news from sha

How great that Sha has a choice of med schools. I bet there are many pre-docs who envy her that luxury. We were hoping she'd look with fond memories of her brief visits to Circle Rd and pick Upstate Med. Center: too bad.
With the Singapore Murrays due to be stateside this summer, she and Dave are bound to run into some of us. Is there a "general assembly" being planned? That's a pipe dream, I guess, unless Lake Ontario lures them away from Hawaii for their wedding.
I certainly hope to see them - and any/all of the clan.
70 degrees here today. There's hope!!!! nsm

News from Sha

Dave and I are thinking of coming east this summer (late July, early august). We'd love to see you. Is the Murray clan getting together?

I haven't decided where I'll be this fall, but leaning towards UCSF or UC Davis. The final decision will probably made in May.

Hope everyone is well.

Sha

CT kids say the darndest things

Sarah and I butted heads the other day. She has been the easiest, most agreeable kid for so many months that it really took me by surprise. It wasn't pretty and we ended up not being too happy with each other.

We finished the 'discussion' in front of the other two kids, in part because I wanted them to know that you could be mad at someone you love and work it out and then be fine afterwards.

Then I went inside a place to pick up food. I got back in the car, and everything was fine again. Sarah was joking, Elizabeth was being silly, I was being 'annoying'. Max sits there for a minute, and then says to no one "And the tension deflates like a punctured balloon. Metaphor." He never said anything else the whole time.

I laughed, the other two didn't get/hear it and then because I am annoying, I leaned over and said "Max, I love you. And it was a simile."

He misses nothing, even though he has a different prism.

MM

canada photos

Found an interesting web page with some nice photos.
Check them out here...
mm

Evan Waters Leads the Pack

if you check out ESPN.com's Tournament Challenge (group name UNC_SUX), you can see that our very own Evan Waters is leading 99.8% of the nation. if BC wins it all, who knows how high he may climb.

I, on the other hand, am ahead of 11.9 percent of the nation. Gone are my days of being a bit above average.

I went over to Edgar Cavelheri's for St. Paddy's Day dinner. I ate the cabbage but i didn't try the corned beef. i'm not sure i ever ate the stuff even when i did eat four legged animals.

ed's hair seemed to be an orange-ish color. i may reconsider my appoint ment to get rid of my gray hairs.

Ed and Val found out not too long ago that their mom has advanced lung cancer. They're trying to deal with that from a hemisphere away.

They say they call to Brazil quite often, for free, via Skype. if you have broadband internet at home, you can make computer-computer calls via Skype www.skype.com

i don't have internet at home so i won't be joining skype any time soon.

later on,

B

Madness Continues

What a weekend, if you like college basketball. I certainly watched more bb this weekend then the past years, combined.

I'm not sure who i want to win it all. i find myself cheering for the Big East - even Georgetown. If i can't hate the Hoyas, i must be getting soft in my old age. I may have to go ABD - Anyone But Duke.

Sean, I may not have commented, but i did appreciate your mascot e-mail.

Spring has sprung all over the world

Syracuse 21, light snow; Hallowell 30, clear; Arlington 45, overcast; Chandler AZ 50, clear; Singapore 82, haze; Kingston -3C, cloudy.

i'm not sure where i'd rather be.

how 'bout you?

