Phoenix is down safely!

Don't forget, I work for the people who made this happen!

http://nasascience.nasa.gov/missions/phoenix
http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/phoenix/main/
http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap080525m.html

Italia and Escher

When I was a little boy visiting my grandparents I discovered a book of drawings by M.C. Escher on their living room table. They were wonderful patterns and designs, surreal worlds, and a place beyond dreams. I have fond memories of sitting on the artsy 1950s era sofa they had and imagining things beyonds worlds. This was home to me.

Flash forward to October 2007 with my Plone Conference trip to Naples. Periodically I would see places, mostly rows of beautiful houses that were unbelievably familiar. I couldn't place why. It just seemed strangely like home, and yet this Amalfi Coast style was something I had never been in the presence of before. Sure, I had seen pictures, but the pictures didn't quite resonate with me the way that actually being there did.

Well, last week while going through some books I found a book I bought 10 years ago on M.C. Escher. His forward describes the 10 odd years he spent on the Amalfi Coast of Italy.

Then it clicked. His art depicted perhaps not the color or the photographic detail of the architecture, but rather its soul. That may sound strange, but it makes sense to me.

Now I know why after visiting there Italy calls to me so strongly.

That and the food. ;)

Flooding sucks

Rain. Mislabeled breaker that turned off our sump pump. Ankle deep water in my basement.

That was mother's day.

And I forgot to call my mom. She ain't happy.

NYC cycling ride part 1

The night before we decided to wake up at 5:30. That would give us time to get dressed, eat, and take a leisurely pace to get to the ride start, south of Central Park. We woke up at 5:45 because I mis-set the alarm in the room, but JSR had also set his cell phone. Breakfast was bagels with cream cheese and a slurp of watered coffee.

We arrived 45 minutes early. It was damp and chilly. I don't like chilly. I grumbled about the cold while JSR took pictures. It was impressive the number of cyclists there. You can get a small sense of what we were in right here:

http://picasaweb.google.com/jsaintrossy/5BoroughsRideNYC/

The ride finally started. Except for the first mile or so it was mostly a walk. Heck, in the first mile I probably did 10 beats on the pedals. Everyone had a great laugh at this. Things did pick up, but not until Central Park, which is where Roxanne started her ride.

More to come...

Best NYC trip ever!

This weekend I went up to NYC with a co-worker (JSR) to enjoy the famous 5 Boros Ride. We stayed with my family, specifically my mother's cousin and her husband, Roxanne and Michael. And all of it was great.

Our hosts were wonderful. They made very certain we knew how to get there, and even me with my bad sense of direction felt I could navigate there if needed. Their condo in Harlem was light and airy, large but cozy. Roxanne made an incredible lasagna for dinner the night before, which has spoiled me for life. More family came to share dinner, including their grown daughter Rose (who seems to have inherited all of the positive Aaron traits and none of the negative ones), her sister Diana and her husband Aria, and their adolescent daughter Jordana. It was Rose' birthday so we indulged in her ice cream cake.

The ride itself deserves its own post. Lets just say it was wonderful. More to come...