Virtually Home

January We started the new year on the south coast of Western Australia, vacationing in the region that has Albany and Denmark. We were almost two years into Australia's border closure for covid-19. We hadn't seen our family in a long time. I had a verbal job offer and plans to go for a visit to campus when Australia planned to open its border on February 5. It was summer, and we were trying to make the most of our time Down Under. The south coast is really beautiful, and though the Southern Ocean is cold and violent (and so makes for bad and dangerous swimming), it offers really stunning views and some good fishing. On New Year's Eve, we spent the day hiking in the Stirling Ranges. We considered driving to town to watch the fireworks on New Year's Eve but ultimately we didn't. We had a steak dinner at our hotel's restaurant and went to bed early so we could do plenty of outdoor adventuring the next day. It's the first time I haven't stayed up until mi...

I fell a little short of my reading goal this year - I had hoped to read 45 books. I am happy with what I did, though. In 2022, I spent a lot of time thinking about songs and studying the Cherokee language. A lot of other stuff happened - we moved continents, we became homeowners, I started a new job, did a bunch of research, and spent a lot of time on teaching. What I read were mostly novels, but there are a few collections of short fiction, non-fiction works, and children's books. Here's what I read in 2022: 1. Mate Choice: The Evolution of Sexual Decision Making from Microbes to Humans by Gil Rosenthal 2. Memory's Legion by James S.A. Corey 3. Animal Behavior (11th Edition) by Dustin R. Rubenstein and John Alcock 4. The Sandman Vol. 1: Preludes and Nocturnes by Neil Gaiman 5. The Sandman Vol. 2: The Doll's House by Neil Gaiman 6. The Sandman Vol. 3: Dream Country by Neil Gaiman 7. Naturalist on the Bibbulmun: A Walking Companion by Leigh W. Simmons 8. A Spindle Spli...