Christmas, Welding, Web Sites

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:

Katy's first welding - Christmas, 2007
photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

Here are more photos from our Christmas:

St. Andrew’s

St. Andrew's, Saratoga - Christmas, 2007
photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson
St. Andrew’s choir

St. Andrew's choir, Saratoga - Christmas, 2007
photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson
St. Andrew’s star

St. Andrew's star, Saratoga - Christmas, 2007
photo: copyright 2007 John Plocher
Eleanor and Jessi

making fruitcake

Eleanor and Jessi making fruitcake - Christmas, 2007
photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson
Jessi with

fruitcake muffins

Jessi with fruitcake muffins - Christmas, 2007
photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson
Our Christmas

tree

Our Christmas tree 2007
photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson
Starfish Santa

Starfish Santa ornament - Christmas, 2007
photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson
NASA space monkey

NASA space monkey ornament - Christmas, 2007
photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson
The Misteltoad

The Misteltoad ornament - Christmas, 2007
photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson
John’s Train

John's Train ornament - Christmas, 2007
photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson
Angels

Angel ornaments - Christmas, 2007
photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson
Jessi and Paul

Jessi and Paul ornament - Christmas, 2007
photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson
Bride

Bride ornament - Christmas, 2007
photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson
Groom

Groom ornament - Christmas, 2007
photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson
Mouse and Santa Duck

Mouse and Santa Duck ornaments - Christmas, 2007
photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson
Frog and Engine

Frog and Engine ornaments - Christmas, 2007
photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson
Green Fish School

Green Fish School ornaments - Christmas, 2007
photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson
Fish, Teacups, Engine

Fish, Teacups, Engine ornaments - Christmas, 2007
photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

Images Copyright 2007 by Katy Dickinson and John Plocher

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Merry Christmas!


Merry Christmas!


from My Family to Yours

Paul and Jessica

Paul and Jessica - Christmas, 2007
photo: copyright 2007 John Plocher
Eleanor and Wade

Eleanor and Wade - Christmas, 2007
photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

John and Katy

John and Katy - Christmas, 2007
photo: copyright 2007 Jessica Dickinson Goodman

Birdie

Birdie the Cockatiel - Christmas, 2007
photo: copyright 2007 John Plocher
Valentino

Valentino the cat - Christmas, 2007
photo: copyright 2007 John Plocher

Images Copyright 2007 by Katy Dickinson, John Plocher,
Jessica Dickinson Goodman

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Dickens Christmas Fair & Cable Car Carolling in San Francisco

Last weekend, we enjoyed many of our family’s traditional Christmas events, including: going to The Great Dickens Christmas Fair and singing carols on a cable car in San Francisco. We picked up my daughter Jessica and her boyfriend Matt at SFO airport on Wednesday. (They were due home from college Tuesday night but their second flight was cancelled and they had to stay over in Dallas, Texas, courtesy of American Airlines.)

On Saturday, Jessi and her friends dressed up to go to the Dickens Fair at the San Francisco Cow Palace. My mother and friend Laura went too. Sunday, we went to the Lessons and Carols service at St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church in Saratoga, then picked up Matt and drove to the city to sing carols with my parents. (Jessica revised our carols book this year.) We rode from Van Ness and California up and over Nob Hill to the Embarcadero. We walked around there to see the decorations before taking the cable car back. Today, my mother is coming to San Jose to assemble and bake fruitcakes. Tonight, we go to Christmas Eve service at St. Andrew’s. Christmas is at our house tomorrow; we are expecting 12 for dinner.

SFO: Jessica and Matt

home from college

Jessica and Matt home from college, SFO 2007 photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

Dickens Fair – Mad Sal’s Ladies’

Oratorical and Recreational Society

Dickens Fair - Mad Sal's Ladies' Oratorical and Recreational Society 2007 photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

Dickens Fair – Gilbert & Sullivan’s

Pirates of Penzance

Dickens Fair - Gilbert & Sullivan's Pirates of Penzance 2007 photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

Dickens Fair –

Pirates of Penzance

Dickens Fair - Gilbert & Sullivan's Pirates of Penzance, 2007 photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

Dickens Fair –

Jessica and Friends

Dickens Fair - Jessica and Friends 2007 photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

Dickens Fair –

Dark Garden tableau

Dickens Fair - Dark Garden tableau 2007 photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

Dickens Fair –

Dark Garden tableau

Dickens Fair - Dark Garden tableau 2007 photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

San Francisco

cable car sign

San Francisco cable car sign 2007 photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

Family Christmas

carol song book

Family Christmas carol song book 2007 photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

Eleanor and Paul

with cable car

Eleanor and Paul with cable car 2007 photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

San Francisco

cable car view

San Francisco cable car view 2007 photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

John and Paul

singing

John and Paul singing 2007 photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

John and Eleanor

singing

John and Eleanor singing 2007 photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

John and Jessica

singing

John and Jessica singing 2007 photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

Family with

cable cars

Family with cable cars 2007 photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

Paul and Eleanor

on cable car

Paul and Eleanor on cable car 2007 photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

Cable car on

California

Cable car on California 2007 photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

Giant red ornament

plaza decorations

Giant red ornament plaza decorations - San Francisco, 2007 photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

Paul inside

red balls

Paul inside red balls 2007 photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

Jessica inside

red balls

Jessica inside red balls 2007 photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

Matt inside

red balls

Matt inside red balls 2007 photo: copyright 2007 John Plocher

Family with

red ornaments

Family with red ornaments - San Francisco, 2007 photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

Hyatt Regency

sculpture and lights

Hyatt Regency sculpture and lights 2007 photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

