Holy Cow!

I snuck over to the house on Friday to try and peek in the window, expecting that they'd be about halfway through grouting the tile floor. Instead, they were almost completely done with everything, including the carpet!

Except for the refrigerator, the kitchen is totally done - the tile is in and all the hardware is on the cabinets.

The tile runs down the hall from the entryway toward the family room. It's still mostly covered by paper in this shot. The carpet looks different depending on your vantage point and the amount of light it's getting. The stairs look much darker than the dining room in this shot, but it's the exact same color.

D's enjoying the carpet in the family room.

A closer shot of the tile. It has lots of different shades of gray and blue and beige (and more).

Flooring Phase 1

We got to go inside yesterday, so I was able to take some interior pictures. The tile work is just getting started and the carpet is still a few days away, but the linoleum is in place. We decided not to upgrade the bathroom areas and put in tile....who wants to clean grout?

The upstairs guest bathroom.

The master bathroom.

The laundry room (we got to keep the cabinets).

The flooring isn't done here yet, but I wanted to get a shot of the built-in desk and cabinets at the top of the stairs. They're still waiting for hardware, but they look great!

A Yard!

I'm back from a long, boring week in Hawaii (boo!). Lots of work, both with a customer and on the book. We managed to swing by the house on Saturday after I got back.

We have a yard! The landscaping was put in and the fence has been painted, so the front of the house is pretty much exactly like it will be when we move in (aside from the caution tape).

We can't go in because they're preparing the floors for tile and carpet, but I managed to take this picture through the back door. The cabinet facing is on, but there's no hardware yet. All the appliances are also in place.

Another angle on the front. By late next week, all our floors should be in, so I can take more interior pictures.

Countertops and a lonely tree

One last post before I head to Hawaii. There were several updates this week, but even more are coming next week. In about a week and a half, most of the obvious internal work will be done (flooring, cabinet faces, etc). We're still set to close escrow on November 12, after a couple of walkthroughs.

The side fence and gates are done, though they still have to be painted. They've also added a tree to our front yard...a single, lonely tree. They'll add grass and small shrubs around the windows later.

Though the tub still isn't in, the mirrors, lights, and shower door are all set. One of the things I'm most excited about is getting my own medicine cabinet and not having to share with "a girl." I know, cheap thrills, huh?

The countertops are in, and they're beautiful. They're green, but they look almost black until you see them in the light. We love the contrast between the dark granite and the white cabinets.

Here you can see the color a little bit better, along with the range.

The color is even more realistic here. It's made mostly of large green flecks...that's why it's called Verde Butterfly. There are also white, gold, and even red specks throughout, though the white are obviously the most noticeable. The oven and microwave are visible in the background, the dishwasher is still wrapped in plastic in the foreground, and the beautiful white sink continues the dark/light contrast.

Non-House Update

From this blog, it would seem that our lives revolve around our weekly visit to the new house.  While that's certainly one of our more enjoyable activities (just wait until you see this week's pictures!), it's not the only thing we've been doing.

I've been traveling a little more than I did last quarter, and the trips have been a little further than normal.  Though my area is technically the West, and more specifically the Pacific Southwest, it's based on where the company headquarters are, so it doesn't take into account any remote offices.  I took two quick trips to Denver to visit a customer's HQ, then last week went to Minneapolis to visit one of their other offices.  After Minneapolis I hit Waltham, MA for two days, to visit another customer (whose HQ is in SF).  I also took a quick trip out to Honolulu, which sounds fun until you realize it was only for two days.  I left our house at 4:45 on a Monday morning, and got back around midnight the next day.  When I wasn't flying, I was in meetings....ugh.  I have to go back next week for a few days, and it will be just as frustrating this time.  It's no fun seeing the Pacific Ocean from a window and not having any time to walk out to the beach.

D has been busy with school....lots of papers to grade, lots of kids to teach.  Her newspaper kids have put out one paper issue and two online versions.  She has more kids than usual this year...the normal staff for the paper version and a smaller group of younger students that are doing the Web newspaper.  The site is hosted by the American Society of Newspaper Editors; they host hundreds of Web-based papers for high schools all across the country.  On their first "release," D's students had two articles that were chosen for the "National Edition" for their quality and applicability to all high school students.

