I pointed out in my previous post that Josh had to change his first diaper this past weekend…
Read this if you want a quick chuckle. It’s too funny to read about Josh’s first diaper changing experience.
Josh: Christine and I and especially Jack appreciate your hard work bud.
I flew to Miami on Wednesday for a meeting with a potential client. This meeting went pretty well, and actually ran over its alotted time by an hour and a half… which is a good thing in my line of business (keep them asking questions, and keep asking them questions).
One thing I forgot to take with me to Miami was my English to Spanish pocket dictionary. I forgot that Miami is an “English as a Second Language” (if they know a second language at all) town.
I ordered coffee at the airport coffee shop on Wednesday afternoon, and the woman looked at me and said:
“café con Leche?”
Luckily I know that leche is milk (you’ll learn that in any decent breastfeeding class in Texas), and café sounds like coffee. I’m also a frequenter of Starbucks, and have picked up a little about European coffee from our trip to St. Maarten a few years ago, so, I answered:
“Americano, por favor.”
Americano means “American Coffee”, which is most places means a shot of espresso with hot water to fill the cup, possibly with room for cream and sugar. I was rewarded for my excellent command of the spanish language with a cup of coffee. Black, just like I like it.
The lady behind the counter handed me the cup of coffee, and said “Gracias, uno momento.” I replied “de nada” (it’s nothing, or your welcome, I think).
Then she told me the total. I had no idea how much money she wanted, but, luckily, the register had a LED display of the total, which is spun around, so I could read it. I handed her $2.00, and as I walked away, she says to me:
“Hey honey, you forgot your change.”
Ugh…
At least I got the try and practice some Spanish.
I’ve been traveling pretty much all month, thus we haven’t updated the website with new photos. We had two 512MB CF cards full of photos last night when I downloaded them from the camera. Here are some of the better ones:
I’ll try to post my ruminations on my recent trip to Denver sometime this weekend or next week. Sneak peak: It was snowing really hard there on Thursday, and I had to drive an hour north to the technology and agricultural mecca of Loveland.
Christine, Jack and I met Debbie and Raymond at The Cheesecake Factory for dinner on Friday night. Everyone’s dinner was good, if the portions were just a tad big… next time, we’re just getting one apetizer and 4 deserts. The cheesecake was fantastic. We didn’t stay long as Debbie and Raymond were both a little under the weather, but it was good to see them nonetheless.
On Saturday, Peggy and Payton came up to babysit Jack for us. Payton and I hung new blinds and valances in the nursery, and we enjoyed visiting, before Christine and I headed out for a fun night together.
We left the house around 6:30, and headed to Z-Tejas for dinner. We didn’t have reservations, and someone forgot to tell us that it was Prom night in Austin. We parked the car, took about 10 steps toward the door of the restaurant, and headed back to the car. There was at least 50 people standing outside waiting for a table.
So we drove down Capitol of Texas Highway, trying to figure out what to do… since it was prom night, that pretty much shot our chances of eating anywhere with a cool view… so we decided to head downtown to see what might be fun.
We eventually had a valet take our car on 4th street, and walked into Malaga, but the air conditioning was tool cold, and was blowing right on us. We really kind of wanted to sit on a patio, and they didn’t have one, or at least, didn’t ask us if we wanted to sit outside. (We noticed that they do have a small patio on our way out that had an open table on it).
So we walked next door to Fadó’s and quickly found a seat on the patio. Patrick Fleming was playing live music, and we were sitting under an open sky. The music on his website gives a good idea of how good he is, like this original: Nowhere, USA. I ordered a Black and Tan (what else do you order at an Irish Pub. We ate a Ahi Tuna Ceviche from the apetizer menu, and then sat back and enjoyed the music. Patrick did a good job covering a lot of popular music and he was fun to watch (we were sitting right behind him).
After Patrick Fleming went off the stage, we stayed to listen to a couple of songs by The Blaggards, an irish punk band from Houston. Go to their website and watch their irish punk version of “The Devil Went Down to Georgia” … they’re pretty good and a lot of fun to watch in person.
