Last week was Maura’s February vacation from school. She had the whole week off with little to do but watch TV and play with her friend Dominic who lives across the street. For the most part that was enough for her. Though she generally enjoys school she also enjoys her time off from it. By Friday, however, we were both ready to do something different and with cash in hand from our weekly trip to the ATM we headed to Quincy Adams Station and from there to Boston by T-train.
Other than to spend it in the city we had no very definite plans for the day and that worked out just fine. I knew I wanted to keep the cost down if I could but we started with a bit of shopping. We got off T at Arlington Station and strolled through the Back Bay. The weather was very fine for February, breezy but not cold. We walked down Newbury Street and back through the Prudential Center and Copley Place, stopping for lunch on the way. While we ate we sat in the window and watched people on the street. In the Prudential Center Maura bought a pretty rhinestone barrette from a very helpful sales clerk. It helped to tame her unbrushed hair blown wild by the wind as we crossed through the plaza at the Christian Science Center.
After shopping we went back outside at Copley Square and it was time for culture. We visited the Boston Public Library, taking in the current exhibitions which were interesting and free. Maura wasn’t as excited as I was by the Edgar Allen Poe exhibit discussing the troubled relationship he had with his birthplace but the exhibition of street photographs by Jules Aarons. Mostly taken in the North End and West End of Boston during the 1950s and 1960s they fascinated both of us.
From the library we headed up Boylston Street to the Public Garden. Walking through the Garden we stopped to take in the "Make Way for Ducklings" sculpture and then walked across the Common to the Massachusetts Statehouse, where we joined a free tour to learn more about the history of the building and of the Commonwealth. We joined the tour late so I never caught our tour guide’s name but he was very knowledgeable and friendly and the tour was excellent. We saw the chambers for the state House of Representatives and Senate and the public rooms of the Statehouse where Massachusetts receives visitors and honors heroes. Maura had been to the Statehouse before but it was the first time she had taken the tour and she enjoyed it as much as I did, asking questions and looking at everything there was to see.
We’d already had a full day but it wasn’t over. After the Statehouse we made our way to the building where Jennifer works and met her for dinner and an evening trip to the Science Museum. Dinner was at one of my old favorites, Durgin Park. The food is traditional New England cooking, the service is always friendly and the atmosphere hasn’t changed much since the 19th century when the place served the workers in the city’s main market. Jennifer and I had corned beef and Maura had fish. No one was disappointed.
At the Science Museum we went to the new Identity exhibition. It explores the different aspects of human identity—physical, mental and social. Most of the displays are interactive, allowing the visitors to explore their own identities as well as the question of identity in the abstract. Some of the exhibits were also research studies themselves. I was glad to participate in them while Maura played a game that explored how identity changes when we interact with others.
After an hour or so at the museum we were all worn out. I’d been on my feet too long and had done in my knees so it was painful to walk down stairs and Maura was showing the signs of being tired. We were all happy to be heading home thoroughly satisfied by our day out.
Friday, February 26, 2010
Sunday, January 31, 2010
Sick
Our house was a sick house last week. First Maura and then Jennifer came down with a stomach ailment. Nausea and vomiting were followed by fever and exhaustion. Fortunately it was a fast disease and once the vomiting stopped a good night’s sleep was all that was needed for a complete recovery. When Jennifer was ill there was little I could do but let her sleep and encourage her to take some fluids. Maura had already been sick and I was reasonably sure that Jennifer had the same disease and would recover quickly. It was different when Maura was sick.
No conscientious parent can ever be entirely at ease when their child is ill and as much as I often try to be a hand-off parent, I think I am a conscientious parent. Maura’s illness struck in the middle of the night and I had difficulty sleeping afterwards. Partly it was just that my sleep was disturbed. In my role as cleaner-of-disgusting-messes I had been called to clean up vomit and after the activity I found it difficult to go back to sleep. Worry over Maura’s illness certainly contributed to the restless night. I could not be sure she was not suffering from food poisoning or something else serious.
In the morning a call to the pediatrician allayed my fears. There was a virus going around that caused vomiting and fever but it usually only lasted for twelve to twenty-four hours. Maura was a good patient during the day she was sick. She couldn’t eat anything but she held fluids down and happily drank what I gave her whenever she was awake. She spent the day on the couch in the living room and napped for most of it. By evening she was starting to feel better but she was still running a fever.
