Hi all. Today's post is going to be a short one. Or has arrived last night, after some trouble with the flight from Israel, but she made it at last.
It was extremely cold this weekend (got down to -18 degrees this morning) and I hardly gave her time to rest. Today, despite the cold, we went to town to get her a coat, boots, ear-warmers, and some more 'heat keeping' cloths. She was pretty overwhelmed with the cold weather, but I'm sure she'll get used to it in no time.
We have just returned from a friend's house, and again walked outside with the temperature feeling lower than -10 degrees.
Except for that, it was a nice week. Work kept progressing at a slow, yet agreeable, rate. I have the next few days off, and I will have to work harder now if I want to achieve the same rate of progress and still have time to spend with Or.
Well - As I said, only a short update today. Next week I'll let you all know how Or is getting settled in. That's all for now.
Sunday, January 10, 2010
Sunday, January 3, 2010
Another year - another post
The new year has arrived, and in Boston there is a tradition of "First Night" events that take place during the last day of the year. This year was no different, even though it snowed on the morning of December 31st, many events took place around the city. Concerts and shows were everywhere. I did not go to these morning and afternoon events because I helped a friend move (from the forth floor to the first floor of a house with no elevator, this because he and his wife just had a baby). Yes, it was quite a sight - four Israeli doctors of chemistry working as movers, carrying stuff down the stairs. It was pretty tiring but we moved his whole apartment in an hour and a half.
I went to the Boston Commons park in the evening to watch the Parade, the fireworks and the ice sculptures that the TV news kept telling about. When I arrived to the park I found out that there where only three ice sculptures and that I have seen all of them on TV. I really expected to see more sculptures than what the TV presented, alas, there where none (you can see one of the sculptures of Da Vinci creating the Statue of David in the picture).
The Parade was nice, and long, trying to imitate a Brazilian carnival but with American patriotism. Among the floats of dancers, bands and puppets, the Boston police, the fire department and other emergency services also presented and got a big round of applause from all the proud Americans who seem to really love their emergency services guys. (I wonder if that would have worked in Israel, since we don't seem to like or appreciate our police officers and fire fighters). But the Americans have a soft spot in their heart for those guys.
At the end of the precession joined a protest against Israel and for the Palestinians in Gaza. This was not planned by the organizers of the parade, but a very large group of Palestinians and Americans carrying the Palestinian flags and signs calling to Free Gaza just joined the parade and, thus, were given a very large exposure. I guess that is one of the reasons that Israel is not very popular. Our foes know how to expose their views and ideas, while you do not really hear the Israeli side of the story. (But that really carried me off the new year's story, so back to it...)
Later came the fireworks, which were pretty standard, and they even had some problems of fireworks that went off too early and fell to the ground while still burning. But the area of the mortars was cleared from the audience and no one got hurt. You can see one of the successful pictures I took (there weren't many).
I thought of staying in the city until midnight for the second fireworks in the harbor and I took a stroll to the harbor (which is much further than it appears to be on the map). When we got there it was way too early and there was nothing to do but wait. I did not survive the wait and at 11pm I decided I have waited enough and went home to see the fireworks on the TV. It was very similar to the ones I've seen in the park and I was happy that I did not wait in the harbor.
That's it. That was my new year's eve. It started snowing again on Saturday and it snowed until this evening (Sunday). I still decided not to sit at home for such a long weekend and I went to work on Saturday, which was a great idea since MIT was empty and quiet, and the city was also pretty abandoned due to the snow, so I had a relaxing walk to the train (the T) in the evening after work with white all around and silence in the air.
For those of you who wonder how MIT looks like - here is a night picture of the main building.
I'll try to take a picture tomorrow with the grass all covered with snow, but I can't promise.
Any way - I wish all of you a happy new year, may all your wishes come true. Bye, until next week.
I went to the Boston Commons park in the evening to watch the Parade, the fireworks and the ice sculptures that the TV news kept telling about. When I arrived to the park I found out that there where only three ice sculptures and that I have seen all of them on TV. I really expected to see more sculptures than what the TV presented, alas, there where none (you can see one of the sculptures of Da Vinci creating the Statue of David in the picture).
