Filed under: St Paul
We have had a very eventful week – two graduations – Aine graduated from 8th grade – and Kate graduated from high school. It’s the end of an era in a few ways. I have had a kid in Nativity for 14 years. No more.
Mostly we’ve been happy with it. It’s probably too religious and definitely too conservative for me. BUT the same school – in walking distance from home – for 9 years for each kid. The school knows them and they had a big comfort level with the kids and the school. Also – they have the best principal ever – Kate Wollan. She knows every kid’s name – and really gets what makes each individual kid shine.
Aine’s graduation was very nice. She looked like a grown up kid – and not only because she was wearing my high heels. After the ceremony the kids had a party. It was bitter sweet. The hope is that Aine will go to Nova (she’s 4 on the waiting list!), which is an unusual choice for her class. So she’ll be moving on and making many new friends. I think the thing Aine may miss most from Nativity is the robotics team – although she plans to visit to help out next year.
The week topped off with Kate’s graduation at the Cathedral tonight. Actually we started this morning with Mass and brunch. It was very nice. And then ended with the ceremony at the Cathedral. It was beautiful. Kate looked great in her cap and gown. It was fun to see her with her friends, especially Lucia. (They were voted Best Best Friends in the yearbook!)
I am excited for Kate next year. She is going to the University of Manitoba (Lily goes to U of Winnipeg). I’m glad that they will be near each other and also glad they are not at the same school. I think it will be good for Kate to be in control of her own day to day destiny. I think it will bring her peace. I know she’s ready.
Memorable in her graduation was the speech by her favorite teacher Mr. Spika. (His picture is included below.) He teaches religion but as Kate says, it’s not really like religion. He has had diverse guest speakers come to talk to the kids about everything under the sun. Then he got the kids to give speeches about some of their most personal accomplishments and stories.
Recently someone gave me a very hard time about sending my kids to Catholic schools. I did it because I think the education is good and I like the sense of community. But in many ways, I diametrically oppose the Church’s view on many things but Mr. Spika’s speech reminded me that part of the education is helping kids learn that doing good is as important as doing well.
He started off with the big guns – literally. He praised the kids for their March For Our Lives march in support of gun reform. (You may recall Kate was a planner.) He spoke about several students and their firsthand experience with gun violence on and off the school grounds. He spoke about the need to make the community (all communities) safer – so that women could run down Summit Ave at night, so that GLBT kids could walk where they want, so that we all understood that all lives matter – but in a spirit that recognized that really we need to know that Black Lives Matter. He reminded everyone that financial success was not the only or best success. And he told the kids that the voice in your head says “someone ought to do something about that” was really the Holy Spirit telling you it was your job. I might not use the term Holy Spirit – but I like the idea – and I feel like teachers like him have given them the tools to succeed in making the world better.
And I have to add that while I disagree most with the Church on issues related to women it is worth noting that the Top Ten Academic positions were all held by young women.
As a mom I never wished my kids would stay little forever. I am always excited at their steps forward. It’s so much fun to see what they take on, to seem them rock it, to see them happy. Today we all took two giant steps forward.
Filed under: Texas
Last week I spent a fun time at a broadband conference in Austin, Texas. I went with a couple of my favorite colleagues – so that was fun. Our presentation was well received.
We spent the first day checking out Austin. We visited the Texas Capitol, the Driskill Hotel and street art around the city. For eating we had oysters (royal we there), brisket and shrimp and grits.
We also saw some fun music at C-Boys Heart and Soul, The Continental Club and The Elephant Room. I was particularly fond of Dale Watson at the Continental – but the highlight was seeing the guy on the horse outside the door of the C-Boys. To be clear – it is located on a city street.
Another big highlight – finding red cowboy boots at the local Good Will – unfortunately the second best purchase was a box band-aids after I wore the new (to me boots) without socks.
Today we traveled for 12 hours. We went from Santa Fe to North Platte (600 miles) and a few stops. The stops started in Santa Fe. We checked out Canyon Road – a haven for top art galleries. Of course it’s Easter and it was 7:30 in the morning so none of them were open – but the area is covered in statues and other works for art.
