Art Appreciation

I admit that I'm not one to appreciate all-things art. To me, a canvas with a single stripe of paint isn't necessarily art with someone's deep, inner spiritual meaning of life. I just have a difficult time with that.

I know it's all about styles and preferences. I suppose my preference is a PICTURE of something . . . anything, as long as it is even a somewhat recognizable object. I say this somewhat in jest, as I do like a few modern artists such as Gregg Robinson and I can even appreciate the abstract work of Salvadore Dalí.

My art appreciation was tested this weekend at the Guggenheim Museum, Metropolitan Museum of Art and the International Center of Photography, which although recognizeable objects, not spectaculorly photographed. However, I'm most spoiled as I believe Brian's photography could easily match most I've seen this weekend.

New York

We're in New York for the weekend. We recommend seeing Frost/Nixon written by Peter Morgan starring Frank Langella and Michael Sheen at the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre, which we saw this evening. It was really well done.

The most exciting news so far is that Brian is the new owner of a Sony® α (alpha) DSLR-A100K (digital single-lens reflex camera for non-camera acronym knowing people like me!). His camera buying experience at J&R is captured on the Digital Photography Review discussion forum.

We are staying in the theater district and Times Square is a mere three blocks away. Right next to our hotel is a magazine store, literally a little store with magazine racks surrounding all sides. We both commented on how New York-esque the store is.

Look-ALike?

Does anyone else think that Brian looks a little like Tony?

Will Tony have a new teammate next year? Brian predicts that Dale Earnhardt Jr will drive for Joe Gibbs Racing in 2008. You heard it here first!

No Drivers Injured in the Taking of this Photo

No worries, Brian had nothing to do with taking this photo. He took the real photos (like the car), check back later.

Tony Stewart made an appearance in the Home Depot suite (I was within an arm's length). Rain was the other appearance of the evening, which postponed the race until Sunday. On the spur of the moment, we decided to drive back down to Richmond. It was a really fun race. Richmond is a short track so you can easily see all of the cars going around the entire track.

Tony had a pretty good race. After starting 22 and a few radical car adjustments, he moved steadily up to fourth. However, several cautions toward the end of the race, and no long green flag stretches to work his way through lapped traffic, he got caught in a late race crash. Despite the damage to the front of the car, he managed to complete the race and take eighth.

A Spot of Tea

We are to Richmond to have a spot of tea with the Queen. (Did you read that with an English accent?)

Okay, Queen Elizabeth is/was in Richmond. And, yes, we are going to Richmond. However, not to have tea with the Queen.

We're going to Saturday's Nextel Cup NASCAR race! We are Tony Stewart fans, or as Brian says when I tease him about that, "we like the drivers that race for Joe Gibbs." Tony is one of them, along with Denny Hamlin #11 and JJ Yeley #18 who race in the Nextel series. But, for tomorrow evening's race, we will definitely be Tony fans as we're guests of The Home Depot! Check back for a few pictures.

Nostalgic Weekend

Visiting Luther College feels like coming home. It's a feeling that is hard to explain until you've experienced it. It's the community that is Luther College.

The weekend celebrated the 25th Anniversary of Norsemen and Pike Kor (Valley Singers) Alumni Choirs. (No! I haven't been out of college for 25 years.) It was a fun weekend to re-connect with a few professors and to see how Luther has changed. The highlight was being able to sing with the current Norsemen, Pike Kor and Nordic Choirs.

If you ever find yourself in Decorah, Iowa, I recommend the following:

• Stay at Hotel Winneshiek
• Eat at Mabes Pizza
• Shop at Vanberia
• Tour the Vesterheim Museum
• Take a class at Luther College
• Get dessert at Whippy Dip

Premeditated Stupidity

When other people break their cameras, it's usually an accident. These normal people accidentally break their camera in normal ways - drop it on the floor, drop it in the vat of guacamole, drop it out of the helicopter - you see, perfectly normal accidents.

Sadly, my camera's demise was not an accident in a normal sense. My camera's demise was a self-inflicted, but fatal camera-wound.

Sometimes these normal people lament that their accident was partially self-inflicted or 'they saw it coming, and they could have avoided it'.

Regardless, they should not award themselves the dolt of the year awards, yet. I think I'm the bigger dolt, and may be able to out dolt them for this year's award.

On the other hand, if the accident was completely out of their control, then, they have no chance and I'm a shoo-in to win the dolt of the year award.

Like a tv series you may have watched recently, based on actual events, the following takes place between the minutes of 6:23pm and 6:31pm, a couple of months ago ... give or take.

Heres my account.

- - - -

As some may know transferring images from my camera to an iPod through the iPod Camera Connector is painfully slow. (For you non-camera people, just pretend what I said makes sense)

Well, in one of my infrequent bouts of lucidity, I thought I should provide A/C power to preclude my camera's battery from draining.

"You're pretty smart, Brian" I said to myself. Ironically, I didn't remember where I put the original A/C adapter....

I thought, "No worries. I'll just use my trusty iGo universal a/c power adapter"

Tickled with my oh-so-smart-work-around, I quickly assembled the power adapter.

Once assembled, I proudly thought, "Power Problem solved, I'm brilliant." Which, at this point, I recovered from the temporal bout of lucidity, back to my normal self.

Unsupervised, I continued, "Well, good, the power adapter tip fits the camera ...hmmm... I wonder what this little plus symbol thingy means? I'll just plug it in and see if it works"

- - - -

Have you heard the piece of wisdom, "Pride comes before a fall"?

In this case, pride came before an almost inaudible 'pffffttt' sound
... and a very bright, but brief flash from my camera's rear LCD.

"Note to self: When using a power adapter, check polarity of the adapter tip."

- - - -


Sometimes, normal people lose their photographic equipment in some brief but catastrophic instance. Sometimes, they feel they may have been able to avoid their demise. If so, they may be able to get a lesser charge. Or, perhaps they were innocent bystanders.

Unlike their incidents, I did not stand by innocently on anything.

Nor would I be eligible for the lesser "negligent camera-cide" charge.

Nope. My camera's heinous demise was calculated and careful.

My camera's demise was premeditated stupidity.

(c) 2007

It's 10PM. Do you know where your photos are?

Recently, someone asked the question if I secretly take photographs of people in public or am I overt about my photography. He phrased that question this way, "Do you steal pictures or take them?"

His question lead me to think of this topic. You may ask - What was the brilliant sequitur that led from his question to your topic "It's 10PM. Do you know where your photos are"?
Well, it's not hard to answer: I have the attention span of a gnat.

- - - -

When the gentleman used the phrase of "stealing pictures", I realized I stole other people’s pictures.

You may ask - What do you mean by "stealing other people’s pictures"?

Well, I'm glad you asked. You know, sneak into their house at night, and grab their Compact Flash Memory cards, the photos off of the wall, too. Just kidding.

What I really mean - those times when I notice somebody figured out a great vantage point to compose a presumably great image.

In such cases, I just wait, pretending to be interested in something else, "Oh look! A new menu item on my camera! How Exciting!"

But as soon as they leave, I run to their spot and clik, clik, clik....

Then, after my completely random shots, I calm down and actually try using my underused brain to figure exactly what they were composing.

I believe this compulsion is diagnosed as "Shot-Kleptomania".

I didn't compose that shot. It was somebody else's; I'm just a copy cat. It all makes me feel guilty, but not enough to stop. Yep. Textbook case of Shot-kleptomania.

- - - -

As a matter of fact, while I'm confessing, I think I've stolen shots right out of travel guides, too!

