Yo, the blog returns

I thought I would blog a bit from Jerusalem, but I was too busy. I thought I would blog a bit when I got back to Pittsburgh but I was too busy packing for our temporary move to Philadelphia and getting our house ready for our tenants. I thought I would blog a bit while on vacation but I was on vacation. Who blogs on vacation? I thought I would blog a bit when I got to Philadelphia but we were too busy settling in.

But now we’re settled in and now I’m really back at work and so now the blogging urge returns.

Yes, we are in Philadelphia for a semester. I have a fellowship at a research institute for Judaic Studies located near Independence Hall and affiliated with a major university founded (sort-of) by Ben Franklin. Again, I am not announcing my last name on the blog but if you can’t figure out who I am or what the research institute is, your Google skills are really weak. Again, nothing I say on this blog represents the opinion of either the University of Pittsburgh or the University of Pennsylvania. (And by the way, in case the question arises, I don’t blog from office computers or over internet connections provided by either university. Always on the personal machine via slow, slow dial-up that I pay for myself.)

I sent a change of address to relatives and friends and included a FAQ that some people said was funny. Here’s an excerpt (names of wife and children and other identifiers related to them changed):

Why are you going to Philadelphia?
--Adam has a fellowship to do research at the Center for Advanced Judaic Studies at Penn. This is a post-doctoral research institute where junior and senior scholars come for one or two semesters to do research on individual projects centered on a common theme. The theme for the 05-06 academic year is “History of the Jewish Book.” Adam’s research project is on the impact of print on the transmission and reception of medieval Jewish texts in Renaissance Italy.

What will Wife be doing?
--Wife is taking a 4-month leave from Wife’s Place of Employment and will be taking a temporary job in Philadelphia.

What will the kids be doing?
--Daughter and Son will be attending the excellent day care/pre-school at Un-Disclosed Philadelphia Synagogue. They will also be learning the difference between “water ice” and “Italian ice”.

Are you coming back to Pittsburgh?
--Yes.

Really?
--Yes.

Could this turn into a permanent job in Philadelphia for Adam?
--No.

So you’re coming back to Pittsburgh?
--Yes.

And you’re not staying in Philadelphia?
--Right.

Why Philadelphia?
--Good library; good research institute; Wife doesn’t need to apply for an unnamed professional license from a different state; and we only have to file one state tax return for 2005.

4 months in Philadelphia--was that first prize or second prize?
Ha. Ha. Actually we like Philadelphia a lot. We’re excited to be going back for a little while.

So you might stay in Philadelphia and not come back to Pittsburgh?
No. We like Pittsburgh too. See above.

Eagles or Steelers?
Steelers.

Pirates or Phillies?
Orioles.

Penguins or Flyers?
Who?