Before I forget everything from this summer....let me record for history's sake the failures and successes of the great tomato adventure. About half the plants died -- the Yellow Pear, the Golden Jubilee (after giving us a couple of lovely yellow tomatoes), the Big Boy.
The grape tomato in the upside down container produced well and all summer. Tasty, too. The Better Boy, out front where there was more sun, produced a lot of tomatoes but their flavor and texture were less than ideal. The Celebrity in the self watering container produced a lot of tomatoes and they were very juicy and flavorful. The Celebrity in the ground didn't get enough sun and produced just one fruit, late in the season. The heirlooms (Brandywine and Cherokee Purple) didn't produce much but got to be 15' tall -- they were in the back, just reaching for the sun. The Mr Stripey produced a little but not much.
One other plant whose name I forget lived but never fruited.
Next year, more Celebrity plants!
Thursday, December 4, 2008
Sunday, November 9, 2008
It is such a beautiful time of year and we're having especially beautiful foliage this year. Lots of yellows and reds--the dogwoods turn this deep ruby that is quite beautiful. Last weekend, Thomas and I took a hike at Sweetwater Creek State Park, which is just a short ride west of Atlanta. I hadn't been there in about five years and Thomas had never been there. We did a hike along the creek that I have done before. It looks like there have been a couple of other trails added, and a new education center, since I was there before so I'll have to go back.
Today, Alan and I took a walk through our neighborhood, doing a big loop that took us south on Briarcliff (no sidewalk -- boo!), west on East Rock Springs Rd, north on Beech Valley Rd, through Johnson Park, north on Johnson Rd, cut through some streets back to Briarcliff (no sidewalks -- boo!) and then home. It took us about an hour and fifteen minutes, has a good deal of terrain change, and definitely stretched the legs. Now onto split pea soup for dinner!
Today, Alan and I took a walk through our neighborhood, doing a big loop that took us south on Briarcliff (no sidewalk -- boo!), west on East Rock Springs Rd, north on Beech Valley Rd, through Johnson Park, north on Johnson Rd, cut through some streets back to Briarcliff (no sidewalks -- boo!) and then home. It took us about an hour and fifteen minutes, has a good deal of terrain change, and definitely stretched the legs. Now onto split pea soup for dinner!
Friday, October 31, 2008
Interesting presentation
Well, we're back in Atlanta safe and sound, looking forward to a weekend in our own house. LB celebrated our time away by shredding an entire roll of paper towels, in several rooms. A very determined effort, to be sure.
I wanted to post a link to this slideshow which we found very interesting.
I wanted to post a link to this slideshow which we found very interesting.
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Educause 2002: Digging Deep with P2P
Understanding Students' Media Habits
# Warren S. Arbogast, Founder & President, Boulder Management Group, LLC
# David Greenfield, Director, Student Technology, Illinois State University
# Alexandre M. Mateus, PhD Candidate, Department of Engineering and Public Policy, Carnegie Mellon University
# Mark S. Walbert, Associate Vice President, Academic Information Technology, Illinois State University
Illinois state
20,265 students
How different today than 2005? Bigger problem today
What hasn't changed is that industry doesn't understand higher ed and vice versa
Digital Citizen Project
Mark: Not much literature, especially with data on what students are doing with p2p with numbers
--started a dialogue with RIAA, both sides learned
--worked with IRB since analyzing click stream, plus legal, provost, president
Surveyed incoming students -- what were their digital media habits; now they have 3 years of data
2008:
--97% of students watch movies/TV/video on computer
--93% mp3 player; 82% ipod
--where get music: iTunes, CDs, Limewire, downloading (iTunes growth over time)
--movies: DVD, YouTube, iTunes, internet, download
--P2P sware: limewire, facebook, myspace, aim (confusion over p2p)
Confusion over what is legal, what is p2p, how is p2p related to social network sites
--they don't want to purchase by subscription
Studied using packeteer and audible magic april 2007:
51% on campus detected p2p users
42% detected DATCoM users
each student transferred 6 copyrighted files per week
more than half of the students doing p2p transferred more than 5 titles per week
10% transferred more than 35 titles per week
--spread out across all demographics (gender, age, class year)
Audible Magic doesn't detect as much as Packeteer
--if traffic encrypted, can't detect if its p2p
--after a few weeks, it detected most people that transferred copyrighted content
DPI effective in detecting users over time -- useful for a tool to warn users
DPI is less effective if coupled with punishment
--misses encrypted traffic
--encryption available in most p2p clients -- don't motivate them to do it
http://www.ece.cmu.edu/~peha/dimensions_of_piracy.pdf
What they did:
Pilot this spring with Audible Magic and a response system -- warning students if they were identified as exchanging p2p
Met with students, academic senate, legal counsel, president, provost -- in June, had four constraints (gen counsel raised questions about peering into pipe, president did not want students getting notices/subpoenas, concern over $$ -- spend it on wireless, classrooms, hiring freeze)
Accidentally left of packeteer for a period -- 7fold increase in outbound and 3fold increase in inbound
Aug 08 -- created a p2p permission form for resnet -- permission granted no questions asked
--targeting residence halls, wireless,
--not using packeteer b/c it was on the WAN (?)
students responded positively -- glad not to be turned over to riaa
faculty okay b/c not on academic network
http://www.digitalcitizen.ilstu.edu/
# Warren S. Arbogast, Founder & President, Boulder Management Group, LLC
# David Greenfield, Director, Student Technology, Illinois State University
# Alexandre M. Mateus, PhD Candidate, Department of Engineering and Public Policy, Carnegie Mellon University
# Mark S. Walbert, Associate Vice President, Academic Information Technology, Illinois State University
Illinois state
20,265 students
How different today than 2005? Bigger problem today
What hasn't changed is that industry doesn't understand higher ed and vice versa
Digital Citizen Project
Mark: Not much literature, especially with data on what students are doing with p2p with numbers
--started a dialogue with RIAA, both sides learned
--worked with IRB since analyzing click stream, plus legal, provost, president
Surveyed incoming students -- what were their digital media habits; now they have 3 years of data
2008:
--97% of students watch movies/TV/video on computer
--93% mp3 player; 82% ipod
--where get music: iTunes, CDs, Limewire, downloading (iTunes growth over time)
--movies: DVD, YouTube, iTunes, internet, download
--P2P sware: limewire, facebook, myspace, aim (confusion over p2p)
Confusion over what is legal, what is p2p, how is p2p related to social network sites
--they don't want to purchase by subscription
Studied using packeteer and audible magic april 2007:
51% on campus detected p2p users
42% detected DATCoM users
each student transferred 6 copyrighted files per week
more than half of the students doing p2p transferred more than 5 titles per week
10% transferred more than 35 titles per week
--spread out across all demographics (gender, age, class year)
Audible Magic doesn't detect as much as Packeteer
--if traffic encrypted, can't detect if its p2p
--after a few weeks, it detected most people that transferred copyrighted content
DPI effective in detecting users over time -- useful for a tool to warn users
DPI is less effective if coupled with punishment
--misses encrypted traffic
--encryption available in most p2p clients -- don't motivate them to do it
http://www.ece.cmu.edu/~peha/dimensions_of_piracy.pdf
What they did:
Pilot this spring with Audible Magic and a response system -- warning students if they were identified as exchanging p2p
Met with students, academic senate, legal counsel, president, provost -- in June, had four constraints (gen counsel raised questions about peering into pipe, president did not want students getting notices/subpoenas, concern over $$ -- spend it on wireless, classrooms, hiring freeze)
Accidentally left of packeteer for a period -- 7fold increase in outbound and 3fold increase in inbound
Aug 08 -- created a p2p permission form for resnet -- permission granted no questions asked
--targeting residence halls, wireless,
--not using packeteer b/c it was on the WAN (?)
students responded positively -- glad not to be turned over to riaa
faculty okay b/c not on academic network
http://www.digitalcitizen.ilstu.edu/
Educause 2008: Optimizing IT for Optimal Value
Optimizing IT for Optimal Value
* Fred Brittain, U Maine, Farmington
* Nicole Broyles, Director, IT Business Services, University of Houston
* Diane M. Dagefoerde, Director of Technology, Arts & Sciences, The Ohio State University
* Veronica Longenecker, Director of Computing and Support Services, Millersville University of Pennsylvania
* MaryBeth Stuenkel, Manager of Groupware Services, University of Michigan-Ann Arbor
We already do IT governance.
