I have pride in our Pride!

Hello All, I wanted to write yesterday, but alas, the website was down and wouldn't allow me to do so.  Therefore, here is what I wanted to share with you yesterday.  Better late than never.

I find nothing more exciting than watching a team play a game where they have to defeat enormous odds, and they rise to the occasion.  That is exactly what the boys’ basketball team did today.  They worked extremely hard, sprinting from one end of the court to the other, claiming rebounds, and scoring three-point shots and lay-up after lay-up.  Have you ever experienced a situation where you started shaking in your excitement as you waited to discover the outcome of a situation?  That was how I felt today, cheering for the team.  They made an amazing comeback, and although they did not win, they were extremely close and are able to walk away with their heads held high, because they truly played as a team.  Keep working on the well-oiled machine, and keep listening to each other boys.  If it’s working, which it seems to be, it’s worth working on and improving.  There is no limit to what you can accomplish if you work together; I look forward to a win the next time… 

What a game!

Oh, what a game it was!   It was hard to choose what to focus my eyes on: the fast-paced game or the colossal crowd of spectators!  The girls did a fantastic job!  Not only did they win, but they played hard and worked well together.  It was a very exciting game with numerous interceptions and I can only dream about the heights to which these girls went to capture the rebounds.  It was amazing to watch!  I wish I could jump that high.  Sigh...  I look forward to seeing the boys' team play on Thursday. 

Have you ever thought about what makes one person enjoy one sport, while someone else prefers a completely different sport?  I guess it must have something to do with the skills that you already have; the better you are at something, the more you enjoy it.  Is that how it always works?  I wonder... What about people who try new sports and grow to like them?  Can you enjoy participating in a sport even if you are not the "best" at it?  Can you enjoy anything if you are not good at it?  Is it always true that we tend to choose activities that we can do easily?  That also made me question myself about whether easy is always better.  Isn't easy sometimes boring?  I know that I definitely enjoy a challenge when it comes to everything that I do, although I also admit that it is more enjoyable if I can be successful.  I've recently been taught how to do Sudoku's, for example, and I love them, because they challenge me.  However, the hard ones are really hard (I do try them though). 

One more thing...

I wanted to share one more thing with you all.  I love the spring!   Don't you?  Have you taken the time to stop and smell the flowers?  Gorgeous flowers are in bloom everywhere in all sorts of vivid colors, and I am constantly distracted by their scent and how lovely they look.  If you haven't taken the time to observe them yet, I hope you will soon, because they are too good to miss!

My name is Bob Gilbert!

I don't know why people keep trying to rename me.  Have you ever had that experience?  Have you ever met someone who either could remember your name, or simply refused to call you by your real name?  I find that really annoying, especially because I like my name.  It would be okay if I chose to change it, and I reserve the right to do so at any later date if I feel like it. 

At first, I was Bob.  Then I acquired a last name, which was fine, because, well, everyone has a last name (or, atleast, everyone I know).  But now, I find that people feel they can rename me.  I like my name, and so I am sticking up for myself and saying, hey, leave my name alone.  My name is Bob Gilbert.  End of discussion.

On another note, it is really nice to be back in school.  I missed everyone tremendously!  My surgery was successful, as I am sure that you could see.  All my appendages (ears and legs) are back where they belong, thank goodness.  Thank you Dr. Weedon!  You were very kind to me.  I can now look forward to a long, healthy, and happy life. 

Surgery for Bob!

Hello Everyone,
I'm sorry that it took this long for me to write again.  I've been to the hospital several times, and it has now been decided that, unfortunately, I need surgery.  I have a fractured ear; can you believe that?!  I really don't want to have surgery, but it seems that there is nothing else to be done.  I miss my ear.  Yes, it fell off completely, so I am hearing out of one ear only at the moment.  I guess that I have to be brave and just get it over with.  I am told that once it is over, life will get back to normal and I'll be able to come back to school.  I miss all of you!  

I hope that everyone had a great vacation.  I enjoyed traveling around Boston, but it was not nearly as nice outside as I would have liked.  Now, I am at home doing some reading and watching a bit of television.  Maybe I'll tape the royal wedding in London for Ms. Fuezery, if I am still at home on Friday and watch it live myself.  It sounds exciting!  I have heard that a lot of people will be attending it and watching it on TV if they can't be there.  It seems that that is all that people talk about now.  I wonder how many people will be there...

Anyway, I had better go, because there are some chocolate Easter eggs with my name on them sitting on the table just a few feet away.  Yum...

Oh!  I just remembered:  I found a new game which I thought you might enjoy.  I posted it on the side in the "What I'm Playing Right Now" section.  I hope you'll enjoy it as much as I do.

A Little Bit of Boston History

Hello friends!  Yesterday I went on a historical tour of Boston, or at least a partial tour.  I visited some points of interest along the Freedom Trail.  I started my journey at Central Square, once again, and journeyed through Downtown Crossing.  The subway was still a very exciting experience for me.  I’m learning some important subway/train etiquette, such as giving up your seat to others when there aren’t enough seats (Ms. Fuezery assured me that we do this as a sign of respect for our elders).  

           

 

Our fist stop was the old State House.  I found the most interesting model of the State House inside the museum; finally something that was in my size!  Of course, I had to pose with it.  Then, I also had to pose with the real State House, because after all, it was a very important part of our history.   Did you know that that is the first place from which they read aloud the Declaration of Independence to the people of Boston?  It is also the site of the Boston Massacre.  What a sad occasion.   The building, however, is absolutely gorgeous, with its symmetrical faces and classical architectural characteristics.  I also really liked the balcony from which they read the Declaration. 

          

Our next stop was Quincy Market for lunch.  I had the opportunity to try clam chowder, a food for which Boston is well known, and it was absolutely delicious. 

                     

And the most exciting part of my day?  You probably guessed it from the picture below, but it was seeing, and getting to take a picture with, a 10 lb. male lobster.  How often do you get to do that?  Not very I can tell you.  Did you know that a lobster only turns that typical red color after it has been cooked?  That was an interesting fact to learn.  Poor thing… All in all, it was a wonderful day, with beautiful weather and very enjoyable company.  :)

MIT Adventure!

I went on a long walk the other day along the Charles River.  It was a lovely day, wonderfully sunny, but very windy.    I was almost blown away a couple of times, as you can tell by the pictures. 

As I crossed the Longfellow Bridge back towards Cambridge, guess what I saw?  I observed some markings along the bridge, which seemed to be a type of measurement system, using “Smoots” as the unit of measurement.  Ms. Fuezery then told me the story of how the length of the bridge was measured by several MIT engineers.  Their unit of measurement was the “Smoot”, which was the length of a specific person, named Smoot.  Every so often they would mark how far along the bridge you had progressed, in Smoots.  What a whimsical idea!

After that, of course, I had to visit the Massachusetts Institute of Technology campus, which is found just at the end of the bridge.  It was absolutely beautiful!  I found a really interesting statue of a person’s upper torso, made entirely out of metallic mathematical symbols and numbers, all painted white.  It was a great adventure!