I still think he's going to be a red head. What about you?
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
An Explanatation Of The Global Economy That Won't Insult Your Intelligence
CFR.org - Crisis Guide: The Global Economy
Shared via AddThis
The Council On Foreign Relations has an excellent multimedia project that explains in great and intelligent detail the roots of the whole economic crisis. Most of it is video, but there are some Google Motion Charts and other graphs and timelines as well. Totally worth checking out.
They have similar interactives about topics such as Darfur, Climate Change and North Korea. Smarten up before your next cocktail party.
Shared via AddThis
The Council On Foreign Relations has an excellent multimedia project that explains in great and intelligent detail the roots of the whole economic crisis. Most of it is video, but there are some Google Motion Charts and other graphs and timelines as well. Totally worth checking out.
They have similar interactives about topics such as Darfur, Climate Change and North Korea. Smarten up before your next cocktail party.
Monday, June 29, 2009
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Who Says Recovering From A C-Section Is Hard?
All I know is that I have The New York Times and the Weekend FT is get through while a 10 pound sack of sugar sleeps on my chest.
And people, where is the Bordeaux that I requested last week? I can imbibe now and would prefer something with a soft tannins and a strong finish.
Other advancements: I seem to be deflating enough that I can now wear my rings and not need lotion to get them on and off. Hooray for small victories.
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Post-Baby Update!
I'm settling in well with Andre The Giant. He's on a steady routine of eat, sleep, poop, and he does it all like a champ.
Since Andre arrived via C-section I've been limited in what I can do around the house. I'm supposed to get up and move around, but not too much. I can take little walks to run errands or get fresh air. I can't pick up anything heavy and bending over is verboten until otherwise instructed. Anyone who knows me knows that I bumble and drop things, and TR has the pleasure of quite literally picking up after me.
The C-section wasn't planned, although I had been told it was a possibility since the boy was measuring large on sonograms. We induced early on the 18th, I sweated out contractions until I was 4 centimeters dialated, and then I asked for the big guns, the epidural.
You know how everyone has a friend of a friend whose epidural didn't work? I'm that person. The anesthesiologist put it in, and everything seemed fine. Then the room started getting warm for some reason, (broken thermostat?) and I began to sweat as the contractions got worse and worse.
Considering I had the epidural, or at least I thought I did, I shouldn't have felt anything. Somewhere around 6 centimeters dialated the contractions hit pioneer-woman, Little House on the Prairie, painful. My face was covered in cold compresses and I was clinging to the side of the bed when they peaked. My mom and TR looked on, unable to do anything, and also unfazed. This was childbirth! I had friends who told me they didn't feel anything in labor, just pressure, thanks to the wonders of the epidural. Why did it feel like Doc Baker was going to appear at any minute with tubs of boiling water and a stick to bite on?
A wise nurse named Mario came in and took a look at me. Sure enough, the epidural needle was not actually in my back. It slipped out when I started to sweat. I had gone 6 centimeters unmedicated, and they had to reinsert it while the contractions continued to rollick. Not cool. Try holding still while a needle is inserted into your spine and you're having a weapons-grade contraction. Mario triple taped the needle into my back, and everything calmed down, as much as it could when one is trying to deliver a baby that is nearly 10 pounds. Of course we tried to push a bit -- a bit being two hours -- but I was quickly wheeled into the OR for the C-section.
Interestingly, the bonehead doc who messed up the first epidural was not in the OR. I wonder if my OB/GYN told him to go hops. Mario took care of everything and was literally two feet away from me the whole time. He numbed me from the shoulders down, which is a bizarre feeling when you're wide awake. Even though I was a little cranky to the OR team, (it was 11:00 at night!) they're all Aces in my book.
Afterward, in recovery, I was given a morphine drip to take the sting off having major abdominal surgery. It worked great, and then somewhere around 6:00 a.m. I started to hallucinate and see orange Persian cats, a la Peppe, dashing around the room. That's when I stopped hitting the automatic drip button and asked the nurse for some Motrin instead.
Just a few snaps and then we can all move on, post-baby.
The only photo you will ever see of me sans make up and in my pajamas. Three days post delivery.
Dr. Yuri. Best. OB/GYN. Evs.
Everyone likes this pic, although I think it borders on shlock.
TR, learning the ropes of fatherhood. Next lesson: Open wallet, hand over cash.
Since Andre arrived via C-section I've been limited in what I can do around the house. I'm supposed to get up and move around, but not too much. I can take little walks to run errands or get fresh air. I can't pick up anything heavy and bending over is verboten until otherwise instructed. Anyone who knows me knows that I bumble and drop things, and TR has the pleasure of quite literally picking up after me.