Desires -- cut costs; more, better, faster; unfunded mandate
Governance: process; roles, responsibilities, inputs and outputs
--outputs: a.) what IT should work on; b.) how IT should do it
-- budget the thing that links them
3 ITG Models:
Locally (decentralized)
Local/Central Collaboration (hybrid or federated)
Centrally (centralized)
V: Talking about a cycle where IT needs were met in a decentralized level, then taken back to central, and now the faculty are taking it back themselves (using google docs, etc.)
MB: in central IT--itself decentralized--schools work in their own interest, distributed decision making; Novell and AD; units ran Exchange -- didn't need to do so, asked central IT to take over
--centralized provision but collaborative governance
--now looking at shared desktop image
ITG Maturity Model
Nonexistent
Initial
Repeatable
Defined
Managed
Optimized
There is a relationship btw the innovation life cycle and the ITG maturity model.
D: Ohio State governance grew out of PS governance; picked desktop standards and bundled with vendor (computer hardware strategic plan)
{might be interesting to speak with her}
{it would be so helpful if they would depict their org charts while they were talking -- I guess those are the slides that they skipped over, but it is still annoying}
There was cultural resistance to rolling out governance for all projects and then all executive leadership left. But with new leadership, efforts to try again.
{ok, I'm outta here}
* Fred Brittain, U Maine, Farmington
* Nicole Broyles, Director, IT Business Services, University of Houston
* Diane M. Dagefoerde, Director of Technology, Arts & Sciences, The Ohio State University
* Veronica Longenecker, Director of Computing and Support Services, Millersville University of Pennsylvania
* MaryBeth Stuenkel, Manager of Groupware Services, University of Michigan-Ann Arbor
We already do IT governance.
Desires -- cut costs; more, better, faster; unfunded mandate
Governance: process; roles, responsibilities, inputs and outputs
--outputs: a.) what IT should work on; b.) how IT should do it
-- budget the thing that links them
3 ITG Models:
Locally (decentralized)
Local/Central Collaboration (hybrid or federated)
Centrally (centralized)
V: Talking about a cycle where IT needs were met in a decentralized level, then taken back to central, and now the faculty are taking it back themselves (using google docs, etc.)
MB: in central IT--itself decentralized--schools work in their own interest, distributed decision making; Novell and AD; units ran Exchange -- didn't need to do so, asked central IT to take over
--centralized provision but collaborative governance
--now looking at shared desktop image
ITG Maturity Model
Nonexistent
Initial
Repeatable
Defined
Managed
Optimized
There is a relationship btw the innovation life cycle and the ITG maturity model.
D: Ohio State governance grew out of PS governance; picked desktop standards and bundled with vendor (computer hardware strategic plan)
{might be interesting to speak with her}
{it would be so helpful if they would depict their org charts while they were talking -- I guess those are the slides that they skipped over, but it is still annoying}
There was cultural resistance to rolling out governance for all projects and then all executive leadership left. But with new leadership, efforts to try again.
{ok, I'm outta here}
Educause 2008: BB and open source
Panel discussion on BB and open source.
# Michael L. Chasen, President & CEO, Blackboard, Inc.
# Serge J. Goldstein, Associate CIO and Director of Academic Services, Princeton University
# Charles Severance, Developer Network Coordinator, IMS Global Learning Consortium, Inc.
Calls for open APIs more than source code access.
Question asked by panelists about whether you could unpack a BB export and use APIs to move into Moodle or Sakai.
BB: We can't put forward a universal statement that addressed all circumstances.
We would never do anything to prevent faculty and schools from extending elearning.
Sakai: People dismayed about the patent environment.
{This is turning into a put BB on the spot session}
BB defending their intellectual investment. Need to have some legal structures to be able to work against nefarious sorts (against best interest of education community).
How to balance need for resources for development (BB gets paid) and desire for openness.
There's nothing automatically good about releasing source code in the open. Distinguish btw open source and getting what you need to get done
--flow btw apache fdn and public is so open
Q: Problem of publishers with proprietary LMS's -- how can these LMS's be more open?
Chuck: this is a chicken/egg thing
Michael (not chasen): he's been pretty consistently advocating one place to go, systems interoperable, incl publishers; sakai connector just the beginning
Mchasen: BB wanting to dev facebook API, bb for iphone, bb for igoogle; we heard very strong views on both sides
{wonder why there isn't a history function on tweets}
Serge: the difficulty of localized problem solving introducing balkanization of data
Mchasen: moving from open APIs to web services approach to be more live and free flowing
Chuck: IMS learner information services, this standard undergone mjr rework, led by oracle, open philosophy (v open src). LIS designed to solve the fundamental problems; lite version purely rest based working with small company (School???)
Serge: web svcs terrific; let's you write php code rather than heavy weight java code; web services allows us to treat BB as a academic infrastructure system; we can build tools in PHP to add onto the LMS
Chuck: web services: moddle embarking on dev of web services (moodle hard to add modules now); LMS becoming a SOA that's becoming enterprise information, not a place to put your syllabus
In 2 years:
mchasen: opening up your LMS to where students are; trend around cloud computing (safe assign leverages cloud computing (everyone using safeassign); but admits that it probably violates FERPA to put all data up in the cloud; envision a day when a school will pick and choose some bb modules, some others
chuck: echoing chasen
good session
# Michael L. Chasen, President & CEO, Blackboard, Inc.
# Serge J. Goldstein, Associate CIO and Director of Academic Services, Princeton University
# Charles Severance, Developer Network Coordinator, IMS Global Learning Consortium, Inc.
Calls for open APIs more than source code access.
Question asked by panelists about whether you could unpack a BB export and use APIs to move into Moodle or Sakai.
BB: We can't put forward a universal statement that addressed all circumstances.
We would never do anything to prevent faculty and schools from extending elearning.
Sakai: People dismayed about the patent environment.
{This is turning into a put BB on the spot session}
BB defending their intellectual investment. Need to have some legal structures to be able to work against nefarious sorts (against best interest of education community).
How to balance need for resources for development (BB gets paid) and desire for openness.
There's nothing automatically good about releasing source code in the open. Distinguish btw open source and getting what you need to get done
--flow btw apache fdn and public is so open
Q: Problem of publishers with proprietary LMS's -- how can these LMS's be more open?
Chuck: this is a chicken/egg thing
Michael (not chasen): he's been pretty consistently advocating one place to go, systems interoperable, incl publishers; sakai connector just the beginning
Mchasen: BB wanting to dev facebook API, bb for iphone, bb for igoogle; we heard very strong views on both sides
{wonder why there isn't a history function on tweets}
Serge: the difficulty of localized problem solving introducing balkanization of data
Mchasen: moving from open APIs to web services approach to be more live and free flowing
Chuck: IMS learner information services, this standard undergone mjr rework, led by oracle, open philosophy (v open src). LIS designed to solve the fundamental problems; lite version purely rest based working with small company (School???)
