Good day today. My dad arrived late last night. Great to see him. I cooked dinner the last two nights. I enjoy cooking when I feel OK. And I enjoy cooking for my family. My dad, Seth, and I took a walk today around the boardwalk and Boulevard Park. It was chilly and windy, but sunny and nice to be outside.
Ethan
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Friday, February 25, 2011
Friday
Less energy today. Ugh. I am tired of this roller coaster.
Some good news: we will have friends and family visiting for the next two weeks. My dad arrives late Saturday. He and my mom leave Monday for Hawaii for a week (they are going to Maui, where Grace and I went, but not staying at the same place). My friends Eric and Meredith arrive Monday from North Carolina and depart next Saturday. My friend Hannah and her son Henry arrive next Friday from the Bay Area and depart the following Monday. My parents return that Monday and my dad departs the following Saturday.
Some more good news: the heat in our downstairs apartment is working again. The heat in the apartment has worked erratically for years, but stopped working entirely this past week, just in time for a cold snap that has brought snow, ice, and sub-freezing temperatures to Bellingham. During past periods of malfunction, I had the company (Hydro Mechanical) that installed our hydronic (hot water) heating system come over several times to try to fix it. They were unable to fix it, although they charged me for their time and for replacing several parts that didn't solve the problem. Needless to say, I do not recommend Hydro Mechnical. This time, on the recommendation of my mom's friend Kaye, I called Marr's Heating. They sent out a technician today who correctly diagnosed the problem within about 30 seconds. I do recommend Marr's Heating.
Ethan
Some good news: we will have friends and family visiting for the next two weeks. My dad arrives late Saturday. He and my mom leave Monday for Hawaii for a week (they are going to Maui, where Grace and I went, but not staying at the same place). My friends Eric and Meredith arrive Monday from North Carolina and depart next Saturday. My friend Hannah and her son Henry arrive next Friday from the Bay Area and depart the following Monday. My parents return that Monday and my dad departs the following Saturday.
Some more good news: the heat in our downstairs apartment is working again. The heat in the apartment has worked erratically for years, but stopped working entirely this past week, just in time for a cold snap that has brought snow, ice, and sub-freezing temperatures to Bellingham. During past periods of malfunction, I had the company (Hydro Mechanical) that installed our hydronic (hot water) heating system come over several times to try to fix it. They were unable to fix it, although they charged me for their time and for replacing several parts that didn't solve the problem. Needless to say, I do not recommend Hydro Mechnical. This time, on the recommendation of my mom's friend Kaye, I called Marr's Heating. They sent out a technician today who correctly diagnosed the problem within about 30 seconds. I do recommend Marr's Heating.
Ethan
Thursday, February 24, 2011
Better
I got to cuddle with Miles last night. He crawled into bed between Grace and me during the night, and I snuggled with him for the rest of the night. Didn't help me sleep, but felt good.
My energy level improved yesterday and continued to be good today. I hope this means that the chemo fatigue has passed (knock on wood). The fatigue was terrible, as I've mentioned. I don't know that I can do chemo again if it means going back to that dark place. I feel like I barely made it out of the abyss.
I talked to my department chair and friend Larry Symons yesterday and decided to return to work and teaching in the spring quarter, which starts at the end of March. Of course I don't know what's going to happen with my health, but I am going to assume that I will be able to teach, and hope for the best. I feel good about this decision. I need something to look forward to, some structure in my life, and some way to feel productive and meaningful. Coaching YMCA basketball has provided that lately, but that ends this Saturday.
To celebrate this decision, I went into the office this afternoon and worked a little, which felt good.
Ethan
My energy level improved yesterday and continued to be good today. I hope this means that the chemo fatigue has passed (knock on wood). The fatigue was terrible, as I've mentioned. I don't know that I can do chemo again if it means going back to that dark place. I feel like I barely made it out of the abyss.
