Blue Friday

RALLY TIME: I'd known for a couple of days about a Seahawks rally set to take place at Westlake Center in downtown Seattle today. 

Naturally, I was interested, but we have a lot on our plates right now, and I thought maybe taking four hours out of our Friday to travel to and fro and enjoy the festivities might not be prudent. 

Yeah, well to heck with prudence. It's the Seahawks playing in the NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP. How often does THAT happen? Only twice in my lifetime. "I think we better do this," I reasoned. That, and we live IN Seattle. For most of my life that was not the case, and I'd only dream about being able to attend events like this. If we didn't go, shame on us, right?

I told the kids 'round 9 am we could go to the rally if they rallied and got stuff done this a.m. that we needed to. That was all they needed to hear. By 10 a.m., we'd knocked out a complicated genetics lecture, they'd tidied up 'round here, and and I'd baked 3 batches of cookies. Good enough, we were out the door.

We rode to the rally in style - via monorail!  We parked by the Queen Anne McMenamins, walked to Seattle Center, and made our way to the monorail.

I was surprised there weren't more rally bound passengers. A couple of businessmen on the dock ahead of us made sure CJ and Annabelle got on first and urged them to take the front row. How very kind.

They had a great view, and chatted with the driver.

After a quick, 2-minute ride, we stepped off the monorail at Westlake Center, right next to the plaza where the event was being held.  One of the first things we saw was this sweet car. I think it's so funny, the kids spontaneously posed like this in front of it.

It was about 11:45 as we made our way to the plaza, with the official program start set for noon. The place was already packed and I started sizing up a good spot for us.  I saw the climbing structure and told the kids we'd be headed for that. 

Above, you can see CJ in the white jersey, perched atop the climber. Meanwhile, I was busily scoping out a spot we'd actually be able to see the stage despite the thousands and thousands on hand. I zeroed in on a park bench adjacent to the press pool. That was as good as it got, I thought. I staked out our space.

It was a good call. We could see the stage just fine, not to mention the colorful crowd. 

There were people way up high, on the building adjacent to the plaza.

And there was a good crowd gathering across the way, on the Westlake Plaza balcony.

During the show, the jungle gym filled up with young Hawks. :)

It was fun looking 'round the crowd. Loved these signs about Marshawn Pinch from the Seattle Aquarium, a hermit crab with a Seahawks' shell. 

The crab even has his own Web cam here: http://www.seattleaquarium.org/MarshawnPinch-cam

We listened to the Blue Thunder (Seahawks drumline) and the SeaGals perform. There was also a contest between a young Seahawks fan and the lone Niners fan in attendance.

The Niners fan lost, big surprise. ;)

Steve Raible, the voice of the Seahawks, served as the master of ceremonies. He opened with the obligatory (and hopefully oft-heard, come Sunday), "TOUCHDOWN, SEAHAWKS!!!!"

Raible introduced and interviewed a number of Seahawks alumni. Here he is talking to Hillary Butler, who played for the Huskies AND the 'Hawks!

And how cool was it to see Norm Johnson, the Seahawks' you-can-count-on-me kicker from their early years. Below, Johnson poses for a selfie with Raible! Epic!

I learned today, Johnson partnered with Dick's Brewing Company to produce the tasty 12 Man Pale Ale. One of the business partners of 12 Brands, LLC, Johnson was smart enough to secure the trademark of the 12 Man Pale Ale a couple of years ago.

And how I loved seeing my favorite Seahawks of days gone by, Manu Tuiasosopo! The Tuiasospo family has become a NW sports dynasty!

We also got to hear from certain-to-be-first-ballot Hall-of-Famer Walter Jones!

The official program ran about a half hour. Right afterward, CJ and Annabelle were interviewed by KOMO TV. 

It was so funny, CJ screamed, "Let's go Hawks, let's DESTROY the 49niners!" into the mic. It was as guttural as I've ever heard him!  