When we're not working or visiting the house, we're trying to find time for fun.  We made it to a USC game several weeks ago, and went to the So You Think You Can Dance live tour as well.

The book is going well, though I have a lot of work to do this week.  We're at the copyedit stage, which means we have to make sure our copyeditors didn't change any technical details when they did their editing.  I have to get five of my own chapters reviewed by Friday, and review six of someone else's chapters.  Oh boy.

Okay, gotta go....we're going to sign our final paperwork for our flooring, then headed to dinner for my B-day.  Thanks to everyone that's left a comment, sent an email, or written on my wall (though now I'm officially too old for Facebook).  Ta-ta!

It's a Real House!

Well, it's definitely starting to look like a real house...one that could almost be lived in. In the last two weeks, they've done quite a bit of work.

• Everything's been painted
• Bathroom sinks/toilets/faucets/showerheads/medicine cabinets have been installed
• Fireplace is in
• Chandelier is in
• All electrical plates and wall switches are in
• Fence building is in progress
• Water heater is in
• Outdoor lights are in
• The yards have been graded and prepared for planting
  
• We have a doorbell!
• All doors and windows are in and secured....they had to unlock it to let us in

We expect the countertops to go in next.

The bannister looks much better with a coat of paint.

You can see the fence being built along the left, and the dirt has been graded appropriately for gardening.

The fireplace is going to look great with our carpet and tile.

The bathrooms are almost ready to go!

Condo Update

In preparation for moving out and renting our condo (We have renters!), D has been working diligently the last couple of weekends to make sure the backyard is attractive and easy to maintain for the new tenants. She completely re-did all the planters; each of the plants will expand to cover large portions of open area, and the rest is all barked to help cut down on weeds. D worked really hard on it...doesn't everything look great?!

You've heard of Where's Waldo? This is Where's Willow? A side benefit to getting everything cleaned up is that we can let Willow out, until she 1) starts to annoy the rabbit, or 2) finds something to eat that she shouldn't be eating.

House Updates

Another week, another bunch of stuff done on our house!

The rock on the porch area is done, and all of the scaffolding is down from around the house. They're grading the front and back yards to flatten out the dirt and clean up a little from the construction.

The staircase railing and baseboards are in...both still need to be painted, but you can see how cool the stairs are going to look!

Cabinets and sink in the laundry room. We didn't order the upper cabinets (they're optional)....let's hope no one notices the mistake.

A better view of the front, without any heavy machinery in the way. The roof tiles are all up, so the outside is almost done. There will be "shutters" next to the upper windows and they still have to paint under the eaves on the porch, but it's coming along nicely.

Casa Nueva

We're buying a house! D and I have been waiting until most of it has been finalized to tell everyone, but it's looking pretty solid at this point. After we work through some final loan details and get through escrow, it'll be ours. Of course, we also have to wait until the house is built...it's a brand new house that's currently under construction.

Though we hadn't seriously been looking for a new house until recently, we've always enjoyed going to see model homes, along with the pleasant daydreams those trips entail. Four years ago, when we were looking to buy our condo, we saw some really nice places up in San Elijo Hills, in northern San Diego County. It's a master-planned community with 27 developments surrounding a common area with schools, parks, fields, stores, and other goodies. At the time, most of the properties were out of our price range and far from work (especially for me), but we liked the area and recognized the benefits of having a brand new house. Over the years, even after buying our current house, we've often gone back to that area to look at new developments. About a year ago, we found one we really loved, just outside the main community. Let's call it San Elijo Hills-adjacent. We've been keeping an eye on their new releases, waiting for a specific floor plan and home design. When they finally started building one with the exact specifications we wanted, we just couldn't pass it up.

Here's an artist's rendering of the front of the house:

Along with a beautiful exterior, the inside of the house is awesome, if I do say so myself. Let me preface this next section by saying that this is WAY too much house for us currently, to an almost ridiculous level, but we're trying to buy as much house as we can while the market is on the low(er) end, and while mortgage rates are still affordable. We will definitely be house-poor and will have to cut back a bit on our normal spending habits (no more Woot! for me), but we think it's worth it to prepare for the future. Anyway....

