Category: Photos

Posted on

Mostly Mummies: Our MFA Trip

Never visit the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston without being accompanied by Debi Costine. Back on February 27, we got to do just that.

Nichelle spent the three days before the trip in “intense rest,” hoping to be well enough to go with us. (I hadn’t seen her so determined to do anything major since singing in the Christmas program in mid-December.) Thankfully, she was able to go, although by the end I wished I insisted she use a wheelchair for at least part of it. (In the weeks since, her condition has gotten worse, and I don’t think we’d even try such a trip now.)

We also weren’t sure we could convince David to come. He seemed fascinated, several years earlier, by the mummy at the Museum of Science in Boston, but in the interim years, that fascinating had turned to fear. I spent three weeks trying to psych him up, but it was Debi who spoke to David the night before and convinced him that he would be fine. By the end of her call he was eagerly anticipating the trip.

Above: Debi Costine provides an introduction to ancient Egypt.

What a wonderful trip! The kids loved it, John especially favored this museum over the science-centered ones that I typically drag him to.

Outside the Egyptian wing, Debi sat us down, gave us handouts, and introduced us to things to look for in the Egyptian artifacts. Among them was a cartouche—generally an ellipse with a line on one side, that would be marked with one or two sets of hieroglyphs. This would indicate the name of a god or a king. We also learned about the burial and afterlife beliefs of the ancient Egyptians, including the false door that the spirits would use to retrieve food offered to them.

One of the things Debi stressed was the grain of truth that many cultures preserved after the Flood in their understanding of spiritual things. It was very interesting to see how a proper understanding of death and eternity became corrupted over the years.

Above: Pointing out the hieroglyphs adjacent to a cartouche, indicating the name of a god. (Note Debi’s red hair.)

One of the ideas I found fascinating was that the existence of one’s name carved in stone allowed the existence in the afterlife to be perpetuated. In some cases, pharaohs or other leaders who fell out of favor were “eliminated” after death by having the names chiseled out of their places, as well as statues destroyed. One pharaoh ordered his name hieroglyphs to be carved especially deep. I wonder if it occurred to them to carve it someplace and then hide it.

Above: Barley (along with a crude mortar and pestal) dating from up to 6,000 years ago.

When Nichelle and I attended the MFA last year, we were awestruck by the Egyptian artifacts. They project such a feeling of age. It is truly amazing to walk among them. The barley shown above is a small thing, but it’s astounding to find it preserved for five or six millenia.

Above: King Menkaure (Mycerinus) and queen (possibly Khamerernebty II).

I absolutely love this statue of King Menkaure and his queen. This couple is elegantly and lovingly rendered, and it impresses me that the artists were able to perfectly recreate the effects of sheer cloth in a stone statue. Note that they are actually clothed, at least in the custom of the time. The statue is unfinished. (There is no name on it; the king’s kilt pleats are not carved, and the base is unfinished.) There are more photos, a write-up, and an audio piece here at the MFA site. Note the folded napkins in Menkaure’s hands. These were authority symbols. Some later statues had rectangular napkins that look more like blocks of wood.

Above: The Egyptian kings would place these stories about their conquests on the borders of their lands. Debi was able to explain the story carved here in much more detail than the museum plaque next to it.

Above: Check out the cartouches on the base of this statue. These have the hieroglyph pairs we were hunting: a sun with a bird, and a bee with a sedge plant. David just told me, “I was the first one who found that one!”

Above: All the geeks in ancient Egypt used these these snazzy pocket protectors. Seriously, it’s a scribal palette, belonging to “The royal draftsmen of the Lord of the Two Lands, Amenemwia.”

Above: The center of the Egyptian funerary room. That’s a bolt of linen in the left foreground that is over 4,000 years old. Amazing!

The funerary room was astounding. It offered much more than the few things we think of as stereotypical Egyptian art surrounding the funeral rituals. Interestingly, the Egyptians were quite reluctant to change the formulae of their rituals, even over the centurals. So, even when the custom of removing the organs and storing them in jars had changed, faux jars were still placed in the burial chamber.

Above: These ceremonial eyes were painted on the sides of coffins to allow the body entombed within to see out.

