February 18, 2003

Beauty, Part II

Never did publish any comments re the last seminar I attended on Beauty, given by Philip Bobbitt, a law professor at UT (and much, much more).

I arrived about twenty minutes late, unfortunately, but it was still very enjoyable. I have much less to say about it, though, than the last one. Probably to everyone's relief!

Philip said at one point that the law has the capacity for beauty in that it allows for the role of the consciousness. I didn't write any more about this and thus can't expand on it (at least not the night before I go on vacation). He also said that beauty is what makes us human. Again, no expansion there.

I do remember that I got to make the statement that closed out the seminar that night. I observed that beauty is almost a thing for connoisseurs, and that beauty can be anywhere, in any profession. The reason it's for connoisseurs is that recognizing beauty nearly always requires an appreciation of the rules, whatever they may be, that are applicable to the context.

For example, there might be two examples of computer code that both accomplish the same end result as far as the user can see. But to the people who write that code, one might be an "elegant" or beautiful solution, and the other a clunker. Yet no one who knows what to look for, or what to appreciate, in coding will recognize the beauty. Same for writing a legal contract, or performing a surgery.

Some things are beautiful because they follow the rules so precisely, yet other things are beautiful because they break the rules. To recognize either requires an understanding of what the "rules" are.

Unfortunately, I get to attend only one further session; this Wednesday I'll be in Utah, and next Wednesday I'll be at my book group where the book for discussion was selected at my house last month. The last session is 5 Mar, and the speaker will be Mike Starbird, mathematics professor.

Posted by elizabeth at 11:12 PM | Comments (1)

Vacation Beckons

We leave tomorrow morning for Utah, and we are all very much looking forward to it. Dale, Jonathan, and I are packed, as is our friend Andy, who has come from England to stay with us here in Austin for a week and also go skiing with us. He's very game as he's never been on skis before! This afternoon he did one of the Endless Slope lessons at Sun & Ski that I did last week courtesy of Joy & Brian, and it seemed a good introduction for him. Park City's forecast is for snow nearly every day we are there, so the powder will make things easier for him.

Posted by elizabeth at 10:57 PM | Comments (0)

February 12, 2003

Jonathan Gets His First Valentines

Jonathan has gotten two Valentines so far this week. The first one was at Bal Pals today, where a little girl named Sarah made a Valentine for him, which is now on our refrigerator. (Jonathan, of course, made his Valentine for his mummy--awww.)

Then today we heard the doorbell ring, and when I went to see what the UPS man had left on our doorstep, I saw it was addressed to Jonathan! Earlier this week, on Monday, we had gone to Central Market and while there stopped in at the Paper Place. The Paper Place is where I spent about two hours last summer agonizing over various papers to use for Jennifer & Stepan's wedding shower, the best wishes cards that were written there, the guestbook, etc. While doing all that, some of the women who worked there entertained Jonathan--taught him how to use a calculator, gave him paper to draw with, etc. He talked about them--Angie in particular--constantly at home for months afterwards, and we have since gone back to "visit" Angie about 2 or 3 times since.

Anyway, when we were there on Monday, I let Jonathan take a Valentine's Day bag in for Angie--it had some M&Ms, Dove chocolates, conversation hearts, and a valentine that Jonathan signed himself. She loved it and took our address so that she could send him a valentine in the mail. Well, she didn't send just a valentine, she sent a package! He got a little turtle that plays "Rescue Me" when you press its heart, two Valentine's pencils, some Dots (candy) and some Willy Wonka candy, and an edible heart bracelet. And, of course, a Valentine's Day card from Angie. He wore the bracelet all afternoon and evening and was tickled pink--as was I. What a sweet person to do that for my little boy!

I think I'll help Jonathan write a thank-you note that he can take to her. I was overwhelmed with her generosity, and also thrilled to pieces that my little guy inspired that in someone else.

Posted by elizabeth at 11:43 PM | Comments (3)

Who'd Have Thought I Even Knew How?

While Jonathan was at Bal Pals today (gymnastics), I did something I don't think I've done once before in the seven years we've owned the Civic--I cleaned it! Vacuumed every inch, cleaned out the trunk and put everything away, wiped down all surfaces . . . it's almost like driving a new car again. Very spiffy.

