February 20, 2012
Where Have You Been?
No, I haven't given up on writing. Some days my prayer makes me consider it, but I think daily writing has some benefits, if not for the reader, at least for the writer.
I was away last week in San Diego to help assist in the silicon bring up of the latest generation of our SnapDragon S4 series chips. Without going into specifics, it was exciting to see it all come together. Exciting new technology. Really exciting. The weather in San Diego was pretty decent. Every morning I walked for ~25 minutes from the hotel to the lab and enjoyed it. Up here in New Hampshire I live 55-60 minutes away from the office by car, so a daily brisk walk was a treat.
I flew out last Sunday, February 12th and returned Saturday morning at Logan after taking the Friday night non-stop redeye flight. Both flights are brutal in their own ways. At least for the flight out (over an hour longer than the return flight) I watched Season 2, episodes 5, 6, and 7 of Downton Abbey on my Kindle. One might say it was a drama overload, but not the syrupy kind I see in some dramas. (Dr. Quinn comes to mind) On the way back I was blessed to have the row to myself and dozed on and off through the flight.
Saturday had the usual shuttling with Timothy at piano, Abby and Daniel at dance classes, and the whole family at 4pm Mass. Sunday we took the family to DFE for breakfast and Claire worked the 9 to 3 shift at Subway. While she was at work we took the rest to see The Secret World of Arrietty. Our kids have enjoyed most of the Studio Ghibli films for their creativity and artistry. This one certainly lived up to the heritage. I also watched the last two episodes of Downton Abbey: Season 2 episode 8 and the Christmas Special. I really loved the Christmas Special. Claire agrees!
Today of course is President's Day. I joke that, Left or Right, it is a day to honor our great past Presidents, not complain about the current one in office. For the past few years it has been like an anniversary for Michelle and I. It is the only scheduled day where the kids are at school and I have it off from work. A day to relax with my much, much better half. I took Michelle's cardio class at the Merrimack YMCA. We enjoyed an early lunch together. I went for a quick haircut and then the two of us went out for coffees. When the kids got home I helped them with their math homework and helped Timothy with his laptop. Timothy has been experimenting a lot with OpenBox.
Before I go I wanted to recommend two longer articles I read over the trip on my Kindle (via Readility). On the way out I'd received a pointer to an excellent article by Peter Kreeft entitled “Weakness into Strength.” Dr. Kreeft always writes well and in this case did a great job explaining an often misunderstood aspect of the Christian Faith. The second is by Sci-Fi author John C. Wright entitled “Contra Contraception.” John was an atheist until 2008 and took a position against contraception well before his conversion. In this article he reasons why he believes it is harmful to marriages and society without any “religious trappings” but rather from stoic philosophy in a step by step logical manner.