Part, The Third:

What to say here? It has been a long, interesting, highly non-linear path to get to the point where I can write this entry. I have accepted a physics faculty position at Rochester Institute of Technology. I will join RIT this fall as a junior faculty member and begin setting up an x-ray diffraction lab on campus.

This represents the realization of a dream that started many years ago, and was revised numerous times as I matured. It has involved a great deal of work to get to this point. Many times that work was very exciting, and always challenging. However, other times it required substantial stubbornness and endurance.

This success is in no small part to all those that I have worked with during the years. I benefited enormously from many different people and sources.

• My dear wife Kerri and our families.

• My professors from my undergraduate years at RPI, those at graduate school at UW, and even as far back as Amarillo College.

• The research advisers, collaborators, and many colleagues through the years.

• The many friends I’ve made along the way, having taught me important things about life beyond physics.

(I’ll offer my apologies for not actually posting individual names above. I just prefer not to disclose personal information about others in this forum without consent.)

Part, The Second:

We are moving into a new house! Well, not just yet. But sometime in the next couple of months it should happen.

We spent much of the last week hunting in earnest for a new domicile. It looks like things are successful! We’ve found a wonderful place on a quiet, wooded street. There are trees (glorious trees!) everywhere and nearby a couple of small lakes. It’s walking distance to a coffee shop (a local one, not Starbucks) and a few other shops. It’s also located near a great bike path that will get me back and forth each day. Well, at least every day that it’s not snowy and cold.

It will be our second house, but it is much closer to “us” than our current one. The first house was very nice, but limited in several ways. Here is a place that really seems much more like it will suit our habits and lifestyle. Not to mention that it has a nice bedroom for our little one on the way. It’s all very exciting.

When we first approached the front door, a dark eyed junco bird flew out at us, landed on the ground, and began a true ruckus. She hopped around, chirped, flew up and down, and everything else she could to get our attention. Her mate soon joined her and began diving at us. It didn’t take long before we noticed a small nest built in a wreathe on the door with several eggs. When we went back to the house a second time the eggs had all hatched and all the babies were begging, mouthes gaping open, for food.


At first when you look in the nest, all is quiet.

but as soon as they detect activity,

it’s time for food!

This really seems like a wonderful house and place to start our family.

One unexpected part of house hunting was meeting lots of cats.

Oh, did I mention it’s in Rochester New York?

It is sometimes difficult to put down in words just how one feels about giant life changes. And it would appear that we have several such changes right now. I also tend to be a little hesitant to put personal details, especially those that impact another, out for public. While we have told many of you, we have probably missed several of you. So I apologize for using a medium such as this. As you will understand, things have been rather busy lately.

Part, The First:

So with no further ado : Kerri and I are expecting our first child this September! We have wanted children for a long time now, but assumed it just wasn’t in the cards for us.

Several months ago Kerri told me “I feel pregnant.” I rejected the idea out of hand. She had never been pregnant before and there could be so many other things that would show up as the symptoms she was feeling. Later that day however, her feeling was confirmed. Due to our history of not getting pregnant we decided to wait several months before saying much of anything.

However, things have progressed nicely. We are fully expecting 10 fingers and 10 toes! This little 3rd party has also been cooperating nicely with the entire process (thus far). Kerri reports little adverse feelings or effects from the pregnancy. We are, of course, very excited, and hopeful to welcome this new little one into our family soon.