June 30, 2008. Today Bill Gates retires from Microsoft. Today I retire from Master’s. He goes to improve the world. I go to improve myself. He goes to spend lots of money. I am going to spend lots of money. Microsoft will be different when he leaves. Master’s will be different when I return. When… Read More »
Today’s mail brought some copies of the new Bible Atlas & Companion. You can’t tell from this book cover image at Amazon, but my name is on the front cover (the authors’ names are printed in the blank space at the bottom left). I believe this is the first book that has my name on… Read More »
Doctoral programs usually do not have many exams. None of my classes, as far as I know, will have an exam of any kind. Two major writing projects, which will take about 2 years total, have no exam component apart from an oral defense of the dissertation. All the exams for the PhD program are… Read More »
If you’ve ever considered getting certified to scuba dive, take a look at Sam Neylan’s pros and cons. Now that I’m convinced, I live in the middle of a barren wasteland. (While you’re there, you might note that she has at least 7 links to me on her blog.) In the “I know that person”… Read More »
The summer solstice this year is on June 20, the earliest it has been since 1896 (but it made it to the 20th only by a minute). More fascinating facts, including what you would see at the Egyptian pyramids, at National Geographic. One of the most important reference works ever written, and one of the… Read More »
An update here is overdue, for which I apologize. Besides having other things to do, I tend to be a streaky guy, and when I’m in a groove for French, I do more French. When I’m out of the groove of blogging, it’s harder to start back. In addition, I wasn’t sure quite what to… Read More »
It’s Wed afternoon in Texas and Kelli is in the car on the way home from the hospital. She’ll have to take some shots for the blood clot condition, but she has been released. She also had an appointment with her ankle surgery doctor today and he gave a good report and put on a… Read More »
We do have a family update (by email) for things like this, but given the nature of the situation and my location on the other side of the world, I am posting an update here. A few days ago Kelli started feeling some pain in her chest and yesterday (Saturday) she was sent by the… Read More »
Your prayers for us are appreciated. The pain in Kelli’s ankle is starting to reduce and she is beginning to move around with a walker. It’s still obviously a long road, but progress is encouraging. Kelli’s mother is staying an extra week and my parents are driving out to be there when she leaves. I’ll… Read More »
From Arutz-7: The burning of hundreds of New Testaments by yeshiva students in Or Yehuda last week was regrettable and unplanned, the city’s deputy mayor, the man who spurred the students to act, told The Jerusalem Post on Tuesday. Deputy Mayor Uzi Aharon of Shas used the opportunity of speaking to the Post, which publishes… Read More »