- The cliché shot from Carlton Hill looking over Edinburgh - Yep. Did It.

- cliché shot from Notre Dame, “cleverly” looking with the Gargoyle over Paris. Yep. Copied that too.

- cliché shot from the volcano looking down at Waikiki. Yep. I'm so shameless.

- Oh! I have years of the Thomas Jefferson memorial that is so-cleverly-framed-by-the-cherry-blossoms.
Same shot, different year. Yawn.

I have no idea who first took that shot years ago, but I'm compelled to take that same ...[yawn], excuse me....take the that same shot every year. What's with me?!

- - - -

I know I'm not alone in this. So 'fess-up and here are my questions for you:

Does everyone suffer from CSC (Cliché shot compulsion), like me?
Does everyone suffer from Shot-Kleptomania as I do?
Finally, what do you do to get something unique?
Please tell me, so I can copy it. ..... Ugh! ..... This is bad, I can't stop!

(c) 2007

Blackberry Anonymous

Periodically, you may see me at a Starbucks before work, sipping my latte, business-section of our local paper tucked under my arm, reading my Blackberry, apparently doing something high-powered and important. Not true. I'm really surfing the internet, looking for info on the latest gadgets, checking scores on ESPN, playing Sudoku, or other not very important nor high-powered activities.

Sometimes my colleagues, also at the same Starbucks, see me "diligently working", which causes them to start "diligently" reviewing the contents of their Blackberry, apparently something high-powered and important.

In reality, they are doing exactly what I am doing ... surfing the internet, playing games, and other not very important nor high-powered activities.

Warning! Not suited for children under 85
Graphic scenes of Blackberry Addiction

If you have an addiction prone personality, don't get a Blackberry. Really, don't do it.

The Blackberry addiction is why we Blackberry junkies call them "crackberrys". The Blackberry addiction is a secret and dark world, known only to other "berry-heads". Sometimes, you may hear us use certain code phrases to other junkies like, "I'm going out for some 'juice'. Do you need some?" In the world of Blackberry junkies, this means, "Lets get 'juiced' on our Blackberrys".

Frequently, you can find us behind dumpsters of even the most prestigious firms, shaking in the cold, typing on our Blackberrys, mumbling to ourselves. It's sad, really.

Don't let those pinstripes fool you, even the most respectable looking professional can be an addict crying out for help.

Is someone you love a Blackberry Addict?

If you suspect that one of your family members may be a 'berry-head' there are certain tell-tale signs you should monitor.

1) Watch how they handle small objects in your house. Do they grab these objects with both hands and repeatedly tap the object with their thumbs? This is particularly true of small pets and children. Does this behavior seem to be subconscious, as if the berry-head doesn't realize he or she is doing it?

2) Listen for phrases indicative of a Blackberry addiction. For example, you may ask that the 'berry-head' call you on your phone; the berry-head my slip and say, "Sure, I'll "PIN" you".

3) Look for physical effects of the Blackberry addiction. Check the tips of their thumbs. Calluses on the thumbs don't lie. Little "Johnny Professional" is really little "Johnny Berry-head".

Help a berry-head become free from the pain

Next time you see a 'berry-head' on the subway/tube/metro/bus getting their "juice", that is, getting their Blackberry fix, help them. Such flagrant public use of a Blackberry is their cry for help. It's your moral obligation to knock the Blackberry to the floor and stamp on it.

You will be doing them a favor. On the outside, they may be turning red and shouting, but on the inside, they are very grateful that someone cares; they are relieved someone has freed them from the addiction.

Public Service Announcement #20
Sponsored by the Blackberry Freedom Foundation

(c) 2007

Black Tie, Stars and Packers

That sounds like an interesting combination! No, I didn't actually wear a gown to a hockey or football game.

I did attend the annual black tie Folger Gala-75th Anniversary Celebration (thankfully, no pix are available). The Folger Shakespeare Library, located on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, is a world-class research center on Shakespeare and on the early modern age in the West. It is home to the world’s largest and finest collection of Shakespeare materials and to major collections of other rare Renaissance books, manuscripts, and works of art.

The Folger opened in 1932 as a gift to the American nation from Henry Clay Folger and his wife Emily Jordan Folger. It is administered by a Board of Governors under the auspices of Amherst College, Henry Folger’s alma mater.

Thankfully, the Stars game didn't start until 9pmEDT as I didn't get home until well after 10pm from the Gala. It was a heartbreaker. Marty Turco had an outstanding series, but despite three shutouts, the Stars still couldn't advance. When does pre-season start?

On to the football draft! The Packers pick 16th overall in this year's draft. (They could trade up or back in the draft on or before draft day.) First pre-season game is August 11th in Pittsburgh. I feel a road trip in my future!!!

Two in a Row

The Stars forced a final Game 7 in the series as Marty Turco shutout the Canucks again in tonight's Game #6. With a score of 2-0 in regulation, Turco has been good. Of course, I am rooting for the Stars, but Turco and Vancouver's Roberto Luongo have definitely made this series fun. Off Wing Opinion's Eric McErlain calls it the "best goalie showdown in recent memory."

One point of interest. Other than Game #1, neither team has been able to score more than 2 goals.

GM 1: Canucks 5, Stars 4 (4OT)
GM 2: Stars 2, Canucks 0
GM 3: Canucks 2, Stars 1 (OT)
GM 4: Canucks 2, Stars 1
GM 5: Stars 1, Canucks 0 (OT)
GM 6: Stars 2, Canucks 0
GM 7: Mon, April 23 @ VAN 9 pm ET

No Joking Matter

Lest you think I jest, here's today's Washington Post headline about the BlackBerry outage earlier this week.

RIM finally breaks silence on Blackberry outage
The addition of a new software routine caused the multi-hour failure of the Blackberry messaging service.

Upgrade at your own risk: Don't get between a BlackBerry and its owner!

In Memoriam

O/T #3

Three of the Star's five games so far have gone into over time. Fortunately, unlike the other O/Ts, this one went in favor of the Stars, and it didn't take four periods! In previous posts, I've been fairly critical of Marty Turco. I would have to say that he's been very good in this series, despite the Stars being down 3-2 in the series. Offense needs to pick up their game in order for the Stars to get any further.

As of 1amEDT and with less than four minutes remaining in the third period, it looks like the Minnesota Wild will be golfing for the remaining of the NHL playoffs.

Put the BlackBerry Down...And Slowly Walk Away

Here's a story for all of you, including myself, BlackBerry addicts out there!

Praying for the Virginia Tech Community

Our thoughts and prayers are with Virginia Tech students, faculty and staff as they mourn the loss of friends, family and colleagues. As many of you know, Brian is a Hokie alum and has many fond memories from his time in Blacksburg. As an engineering student, he had several classes in the buildings that have been mentioned over the past couple of days. I also have a cousin that is currently a coach.

When tragedies like this happen, it's always such a stark reminder of how precious life is and how quickly it can end. It's sobering that it can take such a tragedy to put life into perspective.

Please say a prayer for those impacted by the immense loss.

Shutout

Due to the birthday party we attended on Friday, I missed the game. No marathon game though. Star's goalie, Marty Turco posted his first playoff game shutout, making 35 saves. The series is tied 1-1.

The Minnesota Wild didn't fare as well in their game. They're down two games in their series.

Four

Do you remember your fourth birthday? Or, for that matter, any other memories when you were four? It was the topic of discussion on Friday evening.

Any recollection I have is from pictures I've seen or stories I've been told. I know that when I turned four, my sister would have been four weeks and two days old. So, I might have had a more quiet birthday. Plus, my Mom caught a staph infection while in the hospital with my sister, which delayed her return home. My Grandma came to stay with us for a little while, there's some fun pictures of my brother and me playing in a big leaf pile.

