Today is a work holiday for me and I spent the morning getting our tractor back in shape. Forensic evidence suggests that one of the two boys drove the tractor into a tree, damaging the front bumper which also serves to support the hinge mechanism for the hood. Unable to determine who the guilty party was they split the cost of the new part and I made the repairs. Nico who recently managed to drive the blades into the ground while mowing for a neighbor paid for a new set which I installed as well. I am hoping the boys will treat the tractor with greater care in the future especially in light of the fact that they are using it to generate outside income.

Nicolai decided to begin a woodworking project earlier this week. He is using cherry which we harvested from a log I have been saving for about five years now. I provided assistance as we rough cut the blanks but he is doing a lot of the finishing work. Nicolai has asked me to keep the details of the project a secret for reasons that will become apparent in the coming days. Here he is using a router which is mounted to my table saw and features a custom built fence.

Nico has a summer reading assignment of 2000 pages. His plan is to use one eye for each half of the requirement.

This morning it was time for Susan to return to Burlington, Vermont. Apparently, between the time I hugged her goodbye and the time she left, a scheme was hatched to kidnap Maya for a week. Jeanine and her sister are both planners so it was somewhat of a surprise to me that this idea moved so quickly from inception to actualization. It was fun to witness all three living in the moment. Maya, of course, was thrilled about the prospects of spending time with Susan, a kindred spirit in many ways. Maya if you are looking in on the blog please remember to eat your vegetables and know that your father is already missing you.

This evening Nico hosted an end of the year party for his friends. Outdoor activities were followed by dinner and a scary movie in the basement home theater. Everyone really enjoyed the event and Nico despite having almost entirely lost his voice seemed very pleased with the outcome. Earlier this morning, Kyle joined me at 8AM for a soccer scrimmage with my team. It was a thrill to be playing with him (even if on different sides) and between the Calabria men we scored a total of 7 goals.

Maya compares the size of her hand to that of a Tyrannosaurus Rex.

 
Although the Van der Graaff produced longer lightning bolts, the sound was so intense that I had to chose between photography and retaining my hearing (hands over my ears or on the shutter release). This Tesla coil produced these dramatic sparks and was not nearly as loud.

 
Next we visited the Theater of Electricity. This Van de Graaff generator is capable of generating 2 million volts and was built by Dr. Van de Graaff himself. It is the largest in the world.

Jeanine’s sister, Susan, has been visiting us for the weekend. The two are seen here on the second floor balcony of the Science Museum where we spent the afternoon with Maya. They had been watching her from this perch as she stood mesmerized in front of the kinetic sculpture on the floor below. The two sisters chose to watch Mystic India while father and daughter opted for wandering the science exhibits. Maya was captivated by the cross section of an internal combustion engine and can explain the operation (intake, compression, combustion, exhaust) in perfect detail.

Maya tends to her garden. We have quite a bounty aided by the unusually rainy spring this year. Every night we enjoy some form of fresh vegetables and Maya seems more receptive to trying new foods when she has had a hand in growing them. I spent virtually the entire day making reservations along the route of our up coming RV adventure through the Southwest.

This evening a small contingent from Sonos participated in the annual J.P. Morgan Corporate Challenge, a 3.5 mile run through the streets of Boston with proceeds going to fund summer camp opportunities for underprivileged youth. When I was approached by our Cambridge office manager with a signup sheet I immediately said yes. To resist this women is simply futile. She is going to wear you down and eventually get what she wants so you are far better off surrendering right away. The last time I ran in a race (or for any other reason) was in 1981 when I competed in the Bay to Breakers in San Francisco. I am now of the opinion that this near thirty year hiatus was not long enough. Although playing soccer involves a lot of sprinting over short distances it does little to prepare you to run at medium speed for longer distances. The race itself was rather interesting. With 12,000 participants you actually walk for the first several minutes just to get across the start line and again at several pinch points along the course. When you do start running it is really more of an obstacle course trying to weave through the slow traffic while not being trampled from behind. I actually found this aspect of the race enjoyable as it took my mind off the fact that I was running although it did little to help my finishing time of 37:22. By my estimates, I think I was running at just over 9 minutes a mile when you factor in the delayed start and pinch point traffic jams. Kyle informed me that this was rather pathetic as he returned from a ten mile run this evening. None the less, I made the distance without stopping and enjoyed a beautiful evening in Boston with my fellow coworkers. Next year, however, I will either find the courage to say no or will do more than one training run to prepare.

Dress a bunch of young men in suits, and you are going to get a James Bond pose.

 
Nicolai cleans up nicely for the big 8th grade dinner dance held at the high school this evening. He is looking more like a man every day. Having surpassed his mother in height many months ago he has declared that I am next.

For those who wondered if I mistyped my first entry in this series, I rest my case. Click on the photo to enlarge it, and tell me if you think there is more chocolate on Jeanine or the strawberry.