Re-entry

Why is it so hard to truly get back into your routine after you've had a few days off of work?  Sure, there's emails and voicemails to trudge through to keep you busy, maybe even some friendly holiday watercooler chat with colleagues, but I for one dived back into bed for 15 minutes this morning after turning off my alarm, then lingered in the shower until my fingers wrinkled.  Perhaps it was simply coming off of a high of having an extended weekend to do so many things that I enjoy so much; spending time with my husband, family and friends new and old, cooking & baking (then eating without reserve - ahem), even a little sprinkle of yoga, shopping, and holiday decorating in between - glorious!   Now the reality sets back in, so on this Monday I am trying hard to put being gracious and grateful into practice.
 
But for an easy smile I thought I'd share a pic of our nephew from warmer weather last month who makes getting into the swing of things look super fun! 

 

Our fortune

Many of you have heard at least a version of Luke 12:48, something along of the lines of "unto whom much is given, much will be required."  Seems fair, right?  But sometimes I'm overwhelmed by this concept, because I feel that I have been blessed with so much in my life, and yet I wonder if I'm doing enough in return.  Do I really give enough of myself at work, at home, to my friends, family and community?  What is it that has been/will be required of me?  It's humbling to be reminded that everything we have has been given to us, and we shouldn't be mistaken with the belief that we earn or somehow deserve any of it. 
 
Here's to remembering we are blessed, friends.  Happy Thanksgiving!

 

A plug for the Volt

November 19, 2009 http://www.freep.com/

Pun intended! But just thought I'd take up a long post to share a recent article in the Detroit Free Press about the project team the hubby is working on - because I'm proud of him :).

November 19, 2009 www.freep.com
Evolution of the Chevy Volt
Engineers work to fix glitches by deadline
by Mark Phelan

From charging the Chevrolet Volt's revolutionary power system to washing the car, everything about the extended-range electric vehicle is new, but Volt owners must find it familiar and easy to use.

Racing to meet those twin goals on an unprecedentedly tight schedule, the engineering team working on the Volt has 25 to 30 of them on the road at all times. The deadline is the Volt's on-sale date in about a year.
"There's still a lot to do, and not much time," chief engineer Andy Farah said Monday. "It's all part of the natural evolution of any engineering program, but at warp speed." Every system, every part must be double-checked and idiot-proofed. Volt engineering manager Nate Fitzpatrick sent his 10-year-old son out to plug the Volt in for charging. "I didn't give him any directions. I wanted to see if we'd made it easy for the owner," Fitzpatrick said. "He figured it out right away."

Troubleshooting the Chevy Volt

The rush program to get the Chevrolet Volt extended-range electric car on sale in a year has become a 24/7 job for engineers charged with developing the car that's intended to revolutionize the auto industry and reinstate General Motors as a leader in advanced technology.

"We're learning all the time," Volt chief engineer Andy Farah said as seven of the team met for a breakfast debriefing at Athens Coney Island in Royal Oak on Monday after driving the cars all weekend. The Volt has a 40-mile range on battery power and a small engine that serves as a generator of electric power for longer trips. "I've been bustin' around all morning, and the engine hasn't started yet," Farah said. "The trip computer said I got 260 miles a gallon over the weekend." Farah recharged the car at home between drives, allowing it to operate nearly entirely on battery power.

The daily test drives have led to changes in everything from how owners will recharge the Volt to an eleventh-hour redesign of the door for its charging port after it fell off in car washes. The Volt should get a 210-m.p.g. Environmental Protection Agency fuel economy rating in city driving, according to GM's projections. GM built about 80 Volt test cars. Most of the Volts in Athens' parking lot were built to test a specific system, so the engineers compared notes.

"You've got the good aerodynamic package," Volt engineering manager Nate Fitzpatrick said to controls manager Chris Kinser, whose Volt had a nearly invisible air dam below its bumper. "That reduces four counts of aerodynamic drag. I'd give my little finger for four counts of drag," he said, waving his hand over the table.
"They call me 'Stubby,' but it's a great car."

Over the laughter, Rob Bolio, lead development engineer, described the crisis of the car wash. The cover for the Volt's charging port kept falling off. "The guy who runs the car wash came up to me with a box of parts and said, 'You might have a problem here,' " Bolio remembered. After a quick design revision, Bolio and a designer engineer spent four hours taking Volts through the car wash with no damage except to their patience.