The house is 3,247 square feet, with five bedrooms and four bathrooms. It also has a formal living room and dining room (useless rooms), and a loft-style bonus room (my man-cave). It has a beautiful kitchen, a huge master bedroom, and plenty of extra rooms for family and friends to come visit. For people who are interested in floor plans (I love looking at blueprints), here's a link to the first floor, and one to the second floor. Our house will be exactly like the plans show, with the only optional addition being the retreat connected to the master bedroom.

Things have progressed quickly...in the last month or so, we've gone from finding out the house was available to putting in an offer, signing the contract, and picking out upgrades. We've visited the construction site a few times and seen amazing progress. The first time we walked through it, the outside was wire framed and the inside was being insulated but didn't have any drywall yet. Unfortunately, I didn't have my camera on that visit.

The next time we visited, they had added the first outer layer and drywalled the inside walls. Here's the front of the house from two weeks ago:

And here's the family room/kitchen area with drywall, taping, and patching:

Last weekend, we were in Chicago for a wedding and some sightseeing (pictures to come), so it was two weeks before we were able to get back to the house. We went yesterday and they've completed all of the stucco and one layer of outside paint:

Inside, they've added paint and started putting in the cabinets. This is the same view as above....starting to look better, isn't it?

A couple of weeks ago, we went and picked out flooring. The countertops are going to be a dark green granite called Verde Butterfly; until it gets a lot of light, it's so dark that it almost looks black. In the picture below, it's the oval chip on the right. As you can see, the cabinets will all be white, and we've chosen flooring in mostly grey tones. The bottom tile will run from the front door down the hallway and into the kitchen. The small square tiles in the middle represent the other tile colors, so the pattern will be varied a bit. The carpet will be in all other areas except the bathrooms, which will have the linoleum on the left. The walls throughout and tiles in the bathroom (for sinks and showers) will all be white as well.

Choosing all these options was a pretty fun experience. We'll be finalizing everything this week.

Of course, looking at an unfinished family room and floor plans doesn't really give an indication of what the house will look like when it's done. There's a photo tour of the model online, so you can walk through the house and get a feel for the layout. Keep in mind that this one has been professionally (and expensively) decorated, and almost everything in sight has been upgraded to the best possible flooring/paint/option combinations. Unfortunately, our house will NOT look this nice. With that caveat, here it is.

Needless to say, everyone is welcome to visit (and stay!) as soon as we're all settled.  We're currently looking to close escrow on November 13, so we'll probably also throw ourselves a housewarming party in early December.  I'll be posting pictures as the house continues to progress.  I'm especially excited to see the countertops and the rest of the cabinets installed.

PS- At the moment, we're keeping our condo and renting it out...we'll see what the housing market does in the next year or two and make a decision then.

On Baseball

I've never been a huge fan of baseball. I realize that's essentially blasphemy to my sports-loving friends and family, but it's the truth. I'm not saying I hate it, but it's never been the most exciting sport for me to watch, play, or attend.

In my youth, I certainly enjoyed going to Dodgers games with family members, and the Birmingham Barons games every summer were somewhat entertaining, but I haven't been really into baseball since the days of Kirk Gibson and Orel Hershiser. When I go to Padres games, it's definitely for the companionship and the peanuts, rather than for any interest generated by the team or the game itself...I can barely get interested when the Dodgers come to visit, though I take pride in being the only one rooting against the home team.

Three weeks ago, however, I was in Boston for work and ended up going to a Red Sox game with seventeen of my colleagues. At this game, I was reminded why people enjoy baseball, and how exciting a game can be when played by offensive juggernauts. I'll admit that I went mostly for the field, and to hang out with my peers from work; it's not every day that you get a chance to go to Fenway Park. But once I was there, it quickly became about more than just the ballpark.

To begin with, our seats were pretty good. Yes, we were in the last row of our section, but we were even with home plate (if you follow the first base line into the crowd) and the upper deck protected us from the light rain during the first few innings. Here's a shot from our seats before the game started....they brought in a bunch of little leaguers to stand in front of the Green Monster:

The game started with a whimper, then a bang. I wasn't expecting much from the Texas Rangers, and they delivered on my low expectations. Then the Sox came up and batted around the order one and a half times. By the time the second inning started, it was ten to nothing. Even with an apparent blowout, I was already having a good time, since David Ortiz had hit two three-run home runs in a single inning. It was an impressive show, and I figured the game would end quickly.

