As I got of my truck at work this morning, I was startled by the cry of a hawk. It was circling directly overhead at about 20 feet. I happen to have my camera, so I dove back into the truck for it. By the time I got the camera powered on and zoomed in (massive x3) the hawk had moved on. I then noticed that another hawk had answered, and they joined together, spiraling and weaving in the morning sky. What a great way to start the day!

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Published: (2005-07-22 16:26:55.0)

For us english constrained folks, that would be Liberty, Equality, Fraternity. The 14th of July is Bastille Day in France, a national holiday commemorating the day in 1789 when peasants stormed Paris' Bastille prison and sparked the French Revolution.

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Published: (2005-07-14 09:42:39.0)

Near sunset, I noticed strange light filtering through the house. I was puzzled, because it had been raining, and well, there shouldn't be any light. Intrigued I headed outside was immediately awed, the light was fantastic. The clouds had broken and the mother nature was putting on a light show. I ran inside and grabbed my camera. When I came back out, a magnificent rainbow had appeared. "Sweet!" I exclaimed. Then I ran inside and grabbed my daughter who was getting ready for bed. "Rainbow!" I told her as I scooped her up. We headed outside and I pointed up to the sky to show her. The rainbow was beautiful and clear, taking up most of the sky. "Oooohhhh pretty" she said. "I want to touch it" she said as she reached up. "I think it's too far away" she said as she put down her arm. "That's okay, sweetie, you keep trying" I told her smiling. We spent a few moments in silence, enjoying the show. Finally we headed in, and she told the rainbow goodbye. So to mother nature, thank you ma'am, I rather enjoyed that.

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Published: (2005-06-17 00:13:44.0)

Here's a blurb of who Don was:

Don was both well known in the HCI community outside Sun, as well as a vital part of the UI design community at Sun. One of his last projects at Sun was the Java Look and Feel Design Guidelines that won a whole slew of awards.

There's an amazing journal of Don's struggle with a brain tumor. The tone is overwhelmingly positive, and of someone who has said "right. Well, let's get down to it." I feel privileged and grateful for Don and his wife letting me read what they went through. It's something to admire and take as a very powerful lesson - to be that strong and at peace with one of life's hardest challenges.

Don's story strikes a chord with me, in that I've had some of the problems he faced at the beginning. I suffered dizzy spells, and fell down a few times. Frankly, they scared the crap out of me. Losing control of your body like that is a frightening experience. I went and saw my doctor, who is normally a jokester and laughs a lot. I began describing what I was going through, and the smile left his face. "You need to get tested. Now" he said very seriously. Which just made me even more frightened. The specialist wanted to have some scans done. For the scans, they strapped me down, and stuffed me into a small tube (my shoulders hit the edge on the way in) and told me not to move for 45 minutes. Then they pulled me out, injected a dye into me, and put me back for another round. The only thing that kept me from screaming was thoughts of my wife.

So the results? They didn't know. Nothing was obvious. They tried a few more tests. They gave me a drug that turned me into a babbling 12-year old. I had to struggle with effort to form every word I said. They still didn't know.

So, at least I didn't have a brain tumor. And I'm grateful beyond words for that. Because I am very sure that I would not be as graceful or as strong as Don was.

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Published: (2005-06-13 16:49:08.0)

Today is a special day of days, my fifth wedding anniversary. My wife remarked "5 years. That's a drop in the bucket. We have a long way to go." I find that very comforting.

Be mine! Be mine forever. Take my hand, my ring and my name, and let me call you my wife for the rest of my days. She smiled sweetly, and my breath caught and my heart skipped a beat. Alright she said. But the name part is out.

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Published: (2005-05-26 21:37:23.0)