The Parade was nice, and long, trying to imitate a Brazilian carnival but with American patriotism. Among the floats of dancers, bands and puppets, the Boston police, the fire department and other emergency services also presented and got a big round of applause from all the proud Americans who seem to really love their emergency services guys. (I wonder if that would have worked in Israel, since we don't seem to like or appreciate our police officers and fire fighters). But the Americans have a soft spot in their heart for those guys.
At the end of the precession joined a protest against Israel and for the Palestinians in Gaza. This was not planned by the organizers of the parade, but a very large group of Palestinians and Americans carrying the Palestinian flags and signs calling to Free Gaza just joined the parade and, thus, were given a very large exposure. I guess that is one of the reasons that Israel is not very popular. Our foes know how to expose their views and ideas, while you do not really hear the Israeli side of the story. (But that really carried me off the new year's story, so back to it...)
Later came the fireworks, which were pretty standard, and they even had some problems of fireworks that went off too early and fell to the ground while still burning. But the area of the mortars was cleared from the audience and no one got hurt. You can see one of the successful pictures I took (there weren't many).
I thought of staying in the city until midnight for the second fireworks in the harbor and I took a stroll to the harbor (which is much further than it appears to be on the map). When we got there it was way too early and there was nothing to do but wait. I did not survive the wait and at 11pm I decided I have waited enough and went home to see the fireworks on the TV. It was very similar to the ones I've seen in the park and I was happy that I did not wait in the harbor.
That's it. That was my new year's eve. It started snowing again on Saturday and it snowed until this evening (Sunday). I still decided not to sit at home for such a long weekend and I went to work on Saturday, which was a great idea since MIT was empty and quiet, and the city was also pretty abandoned due to the snow, so I had a relaxing walk to the train (the T) in the evening after work with white all around and silence in the air.
For those of you who wonder how MIT looks like - here is a night picture of the main building.
I'll try to take a picture tomorrow with the grass all covered with snow, but I can't promise.
Any way - I wish all of you a happy new year, may all your wishes come true. Bye, until next week.
Sunday, December 27, 2009
Christmas is over - at last!
Christmas is finally over, and the city is going back to normal. In Starbucks near my house they finally stopped playing non-stop Christmas music and went back to quiet jazz in the background. The T is running more frequently again (and not one train every 30 minutes). The traffic returned to the streets and people can be seen again.
I have spent my Christmas eve in an Italian restaurant in North End part of Boston. Quite expensive, and not the best food, but I had to get out of the house and see some humans around me.
The weather has also smiled at me and it got up to 10 degrees today with sunshine at parts of the day. The best part is that the snow finally disappeared and the streets are clean enough for walking easily.
I got my house fully accessorized this week, when two friends left Boston and gave me a full kitchen (pans, pots, utensils, plates and appliances) and some other stuff like a DVD, a dining table and chairs, a fan, a humidifier and more. It's unbelievable how a pickup truck full of boxes can really upgrade your living experience.
Work was a little slow this week, but it is understandable, since MIT was practically empty this week. One more week of slow working is coming up ahead with new year's coming up.
Hopefully, this Tuesday I have an overnight measurement that should move me on to the next step in my research. I hope that it will go out well, even though first experiments rarely succeed as anticipated.
That's it. Only 12 more days (and counting).
I have spent my Christmas eve in an Italian restaurant in North End part of Boston. Quite expensive, and not the best food, but I had to get out of the house and see some humans around me.
The weather has also smiled at me and it got up to 10 degrees today with sunshine at parts of the day. The best part is that the snow finally disappeared and the streets are clean enough for walking easily.
I got my house fully accessorized this week, when two friends left Boston and gave me a full kitchen (pans, pots, utensils, plates and appliances) and some other stuff like a DVD, a dining table and chairs, a fan, a humidifier and more. It's unbelievable how a pickup truck full of boxes can really upgrade your living experience.
Work was a little slow this week, but it is understandable, since MIT was practically empty this week. One more week of slow working is coming up ahead with new year's coming up.
Hopefully, this Tuesday I have an overnight measurement that should move me on to the next step in my research. I hope that it will go out well, even though first experiments rarely succeed as anticipated.
That's it. Only 12 more days (and counting).
Sunday, December 20, 2009
The Blizzard of 2009
Just like in the movies, Christmas is near and it's all white outside. It started snowing yesterday night and it snowed until 16:00 today, the thin powdery snow piled up to knee high in some areas. And I waited until 15:00, and when I walked up every wall in the house I went for a walk in the snow. It was really quite beautiful (See pictures). 
