Educator. Engineer. Experimenter.
Recently we’ve been cooking some Japanese food. I’ve mentioned before that I was once an exchange student in Japan many years ago. So Japanese food has always been one of my favorites. I didn’t cook it for many years. Takuan (たくあん) made by hand. Basically pickled daikon radish. It’s one of many pickled dishes called…
Today I helped my dad and other Disney veterans renew the horse/pony loading ramp at Give Kids The World (Keaton’s Korral). The older ramp was worn out and potentially dangerous at this point. After the maintenance crew gutted the rotted wood, we replaced a few framing beams along with ALL of the deck boards. It…
I wanted to post about a topic of growing interest to me over the last few years, urban forestry (or micro-forests). They are small, dense forests cultivated in urban areas that provide various benefits. The most popular method of cultivating them is called the Miyawaki Method, after Akira Miyawaki, who pioneered it. Here is a…
Happened upon a beautiful white moth today at Stetson University. I have no idea which species it is, but if you do, please feel free to contact me.
Fascinating 
. This is what a tangerine looks (and feels and sounds) like after being left undisturbed on an office desk for roughly 1 year. It was left on my desk pre-pandemic and found almost a year later sitting in the same spot untouched. It wasn’t rotten or mushy but extremely hard and light, I…
Greg Parnell with Per Danielsson and Greg Zabel once again supporting jazz locally here in Orlando, FL. We saw him today at the Blue Bamboo for a 3pm show (they play two shows today, and at least one a month around Central Florida). Lots of great tributes to various greats: Oscar Peterson, Chick Corea (who…
During the pandemic, we often enjoyed the natural springs of Central Florida (near Wekiwa State Park). It was refreshing and healthy to get outside. The water was teeming with life, an inspiration during such a depressing time… In these parts, the water temperature is roughly 72°F year round; so pretty chilly at first but you…
We have only one milkweed plant in our yard, but man is it teeming with life sometimes… monarch butterflies and caterpillars, milkweed bugs, aphids, ladybugs, lizards, etc.
Recently, I replaced 11 windows of various sizes in my in-laws old house. The new windows come from Home Depot and are double-layer, gas-filled, Low-E coated, energy efficiency vinyl windows. In addition to the thermal transfer improvements, the sound dampening is impressive. Overall (with Pro discount) all the windows and materials cost me around $1600…
My new office at Stetson University is so serene and beautiful. I am very lucky (and thankful) to have it. It’s located in the historic Elizabeth Hall right next to Lee Chapel. Whenever I need a break, I can simply turn around and look out onto the beautiful palm courtyard. I can often hear lovely…