Saturday, September 15, 2007
Weight training. (I've been doing it lately but not writing it in the journal.) Computer maintenance. Document archiving. Paper organizing. Bill paying. Usual oatmeal breakfast. Started collecting things that Patrick enjoys but which I don't and putting them in a box for when he returns. This mostly includes decorative knick knacks such as little statuettes or origami birds and pharmaceuticals that he uses and I don't. Recently started using Google Analytics on frankfarm.org and frankfarm.com. I promise to be less evil than Google. frankfarm.org is serving pages very slowly (if at all) as of 11:15 AM today. It's not my problem—somewhere in between. Visited a home improvement show at the Cow Palace with Chris and Nate. it was Chris and Nate's first time to the Cow Palace. The show was largely a dud—lots and lots of scams. Chris and Nate did find some doors which they liked the quality of and took a pamphlet. I was interested in one vendor's woodworking of portable furniture. For example, a hinged box with a handle opened elaborately into a surprisingly solid and functional dining room table. I particularly liked the space-saving usefulness of it, but as I don't have a great and immediate need for it, I didn't bother taking a pamphlet. The sign for the vendor's booth said something like spider legs furniture. Michael O'Brien would love this stuff. Some of the scams we saw: people soaking their feet in (ionized?) water, people sitting in a reclining chair with bright blue (UV?) light shining on their teeth in order to get brighter teeth in only 12 minutes, a swiffer knock-off, rain gutter covers. It took us probably less than 30 minutes to see all of the booths. Afterwards we decided we needed sustenance good enough to outweigh the disappointment of the show, so I took Chris and Nate to In-n-Out Burger where we ate cheeseburgers (no onions for Chris) and fries and drank sodas. Next we went to the Exploratorium. Through Nate's work we learned of a woman doing research involving a handheld simulation game and agreed to help test the game at the Exploratorium in exchange for free entrance to the museum. When we arrived, the people at the ticket counter gave us stickers to get in and (I guess) instructed us to ask at the office inside. When we asked at the office, no one knew anything about it, so we thought "Woo! Free admission!" and continued exploring the museum for about 90 minutes. About 15 minutes before closing, we happened upon the research project which was taking place upstairs. We introduced ourselves to Leilah Lyons, who was conducting the research (IRB#: HUM00005695, and we helped her out with her data gathering. We played a simulation game of doctors attempting to remove cancerous growths from a patient. Each of us was given a Palm Pilot and could choose one of three roles: surgeon who cuts with a knife, radiologist who radiates, and (something else I can't remember). The Palm Pilots were connected wirelessly to the simulation which was displayed on a large flat panel display as a grid of healthy cells and cancerous cells. As the cancerous cells grew, it was our job to remove them before the patient died. The game took a few minutes to understand, but it was fun and very engaging. After we lost and won a few times, she interviewed us to gather data for her research. I thought it was all a very entertaining and worthwhile experience. We left the Exploratorium, spent a few minutes regarding the nearby lake and general landscape beauty of the Palace of Fine Arts, then drove to Cost Plus World Market where Chris and Nate wanted to try out a chair that they were interested in purchasing. They bought the chair, I bought some soup and a candy bar surprise for the next time I see Mom Ryan (Lindt pistachio and milk chocolate) and some wine in case anyone comes over to dinner. Tired and time for dinner, we stopped at Mollie Stone's Tower Market on the way home (my place). Nate and I prepared a late dinner while we snacked on crackers and artichoke dip. Dinner: lemon chicken; roasted potatoes, carrots, and mushrooms; rosemary bread; butter; wine.