The C-section wasn't planned, although I had been told it was a possibility since the boy was measuring large on sonograms. We induced early on the 18th, I sweated out contractions until I was 4 centimeters dialated, and then I asked for the big guns, the epidural.
You know how everyone has a friend of a friend whose epidural didn't work? I'm that person. The anesthesiologist put it in, and everything seemed fine. Then the room started getting warm for some reason, (broken thermostat?) and I began to sweat as the contractions got worse and worse.
Considering I had the epidural, or at least I thought I did, I shouldn't have felt anything. Somewhere around 6 centimeters dialated the contractions hit pioneer-woman, Little House on the Prairie, painful. My face was covered in cold compresses and I was clinging to the side of the bed when they peaked. My mom and TR looked on, unable to do anything, and also unfazed. This was childbirth! I had friends who told me they didn't feel anything in labor, just pressure, thanks to the wonders of the epidural. Why did it feel like Doc Baker was going to appear at any minute with tubs of boiling water and a stick to bite on?
A wise nurse named Mario came in and took a look at me. Sure enough, the epidural needle was not actually in my back. It slipped out when I started to sweat. I had gone 6 centimeters unmedicated, and they had to reinsert it while the contractions continued to rollick. Not cool. Try holding still while a needle is inserted into your spine and you're having a weapons-grade contraction. Mario triple taped the needle into my back, and everything calmed down, as much as it could when one is trying to deliver a baby that is nearly 10 pounds. Of course we tried to push a bit -- a bit being two hours -- but I was quickly wheeled into the OR for the C-section.
Interestingly, the bonehead doc who messed up the first epidural was not in the OR. I wonder if my OB/GYN told him to go hops. Mario took care of everything and was literally two feet away from me the whole time. He numbed me from the shoulders down, which is a bizarre feeling when you're wide awake. Even though I was a little cranky to the OR team, (it was 11:00 at night!) they're all Aces in my book.
Afterward, in recovery, I was given a morphine drip to take the sting off having major abdominal surgery. It worked great, and then somewhere around 6:00 a.m. I started to hallucinate and see orange Persian cats, a la Peppe, dashing around the room. That's when I stopped hitting the automatic drip button and asked the nurse for some Motrin instead.
Just a few snaps and then we can all move on, post-baby.
The only photo you will ever see of me sans make up and in my pajamas. Three days post delivery.
Dr. Yuri. Best. OB/GYN. Evs.
Everyone likes this pic, although I think it borders on shlock.
TR, learning the ropes of fatherhood. Next lesson: Open wallet, hand over cash.
Monday, June 22, 2009
It's Andre!
Here's Andre Madoule!
Born June 18, 2009. 9 pounds 13 ounces. C-section. (Of course).
I'm finally home and finally have a decent Wi-Fi connection.
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Valentino Knows Something's Up...
Little does he know that in a few days he's going to have to relinquish the Bugaboo as his favorite nap time spot. Same goes with the crib.
Or, maybe Val and baby can co-sleep? They'll be roughly the same size and weight.
Off to create life! Be back soonest!
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
NYC Housing Prices: Bottoming Out Or Realistic?
The economy has made it difficult for buyers to know if they're getting a fair price for what they're bidding on, or if they should wait for prices to drop a bit more. It's a good question, but there is a logical way to approach pricing, even in this unsteady market.
It's times like this that we have to remember that real estate has always been considered a long term investment, not something that you can cash out on in a year or two. A typical apartment in Manhattan appreciates anywhere between 3% and 7% a year, as is shown by the orange and green lines above.
.
When you read sensational headlines about housing prices sinking 20% to 30%, keep in mind that they're sinking from an artificial high, as shown by the blue line. What may seem like a bargain basement price now, compared to two or three years ago, is actually the natural appreciation of the unit.
Prices of closed deals on condos and co-ops city-wide in the first quarter of 2009 can be found here.
Chart above courtesy of the Vanderbilt Appraisal Company.
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Best Wishes From The Office!
TR's co-workers threw him a little party for his impending fatherhood. It involved cupcakes, many of which are in the kitchen now. Best line in the group card:
"Best of luck to you and the new "hockey player" in the family."
They know my plans for this kid well! I don't even think TR ever mentioned it. Give a kid a last name that ends in "ski" and everyone wants to alert the NHL.
Honorable mention:
"Boy, will your life be different! Get as much sleep now as you can."
"Best of luck to you and the new "hockey player" in the family."
They know my plans for this kid well! I don't even think TR ever mentioned it. Give a kid a last name that ends in "ski" and everyone wants to alert the NHL.
Honorable mention:
"Boy, will your life be different! Get as much sleep now as you can."