The segment showed a lot of sights and sounds from the rally, but KOMO reporter declared her "personal favorite" Annabelle's wings. :)

I haven't been able to find a link to the video online, but we did happen to catch it on the 6 pm news and I grabbed Rick's phone off the desk and quickly filmed it. You can't hear the TV very well, you can mostly hear me screaming at CJ to come see himself on the TV and then CJ freaking out that he was on TV. ;)

I love hearing Annabelle's explanation regarding her wardrobe choice. It was in the "Duh, Ralph" vein.

The ride back to Seattle Center included a number of the same passengers as our trip to Westlake. 

We took advantage of a few photo opps at Seattle Center. For instance, we had to get a photo of the 12th Man flag top the Space Needle.

 The kids were hungry post-rally (all that cheering apparently works up an appetite). Rather than eat at the Center, we headed back to Magnolia. The kids had a fro-yo lunch at Menchie's. Annabelle left some artwork in our wake.

I simply HAD to take advantage of Starbucks' offer for 12 cent coffee for 12th Man fans. When I walked in, the young man working the counter asked if I wanted a Seahawks coffee. I couldn't help but wonder aloud what a Seahawk tasted like. "Salmon, perhaps?" I mused, figuring you are what you eat, and surely Seahawks eat salmon.

The coffee didn't taste like salmon, but it was delicious. Certainly the best 12 cent cup of coffee I've ever had.

Oh, and we worked on genetics and music today, too. It wasn't all about silly football, I swear.

Classy

                                        
BACK AT IT: We started our Thursday with another "Introduction to Genetics and Evolution" lecture. Today's topic: Generating a gene map using three or more genes. It had to do with things like parental phase and recombinant offspring. We learned to calculate map distances, and how to identify a "double crossover" offspring.
                                     
It actually made sense as we were listening to the lecture, and we were able to correctly complete some related homework, so that's good. Hopefully it sticks!

I was perusing the resources listed along with this week's lectures and came across a great collection of videos all about genetics and the principles of hereditary on a new-to-me site called Education Portal.

Turns out Education Portal is yet another avenue via which to take college level courses for free online. It was founded by a couple of Cal Poly State U. classmates, Adrian Ridner and Ben Wilson, two classmates at Cal Poly State University. They started by founding an online textbook exchange, and that grew into offering classes, as well. The courses are made up of 10-minute video lessons. Education Portal reports more than a million students have used their site.

We've got our hands full with Coursera and other classes right now, but we'll certainly be back to Education Portal in the future to learn more about what they have to offer.

USE THE FORCE: This afternoon on my Facebook feed, notices started popping up from various friends about which Star Wars character they are based on a (very scientific, I'm sure) personality quiz. Naturally, I had to give it a go. It's fast and fun - here's a link if you want to try it: http://www.zimbio.com/quiz/Ukldm8Pi5Ub/Star+Wars+Character

I was a little, um, disturbed by my test results. If they're right, I need to get fitted for a black helmet and cape. :o

In better news, the Seahawks player I'm most like is the strong, silent, devastatingly awesome Earl Thomas, per the Seattle Times' personality quiz "Which Seahawk are you?"

I can say I have officially taken more online personality quizzes today than I have taken in the past 12 months!

BLUE FRIDAY: If you live in Washington state, put on some Seahawks' colors and head to any participating Starbucks on Friday, where you can get a cup of coffee for just 12 cents, in honor of the 12th Man. 

More info here: http://www.starbucks.com/promo/blue-friday?utm_source=Facebook&utm_medium=Social&utm_campaign=Seahawks12

Go Hawks!

Words of Wisdom

                                        
                                                                             Lomabardi statue via: http://www.flickr.com/photos/katieharbath/
SAY WHAT?:  We're already planning for this weekend's Seahawks' party (because that's, like, a full time job right now - just kidding - kind of). We want to make something to represent the team the 'Hawks are playing against. For instance, last week we had jambalaya when they played the New Orleans Saints. This week, I am NOT making Rice-a-Roni when they play San Francisco (although that is, of course, the first thing that came to mind).

Gharadelli chocolate is from San Franscico, but I can't 'make' Gharadelli chocolate, that's what THEY do. The other night Kennedy informed me that fortune cookies originated in San Fran. Well how 'bout that?!

