Someone asked me yesterday what the nasty smell was the other day. The truth is, I still don't know. I suspect, however, that it may have been someone firing up the building's A/C system for the first time this year. Happily, the smell was gone the next day and hasn't returned.
What hasn't abated is house showings. We had another last week and two more scheduled today. It's very tiring, and if I could get a final determination on the TX interview situation, I would know whether to give up and remove my home from the MLS, refinance, and settle in again, or to start packing like crazy for the big move. I can't imagine the middle alternative of selling my home without getting a new job, and I'm not sure whether or not I even want that alternative to come to pass. Our home has issues, but no more than most homes, and we do like our neighbors--but we are also the type who loves a new adventure in any form.
The TX company is supposed to get back to me in the next ~2 weeks, so we'll hopefully have more information soon, even if it's just that another interview is scheduled.
Monday, May 18, 2009
Thursday, May 7, 2009
Happy Odd Day
Today is only one of six days this century comprised of three consecutive odd numbers: 5/7/9. So, do something odd today in the name of mathematics! Or, look at your journal and do the reverse of what you did on 9/7/5.
Belated spring break report
The trip to Southern Utah was short, packed, and tiring, but I had a great time. On Friday, we left home early and went to Snow Canyon and hiked the trail to the lava tubes, went swimming, saw a few relatives, and visited the temple visitor's center and Jacob Hamblin's home. On Saturday, we spent the day in the Zion Canyon part of Zion n.p. and did some great hikes. Zion
is stunningly beautiful if you've never been. On Sunday, we went to church in La Verkin. The bishop looked just like the judge of Deadwood, c. 1875. He had the Wyatt Earp/President Taft handlebar moustache, the long, high-buttoned greycoat, the string bowtie, and the riding boots.
After that, we did the scenic drive and a hike in the Kolob Canyons part of Zion n.p., and also stopped at Cove Fort on the way home.
It was a lot to do in a few days, but it was fun and inexpensive. Our motel in Hurricane was quite nice, had kitchen facilities, and cost $133 for two nights, including tax. Beyond that and gas, our costs were pretty minimal. I hadn't been to Zion for many years, but I highly recommend it. I think the kids liked it even better than when we went to Arches last spring break. My wife stayed home with the baby, which gave her a little quiet and enabled us to do a little more. I could carry L when she got tired, and the older kids did just fine with lots of snacks and periodic rest breaks.
I made sure to point out to the kids that most of the people in our motel seemed to be German. People come from all over the world to visit the parks in the Southwest that are only a few hours from my home. I want my kids to realize that a vacation need not be to some far-off place or cost a lot of money to be memorable.
is stunningly beautiful if you've never been. On Sunday, we went to church in La Verkin. The bishop looked just like the judge of Deadwood, c. 1875. He had the Wyatt Earp/President Taft handlebar moustache, the long, high-buttoned greycoat, the string bowtie, and the riding boots.
After that, we did the scenic drive and a hike in the Kolob Canyons part of Zion n.p., and also stopped at Cove Fort on the way home.
It was a lot to do in a few days, but it was fun and inexpensive. Our motel in Hurricane was quite nice, had kitchen facilities, and cost $133 for two nights, including tax. Beyond that and gas, our costs were pretty minimal. I hadn't been to Zion for many years, but I highly recommend it. I think the kids liked it even better than when we went to Arches last spring break. My wife stayed home with the baby, which gave her a little quiet and enabled us to do a little more. I could carry L when she got tired, and the older kids did just fine with lots of snacks and periodic rest breaks.
I made sure to point out to the kids that most of the people in our motel seemed to be German. People come from all over the world to visit the parks in the Southwest that are only a few hours from my home. I want my kids to realize that a vacation need not be to some far-off place or cost a lot of money to be memorable.