On Sunday, we got up, and I cooked breakfast: Eggs and sausage, with homemade wheat bread toast. Peggy picked up the bread at Hruska’s on the way up from Houston on Saturday. If you haven’t stopped at Hruska’s in Ellinger on the way up from Houston… you need to next time. It’s on Highway 71, and is a little like stopping at the Czech Stop in West, Texas.
After Peggy and Payton left, Christine and I watched Super Size Me, the story of Morgan Spurlock and his 30 day McDonald’s only diet. Scary stuff. It’s a pretty compelling story, and will definitely make you think twice about ordering that Double Quarter Pounder with Cheese, or those 44 oz. drinks at the fast-food joint of your choice. I’m convinced that Jack will never eat at a fast-food restaurant in his life, and I won’t eat at one by choice again. I’ll find the place selling salads and apples at the airport, instead of making that quick stop at McDonald’s or Burger King in the future.
Check back for some cute photos of Jack and Payton and the rest of us.
Christine and I skipped church this morning (Jack was napping: “Never wake a sleeping baby”). While sitting in the dining room, downloading video off the video camera (finally getting around to trying to make a video for Ella of her first birthday party), I played around with Google Maps and their new satellite views.
This is my house, in Austin…. right where the mouse pointer is:
This is the rental house we rented for a year when we first moved to Austin.
This is the house Christine and I built in Fort Worth. Freaky… our house is the one in the middle with the greenest yard, and a bigger back yard than the other homes on that street. Really miss that neighborhood.
This is where Christine and I lived in Du Pont, Washington, when I was stationed at Fort Lewis.
This is where we lived in Radcliff, KY, when I was stationed at Fort Knox.
Here’s a closeup of the Quadrangle (where the Corps lives) and Kyle Field at Texas A&M, where we went to college.
This is Bellville, where I spent my early years growing up.
(It’s annoying that I can’t zoom in further in those rural areas, but can on a military based near Seattle … weird … especially considering even the military issues maps I used in the Army had areas of the map that were “off limits” and showed up as just big white empty spots on our map of the base)
This is where the first house I remember is (Dunstan is two streets north of the football stadium in the picture – that’s Rice University in the photo), from my early childhood.
Today was a glorious day. Gosh it was gorgeous outside in Austin today.
Around noon, I went to Home Depot to buy some angle brackets and screws so I can hang the valances that Christine had Debbie get made for the baby room. While I was there, I also bought three water hose wranglers (you know, those boxes you store water hoses near the water spigot outside). One of them auto-retracts the hose for you… it’s spiffy.
When I got home, I started working in the yard. I raked most of the leaves out of the flower beds in the front yard, and then mulched them with the Black and Decker mulcher thingy I have. Then I spread new mulch down in one of the beds out front… I only had a few bags of mulch, and I’ll be buying more next weekend, along with some flowers for the beds out front.
I installed the hoses in two of the three hose wranglers I picked up.
I also rescued about 200 foot of water hose from the jungle on the south side of our house (that side is all ivy and ground cover, and the last owners of the house had left that poor water hose out in the jungle to die).
After all of that, I sprayed Sevin Dust bug killer on all of the plants and all around the house. Weirdly, though, I don’t think any of the spray actually came out of the applicator… No idea why, but I’ll take time to investigate the inner workings of the screw-on applicator next weekend.
I was exhausted by 5:30 p.m.
It was fun working outside, and I got the chance to listen to a lot of the new music on my iPod. I’ve decided that I really like The Used. The Postal Service has some catchy tunes, but some of their songs are weird. I like Eminem’s Encore album, and the Rob Zombie album I have … I think it’s called Hellbilly Delxue or something catchy like that.
I went inside and drank a cold glass of water. It tasted sooo good. Jack thought it looked good too, and when he grabbed it and pulled it towards his mouth, so, we let him try to drink it. It was hilarious, and after we got done drinking, he was soaking wet, as was I:
After relaxing for a little while, Christine, Jack and I took a walk around the block. We stopped to smell the flowers, and tasted our toes on the way too:
When we got home, Jack played in his exersaucer for a few minutes… it was a lot of fun, but I think it was toy overload..
