Origami

Mailings arrived from both the local botanic garden and Scripps College about an upcoming origami exhibit and along with that there would be a set of talks. We had heard about “Flapping Birds to Space Telescopes” at other times so we chose “From Paper to Steel: Origami in Other Media”. Even though it was only two days after A.'s surgery, we were all able to enjoy both the talk and mini-origami workshop afterward.

Bird unfolded

The speaker is someone who has been interested in origami since childhood, but went off and got a Ph.D. in physics before figuring out how to make a living from his hobby. I enjoyed hearing about that and about the process of making the sculptures in the garden.

A little game - can you figure out the title of this piece?

These are only a sampling of pieces in the garden (I resisted posting every picture I took, but I can send you more if you are interested). It is amazing to know that they all started off as paper!

If you want to see our speaker at work you can check out this short video.

Or a longer video.

And here is his personal website.

I was inspired to check out some his books from the library and get out my origami paper again.

Short but Sweet!

A., a friend, and I left Saturday morning for Vail Lake RV Resort, which will host two of A.'s races this season.

The kids had trail maps on their phones and were happy to explore.

I was happy to use a paper map and wander a bit on foot.

On day one I didn't get far and never came across 

a single hiker or cyclist once I got past the campground. 

I did see some evidence of other beings.

We took a break and drove to the edge of town for lunch before heading back for a second ride. We all thought spending the night at a hotel (and walking to dinner) was better than camping.

I made it out to the lake on the morning of day two, again not seeing a single person.

Not shown, lots of dead fish on shore.

After lunch I finally made it out to the trails where the teens were riding.

I think Santa Rosa Mountain is far off in the distance.

If you look carefully you can see two cyclists near the center of the picture.

I brought lots of reading and had a beautiful place to wait.

After the last ride we had a 75-minute drive home.  What a fabulous 32-hour vacation!

Bike ride

We have done the local ride before, but this time only D. and our neighbor did it because the neighbor had signed up for 100km and I was not interested in going that far. I did ride to the start with them, which I was glad to have done. Afterward I took the bike path home and got to see the improvements (still some sharp turns, but there are two new sets of lights)

And they are off!

Right turn at Sixth and College

I hung out and rang the cow bell to cheer on the riders.
I got lots of thumbs up, thanks, and even a, "That is music to my ears."

The finish
The flags look backward because everyone else was taking
pictures of cyclists starting and finishing from the other side.

Finisher's medal

It was beautiful weather and things did not go completely as planned, but everyone made it home!

Rite of passage?

This was an effective way to remember. 

The circles mark the spots where the third molars are.

The operating room

The upper molars came out in three pieces so we were allowed to keep them,
but the lower ones came out in many, many pieces.

And now it is pudding, yogurt, and soft foods. Except for a donut after playing a soccer game this morning, during which he blocked two penalty kicks. I guess recovery is going ok!

Welcome Wagon

Over twenty years ago I remember Ginger coming to visit us at our new home in upstate New York, bringing a basket of goodies from local businesses. We still use the yardstick and

this toothpaste tube squeezer.

Very effective!

Miscellaneous from October

Entertaining! 

SpaceX launch

Homecoming parade

Genius spouse rigs tandem roof rack to garage ceiling

Volunteering at pie day (not to be confused with pi day) at the high school.

Not shown - lots of voter engagement activities. How will I fill my time after the election??

Halloween

We had some international students over and they had fun

seeing the inside of a pumpkin for the first time.

Two of them used patterns I had so we had

some fancy Jack-o-lanterns this year.

I think this homemade costume was my favorite.

I walked with a friend today and we got extra exercise picking up trash. I want to know who was giving these English treats away and where I could buy some!