July: soccer and continued work

July was dominated by the World Cup, with the boys often practicing penalty kicks or playing soccer in our living room. Two times I had to replace the bulb on one floor lamp. Surprisingly, neither boy wanted Germany to take the whole tournament. Nikita rooted for Argentina in the final, while Ivan consoled himself with his favorite team (Holland because of the player Robben) winning 3rd place.

Strategizing against a GM

Although the boys were officially on summer break (and boredom has its benefits), many of their extra-curricular activities continued. Nikita started participating in a higher rated group in chess tournaments, where the players were less likely to let him draw, and attending lectures by Grandmaster Larry Christiansen. Nikita actually won a game against the GM in a simultaneous exhibition (left). But while Nikita toughed it out in chess, he also amazed me by finishing his required summer reading (in German!) for Russian class.

Meanwhile, Ivan practiced his cello more steadily, which paid off during his lessons. He did take advantage, however, of the summer by improving his swimming, in particular breathing during the crawl and other strokes. He is strong enough that I can get in some laps myself. While Nikita was away at a chess tournament, Ivan and I also attended an Italian carnival, where he earned a prize at a shooting game. We also admired a carny going up the rope ladder backwards.

My July was taken up with work both in and out of the house. Igor and I finally got some yard work done, especially after receiving a citation for bushes (and debris underneath) overhanging our front sidewalk. But the process led to Igor getting poison ivy - twice! Outside of the house, I scored more MIT essays (the sessions were punctuated by M&M o'clock) and gave writing workshops. The workshops for more advanced audiences (lab at MIT, postdocs at HMS) gave me the welcome opportunity to develop new exercises and think more deeply about my teaching.

In addition to student essays and scientific articles, I read a lot of books this month: Too Loud a Solitude, All the Light We Cannot See, Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea, Beautiful Ruins, and The Assistant (the best one). I also appreciated these thought-provoking articles on Palestine and gender imbalance in biology. I will end this post with a clip to remind me why tropical weather is worthwhile: