Sunday, July 18, 2004
I did a very wonderful thing yesterday. I managed to stay offline all damn day. I checked my e-mail once, last night, and peeked in on LJ and the phorum, maybe five minutes online the whole day. I think, on an average day, I easily spend three or four hours online (my journal entries frequently take between one and two hours to write and edit). So, yay for me.
Our Kid Night movies on Friday evening were Spider-Man (the first one, because Spooky hadn't seen it and wanted to before we see the sequel; I'd forgotten how good it was) and Ryuhei Kitamura's Alive. But first, I watched the Science Channel's very cool documentary on the PX-15 Ben Franklin. Then, yesterday, I made good on my promise to myself and Spooky to take the day off. We spent most of the afternoon at the Fernbank Museum of Natural History. There was a display of photos, Peachtree Creek: A Natural and Unnatural History, by Dave Kaufman, including shots of the old Decatur Waterworks. We caught the 3:45 showing of Dolphins on the IMAX. Finally, we finished things up with The Genomic Revolution special exhibit. I do not usually approve of exhibits which concentrate primarily on interactive tricks and multi-media gimmickery, which usually fails as anything more than mere "edutainment," but this was an exception. As with such abstract concepts as math and theoretical physics, genetics gives people without a strong science background little to grasp. This exhibit, designed by the American Museum of Natural History, uses a wide range of media to teach basic genetics and tackle the scientific and ethical questions of bioengineering. My favorite bit was an exhibit of mutation, wherein visitors altered the phenotype of a Drosophila melanogaster fruitfly by twisting the "rungs" on a gigantic strand of DNA. While we were in the museum, there was a tremendous rainstorm, and we stood in the central atrium, with the Argentinosaurus and Giganotosaurus and watched the rain pelting the glass dome overhead. After the museum, we had dinner at Surin Thai Bowl on Highland. We shared the rainbow roll maki (inside: avacado, crab, and cucumber; outside: salmon, tuna, and red snapper; garnished with tobiko and sesame seeds), then did the same with the delicious four-pepper spicy pork with bitter melon (grilled pork loin with tons of chopped garlic, Thai chilis, and cilantro with lime juice and fish sauce on a bed of cabbage, garnished with wedges of bitter melon). Then, because we were to high from all the pepper to behave ourselves, we stopped by Krispy Kreme on the way home. Last night, we watched three more episodes of Season Two of Six Feet Under. About midnight, the rain came back, a steady downpour that lasted at least an hour. It sounded and smelled marvelous. Sophie sat in the window and watched. I think I went to sleep about three and didn't wake until 10:30. That's three days in a row I've managed to sleep later than 10 am. So, yes, a good day, blessedly free of anything even remotely resembling writing.
Thanks to Kirin for sending me word of a recent sky-fall (partially frozen fish, in this instance) in southern Mississippi. One day, I shall see one of them for myself. Spooky was present during one as a small child, at Gill's Rock on Lake Michigan (in Wisconsin).
Today is D&D. I must smite and hack...
12:27 PM
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