sommerloch indeed.
Sorry I haven't posted. things have been crazy with house stuff, moving, and finishing up my job at CHOP. I will be done with the moving today, and then have to do the furniture arranging (after the fun of hauling the couch up a flight of VERY narrow stairs). We are almost done fixing up the bathroom. met one of our new next door neighbors, girl named Natalie. we seem to have a very electic mix of people on our block: immediately next to us is a chinese gentleman who teaches at Penn, then the girl (an artsy, outdoorsy type), across the street is a bangladeshi family and then at least one black family. we are located next to a small high school, and yesterday early evening their drum troupe was out practicing, and they rocked. 5 guys, synchronized stepping, REALLY loud. awesome though.
the neighborhood is good though. quiet.
the house is coming along. will post pics when I get the chance.
Sunday I am going up to Canada for our annual "temple week" and gathering for my kung fu family, until the following sunday. we will be in Barrie, Ontario, coincidentally where they are having the canadian Live 8 concert. I just can't get away from it, as it's here in philly as well. gavin and I are going to check out stevie wonder, who is playing, and a few others. can ride bikes to the concert spot (Rockie steps of the art museum) so not so much of a hassle. C, I think you mentioned passing through philly the weekend of the 9th and 10th of july, on your way back from dad's, but I won't be back in philly until evening time on sunday. sux. any other weekend would be fine.
then on the 11th I start my new job. exciting.
TOO much going on.
love to all,
H
- posted by H @ 6/30/2005 12:50:00 PM

 
SOMMERLOCH!
- posted by Christoph Roggenkamp @ 6/30/2005 11:38:00 AM

 
I don't know if you guys follow news regarding Supreme Court decisions, but the Kelo v. New London 5-4 decision is a big one. In Kelo, the Court held that local governments may seize people's homes and businesses and then turn the property over to private economic developers. The Fifth Amendment allows governments to take private property through eminent domain if the land is for "public use." The Kelo decision defined "public use" in such a way that if the new use of the property were to generate higher tax revenues for the local government, then this is a "public use."
The liberal wing of the court, joined by the moderates, was the majority. The conservative justices strongly dissented, but only had 4 votes.
People on both sides of the political spectrum are very upset - for various reasons. Instapundit.com has roundups here, here and here.
Donald Sensing points out that churches would be the number one targets for seizure. Any business would generate more tax revenue that a church would...
Bad decision. Consequences remain to be seen.
C
- posted by Christoph Roggenkamp @ 6/24/2005 03:12:00 PM

 
One more post for today:
MIT is conducting a general social survey of weblog authors here. Since we all are weblog authors, you guys may want to participate...
C
- posted by Christoph Roggenkamp @ 6/23/2005 05:32:00 PM

 
Holy crap!
Read the article referenced in JP's post here which talks about a non-disease-causing virus, AAV2, which is found in the majority of the population, which kills certain cancer cells, as well as certain harmful virii.
Essentially, it seems that AAV2 is a parasite which preys on cancer cells, using them to reproduce and killing them in the process. It also goes after the cervical-cancer-causing HPV. Wow! Damn useful virus, especially if it is harmless to us AND a majority of us carry it anyway!
Cool find, JP. Good job, Penn State College of Medicine!
C
- posted by Christoph Roggenkamp @ 6/23/2005 03:47:00 PM

 
Hey, all.
Thanks for the support, JP. Good that you are hangin' in there...
The Corporate Challenge race was fun, but very crowded. I ran the first mile, and then alternated running and walking for the rest. I finished the 3.5 miles in just under 41 minutes, so not horrible. I had the most fun passing other big guys toward the end, thinking, "Well, I'm at least faster than you, buddy."
What was also neat was seeing the big groups of people wearing the same t-shirt, with their company name and some slogan on it. The race started with large swaths of color, and by the end, the colors were all blended together. Kinda cool.
Any good stories about the new place, H?
My love to all...
C
- posted by Christoph Roggenkamp @ 6/23/2005 03:31:00 PM

 
Woah. Nobody's blogging. Well, maybe a Sommerloch.
Tonight, I'm "running" (i.e. talking with co-workers while moving forward) in the JP Morgan Chase Corporate Challenge in Central Park. We had a flash rain storm about 90 minutes ago, but the sun is back out now.
Should be fun. One of the perks of living in NYC!
Hope all are well.
C
- posted by Christoph Roggenkamp @ 6/22/2005 05:50:00 PM

 
JP -
Instapundit has an entry which says:
WANT TO DO BLOG REPORTING? You might want to take a look at these free online courses in shooting video, etc., from the BBC.
Check it out!
C
- posted by Christoph Roggenkamp @ 6/17/2005 02:32:00 PM

 
I want to comment briefly on the whole breastfeeding thing. I spend a good amount of time with lactation research assistants and have received a steady input of info around this matter.
The fact that Barbara Walters was freaking out over some woman breastfeeding is the saddest and most pitiful thing in teh world. Studies have shown the many benefits of breastfeeding over formula. breastmilk updates the baby's immunity, suckling on the breast shapes the baby's mouth correctly, babies who are breastfed generally do better. it helps brain development, and is major bonding tool between mom and baby. they even make contraptions to simulate breastfeeding for adoptive or non-breastfeeding mothers (like if they are on medications that could be harmful to their baby) so that they can simulate that experience. unfortunately, even children's hospitals do not have the proper facilities for breastfeeding mothers. one of the leading researchers in teh field, Dr. Diane Spatz, works at CHOP and breastfeeding among moms and staff has tripled since she pushed for special rooms and to make breastpumps readily available.
it's sad that someone would be so prude that they couldn't handle seeing a breast (YOU CAN'T EVEN SEE THE ALL OFFENSIVE NIPPLE WHILE BREASTFEEDING!). I love seeing breastfeeding women because the points listed above.
of course, maybe barbara walters was uncomfortable with seeing a breast because of a homosexual feeling it might have stirred in her. who knows.
as far as the africa story is concerned, I just don't have enough information about social norms, etc, to comment on why Ethiopian women would not like seeing a white woman breastfeeding.
it might have been because of a totally unrelated issue. who knows.
interestingly, here in philly the rates of breastfeeding among young (as in teen and early 20's)african american mothers is very high! they really get into it.
For lower income women, WIC ("women, infants and children" - a government program that gives food coupons to mothers with small children) gives them more food if they breastfeed, since they are feeding two people with the food they eat.
Breast milk can keep for months if frozen. you can also buy breastmilk on EBAY! do a search. personally I would only buy breast milk from an "attractive" mom ;)
anyway, JP, glad that the earthquakes didn't "shake you up" too much. hehe. was worried though. don't be afraid of a savage cross country burn to the east coast if the tremors get to be too much.
all from me,
H
- posted by H @ 6/17/2005 12:29:00 PM

 
This post is pretty much completely random, but I had to point out two different anti-breast feeding stories I've read in one week.

First, Barbara Walters (and her hairdresser) were flying first class and became very "nervous" and "uncomfortable" when a woman next to Barbara began nursing her baby. Barbara apparently made a big deal of it on her TV show, so a bunch of "lactivists" held a "nurse-in" at the show's studios in protest. Now Barbara is blaming it all on the hairdresser. Story here.

Then, there's this:

U2 frontman BONO was horrified during a visit to Ethiopia, when he saw local women pelting a breast-feeding aid worker with stones.

The American woman was oblivious of the offence she was causing, and had to escape the angry onslaught from female Muslims who had no qualms about injuring her or her baby.

Is there some kind of movement afoot? TWO stories in one week? Or am I crazy?
You decide...
C
- posted by Christoph Roggenkamp @ 6/17/2005 11:21:00 AM

 
Dad, I agree with C on this matter. It might be fun to do work like this. something low key but still to keep you busy. As long as you feel like you have enough energy to do this. when would it start?
gavin and I closed on the house yesterday. G's dad came up to do the paperwork with us, which was very reassuring. we went to lunch with our realtor afterwards and then took g's dad to look at the house. the stuff that had been downstairs (the bangladeshi check cashing business with walls and tables,etc) had been removed and the area was larger than I remembered. the upstairs seemed bigger, as did the backyard. this weekend we will spend a lot of time working on teh kitchen and upstairs bathroom, along with some painting to get things up to speed.
will keep you all posted on this.
my court date was postponed to august some time. Dad, I got my DAs telephone number and will work with her to get the car resolved very soon.
all for now. at work and have to run.
love,
H
- posted by H @ 6/16/2005 03:19:00 PM

 
Dad - that's great news about the chance at a new position. I think you should do it, so long as you lay down the law about what you are and aren't prepared to do as pastor - like you did at Littlestown.
I also see some massive conflicts of interest if one person is auditing herself as treasurer - you need to make sure two different people fill the roles. Especially if the treasurer/auditor is also the secretary, who gets to see all communications passing through the church.
Dad - you need to keep busy; I never pictured you ever not working. But take it easy, especially with your biological age of 78!
And that's a good reason why you might not fly to Germany... It's never easy to travel, and at your age, it's that much harder. Take it easy and stay here. I'm sure the Germans will understand.

