Month of September, 2006
Traveling
How did it become Friday already? I don't feel like I've accomplished enough this week. Other than that, it was just a regular week. The highlight of this week was going out Wednesday night for happy hour with Jennifer. We had sushi and a couple drinks. Her company was wonderful as always.
This weekend I'm going to visit extended family with my parents. My father's side of the family lives in Dunkirk & Fredonia, which are little towns in New York on the edge of Lake Erie. We're flying into Pittsburgh and driving up. I haven't visited in a really, really long time. It's a shame that I haven't made the effort sooner. But I am looking forward to this visit and seeing family. The weather is a LOT cooler than Phoenix so I'm sure I'm going to go through some shock. I've got to pack clothes to keep me warm!
Hopefully I'll come back with some wonderful stories and pictures of the family.
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Nightmare
I woke up this morning from a nightmare. I dreamt that Christian was telling me he was going to the jail to see Kim hung. She was being sent to the gallows for some crime I can't remember. Though I do remember being outraged that her crime didn't deserve the punishment. Luckily I pulled myself out of sleep and told myself it wasn't real. Before I knew it, I was getting up and going to the gym.
Another Weekend in Dallas
I spent another weekend in Dallas. It was great. Wednesday night after I arrived, Chris and I met Sue and Rick for dinner. We ate at Xouba, which is a beautiful place but they're still getting their act together (slow waiter, slow food, no liquor license). I hadn't seen Sue since we met and became friends in March. It was wonderful to catch up with her and see that she's doing really well. Sue is also friends with my parents so I get periodic updates from them, but its not the same thing. It was my first time meeting her boyfriend, Rick, so I enjoyed getting to know him a little bit. I love hearing how couples met and how their relationship started. In the same way, I think Chris loves talking about how we met and how our relationship started. Or maybe its just that I like hearing him tell it so I always let him do it. Either way, we shared stories and talked a lot about travel. It was a perfect evening.
Thursday and Friday I worked in the Dallas office. It was great seeing everyone and I felt it was a successful trip.
Thursday night, Chris and I went to a SMU alumni happy hour. We met up with a rather large group of people I graduated with. I hadn't seen any of my friends from school since last summer so it was great to catch up. Mike scolded me as soon as he learned I have a boyfriend in the Dallas area. He figured out that I was coming back into town and never calling anyone. Yep, guilty. But it was really good to catch up.
Friday night Chris took me to Hooters for the very first time. I'm 29 years old and I've never set foot into Hooters. I figured it was time I was initiated. I'm not really sure what I was waiting for. The Hooters we went to was extremely tasteful and the food was great. Chris and I had a nice time. I don't remember much else about the evening. I think we went home and went to bed. We were both exhausted from staying up too late Thursday night and getting up too early on Friday morning.
Saturday we hung out with Autumn, Ky, and Deuce (baby Ky). Deuce has gotten SO big and has SO much personality. He is so happy and calm and just cool to be with. If every child was like this one, I think I'd be in line to get one myself. And Chris looked SO cute holding. I have to admit, I'm impressed with Chris's comfort level. I should be thankful his sister and brother made him an uncle which forced him to get comfortable with kids. After seeing Autumn and Ky, we visited Grandma. She's doing pretty well. Though Saturday was the first time I had ever heard her talk about death in a comfortable and accepting way. Since she's 95, it's not unexpected but definitely significant. Saturday afternoon / evening we cooked dinner, watched football, watched a movie, and eventually went to the bar with Travis, Katie, and Jimmy. Nothing too significant to report - though I did watch my first Ultimate Fighting Championship match.
On Sunday as we wrapped up the weekend, we did the rounds with the family. Mom and Dad cooked an amazing brunch. Autumn and Deuce joined us. It was really fun hanging out with them and watch Deuce walk around. He's getting pretty good on his feet! With a baby there, Mom and Dad's puppy wasn't the center of attention. Hope Mia wasn't disappointed. After brunch, we visited Chris's parents. We simply sat around their living room and talked for a couple hours. I'm really, really lucky that A) I like Chris's parents so much and B) Chris's parents like me back. Chris's parents are going to spend some time in Napa Valley with Chris's sister and her family. We heard all about the vacation schedule and all the wineries they plan to visit. It sounds like it is going to be a good vacation.
