See You in San Diego!

The boxes have been packed and shipped...

and the kitty is in the travel carrier.

Yep, we've moved! Come visit us in San Diego—touted as America's Finest City—and at our new blog site: sdamyandmatt.blogspot.com.

We did consider calling it latocambridgetorockvilletolosangelestorockvilletosandiego.blogspot.com, but Matt thought it might be a bit hard to remember.

Great Falls, Maryland

Potomac River at Great Falls
Potomac River at Great Falls
Potomac River at Great Falls

We were able to fit in a visit to Great Falls before leaving Maryland. We set out when the weather was an unseasonable 60° and sunny: it dropped to a seasonal high 40° and cloudy/rainy by the time we left. I've visited Great Falls a few times before; I remember as a child watching volunteers dressed in turn of the century (1900 not 2000) vestments leading a mule which was pulling a barge through the locks—recreating the commercial heyday of the C&O Canal.

A pair of Canadian Geese in front of one of the old locks.

A great blue heron was one the only other bird we observed with clarity.

There were no such presentations to watch, just dramatic scenery to absorb and nice walking paths to explore. M* wasn't impressed with the first set of falls we saw—commenting on their not-so greatness. I did remind him that there are no mountains to speak of in the area which would create a staggering drop.

One of the lesser falls that did not impress M*.

Lesser falls detail.

However, after we crossed over a walking bridge, heading towards the Virginia side of Great Falls, M* spied the Potomac River falls and was somewhat appeased. However, I do think that he might remember the National Park more for its array of lichen than for the water.

Lichen covered rocks that M* finds thoroughly fascinating and lovely.

There are areas at Great Falls where offshoots of the Potomac are calm.

I Finally Come to the Aid of a Harp Seal

One-year-old harp seal at Cape Henlopen State Park

When I was in third grade I had to keep a journal for school. I wrote a series of entries on the abuses inflicted upon young harp seals. I must have seen a nature program about how the pups were hunted for their white fur, because I described in detail how they were clubbed to death—I'm a little surprised that my mom didn't get a call from the teacher about the entries.


This past Sunday, M* and I were at my dad's shore house in Delaware when my dad received a call from a neighbor regarding a one-year-old pup that had beached itself at Cape Henlopen State Park. My dad's neighbor volunteers for many marine causes along the Delaware shore, and she was contacted to help guard the seal before it returned to the ocean after a bit of a rest. M* and I convinced my dad to take us over, and we were very thrilled that he humored us. I had no idea that harp seals traveled so far south and that they were solitary animals for most of their lives. When I was eight, I imagined myself having to trek to the Arctic to encounter these fetching animals.

I was a bit worried about the fate of the creature as there were burnt sienna colored marks on the seal's neck and the wildlife specialist, who was present with us at Cape Henlopen, noted that the seal wasn't as hefty (i.e., cigar-shaped) as she'd like. However, a Google search conducted two days later informed me that it had returned to the sea. I also learned that such beachings are not uncommon throughout February.

M*, my dad (trying to exit the shot) and marine wildlife volunteers stay beyond the taped-off safe zone.

And did this experience fulfill my childhood wish to rescue harp seals? Well, I did warn a couple who was heading over to the cordoned off area, set-up to protect the seal, to leash their dog. If a dog did approach or bark at the seal, the seal could experience undue stress or even attack the dog if it felt threatened. Not exactly the dramatic rescue my young mind imagined, but it's more than I thought I'd do when I reexamined this dream during my pragmatic and, too often, cynical adult years.

One-Year-Old Harp Seal at Cape Henlopen

More Converts to the Cult of Settlers

A winning Settlers board.

M* and I have successfully turned his family into Settlers of Catan fans. I brought the game with us on our visit, thinking, mistakenly, that I had included the expansion edition to use with my long term gaming group in Los Angeles. However, we were able to convince M*'s youngest sister, Lindsey, and her fiance, Jason, to try a game—even though Jason was skeptical due to his less than enthralling experiences with traditional American games. When we started discussing the strategy involved in Settlers—the bartering, the amassing of resources, the building of settlements and cities—he quickly became excited to play.

Lindsey and Jason picked-up the rules of Settlers faster than any first-time player I've encountered. There was no eyes-glazing-over moment as I explained, for example, that you can trade four of any one resource for one of another kind on your turn but if you have a settlement or city on a marine port you can do three or two for one. The four of us had a challenging match—a great end to our time in Phoenix over New Year's.

M*, as the one in last place, was relegated to the role of photographer after the game.

Buoyed by this successful Settler's conversion, we turned to our next challenge: M*'s parents. They were willing newbies, but I almost lost them as I went over the rules. At one point, M*'s dad even exclaimed, "What pervert invented this game?!" (Sorry Klaus Tuber.) Luckily they were willing, albeit baffled, to try a practice game with M* and I giving advice throughout. While I sensed that M*'s mom was being a bit too nice to her son during some trades, we enjoyed watching her become competitive as she and M* vied to be the first to reach 10 points. M* did pull ahead and win, and I had my worst showing to date.