Texas's two runs in the second were matched by two Red Sox runs in the third. Even when they weren't scoring, both teams were keeping the game exciting with long fouls, strategic hitting, and a fun atmosphere in the crowd. When one of my colleagues started yelling, "Let's go Rangers!!" with the loudest voice you've ever heard, it definitely made things a little more exciting in our section. The crowd was good-natured about it though, since their ten run cushion made things less-than-stressful.

In the fifth and sixth innings, the Rangers scored eight runs and five runs, respectively. The Sox tried to keep up but only managed two more, leaving them down after the sixth, 15-14. After singing "Sweet Caroline" during the eighth-inning stretch (WTF?!), the Sox were still down 16-15, and the mood in our section was much more tense. The fans weren't quite as willing to hear cheers for the Rangers when the specter of a loss rearing its ugly head. The game, however, was as exciting as could be.

The Sox tied it up with a nice double, but David Ortiz was intentionally walked after hitting two previous home runs. That brought up Kevin Youkilis, who had already homered once in the fifth. And he did this:


The "Let's go Red Sox" cheers, by the way, were in direct response to my colleague's previous cheers for the Rangers. He actually made the crowd come out of its shell and show some support....it was a fascinating study in crowd participation. At this point, almost four hours(!) into the game, they were more excited than they had been throughout. Just watch this follow-up reaction:


The entire stadium (myself included) was going nuts, and the capacity crowd was almost all still there through eight innings. When the Rangers didn't manage a comeback in the ninth and the game ended with an Ivy League Football score of 19-17, it capped a really fantastic experience. It was without a doubt the best game I've ever seen live, and I was reminded of how exciting baseball can be when it's played right (by everyone except the pitching staff). It made me interested in going back the next time I'm in Boston. It almost made me want to go to a Padres game.

Thank you Fenway! Thank you Red Sox! Thank you Boston!

Getting Lost

While we were in Hawaii, I mentioned something about Lost, and even though I'm a fan and she's not, D was gracious enough to look online for some local filming locations. The site was organized by episode, and had screen captures from the show along with directions to the sites. Though they were sometimes difficult to interpret, we managed to make our way to the beach where they filmed the following scene:

If you look at the treeline over Kate's head, the shape of the beach and greenery are pretty distinctive. Take a look at this picture...same beach, same treeline. You can see a YMCA camp hidden in the trees, and a fisherman and sunbather in the foreground.

I'm a huge Lost fan, and for a minute it was really cool to find the site. Then I started getting annoyed. I just kept picturing these castaways - these crash survivors - finishing the scene and walking to their trailers in this parking lot, which was within ten feet of where that screenshot was taken.

After doing more research upon returning to the mainland, I realized that we had seen some of the other sites as well. The Others' barracks, several other beach sites, and some of the city locations were all along our drive.

Hawaii Pics

Here are some pictures from our quick business trip to Hawaii a couple of weeks ago.

Coming out of Diamondhead, we had a fantastic view of the coastline, with a nice rainbow.

There was a jellyfish infestation, so we spent a lot of time looking at the water, walking near the water, and eating near the water.

We had a chance to drive around the island on the last day we were there. Waimea Bay was filled with swimmers jumping from this rock.

This resort was seen in the movie Forgetting Sarah Marshall; these were the rooms the characters stayed in.

More Travels and Exciting Book News

A few quick updates:

D got back from her Institute in Reno on Friday night.  She had a great time and didn't want to leave.  One of the results of her time there was an article published on the Institute's site.  Take a look here.  Her article (and the accompanying photo gallery) are in the Features section (in the left menu).

On Sunday, we took off and headed to Honolulu, where I am currently writing this blog.  I have to be here for work and have a pretty full schedule, but D has been enjoying herself around the Waikiki area.  We've had nice dinners and have taken our rental car (a convertible Sebring) for joyrides in the evenings.  Today we explored the west coast of Oahu (the whole thing).  Yesterday we circled the southest corner, going past Hanauma Bay, around to Kailua, and then over the Pali Highway and back into Honolulu.  I continue to have meetings booked throughout the rest of the week, but I'll try to steal away a bit of time to have some fun in the evenings.  Unfortunately, after we get back to our hotel, I have to work on book stuff.