Then we had a quick visit to the Cross of the Martyrs at the top of the Fort Marcy Park. It is a monument dedicated to the Franciscans killed in the 1680 Pueblo Revolt. It was sort of the perfect thing to do Easter morning. Also it gave us a glimpse of Santa Fe. It was fun to see how different the houses are. Apparently the style is called pueblo style – they are low-slung, earth-colored buildings made of adobe bricks, which consist of a mixture of sun-dried earth and straw. They are a little reminiscent of Whoville.
Our next stop was Colorado Springs. We stopped to see the Garden of the Gods – huge rock formations at the base of Pike’s Peak. We stopped at the visitor center, which had a great view of the peak. We saw some animals, much like we might run into if we were hanging in the wild looking for animals and then we drove around to see some of the rock formation – like the balancing rock. It was pretty cool.
Finally we landed in North Platte, Nebraska. North Platte is a rail road town and home to a home of Buffalo Bill Cody. We won’t see much of the town – but we had a nice dinner and the hotel feels pretty new and serves cookies. So it’s a winner. Oh and the sunset was very pretty. Gorgeous at Arizona is the sunsets there happen so quickly. It was nice to be back in the land of the long-lasting sunset – even if it means snow and cold.
After a few super fun days in Phoenix, we’re making our way home. This is when we’re most thankful for everything digital because we put in some long hours – especially grandpa, the driver. But we’ve had some fun along with the long drive.
We started in Sedona and everyone was a little surprised that I insisted that we go to the Chapel on the Hill there – until we got there. It’s awesome. It’s tucked into the red rock mountains. It’s the perfect place to stop and check out the scenery. Also the crucifix in the chapel is amazing. And of course there’s some family lore related to the candles in the chapel – but you have to go there to hear the story.
We had a super quick stop in Rock Creek Overlook between Sedona and Flagstaff. It’s an incredible view of the Oak Creek Canyon.
We also made a stop in Winslow, Arizona – such a fine site to see.
We had dinner in Albuquerque. We saw the area near the community college but I’d be hard pressed to say that I know Albequerque. With the university and various labs it does seem like a haven of techno-smart people in the middle of the desert. It is a gorgeous drive and fun to see the mountains all around. Driving it feels like you’re on the top of a plateau – so while it’s flat it feels high. Maybe because my ears were popping the whole time!
Filed under: Alaska
After our hike today we had lunch near downtown Phoenix at Roosevelt Row. It’s an areas with a lot of murals and street art. Grandpa noticed that the sidewalk walk built in 2017. Often a sign of sprucing up an area. The community has a university-hipster feel. There’s a lot of building happening. But there are some boarded up buildings and we saw a fire truck come support a person who clearly had been outside too long – living outside I mean.
So it’s a community in flux, but it’s fluxing up. Also it looks as if it hasn’t yet gotten rid of all of the long term residents. It’s never sad to see a crack house leave (and apparently the area had its share at one time) but you hate to see regular citizens get the bump – better to have a good mix.
We also had an opportunity to check out the art in Old Town Scottsdale last night. It’s a very different scene. Expensive art to buy, but some free wine (which we didn’t have). It was fun to check out some of the kitsch. We left about 9 pm; I’d say that place can get a little rowdy, especially in spring break season after 11.
Forgot to mention – dinner at In and Out, a special request from Aine. The same girl who had filet mignon, lobster and caviar the night before!
Filed under: Arizona
We’re not gone yet – but tomorrow we start the road trip home, I thought I’d get a jump on the archive of the trip. We’ve had a great time. First – it’s snowing back home and I’m sitting in an air-conditioned house with 90 degrees outside.
Second – we got in a lot of hiking. Aine, Grandpa and I made two trips to Tonto National Forest; both times to the Sears Kay Ruins, which are a pretty easy but high walk to the peak of a mountain. The ruins include a village, homes and fortification of Hohokam – an ancient Native American Tribe, who “may be” ancestors of the Pima Tribe.
The location is beautiful but it’s amazing to think that people would choose to land here – high up in the mountains with limited access to water. The village isn’t built on the side of a cliff as we were used to seeing in Ireland but it’s slippery enough. You can definitely see the where the rooms would be in the building of the ruins. It’s pretty cool to see. We also like see the rock formations that look like a strong wind would take them down. (Though none toppled while we were looking.)
On one visit we made a detour to see Lake Bartlett – a reservoir for much of the water used in the area. Pretty and huge.
Aine and I spent about 30 minutes climbing Piestewa Peak. It’s a much more difficult climb, many more people and it was a super-hot afternoon. I can’t tell you what the top of that peak looks like. I’m sure it’s not as nice as the Sear-Kay Ruin.