The fever meant that Maura was home a second day. Because of the flu the school has a rule that any child who has had a fever of one hundred degrees or more in the last twenty-four hours should stay home from school. It’s a good rule and I’m sure it keeps some parents from sending children to school who shouldn’t be there but sometimes it means the kids are home when they are no longer sick. Maura was one of those children. Since I didn’t think I should have her out during school hours we were trapped at home all day and a well-rested healthy Maura who is trapped at home is bored. A bored Maura is far more trouble than a sick Maura.
No conscientious parent can ever be entirely at ease when their child is ill and as much as I often try to be a hand-off parent, I think I am a conscientious parent. Maura’s illness struck in the middle of the night and I had difficulty sleeping afterwards. Partly it was just that my sleep was disturbed. In my role as cleaner-of-disgusting-messes I had been called to clean up vomit and after the activity I found it difficult to go back to sleep. Worry over Maura’s illness certainly contributed to the restless night. I could not be sure she was not suffering from food poisoning or something else serious.
In the morning a call to the pediatrician allayed my fears. There was a virus going around that caused vomiting and fever but it usually only lasted for twelve to twenty-four hours. Maura was a good patient during the day she was sick. She couldn’t eat anything but she held fluids down and happily drank what I gave her whenever she was awake. She spent the day on the couch in the living room and napped for most of it. By evening she was starting to feel better but she was still running a fever.
The fever meant that Maura was home a second day. Because of the flu the school has a rule that any child who has had a fever of one hundred degrees or more in the last twenty-four hours should stay home from school. It’s a good rule and I’m sure it keeps some parents from sending children to school who shouldn’t be there but sometimes it means the kids are home when they are no longer sick. Maura was one of those children. Since I didn’t think I should have her out during school hours we were trapped at home all day and a well-rested healthy Maura who is trapped at home is bored. A bored Maura is far more trouble than a sick Maura.
Thursday, January 21, 2010
Cornell Glee Club at Old South Church
Last Friday we had a family celebration of my wife Jennifer’s fortieth birthday. We had dinner at our favorite Chinese restaurant in Boston’s China Town and then attended a concert by the Cornell University Glee Club at Old South Church. Jennifer and I are both alumnae of Cornell and Jennifer is a big fan of a capella music so when I received a notice in my email from the alumnae association about the upcoming concert I asked her if she would like to go. The ticket prices were affordable, the concert was close to her actual birthday and on a night I would have off.
The concert was not quite what I had expected though I was in no way disappointed. I had expected to hear jazz and popular pieces, along with the Cornell songs Jennifer and I remembered from our time on campus. The Cornell songs were covered but most of the repertoire was a mix of sacred music and secular classical pieces ranging in style from Latin hymns to choral settings of Negro spirituals. Everything was beautifully sung and performed in a gorgeous space. The concert closed with the familiar sounds of the “Evening Song” and “Alma Mater” well known to every student and graduate. The “Evening Song”, its tune otherwise known as “O Tannenbaum”, brings back fond memories of my time as a student when the sound of it echoing from the bell tower carillon marked the end of every day.
Everyone enjoyed the concert. Maura, like her mother, is a fan of choral music. The varied style of the pieces kept Maura’s attention and she was very well behaved. I would not have expected otherwise. It is a pleasure introducing Maura to the arts because she takes an interest in what we expose her to. Whether it is classical music or modern art she approaches everything with curiosity and an open mind. She sets a good example of for the rest of us. While Maura doesn’t enjoy everything new she hears or sees she does not prejudge. She lets her new experiences determine her attitude, not her expectations.
The concert was not quite what I had expected though I was in no way disappointed. I had expected to hear jazz and popular pieces, along with the Cornell songs Jennifer and I remembered from our time on campus. The Cornell songs were covered but most of the repertoire was a mix of sacred music and secular classical pieces ranging in style from Latin hymns to choral settings of Negro spirituals. Everything was beautifully sung and performed in a gorgeous space. The concert closed with the familiar sounds of the “Evening Song” and “Alma Mater” well known to every student and graduate. The “Evening Song”, its tune otherwise known as “O Tannenbaum”, brings back fond memories of my time as a student when the sound of it echoing from the bell tower carillon marked the end of every day.
Everyone enjoyed the concert. Maura, like her mother, is a fan of choral music. The varied style of the pieces kept Maura’s attention and she was very well behaved. I would not have expected otherwise. It is a pleasure introducing Maura to the arts because she takes an interest in what we expose her to. Whether it is classical music or modern art she approaches everything with curiosity and an open mind. She sets a good example of for the rest of us. While Maura doesn’t enjoy everything new she hears or sees she does not prejudge. She lets her new experiences determine her attitude, not her expectations.