Which brings me to the last bit of news: My Book!  It's up on Amazon and Barnes and Noble, though only Amazon is currently allowing pre-orders.  I thought it was going to be done by December, but those sites say January or February....I'm not sure which is accurate.  Seeing it on Amazon makes it all real, and reminds me that we still have a lot of work to do!  Time to go back to work.

Greetings from Albuquerque (and Reno)

Well, we're both busy travelers this week.  I'm in Albuquerque on Tuesday and Denver on Wednesday for work....D is in Reno this week and next for her Journalism Educators Institute.  The Institute is going well so far, and I have no complaints about Albu.

When I arrived at the hotel this evening, I noticed a significant police presence...two SUVs at opposite ends of a line of vans with tinted windows.  The hotel desk clerk was less than forthcoming, but the mystery was solved when I almost ran into the Straight Talk Express on the way to my room.  McCain is here for a private fundraiser (in this hotel, I think)....I can't say that I'll be getting up early to join him for breakfast.  On Sunday I crossed paths with Obama's motorcade as he left San Diego following a speech.  It feels like I'm accidentally following the campaigns...this is at least the sixth time I've been in the same city as one of the candidates.

D and I have had a nice couple of weeks since returning from Canada.  Last Wednesday we celebrated our three year wedding anniversary with a nice dinner downtown and a very grudgingly given Coach wallet (even at the outlet, purse/wallet prices are outrageous...I don't understand it).  We met up with friends (an ex-colleague and his wife) for a quick get-together after dinner, had another very nice dinner downtown on Friday, and then went to the Padres game on Saturday.  After D's flight on Sunday and mine on Monday, I think we've been to downtown five times in the last six days.  The Padres game was fun....it was actually our first "alone" game, as we usually go with a large group.  I won two tickets and there were fireworks after the game, so it made up for the lack of offensive fireworks during the game.

I'm definitely back into the thick of things at work.  Aside from the trips early this week, I already have meetings scheduled for Mon/Tues/Weds of next week, and this Thursday and Friday will likely soon be confirmed for more.  With D's trip to Reno, this will be the longest time we've spent apart in many years....proabably eight or nine, though I'm not positive.  Fortunately, we're both keeping busy, so we won't have time to miss each other too much.

The book is still going well.  My last two chapters (one and an appendix) are due for internal reviews this Thursday, so I'll be frantically writing in between meetings.  In fact, I'm procrastinating right now.  When those are done, we have several chapters to revise after our editor has gone over them, and then we have to write all the additional materials (index, TOC, online materials, etc).  At the moment we're still on track for a December release, though I don't want to assume everything will go smoothly.  It has definitely been a painful process at points, and I'll have to think long and hard before agreeing to write another one.  It will definitely be nice to only have one job again.

I hope everyone out there in family-and-friend-land is doing well.  We haven't been great about keeping in touch recently, and I know there are birthdays and anniversaries and births and weddings and stuff flying by.  Our next wedding-related plans are for the first weekend in September, when we'll be heading to Chicago for a UCSD friend's wedding.  We're really looking forward to both the wedding and the trip....it will be D's first time in Chicago and I have to show her the sights.  At the moment it appears we'll be staying at The Drake, and hopefully we'll have time to see some fun stuff in our off-time.

Back from Canada

http://picasaweb.google.com/jaimeryan/CanadianRockies

Well, we're back from our tour of the Canadian Rockies, and we had a great time. I've posted 190 of our 2000 pictures online, so feel free to take a look.

Since then, I had two days of work and a Fourth of July wedding in LA. We had a relaxing Saturday and might hit the SD County Fair tomorrow. A wedding, sleeping in on a Saturday, and the Fair....can't beat it.

Greetings from Canada!

Well, we're on vacation in Canada and really enjoying our opportunity for relaxation. I'll post lots of pictures when we get back, but here are a few.

We're seeing lots of mountains and lakes. This is Cameron Lake, in Waterton Lakes National Park in Canada.

We've taken various tours through National Parks. This was on a "Red Jammer" through Glacier National Park in Montana.