It wasn't long before the day was over and it was time for me to head to the airport. An uneventful flight on Sunday evening got me back to Phoenix and another week has begun.
The whole set of pictures is on Flickr.
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Bullseye!
I'm in Dallas. I've been here since Wednesday night. It's been good to work with my coworkers in the Dallas office the past two days. I'm staying in town for the weekend in order to spend time with Chris and see my parents. Autumn is in town too so I hope to see her.
On Monday night, I went the Scottsdale gun range with my neighbor, Christy. It was only my second time to shoot a handgun and my first time to shoot at a target. Turns out I'm a pretty good shot! It helped a lot that Christy is a fantastic teacher. This image was of our last round - 5 shots each. I got the bullseye!
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Talk Like a Pirate Day
September 19th is officially "Talk Like a Pirate Day!" Thanks for the e-card, Kristen!
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Weekend
The weather has finally turned in Arizona. It's cooling off. Fall is here! I am going to spend every possible minute outside from now until May.
With this new turn in weather, I decided to buy a bike. So Thursday night I brought my cruiser home. It's a simple, simple bike - one speed, coaster brakes (you pedal backwards to brake), fat tires, and a basket on the front. It's totally cute. So Friday after work, I rode around my neighborhood for about an hour. I'm amazed at how much more you can see when you're on a bike. And the sounds! I love how quiet the bike is compared to a car. It's so relaxing.
Saturday morning I went to the Lake Pleasant education center with my neighbor, Christy. Christy is a high school earth sciences teacher and one of her classes involved viewing this center. Since I had never been to Lake Pleasant, I went along. The education center was quite impressive. The lake is also beautiful. It's so close to Phoenix! I finally understand why people in Phoenix have boats. Christy and I had lunch after the tour then I headed home. I loaded the bike on the car (I got a bike rack too) and headed to the Greenbelt in Scottsdale. The Greenbelt is a mixed use path that goes for miles and miles through Scottsdale. It's gorgeous. I ended up riding for two hours! It was a perfect way to spend the day. When I got home, I took a nap. Guess I wore myself out. After the nap, I met some coworkers at a bar to watch football, drink beer, and eat wings. It was a really fun night.
Today, Sunday, I've just hung around the house. I spent most of my time talking to family and friends on the phone. I did go out and ride for about an hour this afternoon. As Chris pointed out, I needed Vitamin E from the sunshine. The ride was exactly what I needed to finish off a perfectly lazy and relaxing day. I think I'll finish off the evening with a movie.
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Babies
It seems that quite a few people around me are having babies. Last month, my friends from college, Kenna and Cody, had Kai. Yesterday, Nora and Chris had Michael. Today, Mark and Janet had Joel. I am very happy for all my friends who are starting families. Congratulations, you all!
*Update*
Oh, I forgot one! This is Aiden, the son of Justin and Shaunna. It really HAS been baby season.
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Picture Frames
My boyfriend, Chris, is quite wonderful in so many ways. But I don't think anyone is particularly interested in hearing about them all. I do want to point out that he's a wonderful wood craftsman. Chris made the two frames shown here. The pictures are fairly representative but don't do them justice. The level of detail, especially in the second frame is incredible. I'm most impressed however, with Chris's design skills. Both of these frames are very unique in their design. I'm looking forward to designing and making things with Chris someday. I know he'll challenge me and teach me, which is really exciting. We just need to be in the same place at the same time for long enough to get something done.
