Mon 29 Dec 2008
Ups and Downs of the week.
   Getting sick over the holidays – I spent Christmas Day and the next day in the cardiac unit at UCONN medical center. We were visiting Sarah’s parents for the holidays and I had been feeling quite ill for a few days. On Christmas Day it was bad enough for me to have Sarah’s father take me to the ER. They thought my symptoms could be indicative of a heart problem, so they insisted I stay overnight and they ran a bunch of tests. Turns out it isn’t my heart, but the problem is still not completely gone. I’ll follow up with my regular doctor later this week. Â
 
 Great doctors – While I wasn’t happy about spending two days in the hospital, I was very glad to have the great docs at UCONN medical center working on me. They were very attentive and left no stone unturned in making sure I was not going to suffer a heart attack. Glad to know my heart is in such good shape. They could have given me a quick once-over and told me to take an antacid and sent me home, but they were very concerned and it showed. Much thanks to the doctors, nurses, and technicians at UCONN who gave up their Christmas to help folks like me.
 Thanks also to Sarah’s parents, who were understanding and supportive throughout the ordeal. The fact that I dampened their Christmas doesn’t faze them in the least. They’re good people. No surprise considering how special their daughter is.
  New England Patriots – Ok, so they’re out of the playoffs. They still played way above everyone’s expectations and only because of the division they’re in are they not playing into the post-season with an 11-5 record. Major kudos to Matt Cassel. He deserves a big, fat paycheck and a starting job next year.
December 29th, 2008 at 6:20 pm
I came to your blog from the Mt. Washington Observatory forum. The combination of cats, books, and old houses is certainly familiar to me, in my creaky cat- and book-occupied house in Gloucester, Mass. And being from that area, I totally agree with what you say about the Pats and Matt Cassel. I am looking at the header photograph on your home page. It’s bugging me that I can’t figure it out–sagebrush + rock strata in foreground seems to equal Utah, Wyoming, or Colorado. But that snowy peak just visible to the right has a vertical texture, not horizontal. Wind Rivers? I’m probably way off.
December 29th, 2008 at 10:03 pm
Hi Jenny,
Welcome to Randomography. You have good eyes. That scene is a highly cropped image of a photo taken between Durango, CO and Moab, UT on our way to Arches National Park. Not sure what the names of the mountains are, though. Here’s the uncropped image:
http://bimmermail.com/DSC00713.JPG
December 29th, 2008 at 11:04 pm
Those are the La Sal mountains! One of the best-kept secrets of eastern Utah. They’re in the 12,000-foot elevation range. Just looked at some of my pictures from a trip there 2 years ago. Vertical gullies, just like in your picture. I believe the high point in your picture is Mt. Peale. I think what I like about it is the way the snowy peak seems to belong to a different world.