Serge: web svcs terrific; let's you write php code rather than heavy weight java code; web services allows us to treat BB as a academic infrastructure system; we can build tools in PHP to add onto the LMS
Chuck: web services: moddle embarking on dev of web services (moodle hard to add modules now); LMS becoming a SOA that's becoming enterprise information, not a place to put your syllabus
In 2 years:
mchasen: opening up your LMS to where students are; trend around cloud computing (safe assign leverages cloud computing (everyone using safeassign); but admits that it probably violates FERPA to put all data up in the cloud; envision a day when a school will pick and choose some bb modules, some others
chuck: echoing chasen
good session
Educause 2008: Social Media and Education
Social Media and Education: The Conflict Between Technology and Institutional Education, and the Future
Sarah Intellagirl Robbins
Intellagirl's claim: Many of the benefits of institutional learning can be accomplished via social media, she fears for future of high ed
High ed offers:
--membership in social affinity or intellectual groups (online or rl)
-- engage in intellectual discourse
--access to resources and experts
--endorsement of completion (credentialing)
--accumulate skills for employment
--association with professional community (esp with things like nursing schools)
--guidance through experiences and thought processes
Role of social media for those who engage?
Social media offers:
--self expression
--sharing enthusiasm for common interests
--access to experts and personalities (pic is of TED talks)
--enhance personal and professional reputation
--build and share skills
All communication is educational
Dialogic communication allows for more community, exchange of ideas (Web 2.0)
Institutions can be replaced by a *self-motivated* investigator
Where does education fit in a world where production & consumption of info has become:
-- wikipedia (v. brittanica)
-- amateur (you tube)
-- distributive (crowdsource)
Strategies for the future:
--we are not the gatekeepers to knowledge
--role of educators changing (edupunk )
--references Henry Jenkins (aca-fan ); teach students how to learn in an information economy
--teach importance of contributing to community (global citizens now); their value in an info economy is the quality of what they share; teaching them to learn and express alone -- not what's needed today
-- teacher as guide (she doesn't say 'sage'); teacher a co-creator (uses ex from elementary school)
--arguing for teacher as expert, the helper when students get in trouble (how many teachers navigate w2.0 with that degree of skill)
Educators more imp than ever in world of social media
We are the last cohort of educators who will remember what the world was like before not only social media but other technologies (hand helds)
intellagirl@gmail.com
SL: IntellagirlTully
slides on slideshare
Q: {accurately points out that the claims at the start of her talk are more alarmist than the conclusions she presents at talk's conclusion}
I: if we don't embrace the shift (teach courses lecture style, large classes without online community accompaniment), then we may have trouble. Will students choose to be controlled by institutions?
Students raised in a world where they have a voice and every system they engage in allows them to do that, except school.
Q: I've taught biochemistry and bioinformatics for many years, and there is a set body of knowledge, and I wouldn't want to drive over a bridge built by someone who studied engineering at wikipedia;
I: We don't need to abandon facts but we can remove individual isolation and allow students to collaborate better while learning concrete information
Output mechanisms of tests and papers may not help the learning outcome.
Q: from Israel -- why do you say "IT" when "ICT" (c=communication) is so important
Q: Inside HighEd this am: FB becoming the campus commons, rather than a physical commons; please comment
I: Don't think that students spending more time in FB than F2F,
Sarah Intellagirl Robbins
Intellagirl's claim: Many of the benefits of institutional learning can be accomplished via social media, she fears for future of high ed
High ed offers:
--membership in social affinity or intellectual groups (online or rl)
-- engage in intellectual discourse
--access to resources and experts
--endorsement of completion (credentialing)
--accumulate skills for employment
--association with professional community (esp with things like nursing schools)
--guidance through experiences and thought processes
Role of social media for those who engage?
Social media offers:
--self expression
--sharing enthusiasm for common interests
--access to experts and personalities (pic is of TED talks)
--enhance personal and professional reputation
--build and share skills
All communication is educational
Dialogic communication allows for more community, exchange of ideas (Web 2.0)
Institutions can be replaced by a *self-motivated* investigator
Where does education fit in a world where production & consumption of info has become:
-- wikipedia (v. brittanica)
-- amateur (you tube)
-- distributive (crowdsource)
Strategies for the future:
--we are not the gatekeepers to knowledge
--role of educators changing (edupunk )
--references Henry Jenkins (aca-fan ); teach students how to learn in an information economy
--teach importance of contributing to community (global citizens now); their value in an info economy is the quality of what they share; teaching them to learn and express alone -- not what's needed today
-- teacher as guide (she doesn't say 'sage'); teacher a co-creator (uses ex from elementary school)
--arguing for teacher as expert, the helper when students get in trouble (how many teachers navigate w2.0 with that degree of skill)
Educators more imp than ever in world of social media
We are the last cohort of educators who will remember what the world was like before not only social media but other technologies (hand helds)
intellagirl@gmail.com
SL: IntellagirlTully
slides on slideshare
Q: {accurately points out that the claims at the start of her talk are more alarmist than the conclusions she presents at talk's conclusion}
I: if we don't embrace the shift (teach courses lecture style, large classes without online community accompaniment), then we may have trouble. Will students choose to be controlled by institutions?
Students raised in a world where they have a voice and every system they engage in allows them to do that, except school.
Q: I've taught biochemistry and bioinformatics for many years, and there is a set body of knowledge, and I wouldn't want to drive over a bridge built by someone who studied engineering at wikipedia;
I: We don't need to abandon facts but we can remove individual isolation and allow students to collaborate better while learning concrete information
Output mechanisms of tests and papers may not help the learning outcome.
Q: from Israel -- why do you say "IT" when "ICT" (c=communication) is so important
Q: Inside HighEd this am: FB becoming the campus commons, rather than a physical commons; please comment
I: Don't think that students spending more time in FB than F2F,
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Educause 2008: Out/Insourcing point/counterpoint
Educause 2008: In and Outsourcing, Benefits and Risks
Len Gonick and David Trevvett
Outsourcing -- many things -- cloud computing, hosted applications
-- 30 yrs ago most of us writing own business apps
-- 90s packaged apps took over marketplace
--in effect, we have outsourced our business applications
--leasing = outsourcing ownership
-- open src (sakai) or shared dev is a form of outsourcing
G: growing expectations internal and external, hi ed slow to respond
--textbook conversation about core and context
--everything not core a prospect for outsrcing
T: prime ex of insourcing -- old legacy business systems
--Leadership scared of consulting costs; they decided to build an in house consulting group who would assist (I guess with ERP migration)
Both of them seem to be talking about either creating an internal group or developing an equity option in external firm that they helped to develop
G: Network not still core, trending towards commodity
--work with a non-profit to turn a commodity into something of strategic value
--mentions Campus EAI
{In general, I like this new point-counterpoint format -- less boring}
T: currently, pushed by executive to outsource an application but there was a lot of work mapping internal business processes to external application
-- standard, clearly defined business rules a must to take advantage of outsourcing potential
--security and privacy a big deal
-- can have greater agility in house
-- outsourcing doesn't mean you don't have to manage the application at the ext vendor
G: 800 lb gorilla -- time to have serious conversation about impact of global economic meltdown on our industry (DOW below 9,000....and sharp drop at end of day)
--advocating for a community focused attempt to answer some questions (shared service development) where there isn't an obvious industry advantage
--we will be getting mandates from BoT and legislators -- need to be prepared
T: agree with idea of regional, community based things and a mixed portfolio
--need larger economies of scale that we can never have internal to our own institutions
Question: describe a mixed portfolio
G: outsources to IBM intrusion detection, satisfies a regulatory requirement, a lot of $$ to build up expertise in house
Q: Have you come across best practices for considering in/out-sourcing?
T: move to out -- cost, dev of inhouse expertise, faster turn around, depth of offering (7/24/365)
in -- risk, security, u
--institution's culture and drivers are key
G: best template comes from an outsourced 3rd party provider (something like a Gartner) -- also provides cover for CIO
--hardware play v. SAS play -- CIO's see these as different pots of money (capital v. operational)
T: we haven't outsourced email for students but we allow them to forward their mail
G: that's why we did outsource, to develop a framework for the reln btw univ and corp -- a risk mgmt strategy
T: do you know where your data is stored? what country it's stored in?
