At 8:32 this morning, I officially reached the 22.5 year mark in my existence.
Today, January 27, marks my half birthday, and while I know many people don't put stake in half-birthdays, they are fun to remember every year, if only to be able to double your age (keeping the extra half year in mind) and realize that you're closer to that age than you are to your birth. It's a fun way to put your existence into context and sort of gain another perspective on life-- one that's not always intuitively apparent.
With this being said, I'm halfway to 45!! Of course 45 seems daunting (sorry if I'm dating myself or anyone else here, not my intention!), but I'm definitely a glass-half-full kind of guy here. I look at my life, which, by definition is all I've ever known, and it seems like an eternity. I mean, on some basic level of understanding, it has been an eternity-- in my understanding, at least.
So today, I realize that even when I'm 45, I'll have had 2 "forevers," according to what I know as "forever" in my current experience. And even when I'm 45, I'll likely still only be halfway to what I'll ultimately know as "forever." I've definitely been lucky; there's so much I've gotten to do, but at the same time, there's so much more I'm looking forward to as well.
Happy REAL birthday to Heather Doering, Whitney Connell and Julie Glasser, and happy half birthday to Brittany Krupica!!
27 January 2006
24 January 2006
Just so you know I'm not a total malcontent....
My kitchen thermometer currently displays the temperature as only -1.2 degrees!!!
We're havin' a heatwave in Tallinn!!
We're havin' a heatwave in Tallinn!!
22 January 2006
Catching Up...
It's been a while since I've made a post of substance about what's actually going on in my life, instead concentrating only the weather, though that is in large part all that is going on in my life. OK, so that's a bit of an overstatement, but the extreme cold that has been hitting the region has been some of the coldest weather that Estonians can remember. EVER. It's -24 C at the moment without wind chill, but beyond pointing that out, I'll keep my discussion of the weather short (I'm starting to sound like a broken record), and that is to say that if you haven't been paying attention to the news, you might have missed the fact this story: 4 dead in Estonia due to extreme cold.
So now that I've sufficiently shocked all of you with that headline, I'll admit that Russia is focused on primarily in the article because 40 people have died there, but just keep in mind that Estonia is not all that far away from Russia. It's cold here, but I''ll put my meteorology on hold for the moment.
As for what's going on with me, I'm continuing to work and do research, and actually am in the process of organizing a conference and workshop based around an emerging wireless technology called WiMax (Click the link if you want a detailed breakdown of the technology, but in short, WiMax can be thought of like long range WiFi...its range is up to 35 miles in diameter...though the technology's not totally ready yet and standards for the mobile version of this are still developing...).
If all goes well, the workshop/conference will be held in late March or April and will bring together my personal research as well as the work I have been doing for Estonia's e-Governance Academy and WiFi.ee. Because WiMax is a new technology, I believe that everyone has a lot to gain, so hopefully I will have a lot of support and interest from potential participants and invitees. I'll keep you guys posted, and if anyone is an Estonian (or someone else in geographic proximity) and wants to attend, simply leave a comment here or send me an email. Similarly, if anyone reading this cannot attend the conference but is interested in the findings, a transcript may be available and/or a paper may be written, so get in touch if there is interest. This all still hinges on the availability and interest of a bunch of people, but from the preliminary feelers I've put out, it seems like interest is high.
A few other odds and ends about what I'm up to:
Currently reading: The Tipping Point by Malcom Gladwell
-->This book is tremendous so far. I'm only on page 100 or so, but it explores how epidemics happen, but it's not specific just to diseases. Gladwell goes into great detail exploring why everything from products like Hush Puppies to social phenomena occur, examining the 'magic moment' when the scale tips; when something 'blows up' and goes from small potatoes to being commonplace.
Recently watched: Good Night and Good Luck, co-written and directed by George Clooney, actually.
-->I thought this was an amazing movie, and anyone who hasn't seen it yet, should definitely take the opportunity to see it-- if not in the theater, then definitely on DVD. It takes a look at 1950's America in the heart of the Cold War, when Joseph McCarthy was most powerful and most successful in exploiting the nation's fear of communism. The movie takes a look at the struggle between early broadcast journalism and the American political system, and really conveys the tension that I can imagine existed at the time.