Above: Debi noticed something about this mummy mask that she had never seen before: It has a beard. This mask (dating from the time around Joseph’s life) may show the result of a Hebrew influence, as the Egyptians didn’t wear real beards, perhaps as a result of Joseph’s revelation of his origin and rise to power.

Above: You’ve read the Old Testament many times, but always wondered what Baal looked like. Now you know! (This one is missing his weapon or thunderbolt. Maybe it was a child’s action figure. It’s about the same size. “Hey, kids! Collect all the Canaanite deities!”)

Above: This Hittite stamp-cylinder seal was impressive, as were the other seals and commercial artifacts, including a set of balance weights and numerous cuneform tablets.

Outside of the Egyptian area, was one of the things we were all really looking forward to seeing: A fragment of a plate (probably smashed by the forces of Alexander the Great) from one of Xerxes four palaces. Debi likes to encourage her students to imagine that Queen Esther herself may have touched it.

Above: Fragment of a Royal Plate
Southwest Iran (probably from Perseopolis, Palace of Xerxes), 485–464 B.C. Diorite. Queen Esther just might have used it. (My photo is blurry, so I’ve linked the image to a better one at the MFA.)

By the time we got to the few more modern things we looked at (much of the 1st century A.D. art, especially from Corinth, is, shall we say, inappropriate for children), they just couldn’t compare to the marvel of the ancient Eyptyian work. They all seemed so … recent.

Above: This painting contains owls hidden within it. I was terrible at finding them, but the kids did well, and really enjoyed the task. This photo isn’t perfect, but I couldn’t find the painting this evening when I searched the online MFA database—even though I found it a few weeks ago.

I’ll also include what is one of my absolute favorite paintings in the MFA. When I first saw it, during my company’s “Winter Thaw” event, I was struck by how beautiful it was. The color is amazing, and it seems photographic in its realism. It really stands out.

Above: Portrait of a Young Woman, possibly Countess Worontzoff, by Marie Louise Elisabeth Vigée‑Le Brun. French, 1755–1842.

And David, the little weasel, announced that his favorite part had been the mummies.

Posted on

The Quintessential NaNi

I’ve been searching for that “one” photograph that seems to be the “real” Naomi at this point in her life. I think this is it. (Click to enlarge.) I find this to be difficult with children’s photos. They are so constantly on the move, and rapidly changing, that capturing what we perceive as their typical appearance is difficult.

Here she is, as usual, bright and cheerful, loaded with energy, and has a fire in her eyes. I took this photo (once I could get her to stop jumping and spinning around shouting “Yippee!”) just after I told her we would be going sledding that evening.

Although now that I look at this carefully, I’m not sure her hair is quite right …

(I added the one on the right in April, 2006.)

Posted on

Life Is Swell

Nichelle has requested that I post a few photos to show the extent of the swelling she is dealing with. We actually have one or two photos that are worse, but she doesn’t want those posted.

Since the return of the fibromyalgia symptoms in force, about the time NaNi was weaned, Nichelle has battled rather significant swelling at various times. This winter, it became much worse. At best, the swelling is bad; typically it is horrible.

Note the dramatic difference in the leftmost photo with the middle photo. These were taken only two days apart, on December 25 and 27, 2005, respectively. These primarily show the face, but the swelling involves the whole body. On most days, the swelling is very significant, somewhere between the rightmost photo and the middle photo.

We are awaiting an endocrinology appointment in about a week. The previous endocrinologist to whom Nichelle was referred refused to see her because there wasn’t anything in her records to indicate an endocrinological problem (for the most part, until recently, the swelling hasn’t been our biggest focus). A cardiologist she visited told her, “Sometimes my patients have swelling in their legs and ankles when they return from cruises because of all the high-sodium food.” Our excellent neurologist was more perceptive. Nichelle had brought these photos in to show him—he was stunned. He also pointed out that the swelling alone can cause a great deal of pain.

Our voluntary medical advisor/patient advocate Beth suspects Cushing’s Syndrome or some form of hypercortisolism. So far, Nichelle’s symptoms are consistent with that, including stretch marks on the skin in many places, and swelling varying in degree at different times of the day.