Len Gonick and David Trevvett
Outsourcing -- many things -- cloud computing, hosted applications
-- 30 yrs ago most of us writing own business apps
-- 90s packaged apps took over marketplace
--in effect, we have outsourced our business applications
--leasing = outsourcing ownership
-- open src (sakai) or shared dev is a form of outsourcing
G: growing expectations internal and external, hi ed slow to respond
--textbook conversation about core and context
--everything not core a prospect for outsrcing
T: prime ex of insourcing -- old legacy business systems
--Leadership scared of consulting costs; they decided to build an in house consulting group who would assist (I guess with ERP migration)
Both of them seem to be talking about either creating an internal group or developing an equity option in external firm that they helped to develop
G: Network not still core, trending towards commodity
--work with a non-profit to turn a commodity into something of strategic value
--mentions Campus EAI
{In general, I like this new point-counterpoint format -- less boring}
T: currently, pushed by executive to outsource an application but there was a lot of work mapping internal business processes to external application
-- standard, clearly defined business rules a must to take advantage of outsourcing potential
--security and privacy a big deal
-- can have greater agility in house
-- outsourcing doesn't mean you don't have to manage the application at the ext vendor
G: 800 lb gorilla -- time to have serious conversation about impact of global economic meltdown on our industry (DOW below 9,000....and sharp drop at end of day)
--advocating for a community focused attempt to answer some questions (shared service development) where there isn't an obvious industry advantage
--we will be getting mandates from BoT and legislators -- need to be prepared
T: agree with idea of regional, community based things and a mixed portfolio
--need larger economies of scale that we can never have internal to our own institutions
Question: describe a mixed portfolio
G: outsources to IBM intrusion detection, satisfies a regulatory requirement, a lot of $$ to build up expertise in house
Q: Have you come across best practices for considering in/out-sourcing?
T: move to out -- cost, dev of inhouse expertise, faster turn around, depth of offering (7/24/365)
in -- risk, security, u
--institution's culture and drivers are key
G: best template comes from an outsourced 3rd party provider (something like a Gartner) -- also provides cover for CIO
--hardware play v. SAS play -- CIO's see these as different pots of money (capital v. operational)
T: we haven't outsourced email for students but we allow them to forward their mail
G: that's why we did outsource, to develop a framework for the reln btw univ and corp -- a risk mgmt strategy
T: do you know where your data is stored? what country it's stored in?
Educause 2008: IT Governance
The Real World of IT Governance: Culture, Politics, People and Transformation
Michael Ridley, CIO and Chief Librarian, Univ of Guelph
http://www.amazon.com/Governance-Performers-Decision-Superior-Results/dp/1591392535/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1225295075&sr=8-1
http://connect.educause.edu/Library/ECAR/ProcessandPoliticsITGover/47101
If we are in period of transformation – can’t attempt to connect dots to past; on the other hand, you cannot ignore the past
“Culture eats strategy for lunch every day of the week.” – Elson Floyd
Guelph iCampus = IT strategic plan (one community, many neighborhoods)
{This is a good ppt}
Money, resources at forefront; aligned with strategic goals; governance about using scarce resources
End of day -- yes to some, no to others
http://www.uoguelph.ca/cio/
ITSIG (key consultative group)
-- frontline folks not in central IT but provided lots of direct IT support
--monthly meetings to communicate, informal, felt disenfranchised
-- if you organize, we will give you designated positions within the governance discussion
-- formed a steering committee, elected executives, dev processes
--key to connect these folks in
--with their collaboration, we can drive innovation
--semi-controlled chaos
Office of Portfolio Mgmt
--not trying to set up a PMO
--community would see as a control grab
--initially focus on "what" -- what's going on, what are the resources
--facilitator, not gatekeeper; this office doesn't say yes/no to projects
--manage the decision process; mechanisms glue policies and processes together
Governance landscape:
-- control
-- What's In It For Me
-- Communication
-- Relationships (down as much as up, incl student groups and alumni)
-- Leadership at exec level but also from central IT
-- Vision (quickly and easily articulate what you want out of IT governance)
How does research computing fit into governance model (something they haven't done well)
--need to maintain relationships with researchers, articulate the value of cyberinfrastructure
--challenge of letting researchers have a genuine place at the table
Trying to:
-- focus on art of the possible
-- vision carrot and policy stick
-- mutual self interest
Vision first; people second; process third
Michael Ridley, CIO and Chief Librarian, Univ of Guelph
http://www.amazon.com/Governance-Performers-Decision-Superior-Results/dp/1591392535/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1225295075&sr=8-1
http://connect.educause.edu/Library/ECAR/ProcessandPoliticsITGover/47101
If we are in period of transformation – can’t attempt to connect dots to past; on the other hand, you cannot ignore the past
“Culture eats strategy for lunch every day of the week.” – Elson Floyd
Guelph iCampus = IT strategic plan (one community, many neighborhoods)
{This is a good ppt}
Money, resources at forefront; aligned with strategic goals; governance about using scarce resources
End of day -- yes to some, no to others
http://www.uoguelph.ca/cio/
ITSIG (key consultative group)
-- frontline folks not in central IT but provided lots of direct IT support
--monthly meetings to communicate, informal, felt disenfranchised
-- if you organize, we will give you designated positions within the governance discussion
-- formed a steering committee, elected executives, dev processes
--key to connect these folks in
--with their collaboration, we can drive innovation
--semi-controlled chaos
Office of Portfolio Mgmt
--not trying to set up a PMO
--community would see as a control grab
--initially focus on "what" -- what's going on, what are the resources
--facilitator, not gatekeeper; this office doesn't say yes/no to projects
--manage the decision process; mechanisms glue policies and processes together
Governance landscape:
-- control
-- What's In It For Me
-- Communication
-- Relationships (down as much as up, incl student groups and alumni)
-- Leadership at exec level but also from central IT
-- Vision (quickly and easily articulate what you want out of IT governance)
How does research computing fit into governance model (something they haven't done well)
--need to maintain relationships with researchers, articulate the value of cyberinfrastructure
--challenge of letting researchers have a genuine place at the table
Trying to:
-- focus on art of the possible
-- vision carrot and policy stick
-- mutual self interest
Vision first; people second; process third
Educause 2008: Active Learning Spaces at UMN
Univ of Minnesota Digital Media Center (part of 750 FTE central IT unit)
• 3 research fellows (all PhDs)
• 3 tiers of program
* consultation
* technical research/evaluation assistance
* research partnership (FTE spends 50-60% of time on one project)
• Ex: Tier 3 partnership with office of classroom mgmt
Formed active learning classrooms pilot evaluation team
Active Learning Classrooms – like SCALEUP (round 9 person tables, plasmas, multicast of student work, markerboard around perimeter of space, students bring own laptops into room (but they will provide laptops if requested), teaching biology and EE/CS); glass markerboards around whole perimeter
One room seats 45 and the other 117; Biology prof uses larger room with two TAs, wants a 300 seat room; larger room has mikes
24 ASF/student
national benchmarking 20-22
their historical classrooms are 16-18
Small classroom technology cost $120k plus facilities cost; larger room double roughly
3 computers connected to monitor (plasma) assigned to table;
http://www.classroom.umn.edu/active-learn-room.asp
CM: I wonder if in these type of presentations, there isn’t some obligation to contrast the incubator spaces with the typical classroom?
JS: Also wonder how you can get at the amount of time faculty spend changing the way they teach to use the spaces attributes… e.g. how much faculty development needed etc. and can they change back when they are kicked out of the space for the next group who wants to try it out.
