Eye Of The Tyger

Blogging From India...

My esteemed step-nephew and his family are currently living in, and blogging from India.  You just have to check this out at http://fullrickshaw.blogspot.com/.

Phillip and Lacy Langford are two young and wonderful idealists who have made the committment to live their beliefs.  Phillip, a promising young attorney, is working with an organization in India that represents unfortunate people in that country.  Lacey and their entire brood are there as well, and the blog offers an exciting view of their sojorn there. They have the prettiest kids I have ever seen.

Notable as one scrolls down is a wonderful photo of Auburn "munching on Tebow" as Auburn destroyed Florida.

Check out the blog.  It's refreshing...also note the time differential, and the temperature out in Bangladore.

A Pleasant Interlude

I had lunch yesterday with two esteemed colleagues, The "Simple Country Physicist" and another eruidite friend whose name I will withold for his privacy.

I was the only guy at the table who did not sport the title, "Doctor".

We met at a Huntsville restaurant called, "Luciano's" on Airport Road, an upscale Italian-ish restaurant.

The food and the company were superb.  We were joined by another gentleman (name also witheld) who was working in the same general area.

But enough about work.

The food was superb.  I have eaten serveral times at Luciano's, and have never been disappointed.  Yesterday, I had the Tomato-basil soup, plus the warm tomato-cheese salad with vinaigrette...or something like that, you get the idea.

It was wonderful renewing old acquaintances, and in making new ones.

Simple Country Physicist promised to send me the recipe for the soup...which he claimed to have.

We'll see.

Sunday in Prattville

The situation:  Two of our three grandchildren (Sarah, aged 9 and William, aged 7) were baptised today at the Prattville Baptist Church, and of course we wanted to attend the event.  Also in attendance was older sister, Rachel, aged 14.

It seems that one of William's buddies had told him about a baptismal scene on You Tube, wherein the kid to be baptised had 'done a cannonball' into the baptismal font.  William thought that was first rate.  Sarah was scandalized beyond comment (Do I really have to get my hair wet?) and Rachel was in an advanced state of the vapors (I'll just DIE if he does it!)

Other than a pregnant moment when the preacher motioned twice for William to come forward, it went exactly as foreseen...No cannonball. 

I confess to mild disappointment, since it would have been totally in character for William to "bust it".

A Perspective From Bee-Bo

As recent readers may recall, my eldest son Jim passed away this past Christmas day.  A word of explanation on the name Bee-Bo.  My youngest couldn't say "Jimbo" when she was learning to talk, so she renamed him "Bee-Bo".. and the name stuck.

A few months before Jim died (July 31), I got an email from him that encapsulates his outlook on things in a wonderful way.  I had been looking for the email for months to no avail.  My wife (who saves EVERYTHING) turned it up, so I'm sharing it today.

"...Yeah, this cancer thing definitely puts things in a different perspective.  My life has flashed before my eyes for about a year now, and it's been fun to reflect on things, both good and bad.  I've had plenty of time to ask forgiveness for the things I regret, and to revel in the things that have gone well.  Believe it or not, there is some benefit to knowing that you're gonna die in the next 2 to 3 years (although I tell (his wife) that it will be 10), some comfort in the relative certainty of the situation.  I mean, I'm not really "sick" in the sense of being on my deathbed in agonizing pain...I feel pretty damn good, especially with this new chemo.  MUCH better than the first chemo..way fewer side effects.  But the disease IS incurable, so my time will come, as will all of ours..I just have a better sense of timing than you do!

So who am I to complain?  My son is a Harvard grad and on his way to great things (so the (family) name will live on - in a big, important way...I'm SO proud of him).  Betsy will be fine financially if not emotionally.  I absolutely love my job - the best one I've ever had, with just enough challenge and a low enough stress level that I look forward to work each day and return home no closer to an ulcer.  It's hilarious, Dad...I'm the only toxicologist in the company, so as they say, I'm the proverbial one-eyed king in the land of the blind.  My boss loves me (I have a good 10 years more experience than she does) and I have the respect and friendship of everyone I work with.  I live in my dream house and have a new dog who worships my every move.  Who could ask for more?

On top of that, I have super-fast wireless internet!

I'm a fortunate man, indeed.  Thanks be to God.

Love, Bee-bo"

From The Abyss

I have been essentially offline for almost a month, in pretty much of blue funk.

On Christmas day 2006, my eldest son Jim, at age 50, slipped the surly bonds of this world, and passed to a much better place.  He joins his younger brother Paul, who left us on October 17, 1989 at age 29.

Both were victims of a form of cancer that attacks the lymphatic system (non-Hodgkins Lymphoma) in one case, and the production of red cells (multiple myeloma) in the other.

Both were good men, better than I in every respect...not a mean bone in their bodies.

I miss them terribly, but life does go on, fair or not.  I am convinced that as long as they are in our hearts and our prayers, they are always here.

When I first learned of Jim's illness, I blurted out, "But it's not FAIR"...My wife, smiled through tears and said, "What would your children say to you?"

From the time when they could talk, and would complain about something being "unfair", I would tell them, "Look in your bellybutton, and tell me if you see a tattoo that says, 'life will always be fair'"

R.I.P., Bee-Bo

Died Dec. 25, 2006
James D. Jernigan, Ph.D., 50, of Wichita, Kan., formerly of Huntsville,passed away Christmas morning at his home.He was an INVISTA Product Safety Manager.

He is survived by his wife, Betsy; son, John; mother, Mary Evelyn Jernigan of Madison; father, James John Jernigan of Greenville; and sister, Karen Jernigan of Madison. He was preceded in death by his brother, Paul Jernigan. He received his undergraduate and doctoral degrees from Vanderbilt University and served as a captain in the U.S. Army Chemical Corps. He lived 17 years in Chesterton, Ind.

Funeral services will be at 11 a.m. Friday at the Church of the Nativity Bibb Chapel with Father Steve Mosher officiating. Burial will be in Maple Hill Cemetery. Laughlin Service Funeral Home is assisting the family.

Memorial donations may be made to Victory in the Valley, 3755 E. Douglas, Wichita, KS 67218 or the International Myeloma Foundation, 12650 Riverside Drive, Suite 206, North Hollywood, CA 91607.

Angeliki Cutchis

While reading The Anchoress' blog, I was reminded of a female analyst in the U.S. Department of Defense, Plans and Analysis who became my friend, and who were among those most responsible for the moderate success I had in my governmental career.

Mrs. Angeliki Cutchis ("Angie" to her friends) came to DoD from John Hopkins University, Applied Physics Laboratory.  She became known variously as "The Guidance Guru" or "Madame DeFarge", based on her ability to rapidly remove the heads of presenters who tried (heavens forbid) to "snow" her, or to mis-state facts.

Angie was, among other things, a retro-Greek.  Married to another physicist named Pythagorus, her children were named Electra and (another classical Greek name that eludes me at the moment)

Angie succumbed to ovarian cancer a number of years ago, but she is still remembered by many, including me for her many contributions to the defense of this nation.

Dothan Swim Meet

The cutie on the right is my wife, Nell.  The cutie on the left is our grand daughter, Rachel

Out Of Town

We're out of town for a few days, so this is posted from Lakeland, Florida, using my brother in law's computer.

I should be back in Greenville on Sunday, when normal posting will resume.

Welcome To The Simple Country Physicist

Those of you who have read the comments from Simple Country Physicist will enjoy his new blog located at http://smpctryphys.wordpress.com/.

I urge each of you to go over there, and bookmark his site.

SCP is one of a kind, and a truly gentle (and brilliant) soul.