The Hooven Flyer

Carole's movin' on

How very exciting and heart-warming to be in touch with the whole (is that even possible?) Hooven gang! Thanks Steve and Martha for getting this together.

Biggest news (possibly old news at this point?) is that I got engaged in April, to Alex Byrne. We spent June in Slovenia, London, Uganda and Tanzania. Alex had a philosophy conference in Bled, Slovenia (Bled Epistemology Conference), he's got a brother north of London, and I had a conference in western Uganda, in the forest where I used to hang with the chimps (half reunion, half conservation talks). After a short trip to the island of Zanzibar, my friend from Antioch, David Wallas, who lived for 10 years in Tanzania, drove us around the Serengeti on an incredible safari. The whole trip was like a dream--we had an incredible time, and I didn't want it to end. Pics are in the slideshow link, below (about 6 minutes), and the photo to the left is Alex and me in the Kibale forest.

Uganda/Tanzania slideshow

When we got home, I had to set about packing up the apartment I've lived in for 15 years, in Central Square, Cambridge. I threw away most of my old, crusty things and moved in with Alex. I'm very happy to have finally taken this leap, most likely because it's into the arms of a wonderful man. Of course change comes with its challenges, but Alex is helpful and supportive, and is working hard to make his place really feel like *our* place. No wedding plans yet, we're taking baby steps. Works for both of us.

My job is very good, and I think it will get better. I was spoiled by the life of a grad student, then lecturer. That left me poor, but it was always engaging, and totally my own work. Last year I took the job of Lecturer (so I still get to teach my own course) and Advisor. The advisor job allows me to stay at Harvard and keep teaching, and I'm starting to like the advising now that I'm getting the hang of it. I advise undergrads who major in my concentration, which is now called Human Evolutionary Biology. Overall it's satisfying, but it's taking me a while to get comfortable with all the administrative details (big surprise there). I really enjoy getting to know the undergrads and help them with choices about things like courses, careers, research, summer plans, etc. I think I'll stick with this for a while and see where it goes.

I'm so glad we have this forum to share news. Please keep the posts coming!

Lots of love,

Carole

PS--the pic to the left is a primate for Peter!

Grandfather Files

By Peter Richardson ( lisapeter@sbcglobal.net 414-247-8650), Fox Point WI, 8/5/2007

These are some documents about/by Grandfather Fred Hooven( I called him Grandfather) that some of you may or may not have read.  I actually got these from my brother Michael. This is an article that he wrote about his friendship with Orville Wright

Download A_Boy_and_Orville_Wright.PDF

This is an article the Dartmouth paper wrote about him while he was alive.

Download Wearers_of_the_Green.PDF

This is page 513 from the David Halberstam book The Reckoning

Download halberstam_513.PDF

This is a letter that he wrote to a colleague at Ford after his retirement complaining about the Gran Torino he received as part of his pension:

Download letter_to_Sperlich.PDF

This is an itunes file taken from an audio cassette that I obtained from the Smithsonian's archives of the first seven minutes of a speech Grandfather gave at the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum in December 1983 as part of festivities commemorating the 80th anniversary of Flight.   Many of us saw this speech and may remember it.  For me it was the first time I had gone to the Nation's Capital.

Download wrighthooven_1.m4a

Wright Flight Simulator

Here's a link from Peter to the web-based Wright flight simulator, which uses FJH's original simulator that was written in BASIC.

Photos from (Berkeley) Molly!

more in the photo album

Simon Goes to Maine

Simon flew to Maine this July to go to a wedding near Portland. Martha and Steve drove over to Portland to visit with Simon/Michael/Harriett for a couple of days at/on the beach. We lucked out with two gloriously warm and sunny days.... below are some photos: (Click on 'Hoovens:new photos' to left to see more photos.)

Let the Hooven Blog Begin

Welcome Hoovens!!

This blog is meant to keep us all connected.  All Hoovens and kin are invited to contribute to this.  Thanks to Steve (aka my dad) for spearheading and nagging.

Even if you just have a few words, a little piece of news, a photo, or whatever, it's pretty easy to blab into this little box.  It's easy to add photos to the photo album and links to the list of links.  Email Michael or Steve to get login information.

A little news from Boise: Pretty smokey here from all the forest/scrub fires in Idaho, but we're having a great summer.  We recently flew to Maine and visited with Steve & Martha near Portland for a few days on the beach, then went to a wedding. I miss New England -- the coast, deciduous trees, and thus humidity. It's been as hot as 110 here (or hotter in parking lots), but the lack of moisture means you're not being stewed as much as being broiled, which is a little less torturous.

Simon turned 2 back in June, and his grandparents ("Meemee and Beepbeep") hired a plane to fly overhead with a banner which read "Simon is 2", a marvellous and vexing surprise.  I'm busy doing web development, this summer building a big snazzy website for the Center for International Studies, which will be launched in late August.  Also still working on a timeline creation application (built in Flash) which I expect to integrate with this blog one of these days so we can start building a wicked cool, web-based visual family history.

I hope everyone out there is well, and I can't wait to read all the Hooven news.

-- Michael of Boise