Christmas In New York City

So we decided last weekend to load everyone into the car and venture into New York City to catch some of the Christmas sights and sounds.  The key items on our agenda were to see the Christmas tree at Rockefeller Center and to visit FAO Schwarz on Fifth Avenue.  The crowds were huge, making keeping track of the kids, and getting out of town at the end of the day, signficant undertakings.  But the kids did a great job staying with us and braving the cold, and really enjoyed our day in the big city.  I even managed to get a few pictures.

Tulane

Here is Tulane's recently-announced plan to retrench and come back from Katrina.  The school will open for next semester, but with some significant changes.  On the positive side, something like 86% of the students enrolled at the start of this year will be returning.  On the negative, several sports (including swimming), some academic majors (including all engineering except for biomed and chemical) and several graduate programs, will be eliminated.

Seaside

Here's an interesting article about Seaside, Florida, from today's New York Times.  For those of you who are not regular Florida Panhandlers like us, Seaside is a beach community between Destin and Panama City, that is somewhat renowned in urban planning circles for reasons discussed in the article.  A couple of summers ago, we spent two weeks in the next community over -- Seagrove Beach.  Beautiful country, but as the article discusses, it's character is threatened by the quite disparate problems of (1) recent hurricane damage, and (2) overcrowding.

That Tree Is Not At All "Trim"

Not trim, as in slim, but it is now trimmed.  We tromped through some snow last Sunday and found a good, fat tree, which we then decorated that afternoon.  Patience being in short supply here at State of Nature, it was not practical to have the tree spend days outside in a bucket of water first.  It's now a week later, and so far so good.  It still has most of its needles, Matthew has not pulled it down on himself, and conflagrations have been confined to the fireplace.  I've posted here some pictures of the kids decorating.

A Crack In The Axle of Evil

Who says the newspapers are only full of bad news?

Olivia Discovers New Jersey

The weekend before Thanksgiving, we were the recipients of a very nice visit from Christina, Olivia and Nonni.  This was the first time here for Christina and Olivia.  When Olivia could tear herself away from Lisa, she enjoyed playing in the back yard and on the school playground.  Her immediate reaction to sitting down for dinner at the Mountain Lakes Club was not quite so positive, but she eventually came around and especially enjoyed the after-dinner fun at the downstairs bowling alley.  Of course, I took pictures.

Yeah, And Don't Call Us "Sharks", Either

It is apparent that with major election litigation in the past (for now), the Florida Supreme Court does not have enough to do.

I Would Not Have Expected This In Italy, Of All Places

Okay, I am as anti-smoking as the next guy, but this strikes me as pretty extreme. In Italy?!?

More Horses!

Nina enjoyed her first foray into horseback riding so much, that we decided to get her on a regular schedule of lessons once we moved to NJ.  Lisa found a very nice little stable about 20 minutes from our house where Nina has started taking lessons every Sunday afternoon.  This is an excellent physical activity for her, given that she does not like traditional sports such as soccer, basketball, etc.  One great thing about this stable is that they will give Stephen a "pony lesson" once Nina has finished her riding.  Here are a few pictures.

Field Trip

Stephen and his class at Scribbles Preschool recently took a field trip to a small local farm.  The farm is populated with alpacas, which, unfortunately, you cannot see in these pictures (but click here, to see what one looks like).  Over the summer, I passed this farm regularly on bike rides.  I assumed these strange looking animals were llamas.  I've now been told that an alpaca will get very upset if you call it a llama.  Consider yourself warned.

Two-Year-Old Matthew!

Believe it or not, Matthew is two already.  He had a very fun day.  Our low-key family celebration included Chinese food (Matthew's favorite) and birthday cupcakes.

Mike Martchitelli (aka, Smurf) Turns 40

There is a rather alarming epedemic of 40th birthdays breaking out among my friends.  Most recently, my college friend and swimming teammate Mike Marchitelli (known affectionately as Smurf), achieved this milestone.  His wife Jennifer arranged a big party in their current hometown of Crested Butte, Colorado, where Jen and Mike run an Italian restaurant.  Another college friend, Rob Clark and I, along with seemingly every resident of Crested Butte were in attendence.  Here are some pictures, which probably won't be that interesting to those of you who don't know Mike and Jen.  I thought I'd post them anyway -- you might want to take a look if not for the people, for the truly breathtaking scenery. 

Off to School

One of the great things about our new location is that Nina and David can walk, ride bikes, or scooter to school.  They really love this newfound independence.  And, so far, they've made it to school every day, thanks in no small measure to Dad's explanation of the role of the Truant Officer.  Here are a few pictures of the kids on their first days of school -- Nina and David heading off to Wildwood Elementary, and Stephen to Scribbles Preschool.