Though most all Americans' fortune cookie experience comes when getting a handful along with an order of Chinese food, I had heard that fortune cookies were not of Chinese origin. Apparently, the cookie's roots reach back to Japan, but Makoto Hagiwara of Golden Gate Park's Japanese Tea Garden in San Francisco is reportedly the first person in the USA to serve a modern version of the cookie, at his tea garden in the 1890s or early 1900s. Hagiwara's cookies were made by a San Francisco bakery, Benkyodo.

I have made fortune cookies a few times before, and have the scars to prove it. (Seriously, pardon the double negative,but there's just NO way NOT to get hurt making fortune cookies by hand.)

I thought it would be fun to make football fortune cookies, with inspirations sayings from coaches, etc., for the game. So first, we need the quotes. I asked the kids to hop online and find me some quotes. That turned out to be such educational endeavor - history, philosophy ... turns out there's lots to be learned by making fortune cookies. ;)

We talked about the late, great Vince Lombardi, of course. Lombardi was the granddaddy of great football quotes!

Other quotes about football came from everyone from John Madden to Dwight D. Eisenhower to Hunter S. Thompson, so we did some learnin' up on all sorts of individuals.  Amazing where a quest for 'inspirational football quotes' can take you!

Of course, it was also a fun exercise in understanding what, exactly, these quotes meant. For instance, I posed Notre Dame coach Lou Holtz's quote to them: "Don't tell me how rocky the sea is, just bring the ship in," and asked what they thought it meant.

Annabelle didn't hesitate in saying it means, "Don't tell me about how hard it is, just get the touchdown!"

BINGO!  Or, as our favorite Archie McPhee saying goes ...
                  
Another one of my favorite quotes today: “Once you learn to quit, it becomes a habit.”

Amen to that, Coach Lombardi.

When I worked for the state of Washington as a job counselor for the unemployed, I used to keep on of Lombardi's quotes prominently displayed in my cubicle for job seekers to see: "The harder we work, the luckier we get."

I believed that then, and I believe it now.

RIDDLE ME THIS: Questions. All day long, I field questions. I feel like my life is one big press conference. But my inquisitors aren't the press, they're CJ and Annabelle. And frankly, mostly CJ. He is a question posing machine. It starts before 7 a.m., and it doesn't stop until he's forced to go to bed, about 15 hours later.

One of these days I'm going to write down EVERY question he asks me, I think, just for 'fun.' Today my favorite was, "What is the proper action to take if your doctor diagnoses you with the bubonic plague?"

The funny thing is, he'll often be in the middle of doing something completely unrelated when he'll ask the question (for instance, today he was playing a cartoony, kid friendly video game when the bubonic plague came to mind).

It's entertaining. And exhausting, because I try to answer each and every question. ...

CLIMB ON BOARD: Come one, come all! Let's go to the asteroid Bennu together!

NASA and The Planetary Society are inviting people to submit their name for a round-trip ride to Bennu, a 1,760-foot wide asteroid.. If you're up to the mission, you're going to launch in 2016, hitch a ride to the asteroid, hang out there for 500 days, and return to Earth in 2023. Sounds like fun, right?

It's all part of the OSIRIS-REx mission.

Image Credit: 

NASA/Goddard/Chris Meaney

To get in on the fun, just go here: http://www.planetary.org/get-involved/messages/bennu/

Shots 'n' Stuff

 
BACK AT IT: First thing this morning we were back in the (virtual) classroom with professor Mohamed Noor of Duke University. Today's lecture was about recombination, or a new combination. For instance, a child that has a trait that's not something found in either the parental sperm or egg, but when they combine, the new combination forms.

Annabelle continues her notes-by-illustration approach to these college classes. Above, the age old nature vs. nurture issue is represented.

Below, Annabelle illustrates how tall and short parents might produce a medium height child.

And below, she ponders how, via genetics and evolution, there can be such a wide variety within the same type of organism. 

It's all very interesting.

SHOO FLU: Today the kids and I finally got around to getting our flu shots. We headed up to the Group Health at Northgate, hoping it was less busy and less germ-y than the much bigger and busier Capitol Hill location. 

