This is the lake resort where I'm teaching this week. No Russian tanks in sight!

My family visited this weekend; here's a Saturday picture of Jacob (courtesy of my sister Jenny). This one is now my desktop wallpaper at school. Jacob's carseat is covered with warning labels. For that matter, so is just about every other baby-related doodad we own. Here's Steve Levitt on carseats.

I would like to introduce you to Lorenzo Hayward Lopez, born Sunday August 10 at 11:08 am weighing 7 pounds 13.3 ounces and measuring 20.75 inches. Everything's great.

After traveling for more than a week, I came back to the office for the first time this morning, and this is what welcomed me:

Good people here at Liberty Fund. Baby is due August 4th-ish.

Columbus sails away
An eagle soars in the sky
Auburn comes closer

I am grateful for my wonderful co-bloggers for keeping up the pace in my absence. A new job, new preps, and publishing commitments are keeping my blogging to a minimum for now.

Some of my recent book reviews you might find interesting.

A review of The Law Growth Nexus: The Rule of Law and Economics Development by Kenneth Dam for Law and Politics Book Review.

A review of Entrepreneurship and Economic Progress by Randy Holcombe in The Review of Austrian Economics.

A review of Thomas F. Walsh: Progressive Businessman and Colorado Mining Tycoon by John C. Stewart for EH.net.

It's official.

I have accepted an offer to join the faculty at Auburn University as a tenured Associate Professor in the Department of Finance in the College of Business. I will also serve as Co-Director of the newly-created Center for International Finance and Global Competitiveness where I will direct the Economic Freedom Initiative working with a team of faculty and students working on research and educational outreach related to the economic freedom project.

Anyone want to buy my house?

A local reporter for the Beloit Daily News did a nice story on my use of music in the classroom. Sorry Bob and Dirk, while I mentioned you two by name several times, the reporter decided to just call you 'two men.' C'est la vie.

BTW, Welcome Art!

Having gotten a post-transplant doctor’s OK to drive, I am now in Bowling Green, Ohio, spending the rest of the spring semester at the Social Philosophy and Policy Center of Bowling Green State University. My email address remains the same. If my writing begins to seem a bit flat, blame it on the influence of the local terrain – I swear that the only elevated ground in town is the overpass ramp where Wooster St. crosses the interstate.

From the drive up, I have a question to the management of the I-75-adjacent Wendy’s in Troy, OH: did it ever occur to you that, men being the way they are, putting hot air blowers rather than paper towel dispensers in the men’s room really won’t save you any money when there are stacks of free napkins on the counter just outside the door?

My kidney transplant surgery on Tuesday was successful. Recovery proceded at what is apparently the normal pace: I slept for the next 20 hours, sat up a little on Wednesday, began walking a little on Thursday, got my IVs disconnected and meds adjusted on Friday, and waited around all day Saturday to be discharged. I'm now home resting. Thanks to all those who sent good wishes.

I had a very good year of running in 2007 with no injuries and several fun races:

2007 Totals:
Total Miles: 1654.7
Number of Runs: 221
Average Run: 7.5
Longest Run: 37.3
Average/Week: 31.4

Races:
Date Race Time Pace
12/29/ Huff Frigid Trail Run 50k (51k) 5:19:17 9:59
12/16/ Festivus Fat Ass 50k 5:20:00 10:19
11/22/ Cincinnati Thanksgiving Day 10k 39:39 6:23
11/18/ Ole Man River Half Marathon New Orleans 1:29:14 6.48
11/09/ Forestry Preserve Trail 5k (Auburn) 20:34 6:36
9/22/ Indian Run Hocking Hills Trail 60k 6:31:01 10:49
9/10/ Erie Marathon at Presque Isle 3:14:38 7:26
7/4/ John Barr Bexley 5k 19:08 6:10
6/10/ Penitentissime Trail 30k (France) 4:18:40 13:54
4/29/ John Bryant 50k 5:40:14 10:59
4/16/ Boston Marathon 3:29:23 8:00
2/11/ Last Chance for Boston Marathon 3:43:32 8:32
1/28/ Winter Run 15 Miles 1:52:44 7:31

I also had a pretty good year bagging mountains: Kilimanjaro (19340') in March, Turtlehead Peak (6324') in March, Charleston Peak (11918') in July, and Mt. Washington (6288') in December.