Nichelle spent a couple of hours last night going through photos from the past three years. There are obvious periods lasting several months when the swelling was very bad, and times when it was mostly gone. In general, the very bad swelling lasted much longer than the times without. There’s also a clear increase, over time, in what we might call “base level” swelling, but even within that ever-raising baseline, there are days when it is worse than others, as the photos above show.

I had actually forgotten how much smaller she was even within the past year. No amount of exercise or dieting seemed to help, either. She lost 30 pounds (after Naomi was born) doing the South Beach Diet, and was intensely exercising for an hour every day. Neither one of these things prevented the swelling or the fibromyalgia symptoms from returning, and exercise is supposed to be a very effective long-term treatment for fibromyalgia.

I’ve created a new category on the BLOG for posts related to fibromyalgia. It’s available on the categories list at the right, or from the bottom of any post classified as such.

(See related posts: What’s Wrong with Nichelle?, The Twins Are Back: What’s Wrong with Nichelle, Continued, and Pain; or view all posts categorized as related to fibromyalgia.)

Posted on

Caption this Photo (of Naomi)!

We took this picture during David’s seventh birthday party. Nichelle’s suggested caption is below. Can any of you beat it?

“What do you mean I’ve had too much sugar?”

Now, let me go reserve a therapist for NaNi.

Posted on

Sledding (2005–2006)

We have been leaving our sleds out most of the winter as offerings to the snow gods. So far it has been working, although I had to correct the kids on making the proper offering. Scattering the toboggans about the yard is not the way to get the snow gods’ attention: One must place the sleds vertically, up against the deck or porch railing, as if ready for instant use. You don’t want to get rain all winter, do you?

This is Naomi’s first year sledding.

Above: NaNi, at the bottom of the hill after one of her first-ever sledding runs. “Again!”

Sledding was great last night at Roby Park, in Nashua, which is not far from our house! The snow was perfect for speed; we were getting within about 20 feet of the fence at the bottom of the hill. Conditions should be same for the next few nights; I can’t go tonight. I might go on Tuesday, but will probably have too much work.

Isaac was practicing on a $1, small, narrow snowboard we got at a yard sale—it’s amazing how quickly he learns. He had several runs where he made it almost completely down the hill. I wonder how he’d do on a larger board with boot clamps. David tried it sitting and laying down. Isaac also challenged us to race him, sleds versus feet. He’s fast.

Above left: Isaac’s Calvin & Hobbes snowman (2 heads, 4 arms, etc.).

Above right: Our three-toboggan sled train. NaNi is in the front, Doug is in the middle (and providing the steering), David is in the back.

Naomi was completely thrilled. She always wants to go from the very top of the hill. I hold her sled in front of mine, which provides excellent steering control. The second day we went sledding, someone bumped her, and she was noticably timid for the rest of that day; last night she was fine. She seems nervous still while we are getting in position. I reassure her by explaining what I’m doing. “I’m just getting onto my sled. Don’t worry, I won’t let go of you. Remember, we won’t move until you say, ‘Go.'” And then she counts down (or up), and calls out, “Go!” and we’re off! Her first word upon reaching the bottom is, “Again!” She burst into tears when I said it was time to go home.

Above left: In the Wilcox backyard, the natives are restless. Isaac uses his bow and arrow to enhance his Mutant Snow Goon.

Above right: Even though our sledding was done, and we were all a little wet and cold, NaNi insisted on continuing to play outside.

Earlier this year, I took some pictures, and even have a short video clip of one of Naomi’s first sledding runs (if for nothing more than freaking out Nichelle). I’ll have to see what’s worth posting. (Editor’s note: I looked; the video isn’t that great, and the photos are mostly dark or blurry. It was cold when I took them! I’ve added the one that was decent.)

(New photos above added January 25, 2006.)

Posted on

Domestic Security Consultant Visits Wilcox Home

On Friday, the Wilcox family received a long-awaited visit from Clover, a border collie who is employed as a domestic security consultant north of here.

After an intimidating first meeting, Naomi and Clover became fast friends. NaNi adopted the same pose as Clover for all their photos together. (Note that Naomi is wearing some of her new Geekwear: a “Version 2.0” t-shirt.)