I couldn't help but notice the extreme similarities to the politics of fear that Joe McCarthy employed in the 1950s and what we're currently going through today with the Bush administration and their treatment of terrorists and patriotism. If you didn't sign a pledge saying that you weren't a communist, you were a communist sympathizer. If you disagree, even slightly, with the Bush administration's policies, you're unpatriotic. Decisions were made behind closed doors, were transmitted in sealed envelopes that very few knew the contents of, and civil liberties were abandoned by people eager to prove their anti-communist loyalties. It doesn't sound too different than the Patriot Act and most recently, Bush's warrantless wiretapping of American citizens.
I want to make it clear that I don't like to bring politics in this forum, as proselytizing often antagonizes, but one quote from Edward R. Murrow-- the protagonist in the movie and real-life newscaster whose reports led to the censure of McCarthy-- was particularly striking in relation to our current administration's claims to be doing everything they can to uphold our liberties in America by fighting wars in Afghanistan and Iraq: "We cannot defend freedom abroad by deserting it at home." Take a cue, Mr. President, or history will condemn you for it.
I'll end my discussion here, but I highly recommend all of you see the movie for yourselves and make a judgment on your own. At the very least, you'll see an entertaining movie with a great cast that puts forth a striking portrayal of what I can only imagine would have been an historic battle between broadcast journalists and the political powers of the day.
In other news, just today I booked a trip up to Oslo, Norway!! I leave February 22nd and will get back on February 28, so I leave just 1 month from today. I'm really excited about the trip; I'm going to stay with my buddy Jon Fougner, who, if you recall from past posts, came down to Tallinn a few months ago and we had a great time. Jon and I have known each other since we were practically in diapers, and he graciously offered to have me up to his place in Oslo. We're still figuring out plans, and as more details become defined, I'll report back. But I'm just excited to definitively be going; it'll be a blast.
Also, I finally tracked down photos from our New Years trip to southern Estonia. I apologize for the delay in getting them, but I figured better late than never. My French friend Guillaume was a savior in getting them to me, so thanks buddy!!
New Years in Otepää!
Hope you all enjoy the photos and are enjoying reading about my adventures as well!! Leave me a comment and tell me what you think of my blog (good or bad!); I'd love to hear from you!!
Best,
John
So now that I've sufficiently shocked all of you with that headline, I'll admit that Russia is focused on primarily in the article because 40 people have died there, but just keep in mind that Estonia is not all that far away from Russia. It's cold here, but I''ll put my meteorology on hold for the moment.
As for what's going on with me, I'm continuing to work and do research, and actually am in the process of organizing a conference and workshop based around an emerging wireless technology called WiMax (Click the link if you want a detailed breakdown of the technology, but in short, WiMax can be thought of like long range WiFi...its range is up to 35 miles in diameter...though the technology's not totally ready yet and standards for the mobile version of this are still developing...).
If all goes well, the workshop/conference will be held in late March or April and will bring together my personal research as well as the work I have been doing for Estonia's e-Governance Academy and WiFi.ee. Because WiMax is a new technology, I believe that everyone has a lot to gain, so hopefully I will have a lot of support and interest from potential participants and invitees. I'll keep you guys posted, and if anyone is an Estonian (or someone else in geographic proximity) and wants to attend, simply leave a comment here or send me an email. Similarly, if anyone reading this cannot attend the conference but is interested in the findings, a transcript may be available and/or a paper may be written, so get in touch if there is interest. This all still hinges on the availability and interest of a bunch of people, but from the preliminary feelers I've put out, it seems like interest is high.
A few other odds and ends about what I'm up to:
Currently reading: The Tipping Point by Malcom Gladwell
-->This book is tremendous so far. I'm only on page 100 or so, but it explores how epidemics happen, but it's not specific just to diseases. Gladwell goes into great detail exploring why everything from products like Hush Puppies to social phenomena occur, examining the 'magic moment' when the scale tips; when something 'blows up' and goes from small potatoes to being commonplace.
Recently watched: Good Night and Good Luck, co-written and directed by George Clooney, actually.
