Preview Tour of MJC's New Science Building and Community Center

Today I had opportunity to tour our new science building - still under construction but set to open for summer session.

This is going to be an awesome addition to our community!

Inside the entrance is a model of the solar system embedded in the ceiling.

Here is a close-up of Earth and her moon.

As part of the Great Valley Museum there is a "Science on a Sphere" on which can be projected current weather patterns, surfaces of other planets, Pangaea, etc. - AMAZING!

I'm envious of my colleagues who get to teach in this classroom!  I want sliding boards!!

I'm also envious of my colleague's who get to teach in this classroom atop the  planetarium!

A view of the observatory

At the base of the observatory swings a Foucault Pendulum - SO COOL!

The spiral staircase carries the letters of a DNA molecule.  In the near future a model of the DNA structure will be installed up the center of the spiral staircase.

Up and down the staircase  .  .  .

Another look at the ATGC

Nice that they have plantings outside the SECOND floor!

A view of the other entrance - next to the observatory.

I love these banners!

Looking down at the planetarium and fountains.

I love what they did for outdoor seating!

Another look at the outside of the planetarium.  At night these constellations light up!
I LOVE WHERE I WORK!

PROTEST!

I so cannot stand changing the clocks - especially "spring ahead."  I have a sleep disorder, and it messes with me - takes me a good 2 weeks to adjust - and it's simply annoying to change every clock throughout my house and on my appliances and in my van.  How 'bout we decide which one we like - standard time or daylight savings time - and we just stick with it and STOP THE MADNESS!

Celebrating Caleb!

Celebrating Caleb on his 16th birthday - a boy who has always brought joy and humor to our home - in many ways!  :-)

Psalm 19

A couple of posts back I put up my initial foray into playing the organ with the three pieces I had been working on then, including the first part of the piece below.  Yesterday I played in church for the first time.  The piece I played is the one posted here, Psalm 19 by Benedetto Marcello (1686-1739).  I'm keeping a record so that I can track my progress over time.  I have fallen in love with this instrument and hope to improve as time goes on.  (Special thanks to my hubby David for being willing to do the filming!)

Have a Better Day

Last night when my niece, Sierra, found out I'd had a bad day, she drew me this "have a better day tomorrow" picture, and I did have a WAY better day today than yesterday!  Thanks Sierra!  :-)

Christmas Dinners

Dinner Christmas Eve at Mom and Dad's house:

Dinner Christmas Day at our house:

Thought Revisited

DU REVE, DE LA MATHEMATIQUE, ET DE LA MORT

On dreams, on mathematics, and on death.
Card-catalogues turn up such heady stuff
Sometimes as this, this rapture from the depths
Which isn't where it should be on the shelf.
For a moment, remembering Borges' poor young clerk,
I idly consider writing it myself,
Setting a record for the shortest work
The world had ever seen on three such themes
Of such import as death and math and dreams.

I think of asking that a search be made,
But give it up, my French is not so great
And right now I've got plenty on my plate
Without this title turned up by pure chance
As if desinged to bait my ignorance.
And yet -- ? But I shall let this once-glimpsed fish
Swim through the deep of thought beyond my wish,
And resign myself to knowing nothing more
Du reve, de la mathematique, et de la mort. 

Howard Nemerov (1920-1991)

Now Thank We All Our God

I'm a beginner, so I may be jumping the gun in going public here, but I thought this was an appropriate weekend (Thanksgiving) for this piece (Now Thank We All Our God), and my enthusiasm has overcome my shyness.



I decided later in the day to go "whole hog" and put up the other pieces I've been working on - for better or for worse. If nothing else it will give me sometime to compare to when I've had a few more months of lessons.



Fugue by J. K. F. Fisher



Psalm xix (part 1) Benedetto Marcello

Remembering

Jacob introduced me to a "new" artist (new to me anyway), and I want to remember who she is - hence this post of one of her pieces.  The artist is Maria Remedios Varo, and I love her work!

THANKFUL!

It is so good to be able to reflect on scary times from the vantage point of the good times we're experiencing now!  And we are so thankful!

Five years ago in June David and I celebrated our 20th anniversary.  We had no idea as we played beach volleyball and took out sailboats and kayaked and swam and hiked around the Maya ruins at Chichen Itza that in a mere few months David would be felled by a stroke, lose all sensation on his left side and be unable to walk - needing to spend a month hospitalized, initially in ICU.

Here he is about 3 weeks after his stroke on a "field trip" from the rehabilitation hospital to watch our youngest son Caleb play soccer.  I remember it being pretty tricky navigating that wheelchair over the bumpy field.

He worked very hard a therapy - here working on larger muscles - back in his room working on picking up coins with the fingers of his left hand, re-learning to shuffle cards (very important to him!) - and so on.

Eventually he graduated from a wheel-chair to a walker and then to a cane and then  .  .  .

 .  .  .  finally to walking independently!

The next spring he had surgery to repair the hole in his heart that had thrown the clot and caused the stroke.

And this past summer we celebrated our 25th anniversary - back in the Yucatan Peninsula checking out more Maya ruins.  He's able to climb steep pyramids now as well as walk.  Here David is pictured most of the way up the main temple at Coba.

