A very worthwhile boat show trip...got to flex my credentials yet again and survey the engine room of the Bertram 670. Also had a nice time with Jodi and Ivan, and got to see plenty of new terrain in Florida. Then on the way home a wildlife-rich ride across the alley to Sanibel and Ding Darling NWR, where we saw some birds despite the frigid weather. All in all a good weekend to round out the hosting season. Until next year, I imagine.
posted at 12:53 PM - comments
Friday, March 28, 2003
Tomorrow is boat show day - Palm Beach, anyway. Should be plenty of boats and even more plentiful oggling as I visit with Jodi and Ivan, who are, apparently, eager to ride the coattails of an industry guy. I'm excited to meet Russ and see the new Sterling, but other than that I'm just going to take what I can get and be glad of it.
posted at 1:10 PM - comments
Thursday, March 27, 2003
The parents should return to Sarasota tonight, setting into motion what should be a fun weekend. It might very well mean, though, that I'm going to miss "Scrubs" which is my very favorite thing in the whole world. Nothing too terribly exciting going on - with no car I'm stranded from the library, which has put a bit of a damper on my evenings style-wise. Lately I'm wanting to read more about post-International architectural style, specifically industrialist architects: Sir Norman Foster, Richard Rogers, Santiago Calatrava, etc. I suppose that will all have to wait until my post-visitor style kicks in next week.
posted at 12:53 PM - comments
Wednesday, March 26, 2003
Sometimes I struggle to come up with content for B.Log & Special Sauce, but lately I hear that soldiers on the front lines are able to post to their blogs, so I don't feel so bad. It is strange to think that they are just like me, except while I'm here in my sand-resistant, air conditioned office they are off in the sandbox riding around in a hot, smelly, cramped Bradley Fighting Vehicle. Good to spend more time catching up with folks last night - some of whom have new Toyota Tacomas to tell about.
posted at 12:53 PM - comments
Monday, March 24, 2003
Busy weekend of camping and birding up near Frostproof, then back to Sarasota Sunday afternoon to visit Selby and the office before a big dinner at home and then an easy, uninspired evening.
posted at 1:01 PM - comments
Friday, March 21, 2003
Off for a weekend on the dunes of prehistoric Florida, aka Lake Wales Ridge State Park. Apparently we're to be on the alert for gators and rattlers. Hopefully the weather will cooperate both over the weekend and next week as I return to
the fun of riding to work in the increasing heat.
posted at 4:16 PM - comments
Thursday, March 20, 2003
Late nights to wrap up a project for me while our boys in the desert worked late nights to start a war. At the end of the day I'm still so proud of America I could puke, but I guess I'd be a lousy liar if I said my heart was in this one. Still, the engineer in me loves all the gadgetry parading over, around, and through the sand. March Madness starts again on the hardwood tonight, and the spring break madness gets back underway at home tomorrow. We're headed out to prehistoric Florida (what the state was before things had settled down, geologically speaking, about 100 trillion gazillion bazillion days ago) this weekend and to Palm Beach next weekend for the boat show, so it should be a very Florida break for Mom and Dad. Other happy news continues to trickle in, too, of weddings in Pennsylvania and couples headed to Europe on vacation and of folks swimming back into the vast proverbial sea o' fishes.
posted at 12:55 PM - comments
Monday, March 17, 2003
Pleasantly quiet weekend here as storms raged elsewhere. My riding felt rusty Saturday morning, although I paced up LBK at over 20 and made the trip in a total of over 19. Sunday, though, I was sore and felt like I'd been on more than a 24 miler. Too many weeks off, I'd say. Spent a pretty good amount of time catching up with folks from all over the past few years, getting good news and no news and even some bad news. Sometimes relationships go so well (Congrats to Meg & Wyl...can't wait for that party and hopefully a visit that will come in the interim.) and sometimes when you desperately want them to they don't go so well.
posted at 12:49 PM - comments
Friday, March 14, 2003
Growing nervousness about the weekend's bike ride and other stuff. The concerns are the same but the subject matter varies: what if push to hard, what if I don't push hard enough, what if I get quite a way down the road and it gets stormy, what if another contestant is better, or what if I psych myself right out of contention? Tomorrow, though, is zero-hour for cycling and then in the afternoon some Saint Patty's celebratin'...as the Onion dubs it "the reinforcin' o' the stereotypes." Although I miss having company, it will be perfectly acceptable to have some time for myself and some time to take care of some lingering chores and errands.
posted at 12:51 PM - comments
Wednesday, March 12, 2003
Back to life, scared of reality. Geography sucks. Bigger isn't better. Every day's a diamond. I see a red door and I like it. If we can't sing "Beast of Burden" then what can we sing?