CM: I know – you end up with groupies who you can’t kick out of the space b/c they can’t go back to the regular pool
Trained faculty around physical limitations of room (sightlines)
• 3 research fellows (all PhDs)
• 3 tiers of program
* consultation
* technical research/evaluation assistance
* research partnership (FTE spends 50-60% of time on one project)
• Ex: Tier 3 partnership with office of classroom mgmt
Formed active learning classrooms pilot evaluation team
Active Learning Classrooms – like SCALEUP (round 9 person tables, plasmas, multicast of student work, markerboard around perimeter of space, students bring own laptops into room (but they will provide laptops if requested), teaching biology and EE/CS); glass markerboards around whole perimeter
One room seats 45 and the other 117; Biology prof uses larger room with two TAs, wants a 300 seat room; larger room has mikes
24 ASF/student
national benchmarking 20-22
their historical classrooms are 16-18
Small classroom technology cost $120k plus facilities cost; larger room double roughly
3 computers connected to monitor (plasma) assigned to table;
http://www.classroom.umn.edu/active-learn-room.asp
CM: I wonder if in these type of presentations, there isn’t some obligation to contrast the incubator spaces with the typical classroom?
JS: Also wonder how you can get at the amount of time faculty spend changing the way they teach to use the spaces attributes… e.g. how much faculty development needed etc. and can they change back when they are kicked out of the space for the next group who wants to try it out.
CM: I know – you end up with groupies who you can’t kick out of the space b/c they can’t go back to the regular pool
Trained faculty around physical limitations of room (sightlines)
Sunday, October 19, 2008
Hockey season is here
It's been four months since the Stanley Cup was hoisted by the (filthy) Red Wings and the season is upon us! The Thrashers got off to a great start, spanking the Capitals 7-4 in the season opener. We went with our friends Barb and Mike, pictured here. I had my obligatory one hot dog at Phillips....yea, that's enough of that. Don't think I'll even try the chicken sandwich or the turkey burger this year. No need, really. Especially since Taco Mac has opened immediately adjacent to the arena. There, you can get a real burger for the same price as the Phillips stands. Of course, for last night's game we stopped at our beloved Hsu's which really is the best Chinese food in Atlanta. Our regular waiter saw us come in and came right over to catch up. He thought we might not have renewed because he knew the season had already started. No, no, we reassured him, we were just away for the preseason.
Under Coach John Anderson, the Thrashers are playing a more puck handling team approach style that is a lot of fun to watch. Lots of emphasis on passing and coordination. And the powerplay has additional strategies other than "hope Kovalchuk scores." As of last night, Kovy appeared to be getting used to the system, which initially looked like an awkward fit.
Sunday, October 5, 2008
Heating it up in the frozen north
At 7am in Averill, Vermont, it was 33 degrees fahrenheit. Brrr. As we drove out the driveway, our Pontiac Torrent flashed on screen, "Danger -- snow and slippery ice conditions exist." Perfect weather for standing around in frigid waters. It was a rather uneventful drive to Lopstick with the exception of my punctuated shriek as a young bull moose crossed Rte 114 just east of the NeverHomeBoys Camp. Upon arriving at Lopstick, we licensed up and Bill asked where we wanted to fish. I said, "Ledges or Meadows," and we were off. A car was parked at the Ledges so all Bill's careful work rigging our gear for nymphing was for naught and we headed north for the Meadows. No one there so we headed in.
The day tried to have some blue skies but couldn't escape the pull of winter and dark clouds and that wet cold that permeates your bones characterized the day. You have to remember that of the last six day we've been up here, it's rained five and Vermont/New Hampshire isn't known for its heat retaining capabilities. Nonetheless, we plunged into the Meadows, fishing on Adams with blue-wing olive emergers, size 22. Darn near invisible, in case you're wondering. It was a day for salmon and some big ones at that -- Alan pulled out a bunch of fish, the smallest being eight inches. I got three and the largest of the day at about 21 inches -- my largest ever. All in all, it was our most productive day at the Meadows ever. Previous fall visits resulted in...not much.
At the end of the day, the fish were feeding wildly, just jumping up all over the place, but not taking our flies. Bill tied on everything and they just were barely interested. So, finally at 1:30, we called it quits. Our feet were numb anyways--it was just frigging cold.
Only fishing day on the Connecticut this summer so it's fitting that it was special. The fish were beautiful and the company good -- really wouldn't have been summer without a fishing trip with Bill.
Tomorrow we head back to Georgia. Sad to think that the Vermont season is coming to an end, a short three months after it started.
Photos on flickr.
The day tried to have some blue skies but couldn't escape the pull of winter and dark clouds and that wet cold that permeates your bones characterized the day. You have to remember that of the last six day we've been up here, it's rained five and Vermont/New Hampshire isn't known for its heat retaining capabilities. Nonetheless, we plunged into the Meadows, fishing on Adams with blue-wing olive emergers, size 22. Darn near invisible, in case you're wondering. It was a day for salmon and some big ones at that -- Alan pulled out a bunch of fish, the smallest being eight inches. I got three and the largest of the day at about 21 inches -- my largest ever. All in all, it was our most productive day at the Meadows ever. Previous fall visits resulted in...not much.
At the end of the day, the fish were feeding wildly, just jumping up all over the place, but not taking our flies. Bill tied on everything and they just were barely interested. So, finally at 1:30, we called it quits. Our feet were numb anyways--it was just frigging cold.
Only fishing day on the Connecticut this summer so it's fitting that it was special. The fish were beautiful and the company good -- really wouldn't have been summer without a fishing trip with Bill.
Tomorrow we head back to Georgia. Sad to think that the Vermont season is coming to an end, a short three months after it started.
Photos on flickr.
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
Last Vermont trip of 2008
It seems hard to believe that three months have gone by since our first Vermont foray this year but they have and now it's coming time to close up camp. We absolutely hit peak foliage this year and it's unimaginably beautiful. The maples this year are just stunning. I guess a wet year makes for good foliage because the one unifying theme of 2008 has been rain! It is pouring right now as I sit in front of a roaring fire waiting for Alan to bring me some cheese and crackers. Dinner is going to be a Canadien yellow split pea soup that I started yesterday. Perfect for a cold, rainy night.
We did get a bit of sunshine yesterday and took advantage of it by breaking out the kayaks. Beautiful views of Brousseau and Averill. The western flanks of Averill are just a sea of oranges and reds. You'll notice that the Coaticook Power company has the dam at full release because there's more beach than I've ever seen--you can literally walk from one beach to the other.
Flocks of geese settle into the cove every night on their way south and the loons are doing their fall socializing before their journey. Lots of calling going on. We had dinner Monday night at Rainbow Grille and got to catch up with Guide Bill who is bartending there now. Yummy food and a good conversation. We're going to head out fishing Sunday morning. Breaking in Pinky2 this week, it being confirmed once we got up here that Pinky had been a victim of the great Burlington airport fleecing. Yeesh, that pisses me off.
Sunday, August 31, 2008
Italian Wine dinner with the Burns'
One of the joys of our life in Atlanta is the friends we have made here. Among our favorite occasions are the wine dinners we have with our friends Tom and Carol Burns. Tom and Alan both enjoy collecting wine and Carol and I both enjoy cooking -- perfect combination!
Tonight featured some Italian wines that Alan would have to tell you about. Carol made a lovely antipasto with prosciutto and melon, plus marinated shrimp and dinner was veal scallopine, asparagus, a potato pancake kind of thing (similar to rosti but with egg), and I brought a tomato salad (of course). Dessert was the pictured ice cream balls. Great all around. This is Tom and Carol's last semester in Atlanta -- they are retiring to their condo overlooking Lake Superior. We will definitely miss them but hope to do another dinner before they go.
Tonight featured some Italian wines that Alan would have to tell you about. Carol made a lovely antipasto with prosciutto and melon, plus marinated shrimp and dinner was veal scallopine, asparagus, a potato pancake kind of thing (similar to rosti but with egg), and I brought a tomato salad (of course). Dessert was the pictured ice cream balls. Great all around. This is Tom and Carol's last semester in Atlanta -- they are retiring to their condo overlooking Lake Superior. We will definitely miss them but hope to do another dinner before they go.