Jessica and Matt

pool reflections

Jessica and Matt pool reflections 2007 photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

Hyatt lights

and tree

Hyatt lights and tree 2007 photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

Hyatt tree

and hanging lights

Hyatt tree and hanging lights - San Francisco, 2007 photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

Paul and Jessica

and Matt at Hyatt

Paul and Jessica and Matt at Hyatt 2007 photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

Wade at

Hyatt

Wade at Hyatt 2007 photo: copyright 2007 John Plocher

Images Copyright 2007 by Katy Dickinson and John Plocher

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Over 3/4 SEEDs Matched (39 out of 50)

I don’t expect to match more than one or two more of the SEED mentoring
program participants before the new year. The last match was on 20 December.
We matched 78% (39 out of 50) participants in the first ten days of
the cycle. I think this is a program speed record! However,
most people are now home with their families and letting their email
and work be for a while. This SEED Established Staff term will run
January-July 2008.

More information on the SEED Engineering mentoring program is available at

http://research.sun.com/SEED/

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Stained Glass Caboose Window

On Saturday, stained glass artist Vince Taylor came to visit. We met Vince at the Palo Alto Festival of the Arts years ago. He has made two lovely stained glass windows for us before; we just asked him to make three more for WP668, our backyard caboose. The new glass will fill the 3 bay windows (1 square center plus 2 long side lights) facing away from our house.

We talked about the mechanics of windows (amount of light, privacy, drainage, rain and wind protection, condensation, etc.) and design. As a place to start, I particularly like the piece Vince created for St. Patrick’s Episcopal Church, Kenwood. I also asked Vince to include this 1974 image of WP668 as a design element in the center window:

WP668.Sacramento2.DaveStanley.1973

Photo by Dave Stanley on p. 3: “Western Pacific Headlight” Issue #29, Spring 2006, Publisher: Feather River Rail Society and WPRRHS. Used with permission of Dave Stanley

It will take months to go from the bare steel we have to a completed stained glass window set in a custom wooden frame and protected by a sheet of tempered glass. Having worked with Vince before, the development process will be fun.

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Christmas Traditions: Lights, Trains, Nativity…

We are about a week away from Christmas and great preparations are being made. Last weekend, John and Paul put up our house
lights. I worked on my living room Christmas train line (G-scale, eventually to be moved outside as pieces of my to-be-constructed garden railway), put together a candy cane flower arrangement shown in the December 2007 Sunset magazine, and wrapped presents. Jessica flies home from CMU tomorrow at midnight. We are in negotiations with friends and family as to who is coming with us to the The Great Dickens Christmas Fair at the San Francisco Cow Palace this Saturday. Christmas dinner menu offerings and logistics are being discussed…

Last night, John and I drove around Willow Glen (San Jose, CA) to see the Christmas lights. The new LED lights are very popular this year, as are the big lighted blowup figures, icicles, and musical light sets. Nothing shows off the taste of the neighborhood (or lack thereof) as what they do with their holiday lights. Here are some snapshots of our Christmas so far:

Our Bethlehem Olive Wood Nativity

(with extra camels and angels)

Our Bethlehem Olive Wood Nativity - with extra camels and angels - Christmas 2007 photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

Candy Canes

and Roses

Candy Canes and Roses - Christmas 2007 photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

Tino posing for

icanhascheezburger

Tino posing for icanhascheezburger - Christmas 2007 photo: copyright 2007 John Plocher

My ladybug G-scale

train engine

My ladybug G-scale train engine - Christmas 2007 photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

Living room

train line

Living room train line - Christmas 2007 photo: copyright 2007 John Plocher

Living room

train line

Living room train line - Christmas 2007 photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

Our house lights

Willow Glen - our house - Christmas lights 2007 photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

Victorian house

Willow Glen Christmas lights

Willow Glen Victorian house Christmas lights 2007 photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

Willow Glen

Christmas lights

Willow Glen Christmas lights 2007 photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

Willow Glen

Christmas lights

Willow Glen Christmas lights 2007 photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

Willow Glen – turkey in

Christmas lights

Willow Glen turkey in Christmas lights 2007 photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

Willow Glen

Christmas lights

Willow Glen Christmas lights 2007 photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

Sponge Bob, Snowmen, Nativity,

Deer, Santa, and just lights

Willow Glen Sponge Bob, Snowmen, Nativity, Deer, Santa, and just Christmas lights 2007 photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

Willow Glen

Christmas lights

Willow Glen Christmas lights 2007 photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

Willow Glen

blow up Santa

Willow Glen blow up Santa Christmas lights 2007 photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

Willow Glen

snowman in lights

Willow Glen snowman in Christmas lights 2007 photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

Willow Glen

blow up Snowman

Willow Glen blow up Snowman Christmas lights 2007 photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

Willow Glen

simple icicle lights

Willow Glen simple icicle Christmas lights 2007 photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

Willow Glen front yard

home made Nativity

Willow Glen front yard home made Nativity Christmas 2007 photo: copyright 2007 Katy Dickinson

Images Copyright 2007 by Katy Dickinson and John Plocher

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Over Half SEEDs Matched (26 out of 50) So Far

This morning, the current SEED matching cycle entered its second half.
In our first week of matching, 27 out of the 50 mentoring program
participants have been matched with mentors. This SEED
Established Staff term will run January-July 2008. I want to
make as many matches as possible before the term officially starts.

There will be very few matches after this coming week and typically
there are no matches at all Christmas week, so I am doing my best to
encourage potential mentors to give me their decisions very soon.

More information on the SEED Engineering mentoring program is available at

http://research.sun.com/SEED/

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