A Mother's Day Limerick or Two or Three

Things are starting to get busy as time hurtles by faster and faster until next Friday, when I will enjoy one of the most wonderful feelings I know-- when the plane door closes and you know there is nothing else you can really do for about 2 to 12 hours, depending on where you are going, other than nap and watch movies. It is so freeing, especially after the hectic chaos the precedes almost every one of my trips. On Thursday I had to go get the last of my gigantic battery of vaccines and was caught in traffic just long enough to snap this picture from the interstate-- beautiful mountain views tame road rage like nothing else.

Mt. Hood, keeping watch over the city of Portland.

On Thursday night, I gave another public science talk at the Science Pub series I have been praising the last few months, with which I have been really honored to be affiliated when I think about how great some of the other talks are that I have seen. The last one was a book reading by a Portland-native named Rebecca Skloot from her recent history of HeLa cells and their donor, Henrietta Lacks. HeLa cells are the immortal cell lines now cultured in labs all over the world which were derived from a cervical tumor that killed the woman from which they were biopsied in the 50's. The cells were co-opted for research without her knowledge (or her children's knowledge) and many, many important discoveries have resulted, including things like the polio vaccine (which I just got). I haven't read her book, but what she read out loud was really interesting, so I would recommend checking it out if you are looking for a page-turner summer science read as it really straddles topics ranging from medicine to ethics to race. I was troubled a bit by how demonized scientists (as opposed to, say, biotech companies) were during the Q&A, given that few dorky scientists I know are getting rich off their research, but still a really interesting story and an excellent crucible for many of the interesting issues surrounding human health research and the idea of the greater good. If Henrietta Lacks were still here (and in some ways, she still is), I would want to wish her a hearty Happy Mother's Day given all that her amazing cell line has done to save lives.

My recent Science Pub was in Eugene this time so that I could also visit with my family (see below). When I arrived back in Portland, I made a brief stop at Reed for their annual end of year festivus, Renn Fayre. This celebration started off as an actual renaissance faire, er...fayre, back in the day and marked the big accomplishment all seniors at Reed must achieve, which is the turning in of their final thesis drafts to the college by 3 pm on the Friday before finals. Promptly at 3 o'clock, said seniors burn copies of their thesis in a giant bonfire and a weekend of bacchanalia ensues. Nowadays, the renaissance part doesn't exist-- there is a different theme every year, and the events include many, many varied traditions that have accumulated over the years and seem to involve a healthy dose of nudity interleaved throughout the festivities. Here you can see the seniors congregating to burn their theses as a kick-off to the weekend's events.

Last but not least: You know you've been blogging a long time when you have annual events on your blog, like the now-traditional mother's day limerick post, which I encourage you to participate in if you desire so that perhaps we can convert it to an annual mother's day limerick slam. To celebrate how happy I am about being in the same geographic region, here are a few to get the limerick slam tradition started:

My mom's a great friend on the phone,
Better listeners, few I have known,
But now that I'm here,
It's easier to see her,
'Cause we both call Oregon home.

A generous spirit and heart,
With a gift for jewelry and art,
Not without flaws,
But she paints and she draws,
And, thus, many gifts she imparts.

And finally....

It's been great being so close to my fam,
My mom, as you know, is a ham.
She thought it quite funny,
To dress like a bunny,
But since Easter has been on the lam.

Happy Mother's Day Mom! Keep on keepin' on!

Oneonta Gorge, Luck, and Stupidity

It is springtime in Oregon folks, and that means lots of erratic weather and as much hiking as possible. Last week I bailed on going to work one morning when I emerged from the trailer to mount my mighty steed (Almira, the pedelec) only to have it start hailing. I sent the lovely lady in the office next to me an email and asked her to post a note on my door to alert folks that I was not going to be in the office til later due to bad weather, and the result was what I would call fine art:
Today, yet again, I am working from a coffeehouse down the hill instead of going up the hill on the bike. But it is not hailing today. Today, I am at the coffeehouse with my feet up because I am stupid. Here is what happened....

My hiking partner Volcano Jim suggested we seize the day yesterday and do a hike called the Rock of Ages on the Oregon side of the Columbia Gorge. It is an amazingly beautiful trail that climbs steeply up a rocky ridge, past a gorgeous natural arch (view of the the Columbia through it, on the left) up onto a forested plateau past literally countless waterfalls. There is some exposure, lots of minor creek crossings, a river cross, and there is still a bunch of snow on the top of the mountain-- in addition to being ~11 mile loop. In other words, not a quickie hike, but perfect for the first 70 degree day of the year. Hiking in snow in a tank top is sublimely refreshing and stretching out in a meadow with mountain breeze and sunshine for lunch is one of life's greatest pleasures. There was clover everywhere-- giant almost mutant looking clover actually, that couldn't help but make one feel just lucky to be there. In short, it was bliss. About 8 miles in, on our descent, we came to the largest river crossing of the day and I decided to hitch my day pack a little higher than normal and take my shoes and socks off to wade across the waist-high stretch of river just above a small waterfall of the Oneonta Creek (the creek is idyllic, and has cut-- albeit slowly-- through the rock to form a really cool, really narrow gorge uniquely named the Oneonta Gorge, below right).

I tied my shoes together and slung them around my neck and stepped into the icy water. 'Wait,' I thought-- 'this is stupid. If I slip and fall, my shoes could strangle me as I go over the falls. I'll just sling them over one shoulder.' And so I did. And then I took another step deeper into the river, leaning forward looking for a foothold for my poles, and my shoes slipped right off my shoulder into the water, over the falls, into the foam, never to be seen again. Also stupid.

Crapper! Walking barefoot is for the young and uninjured. Ever since I shattered my ankle in a tragicly (also stupid) skateboarding accident in 2002, I don't enjoy walking barefoot. Not even indoors. Not even on carpet. I don't know if it is that the ligaments just never really healed right or what, but my foot feels wobblier than normal feet. Regardless of why, my love of a footbed and sole is deeper and wider than the Oneonta Creek. Jim gave me his socks and generously volunteered to hoof it double time down to the trailhead and grab his third string running shoes (size 11) from the car and bring them up to me. But the sun was starting to set, so it made sense for me to also try and get down the trail as far as possible while it was light. I cut off the bottoms of my pants and bound the front of my feet as much as possible and headed down. Luckily, I probably only had to walk a mile or so on the pine-y (yay) then rocky (nay) path before Jim had made it down the 3 miles, and back up the 2 miles to meet me with a pair of shoes. Bless you Jim! Size 11 men's running shoes never felt so good!

We made it down to the car as twilight turned to dark and about 2 hrs later I was cleaned up, cozied up, in the trailer with my feet up. A bit bruised and blistered, but overall not bad. As my friend Greta said, it was a great day to lose one's shoes in the gorge! Lucky me!