Slow weekend musings
After last weekend and a busy, busy first week of classes, we are taking it easy....which for me involves spending some time checking out new technologies and reflecting on my changing technology habits. I have become a convert to flock for my web browsing, using flock 2 which is in beta. It brings together my technology worlds in ways that seem more organic than netvibes or igoogle. I still prefer netvibes to igoogle but haven't been using either lately.
I also took a look at the schools application for facebook, which is in private beta. The video linked here explains it very well and it looks pretty cool. But, it still doesn't equal LearnLink, Emory's installation of the First Class product, in my opinion. For one thing, I still can't get beyond the fact that I think it's better to have a locally hosted system, rather than a presence in a commercial social network like FB. On the other hand, I suppose you could argue that because students are more likely to be on their personal network for their entire lives that it makes better strategic sense for a school to have a presence in these large commercial networks. But, then, does that approach encourage the development of a school community that occurs with a closed system like LL. When we did the usability study two years ago, the researchers made a big deal of the fact that students really liked being in the "Emory bubble." However, what FB does well and LL doesn't currently is to provide information about individuals. There's the resume function but no one ever uses it and it's not prominent enough. Also, there are no status updates.
I have found it very interesting to see who among my friends takes to FB in a big way. The mobile apps for phones does seem to make for more frequent status updates.
Here are some shots from a meeting this week on the Chemistry addition. We are at the exciting point of actually working on the architecture of this challenging project. It is very cool to see the design evolve and I think the architects are doing a great job and melding the Emory vernacular with the existing Atwood Hall, which I think is very beautiful but I am in the minority on that one.
One of the things I love about web 2.0 technologies is how they let me stay in contact with those at a distance. Like Rohit S, who was the project manager from HOK on the Psychology Building. Rohit has moved back to India to head up HOK's first office there. Fortunately, they are progressive enough to chronicle and share via this blog, so I'm getting to keep track of his adventures. Very cool projects -- I am a little jealous!
I also took a look at the schools application for facebook, which is in private beta. The video linked here explains it very well and it looks pretty cool. But, it still doesn't equal LearnLink, Emory's installation of the First Class product, in my opinion. For one thing, I still can't get beyond the fact that I think it's better to have a locally hosted system, rather than a presence in a commercial social network like FB. On the other hand, I suppose you could argue that because students are more likely to be on their personal network for their entire lives that it makes better strategic sense for a school to have a presence in these large commercial networks. But, then, does that approach encourage the development of a school community that occurs with a closed system like LL. When we did the usability study two years ago, the researchers made a big deal of the fact that students really liked being in the "Emory bubble." However, what FB does well and LL doesn't currently is to provide information about individuals. There's the resume function but no one ever uses it and it's not prominent enough. Also, there are no status updates.
I have found it very interesting to see who among my friends takes to FB in a big way. The mobile apps for phones does seem to make for more frequent status updates.
Here are some shots from a meeting this week on the Chemistry addition. We are at the exciting point of actually working on the architecture of this challenging project. It is very cool to see the design evolve and I think the architects are doing a great job and melding the Emory vernacular with the existing Atwood Hall, which I think is very beautiful but I am in the minority on that one.
One of the things I love about web 2.0 technologies is how they let me stay in contact with those at a distance. Like Rohit S, who was the project manager from HOK on the Psychology Building. Rohit has moved back to India to head up HOK's first office there. Fortunately, they are progressive enough to chronicle and share via this blog, so I'm getting to keep track of his adventures. Very cool projects -- I am a little jealous!
Monday, August 25, 2008
Back to school
Summer is over....unimaginable as that might be. This past weekend we joined the 70+ IT staff and the innumerable other university staff to help move the first year class into their residence halls (don't say "dorm" or you'll be reprimanded :-). We have two new residence halls -- Few and Evans -- that are quite lovely. This first picture is a view from the top floor. Our buildings are getting taller all the time.
Our tomatoes have started producing and we are eating prodigious salads every night. It is amazing how different they all are in texture and flavor. The Celebrity's are delicious as are the Mr Stripey's. And the upside down cherry tomatoes are producing still, while the rest are shutting down. Yum.
Saturday, August 16, 2008
Last day in Sun Valley
On our last day we took a great trip east from Ketchum up Sun Valley Road, crossing through the Sawtooth and Challis national forests on our way to Wildhorse Rd and a lovely walk up to a waterfall. We had grabbed sandwiches for the road and picnicked at the falls. Unusually, this trail is handicapped accessible -- smooth and easy the whole way -- and a lovely deck at the end. We spoke with some locals at the end and they talked about how challenging it had been to get the trail level and told some stories about folks who had used the trail that they new about. It's the most remote, wildest, accessible trail we had ever seen -- and very cool.
Back in town, we dropped Suzy off for a massage and the rest of us toured about Ketchum, wrapping up dinner shoppings. We had agreed to give Suz the night off -- and our menu was cedar planked salmon, sauteed squash, tomato basil salad (with tomatoes from our garden!), and rice, plus gingerbread (courtesy of Suzy).
Tomorrow we head back to Atlanta and back to school weekend -- one week away. Talk about a juxtaposition.
Hike to Fourth of July Lake
Yesterday we headed north for about 50 miles to the Sawtooth Mountains and did a great hike up to the Fourth of July lake. Last year's fires scoured this area and driving the ten miles from the highway we traveled through burnt stands of pine and aspen. The aspen are regenerating madly (some plants more than 5' tall) and the wildflowers are intense. Great stands of purple flowers scattered through the tall skeletons of trees.
The hike itself mostly went through unburned territory but evidence of that fire and previous ones was omnipresent. The lake itself was beautiful and there were fish jumping enthusiastically at the hatch of caddis and grasshoppers. Too bad we had no rod although many of the hikers we met were carrying their's in. It looks like a popular backpacking area. Probably the last trips of the year, though. One backpacker mentioned being chased off the mountain last year on Sept 1 by snow and indeed, there were remnants of last year's snowfall still populating the higher peaks. It gets cold here at night -- 44 this am when Alan, Suz, and Rick got up to wish Jim off.
On our way back, we lunched at Galena where Jim was crushed to discover no River Bend lager -- they were reserving their last keg for a wedding that night. We consoled ourselves with other beverage selections and the usual tasty food, including the favorites french fries. At our table outside, the hummingbirds buzzed overhead -- not very far overhead! -- and battled for dominance at the feeder. A big green one appeared to be the boss.
Last night's dinner featured delicious lamb chops and a special bottle of wine Alan procured in honor of Jim's last night -- a magnum of Elderton Command Shiraz, which tasted a berry pie with a hint of mint. Yum. "It went awfully quickly," Alan said ruefully just now.
More flickr photos.
Thursday, August 14, 2008
Arriving in Sun Valley
Yesterday we got up early for the flight to Sun Valley. Left the house at 7am and arrived here at 12:45pm--it's amazing that you can cross the country in about the same amount of time (or less) that it takes to get to Vermont. Suzy and Jimmy have the same great house and we settled into "our" bedroom with great enthusiasm.
It's unusually wet here (seems like it's that way everywhere but Atlanta), so there are wildflowers even in August, which is very unusual. There is a lot of damage from last year's fires and there is also a beetle infestation that is killing large swathes of trees.
Took a short hike yesterday and Alan is off fishing this morning at Silver Creek. Unfortunately, we discovered on packing for this trip that a whole bunch of reels and rods had been stolen from our fishing bag on our trip back from Vermont -- likely in Burlington when we had the delay. Really a bummer as the equipment isn't replaceable.
Sunday, August 10, 2008
Tomatoes
Came home to our first crop of tomatoes. So, far five of the plants are producing -- three prolifically -- while two died or were pulled and two haven't fruited. One of the producers is wilting badly, however -- I may have to pull it, at least away from its neighbor which is the best producer.