"We will never do what others do (no) / Know what we want and we get it from you / We do what we like and we like what we do."
The fun pauses tonight when round 3 departs for points north, leaving me some downtime and, at long last, a weekend for blasting up and down LBK on my 2000. Following the lyrical theme of the weekend, today I feel like I must contradict the usually profound Ben Folds: it may be mostly smiles and business but I am anything but indifferent to the loss. In fairness, though, I do want to get on my wheels and go anywhere...it's been a long time, been a long time, been a long time indeed.
posted at 4:52 PM - comments
Monday, March 10, 2003
Such a rollercoaster this weekend on many fronts. I really enjoyed Kraken at SeaWorld, but some of the other thrills and chills weren't so nice. After nearly 10 days of guests I am feeling out of touch with a lot of people (myself included?) and I'm ready to get back to life, back to reality, away from dirty laundry. Lyrics seem more lucid this week, and like Adam Duritz says: "I need a phone call, I need a plane ride. There's things I remember and things I forget...I miss you I guess that I should. Three thousand five hundred miles away, but what would you change if you could?"
posted at 1:09 PM - comments
Friday, March 07, 2003
A horse of a different color last night as we saw "Old School" and laughed like crazy. This morning though, it was all "Chicago" playing in my head.
Hard to believe that the week has nearly been and gone. Like later semesters at Webb (see December 2001), I'm really not looking forward to the ride home from the airport
tomorrow in an empty truck, alone with Norah, wishing to...
"Come away with me in the night
Come away with me
And I will write you a song
Come away with me on a bus
Come away where they can't tempt us
With their lies
I want to walk with you
On a cloudy day
In fields where the yellow grass grows knee-high
So won't you try to come
Come away with me and we'll kiss
On a mountaintop
Come away with me
And I'll never stop loving you
And I want to wake up with the rain
Falling on a tin roof
While I'm safe there in your arms
So all I ask is for you
To come away with me in the night
Come away with me...
~"Come Away With Me," from Norah Jones' album of the same name.
Such a week. Saw Chicago with Jenelle on Tuesday - excellent - and dined at Chris & Nancy's Wednesday, which was great. We both left and got about to the driveway and said "damn..Nancy's life is more interesting than mine." At home, it's fun to be around somebody who's so much fun and so incredibly well read and intelligent. Somehow I got pretty spoiled in that department and then a bad experience ruined it, but now I remember what it is like to just sit and laugh about things that fly over most people's heads. I guess it is good to be spoiled.
posted at 12:55 PM - comments
Tuesday, March 04, 2003
Started riding my 800 to work this week to free up the truck for a more worthwhile purposes, and it's been kinda nice. Sure, you get some pretty vacant stares and the way in and maybe you miss the classic rock on the way home, but it is good to stretch the legs before and after a day at the office.
posted at 5:10 PM - comments
Monday, March 03, 2003
Seems like a whole lot of weekends turn into departures from the norm, and this was no exception. Spent Friday evening on the town with Grandma & Grandpa - Thai dinner, Mac Island fudge ice cream cones from Kilwin's, a walk around the circle - before returning home to become the first grandchild to host the grandparents. Saturday was spent at the Selby Gardens and at New Pass looking for birds and enjoying the spring weather before they headed north to begin their trip back to the UP. Sunday was church and a couple of details before chugging northward myself to TPA for Jenelle's arrival. Then it was south again, over the Sunshine Skyway to Sarasota, where we spent the afternoon and evening talking and going out to dinner...relaxing for both of us after a couple of busy days.
posted at 12:48 PM - comments
Monday, March 31, 2003