We got signed in and waited our turn outside the injection room. When the nurse called us back, she asked if the receptionist had told us to go upstairs or to her. I told her I didn't even know there was an upstairs. The nurse said that's where they usually do the pediatric shots, but offered to help us out nonetheless. But there was one small problem - the clinic was out of the "mist" (nasal) version of the vaccinations. 

At that, CJ started shrinking back into the corner of the room and shaking his head and muttering, "No, NO, NOOOOOO!"

I assured him that it wasn't as bad as he was imagining, and tried to reassuring but firm. I reminded him he'd had dozens of immunizations when he was a tiny baby, and came out just fine. The nurse was good. Friendly, but no nonsense. She smartly chose to have CJ go first (so as not to give him extra time to fret about it).

He lived to tell about it, of course. Bee was up next, and took it in stride. I went last. Now, let's just hope these shots actually work. Lord knows last year's go round was a complete waste of time, as we had a horrific flu.

ON THIS DAY: CJ was poking around BrainPOP this morning, and I noticed on the Web site's front page was a film about Saturn. The Saturn video was a nod to the fact that on this day in 2005, the Huygens probe landed on Saturn's moon Titan. 

Named after Dutch astronomer Christiaan Huygens, who discovered Titan in 1655, the European Space Agency (ESA) probe was sent to perform an in-depth study of the clouds, atmosphere, and surface of Saturn's largest moon. The probe caught a (seven year!) flight to the ringed planet traveling on board the Cassini orbiter.

The 703-pound (319 kilogram) probe launched from Cassini on Christmas Day, 2004 and made its way to Titan. Before hitting ground, a NASA/JPL camera on the ESA craft snapped this photo from a height of about 10 miles. Scientists believe it shows deep channels leading toward a shoreline.
                                                       
Three sets of parachutes helped Huygens land softly (enough) on the surface of the moon. This ESA illustration shows what Huygens might have looked like right after landing. You can see its deflated parachute in the distance.

Here's what a NASA photo of the actual landing site looked like ...
                                                 
About the size of a car, the probe sent back images for more than 90 minutes before running out of battery power. At the landing site, there were chunks of water ice scattered over an orange surface, the majority of which is covered by a methane haze. The Cassini mission confirmed Titan has permanent liquid hydrocarbon lakes in its polar regions. 

WIRED: We finally got around to buying guitar cords, a microphone and mic cable, so the kids are now amplified. They're thinking of performing at an upcoming show-and-tell type evening at their Shoreline learning center, and you certainly don't want the first time your mic-ed to be in front of a crowd!

Party People

GO HAWKS: O what fun we had this weekend. Saturday brought a couple dozen friends, a ton o' food and good times for the Seahawks' playoff game.

For a 'warm up' we had Kennedy's jambalaya, and at half time it was pastrami from Katz's Delicatessen in NYC. We had it over-nighted and it was like a Big Meat Miracle when the amazing meat we so enjoyed on our trip to the Big Apple arrived here in Washington, the apple capital of the U.S.

Per instructions, we boiled the hunk whole for about three hours. Here's the 'before' shot ...

I swear to you, it was shivering (in an-tic-i-PA-tion) when we took it out of the boiling water. Or maybe that was ME shivering. In either case, we were all excited. :)

And this is why ...
            
The guests absolutely destroyed that pastrami. All that was left was little black crumbs, which was exactly how it should be. (They also destroyed the jambalaya and the pork taco bar, FYI.)

Oh, and the Seahawks won, which is really, REALLY good (from our perspective). That means another party. Woo hoo!! More meat and sugar photos to come!

GREEN GENES: Our first homework problem set for our "Introduction to Genetics and Evolution" class via Coursera was due in today. I was happy that we powered through the videos (despite starting the class a week plus late), and got the homework in on time.

