White Coat Ceremony

Big event last night marking the second year dental students' foray into the clinic. Held at the Herbst Theater downtown on McAllister across from the Civic Center Courthouse, the students officially received their white coats.* The new dean (just twelve days old, so to speak), the former dean (Dean Emeritus Dr. Arthur A. Dugoni, as of his June 06 retirement), the California Dental Association president, and the school psychologist (Dr. Peltier, whom I mentioned last September in the blog on Supportive Partners Night) all addressed the significance of the event.

Mick's class of 139--as well as about 20 International students (who are already dentists in their homelands) and about 40 hygienist students--had their names called, their coats individually donned, and their photos taken with the new dean. Although Mick chewed gum (with Xylitol for teeth cleaning purposes, I'm sure), the focus was on professionalism and its definition in terms of respecting and caring for--truly caring for--the human beings attached to the teeth they are working on.

After, when they sat down in the center of the gorgeous theater, the sea of white coats symbolizing important and committed public service, they were a moving sight. When they stood to recite their promise to serve the public, it was hard not to get a little misty-eyed. It was also hard not to get misty when looking around at all the parents, siblings, partners, and even some children (not ours, they were at the neighbors' house) who were really proud of their student and quite responsible for helping them get there. In fact, it was really sweet to meet the families of many of Mick's classmates at the reception and share in the excitement and pride.

Above is a picture of Mick with his pal Jordan West. I rode over with my pal, Kelly (Jordan's sister) but since we weren't wearing white coats nobody thought to take our picture.

*I was surprised to learn that the snazzy white coats--with school logo embroidered on one side, Dr. So-and-so on the other--are only symbolic gestures. While the students study/practice at Pacific they will always wear blue smocks. What a gyp, huh?

Turbo blog:
Chronicle Magazine rejected "Cleanings" essay
Met new dental school student neighbors
Kids started Jump Camp
Day Two of evening family bike rides
Day One as Second-Year, and no stone passed

Home Again
Back from Alaska and the PNW. Will blog on that soon. Just had to jot down a quick entry in case it looked like I'd abandoned the blogsite.

The kids are birthday partying fools, I get to go to my writer's group tomorrow night, and Mick's passing kidney stones (one in each kidney says the CT scan) as his way of saying "Bring it on" to the new school year, which starts Monday.

Bye-Bye, Sim Lab

Mick and his classmates cleaned out
their stations in the Sim Lab today to make way
for the next round of first year students...

Now ON TO THE CLINIC!

Yesterday was a day of firsts for Dane: he finally successfully tied and double-knotted his shoes several times and he successfully rode his bike without training wheels for several periods of a few minutes. Why has it taken so long to get those things accomplished? you may ask. Well, something finally clicked with the shoe-tying efforts, and let's just say I finally looked for and found the right tools to take the trainers off. They were up off the ground at a ridiculous angle prior to that. I kept thinking Mick would get around to the wheels on a mini-break, but the project got sidelined with wall anchors for the bookcase and a visit to the Bay Model. (Yes, Uncle Rod, those are still sidelined--but at least we're a little bit closer now, right? Yeah, I know what you're thinking. Yeah, I'll probably have to search for the drill and stud-finder and get out a stool...)

Today Mick submitted a twelve tooth case presentation. Now he has a Physio test on Friday and then he heads into Finals next week. Six more days of school before we're FINISHED WITH THE FIRST YEAR!!! But who's counting?

Memorial Day
Just spent about fifteen bucks and two hours at the laundromat with the kids. Mick dropped us off, but, since he took the van in to spend Memorial Day prepping teeth in the lab, we walked back with our three huge canvas bags of laundry in the double jogger. Felt a little bit like a bag lady with a couple of strays tagging along but didn't bother being too proud. I think that's my "practical" gene in action. Of course there are other things I'm too proud about: for instance, I'd never go out in public with a Danielle Steele book (let alone read one, for heaven's sake!). Obviously, though, that has nothing to do with practicality, but is simply pure snobbery. She, of course, gets the last laugh when I walk by her mansion in downtown San Francisco with my two strays in tow.

NETTY'S BRAG PAGE

Above is Lola, by our friend Eric Friesen. Lola is now featured in Bellingham's Big Rock Garden and won the Juror's Award and was voted People's Choice "Best in Show" on May 15th this year. This is Eric's first sculpture, I believe, but one of his other great works of art is a handmade cedar strip kayak that Mick drools over.


Our friend Andrew Schneidler just earned his Law degree from Seattle University while functioning as a stay-at-home dad. His zippy wife Michele brought home the bacon and is ready to retire for a while now. (I stole this picture from his evite photo album, so I'm afraid it might have to stay puny.)


Mick's cousin Kate Reynolds, pictured here with Uncle Rod and Aunt Susie, just earned her BA in Biology from St. Mary's in Maryland. As far as I know, she's debating her next step: Med School? Hospital Administration? (Is that right, Kate? Anyway, we can figure it out on the Inside Passage Cruise next month...)

My friend Karen Urlie, soprano, recently competed as a finalist in the NATSAA Regional Competition held in Washington state after earning First Place in the Western Washington District Competition. She has also recently sung as a soloist in a Tacoma performance of Mozart's Requiem, and as a soloist in Viva, Mozart! with the Bellevue Chamber Chorus. On Sunday she wrapped up shows in the chorus of The Seattle Opera's MacBeth and will perform in upcoming operas there as a permanent chorus member. If you want to hear an exquisite voice, listen to her on her website.

[Photo Insert: Buff Stud Cousin Andrew]

Mick's li'l cousin Andrew Reynolds, State Champ Swimmer, graduated from Episcopal of Acadiana and received a scholarship to swim for LSU.

My friend Jeff Koehler, from Anchorage tour guide days, now lives in Barcelona and recently published La Paella: Deliciously Authentic Rice Dishes from Spain's Mediterranean Coast. He's also the photographer for the Pike Place Public Market Seafood Cookbook. Find his books at amazon.com.


On June 19, 2006, Mick's brother, Kai Reynolds, DDS, will begin the University of Washington's two-year Endodontics program.


*Note: Perhaps you feel you've been overlooked in this first edition of Netty's Brag Page. Send a photo and the details of your accomplishment and I'll consider publishing it. News from any decade is welcome.

Frank Lloyd Wright
Marin County Civic Center

We went to the Marin County Civic Center, a renowned Frank Lloyd Wright building, after our walk across the Golden Gate Bridge. It was a Saturday, so the only open area inside was the library. We entered the lobby through a tall wroughtiron gate to take the elevator up to the library; in that lobby were concrete tiers with plantbeds, a roped off escalator, and this old-time looking ticket booth. I felt like I was in a funky time warp: it felt simultaneously out-of-date and hip.

It was interesting to see all the functional, practical parts of the structure offset with strange, surprising ornamentation (see above gold globes, for instance--way too many to count). I wish I knew more about architecture to understand Wright's choices. I pretty much only have Ayn Rand's Howard Roark as my model from The Fountainhead. Mike, though, silently strolled the halls, leaned over ledges, hiked out to overlooks and read the building with his camera in hand. He'd seen other Wright buildings (in Pennsylvania? Illinois?) as an Architecture student at Washington University in St. Louis and was curious to take in this one. (To his credit, he explained concepts to me, but I've managed to forget the details. Should've written them down!)

March 2006 - Hearts in San Francisco

During Mick's Spring Break, Mike and Jan (Grandad and Grammy) came to town. Mike stayed for 5 days, Jan for 14. Since we got sick at the tail end of Jan's visit (note the whiny Sick City entry below somewhere), it's taken some time to put together an entry reflecting on their time here. Here's a photo diary. (Photos courtesy of Mike and Jan)

***

Day 1, March 21
Mike and Jan arrive at Oakland Airport
and take Aubrey to Ballet Lesson

***
Day 2, March 22
Pre-school, burrito lunches
and the Marin Headlands Golden Gate Bridge overlook

***
Day 3, March 23
Big Dino Exhibit at Lawrence Hall of Science,
including talk with "paleantologist"
(not quite, but that's what the brochure said),
and dinner at The Outback

***
Day 5, March 25
Walking the Golden Gate Bridge,
San Rafael's Civic Center Frank Lloyd Wright Building
(Will add a separate entry for more pix of FLWright building.)

***
Day 6, March 26
Mick, Mike, Dane & Aubrey hit downtown San Francisco
before dropping Mike off at Oakland Airport

Will make a separate entry for
the remainder of the visit, March 27-April 4 with Jan.

CINCO DE MAYO NIGHT OUT

The MOSAIC club at Pacific (basically a diversity club) put on a Cinco de Mayo party at the Post Apartments in downtown San Francisco last night. The Post Apartments are for Pacific DDS students--no kids allowed as residents; however, we brought Dane and Aubrey along for the party.

We did the usual Cinco de Mayo celebrating: ate tacos--well, Aubrey ate a big bowl of grated cheese and a tortilla; does that count?--and cookies, and drank grape sodas and other festive bevies. Although Dane and Aubrey were the only kids, people were great about letting them hang out and participate. Dane played a lot of fussball, Aubrey collected tissue paper fiesta flowers. Mick and I even got to play several games of cut-throat pool with fellow students Ryan and Pete. It was a really fun, low stress night.

Around 10 we started wrapping up to go home, but first we went up to Pete's place on the fourth floor so Dane could check out Pete's light saber, which actually lights up and makes light saber sounds when it makes contact. We also got to see his $1500 custom-made Bobofat costume (I have no idea if that's anywhere close to how to write/say that character's name, but perhaps you're getting the picture that Pete's a Star Wars fanatic; he's also a big video gamer). Dane started telling Pete about the (much smaller) light saber he made at home with his K'Nex set, and Pete said K'Nex were after his time, but he knew about Legos and told Dane it was good for him to build as much and as often as he could. On our way out, Pete showed us some jump-dive-and-roll karate moves he knew. Dane showed him a series of cartwheels.

All the way home (and this morning, and today), Dane's been reminding us to call Pete so we can "set up another play date." He's even designed and set out the specific items he'll bring to Pete's house--his K'Nex light saber and two K'Nex bows and arrows (one for Pete, of course).

We're working on scheduling another playdate.

This morning Mick got up and went mountain bike riding with some guys from school at China Camp, just 15 minutes north in San Rafael. He came home while the kids and I were at the Sausalito Street Faire (yes, that's Fair with an -e) and then he got caught up on some much-needed sleep after his rigorous two-week Endo block (I think he made it home before 10pm one night during that time frame) and a tough Physio exam. The kids napped too after their Cinco de Mayo late night.

Local Paleantology

If you ask Dane, he's already a paleantologist. He takes it as a personal affront if one assumes he is simply going to be one. As a result, he loves everything dinosaur and knows more than anyone I've ever met. Admittedly, I don't know any other paleantologists and I don't know very many other 5-year-old boys intimately; nonetheless, I'm impressed with his knowledge.

Aubrey has climbed aboard the dinotrain too, and together they work to recall which dinosaurs lived in specific eras (Triassic, Jurassic or Cretaceous); almost daily they categorize their plastic dinosaurs into carnivores, herbivores and omnivores; and they try to memorize sizes and speeds. In addition to being able to name/identify about thirty of them they're also intrigued by other prehistoric creatures as well. (The first mammal, anyone? The kids are sleeping now, so I can't ask them--but it would take about one second to find out, trust me.)

Their favorite resources: the BBC's Walking With Dinosaurs DVD narrated by Kenneth Brannaugh, the kids version of that with Ben Stiller narrating the show as Prehistoric Planet, their LeapPad dinosaur booklet, and about twenty books from the library over the past few months--serious books. We also visited UC Berkeley's Lawrence Hall of Science for their Big Dino exhibit, which has life-size robot dinosaurs that'll curl your blood. (In fact, the Ceolophysus did just about that--just ask Aubrey.)

Their favorite stories: Sid and Marty Kroft's Land of the Lost series on DVD (1970s), Syd Hof's Danny and the Dinosaur (the book and the Scholastic DVD), The Magic School Bus "Dinosaur Detectives" chapter book (and, well, anything Magic School Bus really), Dinosailors, All Aboard the Dinotrain, and the How Do Dinosaurs Say Good Night series.

Some favorite games: "Dinosaur Bingo" and "Dinosaur Excavation." (Remember the old "Operation" game? Think T. Rex fossils and a roar instead of a buzzer. It still takes a very steady hand...)

In the photos here, the kids are excavating two different dinosaur fossils, a T. Rex and a Velociraptor each, which they then assembled.

Mugged

This morning I helped an older Iranian woman who was mugged on Terrace Drive--just 20 feet up from the playground right outside my back door. She came to the playground staggering, clutching her chest (I thought she was having a heart attack). I ran to her to find out the problem. In limited English and desperate body language she conveyed that her bag and head scarf had been stolen by someone. At first I thought she meant by her son, but after I made the 9-1-1 call and got clearer with her, I figured out that by "son" she'd meant "boy" (which, of course, makes more sense). She was so upset, so shaken, pale with red around her eyes. I touched her shoulders, clumsily attempted to embrace her. As I spoke first on the phone with the state trooper response center and then with the Marin County sheriff, she sank to the ground holding her side. I still don't know if he'd hit her or knocked her over, or if this was just the natural response to fear and vulnerability.

The sheriff came five minutes later. He tried to phrase and re-phrase his questions patiently to get accurate answers. She hadn't seen the thief--she'd turned her head from him when he assaulted her. As she demonstrated this, I thought that seemed like a natural response: protect herself from physical harm and from knowing too much about her attacker.

In the end, another sheriff's car headed off in the direction that the thief had fled (a fruitless gesture I'm sure), and the assisting officer said I was free to go. He'd take her to her apartment--just a hundred yards up the hill to what we know of as the "projects"--to find a relative who might speak more English, to interpret her Farsi. But she had no keys, no ID, no money, no cell phone, etc. Yuck. This happened at 11 a.m. I wonder if it would be appropriate for me to call to find out if I can check up on her, even to ask her if she'd like me to walk with her on errands. She's got to feel vulnerable. We all like to think we're safe in broad daylight.

ASK SKETCHY

Dear Sketchy:
Surely everybody is feeling better now. On the east coast we keep seeing/reading about the 100 year Anniversary of the earthquake. What do the experts say about you in Sausalito with regard to a big one? Does your branch of the Reynolds Clan have any special get out of town plans in place? A "scoot" bag by the door?
-Uncle Rod, Bowie, Maryland

Dear Uncle Rod:
Yeah, I guess everybody's feeling better--at least we did for three days. Today Aubrey puked all morning, though, and Mick's got bronchitis complete with two inhalers and a bottle of pills. (Yes, you do detect a whine.)

I appreciate your nudge in the direction of earthquake preparedness. It's something I think about a lot, but haven't acted upon. I have the list of what to have around for "three days of supplies" but haven't actually purchased any of them. Other than that, here's what I supersleuthed through google tonight:

• The Bay Model Center, which is down the street and on my list of cool stuff to check out, happens to be focusing on earthquakes this month, educating on how/why earthquakes will happen here and what the effects will be. They have earthquake prep pamphlets too.

• A link at the San Francisco Chronicle reminded me to fasten our bookcases to the studs in the walls, which has definitely been on my list, but neglected.

• I found another site for Marin County Earthquake info, which gives links, tips, how-to's, etc.

Write me in a couple weeks and ask me what I've accomplished.
Thanks for your mail!
-Sketchy

I'm about to hit the hay now with a healthy dose of Vicadin for my ruptured eardrum. G'night, Johnboy.

Sick City!

Yup, no recent posts due to illness. Dane, Aubrey, Jan and I have had the flu-turned-brutal-colds this week. Dane was the first to come down with it last Saturday night; Aubs, Jan and I followed suit the next day. Sent Jan home on a plane Tuesday after her two week visit--perhaps a bad idea for fellow passengers...