And Then There Was Katrina

Only a couple of weeks after we got settled in Mountain Lakes, Katrina hit.  There really isn't much I can say about this tragedy that hasn't already been said much more articulately.  Ever since the levees broke, we have been simply heartsick and worried about our New Orleans relatives, and about a city that Lisa and I both love.  One of the best things I've seen written about Katrina and its aftermath is this article from the New York Times Magazine.  The author is a New Orleans native whose parents still live in the Garden District.  The article is a gripping account of what really went on in the days and weeks after the storm.  It's definitely worth taking the time to read this.

We're In!

Not long after finally moving into our new house in Mountain Lakes, the kids enjoy homemade popsicles on a hot August afternoon.

August Trip to DC

In early August, we traveled back to the DC area, primarily to go to a birthday celebration for my college friend, P.D. (Pat Dunne).  Unforunately, it was on this trip that Matthew developed a serious (and mysterious) skin infection near his eye.  He had to spend two nights in Children's Hospital in Washington.  Fortunately, he recovered quickly, but we were really worried for a little while.  After he was released from the hospital, it was nice to be able to go out for a little fun with friends.

Mountain Lake

These pictures are from a trip to Island Beach on beautiful Mountain Lake a week or two after we arrived in New Jersey.  At this point, we were still in temporary housing in another town, but we made the short drive to Mountain Lakes many times to start getting to know our new home.

Michael Turns Three

Michael's third birthday party was just a couple of days before we moved.  Stephen and I were lucky enough to be able to join in the fun.  I have to apologize to Ellie and Bob for not sharing these sooner!

Nina's First Horseback Riding Lesson

Back in July, Nina had her first riding lesson at a stable in Virginia.  I had to stay back with the Matthew and David, so I asked Lisa to make sure she took lots of pictures.  Here are the highlights.

July 4, Still In Chevy Chase

Here are a few pictures from the Town of Chevy Chase Fourth of July Party.  It was a great event, with barbeque, live music and perfect weather.  Olivia, Aunt Christina and Nonni joined us.

Weeeee're Baaaaack!!!!

I can't believe it's been almost four months since the last time I updated the Blog.  Obviously, a lot has happened in that time.  Over the next several days, I'm going to chronicle our journey since July.  So keep checking back if your interested. 

New House

Here's a pretty good picture of our new house in Mountain Lakes, New Jersey.  We won't be in until mid August, unfortunately.  Between July 18 and then it will be the joys of temporary corporate-housing townhouse living!

Dat's a gooood fiiish!!!

Check this out from today's Washington Post:

______________________________________________________

TODAY'S NEWS

Thursday, June 30, 2005; Page C14

Bigger Fish to Fry

· A fish as big as a bear was caught by villagers in northern Thailand, according to a report released yesterday. The 646-pound Mekong giant catfish, caught last month, is believed to be the largest freshwater fish ever seen.

"An astonishing find," said Zeb Hogan, who heads a World Wildlife Fund and National Geographic Society project to study large freshwater fish. "It's amazing to think that giants like this still swim in some of the world's rivers."

 

The nine-foot catfish, an adult male, died before it could be returned to the Mekong River, so the villagers -- not wanting to pass up a good meal -- ate it.

___________________________________________________________

I wonder how much oil it took for them to fry that baby up!

Baseball in Washington!!

Last weekend, I opened my Father's Day card to find tickets for the whole family (except Matthew) to see the Washington Nationals.  Sunday we went out to historic RFK Stadium to watch the home team take on the Toronto Blue Jays.  The Nats lost, but it didn't matter.  Seeing a real, live Major League Baseball game in Washington, DC, was a major treat, no matter the outcome.  Of course, I did not forget my camera!

David's Birthday Party

Saturday afternoon, David and eight of his friends enjoyed a laser tag party in honor of David's 8th birthday.  It is hard to imagine anything that a group of second grade boys would enjoy more -- particularly when it's 90 degrees outside!  It was too dark to get pictures of the action, but here are some of the downtime.

Every Girl Loves a Horse

Saturday morning, Nina went with her friend Maggie to Maggie's riding lesson.  Nina even got to ride a horse for the first time!  Here are some shots of the fun.

Uncle John is in da Howze!!

John paid us a very nice visit while in the DC area earlier this week on business.  He came over for dinner after flying in from San Diego and, as you can see in these pictures, even found time to relax with Stephen, Matthew and a good book.

