He performed in “The Music Man”, “Madame Butterfly”, and “Fiddler on the Roof” and sang in over 10,000 funerals and weddings in his time (no joke), all on top of a full-time position as a pharmacist and a focus on quality time with his family.
He was one of the most generous people I’ve ever met and remained unabashedly positive regardless of the circumstances.
I’ve learned a lot from him, and hope to carry his legacy forward by deepening my faith, continuing to connect with others, and genuinely contributing my time and energy to lifting up humanity, just as he did. I love him to the moon and will miss him immensely.
I write this in seat 21C of Alaska flight 234-1 from Eugene to San Diego.
You know that nervousness you feel right before you step off the high-dive into the your community pool? Yeah. That’s me right now. Except my high dive is in the form of a teeny tiny round silver diamond encrusted object that I’m about to give to the love of my life. And rather than leaping into the cold shimmering waters tinged with chlorine, I’m bending down and planting one knee in the San Diego sand…
Yep, I’m (hopefully) getting engaged today. And I couldn’t be happier. What can I say? She’s got me, hook, line, and sinker. If not her, then who?
I’ll save you the sappiness, but these milestones are such important parts of our lives. Such a small moment, but such a big leap.
Well, here’ goes. Into the deep end. Wish me luck!
(Post update, she said yes. Thank goodness or I would have just swam west).
We all have to deal with deadlines, but that shared anxiety doesn’t make it much easier to deal with as they approach.
In the wee hours of yesterday morning, I popped into a coffee shop called Imagine Coffee. Imagine that! After buying my typical iced Americano, several hours were spent pouring over textbooks and online lectures in a rather uncomfortable wooden chair. But why subject myself to this caffeinated restlessness? Because Oregon State University’s College of Engineering puts forth the gauntlet of qualifying exams for all Ph.D. students after their first year. They want to see if you truly “think” like an academic and test both your written and oral mental fortitude. Mine are in less than a month, and I’m sure many students have echoed this sentiment over the years, but full conceptual understanding feels as distant as an oasis in the middle of the Sahara right now.
Seeing that day inching its way inevitably closer gives me the slightest understanding of what it must have been like for the Spartans of Thermopylae, standing resolute as the Persian exam comes in on foot, chariot, and other more intense machines of war. I’m being facetious, but it doesn’t mean I don’t wish down to my thickest bones for this test to be over. I do have hope that one day that giant will lie on the barren earth, defeated. As the reader, if you also have looming deadlines, what is your best method of attack in keeping your cool?
At this point, all I can say is take heart. This too shall pass.
I used to downhill longboard all the time. Every once and a while I’ll still dust off the ol’ deck, slip on my slide gloves and find a fun little hill nearby. Here’s some footage from an afternoon bomb today. Enjoy!
As a coastal engineer, part of our research this December will involve putting out disposable drifters that capture surface currents over a submerged reef off Newport, Oregon (think little floats that ping their location up to SpaceX or something, where we’ll see the data in real-time). The goal is to understand how rip currents behave in the presence of a storm, and whether we can potentially model the behavior of these rips.
The Oregon coast in springtime
Scientists have tried to pin down exactly how rip currents behave for decades. It’s also been the bane of many a lifeguard’s existence since beach safety was first introduced. A 1941 article by Shephard et al. in the Journal of Geology stated that lifeguards referred to these things as “rip tides” or “sea pusses” (I don’t recommend you use the latter term). Since this time, our understanding of rips has increased substantially. A few facts for you:
Rather early research describes rips are caused by an excess of water build up on the shore from waves, resulting in currents that move along the shore close to the beach. At varying times and locations, these currents meet and turn seaward to form outgoing rip currents (Mckenzee, 1958).
More recent studies found that where rips form is directly linked to the variability of where waves break along the shoreline. This variability causes excess momentum in some areas and lessened momentum in others. Of course, energy will move from high to low. Thus, rips tend to form in certain areas and change in intensity and location, factors which scientists are hoping to predict more accurately in the future (Castelle et al., 2016).
If you find yourself caught in a rip, follow the advice of several survivors, who say firstly, not to panic. Try not to fight the rip, but allow it to carry you as you try and swim parallel to the shoreline to escape the strongest current (Drozdzewski et al., 2012).
The coast is a fascinating place. It holds mysteries yet to be unlocked by the curious, excitement to the recreationist, and a sense of wonder to all who visit. The ocean is also a powerful force to be reckoned with, and knowing what it can do may just keep you from giving in to its watery g”rip”.
(For an example of the power of the ocean, see a previous post, “The Unmoving Coaster” from 2020).
Castelle, B., Scott, T., Brander, R. W., & McCarroll, R. J. (2016). Rip current types, circulation and hazard. Earth-Science Reviews, 163, 1-21.
Drozdzewski, D., Shaw, W., Dominey-Howes, D., Brander, R., Walton, T., Gero, A., … & Edwick, B. (2012). Surveying rip current survivors: preliminary insights into the experiences of being caught in rip currents. Natural Hazards and Earth System Sciences, 12(4), 1201-1211.
McKenzie, P. (1958). Rip-current systems. The Journal of Geology, 66(2), 103-113.
Shepard, F. P., Emery, K. O., & La Fond, E. C. (1941). Rip currents: a process of geological importance. The Journal of Geology, 49(4), 337-369.
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