A day at the office

I took my camera to work with me recently and thought I'd share some shots of our haunts at Otago Polytechnic.

This first shot of 'D' block is where our offices are and where all our labs and some of our lectures are held. My office is on first floor and Karen's is on the third. There is a partial fourth floor that was originally fitted out as a ship's deck and was used for traning people to be ship's captains.

To the left of 'D' block is a favorite break area where staff and students often mingle. 'A' block is behind the covered walkway and houses the Design school. The covered walkway is a must-have with the number of rainy days we get.

Further left are 'F' block and 'H' block. 'F' block is the three story building that houses our IT services group, management, and most importantly, the faculty staff room. This is heavily used, which I think is a good sign of a healthy organization. 'H' block is the six story building where we have many of our lectures and some labs.

'G' block is mostly nursing, but has some special purpose lecture rooms that we sometimes use if we have a large class. I love the pattern they've done in the patio. At lunch time if the weather is nice, this is often filled with students sitting on the steps and grassy hillsides of the area.

The view out the frond door of 'D' block is across a series of playing fields that are frequently used for hocky games and rugby matches, to some of the hills that surround Dunedin.

Here's a shot of my work area, with the usual mess of work in progress. I salvaged an old iMac that is the same vintage as Ruby. I sometimes use it to access the server I manage.


I share my office with Mike - and sometimes William, who is just about Gabe's age and has been my surrogate grandson until I can see Gabe in person.

Karen was working away when I joined her for lunch, so I took this shot of her work area. It reminds me of the saying, "If a cluttered desk is a sign of a cluttered mind, what's an empty desk the sign of?"

Disco Tech is sitting forgotten on top of a file cabinet at the end of a hallway, but I think it is a cool play on words and a neat sculpture.

Pete often rides one way with us and then bikes the other way. It is about a 20 minute bike ride from our house to school, but most of it is flat. He bikes at least three days a week, which helps keep him fit.

Trail heads

I love tramping ("hiking" outside of New Zealand). I am always excited to arrive at a new trail head full of wonder about what new sites we will see, what new challenges we will face, what new experiences we will have on this trail. Each tramp is different, even when it is over a familiar trail. The birth of our new granddaughter, Elinor, at only 26 weeks has made me think once again about the wonder of life and how unique it is to each of us.

We often judge life by our own experiences. The way we perceive it is, of course, what is normal. We forget how very different each life is. Just look at the beginnings--Eli is leading us down a new trail, blazed by others before us, but a new and wondrous experience for us. We've not had to deal with the separation forced by life-saving technology in previous babies.

But, each baby has had its own trail--Gabe, our first grandson, was also premature, with the extra anxiety of not knowing if we going to be able to keep him. Plus, we've had half a world of distance between us and him. It has been like looking through the window of a candy store. So near, yet so far.

Thinking back to our own children, the trail heads have all been unique, some even scary. Libby, with an APGAR score of only 6, was born a yellowish, waxy thing with her cord around her neck--very much like a baby doll. At the time we didn't know that this wasn't perfectly normal. Fortunately, quick care in the delivery room overcame this rough start. Little did we know that hers would be our most 'normal' delivery.

Jamie was three weeks overdue and big. When inducing delivery, the doctor couldn't even find any amniotic fluid remaining. His head was the size of a bowling ball. Karen has never forgiven him for that! We were doing the natural delivery thing and so were being stoic. She had to have stitches to repair the damage he did. During his post natal testing he pee'd on the nurse. She kept in touch with us for a long time. I think they bonded.

John was also overdue and had to be induced. Karen was being super-mom and went home from hospital after only one day. "Got two kids at home to take care of." We had to take him back to the hospital for some of the tests they normally perform within the first three days. I recall them taking blood from his foot and him not even waking up. Talk about laid back! I also recall the surprise we had when he was born. I believe Karen's comment was, "What's that thing?" We had to take the pink outfit back and exchange it for a blue one.

Molly was born three days after we buried Karen's dad. She was a real blessing! Doctor Logan was an Aussie, so when Molly was born, he announced, "It's a sheila!" The nurses nicknamed her, "Mad Molly" because she was always hollering, raising her head, and hungry. The nickname has stuck. Feisty, you don't mess with Molly. She's a lot like her mother.