-->I thought this was an amazing movie, and anyone who hasn't seen it yet, should definitely take the opportunity to see it-- if not in the theater, then definitely on DVD. It takes a look at 1950's America in the heart of the Cold War, when Joseph McCarthy was most powerful and most successful in exploiting the nation's fear of communism. The movie takes a look at the struggle between early broadcast journalism and the American political system, and really conveys the tension that I can imagine existed at the time.
I couldn't help but notice the extreme similarities to the politics of fear that Joe McCarthy employed in the 1950s and what we're currently going through today with the Bush administration and their treatment of terrorists and patriotism. If you didn't sign a pledge saying that you weren't a communist, you were a communist sympathizer. If you disagree, even slightly, with the Bush administration's policies, you're unpatriotic. Decisions were made behind closed doors, were transmitted in sealed envelopes that very few knew the contents of, and civil liberties were abandoned by people eager to prove their anti-communist loyalties. It doesn't sound too different than the Patriot Act and most recently, Bush's warrantless wiretapping of American citizens.
I want to make it clear that I don't like to bring politics in this forum, as proselytizing often antagonizes, but one quote from Edward R. Murrow-- the protagonist in the movie and real-life newscaster whose reports led to the censure of McCarthy-- was particularly striking in relation to our current administration's claims to be doing everything they can to uphold our liberties in America by fighting wars in Afghanistan and Iraq: "We cannot defend freedom abroad by deserting it at home." Take a cue, Mr. President, or history will condemn you for it.
I'll end my discussion here, but I highly recommend all of you see the movie for yourselves and make a judgment on your own. At the very least, you'll see an entertaining movie with a great cast that puts forth a striking portrayal of what I can only imagine would have been an historic battle between broadcast journalists and the political powers of the day.
In other news, just today I booked a trip up to Oslo, Norway!! I leave February 22nd and will get back on February 28, so I leave just 1 month from today. I'm really excited about the trip; I'm going to stay with my buddy Jon Fougner, who, if you recall from past posts, came down to Tallinn a few months ago and we had a great time. Jon and I have known each other since we were practically in diapers, and he graciously offered to have me up to his place in Oslo. We're still figuring out plans, and as more details become defined, I'll report back. But I'm just excited to definitively be going; it'll be a blast.
Also, I finally tracked down photos from our New Years trip to southern Estonia. I apologize for the delay in getting them, but I figured better late than never. My French friend Guillaume was a savior in getting them to me, so thanks buddy!!
New Years in Otepää!
Hope you all enjoy the photos and are enjoying reading about my adventures as well!! Leave me a comment and tell me what you think of my blog (good or bad!); I'd love to hear from you!!
Best,
John
Party Capital of the Year: Tallinn, Estonia - NYT Article #2
Just a quick mention of another New York Times article about Estonia, but this time taking a look at the social life in Tallinn:
Party Capital of the Year: Tallinn, Estonia
But before you worry that I'm only partying and not working/sleeping/studying/researching, I can vouch for the fact that the nightlife is much more active in the warmer months than it is in the winter. So, simply delay any worries about my exploits until around May-- then worrying is fair game.
All kidding aside, it's nice to see Tallinn getting some press, and it's fun to see an outsider's take on the city I'm calling home for 10 months. (Special thanks to Mikko Seppä, Jon Fougner and Veljo Haamer for the tip-offs on the article!)
Party Capital of the Year: Tallinn, Estonia
But before you worry that I'm only partying and not working/sleeping/studying/researching, I can vouch for the fact that the nightlife is much more active in the warmer months than it is in the winter. So, simply delay any worries about my exploits until around May-- then worrying is fair game.
All kidding aside, it's nice to see Tallinn getting some press, and it's fun to see an outsider's take on the city I'm calling home for 10 months. (Special thanks to Mikko Seppä, Jon Fougner and Veljo Haamer for the tip-offs on the article!)
18 January 2006
COLD.