The roads were open all through the snow, and most of the sidewalks were also kept clean. The only sense of urgency came from the TV that kept reporting on the 'Blizzard of 2009' and 'the Storm of the decade'. Apparently TV all over the world likes to exaggerate to keep the viewers watching. I found out that my new boots were watertight and that my new The North Face coat (like every American around) is really warm and perfect for the cold and wet weather.
As for me, I've been working in the lab everyday now, I have started training on different instruments around MIT and I have been ordering a lot of chemicals and labware. I finally feel like I'm doing something and starting to gain the recognition of my peers when they come to me and discuss different scientific issues with me. I am slowly settling into a position that's good for me and makes me feel good and comfortable.
This holiday season is felt well around MIT and the Boston area. The department of Chemistry had a Christmas party with food, drinks and Karaoke, almost all the professors went up to sing and there was a nice atmosphere all around. Most of my lab mates left, this weekend, to be with their families during the holidays and all the undergraduate students have their semester break, so MIT is very quite (which is calming). The Israelis are pretty socially active, and I find myself going out almost every night, sometimes to bars and sometimes to other people's homes. So it is not lonely at all.
Less than 3 weeks before Or will join me, I'm already waiting impatiently, planning every move like going to the airport, taking her to know the city and to get her winter cloths. Everything is planned and the clock is ticking away.
The roads were open all through the snow, and most of the sidewalks were also kept clean. The only sense of urgency came from the TV that kept reporting on the 'Blizzard of 2009' and 'the Storm of the decade'. Apparently TV all over the world likes to exaggerate to keep the viewers watching. I found out that my new boots were watertight and that my new The North Face coat (like every American around) is really warm and perfect for the cold and wet weather.
As for me, I've been working in the lab everyday now, I have started training on different instruments around MIT and I have been ordering a lot of chemicals and labware. I finally feel like I'm doing something and starting to gain the recognition of my peers when they come to me and discuss different scientific issues with me. I am slowly settling into a position that's good for me and makes me feel good and comfortable.
This holiday season is felt well around MIT and the Boston area. The department of Chemistry had a Christmas party with food, drinks and Karaoke, almost all the professors went up to sing and there was a nice atmosphere all around. Most of my lab mates left, this weekend, to be with their families during the holidays and all the undergraduate students have their semester break, so MIT is very quite (which is calming). The Israelis are pretty socially active, and I find myself going out almost every night, sometimes to bars and sometimes to other people's homes. So it is not lonely at all.
Less than 3 weeks before Or will join me, I'm already waiting impatiently, planning every move like going to the airport, taking her to know the city and to get her winter cloths. Everything is planned and the clock is ticking away.
Sunday, December 13, 2009
Christmas all around
So this week started with a promise of rain and very low temperatures, and at least the later was true. It snowed at the beginning of the week (the picture is of the view from my window at home)
. After the snow the temperatures fell below freezing, this left ice puddles on the roads and sidewalks. At least the ground is frozen and we don't need to worry about mud.
The real problem around here is not the low temperatures, even down to -5 degrees is still manageable, the real problem is the winds. The wind chill factor here is very important, this means that the temperatures you fill can be a lot lower than the measured temperatures. This week, with the wind chill factor considered we have reached around -13 degrees during the mornings. And I must say that in that temperature your nose, ears and chin really ache. But, due to this weather, I went and bought a new winter coat, one that can keep me truly warm.
So Christmas is coming soon and trees and homes are decorated with lights, in all the stores they play annoying repetitive holiday music in the background, the TV shows only Christmas movies and people spend endless hours shopping before the holidays.
Yesterday (Saturday) noon, as I was walking the freezing streets of Boston I saw police cars and a large crowd of people. As I got closer I saw what was making all the commotion was about - around a 100 people, men and women, young and old, thin and fat were running in the street, wearing nothing but a Christmas hat and underwear/bathing suit (See photos)
. I don't understand what they were thinking with the temperatures around -2 and the wind blowing hard. Only when I got home and watched the new I found out that it was the Speedo Run in which each person has to donate no less than $250 to run in a speedo down the wintery streets of Boston.