Peter was the only baby who wasn't induced since Libby was born. We didn't realize the drama we would have at his birth. He ended up being an emergency C-section because the placenta was detaching and he wasn't getting enough oxygen. The option for another natural birth was taken from us and we started down another new trail. Years of watching his development and comparing it to average scores led us to finally accept that those final few moments before birth had robbed him of some of the abilities we had taken for granted in all our other children.

And so each life has led us down its own unique, wonderful trail. I just love tramping.

For more information about our grand babies, follow the links to Water, Woods, and Wool and also Lightening Guns.

Celebrations

What is more worth celebrating than a beautiful start to a day. We had a morning fog that added an extra touch to the landscape as it snaked in from the sea and between the hills.






Recently our middlest son, John, made his first Alyieh at the synagogue here in Dunedin. He has studied long and hard to reach this day and we were very proud of him. For his birthday and in celebration of this achievement we got him a kiddush cup.


Another celebration! 40 years of marriage - a good start!

John and Sara had a lot of fun putting together a basket of goodies for us. Since the 40th anniversary is the Ruby anniversary, they filled a basket with red things.

Of course I had to wind Karen up by calling this a hair brush.

Red meat - how appropriate.

Ruby rings.

Say what?

40 is red.

Bouncy toy - what fun!

Cafe Forte - and in a red package.

I love prezzies!

Graduation trip - Kings College Chapel

Kings College Chapel sounds like it should be a little place, but it rivaled Ely Cathedral in size and grandeur.

The stone work, as you can see, is impressive.

As are the stained glass windows.

But the ceiling was the most awesome part of all.

Graduation trip - Punting on the Cam

JF and Molly had boooked a Trinity College punt for us. Luckily the weather cooperated and we had a nice day for it. John was eager to try his hand at it and managed the boat like a pro.

The rest of us mostly went along for the ride.

I got my turn as well and was told I did all right. Karen doesn't look too sure, though.

Is it raining?

Graduation trip - Graduation Day

Although both Molly and JF completed their Master's degrees, JF's graduation is not until November. However, we celebrated both as we attended Molly's ceremony. It was certainly different from any graduation we'd seen before.

The happy graduate.

Graduate with Mom and Pop.

Now add the siblings who were there, John and Pete. Pete dwarf's us all.

We can't leave out Sara!

We did it! (Can't wait to get home)

I like the color of her hood.

Graduation trip - unplanned events

Cambridge had been having flooding the few weeks before our arrival, but this was the only rain we got while we were there. We passed these homes that were exploding with flowers and I couldn't resist taking a picture.

Well, maybe it did rain more than once after all. We went to The Orchard for a bite and it was too wet to sit outside. Lots of writers and poets used to gather here.

Harry Potter mania! Yes, we stood in line for a couple of hours to get some of the first books available. The big hoo-ha before the event was a big fizzle, but the size of the crowds was impressive. Each family bought a copy, so there was a bit of sharing around of the book. If you put a copy down, someone else was sure to pick it up. I was one of the last to finish (on the plane home) and Pete was one of the first (having read all night one night to beat John to the ending).

Karen dumped by an Ikia chair while trying to pick up the book from the floor. Those chairs were trecherous. The rounded front end was very slippery on the wood floors.

Karen's knees were increasingly painful, but she kept on going. Finally, however, they gave out when we were trying to get to the museum. JF and Molly set us up with this Cambridge version of a betchek. We didn't have very far to go, but the relief for Karen was immense.

Molly and JF in their favorite retreat in their flat - the bay window. I swear they are both part cat.

A very posh restaurant for a last family meal seemed to be the right thing to do.

Graduation trip - Ely Cathedral

Ely Cathedral was a wet day trip from Cambridge, but well worth the effort. Its size and checkered history through the various kings and switches between Catholic and Protestant influences was fascinating.

It didn't look that big from the outside, but inside ... it was HUGE!

It is also known for its stained glass. Not only are there windows with some of the oldest stained glass in existance, there is a gallery showing the history and development of stained glass.