We three also went to the Botanical Gardens. The big highlight was the butterfly pavilion – and some of the art. It also gave us a quick 101 on cacti. We learned about saguaros, chollas and prickly pears. I think my favorite part of visiting Arizona is the fact that you’d never mistake a drive through Minnesota’s Superior National Forest with a drive through Tonto National Forest.
Filed under: Arizona
Aine and I are in Phoenix visiting Grandpa. I’ll do a post on our visit and hiking and saguaros and maybe Aine’s steak, lobster and caviar dinner – but the visit to the Musical Instrument Museum (MIM) seemed worth its own post.
First – it’s huge. When you check in, they give you headphones. As you walk through the galleries, the headphones pick up the music being played at each station of the exhibit. The theme is musical instruments throughout the ages. The rooms are broken up by continent, then mostly by countries. There are 200 stations.
The docent suggested we start with Africa since so much music stems from there. Then follow the trail – which is shaped like a j. (I assume he meant the letter – but I’m not that great at shapes.) Each station includes a number of instruments, maybe some costumes, masks or other regalia and a video that includes music from the featured area. I am tempted to post the 100 or so pictures I took. But I will keep it to my very favorites.
It’s kind of amazing to see types of instruments that you find everywhere – drums for example. Or scrapers, which were my favorites. Instruments where you just scrap one things against the other – be it fork across a cheese grater or Cheshire cat with the bamboo mohawk. I loved the bowed lutes, which I feel I don’t see around now. The closest thing I can think of is Paul Metzger playing banjo with a bow. There are also lots of variations on bagpipes – the creepiest, yet coolest, was the one made from calf skin. You can pick is out below – it looks just like it sounds.
I decided that if ankle rattles count as musical instruments that maybe I could learn to play or I’d maybe try a belt rattle – but maybe not the one made of goat hooves.
After the geographic tour (and partially in the US rooms) there are a number of famous people instruments. Highlights include – guitar and suit from Johnny Cash, bodhran signed by the Chieftains, Glen Campbell’s suit and guitar, Ravi Shankar’s sitar and Tito Puente’s drums (timbales).
I thought we’d be lucky to get two hours in at the museum – we went for almost three and then came back for a while after lunch!
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- Music is the language of the soul
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- Aine & Grandpa
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- Aine on harp
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- the gong show
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- Aine & the Apollonia dance organ
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- Aine & the ukuleles
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- Zaqq bagpipe made of calf
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- Bodhran signed by the Chieftains
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- Pandero quadrat
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- Serpent – bass horn
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- QFO – turntable-mixer played by QBert
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- Wurlitzer Drum Set 1926
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- Picture of Lily Drums – The Who
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- Dobro Model 60
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- The insides of a Steinway
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- Gamelan
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- Pyeongyeong – lithophone (with jade)
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- Mi- gyaung – plucked lute
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- Grater – scraper from Belize
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- Grater – scraper from Belize
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- O – scraper
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- Manjur – belt rattle made of goat hooves!
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- Jirban – bagpipe & Tar – single head frame drum.
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- Tom – lyre
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- Shalaq -bell
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- John Denver guitar
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- Tito Puente’s timbales
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- Ravi Shankar’s sitar
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- Glen Campbell’s guitar & jacket.
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- From Elvis’ 1968 comeback
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- Stevie Ray Vaughan’s guitar & boots
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- Johnny Cash’s guitar & suit
Filed under: St Paul
Aine and I went to March for our Lives MSP. We were helping to amplify the messages as the Women’s March. I used Twitter; Aine used SnapChat. I’m glad we had a little role to play. And I’m grateful that so many people showed up for the event – thousands! Here’s hoping that we’re loud enough to be heard. Loud enough to get run reform bills heard in the Minnesota Legislature.
There’s something exciting and shaming to have the next generation take over because we the grownups are falling down on the job of keeping kids safe. I guess all we can do is ask – how we can help?
The students met at Harriet Island and marched to the Capitol. We met them there. It was cold. So cold! But we were out there for hours chanting, holding signs, listening to stories, demanding change – and some registering for vote!!
