On my way....

...sat at Boston Logan airport on my way, making the hard choice of Wendys, Panda Express or Dunkin donuts for lunch......why does aiport food always suck. At least I got my last Pie In the Sky in before I left the hole.....

9 hrs and i'll be in Oakland....

Aloha party #3 & 4

Well, it's time, tomorrow at 4.30pm i'm headed out on a jet plane, don't know when i'll be back again......but it'll be soon, i'm going to miss this place way too much to stay away too long.

Two more Aloha parties on monday and weds - #3 with Leslie, Emmy and Calli (and Stian and Lily), I'll really miss you guys. #4 held by Kate, Annette and co. and involved consumption of many varieties of deserts, yum is all I can say. Just about got to everyone I hope, I'll miss you all.

So i'm just about there - out of my house, sold the car, bought the bus ticket. Stian headed out weds and was such a huge help, not sure where I would have been without him. Kate was a superstar today (as she always is) at kicking my ass into finishing up getting out of my house, and Kathy & Rod were there usual fabulous selves - so finally, I am just about ready to go - one more chiropractic appointment to sort out the trapped nerve in my neck (oh that was a great surprise weds AM) tomorrow AM and I'll be ready to get on a plane for 6hrs.........at least physically if not mentally.

Tomorrow onto San Fran, to stay with Stian and family, can't wait for some much needed R&R. Half way to Hawaii, i'll be hanging out there until the end of December, ready to start the new job January 1st.

Aloha Party #2

Stress......oh yes.....but boy am I glad that Stian is here, I would be a wobbly piece of jelly on the floor without him right now (and have already had one 3 yr old meltdown today). I don't think he really realises just how much he helps me out either, both in the physical by packing and lifting boxes, telling me I'm stupid to keep certain things, but also in the emotional by just being around, a friendly physical being, giving me a hug when I need it and some space when I need it too. Just having someone around while i make a mess of the house, doodle and meltdown is a comfort.

Today we had dinner at the Baileys, a wonderful affair of great food and even greater company. Said goodbye to the hamsters and aloha to Ellen and co. True friends are amazing things, and I'm really sad to leave all the great ones I've made here. Saying my goodbyes is proving very hard.

To do list.....

57 items......and 3 deferred until I get to SF

Bugger........better stop blogging and get packing I guess......:0)

One more time.....

My Thanksgiving present today has been to have Riley over just one more time! we had a wonderful day - went to Dan and Cls new house (congrats!), picked up the Riley boy, went for a romp with Niko (Kathy) and Milo (Kate) which all the boys loved and worked a charm to wear them thoroughly out. Then some wonderful turkey dinner at "Chez Catanach" and i'm just about ready to be rolled off the couch and into bed!

Hope you all had a good one!

Back in the swing...

...well maybe. Just back from Rio and it has become apparent that when I left, I literally just pulled the door shut and tried to forget about it...either that or a tornado hit the inside of my house while I was away.....maybe i'll just go for the second option.

Rio de Janeiro was fun, a good meeting, some good days off, relaxing, though a little sad at my last InterRidge duty. I put up some more photos on my picassa gallery from the trip.

Now it's back to packing, Stian arrives tomorrow which I'm very excited about......though I had this dream last night that he'd walk in the door, see all the mess and walk straight out again.......and I wouldn't blame him either!

Happy Thanksgiving to all out there!

Rio in the not-so-rain.....

Meeting over, this morning just another day and a half in Rio before heading back to the cape. And Rio did pull through today, the sun was shining, the street vendors were out, the beaches were hotting up......and Cristo Redentor (Christ the Redeemer) was calling......

Today we packed in two days of sightseeing and fun into one, and although it was a busy day, it was a wonderful one, and we even had time to sit on the beach in the late afternoon....even if it was only for 15mins before we got cold and the rain started again....:0)

Tomorrow it's time to fly back, the steering committee meeting has been great, my time with InterRidge is coming to a close (sniff sniff), Rio has been fun, but it's time to get back and get packing.....



Me and Kristen at the meeting dinner. We went to the 'Scenerarium'.....one of the trendiest restaurants/clubs in Rio!










Waiting for the train to take us up Corcorovado Mountain to the Cristo Redentor







The gang on the train on the way up..












......maybe this is a way to get InterRidge more money......come on Cristo...







...and a frog on the train on the way down.....it's amazing to me (as much as I like the frog), but with beautiful views all around, why put tacky wooden animals everywhere!