Quad O/T

After nearly seven periods of hockey, the Stars lost 5-4 in the sixth-longest game in Stanley Cup Playoffs history. Star's goalie, Marty Turco stopped 51 of the 56 shots, while Vancouver's Roberto Luongo faced a record 76 shots in his playoff debut. The game, which was played in Vancouver, ended at 12:32 a.m. Pacific time (3:32 a.m. EDT). Needless to say, I only made it through O/T #1!

All around it wasn't a good night, the Minnesota Wild also lost their game 2-1 to Anaheim.

My Hero

After suffering since Thursday with a kink on one side of my neck and stiff muscles on the other side of my back, my massage therapist worked wonders today! She does a type of massage called, connective tissue. No pain, no gain.

Die-Hard Stars Fan

As I have mentioned many times. I'm a Stars fan. Forgive me for being a little gun shy when rooting for the Stars in the playoffs. The last few years have been rough. They've had a great regular season and somehow fold in the first round of the playoffs. (Don't even get me started on Marty Turco.) Nevertheless, I will be rooting for the Stars on Wednesday night. And, I'll be keeping one little eye on the Minnesota Wild.

Wed, April 11 at VAN 10:00 p.m.(CBC, RDS, VERSUS)
Fri, April 13 at VAN 9:00 p.m.(CBC, RDS, VERSUS)
Sun, April 15 at DAL 9:30 p.m.(CBC, RDS)
Tue April 17 at DAL 8:00 p.m.(CBC, RDS )
*Thu, April 19 at VAN TBD(CBC, RDS, VERSUS)
*Sat, April 21 at DAL 8:00 p.m.(VERSUS, CBC, RDS )
*Mon, April 23 at VAN TBD(CBC, RDS, VERSUS)
*if necessary

Happy Easter

Eight adults, seven children, pork loin roast, egg and ham dish, baked french toast, sauteed asparagus and snap peas, seven Easter baskets, an Easter egg hunt, delicious cheese and cracker plate, mimosas, salad, cupcakes and cheesecake brought by friends...we had a blessed Easter! Hope you did too!

The sound of pitter patter...from twelve little feet

My favorite lines from today...

Said in a whisper, "Do you have Easter baskets for us, because you did last year."

"Two little monkeys jumping on the bed..."

"The sun did not shine. It was too wet to play. So we sat in the house All that cold, cold, wet day..."

"We're playing in the closet." (from a room that we use for storage, there were six children sitting on the floor around a lamp)

The sound of the phone dialing Timbaktu.

"I found this quarter/dime/nickel/penny..."

"You don't always get what you want." (one sibling to another)

Midwest Greeting

One nice thing about growing up in the Midwest is relationships. My east coast-reared husband reminds me that our connections and relationships are a special thing and in some way unique to the Midwest.

As an example, this evening, our church played host to the Houghton College Choir. As I read about the Brandon Johnson in the program, I learned that he had completed his undergraduate work at Concordia College in Moorhead, MN. Like my alma mater Luther College, Concordia is one of the five Norwegian-founded, private, four-year liberal arts college of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.

After the concert, I introduced myself by saying I needed to greet a fellow-Midwesterner and that I had attended Luther. Before I could even realize it, he was giving me the Midwestern greeting, which is almost always a hug, even if you don't know the person. We exchanged a few college notes, he told me that he and Luther's Nordic Choir's conductor, Craig Arnold grew up in the same town. I told him that I was recently at Augustana College and that their choir conductor is a Luther grad. And, then we said mean things about St. Olaf. Kidding!

References Available Upon Request

In preparation for Easter brunch/lunch, I included a little information about each of the families and children that are planning to come. This was one of the responses.

Nice. Only in Washington do you get everyone's bio with an invite to Easter--good work.

Everyone is invited, no references required!

"Striving for Peace: The Impact of One"

This past weekend, Augustana College in Sioux Falls, SD, hosted the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize Forum honoring the 2005 Peace Prize recipients the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and its Director General, Mohamed ElBaradei.

The theme of this year's Forum was "Striving for Peace: The Impact of One." The weekend's highlight was the closing plenary speech by Dr. ElBaradei's speechwriter. It was inspiring, and I'm not an easy critic.

I attended the Forum to participate on an alumni panel of representatives of the five sponsoring colleges to share careers for the common good and "The Impact of One." The panel was moderated by Jonathan Henkes, Vice President for Advancement at Augustana College. Panelists included Dr. Cyndi Jones, Senior Technical Advisor for Nuclear Security at the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (Augsburg); Dr. Jarret Brachman, Professor and Director of Research for the Combating Terrorism Center at the US Military Academy (Augustana); Dr. Rein Uritam, Professor of Physics at Boston College (Concordia); and little 'ole me (Luther).

The weekend wove in a musical presentation and concert by Brulé and AIRO, one of the top-selling Native American recording artists. Now normally this might not be my type of music, but it was a really neat group and music genre.

Host Augustana College is in an area rich with Native American history. The 2007 Forum Poster features "Buffalo Woman," a painting by Colorado artist Willow Arlenea. The Lakota (Sioux) Nation has passed down the "The Legend of the White Buffalo"--a story now approximately 2,000 years old--at council meetings, sacred ceremonies, and through the tribe's storytellers. There are many variations on the legend, but all are tied to a central theme - when one white buffalo is born and lives to maturity, then there will be peace and harmony throughout the nations. White Buffalo are sacred amongst native peoples.

Here's a little background about the Nobel Peace Prize Forum.

Chicken McNugget Saves the Day

Most often, it's the guys who are accused of liking/having/coveting gadgets. I admit that I am a gadget girl. Have gadget; will travel: iPod Nano, BlackBerry, Bluetooth, laptop...

On my most recent business trip, my need-of-gadget almost got me into trouble. On arriving at the airport, I realized that I had forgot my hard token. Not the hard token! Yes, the hard token. A small, thin, oval-shaped piece of plastic, slightly larger than a large chicken McNugget that magically displays a numerical code to access my laptop. Which without it, there's no email, no access to work files, nothing, nada, zip.

After pondering options, which in any superior circumstance at best, would mean no hard token until Tuesday, I asked the cab driver to return all the way home to retrieve the hard token. In all seriousness, it's an irreplaceable item. For instance, if I forget my toiletry kit, underwear, jewelry, all of which I have done at some point in time, I can theoretically stop at some type of store; however, the hard token can not be substituted.

PS - if you're in Miami, I highly recommend China Grill and Mark's South Beach! Yum. Unfortunately, I don't highly recommend the Miami Beach Resort & Spa.

We have a new niece!

Avery Victoria was born on February 12. She was 8lbs, 1oz and 20 1/4 inches!

Guys guide to prepare for PMA: Diamonds, Dinner, & Flowers

There are two events that occur that send shock waves throughout the Camera enthusiast world, Photokina which happens every other year, and the PMA which occurs annually. Each of these international conferences/trade shows/pilgrimages are used by Photographic equipment manufactures such as Nikon, Canon, & now Sony to introduce their new wares.

The manufacturers use 'leaks', pre-show announcements, pre-show demo's in order to build the buzz. In the minds of the enthusiasts, these new products quickly transform into their own Grails. Consequently, the enthusiasts focus almost all of their energy into anticipating, predicting, and planning their acquisitions on their new objet du désir. To the enthusiast, this enveloping preoccupation can be to the exclusion non-essentials such as bread or water.

