Dog Mountain 2019

As of last year Dog Mountain (899 m) requires parking permits during the main season, which are very limited and tend to sell out quickly. Today is the last day for spring 2019 where no permit is required. So we got up early - 5:30 AM for me, Michaela got up way earlier, as usual - and drove to Washington. With beautiful weather this promised to be a great hike. 

8:20 AM: at the trail head - giddy with excitement

On the way up we encountered a few corners where the snow hadn't completely melted yet:

The view from the top: as good as one can hope for! 

And after a total of about 3 hours we were back to where we started - good times...sort of.

(Edit by Michaela: No really, it was a great hike! Both Jan and I felt that it was easier than last year. Pepper... not so much. Slowly up hill and with a noticeable waddle downhill. Our pooch is getting older! But, after a long nappy in the car and at home he was up for an evening walk. Surprising! My step count today: 22,500.)

More catching up..

More catching up... with a post I've been dreading to write because it is still quite painful. On February 12th we lost Abby. She had been sick for a few months (either IBD or small cell lymphoma), but had responded very well to her treatment (which also included shots of B12 that I learned to administer without fainting!). About a week before she died we noticed that she lost her appetite again and slept a lot. I brought her to the vet just two days before she passed away to have her checked out again. 

When I got home on the 12th she was nowhere to be found at first. I finally found her hiding under our couch. She had trouble breathing and was in pain. When she saw or smelled me she came toward me. I picked her up, wrapped her in a blanket, and drove her to the pet ER. She died just a few minutes into the drive next to me in the car. At least she wasn't alone...

Here are a few of the first photos we took of her in 2007. She was so young!

Getting to know (and like!) first George and then Pepper:

She always found the best places to sit

And was the perfect snuggle buddy.

Love you, Little One. You were our first, and you were so much more.

Last photo of Abby, taken 02/11/2019.

Catching up - it's been a while!

We have been very busy these last few months, so we haven't really gotten around to keeping our blog up to date. Time to catch up!

Michaela and I went on a chocolate walking tour through Portland in mid January: we visited a good half dozen chocolatiers in downtown and sampled their creations. In the beginning I was worried there wouldn't be enough chocolate to taste, but towards the end of the tour I had to decline sampling any more chocolate...so much chocolate!

A few days later I headed up to Seattle to attend CUWiP (conference for undergraduate women in physics) to connect to the next generation of local physicists and introduce them to ESI. Alycia, a former student of Michaela who is now a Laser engineer at ESI, joined me in the effort. Just like last year it was a great experience: the atmosphere of a women-dominated physics event is incredibly positive. 

As every year in late January/early February I made my way down to San Francisco to attend Photonics West. And like last year I invited myself to stay at Rob's place, which is within walking distance of the Moscone Center where Photonics West takes place - so convenient. But while last year Rob's wife Kristen was travelling during my visit, this year it was Rob's turn: he had to fly to China on short notice...

But what are a few thousand miles in the age of modern technology? As Kristen and I took a scenic walk through San Francisco, Rob joined us via phone:

 Jolie and Olive were very sweet companions, particularly during breakfast!

The view from Rob's building was again breathtaking - I only learned this time around about the roof terrace!

The traditional evening reception was organized by a much younger event manager than in past decades(!) - it was noticeably different. The theme was optics superheroes...

ESI hosted a team building event at the Allison Inn in mid February - not really noteworthy if it wasn't for the tower and bridge building challenge - out of chocolate. Not to brag or anything, but my team won :)

It's been an intense three months for both of us and so we have made it a point to visit state parks or the coast on as many weekends as possible to decompress. I very much cherish those time outs.