Make-up classes are scheduled for Feb. 16-22. See the online OLLI calendar and watch your email to learn which of your missed classes have been rescheduled.
OLLI will be open Feb. 15, Presidents' Day.
The Special Events Committee met Feb. 3 without its fearless leader Florence Adler. We're sending her our good wishes and hope she has a speedy recovery!
Fun Facts to Celebrate OLLI's 25th Anniversary By Ray Beery, Member, Board of DirectorsBecause LRI was growing rapidly, membership was capped at 400 in 1997, then at 420 the following year. Some prospective members were on a waiting list. This unpopular policy was rescinded, and never tried again.
OLLI is celebrating its 25th year of classes for seniors in 2016. We'll be publishing fun facts and interesting milestones about the Institute each week that OLLI E-News is published from now until the end of the fall term, 2016.
The Computer Club (OLLI Personal Computer User Group or OPCUG) will meet with its partner, the Potomac Area Technology and Computer Society (PATACS), on Saturday, February 20, at Tallwood. Join us at 12:30 for soft drinks and socializing in the social room. Presentations will begin at 1:00.
Technology behind the 911 Call—Fairfax County PD Officer
Every day the Fairfax County Police 911 dispatch centers receive calls for help from citizens. Do you ever wonder what happens when that call is placed? Officers responding to these calls can arrive on the scene in a matter of minutes and need as much information as possible prior to stepping out of their cars. This presentation will take an inside look at what happens when a person dials 911. We will follow the call through the cell tower, to the call taker, all the way to the officer’s in-car CAD (computer aided dispatch system). Advances in technology that allow law enforcement to quickly and efficiently respond to these calls will be discussed as will success stories from the Fairfax County Police helicopter unit.
Our speaker will be a 10-year veteran of the Fairfax County Police Department stationed at the Mason District Police Station.
Learn 30: Raspberry Pi—Alan Day
When the Raspberry Pi (a credit card sized computer that uses SD memory cards as primary storage and costs about $30) became available in the US, Alan bought one so he could keep in contact with the Linux world. Accessing it from Mac OS X, Windows, Linux, and iPad, Alan has used his Raspberry Pi for applications including a headless server, streaming audio capture, mp3 clip editing/tag editing, DVD backup, QR codes, and web development (perl). He's now using the Raspberry Pi Zero (the $5 computer) announced Thanksgiving Day 2015. Applications include moving information between the Windows, Mac OS X, Linux, and iPad IOS platforms.
Alan is a Life Senior Member of IEEE. He has been engaged with the Northern Virginia Linux Users Group since about 1998, and is a member of the Washington Apple Pi, the Apple users group. He retired from the CIA in 2003 and SAIC in 2012.
See full details on these meetings by clicking here. For information on the Computer Club, see the OPCUG website. OPCUG dues of $5 for 2016 will be collected at this meeting.
Can't make the meeting in person? Dues-paid club members may attend via Zoom's cloud meeting service, beginning at 12:45. Send a message to webinarhosts@patacs.org if you plan to attend in this way. Join from PC, Mac, iOS or Android: https://zoom.us/j/109704244
Our January Ice Cream Social got zapped by the blizzard… but we are NOT giving up! We’re planning to have this event on the snow date: Friday, February 19, from 1:00-3:00 in TA-1.
And just to be sure we get the last laugh, we’ve added a Beach Party theme!
Please come and enjoy ice cream and all the fixin's—hot cider and cocoa, and home-baked goodies—not to mention our annual talent show. (If you’d like to be part of the talent show, just email Manny Pablo at fredpablo@icloud.com .)
We’ll also have plenty of fun-in-the-sun music and a screening of a hilarious “Beach Blanket Bingo” knock-off featuring Carol Burnett and Steve Martin (from the much missed Carol Burnett Show).
Hope you’ll join us for warm camaraderie despite the chilly temps. If you signed up for the Ice Cream Social event when it was originally scheduled, we assume that you are coming on February 19. If you can’t attend, please call the OLLI office to cancel your registration. If you had not signed up but would like to attend on February 19, please register for special event 1102, Ice Cream Social, at the member portal.
Because of the snow, the deadline for submissions to OLLI Ink 2016, OLLI's literary journal, has been extended a week to February 22. You have another whole week to polish and write, so we hope you'll use it.
Submit as many pieces as you like. Prose—fiction, personal essays, and memoirs—should be no longer than 2,500 words, and poetry no longer than 30 lines if you want to be considered for the hard-copy edition. If your work is too long for the hard-copy journal or if you submit more than one piece, we will try to have an online edition in which space won't be a problem. All rights remain with the authors.
Please email your entries to me (bsmith5000@verizon.net) by Feb. 22. Let me know if you have any questions.
I found it in the trash can where it really shouldn't be
for it was a piece of paper − quite recyclable, you see?
When I showed it to my husband for the 40 millionth time,
he said, "Oh, does that recycle? Guess I'm guilty of some crime."
I found it in the trash can and I stared with disbelief.
He had thrown away a glass jar and it brought me waves of grief,
so I showed it to him, pointing, with a snort of loud contempt.