I wrote the below entry in a renown & global digital photography forum called www.dpreview.com.


Guys,

As you know, one of our own special holidays is just around the corner. That's right, the Glorious Days-of-PMA Festival, also known to some merely as "PMA".


Perhaps like you, during such time, I wonder if I've been good enough so that when Mr. Sony Claus or Mr. Santa Canon visit during PMA season, I'll get more than coal. So to make sure we don't get coal during the PMA season, now is the time to prepare.

Some may ask, "How do we prepare for the Glorious Days-of-PMA Festival"? Here I will give my guidance to the Men of dpreview.com. Women of dpreview should shield their eyes and, for their own sakes, not read the following.

Men, we prepare for this important holiday, the Glorious Days-of-PMA Festival, with a little investment in one of the lesser known holidays. Here I speak of "Valentines Day".

Although this lesser holiday often passes the photographic gadget lover with out notice, it is important to fulfill the requirements of this so-called Valentines Day.

**"Why?", you may ask. Because, in order to earn the right to the new camera and PMA ...(Here Is The Secret)... we must fully satisfy the traditional Valentines Day requirements.

Moreover, nota bene, this so-called Valentines Day, unlike the other holidays, requires work on our part. There is no grace here.

Before I detail the preparation for the Glorious Days-of-PMA Festival, let me address the skeptics and unbelievers for a moment.

Perhaps you don't believe that Valentines Day even exists, as once I didn't believe. Well, my gracious wife of... um ... 8... no, wait ...um...9 years carefully and gently pointed out this holiday on an official Hallmark(c) calendar. There it was, in plain pink and white writing; smack-dab in the middle of a perfectly good workweek. Wednesday, 14th of February, 2007 is, in fact, "Valentines Day"

Although the history of Valentines Day is shrouded in a bit of mystery it somehow relates to martyrdom on the 14th of Feb. This makes sense to me, since husbands and boyfriends have to do most of the work on this holiday. (Which I'm told does not nearly make up for the remaining 364 days of the year)
Anyway, back to preparation for the Glorious Days-of-PMA Festival.

Men, the important things to note are the traditional Valentines Day requirements that are placed on the shoulders of photographic gadget lovers.
Why?
As I said earlier -

In order to earn the right to the new camera...[ raise your hand and repeat after me ]... "We must fully satisfy the traditional Valentines Day requirements." [OK, say it again...stop..OK...put your hand down...close enough. ]

In order to earn the right to the new camera & trip to PMA you may ask, "What are those traditional V-day requirements"? Well, I'm glad you asked.
They are:
1) GIFTS
2) FLOWERS & CHOCOLATE (which I have been taught are not gifts)
3) TIME WITH YOU (which still is a mystery to me)
4) THOUGHTFULNESS (in all the above.)

Below are the preparation instructions & some explanations.

1) GIFTS
1.1) You will buy a gift for your spouse/girlfriend/co-signer/better-half.
1.2) You will be thoughtful in your gift, which means that,
1.3) You will not buy something from your wish list, instead,
1.4) You will buy a gift that she really wants.
1.4.1) She may have been hinting at this since early Jan.
1.4.2) If, like me sometimes, you weren't really listening, you may:
1.4.2.1) ask her sister or
1.4.2.2) ask one of her friends, (except the slutty one).
(I have asked her sister, and it helped). Regardless,
1.5) You must have the gift by COB Tuesday.
EXPLANATION: It is expected that photographic and other gadget lovers, for this day, ** will NOT ** spend money on their collection of gadgets, photographic supplies, cables, lens, filters, software, lighting supplies, tripods, mono-pods etc. As shocking as this sounds, your wish list is 'streng verboten'.

2) FLOWERS & CHOCOLATE
2.1) 12 Red Long-stem Roses, plus,
2.2) The other type of flower she really likes anyways.
2.3) You will buy Chocolate - something:
2.3.1) with a fancy name,
2.3.2) in fancy packaging,
2.3.3) from a fancy store.
EXPLANATION: M&Ms are great for you, not for her. This has to do with her sense of portions. If she eats just one, she does not consider herself to be bad. So, you can help her to find a way to eat as many "just ones" as possible. Boxes with individually placed / wrapped chocolates is such a mechanism for her to eat "just one" through the entire box.

3) TIME WITH YOU.
3.1) Yuck.
3.2) Eeeuuuw.
EXPLANATION: Why would someone want to spend time with you or with me? Now, wanting to spend time with my beautiful wife, that, I understand. Anyway, plan on at least dinner...make it, if you have skills. Or, go to a really cool place you know. She may have already hinted. If all is going to plan, and you really want to earn that camera ... go to a different, but equally cool place for dessert.

4) THOUGHTFULNESS (in all the above.)
4.1) Start planning your work today!
4.2) Start working your plan tomorrow!
EXPLANATION: All of this must be as carefully thought out as you have with your predictions on the new camera models and their corresponding names.

BOTTOM-LINE.

Men, look at the names on the forum list, I don't expect all of you will make it through Valentines Day successfully.

However for the few of you that will do the right thing and prevail, here is the bottom-line: If you have accomplished your Valentines Day mission competently, you MAY, at the end of the complete & successful Valentines Day regimen, mention only one thing about the Glorious Days-of-PMA Festival.

At the end of the day, when it is quiet, when the Valentines Day mission is a success, and you are close to each other, you can say only this one thing - You may say, "We should go somewhere in March."


Men, good luck on your mission.



brian

Two Inches

Many of you think I jest when I talk about DC and snow. This is a news story from this weekend. If you read the article, one would think we're expecting six inches or a foot, perhaps two feet! Alas, two inches.

DC Gets Ready For Snow
Area Prepares For Possible Snow

Read the full story.

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!

We wish all of you a blessed Christmas and New Year!

Hat Trick Win

Photo by Kate McGovern
www.offwingopinion.com
Okay, we saw the Dallas Stars almost beat the Washington Capitals in DC this evening. It was almost fun. It was almost a great game.

FINE...

It was a competitive game. The Stars came back from a 4-1 deficit to almost tie the game at the end. The final score was 4-3 Caps.

Is it really asking TOO MUCH for Washington to lose ONE game? Last year, we had an 11-game season ticket package. Out of 11 games, I think they won three or four. This year, we have no season tickets, but have bought three individual games. They've won all three ("hat trick win"). So, again, would it really be too much to ask? I guess so.

Of celebrity note: Pat Sajack and what seemed like his two sons, or a son and his friend were sitting two rows and a few seats down from us. During the second intermission, Verizon Center posts text messages on the jumbo-tran. We sent in: "Pat S., if you are at the game, who's tending the wheel?" We did see him smile at the post.

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving. First, we spent most of Thanksgiving day with our good friends in Maryland. We flew to Minneapolis in the evening to spend a long weekend with my sister and her husband in their new house; my parents and my brother and his wife. We had Thanksgiving dinner all over on Friday with all of them and my sister's in-laws.

On Saturday, we went to Wisconsin to see my new step-niece, Gracie Marin born in October and step-nephew, Ryan Vincent born in August. I also got to see my Uncle. It was a special visit all the way around!

On Sunday, we went to the church that I grew up in. It was fun to see old friends. We also went to my brother-in-law's restaurant. It was delicious. He made special appetizers, a crab cake with two skewered shrimp with a mango salsa and steamed mussels. My main entree was one of the specials for the evening, penne pasta with shrimp and artichokes in a light cream garlic sauce. He also made special desserts, chocolate mousse, turtle brownie, chocolate crème brûlée and a cranberry/pear cobbler with ice cream.