After playing, I went and got dinner from Freebirds (I’m sure burritos are on the Weight Watchers diet, somewhere). Mmmmmmmmm. Gooooood. Fooooood.
When I got home, it was Jack’s dinner time, then bath time, then bed time. He cried for 18 minutes (yes, my wife is a civil engineer and has the time written down) and was out. I think he was as tired as I am.
Looking forward to another week at work.
Oh, and by the way… I think Daylight Savings Time is a stupid idea (in the spring).
Get this, Austin will have a professional basketball team next year. It’ll be an NBDL (National Basketball Development League) team (like the minor leagues for basketball).
Enter their Name the Team Contest and take me to the games with you (I don’t really care for basketball all that much, but I can’t pass up a chance for something free, like seasons tickets to the local basketball team games.
Last night, Christine’s friends and I conspired to throw her a surprise birthday party at Kim and Brad’s house.
I don’t know how we pulled it off. I was horribly unorganized about planning it, and totally wishy-washy about the date and who to invite. Kim stayed on my ass about it though, and on Monday this week, we had a plan. Between Kim, Cyndi Erin and Elise, we threw a pretty decent party, I think.
El Arroyo catered, and arranged for a margaritta machine. Cyndi made the cake. Kim decorated and Brad bought the beer and liquor. I arranged for a baby-sitter for Jack (our first night to use a stranger to baby-sit for us).
Around 7:30, Christine and I left the house to “pick up Brad and Kim to go to dinner with them”. Christine opened their door to say “let’s go” and was greeted with a “Surprise!”
Lots of people showed up, and we had a good time at the party. (We really don’t need much of a reason to get together and have a good time). The hail storm that blew through midway through the party was interesting.
Thanks to everyone that helped us pull off the party, and to those of you that stopped by to join in the festivities.
Christine and I got home around midnight and were both exhausted after a great night.
Pictures from the night are here.
Happy Birthday Christine!
If you’re looking for babynames, then look no further than this neat way to visualize the popularity of baby names. Just start typing a name, and the graph will change slowly showing you all possible names with that combination of letters and the rank of that name over the last century.
This movie comes to us from the backlog of videos and photos I have on my hard drive:
heh…
It was a long week last week… sorry for the lack of updates. So let’s start where we left off.
On Monday night, Valentine’s Day, Elise and Josh came over and babysat Jack for us, so Christine and I could go out for Valentine’s day. We decided to do something low-key, but fun, so we went to the Alamo Drafthouse and watched “Hitch” while eating dinner and having a couple of beers.
Hitch is a hilarious movie, especially for two middle-aged parents that don’t get to see movies in the theatre any more. Actually, it’s a good movie for anyone. Will Smith is great in it. We laughed pretty much all the way through it.
Also on Monday, Christine met with her boss and told him that she was more interested in raising our son for the next six months to a year than she was in coming straight back to work. He was totally understanding, and asked her if she’d mind staying on the employment rolls, and helping out here and there with reviewing reports and the like. She said that she’d be happy to help out when her time permitted. I’m so thankful she works for a company that can afford to be understanding of her wants and needs and can accomodate her for the short-term, with their long-term interests being protected as well. She’s an asset to any company, and I’m glad they know that too.
Let’s see… then the week flew by. I don’t really remember us doing anything spectacular last week. Oh, I closed my first couple of sales at the office. Felt good to finally do that.
On Thursday, Christine and I joined Weight Watchers. I’m tired of not being able to button the neck on my dress shirts when I wear a tie. And I can’t afford to keep buying new suits and new shirts. Enough said. Erin babysat Jack while we were there… Jack told me he had a great time hanging out with Erin after she left.
Then, the weekend came. And I was lucky enough to have President’s day off.
Christine saddled me with the kiddo for a few hours each day, so she could get out and get some things accomplished, and we did a little visiting with friends as well.
