Cruisin'

Greg and I took a free bay cruise, courtesy of the Port of San Diego. These tours were established to give San Diegans a better idea of what is happening along the extensive waterfront. As Greg and I have only been in San Diego a year, this was also a great way for us to get familiar with the Bay and learn more about the history of the city. We also enjoyed being out on the water... I don't understand the people who were sitting inside! Here are a few pics:

The USS Midway and the San Diego skyline

I can see these shipyards from work

Nautical Greg

The bridge to Coronado

Back to port

Energy

I didn't have very good energy on Monday. I was dragging, the students were lethargic... just not a good combo. Last night, after my three-hour astro lecture, a student came up to me and told me that I had amazing amounts of energy. He thanked me and told me how important it was for the evening students to have enthusiastic instructors. With his words, this semester is looking up. Have I mentioned how much I enjoy my evening classes?

One day down

Today was the first day of the Fall semester. Enrollments are high. I even have wait-listed students for my night-time class. My physics lab today was standing room only. It's going to be a busy semester. It's also a semester in which I'm teaching a class (intro astronomy) that I took as a student 20 years ago. Whoa! It's fun to mention that to the students, because a lot has changed in those intervening years. Still makes me feel old, though!

Space policy statements

The Planetary Society has posted documents from the two major presidential candidates outlining their space policy. To see, goto http://www.planetary.org/news/2008/0818_US_Presidential_Candidates_Release.html

No guilt

Tomorrow I head back to work after a very nice summer vacation. Classes start the following week. The summer always goes by quicker than I anticipate. You'd think I'd be used to it by now! Although, technically, this is a shorter summer break than I'm used to, as my new college instead lengthens winter break and, thus, the spring semester runs later. Still, I can't believe it's already time for the school year to start!

I'd feel guilty about whining over the end of my copious vacation time, except that I made up my to-do list for the upcoming week and there are 66 items on it (so far). Yup, I work hard enough during the school year to earn my time off.

Reality Check

While on the road this past Sunday, I marked my fourth anniversary of joining Weight Watchers. I had a lot of success the first two years, but this last year has seen my weight creep up some more. And once again, it's my fault, not the program. Moving to the land of the cheap lobster burrito didn't help! In all seriousness, though, I need to get back on track. I'm not exercising enough and I'm not making good food choices. My genes work against me (I'm the "skinny" one in the family), so I'll have to work harder.

So, for inspiration, I will once again post before and after pics:

August 2004

July 2008

Whoosh

Worldcon always goes by quickly, even more so this year, because we skipped the first few days. It's been a lot of fun, though. I saw a few people I know from my time at UCLA, and Greg's fellow writers are fun and kind people to hang out with.

I went to a panel that was a celebration of the life of Arthur C. Clarke. Two of the panelists were Stephen Baxter and Frederik Pohl. I enjoyed hearing their tales about the first science fiction writer I ever read.

I also attended a reading that was worth the trip to Worldcon all by itself - Lois McMaster Bujold read the first two chapters of a new Miles Vorkosigan novel!!!! Listening to those words and experiencing that character again felt like curling up in a blanket on a cold day - welcoming, comforting... perfect.

Now to convince Greg to go to Montreal next August!

On the road

Full disclosure - I'm allowing this entry to satisfy my 15 minutes/day of writing requirement. Hey, I'm on vacation!

Let’s see, what have I been doing the past few days?

• Drove away from a warm, humid San Diego en route to World Con with Greg.
• Arrived in blazing hot (107 degrees) Tempe.
• Had lunch with my dear Carl at much beloved Four Peaks Brewery! Also hung out with Bob!
• Realized that it’s not the heat, it’s the temperature in the interior of the car. The past week in San Diego has been muggy, and the humidity was really getting to me. I was actually functioning better in the drier 107 degree heat in Tempe, until I had to get into the car. Even guzzling water, I was sweating so much that my fingers were pruning up. San Diego wins.
• Drove up to cool, serene Flagstaff amid a lush green Central Arizona.
• Had dinner with Greg at much beloved Beaver Street Brewery!
• Had granola and blueberries at much beloved Macy’s Coffeehouse!
• Drove across a stunningly beautiful Northern Arizona and New Mexico. Seriously, I’ve done this drive frequently, and the desert has never been so verdant and spectacular. No pics, but the images could not have captured the beauty in any case.
• Spent the evening in Santa Fe eating yummy spicy much missed New Mexican cuisine.

Tomorrow? On to World Con!