My daughter Jessica had originally applied to
Carnegie Mellon University as a Music major. She was turned down
by the Music department but accepted by CMU in the Humanities
Scholars Program. She has been very happy in her CMU Freshman year in Pittsburgh,
PA, and made the Dean’s List in her first semester (meaning that CMU is also
happy with her!). As soon as she could, Jessica applied for a Music Minor.
She just called to say she was accepted! We are very happy and proud.

When we were researching colleges in 2006, we saw that the Fiske
Guide to Colleges (22nd Edition, 2006) summary of CMU was:
“Carnegie Mellon is the only premier technical university that also
happens to be equally strong in the arts. Applications nearly doubled
in the past ten years, so it must be doing something right.” This sounded
like a good fit for Jessica’s strengths and interests (and so it has turned
out).

Jessica will be singing 26-29 June 2008 as one of the three genii
(or
three boys) in Mozart’s opera

The Magic Flute (Die Zauberflote), at

Saltnote Stageworks in Washington, D.C. Tickets go on sale tomorrow.

It is still January but California’s Spring is well started. My Narcissus
are already in full bloom and the Daffodils are poking their round green
noses out of the soil. Even though yesterday was only the 2nd Sunday in Epiphany
(Lent starts in 2 weeks), I am getting ready for Easter. Every year, we have a herd
of little kids over for our annual Easter Egg Hunt and it takes time to
prepare my garden. During this 3-day weekend, I have been cutting (there is a
big heap of trimmings from Mexican Sage, Nandina, Trumpet Vine, Star Jasmine,
Cannas, Rosemary, Lavender, Fountain Grass, Bougainvillea, Lantana, and Dracena
waiting for pickup on the street), planting (Easter lilies and day lilies), rearranging
border rocks, and weeding. Paul and I cut down two big Dracena limbs and threw
them down the Guadalupe River bank behind our house. I hope they will root there.
I have set up our annual date with the Arborist to re-shape some of our more exuberant
trees.

John has been working on the bay windows of WP668, our backyard caboose. He
installed the wood facing on one window and is about half done building
the housing for the window frame and facing on the other bay. It rained on and
off all weekend so we know the leak on one of the bay windows is still with us.
I picked up most of the wood that fell down into the granite ballast when
we replaced WP668’s floor. I also went over most of the ballast with a big magnet
looking for bolts and nails, then moved most of the scraps of lumber from around
WP668 to the wood pile. I hope to make our side garden around the caboose part of
the egg hunt for the first time.

On 5 February, our parish, St. Andrew’s
Episcopal Church will be holding its Shrove Tuesday Pancake Races in Saratoga. This
is one of our family’s favorite church festivals and we are helping to manage the event.
My daughter is sad she can’t join us this year (she is at Carnegie Mellon in Pittsburgh,
Pennsylvania) but she wrote out her
“How to run a Shrove Tuesday Pancake supper and race” instructions in case
anyone wants to hold their own pre-Lent celebration. Here is a photo of John in his red
apron and carrying his frying pan announcing the Pancake Races in church yesterday:

Image Copyright 2008 by Katy Dickinson

My daughter Jessica is home from her first Freshman semester at
Carnegie Mellon University, CMU.
(Actually, she is off skiing with her boyfriend and his family
but she is home based even if not physically at home.) She got straight
A’s on her first report card and is looking forward to harder classes
next semester. She seems very happy at CMU.

We have been hosting many parties for her friends from Junior High, High
School, and College since Jessi came home. Listening to the teen chatter, it is clear
not all Freshman students find their new colleges as much to their liking as Jessi has.
Two or three of her friends are already in the process of transferring to new schools.
I am glad that Jessica’s school is a good match for her.

Jessi sang in four CMU holiday choir performances last month and has been invited to
perform as one of the three genii
(or
three boys) in Mozart’s opera

The Magic Flute (Die Zauberflote), at

Saltnote Stageworks in Washington, D.C. this summer. She hopes to make
Music her minor at CMU but is still thinking about what her major area of
study will be.

On Monday night, Christmas Eve, we made fruitcake (mixed in a 5 gallon bucket),
then went to evening service at
St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church
in Saratoga. The music was amazing. Yesterday, we celebrated Christmas at our house.
Today, I learned to weld! It has been a busy time.

Our Christmas tree gained some new ornaments. There are now large sections
of the tree featuring frogs, fish, trains, and teacups. In addition to presents
in traditional paper wrappings and gift bags, we had some less
physical gifts to share. My daughter Jessi learned one of our friend Laura’s
favorite Nora Jones songs (“Come Away With Me”) then sang it for her. My husband
John set up a dedicated URL and blog for Jessi –
http://feelingelephants.com/. Jessi created a web page on WordPress for her
grandmother: Eleanor Dickinson.

John taught me
MIG (metal inert gas) welding today so I can work on our backyard caboose
(WP668) and make my own garden structures. Here is my first solo welding creation,
a 2-1/2″ tall steel box:

Here are more photos from our Christmas:

St. Andrew’s

St. Andrew’s choir

St. Andrew’s star

Eleanor and Jessi making fruitcake

Jessi with fruitcake muffins

Our Christmas tree

Starfish Santa

NASA space monkey

The Misteltoad

John’s Train

Angels

Jessi and Paul

Bride

Groom

Mouse and Santa Duck

Frog and Engine

Green Fish School

Fish, Teacups, Engine

Images Copyright 2007 by Katy Dickinson and John Plocher