Category: Personal

Coming to America – 2017 Summer Holiday

Sunday-Monday June 25-26

I’ve said it before, but traveling from Lithuania is not easy. At least not by plane. Very few places are accessible directly, and those that are, are usually through the low-cost airlines (let’s never forget Flights for 50p, shall we) and get you someplace near your destination (For example, going to Paris, Ryan and Wizz fly you to Beauvais, which is about an hour away). Anyway, for our flights to the US, where we are going to spend a week on vacation with family in San Diego then all head back to Vegas for mom’s Bat Mitzvah, we decided to do it in two jumps – Vilnius (not even from Kaunas, so that’s another hour added on to the journey) to Paris then Paris to LA. Continue reading “Coming to America – 2017 Summer Holiday” →

Commencement 2017

vdu-e1455559276836So I did this thing.

I was asked to give a speech at the commencement ceremony for the Political Science faculty, something between 5-7 minutes. I went on for 8 1/2. Honestly, a bit intimidating speaking before a graduating class. And then you sit there, on the stage, with your fellow presenters, while all the students come up to get their diplomas. And every now and again, one would come over and shake our hands as well. I haven’t shaken that many hands in a long time!

Anyway, if you’re interested in what I had to say, there’s a video below.  Continue reading “Commencement 2017” →

Why I teach.

graduation-bannerYesterday, in an offhand conversation, I was asked whether someone should pursue teaching in Lithuania. My immediate response was “not if they want to make a living.” Here, the powers that be are trying to “fix” the education system with all sorts of radical ideas, including combining all of the many and varied universities into three umbrella institutions among others. And yes, there are issues which should be addressed. One of the areas is pay for the faculty. It hasn’t gone up since 2001. In fact, over all, the baristas at the local coffee houses make more money than your average university lecturer. Continue reading “Why I teach.” →

Weigh in

Photo by Annushka Ahuja on Pexels.com

So a few month ago, I made a post about my own accountability. I was trying to lose weight and get rid of the belly and all that. And I’m still working on it, but I recently hit a milestone for me and I wanted to make an update to keep up with said accountability.

So, as of the end of May, about 4 months or so after I started this thing, I’m down a bit.

Continue reading “Weigh in” →

This Is the Best Dinosaur Fossil of Its Kind Ever Found

The 110 million-year-old fossil of a nodosaur preserves the animal’s armor, skin, and what may have been its final meal. The 5-year-old in me, who wanted to be a paleontologist, is thrilled beyond measure. The 49-year-old me is almost as stoked.

And here’s another piece, from Gizmodo, looking at how it “still has it’s skin.“

Roll the d20 for damage…

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So I just read this book – Empire of Imagination: Gary Gygax and the Birth of Dungeons & Dragons by Michael Witwer and my initial thought was that it “Makes me long to find my dice and get a campaign up and running…”

This got me thinking about D&D and role-playing and creative endeavors and all that stuff.

Continue reading “Roll the d20 for damage…” →

Steve Valentine’s – MAGIC ON THE GO

Okay, so you all know I am an aficionado of the magical arts. That is to say, I loves me a good card trick. I also really enjoy learning the methods and the  psychology behind a great performance of magic as well. This was often the focus of the many articles I wrote for Magic Magazine over the years.

And now, Steve Valentine, twice awarded by the Magic Castle (lecturer and close-up magician of the year), has started Magic on the Go, a kinda “Netflix of magic” so if you’ve ever wanted to learn from one of the best, now’s your chance.

My summer reading list

9801b20afd15afe67902f7cc43eb3e23Last year, Best SciFi Books.com published a list of the top 17 pulp science fiction novels. While I may or may not agree these all qualify as “pulp” they are certainly a great list to get you started reading. In fact, the site has some other great lists, all of which are perfect for fostering the kind of geeky debates I sorely miss. For example, here’s their top 10 underwater SF books (of particular interest to me) as well as the 29 Best Alien Invasion Science Fiction Books and The 23 Best Science Fiction Books by Female Authors!

Of course, if all you’re interested in are the covers, check out this Pinterest page! I wish they were still honestly putting out books with these covers, as opposed to doing it self consciously or with a wink, nod and tongue firmly planted in cheek. Maybe I should write one?

Either way, though, there’s some mighty fine books for summer.

Let the debates begin!

It’s my potty…

618zvoded1l-_sy355_A few weeks ago, Rasa told me she wanted to buy Monki a potty.

Now, Monki was a few weeks shy of 9 months old at the time and, being an American, where potty training doesn’t usually start until sometime after 18 months or so, I figured she was a little early, no matter how smart or clever our baby was.  Continue reading “It’s my potty…” →