For anyone who's interested in my medical saga: I'm scheduled to receive a kidney transplant on January 8, pending last-minute tests. The donor is my first cousin. I guess my parents actually had my long-run best interests in mind when they dragged me to all those family reunions.

Like most of the other DoLers I've been quiet for the last week as final grading as been upon us. I'm looking forward to the break this year. Aside from the usual research time, I'll be running a 50k this weekend, doing a three-day winter mountaineering course that hopefully will culminate in a summit of Mt. Washington in NH, and then another 50k on Dec 30.

Yes, yes, I know, I know, yo soy muy loco. Just in case you don't know how loco, check out the current temps on the Mt. Washington summit. It's a balmy 9 degrees F and 40 mph winds as I write this. This morning it was -10F with 80 mph winds though. Yikes! I give us a 50-50 shot.

The last of the Depken's are heading out of Texas this evening. For those who aren't up-to-date, I am taking a position at the University of North Carolina - Charlotte starting this fall. I am going to miss UT-Arlington and will have wonderful memories of one of the most well-kept secrets of academia - a place with great collegiality, brains, and output. I look forward to the challenges and experiences in my new position but will not lose touch or loyalty with the department that gave me my first job and tenured position.

New contact information will be forthcoming but for the moment any email can be sent to depken-at-sbcglobal-dot-net.

Blogger out for a few days until I get east of the Mississippi.

Associated Press on Yahoo! news reports, this story

"Justices to teach, travel in Europe"

Here's a proposition a majority of the Supreme Court can agree on, without rancor or regard for ideology: Europe is a good place to spend the summer.

At least five of the nine justices will travel there this summer, mostly to take part in international programs sponsored by U.S. law schools.

I just returned from three weeks in Europe with my wife. No teaching. But plenty of sun in Mediterranean Spain, France, and Italy, with a long weekend in Munich and a topper-offer in Rome. Sorry, no Tyler-esque observations sophistiquées. But I did meet up with Ed Stringham for a week. Great fun.

Oh, the Justice with the coolest Eurotrip itinerary? Probably Roberts, who's scheduled for Vienna and Paris.

I've posted a complete trip report (.pdf) online. Enjoy.

I hope to write up a complete trip report soon, but in the meantime, here's the money shot from Kilimanjaro.

I am happy to announce that I will be joining the Department of Economics and Management at Beloit College this fall. I am extremely excited about being able to work with such great colleagues and students.

Thanks to everyone who I had the opportunity to interact with this spring. It was a great opportunity to spend time with old friends and make new ones.

My baby boy Shane (baby: He's 6' 7" & weighs 240 or so) is co-owner of Saba restaurant in Atlanta. Saba was recently named best new pasta restaurant in Atlanta. Link here.

I am fortunate in so many ways. I have great friends, a loving family, an an intellectually stimulating environment.

One of the ways in which I am fortunate is the quality of the faculty here at West Virginia. When I decided to come to West Virginia, I did so because of Russ Sobel. The quality of the other faculty did not enter my decision-making process. Yet ten classes must be taken in order to take the one graduate course that Russ teaches. It was not clear to me at the beginning that I would make it see Russ's class or how beneficial my experience would be should I make it.

Fortunately for me, the graduate faculty here at West Virginia are excellent teachers. I certainly do not consider myself to be a "macro" guy, but after taking Ron Balver's Macro Theory 1 I feel like I really understand macroeconomics and it is no wonder that our graduates tend to be good teachers of introductory and intermediate macro given that they have all taken his class.

The best graduate faculty member, in my opinion, at West Virginia University is Santiago Pinto. He teaches Math Econ, Dynamic Methods, Micro II, and Graduate Urban. The quality of his teaching in Math Econ was extremely beneficial to me after being away from school so long. With a lesser teacher, I am afraid I would not be typing this today. His careful and detailed explanation of the basic monocentric model in Graduate Urban gave me a newfound appreciation for the usefulness of model building. In addition he is an excellent scholar with a recent publication in the Journal of Public Economics and a couple others in the Journal of Urban Economics. In my opinion his recent receipt of the College of Business and Economics' Outstanding Teacher Award is well-deserved.