The Hooven Flyer

Christmas Day 2007 in Norwich

Yes, here's Simon, age 2.5. Then John/Jenny. Then Molly. Then Carole and Alex (on couch with Fred and Abby... Heidi is hiding in background).  Then Max with Simon and blocks. Then MeeMee and BeepBeep with Simon.

xxx

Latest from Sue, Mike and Brian

Brian is just finishing up classes for his first semester at U of M.  He's experiencing really cold weather and lots of snow for the first time, and he's working out pretty much every day.  He looks and sounds great.   He's majoring in philosophy, and taking courses for pre-med and pre-law.  This first term, he's taking Spanish, Biology, and Philosophy.  He's struggling to get a 'B' in Spanish, because he'll get 8 credit hours if he does.  He's doing well in Bio, and loves Philosophy.  He wants to look into taking EMT classes, probably this summer, to get licensed.  What a great experience that would be!

 

Sue is very happy riding her horse now, after recovering the last 12 weeks from a broken ankle.  She stepped off a curb, landed wrong and fortunately didn't do much cartilage of ligament damage.  She's done with physical therapy, but is still taking regular Pilates and working out with her personal trainer "Julio".  (That's what she tells me anyways)  She's recovering very well, and will be fully capable of kicking my butt on a regular basis soon.  We're currently doing a fair amount of renovating on the house, downstairs, bathrooms, etc...  We're also having fun competing with each other in Sudoku.

 

I'm traveling on business a few times a month, looking at new opportunities but nothing that can justify starting a business yet.  I'm working out regularly as well, and playing tennis a couple times a week (Joined a great indoor club with CLAY courts! )  As Steve mentioned, I'm doing the 'racetrack thing' with my car.  I've made quite a few modifications, and have a good group of buddies that I get together with to race and lie about what we did on the track.  I know Dad and Grandad would have gotten a big kick out of seeing, and maybe running one of these great events.

 

Finally, Steve and I have talked about the next Hoovinatti in 2008.  It probably makes the most sense to have it here because we're centrally located, and of course this is where part of us all started...  Let me know what times of the year would be best.  Probably summer fits with everyone, so let me know what months you could or couldn't make it, and we'll set things up!

Here are a few more pics of Susie and Brian for the Hooven blog. 

1. Sue helping Brian move in to his dorm room.

 

2. Brian's dorm room - the cleanest it will ever be.

 

3. Susie with broken ankle, and her parents at the "Big House".

xxx

Steve, Martha, Mike, Terry and Tom in NYC

October 19, 20, 21 in New York. The weather was fantastic every day, 72-75 degrees. Mike and Terry flew in from Minn. Steve and Martha took train down from Springfield. We all stayed at Plaza Athenee on East 64th Street. The last 2 photos show us at Tavern on the Green in Central Park. Tom is a resident at Columbia Pres. medical center, his first year. He started in July and he is loving it, a pediatric residency.

xxx

xxx

Boise Musings

Hoovens, have you come to grips with quantum entanglement? Has it struck you yet that matter has no real "fundamental particle"? Of course it has. This bothers you. String Theory has gone down like the Hindenberg. You probably can't really rest until you've worked out the paradoxes revealed by the total inadequacy of "classical physics."

Hence, there is "The Essential David Bohm." Bohm was one of the pioneers of quantum theory, a protege of Einstein, a partner in dialogue with the Indian philosopher Krishnamurti. He's the only physicist who's really offered a way forward in these matters.

Here's a wonderful quote from Bohm — and this gives you a sense of what he's talking about with reference to the universe, and the importance of experience in science:

Consider, for example, what takes place when one is listening to music. At a given moment a certain note is being played but a number of the previous notes are still "reverberating" in consciousness. Close attention will show that it is the simultaneous presence and activity of all these reverberations that is responsible for the direct and immediately felt sense of movement, flow and continuity. . . . It is clear that one does not experience the actuality of this whole movement by "holding on" to the past with the aid of a memory of the sequences of notes, and comparing this past with the present. Rather, as one can discover by further attention, the "reverberations" that make such an experience possible are not memories, but active transformations of what came earlier, in which are to be found not only a generally diffused sense of the original sounds, with an intensity that falls off . . . but also various emotional responses, bodily sensations, incipient muscular movements, and the evocation of a wide range of yet further meanings, often of great subtlety.

