Back Home in Anchorage for Father's Day

It was dark when the plane took off from LAX, not quite 9pm.

But by 12:30am Anchorage time, we were back in the glorious light of the longest day of the year. Seeing J waiting for me was the best sight.


And when we got home, she showed me the tamarinds I'd planted before I left. These are from the Petchabun tamarind (มะขาม) seeds we brought back.

The seeds are about the size of a molar. You can see a picture of the trees in the orchard and the fruit at this post. Actually, you can see what is left of the seeds half way up the stem in the seedling picture.

So my son took me to the airport last night after we got to spend nearly ten days together. And this morning my daughter called from the Minneapolis airport. Her paper presentation seemed to have gone well and she'd just learned she got a Fellowship for six months in Berlin to finish her dissertation. My wife did a good job raising the three of us.

My dad died over ten years ago. I was lucky. We had a very comfortable relationship since I was little. My parents divorced when I was about three but stayed on amicable terms and I spent many weekends with my Dad. That was probably a perfect arrangement. When we were together, his time was totally devoted to me. He introduced me to so many things on those weekends. The Los Angeles museums - from art to natural science to American Indians - were a frequent destination. We went to Hollywood Stars baseball games. We did lots of hiking and had our favorite hike - starting at Switzer's Camp - on the Angeles Crest Highway. I learned to ride a bike with him on the cement bed of the Los Angeles River near Griffith Park where we also spent lots of time. The zoo was an important part of my growing up. Fern Dell. The observatory. He took me along when he got involved in political campaigns and in amateur theater. We saw many movies together - he introduced me to Satyajit Ray. I have so many, many great memories of weekends with my dad. And in the summers we took two week vacations together, not so much father and son, by partners in adventure. Dad, thanks for everything!