"We're easygoing," Fitzpatrick said. "When there's an issue, we give them 24 hours to address it. This has all the challenges of any new vehicle -- and all this brand-new technology. It makes the timing particularly challenging."

For every question any new car must answer -- how do the brakes feel, does the navigation system work and a thousand more -- there's a question that's unique to the Volt. With the first test cars, Bolio woke up two or three times a night to check to see whether they were charging in his driveway. Since then, they've added a light to signify the car is plugged in and charging, a subtle "charging now" beep and a timer.

"Owners can set the car to charge whenever they like," Farah explained. "Just like big commercial customers, they can take advantage of the really low electricity rates in the middle of the night. It's like a programmable coffeemaker; you tell it when you want the car to be ready to go, and it'll be charged for you." The timer can be set for different charging times on weekdays, weekends, or a unique time for each day of the week.

The meaning of friendship

After talking to some friends this weekend going through some difficult times,  I started thinking about what friendship really means.  For me this definition has changed over the years in my adulthood.  I feel blessed to count many people in my circle of friends - those I went to school with, used to work with, go to church with, met through other friends - and this group includes people I grew up with and people I've only met recently.  Last week I mentioned that I was thinking about people who you stay in contact with over the years and miles even though you don't see or talk to them often.  Then there are other friends whom you only remain close to for a season, and certainly that is of value too (or at least for the most part :).  
 
Sure, there are friends that you might only meet up or call for a catch-up once in a while, others are part of a group that you get together with a couple of times a year, some you get together with weekly for social outings, friends you would welcome into your home for a meal, those that you could call in the middle of the night with an emergency, and still others that wouldn't mind handing you multiple tissues or sit on the phone listening to you cry.  So, at the risk of being sentimental, I would like to express my thanks for all of the people I can call "friend", what a richness you have brought to my life!
 
"My friends are my estate." - Emily Dickinson

Best in class

While I do not normally follow boxing at any level, I'd be lying if I said I had no interest at all in recently reading/hearing about the star of the Philippines, Manny Paquiao (who just won the WBO welterweight title against Miguel Cotto and solidified his stature of the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world, in case you have no clue as to what I'm talking about).  In fact, I may or may not have walked around the house this weekend imitating (what I believe to be) finesse boxing moves and chanting "Pakyaw! Pakyaw! Pakyaw!", all to some amusement from my lone roomie a/k/a husband.
 
So for the moment I'm going to reserve my comments about the blood sport and exert a little silly Filipino pride, even as the spotlight on Manny shines a bit on Filipino politics and certain less than desirable areas in my parents home country.
 
Who's next??!?

Making the old new again

Last weekend we bought and moved (ouch) this cool cabinet, my first Craig's List purchase having gone quite smoothly.  I don't even remember why I even started looking through the website last week, but this item caught my eye and after a couple of phone calls and trips out to West Bloomfield, it's in our family room.  It's from the 1930's but just needs a little wood polish and a new door pull (hence the bits of masking tape), isn't it quaint?  Our nephew came over and glanced over casually at it and without solicitation for his 4-yr-old opinion he declared that he liked it, which pleased me :)!
 
I love when things retain their timelessness so effortlessly.  I thought about this again in a different context this week while making plans with two different groups of friends to get together over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, and also when my cousin called me from California and another friend who just moved back from overseas checked in just for a quick hello.  People that are dear to me that I don't see or talk to all that often due to physical distance or just busy lives, but with whom conversation and laughter come as easily as the last time when we get together.  In theory we should treat all of our longstanding relationships as if they were a cherished shiny new penny, so that they are reminded of their worth to us!   

 

Falling back

So I don't know about you, but not only did I embrace the extra hour of sleep due to the time change this weekend, but yesterday (Monday) for some reason I just felt zapped of energy last night when I got home and passed out on the couch at an embarrassingly early hour!  That and the pretty red tree leaves that I mentioned just last weekend have mostly fallen off, how is it that my favorite season can be so fleeting? 
 
Hopefully you don't have an excuse on this clear fall day to not vote, remember that it is election day and even if there are only a few items on your local ballot, it is important that we all exercise this right. I went to my precinct during lunchtime, and sadly the only other person checked off on the "Mc" page of names so far was the hubs (who, I should note, charged out of the house this morning with his travel coffee mug in hand declaring that "when I live in a country where I have the right to vote, it is a good day!!" :).  Especially when you consider that women were only granted the right to vote less than 100 years ago, let's remember 'tis a privilege indeed...