Wednesday, December 23, 2009
Pride and Joy
I don’t think of myself as a perfect parent and often not as a good one. I’m frequently aloof, often short-tempered, and not always consistent. Despite my shortcomings I often see evidence that I might be doing something right. At the very least I can see that I’m not undermining with my poor parenting the good work that Jennifer does as Maura’s mother or destroying by my inattention Maura’s essential good nature.
One of those occasions when I can see that Maura is absorbing the lessons that her mother and I want her to learn came last Friday on the final night of Chanukah when Maura opened her last gift. She had appreciated the earlier gifts and I don’t think she had any disappointments. She takes her new stuffed Panda to bed at night and she wanted to wear her new dress to school even though it isn’t appropriate and I had to tell her no. It was clear from the moment that she opened it that the last gift was her favorite--the one that gave her the most pleasure to receive.
That final gift was a boxed collection of classic books for children. Jennifer and I had spotted it at the library book sale and picked it up right away. We can’t agree on who saw it first or whose idea it was to get it but neither of us had any doubts that Maura would love it and I am proud to say we were perfectly correct. Her eyes lit up when she unwrapped her box of books and right away she wanted to start reading them.
Maura is not a strange child. She is friendly and outgoing and enjoys company. She loves to play video games and watch TV. She enjoys being active; playing outside, ice skating, playing soccer and riding her bike. When she’s cooped up inside she sometimes chooses to dance around the living room listening to music on the stereo. She also loves to read and she’ll never be a child whose reaction to receiving a book as a gift is a lukewarm thank you, but rather a smile of genuine delight.
As a parent as well as a as a writer I am really gratified by my daughter’s love of reading. Her mother and I have done our best to instill in her that love. She has always been read to and seen us reading. There are books always in the house for everyone and frequent trips are made to the library to borrow more. I’m pleased when I hear Maura say she wants to grow up to be a writer and I would not be surprised if she does, but I’m more proud that she is already a reader. It’s a big step toward whatever she chooses to become and one that I have no doubt will be a big help and pleasure for her through her whole life.
One of those occasions when I can see that Maura is absorbing the lessons that her mother and I want her to learn came last Friday on the final night of Chanukah when Maura opened her last gift. She had appreciated the earlier gifts and I don’t think she had any disappointments. She takes her new stuffed Panda to bed at night and she wanted to wear her new dress to school even though it isn’t appropriate and I had to tell her no. It was clear from the moment that she opened it that the last gift was her favorite--the one that gave her the most pleasure to receive.
That final gift was a boxed collection of classic books for children. Jennifer and I had spotted it at the library book sale and picked it up right away. We can’t agree on who saw it first or whose idea it was to get it but neither of us had any doubts that Maura would love it and I am proud to say we were perfectly correct. Her eyes lit up when she unwrapped her box of books and right away she wanted to start reading them.
Maura is not a strange child. She is friendly and outgoing and enjoys company. She loves to play video games and watch TV. She enjoys being active; playing outside, ice skating, playing soccer and riding her bike. When she’s cooped up inside she sometimes chooses to dance around the living room listening to music on the stereo. She also loves to read and she’ll never be a child whose reaction to receiving a book as a gift is a lukewarm thank you, but rather a smile of genuine delight.
As a parent as well as a as a writer I am really gratified by my daughter’s love of reading. Her mother and I have done our best to instill in her that love. She has always been read to and seen us reading. There are books always in the house for everyone and frequent trips are made to the library to borrow more. I’m pleased when I hear Maura say she wants to grow up to be a writer and I would not be surprised if she does, but I’m more proud that she is already a reader. It’s a big step toward whatever she chooses to become and one that I have no doubt will be a big help and pleasure for her through her whole life.
Thursday, December 17, 2009
Harvard Museum of Natural History
On Tuesday, December 8th, we made an excursion to the Harvard Museum of Natural History on the Harvard Campus in Cambridge. The whole family made the trip. Jennifer had taken the day off and my parents were making their annual holiday visit to exchange gifts and see their granddaughter. It was not our most enjoyable trip, though that was hardly the fault of the museum, which has some truly spectacular exhibits. I think we were all a bit tired, my father was not feeling well, and I was in a lousy mood. Still, I think we all enjoyed the time we spent at the museum
The trip started well with lunch at the John Harvard Brewhouse in Harvard Square. The food and the service were good and for the adults there was tasty microbrewery beer. I enjoyed mine immensely. The walk across the Harvard Campus to the museum was rather less pleasant since the day was rather raw and it was a relief to arrive and get inside out of the weather.