I don't have much to say except it's freakin cold here. -19 degrees celsius w/o wind chill tonight. With wind chill, it's about -35 celsius tonight (-31 Fahrenheit!!). Needless to say, I'm glad to be indoors at the moment, but as one of my posters said in regard to my post before this, you can honestly feel the snot in your nose freezing when you're outside. I've never experienced anything like this... and that's all I'll say. Your proof of the chilliness:
As you may be able to see in the graphic, this week it's supposed to be -14 on Thursday, -11 on Friday (with snow), -12 on Saturday, -9 on Sunday, -12 on Monday (the description is 'Partly sunny and Frigid'), -11 on Tuesday and -10 on Wednesday, all celsius. And this is all without wind chill. Looks like I'm in for a cold spell, and I shouldn't have said anything about the niceness of the weather in my last post. I guess I jinxed it!! I'm sorry Mother Nature!!! :)
As you may be able to see in the graphic, this week it's supposed to be -14 on Thursday, -11 on Friday (with snow), -12 on Saturday, -9 on Sunday, -12 on Monday (the description is 'Partly sunny and Frigid'), -11 on Tuesday and -10 on Wednesday, all celsius. And this is all without wind chill. Looks like I'm in for a cold spell, and I shouldn't have said anything about the niceness of the weather in my last post. I guess I jinxed it!! I'm sorry Mother Nature!!! :)
16 January 2006
Is Snoop Dogg Doing the Weather Report??
When I just saw the weather report in my ForecastFox right now, I felt compelled to post, because I'm confused. I mean, I sort of get it, but the little popup alert reminded me of a dumb joke that I fear less than half of my readership will get:
Q: Why does Snoop Dogg walk around with an umbrella?
A: FO DRIZZLE!
But seriously, do you know how long it took me to figure out what "Lgt.frz.driz." meant? Like 5 minutes, and that's a long time to decipher that they really meant "Light Freezing Drizzle." Couldn't they just have said "Light Snow" or "Freezing Rain at times"?? No, clearly some sadistic person felt the need to make readers hire Dan Brown to crack this code.
Overall, the weather has been fairly good, and I'm still waiting for these -20 and -30 Celsius days that I've been hearing about from all the Estonians. We've had snow a bunch of times, including this morning, but even when it sticks around for a few days, it ends up melting within the week. It's been bad, sure, as in we've had -10 C weather this winter, but that's nothing worse than Boston (14 degrees Fahrenheit).
My friend and I are starting to wonder if this supposed terrible winter is actually real, or if it's just a myth like Seattle's rains (which I've only experienced once in maybe 10 visits up there!) to keep potential settlers away. Then again, I probably should be wary of bragging about how I take good weather with me; Mother Nature is probably listening and will now put a pox on me. Now that I mention it, I may have spoken too soon, it's supposed to get down to -18 this Thursday!! YIKES!!
Think of me out here in the chilly 'Lgt.frz.driz.' and I'll hopefully catch up with all of you soon.
-John
PS: If you're still wondering about the Snoop Dogg reference, click here.
Q: Why does Snoop Dogg walk around with an umbrella?
A: FO DRIZZLE!
But seriously, do you know how long it took me to figure out what "Lgt.frz.driz." meant? Like 5 minutes, and that's a long time to decipher that they really meant "Light Freezing Drizzle." Couldn't they just have said "Light Snow" or "Freezing Rain at times"?? No, clearly some sadistic person felt the need to make readers hire Dan Brown to crack this code.
Overall, the weather has been fairly good, and I'm still waiting for these -20 and -30 Celsius days that I've been hearing about from all the Estonians. We've had snow a bunch of times, including this morning, but even when it sticks around for a few days, it ends up melting within the week. It's been bad, sure, as in we've had -10 C weather this winter, but that's nothing worse than Boston (14 degrees Fahrenheit).
My friend and I are starting to wonder if this supposed terrible winter is actually real, or if it's just a myth like Seattle's rains (which I've only experienced once in maybe 10 visits up there!) to keep potential settlers away. Then again, I probably should be wary of bragging about how I take good weather with me; Mother Nature is probably listening and will now put a pox on me. Now that I mention it, I may have spoken too soon, it's supposed to get down to -18 this Thursday!! YIKES!!
Think of me out here in the chilly 'Lgt.frz.driz.' and I'll hopefully catch up with all of you soon.
-John
PS: If you're still wondering about the Snoop Dogg reference, click here.