Bohm's principal theory in physics, the "implicate order", basically says that the entire universe in one form or another is enfolded into every particle, and even into every point, in space.  What is inside an electron, as one gets smaller, is the universe, or some enfolded version of it.

Consider any point in the air in the room where you're sitting.  The light from every visible object in the room is passing into your eye. But it isn't drawn to your eye; rather, the light from every object is passing through every point in the room (except where it's obstructed by other objects of course). What's remarkable is that if you pick any point floating in space, that point somehow has all that optical information enfolded into it. not as a "stack" of signals, but as an enfolded piece of information.

Bohm suggests that all objects, all particles, actually emit "quantum fields", almost like light waves, but different in a fundamental way:  These fields are non-local, meaning they don't travel across space-time at the speed of light, but are instead informing the universe instantaneously.  What particles transmit is the reflection of the universe "as they see it."  This nonlocal broadcast can explain many of the "paradoxes" of quantum observations, the apparent influence of experimental observation; the nonlocal influence that "entangled" particles have on eachother...

Jesus H. Christ, will you please read this book?  Bohm's real classic is Wholeness and the Implicate Order, but The Essential... is perhaps a better introduction.  In any event, you can expect more entries like this in the Hooven Flyer.

Love,
Michael of Boise

Hi to all from Northampton!

I’ve received a couple of reminders from family members wondering why we haven’t posted any pictures from our vacation to Germany and Italy, from which we returned about four weeks ago.  Let’s just say the advantage of digital photography appears to be its biggest downside as well: you can take all the pictures you want.   I’ve finally finished weeding through three cameras worth of photos and have now posted about a third of them for viewing on Flicker It's still a lot of pictures, but you can click through the slideshow pretty quickly if you've seen enough pictures of the back of my head.  We had a fantastic time in Germany and Italy. The best parts did not involve sight-seeing, but the friends we made in Germany, and just being able to hang out as a family in Italy, so the photos are really a minor part of the story.  Germany Italy photos

Our week in Germany was at the invitation of the people of Neumarkt, a Bavarian town about the size of Northampton where Heidi’s father spent most of his childhood.  The reason for our trip was that the town was naming a footpath after Heidi’s aunt Ilse, who died in the camps.  It all started two years ago, when three girls in a religion class at the Gymnasium (high school) in Neumarkt began investigating who Ilse Haas was at the instigation of their religion teacher, Helmut.  The project turned into a report about Ilse and the Jews of Neumarkt and inspired an award-winning musical about Ilse written by teachers and students at the school. 

The people we met in Neumarkt were incredibly warm. They welcomed us into their homes, took us around the area, and thanked us repeatedly for being there.  On my first night Helmut told me I would be taking his place on first trumpet in the brass ensemble the next morning at the dedication ceremony.  I was honored to be given that kind of role in such an important and emotional event for Heidi’s family. 

Neumarkt is a beautiful town filled with bakeries, cafes, Bavarian style buildings and a lot of people on bicycles.    We had guided tours of the region and Haas family landmarks courtesy of Hans, Inga and  Wolfgang, three people connected to the project.   We ate pastries and drank coffee at Walter’s favorite childhood bakery, just across the street from the house he grew up in.  We had dinner one night at an Inn that has been in Inga’s husband’s family for 300 years.   Molly and Abby went out with some local kids to see the Simpsons movie in German and then joined them at their school the next day.   I hope the photos give you some idea of the wonderful (and moving) time we had there (The woman on the left is 95 and was Walter's nanny!).

After our week in Neumarkt we took an overnight train to Como, Italy, near the Swiss border.  Our hotel was right on the lake and we had a great time taking boat rides, walks, and hanging out in café’s, where at 5:00 it was the local custom to have a glass of wine or espresso, and maybe a gelato sundae.  (That was fine, as dinner was usually around  9:00.)   Thankfully, the place wasn’t mobbed by tourists, (other than Italian ones). 

After Como, we took a train to the western most lake in Northern Italy, Lake Orta, and stayed in the small but gorgeous medieval town of Orta San Guilio.  It was just a short walk into the main town from our hotel to find plenty of places to get gelato, pizza, or a latte. More tourists here, but few Americans.   It was a wonderful place to relax with the kids, but for any of you looking for a get-away for just two it would be one of the most romantic places I could imagine. 