Bernoulli's Principle: Or Why Planes Don't Fall Out Of The Sky
Thanks to things like Facebook and Twitter, several friends have made their aversion to air turbulence known over the last few days. Turbulence is no fun, but it's part of air travel, especially if you're going over the Rocky Mountains. Many years of flying back and forth to San Francisco from the East Coast taught me how to determine how much longer we had until landing based on how the plane shook over Colorado.
On commercial airlines turbulence is unsettling, but mild. If you're going through a storm and it's really bumpy, someone will inevitably pull out a rosary. I've known people who flew military planes and described the turbulence they had to deal with like, "Being tossed about like a pebble in a tin can." And then they still had to complete a mission! In case you didn't know, the U.S. Military also doesn't serve peanuts during flights. Savages!
We all know, at least fundamentally, that planes don't just fall out of the sky. (Well, unless you're on Air France) Turbulence is just speed bumps, waves on an ocean, if you will. Planes stay up thanks to a concept called Bernoulli's Principle, which can be better understood in the short video below.
Here is a longer video from roughly the late 1960s that explains flight in greater detail. Good stuff all around.
This is likely the first and last physics lesson you will ever see on this blog. Now no morning belly aching about turbulence, OK?
On commercial airlines turbulence is unsettling, but mild. If you're going through a storm and it's really bumpy, someone will inevitably pull out a rosary. I've known people who flew military planes and described the turbulence they had to deal with like, "Being tossed about like a pebble in a tin can." And then they still had to complete a mission! In case you didn't know, the U.S. Military also doesn't serve peanuts during flights. Savages!
We all know, at least fundamentally, that planes don't just fall out of the sky. (Well, unless you're on Air France) Turbulence is just speed bumps, waves on an ocean, if you will. Planes stay up thanks to a concept called Bernoulli's Principle, which can be better understood in the short video below.
Here is a longer video from roughly the late 1960s that explains flight in greater detail. Good stuff all around.
This is likely the first and last physics lesson you will ever see on this blog. Now no morning belly aching about turbulence, OK?
Saturday, June 13, 2009
Friday, June 12, 2009
The Quotable TR: Friday Evening Edition
Me: I'm so glad I got to go into the office today and work on stuff. Housewifery makes me feel like a caged animal.
TR: (shrugging) You could always go up to the roofdeck...
TR: (shrugging) You could always go up to the roofdeck...
In About A Week Or So I Can Return To My Regularly Scheduled Bordeaux Consumption
Feel free to send a case or so. Preferably a 2005, St. Emilion, Grand Cru or better.
The Quotable TR: Friday Editon
9:55 a.m.
"If they break your water, where will it go? Will there be a bucket?"
"If they break your water, where will it go? Will there be a bucket?"
Tuesday, June 09, 2009
New Huffington Post Piece: Why Age 28 Is A Turning Point For Many Single Women
I have a new piece on the Huff Po today about why age 28 is a turning point for many single women. Read it. Love It. Live It.
Why Age 28 Is A Turning Point For Many Single Women
Two Weeks To Go...
Not much to report on this end. Still waiting for the kid to arrive. The latest 3D photo is above, taken yesterday afternoon. He was fast asleep with a hand over his face, so this was the best the technician could do. Who's lips are those? Certainly not mine...
The kid is measuring large, about nine pounds with two weeks to go, according to yesterday's fancy sonogram, although who knows how accurate those are. Dr. Yuri will give us a better idea of what's really going on tomorrow. In the meantime, I'm doing housework, washing baby stuff, etc. I still kick around the office every now then, but mostly I've been pawning clients off onto competent colleagues.
Currently reading "How I Became I Quant" which is a fascinating book about the Wall Street math geeks behind all the formulas that make and break our economy. You should check it out.
Saturday, June 06, 2009
TR: Talented Cat Bed
Among his many other talents, (photography, baby making, etc.) TR has proven himself to be a skilled cat bed.
Please note that these cats are technically mine. I rescued them from shelters, paid their vet and groomer bills, and yet they took an instant shine to TR and want to nap with him all the time. Not fair.
With Peppe, a few months ago.
Thursday, June 04, 2009
The Quotable TR: Thursday Edition!
At the Gemini Diner in Murray Hill.
TR: A woman in my office is coming back from maternity ward next week.
Me: You mean maternity leave. It was three months?
TR: Yup.
Me: That's not a lot of time after you've had a kid.
TR: Are you kidding me? That's a long time to be on vacation.
TR: A woman in my office is coming back from maternity ward next week.
Me: You mean maternity leave. It was three months?
TR: Yup.
Me: That's not a lot of time after you've had a kid.
TR: Are you kidding me? That's a long time to be on vacation.
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