On Sunday we met with Pastor John at the church about Jack’s baptism, and Elise and Josh joined us. Afterwards, Josh and I hung out with Jack while the girls went shopping, or something. Then Sunday night, we joined Lisa and Spencer (Lisa is Christine’s cousing from Tulsa who now lives in Austin) for dinner and conversation. Lisa cooked an amazing roast and ice-cream pie. I mean an amazing roast! Spencer’s doing well in his MBA program. Wish we got to hang out with them more often…
On Monday, Elise and Christine drove all over town getting things finalized for the baptism coming up this weekend… Jack and I stayed home and drank beer and smoked cigars. Ok, that last part isn’t true, but I’ve got to make sure you’re still reading.
And I forgot: On Sunday afternoon, Christine and I were playing with Jack in his nursery, and he started laughing while we were playing “Flying Jack” so Christine shot the footage in this quick video … He’s too funny here:
Believe it or not, I’m walking on air…
We had a great weekend folks. Peggy came to visit, and she really helped Christine and I relax on Saturday night, so we could enjoy ourselves at dinner at Hudson’s on the Bend. Dinner was truly amazing. Amazing. After dinner, we stopped by Debbie and Raymond’s lakehouse to visit with them and Uncle Roland and Aunt Barbara, and to see the new bathroom.
This morning, Christine and I got up and went to church, and then afterwards, we took Peggy and Jack to lunch at Serrano’s on the river downtown. Before lunch, while Peggy and Christine were playing with Jack, I happened to grab the camera and take a quick movie. It’s too cute:
Jack’s starting to learn how to laugh folks!
Oh, and thanks again for coming to babysit for us Aunt Peggy.
So, I’m about to turn in for the night, when someone emails me about the latest website for dog lovers…
It’s a place that any dog lover can visit to order some really yummy “scooby snacks” for their most precious companion
check it out for yourself:
Brown Dog Institute
Yum, yum…
On Friday night, Christine and I dressed Jack up and went to dinner with some of our dearest friends in Austin. Joe Bunner, his wife Missy, and the girls Madison and Mackenzie took us to dinner at the Waterloo Ice House out on 360 and 2222. The photo gallery is here.
We had a blast eating there, and spending time with our friends. They’re actually selling their house too, by the way. It’s a 2600 square foot 3 bedroom 2 bath with a pool on a cul-de-sac in northwest Austin. If you’re interested, let me know and I’ll put you in touch with Joe.
Then on Saturday night, Kim, Brad, Michelle, Josh and Elise came over for “game night”. We never did get around to playing the games though.
Josh and I started drinking cooking around 5:30, but, I miscalculated and bought twice as many chicken wings as we really needed. While the prudent thing to do might have been to put half of the wings in the freezer, we decided to go ahead and just cook them all.
4 hours later we were done. Everyone was starving. So we ate, while the girls played on the computer, and the boys went outside to smoke a cigar. Good times. Some photos from the night are here.
Warning – If you can read this whole story without laughing out loud, then there’s no hope for you. I was crying by the end.
I received this email from a friend today… too funny not to pass on:
Note: Please take time to read this slowly. If you pay attention to the first two judges, the reaction of the third judge is even better.
For those of you who have lived in Texas, you know how true this is.
They actually have a chili cook-off about the time Halloween comes around. It takes up a major portion of a parking lot at the San Antonio city park.
The notes are from an inexperienced chili taster named Frank, who was visiting from Springfield, IL.
Frank: “Recently, I was honored to be selected as a judge at a chili cook-off. The original person called in sick at the last moment and I happened to be standing there at the judge’s table asking for directions to the Coors Light truck, when the call came in. I was assured by the other two judges (native Texans) that the chili wouldn’t be all that spicy and, besides, they told me I could have free beer during the tasting, so I accepted.” Here are the scorecards from the event: (Frank is Judge #3)
Chili # 1 Eddie’s Maniac Monster Chili…
Judge # 1 — A little too heavy on the tomato. Amusing kick.
Judge # 2 — Nice, smooth tomato flavor. Very mild.
Judge # 3 — (Frank) Holy sh!t! What the hell is this stuff?! You could remove dried paint from your driveway. Took me two beers to put out the flames. I hope that’s the worst one. These Texans are crazy.