I talked to my department chair and friend Larry Symons yesterday and decided to return to work and teaching in the spring quarter, which starts at the end of March. Of course I don't know what's going to happen with my health, but I am going to assume that I will be able to teach, and hope for the best. I feel good about this decision. I need something to look forward to, some structure in my life, and some way to feel productive and meaningful. Coaching YMCA basketball has provided that lately, but that ends this Saturday.
To celebrate this decision, I went into the office this afternoon and worked a little, which felt good.
Ethan
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Sports sports sports
I finally finished "The Book of Basketball" by Bill Simmons. It was good but too long (over 700 pages). Simmons himself starts joking near the end about how the book is too long and he needs to wrap it up. It might be better to read the book in random chunks rather than straight through. Simmons goes so deep over-analyzing NBA basketball that he loses even me.
However, I felt connected to a little piece of NBA history, as I was at the famous Michael Jordan-LaBradford Smith game in 1993 (see footnote on page 613 of Simmons). I was living in DC then and had a mini-season pass to the Washington Bullets (now the Wizards) - not because I was a fan of the Bullets, but to see other teams, such as the Bulls. LaBradford Smith was a guard for the Bullets who had outscored Jordan 37 to 25 the previous night. Jordan took it personally and vowed revenge on poor LaBradford. So in the game that I saw Jordan scored 36 points...by halftime, and 47 through three quarters before sitting out the fourth quarter. My seat was by where the visiting team came in and out, so I have some blurry photos of Jordan and the other Bulls.
For the full story plus video: http://www.nbaloud.com/michael-jordan-and-labradford-smith/
Simmons accurately describes one thing that made Jordan great - the fact that everyone wanted to feel connected to his greatness, as if a little bit of it might rub off on them. We knew that history was being made, and by witnessing it we were participating in it. In retrospect, I don't think Jordan was the most interesting person. His defining characteristic was hyper-competitiveness. I would rather my sons grow up to be like Steve Nash than like Jordan. But I'm glad I got to see Jordan play in person.
A random sports note: I would like to see Malcolm Gladwell write an article about how to value NFL cornerbacks. I think it would be interesting because traditional statistics (interceptions, tackles, even passes defended) don't reflect true value, because when a cornerback gets a reputation for being really good, quarterbacks will avoid throwing to the receiver that he is covering. Like Nnamdi Asomugha of the Oakland Raiders - nobody throws at him (there are too many easier ways to attack the Raiders defense). He's a free agent, and I'd love to see the Patriots sign him, although they probably won't spend the money. But how do you quantify how good he is? Since he usually shuts down the opponent's top receiver, you'd have to figure out a way to measure how much that detracts from the opponent's offense.
Ethan
However, I felt connected to a little piece of NBA history, as I was at the famous Michael Jordan-LaBradford Smith game in 1993 (see footnote on page 613 of Simmons). I was living in DC then and had a mini-season pass to the Washington Bullets (now the Wizards) - not because I was a fan of the Bullets, but to see other teams, such as the Bulls. LaBradford Smith was a guard for the Bullets who had outscored Jordan 37 to 25 the previous night. Jordan took it personally and vowed revenge on poor LaBradford. So in the game that I saw Jordan scored 36 points...by halftime, and 47 through three quarters before sitting out the fourth quarter. My seat was by where the visiting team came in and out, so I have some blurry photos of Jordan and the other Bulls.
For the full story plus video: http://www.nbaloud.com/michael-jordan-and-labradford-smith/
Simmons accurately describes one thing that made Jordan great - the fact that everyone wanted to feel connected to his greatness, as if a little bit of it might rub off on them. We knew that history was being made, and by witnessing it we were participating in it. In retrospect, I don't think Jordan was the most interesting person. His defining characteristic was hyper-competitiveness. I would rather my sons grow up to be like Steve Nash than like Jordan. But I'm glad I got to see Jordan play in person.
