I looked out our window this morning and smiled when I saw the milk truck pictured above. Above the row of cows, who were looking right at me, it says, “We are at your service.”

I was home alone with the baby at the time and holding her in the football position, walking her around to keep her asleep. I somehow managed to get batteries into the camera and take a bunch of shots all with one hand and without waking her. That was probably my biggest accomplishment of the day.

My wife and I had a baby girl on July 9th!

Leyla Rose Gibbon was born in Istanbul on Wednesday afternoon. She weighs 7 lb. 1 oz. and is 19.3 inches long. We came home from the hospital on Friday and everyone is doing great.

So far I’m absolutely loving being a father.

I’ve uploaded some pictures to Flickr and also posted a 3-minute, non-graphic video of the delivery on YouTube: (UPDATE: We decided to take down the video and just share that with close family and friends.)

A church in Oklahoma thought it was a good idea to lure teens to a youth conference by giving away an $800 semiautomatic assault rifle. Thankfully the event was cancelled when one of the pastors injured his foot — no doubt an act of providence I can only hope happened like this [YouTube].

I wonder how this story would play out if the neighborhood mosque tried to do the same thing?

Lately I’ve been using the very handy Time Tracker to record how much time I spend on various projects. Here’s the description from the website:

“Track the time you spend on projects with this simple and easy-to-use application. Divide your work into projects, and split each into individual tasks. Stay honest, and not count those coffee breaks with the built-in idle time alerts. A menu bar icon reminds you at a glance whether the timer is running and allows you to easily stop and start the timer.”

This was exactly what I was looking for because it’s so easy to punch-in and punch-out.

It’s also a handy tool to have your research assistant(s) use for tracking their hours and the time spent on individual tasks (the next version is supposed to have data export, so it should be even more useful for this).

And if you have kids, they could use it to record time spent on chores, practicing an instrument, and doing homework – just keep in mind the entries are editable!

A quick public service announcement for those like me prone to sunburn: you can get burned while sitting in the shade.

I learned this today after spending a few hours reading on our balcony. The weather was hot but breezy, and I was just wearing shorts and an A-shirt (I’m not comfortable writing the more common name).

I didn’t have on any sunscreen because I was sitting in the shade.

This evening I looked in the mirror and noticed that my left shoulder, forehead, and one side of my neck were pink. After pressing my fingers against my skin I had those telltale marks that linger white for a second before turning pink again.

But only on my left side – the side that was facing the balcony railing and the external wall of an apartment building about 20 feet away.

Then it dawned on me (sorry) that the sun’s rays reflected off the apartment wall and caused the burn, even though I had been all comfy in the shade.

Moral: Wear sunscreen whenever spending time outdoors, or at least don’t dress like Kevin Federline.

When we opened our apartment door the other day we found an envelope from the U.S. Department of Treasury jammed into the door frame.

My first thought was, Great, we’re getting audited. Second thought: No way, they did not just mail us a check all the way from the US, trusting two national postal systems to deliver it.

But they did, and it was a whopping $1200, double what I expected.

I knew about the economic stimulus payments, but I never thought I’d get one all the way over here in Turkey, let alone stuffed into my door. What if it got lost in the mail?

Never fear, you can request a re-print. And how did I learn that? The next day I found another letter from the Treasury jammed into the front door of our building (i.e., out on the street!) that said we were about to receive a check.

Something tells me the Treasury more than recoups their airmail expenses through checks that go missing and unnoticed.

In one of my research sites the preachers have used me as an example in their sermons on at least three occasions, two of which I heard in person. If I had lofty or delusional thoughts about needing to avoid reactivity – observing my “subjects” without impacting them in any way – then I’d be pretty disappointed. But I don’t, and instead I’m tickled.

Beginning in May I started traveling to Adapazari every Friday morning for a meeting attended by preachers and some provincial administrators where they discuss the current week’s sermon and other related issues. After the meeting the preachers spread out around the province to their assigned mosques and deliver sermons before the start of Friday prayers. People who want to hear an extended lesson or simply come out of the elements and rest before prayers arrive early, sit on the floor of the mosque, and listen to a 40-45 minute unscripted sermon. These sermons are distinct from the ritualistic ones in the middle of worship in that they are not required listening for one’s Friday prayers to be considered valid.

Anyway, in Adapazari I have gone with two different preachers five times to observe them giving their sermons and to watch Friday prayers. The first time, the preacher was in the pulpit talking about how to be an exemplary Muslim, and to express his disappointment about the current state of religious practice in Turkey he shared an anecdote that my wife had told me over the phone earlier that morning and that I had shared with him on the ride to the mosque. He mentioned that I was an American and then said that he was embarrassed by some of the things he had heard from me.

The next week I was at a different mosque with the same preacher and he again mentioned me in his sermon. This time he told the congregation, which was probably around 100 at the time, that they had an American visitor who had traveled all the way from his country in order to study their sermons for his PhD and was traveling the provinces speaking with muftis about a subject that even they (i.e., Turks, Muslims) haven’t given much importance to. He mentioned this in a sermon that was on the importance of learning and leaving behind something of value for the next generation, whether it’s a mosque, a school, or a book (I don’t think “dissertation” made the list). He even tied in what I was doing with a statement made by the Prophet, who said “Seek knowledge, even if it is in far away China.” Apparently Turkey counts, too, if you’re an American.

The preacher finished the sermon with prayer, and among his supplications was one that my heart would open and welcome Islam. I estimate that 300 people had arrived by this point and they collectively responded “Amen.” My brother-in-law says he’s never had that many Turks pray for him and he’s lived here 32 more years than I have.

The third occasion was described to me after the fact. This time the sermon was on business ethics and the preacher told the congregation about my experiences of being ripped off in Turkey. He said he used me as an example because he knew people would perk up when he mentioned an American visitor, and that’s exactly what happened — he said they turned their heads toward him and really started listening when he got to that part. Reflecting on the moment, the preacher told me, “God willing, you will be a vehicle for auspicious works.” Gee, and all I did was complain about getting overcharged.