Sean Says

thinking about nicknames as i watch the jumpy stream of bruins v bruins
obviously i'm cheering for the belmount bruins
who were holding their own till i switched to the xu game
just checked back and the bruins are down 32
they aren't the only bears
california has the golden bears
not to be confused with montana grizzlies
i'd say the #5 wolfpack know who they are now
not to be confused with the #10 wolfpack of north carolina
the bruins are not the only species to go after themselves
second round we could have wildcats play each other
and if the wildcats win, they would have to play...
the wildcats in the fourth round
that is if the wildcats can get past the
panthers, tigers, jaguars, and more panthers
all in that region
third round could see huskies battle
that is if the huskies can get past the great danes
we have a few dogs in this tourney
and i'm not talking about air force (how did they get in)
we have bulldogs, great danes and my favorite the salukis
an ancient dog out of egypt
usually tan, white, or fawn
the Bedouin tribe believed the white patch on its forehead
was a kiss from allah
regionals could see golden eagles go at each other
or seahawks against hawkeyes,
boy would feathers fly in those games
they of course are not the only birds
hiker mike could have a field day
with an elite eight of
seahawks, eagles,hawkeyes, golden eagles, jayhawks, eagles, falcons, and
2 more golden eagles
other regional action could have the blue devils against the demons
only if the demons can get past the quakers
if the hoyas can get past the sooners and the illini
they could play the hoosiers as long as the gaels don't take the semi final
big east fans were probably shocked to see seton hall fall
hence wichita state's name
it could be the racers against the shockers
if they get past the patriots and the volunteers
but first murray state has to beat the tarheels
what the hell is a tarheel
is the mascot the tar or the heel
we could see a finals pitting the aggies
against the aggies
or the patriots against the colonials
me, i'm wishing the golden flashes
can beat the golden eagles and the golden bears
to face the racers
who beat the shockers, blazers, and badgers to get there
truly some of the greats didn't make the tourney this year
think of the battle of the bananna slugs against the anteaters
or the jumbos against the mastodons
(i think we had an uncle or two that were jumbos)
or even the dirt bags against the lord jeffs
(some of my sibs know the lord jeffs from the happy valley)
or how about the chokers against the artichokes
if only the orange had to play the poets,
we might have another national championship
go orange

oops - wrong number

I see the correct # of the marathoner in the photo: 1107, not 1104. That tells me that my memory is only good for about 3 minutes. (sigh)
More snow, still pretty cold. Off to Syr. Stage at 3 to see "Intimate Apparel" and then out to an African dinner.
Glad the Olympics are almost over; I watched more than I thought I would and most were disappointing. Bode might want to change his name to Bobo.
2 more weeks til we take off for Phoenix where it's 75 degrees and sunny. By the time we adjust, it'll be time to come home - on the 19th.
I have my card that tells airport security that I have a metal hip, but I've heard that some folks get hassled anyway.
That's all for now - happy Mardi Gras. We're supposed to eat pancakes that day so I may hang out at my favorite diner, Ruston's. for b'fast. addio, nance

marathon

If you were running behind #1104, I can see why you made such good time.
Is that you with the ice-pack on your quads? I bet they ached!
Suggest a hot tub after chilling out. I had half an hour in a 92 degree pool at the therapy center thursday - mmmmm - delicious.
Off to see Dr. Bob later; the plow just came to free me.

That's enough with the running! Get a hobby, maybe one with a low risk factor. Old parents can't take worrying about middle-aged boomers. ciao, Mama

A few more marathon pics

26.2 - Check

One more item checked off my "Things to do before you die" list.

I ran 26.2 miles on Sunday.

I finished in 4:08:04 (out in 2:00:03), if you must know. i was happy with the time. 115 overall. If i had been able to do my scheduled training the last month, i think i would have been under 4 hours.

Here are the mile times, FYI

1. 8:50 2. 8:47 3. 8:51 4. 9:07
5 9:02 6 8:52 7 9:36 8 9:00
9 8:52 10 9:14 11 9:45 12 9:25
13 9:40 14 9:24 15 9:27 16 10:08
17 9:11 18 9:58 19 10:04 20 10:08
21 9:33 22 9:50 23 9:55 24 9:55
25 9:46 26 9:50

threading needles

Is that a Zen test?
Like - What is the sound of one hand clapping?
If not, buy a threader.
They come in little sewing kits at your local drugstore.

from bassrock

A 4 hour run

I'm off to Florida on friday, 2/17, for what i hope will be a 4 hour run on sunday. i have not put many miles on my shoes since mid-January so it will be interesting to see how the marathon goes.

my first goal is to finish. the second goal is to go under 4 hours. i think 4:10 - 4:20 is more realistic.

see you

B

Threading the Needle

When you thread a needle, do you

A. Hold the needle and push the thread through it?

B. Hold the thread and push the needle to the thread?

26 miles to go

I hope to run a marathon in 2 weeks. i had some ankle tendon issues during january. i hadn't run since mid-january. i ran 7+ miles today. it wasn't quick but it was without pain. so that's a good thing.