The HMNH has some fascinating collections. On this trip we skipped the Great Hall of Mammals, probably the museum’s greatest draw, because on our last visit the fumes from the preservatives made Maura ill. This time we gave more attention to the remarkable display of glass flowers, which are truly amazing. Copies in glass of botanical specimens, they are both beautiful and accurate; superb examples of both natural beauty and remarkable craftsmanship. I would love to return alone someday to spend more time admiring them and improving my knowledge of botany.
The other highlight of the trip for me was the brief excursion we made into the Peabody Museum of Ethnography and Archaeology, which is connected to the Museum of Natural History. We spent little time there because we were already at the end of our day but I found the exhibit of mural paintings from the southwestern United States and Mexico to be really fascinating. I would love to see more of the Peabody. Next time we make a visit to museums at Harvard we’ll have to go to the Peabody first. So far we’ve barely scratched the surface of it.
Jennifer had planned a side trip after the museum visit to Burdick’s, reputed to have the best hot chocolate in the Boston Metropolitan Area. I would have preferred to skip that part of the day, but Maura was excited about it so I didn’t say anything. When we found the place it was crowded and there was no chance of the five of us finding seats. I found the place uninviting and oppressive and wanted to leave. I managed to anger Jennifer by my expression of indifference to the idea of getting something to go and my refusal to make a decision about it. I didn’t want to be blamed for disappointing Maura. In the end Maura and Jennifer got some hot chocolate, the rest of us didn’t, no one but Maura was really happy and I’ll never know if the hot chocolate’s reputation is deserved or not.
The trip started well with lunch at the John Harvard Brewhouse in Harvard Square. The food and the service were good and for the adults there was tasty microbrewery beer. I enjoyed mine immensely. The walk across the Harvard Campus to the museum was rather less pleasant since the day was rather raw and it was a relief to arrive and get inside out of the weather.
The HMNH has some fascinating collections. On this trip we skipped the Great Hall of Mammals, probably the museum’s greatest draw, because on our last visit the fumes from the preservatives made Maura ill. This time we gave more attention to the remarkable display of glass flowers, which are truly amazing. Copies in glass of botanical specimens, they are both beautiful and accurate; superb examples of both natural beauty and remarkable craftsmanship. I would love to return alone someday to spend more time admiring them and improving my knowledge of botany.
The other highlight of the trip for me was the brief excursion we made into the Peabody Museum of Ethnography and Archaeology, which is connected to the Museum of Natural History. We spent little time there because we were already at the end of our day but I found the exhibit of mural paintings from the southwestern United States and Mexico to be really fascinating. I would love to see more of the Peabody. Next time we make a visit to museums at Harvard we’ll have to go to the Peabody first. So far we’ve barely scratched the surface of it.
Jennifer had planned a side trip after the museum visit to Burdick’s, reputed to have the best hot chocolate in the Boston Metropolitan Area. I would have preferred to skip that part of the day, but Maura was excited about it so I didn’t say anything. When we found the place it was crowded and there was no chance of the five of us finding seats. I found the place uninviting and oppressive and wanted to leave. I managed to anger Jennifer by my expression of indifference to the idea of getting something to go and my refusal to make a decision about it. I didn’t want to be blamed for disappointing Maura. In the end Maura and Jennifer got some hot chocolate, the rest of us didn’t, no one but Maura was really happy and I’ll never know if the hot chocolate’s reputation is deserved or not.
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
The Harry Potter Exhibition
This Sunday Jennifer, Maura and I went to see the Harry Potter Exhibition at the Museum of Science. Our good friend Joe McGlone joined us for the trip. The exhibition was a collection of props and costumes from the Harry Potter movies. They were extremely detailed and well crafted and many of them were quite beautiful. Most of them, however, were props from movies neither I nor Maura had seen. Despite that, both Maura and I enjoyed the exhibition, though I might have been slightly disappointed if we had paid full price for our tickets rather than getting them at the substantial discount available to Museum of Science members. I’m sure the real fans of the movies were completely enthralled and felt they got their money’s worth.