There was one speaker who struck a chord with me. A 15 year old girl who talked about her brother teaching her how to disarm a gunman when she was 8. Heartbreaking on its own, she went on to talk about the evolution of planning for a shooter in your classroom. At 8 there was a bravado of planning to save your classmates as you take down the shooter. Sadly as you grow older and school shootings become more common the lessons shift to how to keep yourself safe. You learn to use the blood of fallen classmates to disguise yourself before playing dead.
Her tear-wrenching last line spoke brutality of the schoolyard today – she feared being shot at school but more than that she feared being the last one left standing – drenched in her friends blood.
I’ve included video and pictures. Sadly I don’t have this young woman on video. If/when I get her name I’ll add it. The video is rough – it was difficult to hear on site at times – but it gives a flavor of the crowd, the day, the wind. (Let’s hope it’s a good wind!)
Filed under: St Paul
OK – maybe she isn’t singled-handedly leading the effort – but she’s there in the front row and I’m super proud of her. The MN School Walkout is a student-led effort to raise awareness and protest gun violence – especially in the wake of the school shooting in Florida last month. Apparently there were 15 schools participating. I saw that 770 people had signed up to participate as of yesterday. I’m terrible with estimating crowd size but I heard there were 2,000 students.
Kate worked with her school (CDH) to get involved. In fact, Kate was one of a few students interviewed for an Editorial in the Pioneer Press. For the CDH kids, the walkout started around 10:30; they walked (or drove) to Central High School where they met with the rest of the group and walked to the Capitol.
I caught up with them midway; I was Tweeting for the Women’s March at the event. They marched to the Capitol – cheered and then moved to the Leif Erickson Park (next door to the Capitol) for a rally. Their signs were great. They kids were super enthusiastic. Plenty of legislators watched and I talked to a few who also had kids in the crowd. People were proud and optimistic for our future to have kids so ready to rally. I couldn’t hear much of the speakers – but there was plenty of cheers. It was chilly (20 degrees and windy) and the park was covered in deep snow but the kids persisted.
Kudos to CDH for embracing the opportunity. I got a call saying Kate was missing from school, that many students were going to the walkout and that the school was OK with it. Please contact the school if as a parent you weren’t OK with it and your kid would get Saturday detention.
There was one odd duck in the crowd promoting “Castle Laws” but I have to give him props – he’s exercising his right to free speech!
Filed under: St Paul
A season of ups and downs and CAD and 3D printers, drivers, engineering books and alliances has come to a spectacular end. Aine’s all girl robotics team did very well.
They started strong and were even in first place a few times throughout the morning. During the morning two divisions of 24 teams each compete multiple times. For each match they are randomly matched with an alliance team. Each alliance gets points with each match. Rankings for the morning are based on points awarded throughout the 6 matches played during the morning. The ranking is shown throughout. It’s a moment of joy or a slippery slope of dismay as you team goes up and down. We had ups and downs.
The first match was awesome. But the third match was a little rough. The robot arm got weak, too weak to pick up the blocks. (I won’t even go into the scoring system for the matches as it’s so complex – but picking up blocks is a good thing.) By the fifth match the arm was back to full strength and they even boosted the power.
At the end of the morning, the girls were ranked 9. Also at the end of the morning, the top four teams each select two teams to join them to form an alliance for the afternoon matches. Part of the robotics game is getting to know the other teams – trying to form potential alliances. Being in place 13 their odds were good but we just didn’t know. Aine was chosen to accept the alliance if they were asked. As the spots filled, we all started to bite nails. But thankfully, there were chosen.
So we stayed the afternoon. The first and fourth alliances duke it out and the second and third duke it out. Pleased to report that the girls’ alliance won in three matches against the second alliance. So on to the next bracket. Sadly their luck run out. They lost in two matches (it’s always best two out of three) to the first alliance. To be fair, the first alliance was very good.
We stayed for the awards. They got to troop across the gym floor to pick up their medals. We were all so proud. They all worked so well together. They cheered for everyone. The met so many people. They charmed and wheedled their way into great places all season.
Their coaches are awesome. Anne keeps everyone going and gets the school on board with everything. Her work has been such a game changer for Aine and others. Then there’s Walter – coach extraordinaire. He put up with a gaggle of 13 year old girls pulling in 13 different directions most days. He taught Aine so much about robotics but just about having a positive attitude and how to embrace the iterative process. Without a doubt, robotics has been the best thing for Aine in 8 years at Nativity. We are sad to see it go but live on the fumes of its success!