While i'm eating dinner and watching the super bowl, Sean and family is eating breakfast and watching the game in Singapore. it's probably a little warmer there.

Seattle is down 7-3 at half. :-(

B

the un-winter

maybe there's nothing to say when global warming is upon us. Temps may go into the 50s today, grey skies, all is blah.didn't keep a journal of my january adventure: sorry.could be that mr bush has driven us all into speechlessness or, if we open our mouths, we may just scream; if we write down our thoughts, the NSA may come for a visit.

S.U.s big star hurt himself; they won without him.For any opera fans, Maria Callas fans, i watched a great Fellini movie, "Callas Forever."we'll make it thru the first half of XL super bowl, only because there's a party on Second Street in Liverpool.

Tonite, "Waiting for Guffman." Good Night and Good Luck, to your readers from the tropics. nsm

still reading?

Is anyone reading the blog?

Do have thoughts to post to the blog?

B

Final Aussie Post

Today is Connor's 14th birthday and we had a GREAT Day. We took a large catamaran for an hour ride out to the Great Barrier Reef and a small island off a coral cay. The scenery was just beautiful-- like out of the picture books-- blue sky, beautiful blue and green water and pristine white sand on the beaches.

We spent the day snorkling at the reef. We saw so many brightly colored fish-- parrot fish, butterfly fish, and angel fish-- and those were only the ones we recognized. We also saw giant sea turtles and Giant Clams that were three feet across. We felt like we were swimming in Mark's fish tank-- although Connor adds "with better fish!!". He thinks Uncle Mark needs to get working on that!!

At one point Caitlin, Connor and I were actually swimming with a Giant Sea Turtle for about 15 minutes or so. Sean and Connor saw two huge fish. If we were in the Carribean Sean would have said one of them was a barracuda- not sure what is that large over here.

Shannon did great-- you would never know that she had just fractured her arm a little less than a month ago. I think the turtles were her favorite. We were all sad to leave the reef but had a fun sail back to Port Douglas complete with a live guitarist singing Australian folk songs.

All in all a great birthday for Connor and one I know he will remember. We are heading off to his birthday dinner at Mango Jam-- his favoriite restaraunt we have eaten at this week. I am sure we will crash early after our day of snorkling.

We hope to bring some of our Aussie lingo back with us-- our favorites-- "mate", "no worries" and "no drama." We suspect these may work their way in the Singapore Murray vernacular. Tomorrow our great Australian Adventure comes to an end as we fly back to Singapore. We are thankful for our fabulous three weeks Down Under.

We are sending lots of positive healing thoughts to Nancy who had hip replacement surgery this week. I am going to attempt to continue these e-mail updates once we return to Singapore although on a less frequent(maybe every few weeks) basis.

Thanks to all who have responded to our e-mails over the three weeks. It really helped bring a bit of family to us here in Australia. It made spending the holidays away from you all a little bit easier although we all missed seeing everyone. Signing off from Down Under. Deb, Sean, Caitlin, Connor and Shannon

'Roo post

We are having a great time in Port Douglas at the Great Barrier Reef. We spent one whole day enjoying the resort and its many lagoons. Today, we went to The Rainforest Habitat, a wildlife sanctuary. The habitat let's you wander through three unique environments that houses more than 180 species from the surrounding rainforest, wetlands and grasslands. The Habitat is in partnership with the Wet Tropics Management Authority for the purpose of rainforest conservation and education. It houses rare and threatened species in their natural habitat.

We got there early in the morning to have "Breakfast with the Birds." It was an experience to eat with the beautifully colored birds all around but did get a bit tricky while you ate-- feeling as if you have to dodge a few as they flew directly overhead. We then went to the reptile area to see a python feeding. We were assured they are basically not harmful to humans.

Next was the Koala area complete with a "Koala experience" where the kids were able to get up close to the Koalas. Next, we went to the grasslands where there were kangaroos, wallabies, pelicans, and tons of interesting birds all roaming about in their natural habitat. We saw lots of different kinds of kangaroos--from the large red kangaroos to the Eastern Grey kangaroos to the petite Parma kangaroos to the Lumholtz tree kangaroos (which actually look like a monkey with a kangaroo tail). We spent several hours feeding and petting the kangaroos. It is unbelievable how soft and gentle these animals are. We spent almost an hour watching a mom and joey (baby) kangaroo. After some time the kids were actually able to feed both the mom and the baby in her pouch. Sean and I are amazed how taken Connor is with the kangaroos-- he says he wants a pet kangaroo!! I wonder if somehow Connor's gentle nature connects with the gentleness of the kangaroo.