Downing Street Memo

I am finding it very difficult to understand why the American public is not more upset about this.  I suppose we have reached the point where we're more concerned about a pop star's legal troubles than we are with proof that our president led us to war under false pretenses.  If you don't believe it, read the actual text of the document linked above.  It's not so-called "liberal media" spin -- it's right there in black and white.

Big Weekend

Last weekend was eventful, to say the least.  It started with David's Cub Scout campout at Little Bennett State Park 30 minutes from DC.  Let's just say it was pretty mild stuff by many people's (Uncle Rob's) standards, but it tested the bounds of my outdoorsman abilities.  I did accomplish the one essential task:  With David's help, I erected a tent that stayed up through the night!  We came home Sunday morning, and later that day, David had his last baseball game of the year, after which everyone hung around for food and the all-important distribution of trophies.  Here are pictures of all the fun.

Can They Do It?

So the Tulane baseball team has garnered the number one seed in the upcoming NCAA tournament.  I can't wait to see if they can back this up and become the first Wave national championship team in any sport, ever (I think).  Stay tuned.

David's First Communion

Here are some pictures from David's First Communion yesterday.  We had a wonderful day, with great weather and lots of friends and family to help us celebrate.  Best of all, we managed to get through the day with only a few minor injuries!

We're #1!

Check here for the latest college baseball rankings.  The mighty Green Wave of Tulane is ranked first in two of the three polls and second in the other.  I can't recall any team in Tulane sports ever being ranked first nationally in anything before this team this year.  Oh, and as they survey the unwashed masses below them, they will see the Tiggers of LSU at least dozen slots below!!  Of course, maybe the fact that the Wave has thumped 'Shu twice this season has something to do with that.

Not So Strange Bedfellows

All right, how are they able to do this?  I guess we should not be surprised.  After all, whom would you expect the Bush administration and the Republican Congress to call when putting together a commission to work on rationalizing the antitrust laws?  Why representatives of the most notorious adjudicated monopolist of the last decade, of course.

Are We Done Yet?

Our president actually said all these things during a single press conference the other night (credit to the Washington Post).  Someone needs to get him a Roget's.

· "The legislative process is just getting started, and I'm optimistic we'll get something done."

· " John Bolton can get the job done at the United Nations."

· "In other words, this is a serious problem. And the American people expect us to put our politics aside and get it done."

· "They're wondering what's going on. . . . They're wondering why we can't get Social Security done."

· "And my pledge to the American people is, I'll continue to work hard with people of both parties and share credit and give people the benefit of the credit when we get something done."

· "I don't think so. I think when it's all said and done, we're going to get a lot done."

· "But your grandchildren are going to have a heck of a price to bear if we don't get something done now."

· "You see, it's possible, if nothing gets done, that the payroll taxes will go up to some 18 percent. Imagine that for your children and grandchildren living in a society where payroll taxes are up at 18 percent. Or there'll be dramatic benefit cuts as time goes on. Now's the time to get it done."

Old Pictures III

Last installment.  Here are a few odds and ends.

Old Pictures II

Here's more.  To celebrate the end of Nina's first decade, we went on a family bowling outing.  As you can see, even the littlest ones got into the act. . . . or should I say, of course the little ones got into the act?

Old Pictures I

As promised, I'm going to post pictures from the last several months while the blog has been in hibernation.  Here is the first set.

New Job

So by now it is old news that I've started a new job with Honeywell, but I thought I'd say a little about what I'll be doing.  My new position is Chief Litigation Counsel - Specialty Materials.  I am managing all litigation for Honeywell's Specialty Materials unit, which is a $3.2 billion business that makes, among other things, chemicals, nylon and materials for semiconductor applications.  This unit was part of the old AlliedSignal company, which merged with Honeywell in 1999 after which the combined company took the Honeywell name.  I've put a link to Honeywell's website in the margin, so you can go there and check under Specialty Materials for more on what it does.  Honeywell actually has a plant in Baton Rouge -- so maybe I'll finally get some business trips back home!

State of Nature is Back!

I know you've all missed the blog terribly.  I have missed blogging.  The job transition and all the associated kerfuffle has led to the blog falling by the wayside.  In addition, the old State of Nature site was created on my work AOL account, which, of course, has disappeared into the ether and taken State of Nature with it (although, as we all know, these things never really disappear, and I'm sure that some mole engineer haunting a dark basement in San Jose could find it).  So I bring you State of Nature II, which promises to be just as relevant, amusing and intellectually stimulating as the original.

I have quite a backlog of pictures I'd like to share, so stay tuned over the next several days for what could be a fun recap of the last several months.