JP - I had skimmed through that article about China. Interesting future ahead. I do regret not staying the entire year in Hong Kong and achieving a basic mastery of Mandarin Chinese. I should have dropped my second major and gone my entire junior year...
Anyway, I like the idea that the next great alliance will be between the U.S., India, Australia and Japan, to contain China. China, in turn, may reach out to Middle Eastern countries, or possibly Europe, to gain strength.
The question of what will happen to the Communist party is a big one.
Read this article by Mark Steyn, Who can stop the rise and rise of China? The communists, of course.
He's an opinionated guy, but a good read...
Keep up the good blogging, people!
C
- posted by Christoph Roggenkamp @ 6/15/2005 12:21:00 PM

 
Keep up the posting!

Everyone - the 'moving' situation is that David got his own place in Hell's Kitchen and S moved in with me... That's it...

The Wall Street Journal has an interesting opinion piece translated from the German entitled National Welfarism:
Can Angela Merkel transform Germany's stifling political culture?.
Merkel is the pastor's daughter who became a physicist in East Germany, and now has risen to the top of the CDU. A good read, especially in light of the political turmoil in Germany right now (SPD losing control over all German states, Schroeder calling for early elections this year, etc.)

C
- posted by Christoph Roggenkamp @ 6/13/2005 04:32:00 PM

 
Hey all,
sorry I haven't been posting more often - things have been busy.
C, I still need to comment on a few articles you threw my way a little while ago. I haven't forgotten about them. will post on them soon.
AND, what's up with the move, C? spill the beans.
JP, did you get your raise money yet?
Am in the final throes of house buying. we're supposed to close on wednesday, and gavin's dad is going to come up that day, and probably this weekend to help out a bit (he's got a nice big trailer for moving things around).
will post more soon.
love,
H
- posted by H @ 6/13/2005 01:13:00 PM

 
Dad - I think JP is thinking of the English translation of "madman" for 'Irre.' JP - 'Der Ire' isn't bad if you think of the Irish character in the movie Braveheart who was crazy, like a fox.
'Der Brave' fits for me, I guess, except I like to think I was the best-behaved member of a group of 'Irren.' During my late teenage years with Walter and Matzinger, I was not always 'brav' but I was 'brav' enough to keep the group of us (mostly) out of trouble!

H - congrats on picking the new job. If you had stayed at the old one solely out of guilt, you likely would have come to hate that job and would have begun to resent your boss who 'guilted' you into staying.
So, again, congratulations, good job on getting a new job!
I should have some good news myself, next week, but I'm not getting into it until it is a done deal...

Hope all are well!
C
- posted by Christoph Roggenkamp @ 6/10/2005 02:44:00 PM

 
Hey all,
just a quick note...I took the plunge and am taking the Penn job in behavioral genetics.
everything has happened so quickly - I am a little overwhelmed. Will talk about it with all you soon.
Thanks all for you words of encouragement!
love,
H
- posted by H @ 6/09/2005 02:49:00 PM

 
H: See the interesting article today comparing hospital care in England and in the U.S. It's not biased toward one system or another, but is one American man's account of what happened after his wife suffered a stroke the day they landed in London for a vacation.
The British health care workers were exceptional, but the hospital conditions were much worse than in the U.S. The British public system was much cheaper, but not as modern. Read the whole thing, as they say...
C
- posted by Christoph Roggenkamp @ 6/08/2005 05:08:00 PM