Of course, this doesn't have anything to do with the fact that a non-family member arrives for a vacation at our house on Saturday evening. (Sorry, Brian & Joy, you are far too much family for me to clean my car for you!) Perhaps we should have non-family people visit us more often! After all, I did clean the blades of our ceiling fan (after my dad commented on them when he was here in January) before we had our first Movie Night. Cleaning just really isn't much fun, and I can always find something better to do.

Posted by elizabeth at 11:35 PM | Comments (1)

February 11, 2003

But the Dinner was Excellent

My birthday dinner was wonderful! I found a new restaurant to go to, Ms. B's, and it was glorious. Exactly what I needed. We each had a cup of the crawfish bisque for a starter (spicy!), then Dale had the shrimp etouffee (I think) and I had the seafood jambalaya. Everything was full of rich deep flavor, much more so than at a mainstream place like Pappadeaux that tones everything down. The chef came out to say hello to everyone, and the waitress was very friendly--but not overly so. Whatever they did felt right in that setting.

Unfortunately, we don't try new restaurants very much any more; our time is so limited that we have to make the most of it, so we've found that we're unwilling to gamble on a place that has a 50% chance of being awful. We stick to our tried-and-true places for the time being. But anyone in Austin who gets a chance should try this place. Mouthwatering.

Posted by elizabeth at 11:36 PM | Comments (3)

It Had Been a Pleasant Birthday . . .

Well, I had just made an entry titled "A Pleasant Birthday", and when I went to the Austin Capital Metro web page and clicked on a link I needed to add to my blog, it froze my program and I lost my entry. I hate that.

Basically I said it was a beautiful day here in Austin, Texas. Jonathan and I rode a Dillo bus (old-fashioned trolley type bus) into downtown to have lunch with Dale, and then we spent a very nice couple of house at the Children's Museum before going home the long way (rode the Dillo the entire route).

I also mentioned the very nice cards & e-mails received from Jill, Tina, and their mum Doris (Dale's aunt), the intricate handmade card from Joy, and the presents from Dale's uncle Colin--a funny little set of nesting cat dolls, and some relaxing Oriental chimes with a little hammer to bang them (Jonathan evidenced great interest in them), which are quite a conversation piece. And my auntie Kathleen made a nice call to me (even if she was just awaiting a database connection). Cards from both my grandmas arrived in a timely fashion as well; it's nice to have them around!

I think the last thing I wrote was that it's funny to have these birthdays so often--seems they are coming faster and faster these days, and wasn't it only last year that I turned 30? Guess not since I'm 33 today. But I can say that I'm happy with how I've spent my years so far, and I am very happy today. Also, it's nice to be aware of how many things are good in my life and be thankful for them now, rather than looking back years later and realizing that I didn't know how good I had it. That's because I have a lovely family!

Posted by elizabeth at 05:24 PM | Comments (3)

February 10, 2003

The Nanny of Cooking

So this morning while packing Jonathan's lunchbox, he was playing at the end of the kitchen island (pretending to fit into a cabinet), and all of a sudden he points at my cookbooks and exclaims, with great delight, "That says Nanny!" I was pretty sure I didn't have any cookbooks that said any such thing, so I came round, peered at them . . . and immediately knew. To confirm, I asked him to point to where it said "Nanny", and he said, "Right there", and stabbed with his finger at the big red letters that say "Joy" on The Joy of Cooking. He can be pretty cute sometimes.

Posted by elizabeth at 10:54 AM | Comments (1)

Practice for Skiing

I had a great time today with another early birthday present, this one from Brian & Joy. They got me a one-hour lesson on a fake ski slope (in Sun & Ski Sports shop). I have no idea how to describe it--it's an incline with a "carpet" or conveyor belt that moves up the incline, so that you have the feeling of skiing downwards. There's a bar at the bottom that you can hold on to (luckily). It was a great help to me to remember what it's like to have skis on, what a difficult time I have getting my weight on the correct foot when turning, etc. But it was wonderful to know where I need to start either with an instructor or on my own when we get to Utah next week. I've gotten about half a day out of the way by doing this! I can't wait to ski!