Pao de Azucar....or SugarLoaf Mountain....overlooking Rio. This spot was made famous by the James Bond scene in Moonraker......was waiting for Jaws to appear to bite through the cables and was ready at a moments notice to climb onto the top of the cable cars, whip off my trousers and go sliding down the cables.......







Making my own James Bond Movie...












....anyone need any 'Catchup' with their fries?

Rio in the Rain...

Yes, I am in Rio, and yes, I can confirm (even after a few caiparinas) that it does indeed rain in Rio. And that indeed, it can be downright chilly too (even if it is 'chilly' wearing shorts.......that just was not what I expected).

Kristen, Stace and I had a day to explore before the start of our meeting today (which is going well), and to be honest, it was a washout. Still alot of fun, but isn't it just typical that the one nice day you have in a cool country is the day your stuck in an over-airconditioned room from 7.30am - 6pm? Yup, today it was not raining, still cloudy so we didn't get to enjoy the mountains in all their splendor, but at least you didn' t get soaked walking to the taxi!

Here are some initial pix.....please send the good weather gods this way....we have monday off to explore and are hoping to go up the cable cars made famous in James Bond's Moonraker..........yes, I want to relive the moment with Jaws......:0)




The grey sky above probably the coolest TGI Fridays you will ever see! On Copacabana Beach, just opposite our hotel!









Sand sculptures.....we still have no idea how they survived the rain....but keep an eye on this blog for pix of the funniest sand sculptures you will ever see......to be posted soon.......:0)





The famous Copacabana Palace Hotel.......we had Cairparinas in here for Kristens Bday the day we arrived. Totally cool place.....sat by the pool, watched the rain, drank and then pretended the Porsche was ours on the way out.....for some reason they didn't believe us......




When in Brazil......me eating a traditional Brazilian Feijouada......meat stew with everything in.....including Pigs Foot (on my spoon), Pigs ear, Salted rump, Tail.....and just about everything inbetween.......I have to say though, it was very tasty. And despite this picture, Kristen enjoyed the pigs foot too....:0)

To do list......

38 items....

might have turned a corner......might......:0)

Aloha Party #1

Friday night saw a wonderful end to an all round crappy week - an Aloha party! Dan, BL, Breck and Cl, as well as all the people who came made for a wonderful night with some fabulous food and great company.

Thanks guys!

Tomorrow it's off to Texas for a cruise meeting, then off to Rio de Janeiro for the IR Steering Committee Meeting, back just before Thanksgiving - good timing huh!

To do list...

43 items

Still at the point where I add more eachday than i take away...

Riley dog...

The Riley dog arrived into Dan and CLs life around the same time I landed in Woods Hole and we were instant pals. Otherwise known as the "ADD dog", "riley boy", "part-time pup" and sometimes just "bad dog", Riley soon became an often seen fixture around my office and house, making my various lodgings his second home, with always a full bowl of treats and bones. Riley is a rescue dog, part golden retriever, part who knows what, but whatever it is, it's a wonderful mix! Riley often hears the words "what kind of dog is that!" from strangers, with many weird and wacky combinations thrown out there. If people ask me, he's a mutley, the best kind of dog...

I arrived in the Hole to start my postdoc amidst very sad times, and Riley (like so many of my great friends here) has been such a large part of my recovery (and therapy) from that, and such a large part of my Woods Hole life that I will sorely miss his over-exuberant hellos, his fuzzy hugs and general goofiness. Riley has always been there, whether I am happy or sad he's always pleased to see me and always makes me laugh, you can't beat that in a friend, human or no. How do you say goodbye to someone who really doesn't understand the word "goodbye"? Will he always run into my old office to see me? Will he still chase after my old car all the way around the WHOI ringroad? When I do come back to visit, will he remember who I am???

Last night I had Riley for what may be his final sleepover at Aunt Rhians, and it made me very sad to start saying my goodbyes to him. To many it may seem like I am anthropomorphising the Riley dog, but to all who have met him they know he has an abundant personality that though is not human, is as good a friend as you could ever wish for. I'm still trying to get Dan and Cl to post Riley out to Hawaii now and then, maybe even do an exchange in San Francisco - thats about half way isn't it??

So here is to Riley, and some of my favourite photos.




- Photo by Dan & Cl on his first day. Such a cute puppy, though it was obvious from the start he was a "toy consumer"....






- A very young Riley, just trying to figure out the controls while I was gone.....







- Just not a morning dog, Riley would stay in bed while I got up, got tea, took a shower and got dressed.....just about the only time of day you could call Riley mellow.....or even close to mellow.....




