HOMETOWN

Recently, we took our first vacation back to Portland since moving away after 12 and a half years in 2019. We had hoped to visit last summer, but COVID had other plans for us. Therefore, we were all quite excited to finally make it back to the place that we once called home.

I was struck by many things on the visit to Portland and central Oregon, where we spent the second half of the trip. The place is physically beautiful with hills, trees, mountains, and many also a large downtown with many tall buildings! 

There are also many fun things to do in town - from restaurants to shops to outdoor recreation. Most importantly, there are more people I love in Oregon than anywhere else in the world. That is what I missed most about Portland since our move, and seeing so many friends was definitely the highlight of the trip.

Since our move, I have been thinking about Portland vs. Ann Arbor as a dichotomy. The place where I used to live vs. the place I live now. The place I felt I had outgrown professionally vs. the place where I came to achieve my potential and make the biggest difference possible.  The place that had many intractable problems - homelessness, crime, income inequality, lack of diversity - vs. our current home that lacks all those problems, though it surely has its own issues. In short, I felt trapped in the present at the expense of the past. 

However, I have come to realize that even if one can only have one home at a time, one can love more than one home at a time. I have been lucky to live in both of these places where I felt comfortable putting down some roots. I don't know how long we will be here in Ann Arbor, but I do hope that if we leave, we will leave with many amazing memories and long list of people whom we come to love as much as our friends in our old home.

FATHER'S DAY

Today, we celebrate all the dads. Being a dad myself for the past 16 years has given me a unique perspective on fatherhood and what it has meant to me. Without question, my dad has had a profound influence on my life. I learned about the importance of hard work, taking advantage of one's opportunities, and always giving my best.

Dad recently visited Ann Arbor for the first time over Memorial Day, and we had the chance to show him the sites in our town in addition to up north in Michigan in Traverse City and Sleeping Bear Dunes.

More importantly, during this visit, I got a chance to hear more about my dad's story and how he came to the US and started his education in Wisconsin and then was in a PhD program at the University of Washington before determining that it was not a good fit. He subsequently returned to Wisconsin and then returned to India where he go married.

Upon returning to the US, he was in Chicago temporarily while he awaited responses to job inquires. Ultimately, the Saskatchewan Technical Institute in Moose Jaw hired him, and he and my mom moved there sight unseen. What an eventful start to adulthood, and it was those experiences that probably made my mom and dad unafraid of change with two subsequent moves.

My own children lived in a fairly protective cocoon or bubble until we moved two years ago. They have grown in so many ways these past two years and been forced outside their comfort zones, especially due to COVID. I am so proud of the young people they are becoming and how they are honest, kind, caring, and passionate young people.

As time goes by, and we get older, our ideas about what is important changes. For me, nothing is more than being with the ones you love and letting them know that you love them. 

So dad, I want to thank you for making me the man and dad I am today. I will forever be in your debt, and I will do my best to pass on your example to my kids! I love you!

STEPPING OUT

It has been over 13 months since Kathleen and I had dinner in the company of someone outside our family. 

We and most of our friends are now vaccinated. Therefore, it was a treat to walk over to our colleague Dan Hayes' house for dinner with him and his wife Jane.

Great drink, including a single malt Scotch, and great food - chicken picata, carrot mash, and a salad, and peach pie were had by all.

More importantly, we had the chance to talk, learn about each other, and do a normal pre-COVID activity.

Here's to more normalcy soon!

RUNNING THE TOWN

Cate spends most of the daylight hours on weekends playing with the three boys across the street. This is a welcome change from Portland, where the kids had very few friends nearby. I guess that is the advantage of having gone to the neighborhood public school last year.

The kids play a variety of sports and often ride their bikes throughout the neighborhood. Yesterday, Kathleen and I were on a walk and happened to spot the kids walking their friend's dog about one mile from our house.

After we said hi, Kathleen and I headed back home, but a few minutes later we saw our little one come zipping by on her bike.

I am so glad Cate has made such close friends that live so close by with whom she can "run the town," especially in these crazy, uncertain, disruptive times.

THERE'S STILL SOME GAS LEFT IN THE TANK

This past weekend, I participated in a virtual 5K race put on by Greenhills School, which this kids attend.

I decided to head down to Gallup Park by our house and picked out a pancake flat route. I went full tilt and ended up finishing the 3.1 mile race approximately 3 minutes faster than my normal pace. My final time was 22'11". 

Good to know I still have some speed left! Tomorrow I'll be back to my leisurely morning run at the same location, dodging geese, and taking in the beauty of spring in Ann Arbor.

AT LAST, FIRST!

It has been two years since Barca last won a trophy, but that jinx was broken this month when Barca triumphed over Athletic Bilbao in the Copa del Rey.

It was a tight contest in the first half, but then Barca pulled away after the break, winning comfortably at 4-0. 

Afterwards, the players all took turns taking photos with Messi, probably thinking this might be the last time he plays in a final with the club. After a night like that night, let's hope Messi decides to stay and win many more trophies!

LUCKY

Driving back from Pittsburgh,

I was speeding and almost got pulled over.

But someone sped past me just as we reached the speed trap.

He got pulled over, not me.

At that moment, I was the luckiest man in the world.