We actually had great fun filling out Punnett squares for several of the problems. For instance, this one:

Imagine two genes have genotypes that affect the likelihood of developing brain cancer. These genes are inherited on different chromosomes. Both genes have recessive disease alleles:

Gene 1: genotypes BB, Bb are typically healthy but bb gets brain cancer
Gene 2: genotypes CC, Cc are typically healthy but cc gets brain cancer
Imagine further an interaction between these genes, such that, in addition to individuals having "bb" at gene 1 or "cc" at gene 2, people who are heterozygous at both genes also get brain cancer (ie, Bb Cc individuals also get brain cancer).
You are counseling a couple that is considering having children. You know the prospective mother has genotype BB Cc, and the prospective father has genotype Bb CC. What is the chance of their first child getting brain cancer? 

Figuring out that and other such problems is our idea of a fun Sunday night!

However, there was one BIG stupid BONER on my part. Last night, before the deadline, I was filing 'my' answers on 'my' problem set and then this a.m when I logged in to Coursera, I noticed that it said Welcome CJ! or some such thing. IMMEDIATELY I knew I had screwed up royally. Last week, CJ was updating his portfolio and realized he was missing a certificate of completion from Coursera for the last class we completed. He tried to print one out from his laptop, but it wouldn't work, so I told him to use my computer to log in and print one out. That worked swell, but little did I realize, that left the Coursera on my computer logged in as him. So when I submitted the problem set this week, I was actually submitting it under CJ's name. He submitted one too, as did Annabelle. They each got 100 percent, and I got a Big Fat Zero, because I didn't realize until after the test deadline I was under the wrong profile. LAME SAUCE and not a mistake I'll make again.

Naturally, this snafu made me review the grading policies. Good news is, the low problem set score for this class is thrown out. (That would be my Big Fat ZERO!) But we also learned today the midterm and final are each 40 percent of the course. Yowza. That's totally college course like. Hope we're up to snuff! But even if we miss the mark, this class is a wonderful learning opportunity. Here's a suggested viewing link shared in its resources list for this week ...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zwibgNGe4aY


CONNECTED: Over the weekend, the Cygnus capsule, by Orbital Sciences Corp. of Dulles, Va., made its way to the International Space Station. On board were a bunch of important science experiments and cargo to resupply the ISS. Also, long delayed Christmas/holiday presents were part of the cargo.

Image credit: NASA

 The capsule was set to launch earlier, but it got pushed back repeatedly, first due to the ammonia leak on station, then due to the frigid cold back south, and then due to solar flares. So, though the Christmas presents to the ISS were delayed, once the coast was clear, Cygnus did a great job of getting them there. Better than some postal carriers around the holidays here on Earth, one might say. (Renee in BC, Canada, reports to us today three parcels we mailed her way two weeks before Xmas just arrived there this week. Ridiculous! I could have walked them there in that time!)

'GLOBE' TROTTERS:  We like to take 'field trips' on Mondays, and while time and budget don't allow us to go too far afield to often, today we did whip out our passports. More, specifically, our McMenamins passports!

McMenamins is a regional chain of brewpubs in the Pac NW. Christian and I had our first date at one, and we love their beer and the cool aesthetic of each location. The McMenamins passports have prizes for completing mini circuits of locations and we completed the easy (for us) one today. Queen Anne is our closest locale, which is where we bought our passports. Today, we drove up to Mill Creek (about 20 minutes north on I5) to get that stamp.
              
We were there maybe 5 minutes when Christian tipped his beer over and it all wound up on poor Annabelle. :/  We had planned to go get our flu shots after that stop, but thought better of walking in to a medical facility with our kids reeking of beer (CPS anyone?!). So, we skipped the flu shots for today and just went straight to our final destination, McMenamins Six Arms, on Capitol Hill. (Because smelling like beer in a microbrewery is welcomed instead of frowned upon!)

There, we could collect our prize for finishing the Seattle circuit - a burger of our choice. We let the kids order whatever they wanted from the Big People's burger menu. They each (astutely) selected the "Wild Wil’s: Jumbo Deluxe Tillamook® cheddar, bacon & a fried egg."  I had the happy hour hummus plate. :)

Oh, yeah!

We were done with our dinner, and ready to leave when I somehow tipped my empty glass over and it shattered into a million pieces like a smash-and-grab Honda Civic window. Yowza. Hopefully McMenamins doesn't blacklist us before we finish all our passport stamps. :0