This is Swiftcurrent Lake, next to the lodge at Many Glacier (Montana).

We're also seeing lots of wildlife....deer, big-horned sheep, and two bears.

Catching Up on Life

Time for an update, as I purposely skipped posting last weekend. Though I had a tiny bit of free time, we (as a species) tend to make too much of birthdays and anniversaries (even happy ones), and I wanted to get away from the build-up. June 15 will always be a very special (and tragic) day for us, and I'd rather not build it up to the point where we dread it every year and can't get through the day. Instead, I had a good cry on Friday, triggered by various sad events...I was missing Andrew like crazy, and was reminded of that fact in several ways. On Sunday, I essentially ignored the fact that it was Father's Day, which wasn't fair to either of my fathers but was my chosen solution.

We spent the weekend in LA, where we saw a crappy movie (Indiana Jones and the Ridiculous Premise), had a fantastic dinner (Mastro's in Beverly Hills), and went to the concert I mentioned a couple posts ago (Fisher at the Ford Amphitheatre). They were all fun and relaxing, even the movie, and they were just what we needed to keep our minds on other things. There was only one sad song at the concert (the one from the YouTube clip), so we all got another quick cry....just enough for a fitting tribute.

When we weren't busy, I was furiously cranking out the second version of one of my book chapters. It was the culmination of several weeks of intense work on both the book and my "real job." In fact, last night was the first time in about a month in which I haven't had any work to do at night. I'm all caught up on the book and my two big work projects are both done. It's a huge relief, as I've pulled at least six recent all-nighters and been as stressed out as I ever get.

D and I are headed out on Monday for a much-needed vacation. School is over with and I'm off for a week and a half. We're heading to the Canadian Rockies on an organized tour run by the same company that ran our trip to Costa Rica two years ago. We'll see at least four national parks in both Canada and Montana, explore fun mountain towns and beautiful lakes, and hopefully come across a bunch of wildlife. This tour will be similar to one I did on a bike in 1994, and I've been wanting to show this area off to D for a while. Here's a pic from the last trip:


We'll be back on the 1st, we have a wedding on the 4th, and then we'll start thinking about the next portion of our summer. D is going to the Journalism Institute in late July in Reno, and I might be sent to Hawaii for work (the horror!) around the same time. We have another wedding (in Chicago) in September, and Danielle has a "gig" for her new part-time job in August (more on that later). I'll wrap up the book in late July/early August, and it should be on the shelves by Christmas.

I'm going to stop here for now, as I need to take advantage of my vacation and catch up on some much-needed sleep. Thank you for your wonderful notes and cards and comments last Sunday. Andrew's really missing out on an incredible group of family and friends; we're lucky to have you all.

Phoenix

When I left for Phoenix on Tuesday morning, I forgot who else would be visiting. We noticed a bit of increased police presence when we left the airport, and even more as we drove back through on the way to the car rental center. That's when I remembered that President Bush was also visiting Phoenix for a few fundraisers with John McCain. Sure enough, as the rental car shuttle was delivering us to the terminal, I watched Air Force One land and taxi over to the "Executive Terminal."

Anyway, one trip down and two to go. I'm leaving for the airport (and subsequently for Reno) in about three hours. I'll be landing back in San Diego at 9:30pm, so it'll be about a 17 hour day from door to door. Happy Wednesday.

Nice Weekend

We had a nice long holiday weekend. On Thursday, D and her mom flew to Las Vegas for a couple of days (a Mothers Day gift). On Friday they went to a concert with at least fifteen artists; it was a tribute to David Foster, who is a writer/producer that's worked with some great performers. This particular concert included Josh Groban, Michael Buble, Andrea Bocelli, Babyface, Kenny G, Katharine McPhee, Michael Johns, and many more. They had a great time, then flew back to LA on Saturday for my church's Greek Festival. I met them there and we spent the day catching up with friends and family and eating far too much Greek food. We drove back to San Diego on Sunday for a fun Persian wedding that went late into the night, then spent Monday sleeping it off. All in all, it was a fantastic, exciting weekend (with a little relaxation thrown in to boot).