A random sports note: I would like to see Malcolm Gladwell write an article about how to value NFL cornerbacks. I think it would be interesting because traditional statistics (interceptions, tackles, even passes defended) don't reflect true value, because when a cornerback gets a reputation for being really good, quarterbacks will avoid throwing to the receiver that he is covering. Like Nnamdi Asomugha of the Oakland Raiders - nobody throws at him (there are too many easier ways to attack the Raiders defense). He's a free agent, and I'd love to see the Patriots sign him, although they probably won't spend the money. But how do you quantify how good he is? Since he usually shuts down the opponent's top receiver, you'd have to figure out a way to measure how much that detracts from the opponent's offense.
Ethan
Out of the abyss
Today is the first day that I feel well enough to write since last Thursday. As I've noted before, it's amazing how quickly things can change. Last Thursday was a good day. I went to an interesting talk on molecular biology and genetics at WWU by Clint Spiegel. Seth had a basketball game at the YMCA and played well. Grace and I watched "The Office" together. Kristi and I went dancing at "Throwback Thursday" at Rumors.
Then Friday the chemo fatigue hit. From then until today I have been too tired to think clearly, to carry on a conversation, to read, or to enjoy anything. All I want to do is lie down and rest, but when I do, I don't feel better. I just feel sick, miserable, pathetic, helpless, hopeless, and pointless.
But let's talk about some good things. As I mentioned, Kristi and I went dancing (thanks Kristi!). I love to dance and Kristi is a great dancer and a fun friend. I didn't think the DJ was as good as the last time I went to "Throwback Thursday." He played some good songs ("We Got the Beat," "Kiss" by Prince, "Come on Eileen") but his segues were awkward. I guess it's not strictly an 80s night, but I wanted it to be, so some of the songs seemed out of place ("Pretty Woman" from 1964, "Tubthumping" from 1997). Nevertheless, the crowd at Rumors is always interesting, and Kristi and I had a good time.
Now I'm going to brag about Seth and basketball. Our team, the "Green Leprechauns," which I co-coached with my friend Michael Parke, had our last two games of the season Thursday and Saturday. It was fun to see the improvement in the team since the start of the season. We had a good group of kids this year; I enjoyed coaching them. During Thursday's game I took a few videos which you can see here (the last three links): http://myweb.facstaff.wwu.edu/remmele/seth
During Saturday's game my mom took some videos which I will insert here (Seth is number 3):
In this one, you can't see Seth at first, but he ends up passing to Will, who scores:
As you can see, Seth is awesome, in my completely biased opinion. He is a really good ballhandler for his age. He could pretty much drive and get lay-ups at will, but he tried to be unselfish and pass as well. One of my favorite plays was the last play of our last game: Seth passed to Nicole (the only girl on our team) in the high post, who passed to Sebastian in the low post, who turned and scored.
I think Seth could be a good point guard in the future, if he decides to continue with basketball. Given Lynn's and my builds, he is bound to be a string bean, but he is quick and coordinated and has good court awareness. I wish I could be around to coach him and watch him.
About the only other good thing lately was Monday evening. We had a basketball practice at the YMCA, which got me up and off my butt. Then my mom, Seth, and I went to the movie "The Illusionist" at the Pickford. This animated film is based on a story by Jacques Tati ("Mr. Hulot") and adapted by Sylvain Chomet. It has very little dialogue (like the "Mr. Hulot" films) but is funny, sad, and sweet. It contains some of the most beautiful animated scenes I have ever seen.
After the movie Seth stayed at our house and I got to cuddle with him. We read "Tintin in Tibet" and he fell asleep in my arms. There is nothing better than holding your child and hearing and feeling his breath become slow and steady as he falls asleep, and to know that he must feel comfortable and safe.
Ethan
Then Friday the chemo fatigue hit. From then until today I have been too tired to think clearly, to carry on a conversation, to read, or to enjoy anything. All I want to do is lie down and rest, but when I do, I don't feel better. I just feel sick, miserable, pathetic, helpless, hopeless, and pointless.
