What's in Dave's Head

Donna and I attended a great concert yesterday by the Baltimore Choral Arts Society, of which our daughter Kate is a member.   (I must be getting old—over the years I have acquired an appreciation for things I never thought I would, like choral music and opera.   I still don’t have a taste for country music or rap but I do try now and then.) The concert was a collection of poems—from biblical psalms to Shakespeare to 20 th century poetry—that have been set to music by renowned composers, including Samuel Barber, John Rutter, Arvo Part, Morten Lauridsen, Franz Biebl and others.   (Other than Rutter and Biebl, these names are foreign to me; my wife and daughter are the music aficionados of the family).   Most of the works were performed twice, each time in a different arrangement by a different composer. Tom Hall, the music director of Choral Arts, introduced each poem with interesting information about the genesis of the poem as well as background ...

They seem so cute, with their little hands and bushy tails and doey eyes.  But squirrels are the enemy and on them I have declared war for the high crime of denying unalienable rights to the birds of the Douglass backyard. Exhibit A: Destroyed bird nest.  Contents presumed eaten. They have ravaged a bird nest (Exhibit A above).  They have commandeered a hummingbird feeder (Exhibit B below).  They have ransacked a cardinal feeder.  They have run amok and their defense: their cuteness. Exhibit B: Emptying the hummingbird feeder. Well, it won't work here.  Cute or not, they will be contained.  Effective immediately, it's no more Mr. Nice-Guy.  To quote Winston Churchill, "whatever the cost may be, we shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender."

Things have been pretty eventful since our idyllic weekend on the Eastern Shore in mid-November.  Donna's dad has been having some health issues and her mom fell and broke her knee cap.  My dad fell the week before Thanksgiving and is still recuperating from a broken vertebra just above his tailbone and a number of complications.  It's true what they say about getting old--it's not for sissies. I started to write that the declining health of our parents has tempered our excitement this holiday season.  And while on one level that is true, I think it has also intensified the already strong bonds we as a family share.  Our parents' injuries and illnesses--and the unspeakable recent violence visited on innocent children and their teachers in Connecticut--are powerful reminders of the importance of cherishing family, and expressing our love for one another, at every opportunity. To you, we wish you a Christmas season filled with love, peace and joy that lasts th...

Donna and I got back yesterday from a wonderful weekend on Maryland's Eastern Shore. About a month ago I had mentioned to Donna that there was a Master's swim meet at Washington College in Chestertown on Sunday, Nov. 11 and I was considering competing in it.  Chestertown has some pull on me.  It is where I went to college, and where I grew up in many ways.  Back in high school I was not somebody I am proud of today.  So my time at Washington College, and on the Eastern Shore, represents a turning point for me, as I suppose the college years are for many people. You have to understand something about the Eastern Shore.  It's like stepping into a time warp.  The pace is slow.  It is very relaxed.  The towns are small and old, and in between the towns are farms.   There is not much traffic.  It is called the Land of Pleasant Living, and for many people it truly is.  For me, it was a giant change from where I was rais...

Frankenstorm--the superstorm created by the collision of Hurricane Sandy and a giant Nor'easter--pounded the Mid-Atlantic yesterday and early today. It was massive, stretching an incredible 1,000 miles, and fierce.  Its power resulted from record-setting low pressure. Thanks to weather-system computer models, round-the-clock news and the Internet, we were given lots of advance notice.  Landfall of the relatively small but strong hurricane had been predicted for somewhere between Ocean City, Maryland and New York.  Forecasters said the storm would settle in and churn for days, and electricity was expected to be out for days for millions of people along the East Coast. Donna and I spent Saturday preparing.  I had gone out Thursday evening to try to buy a generator but they had been snapped up.  Early Saturday morning I went to the local Lowe's and scored.  They had received a shipment of 200 and forklift operators were unloading palettes of the...

Just a quick note to catch up after a busy bachelor week.  Donna went to Long Beach Island to be with Sue and her parents, leaving me to my own devices.  Monday : I played tennis with my friends Ron and Rand, then spent my one night home quietly. Tuesday : Went to an Orioles-Red Sox game with Kate, Eileen and Andrew.  It's so fun to go to a game at Camden Yards in August that matters.  And we got to watch the Os thump Boston 7-1 (sorry Anders). Wednesday : Drove up to LBI after work to surprise Donna for a quick overnight visit (I certainly surprised her!).  Left Thursday morning at 5:30 and got stuck in a terrible backup.  I-95 southbound was shut down for a fatal truck accident in Delaware and I didn't get to the office until 11:00am. Thursday : Kate and I went to Harris Crab House on Kent Island and had a great time.  Excellent crabs, beautiful bay view from the deck, spectacular sunset.  Kate crushed two Bud Light Limes ...

Donna and I arrived at BWI around 11:30 Wednesday night.  We are so appreciativee of Kate, who took care of the house and plants for us while we were gone and tended to a water leak we discovered the day before we left.  She also took us to the airport Thursday at 5:15am and picked us up at midnight last night.  Kate--you will be richly rewarded... in Heaven! Here are more pictures from our trip to San Francisco and Napa...