Despite the Packer loss on Monday, it was fun to watch the game with my sister.

It was a memorable Thanksgiving!

She took the spoon....She took the spoon!

This was my refrain, horrified that I utilized the wrong utensil at our recent Anniversary dinner at Le Paradou. We celebrated at a very lovely, French restaurant that neither of us had been to before. We splurged on the 6-course tasting menu.

My major faux pas came with the 4th course, which was lumps of lobster in a wonderful sauce. The server had placed both a new fork and a spoon for this course. I confidently chose the spoon while Brian opted for the fork. As they cleared our setting and replaced the silver for the next course, much to my horror, the spoon was replaced!

Well, having survived that french table setting, we did have a lovely dinner. Here were all of the courses (#3 and 6 are the restaurant description).

The starter was a single rock shrimp in a tasty sauce

1. Diced Scallops in another delicious sauce, Served in an egg shell - it was gorgeous
2. Two Oysters in a cream sauce
3. Carpaccio of Smoked Salmon, Crème Fraîche and ‘Osetra’ Caviar
4. Lumps of Lobster served with enough sauce to warrant a spoon!
5. Squab served with an asparagus sauce and truffle
6. Stuffed Quail with Pistachios, Celeriac and ‘Cèpes’ Mushrooms with Chervil

Dessert was a chocolate ‘Crème Brûlée’ with a Coconut Ice Cream (and one additional flavor, I'm forgetting)
A small plate of nine different sweets and a cappuccino topped the evening

They knew we were celebrating our Anniversary, so during the dessert course, they brought out a white rectangle shaped plate that had spelled ochocolateoalate, Happy Anniversary, with a small, lit candle.

It was a real treat.

Technically

Photo by Jim Biever
(Packers.com)
Okay, so technically speaking, I didn't see any of the Packers' scores yesterday. I did see the last few minutes of the game and highlights of most of the TDs, but not the live game. The Packers are 3-4, which seems nearly respectable from where they started. As I mentioned in an earlier post, my husband has reminded me that when I don't watch, they win.

Also, the Cheeseheads FFootball is going to pull off their first win of the season! Long time in coming. It seems like I found the right combination to win this week. In FFootball, it has everything to do with individuals and very little to do with teams. Here's the line-up for this week:
P. Manning (IND) QB
D. Rhodes (IND) RB
T. Henry (TEN) RB
T. Houshmandzadeh (CIN) WR
M. Colston (NO) WR
M. Harrison (IND) WR
H. Miller (PIT) TE
A. Vinatieri (IND) K
Minnesota Vikings DEF

To round it out, the Dallas Stars won on Saturday and Brian's favorite Gibbs' driver, Tony Stewart had a strong win in Atlanta on Sunday. It was a good sports weekend; maybe they were helping me celebrate my birthday!

...but later is now!

One of my first birthday presents from Brian was to have two photographs of the Eiffel Tower beautifully framed. They are black and white photos, one taken during the day, one at night. Now, as spectacular as they are, Brian was even more surprised that I guessed what it was with this clue: "you have it, but you cannot use it." I guessed correctly. Alas, that was the last year that I actually received any real clues.

So, at dinner the night before my birthday I asked for a clue and he said we weren't going to be able to do what he'd planned because of the rain. A couple of additional targeted questions almost had me guessing correctly, so much so that there was almost a little white lie, because I was getting a little too close.

At about 12:01 a.m. on my birthday, I told him it was my birthday and I should be able to know what the present was. He said that I should wait until later because I had a lot of time left on my birthday. My prompt response was, "but later is now!" I did opt to wait. Although, I found out a little earlier than had been planned due to a BlackBerry phone mishap!

Anyway, as you can tell, my birthday present is a hot air balloon ride some time when it's not raining!

Congratulations!

Congratulations on the safe arrival of my step-niece, Grace (Gracie) Marin!

Guilty

It's true. I transported bagels across state lines. Maybe it was the undeniable wafting of the onion or garlic. Perhaps it was the scent of cinnamon raisin, 9-grain honey or whole wheat. However, I was once again a successful bagel courier, much to the delight of two little girls who were anxiously awaiting Ess-a-Bagel!

Santa Barbara

Instead of complaining about sports this weekend, I will tell you about our fabulous weekend in Santa Barbara, CA.

We stayed at the lovely Four Seasons The Biltmore, quite a treat. I had attended a meeting at the hotel during the end of the week. On Friday afternoon, we visited Mission Santa Barbara and we both had massages at the spa. We had dinner at a little restaurant called, Cava. We recommend trying the zarzuela - a mediterranean seafood stew with shrimp, clams, scallops, mussels & white fish.

On Saturday, we began with a very tasty breakfast at Jeannine's Bakery - Montecito. We spent most of the day exploring the Santa Ynez Mountains. The scenery was beautiful and the climate was surprisingly arid. I didn't expect desert-like vegetation so close to the ocean. Lunch was New Mexican fare at Zia Cafe. We sat outside and had fun people-watching. We also drove and walked up and down State Street several times and walked the wharf. Dinner was at Kai Sushi Shabu-Shabu. We had sushi and beef sukiyaki. Although, the shabu-shabu looked very delicious.

Bye

Yes, my FFootball team has yet to see a win. Week #6 is an interesting one for the Cheeseheads. In the league that I play in, each team has 17 players. On any given week, we play nine and bench eight. My record includes two blow-out loses, a tie and losses by one and two points. In at least a couple of games, the players on my bench actually scored more than the players I started. So, my point, with a good share of my players playing for either Indianapolis or Green Bay, I have seven players that have a bye this week. For several weeks, FFootball commissioner, Craig, has been giving me a hard time about having seven players on a bye at the same time. At this point, what do I have to lose by starting some players that have seen the pine more than the ball. We'll see if this forced strategy works this week.

The Cheeseheads FFootball line-up for this week:
R. Grossman (CHI) QB
C. Portis (WAS) RB
R. Bush (NO) RB
T. Houshmandzadeh (CIN) WR
M. Colston (NO) WR
L. Coles (NYJ) WR
H. Miller (PIT) TE
J. Carney (NO) K
Seattle Seahawks DEF

Deen-oh

One of the great pleasures in life is to be able to see regularly some of our friends that have kids. This week, I had the pleasure of having dinner with Juliette and Evie. Sometimes, when I get a call, it's Juliette and she asks, "are you coming over for 'deen-oh'?" Usual activities include playing, reading books and of course mandatory bedtime hugs & kisses. On this particular evening, Juliette wanted to read to me, "The Ugly 'W'egetables" a very endearing book by Grace Lin about a neighborhood that comes together to share flowers and ugly vegetables soup, and the young gardener learns that regardless of appearances, everything has its own beauty and purpose.

Caps Game

This is how close we were at the game! Here's a picture of team introductions at the home opener. Only Brian can capture the essence of some of these moments. Check out a few more of his pictures from the game.

Week #5

Green Bay seems to play two different games. Most of this year's stats will show a pretty close game in the first half. The second half is where the Packers seem to let the game get away. Defense seems to break down. Favre has been off a little today. A few passes going askew. One bright note is running back Noah Herron.

This is the Cheeseheads FFootball line-up for week #5.
P. Manning (IND) QB
C. Portis (WAS) RB
D. Rhodes (IND) RB
M. Harrison (IND) WR
M. Colston (NO) WR
L. Coles (NYJ) WR
H. Miller (PIT) TE
A. Vinatieri (IND) K
KC Chiefs DEF

A couple of FFootball observations so far. First of all, for the second week in a row, Vinatieri was de-activated less than an hour before the game. Also, who knew that underdog Tennessee would be beating Indianapolis?