M* and his mom reconcile after a hard-fought battle for first place.

M*'s dad eventually came to truly enjoy the game—he was very impressed with how entertaining and challenging the playing of each turn could be. A few days later when I told him that I had extended my stay in Los Angeles, he relayed that the first thing that crossed his mind was, "We'll have time for another game of Settlers!" And we did.

No More Blurry Photos!

This is an overstatement, but M* found this great how-to video for a "$1 Image Stabilizer" that fits in your pocket—much handier than lugging around a tripod.


$1 Image Stabilizer For Any Camera - Lose The Tripod - For more amazing video clips, click here

First Post-Fire Hike in Griffith Park

Charred trees on the hillside by the newly restored Griffith Park Observatory.

Last weekend, M* and I joined Tyler and Nico for a short hike through parts of the newly reopened Griffith Park in Los Angeles. We'd hiked in GP many times when we lived in the area, and the hike that we undertook most regularly, which started a walkable distance from Nico's place, is still closed since the May 2007 fires which reduced over 800 acres of the park to ashes.

The hydromulching has brought green back to some hillsides.

We were surprised by how verdant parts of the hillsides were during the hike up the Mount Hollywood Trail. The new plant growth was bright green—a dramatic contrast to the charred tree remains. We were singularly impressed with nature's ability to regenerate. While some plants do need occasional fire for germination, I just learned from the Griffith Park blog that the level of growth we observed was due to carefully planned hydromulching efforts of 479 park acres.

Checking their blog today, I read that heavy rains bombarding the LA Basin this past week have caused some of the recently reopened areas to be shut again. The "mild to moderate debris flows and flooding" the park is experiencing are surely exacerbated by the destabilizing effects of the fires.

Griffith Park
(click photos for larger image)

Tyler looks tough, but the polarized, sport sunglasses and the straw hat keep M* from being badass.	I love the dramatic twists of this chard tree.
Somehow the palms at the top of the hill survived.	The area around the Hollywood Sign was unscathed.
Without reseeding work, the burnt areas would still look as brown as the hill in the background.	Without the new growth, all these burnt trees would be a bit sad.

He May Not Be Tool Belt Handy But...

M* certainly can improve the quality of a wireless connection. While visiting his parents my connection to the router was weak, so my techie-sweatheart went online to find the instructions for this signal booster called the Windsurfer. He strengthened the power of the wireless router by constructing a parabolic reflector from cardboard (recycled from a cereal box) and aluminum foil. Jewels shmools, ensuring that I have a fast internet connection is a definite way to keep me happy.

By rotating the Windsurfer, I've even been able to get a strong signal outside.

Things in Tyler's Apartment

A creation by Tyler's friend Vanessa. We call it Fishnu.

This gnome, standing on a table Tyler made, keeps Tyler company at night.

Tyler made this table from layers of pressed plywood. The legs are special ordered from a fellow in Ohio. Chairs are IKEA. Look close and you can spot the games on the table.

A chandelier that Tyler bought from me at my pre-Cambridge yard sale. He brought back the chrome's luster with aluminum foil.

The Buddha box, which Tyler got in Beijing, plays music and puts on quite a light show.

Tyler (far left), Shawn, me, Nico and Abe (front)

A Surprise Welcome in Phoenix

The red petals on the white bedspread were lovely.

When M* and I arrived in Phoenix a few days before New Year's Eve, we expected his sister and her fiance, Lindsey and Jason, to take us back to their place after getting us at the airport. However, when they pulled up to the Ritz, I should have suspected something. Instead, I thought that Lindsey wanted to show us where she worked. When they parked the car and popped open the trunk, I finally realized that our Christmas present from them was to stay at the Ritz.

Delicious, decadent and gluten-free.

Now, our two night stay would have been gift enough, but Lindsey went a few steps further. When we opened the door to our room, we were greeted by the version of "Baby It's Cold Outside" that I had written about on this blog, gluten-free chocolate cake and a bottle of wine, rose petals leading to and covering the bed, framed photos of M* and me and our cats, and a personalized note from the hotel management. We were also given access to the club level (breakfast, tea, cordials, etc) during our stay. The bar was certainly upped for M* in terms of planning a surprise getaway.














M* and I arrive at the Ritz, and a framed photo of us on our four year anniversary.

Grandma's Mii

Grandma B.'s Mii

M* taught my 90-year-old grandma how to play the Nintendo Wii on Christmas. She even beat him in golf—she's a very competitive player. My brother-in-law created her Mii (above). Besides the ponytails, which the family insisted on, it's a strong likeness. She was really pleased with the result.

M* teaching Grandma Wii golf.

First Picture With My New Camera

Ok, so not a very exciting composition (but certainly my favorite subject to photograph).

I'm thrilled with my new Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ18 that M* surprised me with for Christmas. It's my pre-SLR camera; I'm taking photographic baby steps.

I also like these two first-day shots–once again, the subjects make the photos.

Fletcher's first Christmas with the McGavocks.

The new camera better captures Titchou's and Brea's beauty.