We’re back home after a whilrwind one night trip down to Endicott to see Diane’s folks.. It’s always nice and restful going to Endicott.. In saddition to being able ot see relatives and friends Endicott has a special treat for us.. the food ! Endincott/Binghampton is an interesting place.. half rust belt and half east coast. THere are many ethnic enclaves there.. and each has carved out their own niche in the food of the region. It’s really quite distinct.. lots of polish, ukranian and italian food.. things. like Spiedies, pizzelles, halluski, and my absolute favorite Jim Roma’s cold pizza. .. You have to try this stuff to understand it.. it’s sold in huge cookie sheet size squares..for something like 8 bucks.  we get it with extra sauce and little cheese. When done right, it’s too gooy to pick up properly.. it’s dripping with basil heavy tomatoe sauce.. and just enough cheese to make a partial skin. It’s made to be eaten cold. When you eat it, the sauce drips all over everything.. soemtimes I feel like I could roll in it.   We always get soem for the ride back.. by the time ew get here.. we’re sick of it for a bit.. but by tomorrow , I’ll be craving it again..   That’s why I took these pictures.

Aside from eating cold pizza, I busied myself o the way back trying to finsih thta rap/hiphop song about engineering.. Hipshop songs were nevermeant to be written by 50 year old white guys like me.. But i’ve enjoyed thinking about it.. I/m finding it to be a pretty rigid and clean form

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I’m hoping to finish writing it tonight.. it’s goofy.. but will be fun to record..

Speaking of Hiphop.. check out these laptops.. My work computer crapped out early last week.. they lent me a replacement.. then the company sent me a 5 year old loaner.  then they sent me my repaired original.. on top of that .. I’v ebene using the only one that works relibly.. that’s my Linux one from the shop.. SO what can you do with four laptops ? … Make Art !

I call this one ‘The Citadel’

Here’s “the Kalaidascope”

and “the skyscraper”

But here’s my favorite.. I call it the “Dos Equis”.. who says computeres aren’t fun and beautiful ?

OK.. gotta work with Gabe on Math..more later..

Think of us this week. We’ll probably be doign a small memorial for Sam on Saturday. I’ll let you knowas we get nearer the end of the week.

Night folks.. Night Sam !
-me

Greetings from Endicott NY. Diane, Gabe, Kristin, the dogs and I came down for the ngiht to celebrate my father in law Gabe’s 75th birthday..  He is such a great, great man. He’s strong and quiet .. very capable and self contained. He’s been a great freind to me and a wonderful granfather to our kids. It’s great to see him and Marcia, my mother in law doing well
.

Hapy Birthday Gabe   ! Thanks sor everything ! We love you !

Nite folks.. Nite Sam !
-me

*:30 on a friday night and I’m alone in the house. Diane is at a play, Gabe is at a dance.. so I’m just having some very welcome down time. I managed to spend part of the evening asleep in the bathtub.. Diane had left a hot bath for me when she went out. .. I got in and the next thing I know I was waking up in luke warm water.. might be a sign that I need more sleep ?
    I decided to take advantage of the quiet and do soemthing I’ve been putting off for a couple of days. Earlier in the week Diane found three packages of pictures  (remember film cameras ?) that must have turned up in one of our recent cleaning projects. One of them was labeled “Sam’s 9th Birthday” .. I wanted to take a look.. but wasn’t sure how  seeing these memories would effect me. We have pictures of Sam all over this house yet sometimes seeing a new old image can send me …literally.. to my knees.
   I took the bright glossy pictures out of the pack and looked through every one.. The photos were of late May, June and early July on 2001.. a simpler time in so many ways. There were some great shots of Sam’s 9th birthday.. and some of Richmond’s wonderful 4th of July celebration.

   It felt  really good looking through the years like this.. we all looked so happy and complete.  

I could put myself in every scene, hear the voices.. remember the smells..
I lost it a bit when I saw this picture.. So …. Sam.. look at that smile !

I loved seeing Sam surrounded by his friends.. that’s how I remember him best  !

I loved this cute one of Gabe

I sat there and went through the stack of photos a couple of times.. held each one.. then I shuffled them back together .. and put them away. It had been easier than I thought it was going to be…   but.. i can feel them pulling at my heart still an hour later…

   Next  Friday/Saturday marks the thrid anniversary of Sam’s passing…  Like thinking of that  stack of pictures, I’m not sure what I’m supposed to be feeling.. I find it doeasn’t pay to try and predict… 

I feel  strong now.  . 

Gnite folks.. nite Sam
-me

Big media couple of days.. last night i was interviewed for a show called DesignChat. It was live cast on on Mashable.com  and will eventually be out as a podcast.

Today I got word that an interview I did  a few weeks back for Bionic Genius Roundtable came out today . Here’s the podcast... kinda long… but I really like it.. It has some good stories about The Colony.   Even though I liked hte message, i’s so very wierd to sit and listen to yourself ramble on about stuff.. I don’t think I’ll ever get used to that.. I’ll tell you this.. listening to yourself talk that much makes me want to talk less..

I wish I could be more succint

so bye. (nite all, nite Sam !)
-me

Ps. ent by Talnet last night.. saw Hannah. Phil L was there as well

Tonight Gabe and Kristen made me a surprise dinner..   a lettuce leaf, a Gummi (as in Gummi worms) hamberger and a bottle of tobasco. Yum (?) I did put the tobasco on the hotsauce which tasted just like you think it would. !

Thanks Gabe!.. it made my night !