Alexanders the Great

We went to the first Caps home game on Saturday night. Very fun! It helps, too, that they won the game, beating the defending Stanley Cup champs, Carolina Hurricanes by a score of 5-2. It was the game of the Alexanders. Alexander Semin had a hat trick and Alexander Ovechkin had two goals. Honorable mention goes to Brian Pothier and Chris Clark who both had three assists. Instead of a season ticket package, I've decided to buy fewer games, but better seats. Last night, we had great third row seats. Look for a post with some of B's outstanding photos.

Stars vs. Avs

As I described earlier, the sports trifecta is truly complete with the start of the NHL regular season. Opening night features my team, the Dallas Stars vs. Colorado Avalanche. It's a repeat game from the play-off series that ended the '05-'06 season for the Stars. Yes, I admit it's hard to cheer for a team that's from shhhhh, "Dallas." So, why am I a Stars fan? As a young girl, I grew up watching (and listening via radio) to the Minnesota North Stars. My 11th and 12th birthdays were spent at the Met Center watching a North Stars game, and being able to name all of the team's players. Maybe it's the green and gold that does it for me!

Delay by Shoe

There are no shortages of black tie events in DC. From time to time, staff is needed to fill seats at a charity dinner. Tonight was one of those nights and I drew the short straw. So, after determining that either of the two "little black dresses" that every girl must have in the back of their closet would work, I set out yesterday to find shoes. Going to my favorite shoe warehouse, Off Broadway Shoes, I actually found three pairs including the shoes for tonight's event. After getting my loot home, I pulled out the shoe box only to find that I had grabbed a wrong box and had a duplicate pair of shoes. Of course, the one that I was missing was the pair that I needed tonight. The store did not open until 10 a.m. this morning. Thankfully, it's on the way to the office. The office got a good chuckle out of my delayed arrival due to black tie shoe mishap.

Loser

My Fantasy Football team is 0-3-1. I'm a loser! As the fantasy football "league commissioner" said, close only counts in horseshoes and grenades. So my 1 point loss in this week's game was disappointing. That makes two losses of 2 points and 1 point. Very brutal.

Nearly as brutal as last night's Green Bay game. First half not too bad; second half...ummm, there's not a word to describe how bad the second half was. Dropped and tipped balls are killing the offense, and there's no way to expect them to keep up with the failure of the defense. How we still have Ahmad Carroll and Al Harris, I will never understand. Did the defense stop a punt or kick-off under 40 yards? If there were any bright spots, a 54-yard field goal by Rayner and rookie Greg Jennings has great potential.

UPDATE: Okay, as I was checking a stat, I noticed that Ahmad Carroll was put on waivers today. I guess I wasn't the only one thinking the same thing!

Sports Trifecta

The confluence of sports comes together in September: NFL regular season, NASCAR final chase to the Nextel Cup and NHL pre-season. There are never enough screens to monitor them all!

In case you're at all interested, this is my starting line-up for Cheeseheads this week.

P. Manning (IND) QB
R. Bush (NO) RB
D. Rhodes (IND) RB
M. Harrison (IND) WR
D. Driver (GB) WR
L. Coles (NYJ) WR
H. Miller (PIT) TE
R. Gould (CHI) K
Seattle Seahawks DEF

UPDATE (Packers vs. Lions): Win #1! Favre scores #400, #401 and #402. This week's observation concludes that it is not realistic to expect Packer offense to score and then negate it by weak Packer Defense. Defense must come up with bigger stops and get better on not allowing so much yardage on first and 10. The offensive line looked better; Favre was not sacked this week. Running backs must hang on to the ball, thankfully their late half fumbles did not result in points, but that was lucky.

UPDATE (FFootball Cheeseheads): As I mentioned last week, the final FFootball score/ratings aren't final until Tuesday. However, it's not a good sign when your eight benched players have scored more fantasy points than your nine starters.

Observation

I wasn't able to watch the game on Sunday; however, DIRECTV® has NFL SUNDAY TICKET™ SuperFan, which offers commercial-free game replays, showing every play, in 30 minutes or less. It's a neat feature. Anyway, it allowed me to watch the plays of the game. Among many things, I noticed there was a substantial number of dropped balls. Way too many. Rookies, yes, but if this team has any chance of turning itself around, they need to step up their game.

On another note, I received my annual notice of my Green Bay Packers season ticket waiting list. I moved up to #56,267 from #57,027. I guess that means I have approximately 74.035526315789473684210526315789 years before I'm eligible for my season tickets.

Consolation

There is usually very little consolation for a Packer loss. However, this week, it is the fact that my inaugural season Fantasy Football team, Cheeseheads (very original as I've been teased), is winning (so far). I am undefeated so far. Okay, so there's only been one game this season and I tied against the other team I played last week. But, I'm hoping for a win this week. So far, I'm currently leading, but the official score/ratings aren't final until Tuesday.

This football season, I was invited/cajoled/encouraged to join a friend's Fantasy Football league. After many years of ignoring this fad, I succumbed and am managing the Cheeseheads. There may be some drop/adds coming up. For any given week, I have 9 starters and 8 backups. Here's my current line up, as of the second week.

P. Manning (IND) QB
D. Bledsoe (DAL) QB
B. Favre (GB) QB

R. Bush (NO) RB
C. Portis (WAS) RB
T. Henry (TEN) RB
D. Rhodes (IND) RB

M. Harrison (IND) WR
D. Driver (GB) WR
TJ Houshmandzadeh (CIN) WR
G. Jennings (GB) WR
L. Coles (NYJ) WR

H. Miller (PIT) TE
V. Davis (SF) TE

A. Vinatieri (IND) K

Buccaneers DEF
Seahawks DEF

UPDATE: I'm a loser! My FFootball team lost 126-128 in week #2.

A‧BYS‧MAL

a‧bys‧mal [uh-biz-muhl] - dictionary.com defines it as "extremely or hopelessly bad or severe" although after this week's Packer game, you may see a new definition. I saw the first 10-0 before having to fly to Ft. Lauderdale on business. It was enough. Thereafter, it was just painful to hit the refresh on the BlackBerry to get the last play.

In Remembrance

As I have mentioned previously, the company I work for is headquartered directly across the street from where the World Trade Center towers stood. Although, I did not work for my current employer five years ago, I take this moment to remember the eleven employees that lost their lives that day.

As you reflect on the day, I hope you'll also join me in remembering those eleven people too.

Ocean View

Along with the NASCAR experience, I was treated to a Labor Day weekend ocean view getaway. We spent the weekend in North Myrtle Beach. The weather has been picture perfect. We had a gorgeous room, ocean view and a huge balcony. My favorite is the sound of the ocean; it's such a soothing sound.

Day Jobs

So, instead of Kahne, Johnson and Stewart, it was Sterling Marlin and Dale Jr. We strapped into the #40 and #8. Needless to say, we broke no time records and probably scared our instructors out of the car. As you can see, we were modeling the latest in fire-proof jumpsuits. Of course, helmets are important and should be worn at all times, especially when driving with us!

Seriously, it was a fun, exhilirating experience. Driving a few "hot" laps with the instructor when you're really going 150+ mph was quite a rush. It's not as easy as it looks. There's a lot more than just "turning left." You have to watch your line, hit your marks, know when to accelerate, decelerate, actually steer towards the wall, watch the flag-person, keep an eye on your gauges, passing, being passed, accomplish all of that going more than 150 mph and not hit anyone on pit road.

Anyway, we had a great time, but we've been asked to keep our day jobs!

