The Gum Tree for 2008 May

Mon May 05 22:01:00 Cozumel Day 1:

We arrived in Cozumel at around 2:30 p.m. We had a nice flight and were the 3rd ones out since we were in the row immediately behind first class. We decided to rent a car for the first two days and then go without the next few days.

After renting the car we ate at Otates Mexican restaurant (a local place that was recommended to us by the people at TripAdvisor). We checked into Vista del Mar Boutique Hotel right across the street from the big piers in the center of the city. It’s a little noisy with all the cruise ship people coming and going, but we like walking around downtown at night.

We then went on an exploration car drive around half the island’s coast. We stopped at Punta del Sur as well as Mezcalitos. Before that we stopped off at the Cinco de Mayo celebration happening at La Ceiba off the beaten path. They were in the midst of horseracing and we got to see some of that. Louise wanted to ride the mechanical bull, but eventually thought better of it. There was a refresco stand with huge jars of colorful liquids containing fresh fruit juice (and I’m sure we’ll be visited by Montezuma’s revenge later this week), but as I was saying; Louise got some Pina colada drink while Joe got some orange juice drink. The festivities were fun to be around.

At night we watched the sunset while walking along the street where our hotel is located. We had a nice snack at Casa Dennis (wonderful place I hear) where we shared a plate of quesadillas with Guacamole and a flan postre.

Now we are dog tired having (Louise) stayed up most last night.

Dollars spent today: $90 for two days of car rentals (paid cash of course to avoid those inconvenient government taxes—evidence of a thriving black market in socialist Mexico). $15 for large lunch at Otates $10 for Dinner at Casa Dennis $ 3 for Juices tip and misc.

Tommorrow we swim in crystal clear waters.

(13) Mon May 19 10:04:07 California Decision:

I received an email from Senator John Cornyn today affirming his stance on a constitutional amendment upholding marriage between a man and a woman as the only valid marriage in the U.S. Here's my response:

I support your position on same-sex marriage. Democratically crafted laws don’t seem to be robust enough, unfortunately, to defend against the judicial culture of usurping power from democratic institutions in order to force their view of justice on the people and all the other branches of government. Unfortunately the only recourse now is a constitutional amendment. I wish it weren’t necessary, but there it is.

I am all for states (like Hawaii and Vermont) democratically crafting laws allowing Same-Sex marriage. I don't think those laws are in the best interest of children, of course, but there is a pattern whereby people can form laws to govern themselves. This judicial activism, however, usurps the power of the people and is a tool by which tiny tyrants; who see themselves a benevolent, assume power which doesn't belong to them.

Perhaps some might accuse me of selective protestation; but I would also oppose a justice banning all abortion based on a supposed constitutional right to life. The framers of the constitution never said anything about abortion, and they definitely didn't say anything about even heterosexual marriage.

(1) Tue May 27 16:22:36 Hurrah for Office-space:

Today, I got introduced to my new office. It's actually more like a broomcloset that houses two post-docs and a graduate student (me), but it already feels like home.

I have to go to university surplus to scrounge up an old used desk and a chair with (hopefully) not too many ambiguous brown stains, but I have a bookcase and cabinets. My mentor also gave me the textbook I will use (Kandell's principles of Neural Science) for the minimal coursework that I need to get done.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.