A Second Weekend in Los Alamos


Spent the night at a nice campground in Bernallilo. Appreciated that it had picnic table shelters, as the weather was stormy. The lightning display driving north from Albuquerque was splendid.

The Rio Grande is in the background

Saturday, I finally got a chance to see the Santa Fe Farmer's market. First rate. I guess I had heard about Jujubes -- it is like a date -- but I had never tried any. I came away with a bag of fresh Jujubes and a bag of dried Jujubes. The sellers had been growing them for around thirty years. They are well suited to the local dry climate, they say.

I lunched with Hollins, one  of the Eagle Scouts I coached in Troop 5 -- His Eagle Project was outstanding -- who is studying at St. John's College. He told me about his Astronomy class, and showed me around the campus, including the library, his Greek seminar classroom, and an interesting Astronomical instrument, which is apparently the only working Tycho Brahe Equatorial Armillary Sphere. 

Also met his Graduate School friends. St. John graduate students range in age from the twenties to their eighties. The prospect of liberal arts studies in the Santa Fe hills is attractive.

Hit the road to Los Alamos. Bad weather in the forecast this weekend, and I am not that wild about camping in the rain, So headed to North Road Inn, a warm and welcoming Bed and Breakfast. Walked around the old neighborhood, talked with a few people about telescopes and binoculars, dinner uptown, and early bed.

Sunday Morning Breakfast -- green chile and cheddar in scrambled eggs, blue corn pancakes. Met Richard Cooper, who used to direct the Bradbury Science museum, and invited him to the Pinocchio display at Immaculate Heart of Mary. 

At 10:15, after 9 am Mass, demonstrated Little Pinocchio at the Parish Hall during coffee and doughnuts. Big success! Thought I would be there for an hour, tops, but I was packing up at 12:30. Lots of great energy from the kids, and some parents were intrigued by the prospects of their kids building a Pinocchio of their own as an exercise in Engineering Principles. I need to get the notes written and design files uploaded.

Wonderful lunch with Petr and Louise Jandacek at their White Rock Geodesic home. It is as magnificent as I remembered. I need to write a separate post about this excellent lunch and the amazing conversation we had. What a celebration!

Another night at the North Road Inn, and a nice walk in Urban Park before starting work Monday morning.

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