Buck Baker Racing School

Move over Kasey Kahne, Jimmie Johnson and Tony Stewart, NASCAR racing will never be the same as I take to the track on Saturday morning. We brave the winds and rain of Ernesto to travel to Darlington Raceway for a NASCAR ride/drive of a lifetime. My birthday present last fall was the 1/2 day ride and drive experience at the Buck Baker Racing School.

Founded solely by two-time NASCAR Nextel Cup Champion Buck Baker in 1980, we are the oldest and best-known NASCAR-type racing school in America. Our programs are designed to instill the thrill of racing in everyone - from beginners to more advanced racers. We don't use pace cars. We allow passing. And we use racing radios to provide on-track instruction for our advanced students. Plus, we're the first NASCAR-type racing school to use CD-ROM camera/data acquisition technology in every racecar. We operate at the Atlanta Motor Speedway, Bristol Motor Speedway, Darlington Raceway, North Carolina Speedway, and the Lowe's Motor Speedway.

Check back for an update later this weekend! I'm afraid there will be pictures involved.

SLOPPY!

During pre-season when your team loses, it's "just pre-season" and when they win it "says something about the upcoming season." In actuality, both are correct. Regardless of a win or loss, it is pre-season. Regardless of a win or loss, it does foreshadow the regular season. Winning teams win...even in pre-season.

What did I see during the Packers pre-season game against Cincinnati so far? In one word: SLOPPY. Offensive line, again, somewhat offensive. Defense, mostly offensive too. Tipped balls, interception and fumble are not going to make this a winning team. As my husband asked earlier this evening, yes, there will be wailing and gnashing of teeth.

My family has started to give me a hard time. When I watch, the Pack loses. Last week, when the Packers beat Atlanta, I was unable to watch. So, they began to ask me if I would sacrifice watching the games for a Packers' win. I think that's highly unfair!

UPDATE: Suspended.
Game suspended due to threatening weather with 9 minutes left in the 4th. Or perhaps, out of compassion. Thanks for putting us out of our misery!

Five States

This has been a busy week: five states; eight nights; six different beds and/or couch; a 2.5 hour delay for crew and mechanical issues (same plane, two different mechanical issues, two airports); and 1.25 hour traffic jam on the ride home.

Let the Games Begin

Pre-season begins tonight for the Green Bay Packers. The season embarks with a lot of expectation and mostly uncertainty. Mike McCarthy takes his team to San Diego. Since it isn't televised live in my area, I will have to rely on a delayed-tape replay. Check back for some game thoughts.

UPDATE: Uninspiring.
That sums up tonight's game. Offensive line allowed Favre to be sacked or hit multiple times. Speaking of offense, quite offensive. They really need to step up their game. Defense was also less than impressive. There's a lot of work to be done before opening day. Although, if tonight is any indication, we could be in for one LONG unhappy season.

Kudos to United

Well, I flew back from Phoenix on August 10. The date perhaps has a familiar ring to it as it was the day of the thwarted airline plot in the United Kingdom. Not especially fun to wake to that news. Having planned ample time for a normal flight, I knew that it was going to be dicey making it under the new circumstances. The airport was chaotic, no doubt. Security lines were excruciating, and I again quietly thanked my United Executive Premier flying status, which expedited me to a premier line. Purged toiletries and a connection through Denver, I was less than an hour delayed. Considerably impressive for a more than unnormal day at the airport. Hats off to United.

Hot as an Oven (Part 2)

Okay, there is somewhere hotter. Phoenix. Landed in Phoenix at 7 p.m. and the outside temperature was 106 degrees. The rental company gave me a Sebring convertible, which won't get a lot of use when it's 106 degrees.

Seven Days

That's right. Seven days until pre-season starts for the Green Bay Packers. They will be in San Diego to face the Chargers on August 12.


REG-GIE, REG-GIE
Today, Regie White was inducted in to the NFL Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio. Sara White, Reggie's wife, made the acceptance speech saying, "It's not how we die, it's how we live, I encourage you to live like Reggie lived. His legacy will live on through you.''

Hot as an Oven

Hotter than an oven applies if it's 11 p.m. and the heat index is 94 degrees. I was in North Carolina today and the weather wasn't much cooler there either. The forecast for tomorrow is another triple digit day with humidity over 70 percent.

Ess-a Home Delivery

I finally made good on my bagel courier career (see February post). Four salt, four nine grain w/honey, four oat bran, four cinnamon raisin and three everything later, the bagels have been delivered. The next time you're in New York, check out one of the two Ess-a-Bagel locations.

"No"

While entertaining children with the average age of 3.2916666666666666666666666666667, one learns a number of ways to say a polite "no." Here are a few that might work for you.

• How about later? ("later" is defined as 20 seconds for someone with the average age of 3.29)
• I spy with my little eye... (a mere distraction method; quite effective for anyone with the average age of 3.29, for at least 20 seconds anyway)
• I don't think so. (this means, I beg you to ask me again in 20 seconds)
• Not now. (see "later" defined in the first bullet point)
• It's all gone. (by "gone," again, it means you should ask me again in 20 seconds)

My husband displays a more patient side by actually turning a "no" into a teachable moment. He is a better person than I.

Baked Wrapped Tilapia

My friend found THE yummiest (and easiest) baked wrapped tilapia recipe! It's just as good wrapped in tinfoil only without the banana leaves. Thanks Epicurious.com!

Planes, Trains & Automobiles

Well, it wasn't quite in that order...actually it was more like planes, automobiles, automobiles, trains and automobiles. That was my trip to New York. Needless to say, it was a long day.

Jury Duty

I'm all for doing my civic duty. However, being summoned for jury duty this week seemed like quite an inconvenience. So, here are the top five ways to get out of jury duty.

5. You look just like Judge Wapner
4. Define "reasonable" and "doubt"
3. What evidence? They're all guilty
2. Who cares if it's just a parking ticket...capital punishment for all
1. I object!

Happy Independence Day!

As you can see, we spent the evening with special friends.

We hope you had a special day too!

I'm going to be an Aunt!

How exciting! Let the spoiling begin.

Breasted, Big Indian

By the title, one would think that perhaps a new exotic bird species had been discovered somewhere in the remote regions of Mumbai.

Nope.

This utterance actually occurred in modern day, office building setting.

As I waited in our office lobby, the building security guard and I made idle chit-chat. By definition, 'idle chit-chat' should involve topics such as the weather, traffic, a "how ya doin'?," and a hundred other safe and innocuous subjects.

Well, on this particular day, chit-chat wandered to my nationality. Obviously, this in itself is a safe and innocuous topic.

[AN ASIDE] As most of readers of this blog know, I am Korean born.

Now, when most people ask, and I 'chit' that I'm Korean, a typical 'chat' goes something like this, "you look Korean." On a rare occasion, "you look Chinese" or "perhaps a mix." All of this is still safe, innocuous, and idle and provides for a lovely conversation.

So, I was ill-prepared for the response on this particular day.

"Big."

That is, the security guard, a professed-Korean responded, "you're too big to be Korean."

Hmmmm, how does one respond? Politely, I stood there somewhat unresponsive, not really sure what the correct response from a God-fearing woman should be.

Because of my sudden silence, the security guard believed further explanation might assist. Upon which he said, "see, your wrists...too big; shoulders...too big; you're too tall..."

"...big, Big, BIG, BIG, BIG..."

Okay, I got the "BIG". Please stop saying BIG!

Apparently, further explanation still needed, he paused for a moment and said, "You look Indian."

Hmmmm. Big. Indian. Interesting.

