple extractions or the news he received today that his truck requires $1300 of repair work (new gas pump and brakes). On a much welcomed positive note, Kyle received and shared with us his first semester college grades. They were exceptional and we are very proud of the great start he has made. This photo with Hannah (back from Emory for her winter break) was taken on Friday last week when she joined us for dinner.
Every so often we are treated to a magnificent if fleeting sunrise. I have learned to run for my camera on such occasions as the intense colors can dissipate in a matter of seconds. With all of the activity over the weekend I returned to work today with my batteries only partially recharged and a longer than usual list of things to be done (the toll for Friday’s team building excursion). I didn’t return home until well past 8PM and opted for sleep over dinner.
Looking almost fully recovered my mother enjoys some of her favorite music streaming from her iPod Shuffle. My brother took the time to set her up with and train her on all the latest technology including an iPad which she uses all the time to check e-mail and visit family blogs. The morning was spent filling my car to the brim with old photographs, several of my mother’s sculptures and Chinese water colors, old tools, electronics, a guitar (for Maya), books, and memorabilia. We joined my sister Alissa for lunch and a discussion of next steps as my mother continues down the path to sell her home. Tentatively, she will spend the winter months in warmer North Carolina with my other sister, Mayela, before transitioning to live with my brother Mark in Minnesota. We returned to Concord in time for dinner and thoroughly exhausted from our 24-hour round trip to NY.
Maya performed in a ballet recital early this afternoon and I secured a front row seat for the event. Jeanine really wanted to attend as well but she is at the University of Brockport completing her final anatomy class (update: she scored a perfect 100% on her final examination). Between soccer and ballet Maya moves with both power and grace propelled by legs with muscles of steel.
My mother has been recuperating from bronchitis with us for almost two weeks now making steady progress each day. As a result of this health incident, she has decided it is time to move from her home of close to 50 years. The three story house in the historic General Electric plot of Schenectady, NY where I grew up has 8 bedrooms and a 4 room basement apartment. For a family of four it was huge. For my mother living alone it is positively cavernous. Most difficult to leave behind will be the magnificent Japanese style garden, a perennial centerpiece in the city’s annual garden show, that she created over the decades. After Maya’s performance, my mother and I made the three hour drive to Schenectady where we began the process of preparing the home for sale. Despite fond memories of my childhood home, I felt like this was the beginning of a new chapter for the family rather than the end of an era.
For the second time this week I participated in a team building event led by one of my direct reports. Our mechanical engineering team faced two challenges that rewarded teamwork, collaboration, planning and communication. The first was a pit stop competition in which teams of four serviced an actual race car (positioned floor jack, simulate lifting car, adding an exact amount of fuel, washing the windshield and headlamps, and replacing two tires with pneumatic wrenches). The second event featured a 60 minute endurance race with 8 driver changes and a strict set of rules and time penalties for violations. Everyone was a winner and I could not have been more pleased with the event and the outcome.
In celebration of stellar financial performance this year, iRobot HRD (Home Robotics Division) employees enjoyed a catered lunch in one of the undeveloped spaces in our building complex, the only one large enough to seat everyone. In early January, we will hold our annual evening holiday party at the House of Blues adjacent to Fenway Park. I enjoyed greeting folks as they entered our make shift dining room and thanking them for the hard work and dedication which has contributed to our success.
https://vimeo.com/manage/videos/33700084
After studying together with his good friend Julia, Nicolai takes a break to demonstrate his new found (as of this morning) interest in cup stacking. She uses a stop watch to time while he builds an eight layer pyramid of plastic cups and then collects the cups into a neat stack. It was an entertaining distraction for the entire family. My mother, who has been staying with us since last week, is slowly but surely recovering from her bout with bronchitis. Kyle was in some discomfort having eased off the pain medications for his wisdom teeth extraction a little too early. Before all was said and done I got roped into the action and produced a sub one minute result which paled in comparison to Nico’s 26 second best effort which can be seen by clicking the linked video above.
I am a huge proponent of team-building events that force folks to climb outside their comfort zones. Today I joined our electrical engineering team on their annual outing which was held at the Boston Rock Climbing Gym.
The focus of the event was on improving communication and the facilitators led us through a number of exercises designed to engage us on this topic. I was very pleased with the outcome and the manager who organized the outing.