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Off to Zion (park)
The weather here has been awful. I'm excited to take the next couple of days in southern Utah. I'll be visiting Zion Nat'l Park and the ironically-named Snow Canyon, where it should be much warmer than it was when I awoke to several inches of new snow this morning. 80 degrees on Saturday--I'll take it.
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
Synesthesia
I just finished reading a young adult book, A Mango-Shaped Space. It is about a girl who has synesthesia. This is a condition where stimulation of one sense leads to perception in another sense or another cognitive perception within that sense. Since that sounds like gibberish, the protagonist sees colors when she hears sounds. She also associates each letter or number with a particular color. Other synesthetes might link taste or smell with shapes or colors.
Why do I write about this? Because my wife and daughter have synesthesia. My wife had talked about how she sees colors in numbers, but I didn't really understand it until I stumbled upon the above-mentioned book while looking for a recorded book to listed to on a family trip. My wife also associates color and sound to a lesser extent, such that she can tell you the color of a concert C, for instance. No wonder she has good pitch!
When I found the book, I excitedly told my oldest daughter, who was with me, about my discovery. She surprised me by stating that she also associates colors with letters and numbers. I don't know if sound has any color for her, but the book was an interesting read to me to learn how synesthetes perceive the world. My wife thinks synesthesia is common, but I have assured her that I associate no colors with letters, numbers, sounds, smells, or tastes. My sensory perceptions are very discrete.
Read more about synesthesia here. Synesthetes can have learning difficulties in some areas, for instance foreign languages and math. My wife is good at math, and my daughter does fine, but my wife is terrible at languages, because the equivalent Spanish and English words have different colors, so she has trouble with the associations. But, synesthesia often leads to exceptional ability in the creative arts. My wife is good at art, sculpture, and music. My daughter is good at dance and creative writing and poetry. Synesthesia is also associated with high spelling ability, but my wife and daugher appear to be fairly average in this regard.
Since synesthesia is not a disease or disorder with a "cure," I plan to encourage my daughter to use her synesthesia as an asset to help her perceive things in a richer way and to encourage her to explore careers and hobbies where synesthesia may be an asset. I don't think my older son is a synesthete, but I don't know about the younger two yet.
Why do I write about this? Because my wife and daughter have synesthesia. My wife had talked about how she sees colors in numbers, but I didn't really understand it until I stumbled upon the above-mentioned book while looking for a recorded book to listed to on a family trip. My wife also associates color and sound to a lesser extent, such that she can tell you the color of a concert C, for instance. No wonder she has good pitch!
When I found the book, I excitedly told my oldest daughter, who was with me, about my discovery. She surprised me by stating that she also associates colors with letters and numbers. I don't know if sound has any color for her, but the book was an interesting read to me to learn how synesthetes perceive the world. My wife thinks synesthesia is common, but I have assured her that I associate no colors with letters, numbers, sounds, smells, or tastes. My sensory perceptions are very discrete.
Read more about synesthesia here. Synesthetes can have learning difficulties in some areas, for instance foreign languages and math. My wife is good at math, and my daughter does fine, but my wife is terrible at languages, because the equivalent Spanish and English words have different colors, so she has trouble with the associations. But, synesthesia often leads to exceptional ability in the creative arts. My wife is good at art, sculpture, and music. My daughter is good at dance and creative writing and poetry. Synesthesia is also associated with high spelling ability, but my wife and daugher appear to be fairly average in this regard.
Since synesthesia is not a disease or disorder with a "cure," I plan to encourage my daughter to use her synesthesia as an asset to help her perceive things in a richer way and to encourage her to explore careers and hobbies where synesthesia may be an asset. I don't think my older son is a synesthete, but I don't know about the younger two yet.
"I Suspect..."
I like having a sister with the last name of White. Since my last name is also a noun, it made for fun wedding announcements. But it's particularly nice when the family plays Clue, as we did last night. Instead of suspecting Mrs. White, we always use our sister/aunt's full name. Sis, you got off this time--it was Miss Scarlet--but don't think we aren't watching your every move for suspicious activity!
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