Rain again and Art All Night

This week the rain continued and subsequently the pool was very quiet. However, I'm sure it was a calm before the storm. The temperatures are supposed to reach the 90s (~32C) by mid-week. (For you Texans, that is scorching hot in this part of the country.) Not only will the heat draw a crowd to the pool, but the end of the school year this week will ensure all the kids kept away from the water so far this summer will be free to splash and play from opening till close. This weekend I took a brief trip down to New Jersey to visit Rich's family and to attend Trenton's Art All Night event, a yearly occasion for all of Trenton and Trenton area artists to display their visual, musical, and performance art work.

Monday: Rich's Birthday! 
I wasn't able to make/procure the traditional vanilla cake with chocolate frosting for Rich's birthday because I was at work until late on Monday. Instead he had to suffer through a cheesecake brownie as a substitution.

Tuesday: The Pool
I took advantage of the rainy day to snap a picture of the pool. The majority of the pool is taken up by the 8 lap swimming lanes, which are usually full. To the left is the baby pool and as you can see the pool has two diving boards at the far end (to my chagrin).

Wednesday: Jack Kerouac's On The Road 
Since there are only so many pictures one can take of a swimming pool, I've decided to add some pictures of my summer reading to the blog. This week I've been reading Kerouac's On The Road. Rich and I have had many discussions (arguments?) about this book because he loves it and for some reason I'm finding it hard to relate to. As I move along further I'm understanding it better and it is growing on me, but I still believe that it speaks best to a young male audience, rather than a female reader.

Thursday: Tom's Restaurant
The famed "restaurant" sign from Seinfeld sits only 8 blocks away from us on Broadway. Although this sign is most often associated with Seinfeld, it actually was immortalized before the sitcom met success. Tom's Restaurant, which is closer to a diner than a restaurant though it is not open 24-7, first entered the limelight with Suzanne Vega's song "Tom's Diner" in 1987, two year before Seinfeld aired on TV.

Friday: Sunset on campus
Columbia has a beautiful campus and I was lucky enough to catch a stunning sunset on Friday evening while strolling around the brick-laid paths.

Saturday: Art All Night
While there were many exciting things to see at Trenton's Art All Night, one of the centerpieces of the night was the Iron Pour. Throughout the night the large furnace was filled with scraps of iron and heated until it liquefied (sorry if I'm not using the proper terminology for this...). Once it was ready, the liquefied iron was poured into large molds. It was a fascinating process to view and in the evening when it was dark, it was also exciting to watch the scintillating sparks jump as the furnace was prepared. (Click here for more pictures of Art All Night.)

Sunday: Happy Fathers Day (or Go Chargers!)
Happy Fathers Day, dad! Thank you for being such a great dad. I'm all ready for this year's football season. I'm excited to put on my jersey for some good Sunday football games this year. Go Chargers!















And now it is far past my bed time, so I will bid you all good night! Until next week. ~K