e2M

For the folks who received an email from me previously then excuse the following excerpt...

"After a long and undistinguished career at PHR+A, I've decided to move onto greener pastures in an attempt to get my family off food stamps. The fine folks at e2M have been duped into believing I actually know something. In fact, they've hired me as their Assistant GIS Manager. Many of you also know about my ongoing attempts to serve my country. Well, they just took too long (surprised?) and e2M brought the bling."

I'm now entering my third week at e2M and things are going really well. My coworkers are great to work with and it's been a refreshing change of pace and scenery. The position is challenging, but there are a ton of opportunities. And to boot, the commute is shorter which is always nice. In other words, I'm comfortable saying that I made a good decision and I'm looking forward to the future.

Cedar Island, Virginia

I recently conducted a GPS shoreline survey of Cedar Island, Virginia as part of my ongoing dissertation research along the Virginia barrier islands. The focus of my studies over the past few years has been Parramore Island which is directly south of Cedar Island.

Cedar is unusual along the Virginia Eastern Shore because it is/was privately property. The vast majority of the barrier islands along the coast are part of the Virginia Coast Reserve which is owned by The Nature Conservancy. The Virginia barrier islands constitute one of the longest stretches of coastal wilderness remaining on the entire US Atlantic Coast.

The bottom line is that the Virginia barrier islands are a special place--but unfortunately--the system is falling apart and rapidly. And that's where I hope my research answers some questions. For those of you wondering what a mixed-energy, wave-dominated, retrograding barrier island actually looks like, then here you go.


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GMU Senior Night 2008

What can I say? I've been a sombrero-wearing, root beer-drinking, cigar-smoking donkey. And well, the blog's content has suffered as a consequence. But not to fear, we've got great stuff from our trip to Marion this past Easter weekend.

In the meantime, I hope you have a passing interest--or perhaps even enjoy--a short video of George Mason Senior Night 2008. (Let's not just not talk about their performance in the NCAA's).

Trent's Birthday

Lillie went to her 6-month checkup a few weeks ago, and once again, she's doing great. She weighed 16 lb 12 oz and measured 26.5". Our nurse practitioner was very pleased with both her physical and intellectual development.

We also celebrated my birthday last week (7/24/75...yep, the big 3-2). Our niece and nephew (Abbey and Mac) were in town visiting their grandparents; we all went to dinner at California Pizza Kitchen.

Finally, my parents came up this past weekend to visit Lillian, and of course, bearing birthday gifts! Speaking of presents...guess who got a GMU men's basketball jersey for the upcoming season?? As always, check out the photos.

Sleep Apnea Surgery

I recently underwent surgery to treat my obstructive sleep apnea. The procedures which included a UPPP (removal of the uvula and soft pallette) and a tonsillectomy were performed by Dr. Eric Furst at Fairfax Hospital.

The goal of the surgery was to open up my airway thereby lowering the severity of my sleep apnea and reduce the level of snoring. I'm happy to report it's been over three weeks since the surgery and I feel great. Most importantly, I'm snore-free (almost unbelievable!) and I wake-up refreshed.

I will admit the first 10 days were painful, and at times, it was a difficult recovery. Not surprisingly, swallowing was initially very difficult so I subsisted on Boost, Jell-O, popsicles, and Gatorade for over a week. I eventually transitioned to soup, cottage cheese, yogurt, etc. Needless to say, I've been making up for lost calories over the past week.

Many thanks goes to my family for their support during the whole affair. Only one final test remains...the post-operative sleep study. If my sleep apnea levels have diminished from the "severe" to the "minor" range, then I'm home-free for the rest of my life (hopefully)!

New Orleans

I'm in New Orleans this week attending the CS '07 conference. I presented my research on Tuesday afternoon. I received several compliments afterwards. More importantly, my paper generated feedback from many prominent coastal scientists and engineers. On Thursday I'll be on a technical tour of the Louisiana coastal zone--Fourchon and the Timbalier Islands.

A few random observations, the cuisine is fantastic, the people are wonderful (but watch your back), the city is still very much recovering from Katrina, the French Quarter is wild, and I could eat bread pudding all day. This has been a long trip away from Lillian and Liz...looking forward to returning home.

Sleep Apnea

It's official, Trent has been diagnosed with moderate-to-severe obstructive sleep apnea. It all started when Liz noticed that his snoring was worse than usual. Trent met with a reputable Ear, Nose, and Throat physician and this doctor strongly suggested that he get a professional sleep study. The first study analyzed his sleep patterns and the second one involved Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) testing and calibration.

Recently, a study published in the journal SLEEP finds that people with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) are at an increased risk of having cardiovascular disease. Furthermore, sleep apnea produces general 'wear and tear' on the heart, brain, and lungs which leads to a shortened lifespan. Needless to say, Trent is thankful to have pinpointed a major issue, but nevertheless, apprehensive of the potential treatments and lifestyle changes.

What would be your treatment option: CPAP or surgery?

Coastal Sediments '07

Trent's first professional journal article--Historical Shoreline Changes and Morphodynamics of Parramore Island, Virginia (1852-2006)--was recently completed. The paper was developed in partnership with the chair of his dissertation committee, Dr. Randy McBride (George Mason University). He will present his research at the ASCE Coastal Sediments '07 conference in New Orleans this May.