Here's another picture to illustrate how steep this pyramid is - this is me working hard to get back down!  There's a reason they've strung a rope all the way down the center!

As to recovery, he didn't get everything back.  Though he hides it well, he still can't really feel much of anything on his left side (try coming up behind him and tapping his left shoulder - he won't know you're there!).  Due to this loss of feeling he now has a very good excuse for not playing video games with the boys, because if he looks at the screen he can't tell if his fingers are even on the controller or not (so guess who gets to play Super Smash Brother's Brawl with the boys?!).  And you may as well give up on having your call answered if he's put his cell-phone in his left pocket!  Good thing he wasn't a keyboardist (piano or computer) before, because he wouldn't be anymore!  Also, each morning when he gets up he has to take a short time to re-teach his left leg how to walk, because it's always "dead" after sleeping.  The one real frustration that remains with him is that he cannot run as he used to and that the imbalance between the sides of his body causes him to injure his knees and have a set-back when he tries to do so (which he does keep trying to do because he has a passion for running!).

We could have lost our precious Hubby and Daddy, but he's still here with us!  PRAISE GOD!  He could have remained unable to walk, but he can walk!  He could have lost his sight or his hearing or his ability to think.  But he can walk and work and drive and play cards and do yard-work and go on vacation and think and see and hike and climb and ride a bicycle - and do just about all the good and joyful things of life.

WE ARE SO THANKFUL!  We're also SO THANKFUL for friends and family who surrounded us at that time with prayer and support - and for ongoing relationships with the awesome people in our lives who are there in good times and bad.  THANK YOU!

Weekend Adventure

I started taking pipe organ lessons earlier this year and just had opportunity arise to buy a used practice organ for my home.  After much deliberation (especially about where we could make room for it), the decision was made to get it.  This weekend's first "adventure" was tackling our bonus room upstairs - taking everything off the shelves and moving them and other things - lots of dusting and reorganizing ensued.

 Finally a big enough space in the corner was cleared out:

ASIDE - We REALLY like games!  So that's what our shelves are full of!

 The organ arrived around 4:30pm Saturday from Patterson in a sweet ride.

Dear friends and family members arrived, ready to haul quite a large instrument upstairs.

 Banisters were protected against any untoward events.

Time to start unloading  .  .  .

 Here comes the pedal board.  Thank goodness the organ could be taken up in pieces!

Slowly the organ makes its way to the house  .  .  .  

   .  .  .  bit by bit  .  .  .  carefully all the way  .  .  .

Now to figure out how to get it up the stairs  .  .  .

  .  .  .  all 400 or so pounds of it  .  .  .

Up we go!

A little concern at the landing.

 Got it!

Settling into it's spot  .  .  .

Time for much-needed refreshments!

 Then back up for some repairs  .  .  .

   .  .  .  including the use of open flame!

  .  .  .  and then the professional showed me how it's done.

 Caleb, enjoying the concert  .  .  .

 And then it was my turn!

 And here it is in all it's glory.  The biggest game in the game room! :-)

Cross Country Awesomeness

David shared the coolest thing today.  At the end of Caleb's cross country meet, when the varsity were running the last race, it looked like it was all over - teams were gathering for the awards.  The crowd at the finish line had dispersed.  This one guy was walking on the course, and David figured it was someone who had finished and was cooling off.  It turns out he was the last runner - hadn't made it in yet - had kinda given up.  A group of guys from a different high school saw this kid and started cheering him on.  Then they headed his way, surrounded him and began to jog, and he began to jog too.  He finished with a sprint.  There were no longer any bystanders at the finish line, just one official.  It's like no one even knew this kid was still in the race, but his competitors surrounded him with support and brought him in.  I was moved to tears at hearing this and feel my faith in humanity restored!

Time o' Year for Hay

I'm sorry for the Dead—Today—
It's such congenial times
Old Neighbors have at fences—
It's time o' year for Hay.

And Broad—Sunburned Acquaintance
Discourse between the Toil—
And laugh, a homely species
That makes the Fences smile—

It seems so straight to lie away
From all of the noise of Fields—
The Busy Carts—the fragrant Cocks—
The Mower's Metre—Steals—

A Trouble lest they're homesick—
Those Farmers—and their Wives—
Set separate from the Farming—
And all the Neighbors' lives—

A Wonder if the Sepulchre
Don't feel a lonesome way—
When Men—and Boys—and Carts—and June,
Go down the Fields to "Hay"— 

Emily Dickinson (1830-1886)

Recess Never Comes

J 413

I never felt at Home — Below —-
And in the Handsome Skies
I shall not feel at Home — I know —
I don't like Paradise —

Because it's Sunday — all the time —
And Recess — never comes —
And Eden'll be so lonesome
Bright Wednesday Afternoons —

If God could make a visit —
Or ever took a Nap —
So not to see us — but they say
Himself — a Telescope

Perennial beholds us —
Myself would run away
From Him — and Holy Ghost — and All —
But there's the "Judgement Day"!

-Emily Dickinson (1830-1886)