Week at Grandma's

I am spending the week down in Westlake Village with Mama, GrannyM, and Pop-pop Bob. It is nice that Mama's work is portable and she's able to telecommute through the magic of the internet to do her job wherever she happens to be.

Unfortunately Papa's job is less mobile; he's a scientist and thus has to go to a laboratory with fancy equipment to do his job. That, and he was recently let go from the company he's been with for almost nine years. Certainly longer than I've been around. Theravance, nee Advanced Medicine, has had to make some hard decisions, ultimately leading to the termination of 115 jobs which represents 40% of the workforce. Papa included. 115 families are being disrupted.

Papa isn't too sad about it, he sees it as an opportunity to refocus and assess priorities. Despite being quite specialized, there appears to be suitable positions available in the San Francisco Bay Area. Who knows, it may also be an opportunity to move away from the absurdity of Bay Area housing prices. So, if anyone comes across an ion channel drug discovery position, please let Papa know.

I wouldn't want Papa to wind up like me in the photo, laying around on the couch and watching too much TV. Though for the moment, it's not a bad place to be.

Eye see you

Sometimes it is good to take a little time to stop and think about what's important. Trains are important, bagels are important, peanut butter toast for breakfast is important. But beyond that Mommy and Daddy are really important.

They've been here from the very beginning, providing basic necessities. Things like milk, diapers, and a sleep schedule are standard baby raising. Now that I am a small boy, I am relying on some additional duties; they read to me, play with me, let me explore, and discipline me when I am naughty. They are being parents - good loving ones. Little do they know I am witness to their every move, I am learning and becoming my own person. Scary when you think about it, but I am a reflection of who they are. They make me want to be good.

Trains are my true love

You could just see it in my eyes. Last week's post about flying the 747 was well and good, but there was no excitement in it. No passion. That's just not right. Trains are where I'm ensconced. I had neglected to tell everyone the real reason I was at the aviation museum was because there was a European Train Enthusiast show going on in the lobby. It was actually a bunch of old crabby guys with a zeal for model trains and their miniature environment. We hardly spent any time looking at the aircraft, I only sat in the cockpit to appease Papa.

I think about trains first thing in the morning and go to bed with dreams of them in my head. Can you see the difference in my mood in this week's photograph? I can hardly contain my jubilation at the heavy diesel arriving at Mountain View station. No faking here, it's so real you can taste it.