Temporary solitude
Good morning, all. It's been a little strange here at the homeplace these last few days.
My wife is in Colorado, visiting our daughter and her family until she returns home tomorrow night. She left Thursday morning. And since then, it's been just me around the house.
And it's not just my wife who's gone. She helps our son and his wife out by keeping one or both of their kids some of the time, so there's often one or two grandchildren here, at least in the afternoons. So it's been REALLY quiet without chatter, laughter, and the sound of Disney Junior in the background wafting from the television.
I've managed to keep rather busy, having lunch with some friends whom I have not made enough time for in recent weeks, and taking on a few household projects. And, no, that last statement doesn't mean renovations of any kind, just some cleanup and such. Lawn work, sorting through some clothes for a potential charity donation, auto cleaning, that sort of thing.
But it will be great to have the Duchess (that's how one of my very best friends refers to my wife, and means it sincerely!) back in Kentucky. Oh, and she's bringing our older granddaughter back with her, so that means the pace will really pick up once they arrive!
On to other things.....
Have you been watching "Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey?" It's the successor (not really a sequel, remake or reboot) of the 1980 PBS series "Cosmos: A Personal Voyage." I was in college when the original series (it and the newer set were comprised of 13 installments) and remember it fondly, as much for the enthusiasm displayed by its creator, cowriter and presenter, scientist Carl Sagan. I cannot begin to do him justice in this space so if you're interested, visit Wikipedia or Google to learn more, see some film clips, etc.
I bring this up because last night was the series finale. I've been watching the entire series in a time-shifted way, as my wife wasn't really as interested as I was (understandable, I'm way geekier than she is!), but with an empty house, I watched the last episode live last night. And I found the program to be quite moving, as well as being just as informative as the previous 12 episodes. A couple of takeaways I should share: if you're looking up Dr. Sagan, make sure you include a search for "Pale Blue Dot," which appeared in last night's program. This bit of verbage will really make you think, as it did for me. Also, series host (and noted astrophysicist) Neil deGrasse Tyson tweeted something interesting last night during the program:
My wife is in Colorado, visiting our daughter and her family until she returns home tomorrow night. She left Thursday morning. And since then, it's been just me around the house.
And it's not just my wife who's gone. She helps our son and his wife out by keeping one or both of their kids some of the time, so there's often one or two grandchildren here, at least in the afternoons. So it's been REALLY quiet without chatter, laughter, and the sound of Disney Junior in the background wafting from the television.
I've managed to keep rather busy, having lunch with some friends whom I have not made enough time for in recent weeks, and taking on a few household projects. And, no, that last statement doesn't mean renovations of any kind, just some cleanup and such. Lawn work, sorting through some clothes for a potential charity donation, auto cleaning, that sort of thing.
But it will be great to have the Duchess (that's how one of my very best friends refers to my wife, and means it sincerely!) back in Kentucky. Oh, and she's bringing our older granddaughter back with her, so that means the pace will really pick up once they arrive!
On to other things.....
Have you been watching "Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey?" It's the successor (not really a sequel, remake or reboot) of the 1980 PBS series "Cosmos: A Personal Voyage." I was in college when the original series (it and the newer set were comprised of 13 installments) and remember it fondly, as much for the enthusiasm displayed by its creator, cowriter and presenter, scientist Carl Sagan. I cannot begin to do him justice in this space so if you're interested, visit Wikipedia or Google to learn more, see some film clips, etc.
I bring this up because last night was the series finale. I've been watching the entire series in a time-shifted way, as my wife wasn't really as interested as I was (understandable, I'm way geekier than she is!), but with an empty house, I watched the last episode live last night. And I found the program to be quite moving, as well as being just as informative as the previous 12 episodes. A couple of takeaways I should share: if you're looking up Dr. Sagan, make sure you include a search for "Pale Blue Dot," which appeared in last night's program. This bit of verbage will really make you think, as it did for me. Also, series host (and noted astrophysicist) Neil deGrasse Tyson tweeted something interesting last night during the program:
 | neiltyson #Cosmos was conceived not to tell you what is true, but to share how we have come to learn what is true. 6/8/14, 9:02 PM |
I like that.
I also watched a couple of movies over the weekend. One I had not seen was the recent "All is Lost," which featured Robert Redford in literally a solo performance, no other actors. Interesting concept, made believable by good acting. I didn't see "Nebraska" last year, but after seeing Redford's performance, I think the Oscar voters got it wrong by nominating another veteran actor, Bruce Dern, instead of Redford.
So that's what's new here at the old homestead. I just spoke with my wife and it seems the greater chore for the Colorado branch of the family will be to get our nearly-nine-year-old granddaughter packed for the trip to Kentucky!
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