Since we arrived early and had timed tickets we had some took in some of the museum exhibits before viewing the exhibition. The Museum of Science has become one of our favorite spots to visit in Boston and we’ll be there several more times over the course of the year since we are members and our visits to the museum's galleries are paid for. We didn’t have a lot of time on this visit so we concentrated on some of our favorite spots, the mathematics gallery and the Discovery Center which features hands-on exhibits for children.
For me the most interesting thing I saw on our trip wasn’t something in the Harry Potter exhibition or even a museum exhibit. While we were in the Discovery Center we got to watch a fascinating, if gory, display of nature in action. A red-tailed hawk had taken down a squirrel in the back garden of the museum and we got to watch from the large picture windows as she ate her lunch. Though she knew she was being watched the hawk was not at all disturbed by our presence since we were safely on the other side of the windows and therefore no threat. We got a superb view as the magnificent bird devoured her unlucky victim. She took her time and I could have watched for much longer but we had to go.
Since we arrived early and had timed tickets we had some took in some of the museum exhibits before viewing the exhibition. The Museum of Science has become one of our favorite spots to visit in Boston and we’ll be there several more times over the course of the year since we are members and our visits to the museum's galleries are paid for. We didn’t have a lot of time on this visit so we concentrated on some of our favorite spots, the mathematics gallery and the Discovery Center which features hands-on exhibits for children.
For me the most interesting thing I saw on our trip wasn’t something in the Harry Potter exhibition or even a museum exhibit. While we were in the Discovery Center we got to watch a fascinating, if gory, display of nature in action. A red-tailed hawk had taken down a squirrel in the back garden of the museum and we got to watch from the large picture windows as she ate her lunch. Though she knew she was being watched the hawk was not at all disturbed by our presence since we were safely on the other side of the windows and therefore no threat. We got a superb view as the magnificent bird devoured her unlucky victim. She took her time and I could have watched for much longer but we had to go.
Saturday, November 14, 2009
The Secrets of Tomb 10A
Yesterday Maura had the day off for Veterans’ Day and by happy coincidence the Museum of Fine Arts had free admission for the day, both to the museum and to the current exhibition of Egyptian artifacts from Tomb 10A at Deir el-Bersha, excavated by a museum sponsored exhibition in 1915. Though the artifacts have been in the museum collection since 1920 many have never been exhibited before and they are quite spectacular finds. Though the tomb, which belonged to a high official named Djehutynakht and his wife, had been looted of its most valuable artifacts the robbers had no interest in the wooden coffins that once contained the mummies of the pair or in the many wooden models that substituted for the servants the two would need to provide for their needs in the afterlife. The models included scenes of domestic and agricultural chores and a fleet of boats to carry them safely on their river journeys in the afterlife. Though perhaps not as spectacular as the gold and jewels no doubt stolen by the long-ago robbers, the models are for more enlightening because they show us how the ancient people of Egypt lived. The coffins too are enlightening and beautiful. Covered with scenes and spells in painted hieroglyphics, they tell us about what the Egyptians believed and how they saw their place in this world and in the afterlife.
The exhibit was fascinating and very well put together. Since I’m an archaeologist by training I was entranced and I think Maura was too. She loves ancient Egyptian art and finds hieroglyphics fascinating. She was interested enough in the subject matter to want to read much of the explanatory text and to listen to me talk about the artifacts we saw. I’m very proud of how she takes an interest in a subject that many kids might find dry and boring—and also of how well she behaved in the museum once she began to tire.
Once we had seen the special exhibit we spent some time in the rest of the museum. Mostly I let Maura decide what we would look at. She likes Asian art, particularly Japanese Buddhist sculpture. I encouraged her to think about the pieces we saw and she encouraged me by doing what I asked of her, answering questions about the relationships between the objects we saw. It is a real joy to visit a museum with a child who enjoys learning.
The exhibit was fascinating and very well put together. Since I’m an archaeologist by training I was entranced and I think Maura was too. She loves ancient Egyptian art and finds hieroglyphics fascinating. She was interested enough in the subject matter to want to read much of the explanatory text and to listen to me talk about the artifacts we saw. I’m very proud of how she takes an interest in a subject that many kids might find dry and boring—and also of how well she behaved in the museum once she began to tire.
Once we had seen the special exhibit we spent some time in the rest of the museum. Mostly I let Maura decide what we would look at. She likes Asian art, particularly Japanese Buddhist sculpture. I encouraged her to think about the pieces we saw and she encouraged me by doing what I asked of her, answering questions about the relationships between the objects we saw. It is a real joy to visit a museum with a child who enjoys learning.
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