More hints has said that Clover presented on such important topics as stick-fetching, ball-fetching, stick destroying, Nerf-ball chewing, human herding, neighborhood patrols, criminal background checks, and indicating when one needs to use the little dog’s room. (I am told by Matt Camillieri that other canines, such as Winnie Sohmer, are not so good at communicating such a vital topic.)

Clover is a good dog.

Posted on

Christmas Glimpses

It is Christmas morning in the Wilcox home. The children awoke early, of course, but not too early. Nichelle and I slept until 8:30. I could have used another hour, because I was too excited to sleep Christmas Eve, and stayed up until around 2:00 a.m.

We let the kids open their stockings before church, and one other gift (chosen by us) on the way to church (John missed out on that one because he left for church earlier to navigate for my sister Cindy). I was thrilled to see the church auditorium packed. Normally on Christmas Sunday we have a lot of people traveling, so I expected the attendance to be down. (Of course, there are people traveling to our area as well, but generally not as many.)

Above left: The portion of the Wilcox family spending Christmas in Nashua with us. Back row: My sister Joyce Thorne, my daughter Naomi, my niece Jennifer, my wife Nichelle, my nephew Andrew. Front row: My son David, my son Isaac, me, my sister Cindy (Jenn and Andrew’s mother), and my son John.

Above right: David, Isaac (mostly obscured), Andrew, Naomi, and Jenn opening Christmas stockings. Naomi is eating a chocolate chip muffin.

When I was growing up, I never slept past 6:00 on Christmas morning, even though I never could fall asleep before midnight. Thankfully, my own children are a bit more reasonable, although they have resorted to sending notes in attached to Isaac (2 years old at the time), and playing the trumpet outside our door. (Actually, that was my nephew Andrew.)

Did you know the cardboard box has been inducted into the National Toy Hall of Fame?

Naomi singing, dancing and spinning around to Tish Hinojosa’s Spanish Christmas song, “Milagro”:

Milagro, milagro, es la Esperanza
Milagro nuestro es la Navidad

(A miracle, a miracle is the hope …
The Nativity is a miracle meant for us)

Above left: A new sombrero ranchero and the Lego AT-AT. Nichelle is good to me!

Above right: Naomi with her new Navajo Barbie. (Yes, I let her take it out of the box. Calm, calm. Deep breaths. Slowly now. That’s better.)

Above: Naomi “helps” construct my new Lego AT-AT.

My niece Jennifer driving the Xbox controller like a steering wheel (and moving her whole body as if driving) while playing Burnout 3: Takedown with David and Isaac.

David wearing the mask from his Darth Vader Voice Changer helmet, singing, “If you’re happy and you know it, clap your hands …” while NaNi wore the cowl backwards, dancing to some inner music of her own.

Isaac’s shocked expression and dramatic dropping of the box when he opened his Carnivorous Creations terrarium.

Above left: Aren’t you a little short for a Sith lord?

Above center: Isaac dramatically reacts to opening a Carnivorous plants terrarium. (You should have seen his expression when he opened the RoboRaptor.)

Above right: NaNi models my new sombrero

Around Christmas, I always think about my favorite Christmas hymn: “God is Born” (“Bóg siÄ™ rodzi”). I’ve only got one recording of it, on an old cassette entitled “An English Christmas.” It is the National Christmas Hymn in Poland, where it originated. Here’s what I’ve been able to transcribe from the English version I have:

“God is Born”

God is born and night is shaken
He the Heaven’s King lies naked.
The living Word knows brightness darkened,
He the Limitless takes limit.
Born disdained yet worship given,
Mortal, yet the Lord eternal.
Now indeed the Word made flesh
Has come on earth to dwell among us.

What hast thou, O Heaven better,
God abandoned thy perfection?
Here to share the trial and sorrow
Of His poor, beloved people.
Suffered much and suffered dearly,
For we all were guilty sinners,
Now indeed the Word made flesh
Has come on earth to dwell among us.

Born into a common stable,
He is cradled in a manager.
How then tell me what surrounds you
Hay and peace and simple shepherds.
You were ones who had the honor
Him to greet, and kings came bowing.
Now indeed the Word made flesh
Has come on earth to dwell among us.

I love the old hymns that are filled with such great doctrine. (So much of our modern popular and sacred music is vacuous—or at best superficial—by comparison.) Here the subject is the Incarnation: God the Son lowering Himself to become one of us. Wow!