Thursday, August 7, 2008
Day at Sea Ranch
After a great night's sleep, we got up this morning for coffee and email overlooking the ocean. A fawn and doe wandered by as our brains gradually accustomed themselves to the prospect of another day (luckily, Jenn wakes up as slow as I do). After a bit, we went down to Jenn's aunt and uncle's house for another cup of coffee and general catching up.
The day was misty, with fog covering the houses at Sea Ranch, when we set out on our coastal walk. We headed north past the seals, who were doing their usual reclining on the rocks (Jenn remarked that humans really hadn't figured out the best approach to life), and continued on for a good bit before turning around. Total walking time was about an hour and a half. Good thing Jenn's aunt gave us sunscreen as we both got sun, directly and through the clouds.
After our walk, we headed north to Mendocino -- a curvy drive along US 1. Jenn's been a trouper doing all the driving. I enjoyed the views and examining the towns passed along the way. It gets pretty remote up there and there was ample evidence of the recent fires, with signs thanking fire fighters along the road. Once in Mendocino, we got lunch at a nice restaurant (shrimp with artichokes and pasta for Jenn, fish tacos for me) and then walked around touring art galleries and shops. I got a scarf and a small something for Alan (not to be disclosed here!).
Stopping on our way back for basil and mozzarella to go with tomatoes from Jenn's aunt, I found my favorite chardonnay. Sorry, Alan, TSA won't let me bring any home!
flickr
On the road again....to California
For once, I was the one leaving Alan behind in Atlanta, heading off to California to visit my friend Jenn who had a week off from work and needed a playmate. We are currently up at Sea Ranch at Jenn's Mom's house, which is beautiful. It's a lovely area, right now under its customary morning fog. We hope to have a bit of a hike along the coast in a bit. For now, coffee beckons.
On our way up, we stopped in San Franciso to see the Chihuly exhibit at the de Young. It was a kind of retrospective of his work over the last 25 years. I particularly liked some pieces that were inspired by Indian baskets. Those didn't photograph that well, though.
Jenn's daughter is currently in Beijing playing with her high school band as part of the festivities. Sounds like the Chinese are being rather restrictive with their activities, including not allowing them any audiences for their performances at Tianamen Square and the Great Wall. Not surprisingly, when allowed out for the women's soccer match between China and Sweden, they rooted for Sweden. :-) Unfortunately, China won.
These are some shots from last night's sunset.
Saturday, August 2, 2008
Georgia on our mind
We are coming -- sadly -- to the end of our camp stay, but have enjoyed the time here and with family and friends. As Laura and her family took their leave Thursday morning, we prepared for the arrival of Thomas, as friend from Atlanta, who was enjoying a northern car journey. First time for Georgia plates at Camp! Thomas had the chance to enjoy a sampling of camp joys -- swimming, boating, kayaking, puzzling, and, of course, eating, particularly at Quimby's Friday night lobster cookout. Our tablemanaged to put away four lobsters, thank you very much, plus steak, amazing bean salad, and the usual wonderful clam chowder. Ah, and Thomas was introduced to the joys of Quimby's spice cake. After dinner, we sojourned down to Big Rock for an amazing sunset; it is so wet here that there was a small stream flowing beside the road to Big Rock. So, so wet. Hiking is just not fun or advisable given the damage to the trails.
Come morning, we all got up early and decided to head over to Coaticook for some coffee and a glimpse of the bridge across the gorge, the longest pedestrian suspension bridge in the world, according to the sign. It was a beautiful sunny morning and the farms in Quebec are just so gorgeous -- we enjoyed the drive.
Back at camp, Thomas took his leave and we headed over to Colebrook for lunch at Howard's (lamenting the loss of Bessie's Diner all the way). Afterwards, we wandered through Stewartstown Day and visited Hans at the arts fair. We hope to hook up with he and Inge in September when our visits will overlap.
The final highlight of the day was finishing the balloon puzzle that Beverly had started. She did the ballons...leaving us the green trees. Thanks, Bev. :-) It was truly one of the harder puzzles I have ever done.
Last night dinner was succulent -- Jacques' beer can chicken prepared by Alan. Yum!
Come morning, we all got up early and decided to head over to Coaticook for some coffee and a glimpse of the bridge across the gorge, the longest pedestrian suspension bridge in the world, according to the sign. It was a beautiful sunny morning and the farms in Quebec are just so gorgeous -- we enjoyed the drive.
Back at camp, Thomas took his leave and we headed over to Colebrook for lunch at Howard's (lamenting the loss of Bessie's Diner all the way). Afterwards, we wandered through Stewartstown Day and visited Hans at the arts fair. We hope to hook up with he and Inge in September when our visits will overlap.
The final highlight of the day was finishing the balloon puzzle that Beverly had started. She did the ballons...leaving us the green trees. Thanks, Bev. :-) It was truly one of the harder puzzles I have ever done.
Last night dinner was succulent -- Jacques' beer can chicken prepared by Alan. Yum!
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
Papelousu Luau
Since Mark, Laura, Spencer, and Andrew joined us on Monday, we've been having a lot of fun. The kids took to camp like a loon does to water and have been tearing up the place, making sand forts, swinging, and climbing. They liked the kayak rides but remain unconvinced about the wisdom of swimming in cold lake waters. To be fair, where they come from there are alligators in the lakes.
We threw out the minnow trap and caught a good 35 crayfish yesterday. Had fun making pools and dumping them in and then watching them escape. They can really get going once they're waterborne.
Last night, thanks to Jenn's largesse, we enjoyed a Papelousu luau complete with coconut drinks. The kids loved it and the parents liked it as well. As usual, the food was excellent -- pork tenderloins on the grill, green beans, corn, and fresh salad. For dessert, a wonderful berry crisp that Jenn had left for us. Ooh, it was yummy.
Monday, July 28, 2008
Starting the week in Vermont
We arrived late on Saturday night, chasing thunderstorms all the way from the Burlington airport. The roads were dark and populated with wispy fog. Very moosy night, tho all we saw were a hedgehog and some racoon kits.
Jacques and Jenn had a house full of people when we got here. They gradually disappeared over the course of the morning, as, sadly, did Jacques, Jenn, Adele and Bandit. :-( Alas, sadly Jacques' laptop did not depart and Alan spent a futile couple of hours chasing them south in an attempt to reunite. I spent the day at the beach, reading, swimming, and trying on our new kayaks.
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Leaving France
On Saturday we bid a sad farewell to Les Essarts and hit the road for one last day in France. After dropping Marianne and Nanny at the Rennes airport, we headed south and west towards the Foret de Paimpont, said to be the last stand of forest of a type that used to cover all of Brittany. It was also a place of Arthurian legend and said to be Merlin's home, as well as the site of his grave.
Maybe Vermont has spoiled us, because we were not impressed by the forest -- most of which appeared to be a managed logging site. Nor were we particularly impressed by Merlin's grave....I guess he was a druid, after all. We should have been expecting the minimalist approach.
In any event, after a brief walk we headed south to La Roche Bernard where we had a reservation at the Auberge Brettone. Beautiful room in a charming town.
Sunday we headed back to Rennes to drop off the car the the train station. After futile attempts to find gas, we did just that. Indeed, getting fuel was one of the harder ordeals in France. Our credit cards wouldn't work (maybe the machines were expecting two factor authentication?) and so you had to find a station with a human who could process cash. On a holiday weekend, that was easier said than done.
In any event, the train ride was much more relaxing than driving back into Paris and before long we were wheeling our luggage from the train right on into the Sheraton. Then, the next morning, we wheeled our luggage from the Sheraton right into the airport -- really convenient. Checked in early, cleared security quickly, shopped for some chocolate and then were relaxing in the Continental lounge. We should have known it was too good to be true. Not fifteen minutes in, uniformed guards came in an announced that we had to evacuate the lounge. Bewildered, we went back into the terminal to see all the shops closing up. Long story short, someone left a bag unattended, triggering the eventual evacuation of the entire terminal. We were herded into a room with about 1,000 of our closest friends to reclear security....via one machine. Took 3.5 hours. Ouch.