Our crazy work schedules will continue for at least a few more weeks. I'll be leaving for Phoenix in less than five hours (so I should get some sleep), and then headed to Reno on Wednesday and LA on Thursday. I might be able to stay in San Diego on Friday and for some of next week, but I'll be busy at local customers. D only has a few weeks left, but that always includes lots of grading, semester projects, and finals.

This summer we're going to a concert that by all rights should be amazing. It's at the Ford Amphitheater (a great venue in LA) and features one of my favorite performers, Fisher, who we've seen at least eight times in recent years. My only concern is that the concert circumstances might be part of a "Perfect Storm" of sadness. The concert is on June 15, the day Andrew was born. This year, that day happens to fall on Father's Day, which was difficult enough last year when he was in the hospital. Aside from the day and date, Fisher's music (though beautiful and touching) is not known for it's happy mood. Songs like this will take on a whole new meaning:

Whew!

It's been a while. As of two hours ago, this is the first time in about a month in which I haven't been behind on 1) writing a chapter for the book, 2) reviewing someone else's chapter, or 3) working at my "real" job. I've been reading and writing furiously for the last two days, coming on the heels of four straight weeks of ridiculous schedules. It started with a week in which I drove to Los Angeles three days in a row (from San Diego), garnering a speeding ticket along the way. That was followed by a week where I was in five different cities in five days...Los Angeles, Portland, Denver, Las Vegas, and Phoenix. I followed that up with a five-day conference in Las Vegas, where I spent 12 hours a day with colleagues at seminars, labs, meetings, and meals. Which brings us to this last week, which I spent in Rosemead at a customer site. I drove home late in the evening on Thursday, worked all night on my chapter, then spent all day Friday and Saturday reading four others. I got a little bit of sleep last night, but I've still got a few weeks to catch up on.

At this point, it'll be hard to even remember everything that's happened in the last month, but let me try to get through the big stuff. We've been to several concerts (Bon Jovi, Jason Mraz, and Michael Buble), a Padres game, and a going-away party. I've been all over the place for work...D took a trip to Phoenix for fun. We both went to Anaheim for a journalism conference with seven of her students; I sat in the hotel room and worked all day while they went to seminars and discussions. I didn't actually participate in the journalism part, but it was really fun to hang out with intelligent, interesting students that are excited about the newspaper.

D's had a lot of great stuff happen for her, work-wise. The most exciting is that she was accepted to a two week journalism symposium in Reno this summer. It's a very selective application process, with the acceptance rate somewhere south of 30%. Getting in means they pay for the education, the travel to and from Reno, full room and board, graduate credits, subscriptions to various journalism education publications, and much more. This is something she's been looking forward to since she first heard about it, and we just received the good news this month....I'm very proud of her.

There have been some major layoffs in schools throughout the state, due to the budget shortfall, but D's been able to turn a negative into a positive. First she escaped a pink slip by the slimmest of margins (essentially a coin flip), and now she's turning her increased class size into an opportunity. The extra students being added to her journalism class are going to restart a long-defunct Intro to Journalism curriculum, which will prepare younger students for the Advanced Journalism class that produces the newspaper. This could eventually lead to a full class, which would be a great addition to her schedule. In the meantime, she's using ideas from the conference (and what she's learned over the last four years) to update the newspaper in various fun ways.

D's last softball game was on Tuesday; they finished up with only three in-league losses. Softball's been taking up every afternoon for the last few months, so it'll be nice (for me at least) to have that time back. We didn't do anything particularly special for Spring Break (that I can remember now), but there are only four weeks left in school. Last Saturday was publishing day for the final big newspaper issue of the year; there's one more short issue produced entirely by the sophomores and juniors that will go out early next month.

On the book front, things are going well. The chapters we finished this week were turned in for the 50% benchmark.....we are officially halfway done with the first draft of the book. In theory I have another chapter due tomorrow that will begin the next 25%, but I'm ignoring that for the moment.

We're trying to plan a vacation or two for the summer, but we've both been so busy that we haven't gotten very far in the planning stages. We have three weddings to attend, D's symposium, and plenty of work....my schedule is already full through the middle of June.

That's all I can think of at the moment....I'm going to try to blog more often than once every 1.5 months, so hopefully I can come up with more things I've forgotten in the next few days.