"I hope you have found a friend..."

As I type this, I am sitting in a small cafe in Palo Alto called Leonidas catching up on e-mail before I catch the train to San Francisco Airport. My time in California has been busy with work, application writing, and meeting friends who I had not seen since I moved back to Ohio in Dec. 2006.

Now that I am preparing to leave, I find the song "Closing Time" playing in my head. The line in the title of this entry is particularly meaningful because I have found so many friends in my travels that sometimes the emotions are almost overwhelming. I do not want to become too emotional in public, so I shall simply say thank you, thank God for you, and merry Christmas to all of my friends who are reading this.

Owl Shift

Nothing I have experienced is quite like watching a particle physics detector accrue data at 3:38 AM.

Winter/Holiday Travel Plans

• Dec. 11, morning: Fly from CMH to SJC via LAS and ride from SJC to the Stanford Guest House
• Dec. 17-20: Take Owl (12:00 AM to 8:00 AM) shifts as Data Quality Manager for the BaBar Detector at SLAC
• Dec. 24, early morning: Fly from SFO to MSP, take shuttle van to Eau Claire, WI; from there, I will ride to Independence, WI with my parents.
• Approx. Dec. 29: Ride back to Minneapolis to visit friends there.
• Jan. 3, morning: Fly from MSP to CMH via ORD.
  

Infamy

In 2067, will the anniversary of the Sept. 11th attacks be overshadowed by news of a mass murder at a shopping mall, as the anniversary of the Pearl Harbor attacks have been today?

Let it Snow!

"From whose womb did the ice come forth, and who has given birth to the frost of heaven?
The waters become hard like stone, and the face of the deep is frozen."

- Job 38:29-30

The Scale of the Universe

I do not normally perpetuate chain messages via e-mail, but this one is well done and worth reading, so I decided to share it here.

Now, THIS is really fascinating -

it's rather dazzling to see it presented this way.

I CERTAINLY THOUGHT THIS WAS ENLIGHTENING. BEYOND OUR SUN ... IT'S A BIG UNIVERSE.

ANTARES IS THE 15TH BRIGHTEST STAR IN THE SKY.
IT IS MORE THAN 1000 LIGHT YEARS AWAY.
NOW HOW BIG ARE YOU?
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NOW TRY TO WRAP YOUR MIND AROUND THIS.........

THIS IS A HUBBLE TELESCOPE ULTRA DEEP FIELD INFRARED VIEW OF COUNTLESS
"ENTIRE" GALAXIES BILLIONS OF LIGHT-YEARS AWAY.

Humbling, Isn't it?

Thanksgiving!

Various things have distracted me from the blog since my previous entry, but I did have an excellent Thanksgiving meal with friends in Columbus. I also want to share a few things for which I am thankful.

• The grace and mercy of God
• Family and Friends from Romaina to Australia, especially those who hosted me on Thanksgiving.
• Good physical health
  

"When you have eaten and are satisfied, you shall bless the LORD your God for the good land which He has given you." - Deuteronomy 8:10