- Riley and his friend Niko having a morning romp today






- His last sleepover. Riley curled on top of my feet on the couch. Cute boy.

Its Monday...

Yup, it most certainly is. And the post below I put up earlier today has definitely proved relevant. Why do Mondays always seem tougher than the rest of the week?

Today I started my day as I have the last two days - getting up at 5am with my headlamp and head towards the kitchen to start the stove for a cup of tea and a waterbottle refill. This morning started really well however, with the power suddenly coming on ~6am, just in time for my second cup. However with the light also came the realisation that I had "ooze" coming out of my freezer I really had to deal with sooner rather than later. Peering into my slightly soggy freezer I noticed the culprit - frozen bananas in the door - well Stian has always made fun of my frozen bananas, and though i'm not going to stop doing it (I hate wasting food...) I am now going to bag them first.....:0)

Having cleaned up at home I headed into work after a nice loooonnnngggg hot shower, I sit and have the most frustrating phone conversation with our procurement department (the crux of which involves some equipment that i've been waiting on to ship boxes to Antarctica and should have been ordered 2 wks ago has yet to be ordered). Immediately after which, as I am calling a friend, I decided my laptop needed a nice, full, hot, sugary cup of coffee just to perk up the day. Poor Kathy answered the phone to various expletives, the phone being dumped on the desk and fits of laughter from me and my office mate (laugh or cry right).

So my poor little not-so-old macbook is in the hands of the Mac Goddess, all in pieces smelling sweetly of coffee, with hopes of being revived soon. Hopefully a new keyboard and DVD drive will be winging it's way to Woods Hole in the next few days......please........

If life wasn't exciting enough I then had my 2nd dental appt......but that went really well, so no complaints there.....:0)

A lecturer, when explaining stress management to an audience, raised a glass of water and asked, "How heavy is this glass of water?"

Answers called out ranged from 8 oz. to 20 oz.

The lecturer replied, "The absolute weight doesn't matter. It depends on how long you try to hold it. "If I hold it for a minute, that's not a problem. If I hold it for an hour, I'll have an ache in my right arm. If I hold it for a day, you'll have to call an ambulance."

"In each case, it's the same weight, but the longer I hold it, the heavier it becomes. "

He continued, "And that's the way it is with stress management. If we carry our burdens all the time, sooner or later, as the burden becomes increasingly heavy, we won't be able to carry on. "

"As with the glass of water, you have to put it down for a while and rest before holding it again. When we're refreshed, we can carry on with the burden. "

"So, before you return home tonight, put the burden of work/life down Don't carry it home. You can pick it up tomorrow."

"Whatever burdens you're carrying now, let them down for a moment if you can. Relax; pick them up later after you've rested. Life is short. Enjoy! "

Hurricane Noel...

....well the tail end of anyway. Quick post to be updated later....my house has had no power since ~11am yesterday, most of Falmouth is out and all of Woods Hole. Apparently could be a while to fix too....oh well.....

Luckily work has generators, so if your in the right spot you can plug in a laptop....and by some miracle our servers are still working.......score!

Update - It's now Monday 7am, the power finally came back on at 6am! My freezer is oozing though, and I have stinky milk, so looks like I found a way to completely clear out my fridge freezer before I move...:0(

Being without power (more specifically TV) is nice once in a while. I like TV, it helps to bring my brain down and relax me occasionally, but this weekend was a nice time to catch up with friends (always more fun in the dark with others!), read a book by candlelight and go to bed early two days in a row (with nothing I could do about it so I was relaxed) - now that was really nice!

Bottled water...

....to me it's one of those quandaries....to buy or not to buy? Now plain old water I do not buy (living on the cape with oil tainted water I have a filter on the tap), and I try not to buy bottled drinks while i'm out and about - sometimes it happens, but in general I try and take a flask or get a can. Aside from the generally bad ecological impact of all those plastic bottles flying around, I just don't like plain old water that much.

My quandary comes with fizzy water, which I really like, settles my stomach like nothing else (and with all this moving around it needs settling more than once or twice!) and is not something I can make either. Moreover when i have fizzy water around I drink more, which is better for me. I have real problems drinking enough in the day and often come back home parched, but just don't like plain old water enough to quench.

So good for me or good for the environment?

Not often a choice you have to make, and a hard one for me. And I guess maybe a little random, but something I was thinking of as I sit and drink my fizzy water with dinner......if anyone knows a good 'home maker' or substitute for fizzy water I would love to hear it.....:0)