My grandfather G William Wiersdorf passed away Monday morning. He was 82 and survived COVID, a decades-long existence with MS, and World War II. While his health wasn't the best, none of us were expecting this. You can read his obituary here. German obituary UPDATE 2023-03-18: I've translated my grandpa's obituary into German. Here it is: G William "Bill" Wiersdorf verstarb friedlich am 13. März 2023 mit seiner liebevollen Frau Kathy an seiner Seite. ...
It's interesting for me to reflect on how my aspirations have changed as I've grown up. When I was a little kid I wanted to be a computer programmer like my daddy. I wanted to have my own cubicle and a work station and write Perl programs all day long in Emacs. There was a phase where I had to shake my head at that—a cubicle-dweller? Seriously? After experiencing some open-office work spaces, the shoulder-high walls afforded a privacy and sound muffling that any hipster coder would be envious of. ...
This year I discovered the profound joy of giving toys to a little girl. Our daughter is beginning to babble and walk, and nothing has brought me more happiness than playing with her and watching her grow in her capabilities. She's still young enough that she has no clue as to what is going on, but she did like getting some new toys wrapped in paper and bows! Christmas is so much better giving presents to your kids than it is getting presents as a kid. ...
It’s my first Christmas being a dad. The end of the school semester was unusually stressful; I didn’t have much time or energy to anticipate Christmas. But I’ve felt a marked lack of eagerness for getting presents. That feeling wanes each year—something I’m grateful for—but this year I only felt an eagerness for a time of peace and celebration with my family. Peaceful it has been. My family isn’t perfect. (My baby daughter is about as perfect as they come, though! ...
I feel uncomfortable with many symbols. I might have opinions about a subject, but there’s rarely a camp that has some symbol, flag, slogan, etc. that I’m comfortable with adopting because that camp does not accurately reflect my opinion. All too often, a slogan takes on more than its surface meaning, and that can make using that slogan tricky.
...It’s going to be another long night. My baby has reached the point where she’s too tired to sleep. She alternates between screaming at 90+ decibels and sleeping fitfully. She only transfers from the crying state to the sleep state after prolonged, labored rocking and soothing. She transfers back to the base crying state on her own after a few seconds.
...It’s cliché at this point to say that 2020 was a rough year. I’m grateful in that I and my wife were relatively unscathed by the pandemic. I had some personal health issues however that by themselves made 2020 a bit of a struggle. I learned some important lessons.
...I love Easter. In my mind it is just as important as Christmas. Indeed, if Christ had not died for our sins and been resurrected, then there would be no reason to celebrate His birth.
I recorded a short, simple vocal arrangement of “O Savior, Thou Who Wearest a Crown” by J. S. Bach with my wife.
...Today is September 11th. I remember waking up 19 years ago, coming into the living room, and my dad getting down on one knee so he was closer to my level. He told me that earlier that morning two airplanes had crashed into some tall buildings in New York City. I didn’t know what that meant at the time, but I soon found out.
...It’s been a long six months that we’ve been under quarantine and other disease-limiting measures. It hasn’t been easy, but thanks to something I saw at Königsstein Fortress I’m not complaining. Here’s why:
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