We also saw a saltwater crocodile that was 12 feet long and then saw probably ten or more Fresh Water Crocodiles. We saw up close several Emus and the Southern Cassowary which is not a pretty looking bird but is one of the more unusual things I have ever seen. It is an endangered species that is considered a keystone species meaning that its loss would likely lead to long term changes in plant communities within the rainforest. The Cassowary had a footprint from the middle talon to the back that was 12 inches long-- for you non bird lovers that means they have very big feet.

We saw more species of birds than we could count-- all so brightly colored with such beautiful and distinctive calls. Cathie and Mike would have been in their glory here. Later in the afternoon, we took a river cruise on the Lady Douglas Paddleboat.

This took us through the Mangrove Channels of Port Douglas to look for wild corcodiles and bird life. We were able to see several types of ospreys, herons and got to see a few more sea eagles. We also spotted a young male crocodile who followed the boat for some time. We then got to see an amazing animal interaction between the crocodile and a sea eagle. They came to a absolute standoff over a dead fish in the mud on the side of the river. The crocodile kept inching toward the fish while the sea eagle kept hopping down closer flapping its wings to appear as large as possible to the crocodile. The two then just stood eye to eye about ten feet apart staring each other down. Finally the sea eagle swooped in and won the fish leaving the crocodile to slide back down the muddy river side into the inlet. The proprietors of the boat said they had never seen anything like this.

We think we captured some good shots on film and promised to send some of the photos to John and Jenny if they turn out. The whole thing felt like it was something in a National Geographic TV special instead of something we were witnessed in real life.

We finished the day with a terrific dinner at a Mexican restaurant. Then it was back to the hotel-- we were exhausted. Shannon was thrilled to get to the room and put on her comfy "towel slippers" what she now calls the terry cloth slippers the resort provides to its guests. Tomorrow is Connor's birthday and our last day in Australia. We are taking a boat ride out to see the Great Barrier Reef. More to come. Deb, Sean, Cailtlin, Connor and Shannon.

Happy Oz New Year

It is just past midnight here in Australia. We are having a great time at a New Year's Eve party in Port Douglas on the Great Barrier Reef just north of Cairns, Australia. We are celebrating at a party in the lobby of the Mirage Resort. Feels a bit odd not to see the. Ball drop in Times Square, which won't happen for another 15 hours or so. The key New Year's icon here is the fireworks over Sydney Harbor. Earlier this evening we had a great dinner at Paddy's Irish Pub in Port Douglas then back to the resort for the party-- complete with live band. We had fun singing and dancing. Shortly after we got to the party, our "Little Miss Social" started talking with some kids across the dance floor. Come to find out Shannon was talking to a third grade buddy of hers from the Singapore American School (SAS). Dominic and his family seem very nice-- they also have a seventh grader although Connor and he had not yet crossed paths. It is funny to be so far away and in a more remote Australian town (most people stay right in and around Cairns) and run across people from SAS. The same thing hapened in Phuket over Thanksgiving only many times over as we met probably 10 families from SAS there. While we are having a great time, we won't last long as we had to get up very early this morning to fly from Surfer's Paradise to Cairns-- then drove about an hour north to Port Douglas. On the flight in, we got a good view of the Great Barrier Reef. It is so vast and stretches for miles and miles. Tomorrow, on New Year's Day, we are planning to rest up at the resort. It is gorgeous with about ten lagoons and two enormous pools-- one fresh water and one salt water. We are planning a few excursions out to see the reef before we head back to Singapore. We feel like our Aussie adventure has covered a lot of ground until the country map reminds us we have only seen a small sliver of Australia. Like the US, it is a huge country. That said, we are thrilled with the peek this trip is providing. Happy New Year to all. We're praying the new year will bring peace to the world and health & happiness to all. Deb, Sean, Caitlin, Connor and Shannon.