Chili # 2 Austin’s Afterburner Chili…
Judge # 1 — Smoky, with a hint of pork. Slight jalapeno tang.
Judge # 2 — Exciting BBQ flavor; needs more peppers to be taken seriously.
Judge # 3 — Keep this out of the reach of children. I’m not sure what I’m supposed to taste besides pain. I had to wave off two people who wanted to give me the Heimlich maneuver. They had to rush in more beer when they saw the look on my face.
Chili # 3 Ronny’s Famous Burn Down the Barn Chili…
Judge # 1 — Excellent firehouse chili. Great kick. Needs more beans.
Judge # 2 — A beanless chili, a bit salty, good use of peppers.
Judge # 3 — Call the EPA. I’ve located a uranium spill. My nose feels like I have been snorting Drano. Everyone knows the routine by now. Get me more beer before I ignite. Barmaid pounded me on the back, now my backbone is in the front part of my chest. I’m getting sh*t- faced from all of the beer…
Chili # 4 Dave’s Black Magic…
Judge # 1 — Black bean chili with almost no spice. Disappointing.
Judge # 2 — Hint of lime in the black beans. Good side dish for fish, or other mild foods; not much of a chili.
Judge # 3 — I felt something scraping across my tongue, but was unable to taste it. Is it possible to burn out taste buds?
Sally, the barmaid, was standing behind me with fresh refills. That 300-lb. woman is starting to look HOT …just like this nuclear waste I’m eating! Is chili an aphrodisiac?
Chili # 5 Lisa’s Legal Lip Remover…
Judge # 1 — Meaty, strong chili. Cayenne peppers freshly ground, adding considerable kick. Very impressive.
Judge # 2 — Chili using shredded beef, could use more tomato. Must admit the cayenne peppers make a strong statement.
Judge # 3 — My ears are ringing, sweat is pouring off my forehead, and I can no longer focus my eyes. I farted and four people behind me needed paramedics. The contestant seemed offended when I told her that her chili had given me brain damage. Sally saved my tongue from bleeding by pouring beer directly on it from the pitcher. I wonder if I’m burning my lips off. It really pisses me off that the other judges asked me to stop screaming. Screw those rednecks.
Chili # 6 Pam’s Very Vegetarian Variety…
Judge # 1 — Thin, yet bold vegetarian variety chili. Good balance of spices and peppers.
Judge # 2 — The best yet. Aggressive use of peppers, onions, and garlic. Superb.
Judge # 3 — My intestines are now a straight pipe filled with gaseous, sulphuric flames. I sh!t on myself when I farted and I’m worried it will eat through the chair. No one seems inclined to stand behind me except that Sally. Can’t feel my lips anymore. I need to wipe my ass with a snow cone.
Chili # 7 Carla’s Screaming Sensation Chili…
Judge # 1 — A mediocre chili with too much reliance on canned peppers.
Judge # 2 — Ho-hum; tastes as if the chef literally threw in a can of chili peppers at the last moment. **I should take note that I am worried about Judge # 3. He appears to be in a bit of distress, as he is cursing uncontrollably.
Judge # 3 — You could put a grenade in my mouth, pull the pin, and I wouldn’t feel a thing. I’ve lost sight in one eye, and the world sounds like it is made of rushing water. My shirt is covered with chili, which slid unnoticed out of my mouth. My pants are full of lava to match my shirt.
At least during the autopsy, they’ll know what killed me. I’ve decided to stop breathing; it’s too painful. Screw it; I’m not getting any oxygen anyway. If I need air, I’ll just suck it in through the 4-inch hole in my stomach.
Chili # 8 Karen’s Toenail Curling Chili…
Judge # 1 — The perfect ending, this is a nice blend chili. Not too bold, but spicy enough to declare its existence.
Judge # 2 — This final entry is a good, balanced chili. Neither mild, nor hot. Sorry to see that most of it was lost when Judge # 3 farted, passed out, fell over, and pulled the chili pot down on top of himself.
Not sure if he’s going to make it. Poor fella, wonder how he’d have reacted to really hot chili?