Linkedin

So, I joined LinkedIn a month or so ago, and various friends of mine have connected to me through this site.  I originally signed up because our Orff Chapter wants to start using social networking sites to connect with people.  Since I am not searching for a job, I find that I have not used this site except to accept connections from friends.  I have set up a page on Facebook for our Inland Counties Chapter of the American Orff Schulwerk Association (ICCAOSA) which has gotten a small amount of traffic at this point.  Anyone out there find their Linkedin account useful?

Further Update on Affordable Housing

Here are some photos of the progress being made on the affordable housing units called Courier Place on College Ave. and 1st Streets.   They are now taking applications, and I think the projected date for occupancy is the beginning of 2012.

October 11, 2011

October 11, 2011

November 3, 2011

Cello Case?

This is what happens when Lynn leaves her cello at our house for a bit after we're done playing and she needs to run errands before going home.  H decides it need a little dressing up.  Sometimes it's good not to grow up all the way....

Music and the Brain

Evelyn Glennie on TED

Because my yoga class has started 30 minutes earlier than usual, Lynn and I were able to catch a lecture at Pomona College called The Musician's Guide to the Brain by Lois Svard, a pianist and professor at Bucknell.

Although I am not a scientist, I am very interested in science (living with a chemist and being the mother to a neurobiologist doesn't hurt), and one of the areas I've done a little reading in is about how being a musician shapes the brain.

Dr. Svard handed out a two-sided page of references and suggested reading and two TED talks (Evelyn Glennie and Charles Limb), so now I have my reading list cut out for me!  While I have heard about plasticity and the brain, I had not heard about mirror neurons, although I had heard that if you are watching your student play their instrument, you naturally feel how they are playing.  If they aren't breathing, you don't breathe.  If they are tense in their right arm, you sense that.  That is, you sense it if you are paying attention.

Continuing Cider Quest

When daughter C borrowed the car on Friday, she went to Liquorama in Upland.  I had never heard of this place, but apparently it has a variety of spirits, and I was bestowed a gift of Ginger and Blackcurrant Unfiltered Pear Cider by my favorite Fox Barrel.  We split the bottle while enjoying the Stanford/USC game (which was a nail biter through the 3 Overtimes).  

About the cider - there is a reason that Ginger is listed first in the title.  Wow.  It is very strong.  But I noticed that after a few swigs, it became less pronounced.  I'm not sure I would buy it, but it was an interesting flavor.

Cable Airport Breakfast

When my daughters were toddlers, we thought about taking them out for breakfast at Maniac Mike's, the little restaurant at Cable Airport in Upland.  I'd heard that it was a great place for eggs and watching the little planes take off and land.  Fast forward, and now that my daughters are grown-up, we finally made it to the airport for breakfast!  

Here is my food - two eggs over medium with bacon, hash browns, and biscuit with gravy.

 H had "The Trainee" which is diced ham in scrambled eggs with biscuit and gravy.

 After breakfast we went outside to watch the planes.  I got a little crooked with this one, but I like the second picture where the pilot is looking towards me out his little window.

 This is a little ultralight-type plane that landed.

 This little airport reminds me very much of the Airport-in-the-Sky on Catalina Island.

Homecoming Parade

Signs of fall abound in Southern California (despite the rush to the Christmas season which merchants are already advertising) and Claremont High School celebrated homecoming yesterday during perfect weather.  I would have had more pictures of the parade, except this year, for some reason, they changed the parade route.  Usually the procession comes down College Ave, but by the time I figured out it was headed down Harvard instead, I had missed the CHS band.

I did, however arrive in time to see the floats, and I gather that the theme had to do with video games.  Seniors were Mario Brothers.

Juniors were Pokemon.

 Sophomores were Pac Man.

 Freshmen were Donkey Kong.

 Following the floats came the El Roble Color Guard and Marching Band.

According to the reports, the football team lost big time last night.  About 8:25 I heard fireworks which I assume were at the football game, but they coincided with the Cardinals winning the World Series.

The Tiger's Wife

Based on a friend's recommendation, I read The Tiger's Wife by Tea Obreht.  I imagined that the book might take place in China or India, but no, it's set in the Balkans (I'm not exactly sure which country) in the 1990s and earlier.  For such a young author (she is now 26), she writes beautifully, spinning in legends throughout the narrative.

However, I found the whole story arc difficult to follow.  I'm not sure if it's the kind of book that if I read it again it would flow better, or not.  I will definitely read her next book.

You can see a video of her talking about this book at Amazon.

German Poet and Minnesota Energy

Carleton College isn't known for being a nerd college for nothing.  Facebook directed me to this blog by a junior bio major in which she chronicles the dedication of the second wind turbine the college has erected.  This new turbine will power one third of Carleton's energy.  If that isn't nerdy enough, Friedrich Schiller made an appearance at the dedication.

If you are familiar with this German poet, you know that he is no longer with us, and you are sort of right.  A bust of Schiller, however, is one of Carleton's most famous residents, although few know where exactly he resides at any given time. He appears at special occasions, usually arriving with masked people, and disappears quickly.  You can read more about this crazy tradition at this wiki page.

The blog post features more photos which are worth viewing.

Another New Recipe for Fall

Yesterday I googled "sweet potato quinoa" and came up with Mexican Sweet Potato Quinoa Salad.  This recipe makes quite a bit, so I'm sure we'll have it for leftovers for a day or two.  Eating with tortilla chips adds just enough of a salty taste to compliment the sweetness of the sweet potatoes.