Thursday, July 10, 2008
Camels in Brittany
Yesterday dawned early. We were up at 6am (noon our time) and took an hour and a half exploratory walk about St. Briac before anyone, including most of the town, were up. We wandered through narrow streets and then to the golf course (where one gentleman, who looked to be playing a stealth round, looked at us with some consternation) and the beach before returning home. No one was up yet and we were cold, so got back under the duvet until breakfast.
Afterwards, Jacques, Alan, and I headed west along the Emerald Coast to St Jacut de la Mer, a promontory on the coast. It was windy! The sailboats and wind surfers were out in force, along with the sailing training school -- a string of four sailboats hooked up to a boat with a motor. Never seen that before, but Jean Briac says that's how he learned. Driving out, we were surprised to see camels and llamas grazing in the grass -- apparently, the circus was in town!
Driving along the coastal towns, it's clear it's not the season yet as many of the houses are still shuttered. We're told that in August the roads are just bumper to bumper. I can't imagine that as they're pretty bad now.
After lunch, Marianne, Alan and I headed down to Dinon so Marianne could make a return and we could visit the pretty medieval city. The navigator rudely fell asleep on the way down, leaving Alan and Marianne to fend for themselves. One wrong turn sent us south of the centre historique and we had to make our way back through traffic. Once we parked, we headed into the old city, Marianne to her shopping and Alan and I walked the steep hill down to the river. Good thing those cobblestones weren't wet.... We remarked that Dinon looked to be the kind of place we would enjoy staying a night, where we could wander the streets at night and enjoy a dinner overlooking the river.
Meeting up with Marianne, we enjoyed a Coke on a pleasant plaza, listening to a musician playing The Police (Roxanne) on a Celtic harp. That was a first, for sure. Apparently, there is a gathering of Celtic musicians happening in Dinon this week. On our way out, we stopped into the Basilique St Savuer, a very interesting church featuring Romanesque, Gothic, and Byzantine elements.
Dinner found us with friends Jean Briac and Amy at a local creperiere. Yum. I could get used to that. Our favorite was a ham, cheese, and tomato gallette. For dessert, Alan had the house "secret special" which he diagnosed as a creamsicle. So, here, revealed on the internet, is Hermine's secret desert crepe. :-)
More pix up on flickr.
Afterwards, Jacques, Alan, and I headed west along the Emerald Coast to St Jacut de la Mer, a promontory on the coast. It was windy! The sailboats and wind surfers were out in force, along with the sailing training school -- a string of four sailboats hooked up to a boat with a motor. Never seen that before, but Jean Briac says that's how he learned. Driving out, we were surprised to see camels and llamas grazing in the grass -- apparently, the circus was in town!
Driving along the coastal towns, it's clear it's not the season yet as many of the houses are still shuttered. We're told that in August the roads are just bumper to bumper. I can't imagine that as they're pretty bad now.
After lunch, Marianne, Alan and I headed down to Dinon so Marianne could make a return and we could visit the pretty medieval city. The navigator rudely fell asleep on the way down, leaving Alan and Marianne to fend for themselves. One wrong turn sent us south of the centre historique and we had to make our way back through traffic. Once we parked, we headed into the old city, Marianne to her shopping and Alan and I walked the steep hill down to the river. Good thing those cobblestones weren't wet.... We remarked that Dinon looked to be the kind of place we would enjoy staying a night, where we could wander the streets at night and enjoy a dinner overlooking the river.
Meeting up with Marianne, we enjoyed a Coke on a pleasant plaza, listening to a musician playing The Police (Roxanne) on a Celtic harp. That was a first, for sure. Apparently, there is a gathering of Celtic musicians happening in Dinon this week. On our way out, we stopped into the Basilique St Savuer, a very interesting church featuring Romanesque, Gothic, and Byzantine elements.
Dinner found us with friends Jean Briac and Amy at a local creperiere. Yum. I could get used to that. Our favorite was a ham, cheese, and tomato gallette. For dessert, Alan had the house "secret special" which he diagnosed as a creamsicle. So, here, revealed on the internet, is Hermine's secret desert crepe. :-)
More pix up on flickr.
Tuesday, July 8, 2008
St.Briac sur Mer
One sometimes wonders if the effort required to travel is amply rewarded by the pleasures of the destination. 18 hours into the 22 hour journey from Atlanta to St. Briac sur Mer, Brittany, the answer was looking shaky. Flight delays going out of Atlanta led to rushed terminal changes at Newark, which were nothing compared to complete disorientation upon arrival in Manchester, UK, followed by yet another flight delay. The arrival in Rennes marked a turning point, with no problems with the rental car, and a short hour's drive later, we were pulling up to Les Essarts in St. Briac sur Mer.
We were greeted by Sofie, the property's house dog. She had her suspicions about our character but let us enter, where we found everyone out to lunch at the Perette's. Unfazed, we toured the house and, plagued by fatigue, selected a bedroom on our own with a view overlooking the sea. After a brief rest, we started to feel the magic of this beautiful house and the lulling sound of the waves crashing outside our window called us to the water. Jacques promised that the water was cold but that you didn't notice once you were in, so we suited up and followed him along a wandering path overlooking the sea down to a beautiful horseshoe shaped beach.
The water was indeed brisk but nothing compared to Averill in the fall. Plus it was salt water and there were waves to play in and we were soon all soaked. The last of the travel fatigue slipped from our pores as we leaped and jumped in the sea.
Blogspot isn't uploading photos for some reason but you can find some on flickr.
We were greeted by Sofie, the property's house dog. She had her suspicions about our character but let us enter, where we found everyone out to lunch at the Perette's. Unfazed, we toured the house and, plagued by fatigue, selected a bedroom on our own with a view overlooking the sea. After a brief rest, we started to feel the magic of this beautiful house and the lulling sound of the waves crashing outside our window called us to the water. Jacques promised that the water was cold but that you didn't notice once you were in, so we suited up and followed him along a wandering path overlooking the sea down to a beautiful horseshoe shaped beach.
The water was indeed brisk but nothing compared to Averill in the fall. Plus it was salt water and there were waves to play in and we were soon all soaked. The last of the travel fatigue slipped from our pores as we leaped and jumped in the sea.
Blogspot isn't uploading photos for some reason but you can find some on flickr.
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
Tomato Update
Tomatoes are mostly growing wildly but so far only one actual fruit, although I may have found one tiny on this evening on one of the plants out front. It seems like the front yard two are a tad happier although some of the back yard ones (particularly the Bush Celebrity) are blossoming wildly. Just no fruit. Not sure what's up with that.
Monday, May 26, 2008
Tomatoes at 1245
This Memorial Day weekend, we focused on....tomatoes! And tomato containers. The original goal was to add two plants to our existing two (a Brandywine and a Cherokee Purple), which I planted about a month ago and which have gotten to be about 4' tall. Only one fruit so far, and they've been experiencing blossom drop, but I ordered some special blossom set spray from Burpee that everyone seemed to like, so here's hoping.
We started a Pike's where the plants were two for one -- which was a sign of the plant quality -- had to look hard to find good plants but ended up with a Celebrity, a Big Boy, a Better Boy and something else. Then went over to Hasting's, which is where we should have started. From there, we departed with a Mr. Stripey (Alan's choice), a Yellow Jubilee, a Yellow Pear, and a Grape Tomato. All went into various containers, including a reuse of one of our cat litter containers to attempt an upside down tomato plant, which were all the rage in the internet forums. That was yesterday's DIY adventure. Today's was to create a homemade self-watering container.
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