He said, "Oh, does that recycle? Well, it was my best attempt."
I found it in the trash can and I had to pick a fight
for a simple beverage bottle is too easy to get right.
As I showed him the small number on its molded plastic bottom,
he said, "Oh, do those recycle? Well, I guess I had forgot 'em."
I threw it in the trash can where it quickly slid from sight
for it shouldn't be recycled, though I snickered with delight
at the trashing of my wedding band, a bone of much contention.
He'll say, "Oh, does that recycle? Guess I should pay more attention." Martha E. Powers
Performances, next ten daysBy Shelly Gersten, OLLI E-News Staff WriterFor tickets for either Center for the Arts (CFA) or Hylton, call 1-888-945-2468, buy tickets online through the event calendar (see links below), or visit the venue's box office. For more information, see the CFA ticket page or the Hylton ticket purchase page.
At the Fairfax Campus Venues
Virginia Opera: Romeo and Juliet
Sat, Feb 13, at 8:00
Sun, Feb 14, at 2:00
Concert Hall
Admission: $98, $80, $48.
Mark Morris Dance Group
Fri, Feb 19 and Sat, Feb 20, 8:00
Pre-performance discussion: Member of the company
Concert Hall
Admission: $48, $41, $29.
TAO: Seventeen Samurai
Sun, Feb 21, 4:00
Pre-performance discussion: Member of the company
Concert Hall
Admission: $48, $41, $29.
Mason Student & Faculty Performances
(see music.gmu.edu for additional student recitals)The Vagina Monologues
Fri, Feb 12 and Sat, Feb 13, 8:00
Harris Theatre
Admission: $20.GMU Symphony Orchestra Concert with the Virginia Chamber Orchestra
Mon, Feb 22, 8:00
Concert Hall
Admission: Adults, $12; seniors, $8.
The 5th Annual PWCPS Student Exhibition
Continues through Mar 20
Buchanan Partners Art Gallery
The gallery is open to the public Tue-Sat, 10:00 - 6:00, Thu, 10:00 - 8:00 and two hours before performances. Gallery Reception: Sun, Feb 28 from 3:00 to 4:30. RSVP to jconnor8@gmu.edu.
Admission: Free.
American Festival Pops Orchestra: Valentine’s Day Pops
Sat, Feb 13, 8:00
Merchant Hall
Admission: $50, $43, $30.
Shaun Hopper
Fri, Feb 19, 8:00
Gregory Family Theater
Admission: $25.00.
Youth Orchestras of Prince William
Sun, Feb 21, 3:00
Merchant Hall
Admission: Adults, $15; seniors, $12.
The following list covering the next two weeks is extracted for your convenience from the master online calendar maintained by the office, with direct web links added when available. The list is accurate as of mid-week but to check anytime for the latest information, please view the latest forecast of upcoming events on our website (News/OLLI Calendar). Note: All OLLI members are welcome at, and encouraged to attend, meetings of the Board of Directors, committees and resource groups, kickoff coffees, etc. (bolded below).
Sat Feb 13
10:30am
Tai Chi Club–TA-3
Tue Feb 16
9:30am
Cottage Art–Cottage
Wed Feb 17
1:30pm
1:45pm
Mah Jongg Club–TA-2
Bridge Club–TA-3
Fri Feb 19
9:00am
10:00am
10:00am
11:00am
Recorder Consort–TA-3 Board of Directors Meeting–TA-1
Craft and Conversation–Cottage
Homer, etc–TA-2
Sat Feb 20
10:30am
1:00pm
Tai Chi Club–TA-3
Computer Club–TA-1
Tue Feb 23
9:30am
10:00am
Cottage Art–Cottage
Spanish Club–TA-2
Wed Feb 24
10:00am
10:30am
Bridge Club–TA-3
Tom Crooker Investment Forum–TA-1
Fri Feb 26
9:00am
10:00am
10:00am
11:00am
12:00pm
12:00pm
Recorder Consort–TA-3
Craft and Conversation–Cottage
Theater Lovers Group–TA-1
Homer, etc–Annex
Photography Club–TA-1
Religious Studies Club–Cottage
OLLI E-News was created by Rod Zumbro, who served as its editor from 2005 to 2013.
Editorial Staff
Chief Editor/Technical Editor: Irene Osterman
Associate Editor: Sheri Siesseger
Weekly Editorial Team: Jean Boltz, John Nash, Sheri Siesseger, Leslie Vandivere, Paul Van Hemel Proofreaders: Gordon Canyock, Nancy Michel, Marilyn O'Brien, Susan Van Hemel
Backup Chief Editor: Alice Slayton Clark
Submissions. Members are encouraged to submit letters to the editor, letters to Ms. Ollie Ettakit (on etiquette matters), OLLI-related news items, articles and photos. Submit material to: ollienewseditor@gmail.com. Deadline – 6:00 Tuesday for that week's issue (6:00 Monday for letters to the editor); early submissions are greatly appreciated. Please limit articles to about 250 words. Note: You can view past issues of OLLI E-News on the DocStore. To search the content of issues, use Search Our Site or put your search term in Google followed by "site:ollidev.earthcare.com/" without the quotes.
