End of an Era

For those of my friends and family who haven't heard the news yet:

Monday, March 5, I was suddenly let go from my position as Engineering Technical Administrator Specialist ("technical editor") at one of the major aerospace companies here in the Fort Worth/Dallas metroplex. (It has long been my policy not to mention my employer online by name.) After 33-1/2 years, in the middle of the busiest season of the year for my particular job, this out-of-the-blue decision has not benefited the company or anyone else that I can determine. But it is an accomplished fact.

Thanks to all the colleagues and friends who have expressed their surprise and good wishes. I'm confident the future holds new and interesting opportunities for me. (Certainly I'll have more time to post to this blog!)

Spring Babies

Here's Sweetpea and her little colt, Bully Boy (after the Mississippi State mascot, I think), who's about three weeks old. Sweetpea was featured a couple of years back in a post with her mother and little sister. The little sister hasn't had a foal yet, but another of the mares just foaled about a week ago.

That would be Shawnee, the first miniature pony that my sister Janet bought back in the former century. Here's a picture of Shawnee's little colt, Geronimo.

Janet's been gone ten years now, this past week; but she would have loved these little reminders of how life goes on.

Except for February Alone

So far I'm keeping to my posting resolution, to post at least once a month, by posting on the last day of the month. I guess that's just-in-time posting. February brought a record snowfall, most of which was wasted on me, as was the Christmas snow (instead of being sick, for this blizzard I merely had to mostly be at work during the daylight hours). I did manage to fall down in the snow once, losing my house keys until the thaw; but as I was on the way out of town for the weekend, and didn't drop my car keys, there was no inconvenience, if a little worry. Here are a few pictures, though.

I didn't get as much reading done this month –it was a shorter month, yes, but not that much shorter. It just seemed like it. I only have seven titles for February, compared to eleven for January. As before, an asterisk (*) indicates a book that I've re-read.

1. The Four Last Things – Andrew Taylor

2. The Judgement of Strangers – Andrew Taylor

3. The Office of the Dead – Andrew Taylor (these three make up The Roth Trilogy)

4. Gil's All Fright Diner – A. Lee Martinez

5. The Automatic Detective – A. Lee Martinez

6. Literary Life: A Second Memoir – Larry McMurtry

7. Moon Flights* – Elizabeth Moon

I reread the collection by Elizabeth Moon based on something she said at ConDFW, where she was Guest of Honor, about dragons in the world of The Deed of Paksenarrion (and of her new book, Oath of Fealty, which comes out in a few weeks).
She's sitting at the left of this picture. The man on the right is A. Lee Martinez. I'd been aware of his books, but hadn't quite brought myself to buy any of them before. He was on several of the panels at the convention, with interesting things to say. All of his books are stand alone novels. After one of the panels where someone pointed out that his mother was in the audience, I went up to her afterward and asked her which one did she usually recommend to someone starting out to read his books. She asked me a few questions and them described them five or six. I ended up buying the first one and one of the more recent ones. She described the first one as a story about a pair of friends, and the other one as a mystery novel. I enjoyed both of them, and there were very different. He did a really good job writing a hard-boiled detective (who happens to be a killer robot). I'd recommend either one of them as a good read.

Reading, So Far, in 2010

I thought I'd make a quick posting today, thus not breaking a New Year's Resolution to post here at least once a month in 2010. So I'm going to list the books I've read this year. Usually, during the week off between Christmas and New Year's Day, I get a lot of reading done. But starting before Christms, I felt so bad that I didn't feel like reading—just lying around watching television—until December 29th or so. This picture is an illustration of me making a pecan pie on Wednesday, December 23, as I started feeling worse and worse. (I'm not sure the relevance to the subject, but here it is anyway.)

So here, in order of reading, are the books I've read in January 2010. To be more precise, these are the books I've finished reading in January 2010. I started the first one on December 29 and started one today that I won't finish before tomorrow. An asterisk (*) indicates rereading a book.

1. Bad Boy – Jim Thompson
2. Roughneck – Jim Thompson
3. A City of Bells – Elizabeth Goudge
4. Rumpole Rests His Case – John Mortimer
5. The King of Schnorrers – Israel Zangwill
6. The Deed of Paksenarrion* – Elizabeth Moon (three book omnibus)
7. Surrender None* – Elizabeth Moon
8. Liar's Oath* – Elizabeth Moon
9. The Unbearable Lightness of Scones – Alexander McCall Smith
10. Talking About Detective Fiction – P. D. James
11. The Private Patient – P. D. James

The Elizabeth Moon volumes were reread in anticipation of a new book set in the same world, which is coming out in March. I've already pre-ordered it (Oath of Fealty) from Amazon.com. I've had The Private Patient since Christmas 2008, but hadn't yet read it because there's a good chance it may be the final Adam Dalgliesh mystery, and I hated to finish off the series. Then I got her book on detective fiction, and it was a natural progression to pick up the mystery and read it.