Posted on

A Collection of Coolness

Star Wars:

Weather Control:

Natural Disasters:

Tall Buildings:

Robotics (especially for Neal Stephenson fans):

Space Slide Shows:

Posted on

Another Visit from Tish Hinojosa

Friday night we headed down to the University of Hartford’s Wilde Auditorium to hear Tish Hinojosa—a Mexican-American folk singer whose voice I can only describe as hauntingly beautiful. (This description got me in trouble a few years ago when Nichelle failed to notice the word voice in what I had written.) Tish was accompanied, as previously, by the extremely talented guitarist/mandolin player Marvin Dykhuis.

This is the fourth time Nichelle, NaNi, and I have had the pleasure of hearing Tish’s gorgeous music live, and the third for the rest of the kids. (Naomi’s first experience was several months before she was born.)

We were a little concerned about taking Naomi. Last year she spent part of the concert in the lobby screaming. To our delight, NaNi was immediately enchanted by the singing and the guitars, and remained enthralled for the entire program.

The auditorium was over half full, but it’s a venue that feels delightfully cozy. The audience clearly adored Tish, several times breaking into applause at the beginning of a song. My favorite occurrence was the applause and cheers that broke out Tish sang the line “Our forefathers crossed the muddy line,” in “By the Rio Grande.” Tish interacted often with the audience, taking requests, and (as is typical of her) paying extra attention to the children she noticed. After croaking on a line at the end of La Llorona (due to having a cold), she joked that the weeping woman had died, but the cold did not seem to affect her singing after that.

Last year David got special attention because he was wearing my sombrero vaquero—Tish has a thing for cowboys. This year David (age 6—the old smoothie) asked if he could wear my hat again. I found him one that was his size, but he got embarrassed and wouldn’t wear it after we got in.

The concert was lovely, and the time flew by.

While purchasing Tish’s latest CD, “A Heart Wide Open,” I mentioned that “Frontejas” was probably my favorite, and that we were hoping for another all- or mostly-Spanish CD. She mentioned that she’s been talking about doing another one for five years now. I keep hoping.

For other fans who may be interested, here’s a rundown of what Tish performed:

First set:

  • Tu Que Puedes, Vuelvete (You Who Can, Return)
  • La Llorona (Weeping Woman)/Riendo El Rio Corre (Laughing River Running) medley
  • By the Rio Grande
  • Siempre Abuelita (Always Grandma)
  • Sign of Truth
  • Shotgun Ridin’**
  • The Kitchen Table**
  • Finding Paris**
  • Magnolia
  • Roses Around My Feet
  • West Side of Town

Second set:

  • Las Golondrinas (The Sparrows—Tish was kind enough to dedicate this to Nichelle*)
  • Something in the Rain
  • Never Say Never Love Again**
  • Derechos del Corazón**
  • Something More than This**
  • Con Su Pluma en Su Mano (With His Pen in His Hand—A corrido about the life of Amerigo Paredes)
  • Donde Voy (Where I Go—This was a big hit in Korea)
  • Taos to Tennessee
  • Closer Still
  • In the Real West
  • San Antonio Romeo
  • Reloj (The Clock)
  • God’s Own Open Road

Encore:

  • Song for the Journey

*I had written out this dedication as, “The most beautiful song I have ever heard, dedicated to the most beautiful woman I have ever known, my wife of 14 years, Nichelle”; Tish presented an introduction about the history and style of the song, and a little bit about its meaning in English, but remembered only to dedicate the song to Nichelle, rather than my longer, sentimental dedication. (This was just as well: My sappiness would not have paired well with her introduction.”)
**From Tish’s newest album, “A Heart Wide Open.”

Posted on

Hi, Slacker!

Naomi turned two on Thursday. Friday night, when I got home, she echoed David’s typical greeting of “Hi, slacker!” and has been saying it—with immense glee—ever since. Give it a listen: naomi_hi_slacker.mp3.

After a day, her pronunciation became even better: Give it a listen: naomi_hi_slacker_2.mp3.

Naomi even made up her own song using her new favorite word:


(Click here, or right-click and save if the above video won’t play, or you can view it on Google Video.)

Google Video is now including embedding code. Here it is below: