December
2010
Dear
Friends and Family,
Our
best news this year is that our children are both back in California! In fact,
they’re right up the highway in San Francisco. We love being a small part of
their adult lives.
By the time Eric graduated from RPI in May, he
had landed a job as a software developer with a high-tech start-up in SF called
Sauce Labs. Eric also bought himself a “micro condo” (256 sq. ft.), less than
two blocks from work. Being on the top (8th) floor has the advantages
of a 14-ft ceiling, a skylight, and a small “storage” loft, which he and John
modified to accommodate a mattress. Eric and his girlfriend, Anna, are
maintaining a long-distance relationship while she finishes school at RPI, with
time out for an internship at a cool materials start-up in Boston.
Tiffany, Jason, and Avalon are navigating the
challenges of their urban life in SF. Ava, a first grader now, got her wish to
go to Chinese school every day after her regular school. What a kick to see a
little blond girl speaking Mandarin! The sweet pictures of Ava on our card disguise
the spunky side of her nature. She is a girl who knows her own mind and how to
express herself. You should see the video clip of Ava’s lesson on how to draw a
horse! We were delighted to spend a long weekend with her while her parents
traveled to Oregon for a wedding.
Jason and Tiffany have taken on the additional
complexities of a dual-career family. Worried that six years was long enough to
be out of the work force, Tiffany just started a full-time inside sales job at
Demandforce, which provides services for small businesses. This news is so
fresh that at the time of printing, we still hadn’t received a full report.
Susie’s employer, F5 Networks, has survived the
lagging economy and recently became part of the S&P 500. If the technology itself
wasn’t enough to exercise her brain, the tech writers are now learning a
different tool and process to write and store information. Susie continues to
volunteer with AFS, and recently met an exchange student from Rafaela, Argentina,
where she lived.
John is expanding his knowledge and experience as
an energy efficiency and retro-commissioning expert. A couple of customers keep
him about as busy as he wants to be, with HVAC monitoring, analysis, and
troubleshooting projects.
Lest you think we are all work and no play, we
should tell you that we made a trip to Montreal and Quebec City in October to
see the fall colors. Susie won two airline tickets in her company’s holiday drawing
last December. We stayed in a couple of charming B&Bs, traveling between
the two cities on the Canadian Railroad. Lovely!
Have we told you about our chickens? In 2009,
we joined the wave of urban farmers with the addition of Betty (blond) and Rita
(redhead), fondly called “the girls.” John built them a comfortable aviary (not
a cage), and they each faithfully lay about one egg per day, except when
they’re molting (or not in the mood).
We hope this holiday season brings you close to
your loved ones, and we wish you good health and prosperity in 2011.
Love, Susie and
John