13 January 2006
New Haircut
So for the first time in probably 6 years, I'm trying longer hair again. Today was just a maintenance cut, but it's longer leaving the haircutter than it's been in a while...got any feedback?
Now, we'll see if I can ever style it again like the haircutter did; that's always the challenge!
Now, we'll see if I can ever style it again like the haircutter did; that's always the challenge!
08 January 2006
Ice Crystals???
Now the weather here's getting really weird...
But seriously, what's an ice crystal? They could have just said COLD; I would have understood!!
But seriously, what's an ice crystal? They could have just said COLD; I would have understood!!
02 January 2006
Making Estonian Headlines
Alright, so it's not totally new news, but it is proof of how small our world is becoming, and how the Internet makes any information accessible to anyone, anywhere, anytime. A colleague of mine, Janno, passed me along this link, which is a news article about the news article found in my local paper, the Montclarion a while back. Here's the link to the Estonian article (be careful, it's in Estonian!), and the original article from the Montclarion should be able to be found here. Just search for 'heywood' and it should come up.
Funny how word travels these days; it would take the Pony Express weeks (if not months or longer) to get word of an event from one side of the US to the other, let alone to get word of anything from America to Eastern Europe!! Ahh, the wonders of technology...
Funny how word travels these days; it would take the Pony Express weeks (if not months or longer) to get word of an event from one side of the US to the other, let alone to get word of anything from America to Eastern Europe!! Ahh, the wonders of technology...
Happy 2006!!!
Hi everyone!
I just got back from southern Estonia-- a place called Otepää (which is about 40km south of Tartu, Tallinn's 2nd biggest city)-- where I spent New Years with about 50 other kids my age, 1/2 of whom where Estonian, and the other half from other European countries (Latvia, Italy, Sweden, Germany, France and Finland).
We rented a house meant for 25 people because that was the biggest we could get, and in order for everyone to have a place to sleep, we pushed all the beds together and bunked up together. It reminded me of a big slumber party, actually, though no slumber party I'd ever been to before had fireworks, alcohol or great food like we did!! These Europeans sure know how to have a good time, and I felt priveliged to be the lone American in the group, though I did spend a large amount of time dispelling myths (both bad and good) about America, American culture and American politics. It was interesting to gauge the reactions of other people from different countries, and I could really tell the extent to which the news/propaganda people had received in their respective countries affected their mentality about America and about the world (France vs. Sweden, for instance). But everyone was good natured for the most part, and understood when I told them that I wasn't their typical American (virtually everyone agree with this, citing the fact that I a) knew where Estonia was and b) had chosen to live here for a year!). I laughed.
Like Christmas, we spent a large part of the trip just enjoying eachothers' company, and less time sightseeing. Otepää is small, so walking around on the afternoon of the 31st was enough to see all of the town and then some.
From what I am told and what I could tell, Otepää is the "winter capital of Estonia," having extensive cross-country skiing tracks, a smallish 'tubing' hill and minimal snowboarding on a 'mountain' that wouldn't be called a mountain in anywhere except maybe Florida or Illinois. I would like to have tried cross-country skiing, but it will have to wait, as we simply didn't have enough time (or the right clothes!) to get out onto the tracks. Someday.
New Years eve was fun; in the evening before dinner, we did get in some sledding on the tiny hill near our house, and even built a jump that was quite fun. After only about 30 minutes of sledding we dashed back in the house and everyone sat down to a large feast of chicken (from the French), sausages (with German sauerkraut), bruschetta (from the Italians), and a number of salads with samplings of meat in them (from the Estonians).
After dinner, we danced a fair bit, and then at midnight, we set off the semi-professional fireworks display we'd brought from Tallinn and popped a dozen bottles of champagne, and everyone hugged and kissed in European fashion. It was fun and after we'd had enough of the cold (10-15 minutes, tops!) we ran back inside for more dancing. But for those 10 minutes, we enjoyed our fireworks display and a number of other ones in the area (Estonians are firework-crazy!!). It was a lot of fun.