Some Israelis also met for the first candle of Hanuka, which was really nice. Around where I live you can see many Menora's in the windows, and also lights in the shape of dradles, candles and more. It seems that the Jews here really want to resemble the christians and have lights and decorations so they found a way to decorate for Hanuka.
So that's it. Next week we have the department's Christmas party and I'll update you after watching respectable scientists turn into drunks.
. After the snow the temperatures fell below freezing, this left ice puddles on the roads and sidewalks. At least the ground is frozen and we don't need to worry about mud.The real problem around here is not the low temperatures, even down to -5 degrees is still manageable, the real problem is the winds. The wind chill factor here is very important, this means that the temperatures you fill can be a lot lower than the measured temperatures. This week, with the wind chill factor considered we have reached around -13 degrees during the mornings. And I must say that in that temperature your nose, ears and chin really ache. But, due to this weather, I went and bought a new winter coat, one that can keep me truly warm.
So Christmas is coming soon and trees and homes are decorated with lights, in all the stores they play annoying repetitive holiday music in the background, the TV shows only Christmas movies and people spend endless hours shopping before the holidays.
Yesterday (Saturday) noon, as I was walking the freezing streets of Boston I saw police cars and a large crowd of people. As I got closer I saw what was making all the commotion was about - around a 100 people, men and women, young and old, thin and fat were running in the street, wearing nothing but a Christmas hat and underwear/bathing suit (See photos)
. I don't understand what they were thinking with the temperatures around -2 and the wind blowing hard. Only when I got home and watched the new I found out that it was the Speedo Run in which each person has to donate no less than $250 to run in a speedo down the wintery streets of Boston.Some Israelis also met for the first candle of Hanuka, which was really nice. Around where I live you can see many Menora's in the windows, and also lights in the shape of dradles, candles and more. It seems that the Jews here really want to resemble the christians and have lights and decorations so they found a way to decorate for Hanuka.
So that's it. Next week we have the department's Christmas party and I'll update you after watching respectable scientists turn into drunks.
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
Sardines in a box
Just a short thought - did you ever try to imagine how sardines feel like in a closed box? Well, all you need to do is ride the Green T Line on rush hour. People stand packed like sardines and all are quiet like fish (no one complains or confronts anyone for standing too close). Amazing.
Sunday, December 6, 2009
A winter wonderland
So winter is here at last. After a very warm Wednesday, with temperatures at the 20's, Saturday was cold... really cold. It even snowed. So after watching the snow pile in the streets I woke up to a beautiful and white (yet cold) Sunday morning. But the real problem is that at night the temperature are well below freezing, son the snow melts and re-freezes as ice on the side walks. And even worst - on the trees. It's not really nice to have a piece of ice fall from a tree onto your head!!
Here's a thing that came to me - if you live in a place that is as cold as your fridge, that's a cold place. But when you live in a place that's even colder than your icebox - life's is though!
As for my week. It was a good week for my science. I finally returned to the lab and started my new research. It was fun. And also my last article from my PhD was accepted for publication. So, yes, a pretty good week. And as always extremely busy. I don't really know where most of the hours of the day go to, but it seems to me that 24 hours a day is really not enough. I leave home early in the morning and arrive back late at night, and when I finally sit in front of the TV and check the time I find out that it is almost time to bed. That's crazy.
We had another group party this week. This time it was the boss' Christmas party. It was really nice, and I am really enjoying the people I work with. There was good food, good people and great fun.
So that's it. Only a month until my beloved Or (and CJ) joins me. I can't wait.
See you on the next post.
Here's a thing that came to me - if you live in a place that is as cold as your fridge, that's a cold place. But when you live in a place that's even colder than your icebox - life's is though!
As for my week. It was a good week for my science. I finally returned to the lab and started my new research. It was fun. And also my last article from my PhD was accepted for publication. So, yes, a pretty good week. And as always extremely busy. I don't really know where most of the hours of the day go to, but it seems to me that 24 hours a day is really not enough. I leave home early in the morning and arrive back late at night, and when I finally sit in front of the TV and check the time I find out that it is almost time to bed. That's crazy.
We had another group party this week. This time it was the boss' Christmas party. It was really nice, and I am really enjoying the people I work with. There was good food, good people and great fun.
So that's it. Only a month until my beloved Or (and CJ) joins me. I can't wait.
See you on the next post.
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