 
C, thanks for the update on what you have been doing. SPF 45 is usually how I roll in the sunblock realm, but I tan and I have skin color so can afford a slightly less powerful one. Neutrogena makes a really good SPF 45 oil-free sunblock that you can smear all over your face and you won't break out with horrible pimples afterwards. it's what I used in australia and now the smell of that sunblock will always remind me of that trip.
just a few beauty secrets from H.
so I am currently in a major crisis surrounding work...
remember the job I interviewed for in behavioral genetics, the obesity study? well, I interviewed monday, today (tuesday) they called my references and basically offered me the job. that's pretty much how quickly it happened. the new job seems cool, much more laid back than at CHOP, regarding clothing, atmosphere, etc. would be similar in substance to what I do now. it is a U of Penn job, working for a psychologist (Dr. Price is his name). I would be getting more money at the job, $29000 a year as opposed to my $26500 now, although I will get my one year raise in september if I stay at CHOP, to $27800. so the money isn't that different.
mainly I am considering it because when I am honest, I really don't enjoy working in anesthesia, in pain research. my boss Jessica and I never really clicked, and I don't want to do clinical psychology anyway (clinical psych= seeing individual patients), so having a research position working for clinical psychologists isn't the most relevant thing for me. at this point the only thing that is really holding me at CHOP is guilt. Jessica has been working on a full time position in anesthesia for me for several weeks now (along with some other people in the department). I applied for this other job a while ago, before things were settled with her, and now she's upset that I might be leaving. understandably.
I talked this over with my other boss, Debra, who is in favor of taking the new job, based on what I have described above. she has been incredibly supportive, and thinks that I can still maintain a good relationship with Jessica if I leave for something else. that's another thing that i am worried about, burning bridges. but I think that our relationship can potentially be salvaged, if the situation goes poorly. this seems like a really cool opportunity, and Dr. Price seems really nice. apparently they are offering me the job because they got the best feeling out of me when we met. it must be that roggenkamp charisma that we all have. I was actually really surprised they offered me the job... it hadn't really occured to me that I might get an offer.
anyway, I am trying to gather as many different viewpoints as possible. so please comment if you can.
love to all,
H
- posted by H @ 6/07/2005 09:41:00 PM

 
Hey, everyone.
I had dropped my internet connection at home in switching from Verizon to RCN, but as of today, I have internet at home again! So, I'll be a little more active...

I went to the NASCAR race in Dover, Delaware on Sunday. My favorite driver, Ryan Newman (#12) came in 8th - the race was won by Greg Biffle in the number 16 car. I went with S's co-manager, Neil, from North Carolina, as well as his sister and brother-in-law.
Good seats, right above the start-finish line, but only 18 rows up and LOUD! Hot, too, with temps in the 90s and no clouds.

Yesterday, I played golf in New Jersey - it was a customer day sponsored by Iron Mountain, the company that restores our emails at work. Only my second time, but I'm not completely horrible. I just have to remember to not slam the ball - just let my arms swing down like a pendulum and let the club hit the ball.
We started off in hot and sunny weather and quit on the 17th hole when lightning was flashing from 2 different directions... Fun day.

Thankfully, I had covered myself in SPF 50 sunscreen on both days, so no major sunburn, despite being in the sun for 2 straight days.

How are you guys?
C
- posted by Christoph Roggenkamp @ 6/07/2005 04:01:00 PM

 
Dad - the study compares the USA with the "older", 15-country EU of: Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Finland, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and the UK.
Luxembourg does very well when looking at the U.S. states, but we are talking about less than 500,000 people, there. The rest do poorly.
These European countries, or "old" Europe, could be directly compared with the U.S., I think. I understand that while the "EU" began as an economic union, lately there has been a drive toward some kind of political union, perhaps as a "counter-weight" to the (political, economic, etc.) power of the U.S.
But Europe has been doing very poorly, of late. The referendum results in France and especially the Netherlands this week show an unhappy population.
All predictions I've come across lately are pessimistic. If you guys have any examples of optimistic results for Europe's future, I'd love to see them...

I've never really understood why people held up Europe as an example for the U.S., and, in my opinion, this is becoming more and more a losing argument.
There have been a lot of opinion pieces on the decline of Europe posted this week... There is even talk of giving up the Euro as currency...

I would love for Europe to turn the corner and have a bright future ahead of it. But I don't think the people of Europe are following a path which would lead to this.
I don't know what would change this...
C
- posted by Christoph Roggenkamp @ 6/03/2005 05:38:00 PM

 
Congratulations to you, too, H about Gavin's degree program and both of your interviews!
I have some somewhat good news too - after working here for 2 years, I've heard they are going to (again) evaluate whether to bring the core group of us (4 people) on full time. Apparently, it was almost worth it last time - hopefully they'll decide to do so this time!