At midnight, the night was still young, and a number of us went out to a local club that wasn't large compared to Tallinn standards, but was absolutely JAM-PACKED. Needless to say, it was a blast and it was nice of the Estonians I was with to take me under their wing and bring me along to the club with them. We didn't get back until around 4am, and when I finally got back everyone was just going to bed, and I found a nice spot on the floor to spend the next 6 hours of darkness (remember, the sun doesn't rise til 10am!!).
After a bit of much-needed cleaning, we left the house and headed back to Tallinn, where I just passed out to eliminate my accrued sleep debt (hat tip, Mom!). And now it's back to the grind. I'm working on getting pictures from the trip, and should have them by Wednesday, 1/4/06 (I almost typed '05!!!!).
Happy New Year, everyone!! I know I say it every year, but I never thought I'd see 2006. I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season and that if you made resolutions, you stick to them!
Wishing you all the best in 2006,
John
I just got back from southern Estonia-- a place called Otepää (which is about 40km south of Tartu, Tallinn's 2nd biggest city)-- where I spent New Years with about 50 other kids my age, 1/2 of whom where Estonian, and the other half from other European countries (Latvia, Italy, Sweden, Germany, France and Finland).
We rented a house meant for 25 people because that was the biggest we could get, and in order for everyone to have a place to sleep, we pushed all the beds together and bunked up together. It reminded me of a big slumber party, actually, though no slumber party I'd ever been to before had fireworks, alcohol or great food like we did!! These Europeans sure know how to have a good time, and I felt priveliged to be the lone American in the group, though I did spend a large amount of time dispelling myths (both bad and good) about America, American culture and American politics. It was interesting to gauge the reactions of other people from different countries, and I could really tell the extent to which the news/propaganda people had received in their respective countries affected their mentality about America and about the world (France vs. Sweden, for instance). But everyone was good natured for the most part, and understood when I told them that I wasn't their typical American (virtually everyone agree with this, citing the fact that I a) knew where Estonia was and b) had chosen to live here for a year!). I laughed.
Like Christmas, we spent a large part of the trip just enjoying eachothers' company, and less time sightseeing. Otepää is small, so walking around on the afternoon of the 31st was enough to see all of the town and then some.
From what I am told and what I could tell, Otepää is the "winter capital of Estonia," having extensive cross-country skiing tracks, a smallish 'tubing' hill and minimal snowboarding on a 'mountain' that wouldn't be called a mountain in anywhere except maybe Florida or Illinois. I would like to have tried cross-country skiing, but it will have to wait, as we simply didn't have enough time (or the right clothes!) to get out onto the tracks. Someday.
New Years eve was fun; in the evening before dinner, we did get in some sledding on the tiny hill near our house, and even built a jump that was quite fun. After only about 30 minutes of sledding we dashed back in the house and everyone sat down to a large feast of chicken (from the French), sausages (with German sauerkraut), bruschetta (from the Italians), and a number of salads with samplings of meat in them (from the Estonians).
After dinner, we danced a fair bit, and then at midnight, we set off the semi-professional fireworks display we'd brought from Tallinn and popped a dozen bottles of champagne, and everyone hugged and kissed in European fashion. It was fun and after we'd had enough of the cold (10-15 minutes, tops!) we ran back inside for more dancing. But for those 10 minutes, we enjoyed our fireworks display and a number of other ones in the area (Estonians are firework-crazy!!). It was a lot of fun.
At midnight, the night was still young, and a number of us went out to a local club that wasn't large compared to Tallinn standards, but was absolutely JAM-PACKED. Needless to say, it was a blast and it was nice of the Estonians I was with to take me under their wing and bring me along to the club with them. We didn't get back until around 4am, and when I finally got back everyone was just going to bed, and I found a nice spot on the floor to spend the next 6 hours of darkness (remember, the sun doesn't rise til 10am!!).
After a bit of much-needed cleaning, we left the house and headed back to Tallinn, where I just passed out to eliminate my accrued sleep debt (hat tip, Mom!). And now it's back to the grind. I'm working on getting pictures from the trip, and should have them by Wednesday, 1/4/06 (I almost typed '05!!!!).
Happy New Year, everyone!! I know I say it every year, but I never thought I'd see 2006. I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season and that if you made resolutions, you stick to them!
Wishing you all the best in 2006,
John
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