Aubrey and Dane have had several days of 104 temps plus headaches and nausea and coughs--Dane said he couldn't move and felt "glued to the floor" one day. I have the headaches, nausea, coughs, lost voice, and fatigue. The doctor's given Dane antibiotics for his ear infection, but other than that we're just supposed to use cold medicine and Tylenol since this sucker's viral. The doctor even told us not to hope for improvement for a few days. Great.

My friend Margaret's kids have had this for a week too: in fact, her 4-year-old has visibly lost weight and her 20-month old is in the hospital with pnemonia as of yesterday. Perhaps we're lucky in the sense that at least ours hasn't escalated like that, and the weather's been awful enough, with major wind and rain, that Magic School Bus and Hello Kitty videos ad nauseum are almost tolerable.

And where is Mick in all this? We were hoping he'd remain unscathed, but he called today to tell me he had a headache and some nausea. He's staying late at school to infect his peers, I mean, work on a group project and do stuff in the lab. He's guessing he might be dealing with this tomorrow and Sunday if he's got what we have. Not good timing with major tests and assignments coming up.

Perk? Nice neighbor Susan got to be wonderful again. Brought up a big bag of fresh fruit and sparkling citrus juice on our worst day. Excellent timing.

His Own Ensemble

Aubrey

I found this in my journal from February:

I had one of those sentimental deja vu moments this morning. I was out in the parking lot with the kids, and looked over at Aubrey. She had these tight little blonde braids trailing down her back; she wore Dane's old jeans for painting day at school; Dane's red Superfriends backpack hung loosely off her shoulders. The sun caught her blonde bright youthful shininess just as this delicate wind breezed by with that unmistakeable fresh scent of new Spring after a few weeks of rain. It was the onset of the school career: it was tininess, independence, life expanding beyond the easy reaches of a mother.

Scrabble, Anyone?
Hey to my fellow word nerds. My friend Kelly (Jason and Jordan West's sister) introduced me to online Scrabble at The Pixie Pit. For $10 per year you can play to your heart's content with anyone else signed up, whether it's one-on-one or in groups--and you can have multiple games going at once. You get up to seven days to make a play, so it's not demanding or time-consuming. You can also try it for free the first time. Email me if you're in!

(Don't worry. This isn't a pyramid scheme. It's for the love of the game!)

Tennis in Mill Valley

If the courts are dry we're starting to head to Boyle Park on Saturday mornings for $5 tennis lessons. Coach Spenser's got a cart full of balls and rackets for any kid who shows up, usually about ages 5-7. He's a patient, gentle kind of guy who calls every kid by name and gets them to wait happily in line until their turn to meet him at the net. There, he tosses them each a few balls (with speeds and bounce according to their abilities), coaches them in stance and swing, and sends them back in line proud of their accomplishments.

Last Saturday a player in an adjacent court yelled out "Spenser's Dungeon!" and raised his racket. Coach Spenser told the kids that the guy was a former student who now plays college tennis. Later in the session, we learned about Spenser's Dungeon when he had the kids play Simon Says: he had them walk-race to different parts of the court (service line, doubles sideline, singles sideline, alley) as he called them out, and the last kid to the line or area at each turn would have to go stand at his side, "Spenser's Dungeon," and finish the game from there. Dane and Aubrey were the first ones out (it was Dane's second lesson, Aubrey's first) but "Spenser's Dungeon" isn't threatening. In fact, I think the kids like standing by him.

When the lesson's over, after about 45 minutes, all the kids line up at a kiosk outside the tennis court with five bucks in hand to pay Spenser and get a popsicle of their chosen color from him.

Pix above of Dane playing. Spenser's the guy in gray. No pix of Aubs playing yet, but will add some after her next session.

Bound for North Beach: Dana and Anj
After a day of looking for the quaint little Hello Kitty shop we'd envisioned for the girls (we were only working from an address), we found it in downtown San Francisco at a gigantic humongous supersize MALL. We walked to North Beach's Little Italy in search of food after that shopping trip, and got to ride the bus during rush hour, which was perhaps the real SF experience. (December)