Cosmic Symphony

I thought I would take a chance and share with you a little bit of what I have been learning lately. This might seem like heady stuff but I think you might like the ending.

Since college I have been interested in physics but never had a chance to pursue the field. So I have been doing a lot of reading about the topic now that I have the time. Recently I attended a lecture at U.C. Davis. The speaker was an icon in theoretical physics, especially in what has been called "String Theory".

For many years, scientists thought that the smallest particles of matter were protons, neutrons and electrons. But some time ago they discovered that even these elementary atomic particles were made up of a whole menu of sub-atomic particles given such strange names as quarks, neutrinos, muons, etc. In fact, they have found 19 or more even smaller building blocks of matter.

Scientists didn't like how "messy" this is. For some reason, nature is supposed to be more symmetrical or "elegant" as they like to say. Therefore they began to suspect that there might be even smaller fundamental building blocks of nature. Because these new particles would be so very very small, current technology can not see them at all. They only have indirect knowledge of their existence. However, they can prove mathematically that they should exist.

They now believe that all matter could be made up of the same particle, an infinitesimally small vibrating string. It is analogous to a violin string. The only difference between one substance and another is the frequency and resonance of the comprising vibrating strings. It seems that music may be the underlying structure holding all things together.

To give you an idea though of how small a theoretical string is, consider that the distance from a person to the outer edge of the known universe is on the same scale as the distance from a person down to a string. Pretty small huh? But isn't it interesting that man, God's highest creation, sits right in the middle, size wise, of His total creation?

Randy Jackson of American Idol fame was once asked why he thought that Idol was so very popular. In a rather profound moment he simply said, "everybody needs music in their lives." Music is an "instrumental" (ha!) part of our life, all through our lives. Could it be that music touches something very basic within us all, something primeval? We all wonder why music can stir up such deep emotions and responses. But it's probably no wonder to God.

Could it be that we are all part of a great cosmic symphony with a Divine conductor arranging music all throughout creation?

It may take decades before this can be proven but the possibility has stirred a renewed interest in theoretical physics not seen since the golden years of Einstein's E=MC2. Even after all his achievements, Einstein spent the last 30 years of his life chasing the idea of this one unifying particle theory or, as they have now coined, "The Theory of Everything", but he came up short.

So I look forward now to listening to a new icon at UT. I'll be watching his lecture schedule as he is also one of most prominent proponents of String Theory. I suspect I will be listening to music, both on the drive to his remarks, and throughout his lecture as well.

Play on...

We're not in Kansas Anymore

Today we got wired...with Cable TV (300+ channels and nothing on), digital phone (free local & long distance for one year) and high-speed Internet service. Time Warner calls it Road Runner and the 3-part package runs less than $100 a month! So no more trips to the apartment business center to try and stay connected.

BTW our apartment phone number is 512-906-0637 and we will keep the cell of 916-622-0183 until our family package expires. So what's been happening?

First order of business was getting Texas license plates. To do that we needed a vehicle. We found a car on-line ahead of our move and it was wonderful to have it waiting for us the day after our arrival. We bought a 2007 Previa, actually known as a Toyota Sienna Van. Karen drives while I sprawl out across the 2nd row of seats. We really love it and it meets our needs perfectly. Check out the gallery for pics. We put it to good use right away as my 2nd cousin Karen Manhart was in Austin for a wedding and needed a ride to the airport to fly back to Sacto. So after a brief visit and lunch she made the popular Southwest connection. We will be looking into Express Jet in the near future too, as they have started low cost direct service from San Antonio to Sacto.

We knew we weren't in CA anymore when local TV reported that they're expecting a very bad flea season! Karen also met a few fire ants while checking in on our property. But we had never seen our parcel in summer before, fully leafed out, and it is beautiful. We are also looking into a couple of nearby parcels, just in case we have some camp followers in the distant future. We met some new neighbors that had just transplanted from the Northeast to be near their children that also live in The Arbors. Imagine that!

We have narrowed down contractors to two bidders and hope to get final numbers next week. Best guess is 7-8 months to move in. We can't turn around at this point anyway as we were forced to surrender our CA driver's licenses in exchange for new Texas ones. Our license numbers are one digit apart just like Michael and Sharon's. They will be over later today to help us finalize all the new connections and maybe go swimming if the weather permits.

So far the weather has been very hospitable with some rain most days. Austin has had record spring rainfall and everything is very green, yet not too humid at this point. We have been thinking of that special family member who has a heat-related skin problem. Even though it gets very hot here, we think the extra moisture might actually help the condition. Just a thought.

It is hard to believe that when we got married 34 years ago today that our dream back then of retiring in Austin would come true so quickly. BTW my meds are affecting my memory so it may not have actually been Austin. But I know our dream was to experience every new adventure together. So it remains to be seen what new adventures the next 34 years will bring. But for now we hope to fully embrace the Austin Adventure and to endeavor to keep in touch. We hope you will consider doing the same.

Goodbyes to Good Friends & Family

When we collectively decided to go to Austin well over a year ago it was impossible to project ahead to the emotions we would have when the time finally came to go especially emotions about people. Initially we characterized our departure not as us leaving, but as us inviting others to share the journey with us. We knew down deep inside that it was not very realistic for relatives to simply drop their lives and move to Austin but it was a romantic notion and felt better than to simply feel we were leaving them behind. I have openly wept and mourned the pending separation from close family. But even with the tears, I still believe that we are rightly headed in a new direction. And...thank Southwest for those occasional tremendous fares for quick returns and reunions.

Today we said goodbye to some good friends we met in 1990, Martin and Joy Cherrington. Actually Martin was my boss from 1990 to 1996 and we have remained in close contact ever since. Karen developed an equal kinship with his wife Joy. I don't know how often your employer also becomes a close friend but it did with Martin. So today we broke bread, reminisced about the good, bad and ugly and speculated about our respective futures. I don't know what it is in life when you really connect with someone and develop a close affection. I think it is rare for all of us. But when it does happen, its hard to leave and not look over your shoulder. But as it is with any good friend, they want your best and they will always be there for you.

Done Deal - Well Almost

June 14th we set sail on The S.S. Southwest for a one way ride to Austin. Our home of 18 years in Newcastle CA passes into the hands of another family to enjoy on the 15th. Our first nine months in country we will be suffering at the San Paloma Texas Adaption Center (see related links for what it's like to suffer in Texas for $675 a month). Our secure unit (lovingly arranged by Michael & Sharon) under 24 hour watch will be:


12501 Tech Ridge Blvd. #1516
Austin, TX 78753.

If we successfully adapt and our builder is on-time, we will eventually be allowed to move to:

375 Arbors Circle
Elgin, TX 78621

They will allow us to keep our cell phone 916-622-0183 until they discover that the area code is a bit farther west of Austin than we represented.

Our travels and travails will be chronicled regularly at this blog. Here is plenty of information that will allow you to email, snail-mail or call. We hope to hear from you so we don't lose heart. Plus, we might owe you money and Texas is not an extradition state. Stay tuned...