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Autumn & Ky
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Prominent
The SimpleHuman blog recommended Zafu.com to help you find the perfect fitting jeans. I've been thinking about getting some new jeans ever since the company started letting us wear them to the office on Fridays. But I hate jean shopping. I'm not as skinny as a model (or as the typical 15 year old) and those are the only style of jeans I can seem to find. I'm obviously shopping in the wrong places. So I figured I'd try out Zafu.
You go through a series of questions about how jeans typically fit you and about your body. I was particularly amused by the section that asks about your butt. Isn't it wonderful that a picture can replace a thousand words?! And the nice, nice people at Zafu used a polite term such as "prominent" instead of a billion other terms that come to mind.
Now that I have a list of recommended jeans to try, I'll have to go shopping. (Is anyone surprised that Apple Bottoms jeans are on my recommended list? Not me.) If my shopping is successful, I'll let you know.
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Perceptions
"We are in the perception business."
Yes, yes we are. Always.
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Koozie Hostage
Chris, your Texas koozie is being held hostage in Arizona. (See, its hanging out with the cactus.) The only way you're going to get it back is if you visit Arizona and bring gifts. Negotiation is possible...if you say pretty please.
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Ky & Ky
Can you believe Ky turns one in a couple weeks?! Yep, on September 17th. I can't believe a whole year has gone by already. It's a blessing he is so happy!
Jeff
Tonight I got a call from an old, old friend - Jeff. Jeff and I went to college together and had the same major - art education. We became fast friends and even had our senior show together. Then we lost touch after college. I've been thinking about Jeff a lot lately so I looked him up. Thanks to the internet, I found him and left him a message. Tonight he totally surprised me and called. It was SO, SO, SO wonderful to catch up and get filled in on his life.
Talking with Jeff brought back a lot of wonderful memories so I dug out the old picture albums. Here are just a few of the pictures I have of Jeff from back in the days before digital cameras.
Jeff & Mark at a teacher convention in November 1996. This is such a great picture of Jeff because it captured his silly and often goofy behavior.
This is a picture of me at the same convention in November 1996. Jeff took it. He was always a fabulous photographer and could always make me look good! (Even with blue hair.)
In April 1998, I dragged Jeff into a performance art piece. A bunch of art, drama, and music students collaborated on a piece together. It was an amazing experience. In this photo is Adam - the puppet master, me - the child, and Jeff - the Abyss. This is the only photo I have of the performance which makes me a little sad, because it was such a huge experience for me. I only wish I remembered it better.
Jeff and I were going to be art teachers (well, Jeff still is even though I'm not). This was taken at a show of our students' art work from a workshop in college.
This picture was taken one of the last times I saw Jeff. It was July 2000 and we were in Junction, Texas together taking art classes. Despite the fact I just had my heart broken by John, I was pretty darn happy to be making art and hanging out with Jeff. I'm so glad that I found this picture of me happy during that time. I seem to remember myself being miserable every moment of every day but this picture shows me that wasn't the case.
Life is so good. It's such a blessing to have people come back into your life and it feels just as if they never left. I am so happy to have such a good friend back!
Labor Day Weekend
I went to south Texas for Labor Day weekend. I stayed with Chris and a whole ton of his friends in cabins along the Guadalupe River. We spent the weekend floating the river (in tubes), drinking, eating, and relaxing. It was exactly the type of vacation I needed!
View the set of pictures.
Cox brothers and Chris drinking bloody marys in the morning (before breakfast).
After a long day of tubing, I cooked up some hot dogs and sausage.
Boys in cowboy hats.
Hanging out with Chris.
Another Picture of Clouds
Yesterday I spotted these gorgeous clouds on the way home. I love it when the sunlight streams through holes in the clouds.
Happy labor day weekend! I know the weekend isn't quite here for those of us on the west coast, but it's close. I'm so anxious for the weekend because I'm going to be tubing on the Guadalupe River in central Texas! I'm flying into Austin tonight and Chris will pick me up. Then we're staying with his friends at cabins on the river. Saturday and Sunday will be all about tubing and drinking beer. It sounds like the kind of vacation I need! Hope your weekend is equally enjoyable.
