Referee counts words while Nazy wears hats correctly
“What,” I thought, “can I write about? I can’t think of an amusing anecdote about picking up the dry cleaning. And the only result of my trip to the car wash was a clear car. The…”
Monday Interrupt
“It’s Darius’ research, Nazy,” I explained. “He asked me to proof-read the introduction to his paper.”
“Which paper?”
“The one that he was working on while we were in Beirut.”
“I thought that was due right after we left.”
“It was. He got an extension.”
“So what is the new deadline?”
“Yesterday.”
“Read fast.”
End Interrupt
A few weeks ago, I published a photo that engendered memories of ..
“My Dad!” I thought. “He always balanced baseball hats on the top of his head. I always thought that looked ridiculous. And now? Look at me. There must be a (bad)baseball-hat wearing gene that is triggered when a camera is focused.”
The only way to prevent the hat-gene from expressing itself is to avoid wearing a hat. But — I like hats. It is a conundrum.
And, speaking of hats, this week, Nazy and I went to Solvang to see ‘My Fair Lady’ in the outdoor theatre.
“What does My Fair Lady have to do with hats?” Nazy interrupts.
“Remember the Ascot scene?” I replied. “And Audrey Hepburn’s hat?”
“In fact,” I thought. “Have you seen any of your hats?”
The show was great. As the sun set, we saw a conjunction of Venus and Jupiter. On Tuesday, these planets were the closest (viewed from Earth) that they’ll be for the next 120 years.
Tuesday Interrupt
“Darius asked me to read his cover letter to the editor - explaining why his submission is a little late.” I explained when we arrived home.
“Why is it late, Dan?” Nazy asked.
“Now it’s not just a good paper, it’s a great paper. but Darius can’t say that in his explanation.”
“Why not?”
End Interrupt
Nazy in Solvang for My Fair Lady
While Darius was researching, Oxygen Tango, the world’s greatest Tango School, completed a move to a new and wonderful location. It’s still within walking distance of their home in the Mar Vista district of Los Angeles.
Of course, no week would be complete without an update on the latest wonders from the grand(est) son. There was, however, a somewhat disquieting query from my sister Sandi - a question that deserves a response.
“Dan!” She wrote. “You call him the grand(est)son. What will you do if you get a second grandson?”
“That’s a good question,” I thought and then I recalled a trip to Singapore:
Negotiating with a copy watch merchant, I was undecided between the ‘Rolex’ and the ‘Piaget’.
“You should get this one,” the salesman said. “The band is real leather.”
“But this one’s band,” I replied, holding the ‘Piaget’, says ‘genuine leather.”
“Yes, but the ‘Rolex’ I recommended has real genuine leather.”
In short, I’ll figure something out if a second grandson arrives.
Wednesday Interrupt
“I’m reading Darius’ note to the referee, Nazy.”
“Referee?”
“This is a ‘revise and resubmit’ paper. Darius has to respond to each of the referee’s comments - even the stupid ones - in a positive way.”
“Stupid ones?”
“The referee demanded results for which there is no data.”
“Isn’t that impossible?”
“Of course. That’s why this note has to be carefully worded.”
End Interrupt.
Nazy and I took Tiger, our first-est grandson to the beach this weekend. He liked the ocean - until the water bounced up to his knees. He wasn’t too sure about walking in the sand. But he had a great time chasing sea gulls.
He also understands ‘lots’ of words - in three languages. His parents, like me, speak English to him. Nazy speaks Farsi and Yari, the nanny, speaks Spanish. He can clap his hands together when I ask him to “Do paddy cake”. (Of course, he won’t do that if I ask him when anyone else is looking.) He’s fast on his feet now - and when we go out, he now prefers to push the stroller rather than to ride in it. There is a practical difficulty associated with this behavior.
“He can’t see where he’s going when he’s pushing the stroller,” I noted as I tried to override Tiger’s steering. “He heading for the pond,” I thought.
“He knows what he’s doing,” Nazy replied. “He wants to see the turtles and the ducks.”
“He certainly doesn’t want to stay on the walkway,” I replied, as Tiger and I wrestled for directional control. Losing, I played my trump card and picked him up. He pointed toward the pond and babbled - loudly.
Thursday Interrupt.
“I thought the paper was done.” Nazy noted. “What are you reading now?”
“This journal has a word-count limit,” I responded. “Darius needs to remove 413 words.”
“Can you..”
“I’m crossing out all the verbs. That should do it.”
End Interrupt
P.S. Darius’ paper is sent!
For last week's letter, click here
Another of Nazy's Hats