Dale brought Jonathan up for the last ten minutes or so, and he was completely fascinated with the whole thing. Stared very intently at the conveyor belt whizzing uphill, me on skis, everything. When we were done, he wanted to come on the slope and "touch the snow". I let him touch it so that he could see that it was not, in fact, snow, and then I reassured him that he would get to see plenty of snow next week. Get your warm clothes ready, Mom!

Posted by elizabeth at 12:09 AM | Comments (1)

February 09, 2003

George Winston; Churchett pics; Ill Child?; Book Review; Sanborn Maps

This evening I got to go to the George Winston concert at the Paramount Theatre as my birthday present from my sweetheart. He did a great show--mixture of his melodic compositions on piano, Hawaiian slack-key guitar, other guitar, a shuffle done on the harmonica, and some good old New Orleans-style piano. He's very versatile and extremely accomplished on the piano, and it was a real pleasure to see him perform. Last time I saw him was about 1989, on Valentine's Day at Jones Hall in Houston with my aunt Margaret.

Been doing lots of work on the Churchett family history, corresponding with a couple of Churchetts in England also involved in research on the line. Today I put up 11 old Churchett pictures on my web site for them and whoever else to take a look at.

Jonathan might be coming down with something; he feels awfully hot. Wasn't himself all day today as he took forever to go to sleep last night, but still had to get up for gymnastics this morning. Hopefully whatever it is will go quickly.

I did get to attend my seminar last week (Beauty and the Law, presented by Philip Bobbitt), but I'll have to write about it later--my mind's not up for it right now.

Last week also saw me finish The Crimson Petal and the White, one of the offerings I'd included at book group last month. I didn't like it as much as I expected to, for two reasons: there is a narrator whose presence creates a detachment from the characters, and I generally dislike open endings. I don't think I'd recommend it because I don't think it's worth the length.

Found something kind of cool today by reading the genealogy column in Saturday's Houston Chronicle. They are the Sanborn maps, created and used for assessing risk for fire insurance purposes. They go back to 1870, and the Austin Public Library offers them--but only for the state of Texas, naturally. I was able to get ones of the Wichita Falls addresses (9th St. house, Collins house/Brook Av. office, and 10th St. house) from the time period when the Karls first moved to Wichita Falls. Now I need to find some way to access the Kansas and Ohio ones. My dad and I would love to see the map for the street that Aunt Dell (and Grandpa Jack & Gertrude) lived on to see if we can pinpoint when her house was torn down (when Daddy went by on his family history journey last September, it was just a vacant lot). The maps only go until 1970, however, so it might not help too much. Anyone know how I can get an Ohio library card?

Posted by elizabeth at 12:33 AM | Comments (2)

February 04, 2003

I Have Time For This??

Who would have thought that with all the things I want to accomplish re family history, books that need reading, etc., that I would have had time tonight to watch the awful 1979 film The Black Hole? In its entirety, too.

Posted by elizabeth at 10:12 PM | Comments (0)

February 03, 2003

Good Weekend

No details in this entry, I'm afraid; it's late and I want to read a little bit before going to bed. But it was a good weekend! Jonathan had his very first sleepover at his "Aunt" Jenny & "Uncle" Stepan's on Saturday night, and as far as I know it went wonderfully. Jonathan certainly seemed to have a good time, and Dale says that when they were out together this afternoon, he whispered something about going to a sleepover again at his Aunt Jenny's. Many, many thanks to Aunt Jenny & Uncle Stepan for providing my little darling with such a lovely time. With no grandparents nearby, who else would do it? You guys are the best.

I also got in a ride on my bike on the trainer Saturday and on the streets today, where I went nearly 13.5 miles and burned over 800 calories. I WILL be ready for skiing! On Monday I am planning to go for a run (my last run was on Wednesday; Thursday I rode my bike). It's exciting that so much of my stamina has remained with me from my triathlon training last year; even when I was done today, I felt great and energized rather than tired, exhausted, and falling off my bike.

Posted by elizabeth at 12:51 AM | Comments (4)