Yay!
C
- posted by Christoph Roggenkamp @ 6/02/2005 05:54:00 PM

 
JP, that is so awesome. Just got off the phone with you, me ranting and raving about how awesome this is, and you still in a mild state of shock. so exciting, so deserved.
C, I printed out the Shiavo article. will read it and comment as soon as possible.
I read the short blurb about journalism school and I agree it might not be productive. English courses, however, might be, because it's so important to know the classics and to know the technical side in order to gain mastery over the medium.
Some more good news, Gavin was accepted into the Master's program for Urban Spatial Analytics at Penn. Urban Spatial Analytics is basically urban planning, something that he is interested in. this degree would really help him out, help him get higher paying, more interesting jobs in teh field, for as long as we wants to work in it. He will most likely accept the offer and do the program part time. this might also help him get the research coordinator position he interviewed for at Penn yesterday. the position is in a lab that does urban planning and whatnot, so is highly relevant. we will see how things go.
I have an interview next week for a research coordinator position at the behavioral genetics lab at Penn school of medicine, working on a family obesity study. will see how it goes. mostly I want to use this as a bargaining chip for a pay-increase here at CHOP. wouldn't really want to leave this job unless I am going to a job in my field.
all for now. so much good news!
love,
H
- posted by H @ 6/02/2005 04:44:00 PM

 
Congratulations on the raise, JP! Especially on a 6-month retroactive one. Doing the math really quickly, it turns out to be a nice chunk of change! You really should think about putting some of it in a retirement account - ideally a 401(k), if your company offers it, or maybe a Roth IRA (through USAA or Vanguard).

H: theres an interesting piece here about Terry Schiavo by a professor of psychiatry at Johns Hopkins. I wonder what you think about it...

Congrats again, JP!
C
- posted by Christoph Roggenkamp @ 6/02/2005 03:43:00 PM

 
JP - you were throwing around the idea of journalism school.
It just so happens that today, one of my favorite columnists and bloggers, James Lileks (he writes three columns per week for the Minneapolis Star Tribune), has some thoughts on J-school today, here.
Scroll down to the section that begins, "Home, kitchen table, midnight."

Lileks was talking about the subject to some people at a party, saying:

Better to take English classes, learn how to write, then write a lot. It’s not a profession that requires four years of college, let alone a master’s degree.

They looked at me with a certain amount of amused confusion, so I said, apologetically, that was I was actually in the business, and degrees mattered less than clips and skill. J-school taught you how to teach J-school. How to go to think tanks and peer down your nose at the messy scrum of daily papers. Not to say it was a waste of time, heavens no. But journalism per se can be mastered quite quickly, and if it can’t, you don’t have it...

You can hone judgment, but you can’t teach instinct. The first question in any J-school application ought to be “do you want to change the world?” And anyone who answers yes gets kindly turned away. Your job is to describe the way the world changes. Not pretend you’re there to nudge it along towards utopia.

Unless you’re a columnist, of course. But such power is only granted to a select few.

As Instapundit would say, "Read the whole thing"...
C
- posted by Christoph Roggenkamp @ 6/02/2005 11:38:00 AM

 
Dad - good to have you posting again. It's too bad that Ming is bugging you, but she also keeps you on your toes, right? Gives you something to worry about day-by-day.

I'd like to respond a bit to your thoughts on the German economy by pointing out some of the findings in the analysis (the link is to a pdf file) by two Swedish economists entitled "The EU vs. the USA."

America has its problems, but as of last summer (the date of the Swedish analysis), poor Americans had better living conditions than average Europeans!
For example, as broken down in this article, each average American has 721 square feet of dwelling space; each average European has only 395 square feet. But the average poor American has 428 square feet, more than an average European!
Of course, Americans have more room to build, but in 11 of the 13 categories, Americans households were more likely to have modern conveniences than households in ANY of the European countries! (Swedish people have more phones and cell phones than Americans do...) See the article cited above for more...
46% of poor Americans own their own homes. Over 75% have air conditioning. 60% have cable or satellite TV. 73% own a car...

Another way to look at the data is to compare the countries of the EU to individual American states, looking at GDP per capita, as was done in this Wall Street Journal editorial last summer.
The EU average GDP per capita (which was the same as the German average) was lower than 46 of the 50 American states. Germany's average was higher than averages only in Arkansas, Montana, West Virginia and Mississippi!

The Swedish economists attribute the differences to more labor and lower taxes in the United States.

My question then is: when poor Americans are better off than average Europeans, isn't the American model the one to be followed, if one is concerned with the welfare of the poor?

C
- posted by Christoph Roggenkamp @ 6/01/2005 02:25:00 PM