But let's talk about some good things. As I mentioned, Kristi and I went dancing (thanks Kristi!). I love to dance and Kristi is a great dancer and a fun friend. I didn't think the DJ was as good as the last time I went to "Throwback Thursday." He played some good songs ("We Got the Beat," "Kiss" by Prince, "Come on Eileen") but his segues were awkward. I guess it's not strictly an 80s night, but I wanted it to be, so some of the songs seemed out of place ("Pretty Woman" from 1964, "Tubthumping" from 1997). Nevertheless, the crowd at Rumors is always interesting, and Kristi and I had a good time.
Now I'm going to brag about Seth and basketball. Our team, the "Green Leprechauns," which I co-coached with my friend Michael Parke, had our last two games of the season Thursday and Saturday. It was fun to see the improvement in the team since the start of the season. We had a good group of kids this year; I enjoyed coaching them. During Thursday's game I took a few videos which you can see here (the last three links): http://myweb.facstaff.wwu.edu/remmele/seth
During Saturday's game my mom took some videos which I will insert here (Seth is number 3):
In this one, you can't see Seth at first, but he ends up passing to Will, who scores:
As you can see, Seth is awesome, in my completely biased opinion. He is a really good ballhandler for his age. He could pretty much drive and get lay-ups at will, but he tried to be unselfish and pass as well. One of my favorite plays was the last play of our last game: Seth passed to Nicole (the only girl on our team) in the high post, who passed to Sebastian in the low post, who turned and scored.
I think Seth could be a good point guard in the future, if he decides to continue with basketball. Given Lynn's and my builds, he is bound to be a string bean, but he is quick and coordinated and has good court awareness. I wish I could be around to coach him and watch him.
About the only other good thing lately was Monday evening. We had a basketball practice at the YMCA, which got me up and off my butt. Then my mom, Seth, and I went to the movie "The Illusionist" at the Pickford. This animated film is based on a story by Jacques Tati ("Mr. Hulot") and adapted by Sylvain Chomet. It has very little dialogue (like the "Mr. Hulot" films) but is funny, sad, and sweet. It contains some of the most beautiful animated scenes I have ever seen.
After the movie Seth stayed at our house and I got to cuddle with him. We read "Tintin in Tibet" and he fell asleep in my arms. There is nothing better than holding your child and hearing and feeling his breath become slow and steady as he falls asleep, and to know that he must feel comfortable and safe.
Ethan
Saturday, February 19, 2011
Thursday, February 17, 2011
Misc. news
In an act of either optimism or denial, I registered for a conference (International Congress for the Study of Child Language) in Montreal this July 19-23, 2011. I have avoided making commitments that far in the future, but the registration deadline was coming up, so I had to make a decision. Back in July 2010, I submitted a presentation as part of a symposium titled "Links between language and social-cognitive development: Insights from deafness." Our symposium was accepted in October. My presentation will be based on my research with Kim Peters on theory of mind and language in children with cochlear implants, so Kim can take my place if I can't attend.
I was checking out the settings on this blog, which I'd never done carefully before, and I changed a few. I changed it so search engines such as Google should ignore this blog from now on. Let me know if this causes anyone any problems. I figure my Psychology Today blog is more suitable for public consumption. I enabled a setting that's supposed to make it easier for visitors to email posts to their friends. I could change it so anyone can comment anonymously without needing to register, but I'm not sure if that would result in spam comments. I can also enter up to 10 email addresses to which blog updates will be automatically emailed. Let me know if you want me to do that for you.
I was able to sleep last night - yay!
I was checking out the settings on this blog, which I'd never done carefully before, and I changed a few. I changed it so search engines such as Google should ignore this blog from now on. Let me know if this causes anyone any problems. I figure my Psychology Today blog is more suitable for public consumption. I enabled a setting that's supposed to make it easier for visitors to email posts to their friends. I could change it so anyone can comment anonymously without needing to register, but I'm not sure if that would result in spam comments. I can also enter up to 10 email addresses to which blog updates will be automatically emailed. Let me know if you want me to do that for you.
I was able to sleep last night - yay!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)