Now it’s back to work and school!  Molly is at Brandeis and living off campus.  Abby  is co-president of her senior class, and school starts for her next week.  We just had an all too brief visit with Mike, Harriet and Simon. The phrase of the week will be from Simon “What’s Abby doing?  What’s Fred Doing?  What’s Heidi Doing?  What’s Ruby doing?”

Love to all!

Fred

Gracie

Hi everyone!  Martha here. On September 7th, Gracie will be 80!  I would love to flood her with cards, photos, whatever.

Her family isn't too great - she thinks of us as her family.  She's doing terrific -takes walks every day, visits with neighbors & friends.  We get together every month or so.

Her address:
Grace Johnson
147 Merrimac Circle
White River Junction, VT  05001

Thanks!
X

Super Sue Rides Again

OK, here's all I know... this is Steve speaking: About a year ago Sue went to Toronto to buy a Morgan horse and brought it back to Cincinnati (what a trip that must have been)... she boards it someplace nearby... and regularly during the week goes there to take lessons and ride. Earlier this year she entered her first competition and came in second, beaten by another beginner rider who had hired a professional rider to take her place (isn't that low?) I believe this photo was taken during/after Sue's second competiton.... so Sue, how about an update.

Hey, did you all know that Brian is going to U. of Michigan this fall? And that Mike has left Atricure to start another company? And that Mike takes his hot BMW to a nearby road course race track, takes lessons, and enters races... talk about a horsepower family.

Hello from Prague

 

Hello all.  I too wish to thank Steve and Martha for setting this up and supporting it.  The posts so far have been great.  Lets all keep it up.  I have added a link to this page from our blog over at Ben and Pam's Blog.  I will try to double post important posts in both places but invite you all to check out and comment on our Blog often.  If we could get a static link over to our blog on this one it would be great.   There are lots of other pictures here. 
     We have been living here in Prague now since the beginning of April and absolutely love it.  We are in a spacious flat near one of the cities largest parks, the Palace gardens and a Metro stop that can get you just about anywhere in the city.  I would like to extend an open invitation to everyone to come and visit.  We have a large guest room, an office with Futon and large couch.  We would love to have some visitors and show off this beautiful city we have come to love.   
     Alex is 3 now and turns 4 in October.  She starts preschool the first week of September at a great school we found just a block from our flat.  It took a while for her to adjust but as we have found friends who speak English with children she is doing extremely well.  She is slowly picking up the language and enjoys riding the metro and going to the hundreds of kids parks in the city.
     Logan just turned one and should be walking in the next few weeks.  He is right on the edge of letting go of his walk behind toy. He has a limited vocabulary and is one of the happiest children I have ever seen.  I don't even know that he has much noticed we moved other then we are outside a lot more.
    I am working in the center of downtown Prague a 10 minute commute by metro from our flat.  I am still with Monster working in development and data warehousing.  The office is very nice and the people there are from all over the world on my team alone there are 6 nationalities represented.  The lifestyle is far more laid back then the US here everyone works hard for 8 or 9 hours a day taking time out for a real lunch and then after work there always seems to be some sort of social gathering that people attend. 
      Pam is staying home with the kids and running the house.  We get out 2 nights a week now without the kids since we found a great babysitter.  This has given us more freedom to explore the city and make some new friends. 
    You can contact us through email at ben@casadehodson.com or though Skype at casadehodson or through a US phone number as 781-328-2742.  Hope to be hearing from you all more in the future here and through standard means.

Corky Rae Richardson

Lisa and I are not big believers in photography, as we are in a witness protection program.  However, we have no problems sharing pictures of our dog Corky, who as far as we are concerned is our child, if not better than a child.  She is a motivational dog, getting us up at 5:00 AM every day, and forcing us to exercise frequently.  As far as we know, she is a jack russell/whippet mix who we adopted from a rescue on December 27, 2005.  She is currently resting comfortably at home in her kennel while her parents earn money to buy dog food/treats/etc.  Carole, thanks for the Monkey picture and the fantastic slide show. 

Historic Gathering

June, 2007 - Mike, Terry, Steve, and Martha meet for the first time in a YEAR and we drive into Wisconsin to Canoe Bay, in Chetek.  Farm country, lakes, and an awesome resort in the woods where we eat delicious food, hang out, watch birds, deer and other wild life and play golf (off site), or hang out on the deck and chit-chat, girl style.  And we so enjoy each other's company.

A typical farm

After the delicious food