Yes we did eat the pie, and it was good.

On His Feets Uneven

Here it is, the Feast of Stephen, the Proto-martyr, and I am somewhat on the mend. I still haven't gone out, but I was feeling pretty great by the time I went to bed last night. So then waking up was a slow and expectorantish process this morning. Now that it's almost midday I'm back to last night's level, and might even go out for the evening meal. We've dined and supped and breakfasted on the ham from Christmas dinner, and will probably continue to lunch on it today. Someone* defined eternity as two people and a ham, but we aren't feeling that way yet. I'm sitting here listening to Sibelius—good music for frosty weather—and contemplating the delicious crunch of pickles on my ham sandwich.

William took these pictures of our house, the Corner Red Dwelling (so-christened in honor of Ursula Le Guin), on Christmas Eve with the snow coming down. And here is a better look at the Christmas table. (It's clear who's the more accomplished photographer!) I finished looking throught the photo book that I got yesterday—finished the first look through, I mean—and have be browsing in the other one (it's on Northern Mythology). No sign of two turtledoves yet.

*I found the quote attributed to Dorothy Parker, but no one has any specifics. I ran into it on Lois McMaster Bujold's MySpace blog just yesterday. Of course the title of this post is from Walt Kelly's Pogo: "Good King Stanislaus walked out/On his feets uneven" (sung to the traditional tune of the spring carol Tempus adest floridum). With that bit of trivia I come full circle to the very first blog postings I made, which must be a sign to stop this and go get that ham sandwich!

I'll Be Home for Christmas . . .(Sick)

This Christmas has been a little different. We put up our créche inside the china cabinet. I got sick beginning late last Saturday night, worsening all week. I kept putting off the final shopping in hopes I'd get better. A visit to the doctor on Tuesday let me know that it was a sinus and ear infection, and despite going on antibiotics that evening, I woke up Thursday with no voice and a painful cough and sore throat -- like fire every time I swallowed. I didn't feel like going out to breakfast with Merrill, nor was it possible to finish up the last minute shopping. To top it all off, the "unlikely" snow materialized and it snowed most of the day. So last night William went to church (he was helping with the hand-bells and singing in the choir), and I stayed home.

Today we had Christmas here, instead of going up to be with the family in Springtown. I missed them all very much, but it was a very good if quiet Christmas, as I felt better (except when I coughed). Slight exertions caused me to break into a sweat, of course. I got two neat books and a new shirt, and Christmas dinner was the ham and a pasta salad we were going to take to Springtown, plus green peas with mushrooms, mashed potatoes and gravy, rolls, and buttermilk pie for dessert. Here's a picture of what our table looked like. Susie will notice the things on the table that were Christmas presents from her, of course. The gravy boat wasn't one of them -- I wonder if they make a Spode gravy boat for Christmas (a Spode boat)?

Next week I'm off work, so I'll make a trip up to Springtown to see Dad and Peggy, and around Tarrant County to the other nephews and nieces to bring them their presents that they couldn't get today. I sure hated to miss the usual Christmas with the whole family, but our little Christmas at home was pretty good!

The Nobel Peace Prize

My first reaction was, "What? He hasn't had time to do anything yet!" However, after hearing some remarks from the man announcing the award about the committee's reasons, I think I understand.

Whether you thought the previous administration's policies were great or horrendous, the fact is that to much of the rest of the world (the civilized part, that is; the opinions of our enemies are irrelevant to this particular discussion) America was perceived as having become a bully. Whether they are right or wrong is also irrelevant; it is true that such was the opinion of much of the developed world.

This award to President Obama shows that this opinion is changing. It says a lot more about how America is perceived than it does about anything particular that the president has done. It says that the rest of the world believes that America is trying to live up to its position as the greatest country in the world, the longest lasting republic, truly the land of the free and the home of the brave.

I believe that, at the least, President Obama has attempted to mend a lot of fences that needed mending, whether or not they were damaged because of necessary actions or unnecessary actions (again, irrelevant). I believe that this attempt is a noble one, and that it will help America, not hurt it. I may or may not agree with particular policies and decisions of this president, but the fact is that he won the election, and deserves our support when he represents us to the world at large.

The decision of the Nobel committee is an action that honors the United States of America. It is unseemly and ungracious to criticize our president for being the particular occasion for the world to honor our country.