“The moment after something happens,
the echo of the event is still there.
Staring at a wall or an object, our mind
begins to break down the surface.
Looking into a space, we project
what happened there.”
My intent in these images is to capture a frame of time, a before and an after; to attune the viewer to the unseen emotions echoed everywhere we go. The images are a recognition that even in the most mundane places, it is likely that something meaningful happened there, somewhere along the line.
Even without people, places have depth, and they have emotional resonance.
I am caring and demonstrate confidence
I wonder what I will be when I grow up
I hear a marker talk
I see the world's largest ice cream cone
I want to be an architect
I am caring and demonstrate confidence
I pretend to be a dragon
I feel muddy water running through my legs
I touch a rocket
I worry if a tornado will form here
I cry when my fish die
I am caring and demonstrate confidence
I understand that things die
I say, "Don't give up!"
I dream I live in a mansion
I try to play piano nicely
I hope to live a long time
I am caring and demonstrate confidence
"One can learn such a lot and enjoy such a lot in seventy years, and three generations is a long, long time to see human follies and acquire human wisdom. Anyone who is wise and has lived long enough to witness the changes of fashion and morals and politics through the rise and fall of three generations should be perfectly satisfied to rise from his seat and go away saying, 'It was a good show,' when the curtain falls." --Lin Yutang
On February 18, Rose and I celebrated our tenth wedding anniversary. I love her today more than ever. When we were first married, we got a lot of advice on having a successful relationship--some useful, some not so useful. Couples are as different as people, so it's tough to find blanket advice that applies to everyone. One important thing we have learned: To be happy as a couple, you must be happy as individuals. Being strong as a stand-alone person makes being together as a couple, in love, all that more meaningful.
This is the kind of thing that really excites me: fundamental connections among biology, design, and human behavior. A group of Japanese scientists has shown that "the slime mold Physarum polycephalum forms networks with comparable efficiency, fault tolerance, and cost to those of real-world infrastructure networks--in this case, the Tokyo rail system."All of our homes are full of electronic devices that use power when off. Estimates of so-called 'standby' or 'vampire' power use range from 10-15% of a household's total annual consumption. These devices sit there, waiting to be used, waiting for the remote control to activate them, telling us the time (do we need that many clocks?), their little red/orange standby lights glowing, waiting to jump into action.
I've tracked our power consumption since installing the kill-switch in mid-September. Compared to the same 3-month (Oct-Dec) period last year, we're using 27% less electricity. That's amazing. Certainly a large portion (but not all) of this savings is attributable to the kill-switch. The remainder of the savings, I believe, simply comes from the fact that we're all paying more attention to our power use in general--turning off lights more quickly, etc. This behavior of course is a direct result of the installation of the kill-switch. It reinforces something I've learned over the years: The mere act of paying attention to something often leads to improvement of that thing.
Previously: Generating less trash.
The way Esmé writes the 'S' in her name makes me happy to be alive...
Above-left: Esmé draws her interpretation of an apple, and writes the word "apple", but spells it "ALIME". Above-right: Esmé draws mommy and does her best to spell it. Ask her how to spell "mommy" and she'll tell you: "OMOMOMOMOMOMOM ... and a Y!"
For the past couple of weeks our family has been quietly celebrating the one-year anniversary of our trip to Japan & South Korea--going out to a Japanese restaurant with friends, making sushi/kimbap at home, looking at all the pictures. The big, juicy ones tend to hide from you.
Adults aren't any smarter than children, and what's really sad is to see someone who thinks they have it all figured out.
There must have been something about the atmosphere of the recital--the other kids (all older than him), the parents, the venue--he was *just* a little bit nervous, and this edge seemed to bring out his best. He carried himself like such a young gentleman! It was really a special moment for him, for Rose and me, and even for little sis Esmé who was--surprisingly--very well-behaved the whole time (though we did fear for a moment that she was going to break out in song during the performance).
Almost every state has increased the age at which children are allowed to start primary school. This is remarkable, given the strong evidence that, in the United States, starting school later decreases educational attainment.
Redshirting is referred to as “the gift of time” in education circles, reflecting a perception that children who have been allowed to mature for another year will benefit more from their schooling. As we will discuss, little evidence supports this perception.
Daddy, outside is like a big room, and the sky is the ceiling, and all of the things in the world are just like things in the room.