As I mentioned, I've been called a few variations of Asian before, but never Indian. So at this point, my self-image is that of a "Big Indian Woman," apparently with Korean eye features.

Well, now that I have a complex about being too big for my nationality, more explanation still needed, he proceeded to also explain that "Koreans are flat." As he said "flat," he made animated hand motions to indicate flat in his upper chest.

Thus, we now have the title to this blog post.

So, as you might imagine, I:
1). still prefer safe, innocuous, and idle chit-chat, and
2). now prefer avoiding our building's lobby from the 3pm-11pm shift, Wednesday through Sunday.

In Search of Ark

After more than 10 inches of rain in three days (and six of those inches in one day), we are beginning to see animals lined up in twos. There were several DC locations that were closed including roads, buildings, a few metro stations, regional trains and flooded tunnels. Thankfully, I returned from a business trip to find a dry house. I think my mode of transportation to work in the morning is canoe.

Starbucks Tale

I was in Starbucks the other morning for a cup of tea with steamed milk when I ran into Christina. Christina was the former store manager at the Starbucks and now is the district/area manager for several Starbucks stores. It was the first time I'd seen her since she left the store, so we briefly said hello and I asked how things were with her. Thinking it was a boon that I'd run into her, I sent an email to a friend, who often frequents the same Starbucks. Little did I know that not only had she seen Christina, but numerous times and knew all about her comings and goings. Alas, my news was no news to the Starbucks-loyalist.

Happy Father's Day!

A very Happy Father's Day to our Dads!

Congratulations!

We celebrate with Kurt & Kendra on the safe arrival of Kira Lee on June 12!

Public office qualification requirements include ...

Not hiring illegal aliens. Moreover, I have been told that my mantra should be "Don't go to Jail".

However, due to recent trends, I have received conflicting advice. Or, as the politicians say, "a refinement of their position".

You may wonder what type of trends would cause a flip/flop...um...er....I meant to say, would cause a 'refinement' of an upstanding citizen's advice.

Perhaps it's the recent immigration bill, perhaps there were recent grass root protests, perhaps some other national political trend. Or, perhaps an issue closer to home, such as the fading facade of our moral character.

If you perceived the last item is most likely; you are correct.

As a matter of fact, it is not just close to home. The issue is the home. Specifically, the fading facade of the metal siding's character.

Yes. Like you, I am shocked, too.... "Shocked ! Shocked!", I say.

How could painting our aluminum siding corrupt such moral fortitude? Is the fading aluminum a morality play on our fading facade of our character?

Moreover...

Hang on.


"Paint-o el Side-o .... el SIDE-O ... THE el SIDE-O !!"*


Sorry, I had to give our day laborer some direction.

Now, where was I? Ah yes, now I remember.

.... Moreover, how could someone express one set of values, yet live a different set of values !?

How could someone be that hypocritical ?!

I will never know.





*Although, I am ugly and an American. I am not the ugly American parodied in the above post.
No day laborers were harmed in the making of this blog.




.

Ginger did everything that Fred did, but backwards and in heels

Well, it's been a while since my last blog. Last weekend we visited my parents for the weekend. My sister was visiting and my brother and sister-in-law also came down for a few hours. Fun was definitely had by all.

There were two new restaurants that are a must-return-to: Jimmy & Michele’s Pizzeria in Port Washington, admittedly, some of the best pizza ever, and The Perc Place in Hartford. One of The Perc Place's claim to fame is the hundreds of different sayings that decorate the women's and men's (so I've been told) bathroom walls. For instance, in the women's here's a sample:

• "Well-behaved women rarely make history"
• "First God made Adam and then looked at him and said, 'I think I can do better,' so He created a woman."
• "Ginger did everything that Fred did, but backwards and in heels."

One can only imagine what must be on the walls in the men's room!

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day to our Moms!

He's baaaaack!

Photo by Jim Biever
(Official Packers Website)
Mini-camp opened in Green Bay and Brett was back.

by Roger Anderson, Packers.com
posted 05/06/2006

The decision Brett Favre made to return to Green Bay this season wasn't easy, but it was rather simple.

"Ultimately I still wanted to play, I still felt like I could help this team win," Favre said. "I wondered what it would be like at home on Sundays next year and saying I could be doing that, I could be helping that team.

FINAL (I promise) Stars-Avs Series Reflection

Well, a whole day has gone by, perhaps the dust has settled and so I thought I'd be a little more rational about the Stars-Avs series. Here are the final thoughts: Stars fans, be grateful, we were finally put out of our misery by Brunette's OT goal yesterday. We went into the playoffs with high hopes for our team, only to witness some of worst hockey, goaltending, short-handed goals, blown leads, OT and, at times, puck handling, we could have imagined from our 2-seed team. I think it would have been more painful to drag the series on and win a game or two more only to go down at the end anyway. I wasn't a fan of goaltender Marty Turco going in, and this certainly hasn't helped my opinion. Over and out. When does pre-season begin?

Golfing

Maybe I'll take up golfing like the Stars who will watch the remaining Stanley Cup playoffs from their couch.

UPDATE: Perhaps that sounds a little harsh. Ask me tomorrow; maybe the loss won't be as fresh.

OT

Guerin of the Stars tied the game in the third to force OT!

UPDATE: Stars lose 3-2 in OT.

Finally, Not Finale

The Stars pulled out a win last night against Colorado, but they face almost unsurmountable odds as they're down 3-1 in a seven game series. Although, it was nice to see the Stars play with some vigor and a will to win; I fear it may have come too late, however.

New York

Today, I was at headquarters, which is located at 3 World Financial Center directly across the street from where the World Trade Center towers stood. The board dining room, where our event was held, is on the 50th floor and directly overlooks the now vacant block. There was damage to 3WFC and it was closed for repairs from September 2001 to May 2002. I can barely imagine the horror witnessed and experienced by my colleagues on that September morning as they watched the towers destroyed. It's always a poignant moment.
(Above: The view of the 3 WFC building from the observatory of the now destroyed World Trade Center.)

On the site of the former twin towers, the construction of Freedom Tower has begun. See the depiction of what it will look like when it's completed. (a little perspective, 3WFC has the green top pyramid on the left of the picture) To monitor progress of the build, visit Project Rebirth.

Alright Already!

This playoff series is REALLY not going as I'd wished. Stars lost game 3! They are down three games and have to win the next four to advance to the next round.

15th is the Charm for #4!

Photo by Jim Biever
(Official Packers Website)

Favre is returning!

Official Packers Website
Green Bay Press Gazette
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Official Favre Website

Favre News?

Photo by Jeffrey Phelps
(Milwaukee Journal Sentinal)
The speculation has once again begun in earnest as the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and ESPN report that Favre will return for his 15th season. Hopefully, there will be good news to report later today!

Dallas Series 0-2

Well, game two didn't exactly go how I wished it would have. After coming back from an 0-3 deficit in the first period to go ahead 4-3 in the second, the Avs tied the game late in the third and won in overtime. Now the Stars are down two games in the best of seven and headed to Denver for game 3 on Wednesday. Hopefully, I'll have report will have better news on Thursday morning.

Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday to my bro!

Take for Granted

The Stars performance today was what not to do in the first game of the Stanley Cup playoffs. Although they scored the first two goals; that's all they would score and the Avs would have five unanswered goals. I hope Monday's game will show some improvement.

Go Stars!

Well, as I mentioned in my last post, regular season is over, but not for those that made the playoffs! Go Stars!!!! (You might wonder why I'm a Stars fan. Good question. As a Minnesota native, and therefore a North Stars fan, I still feel an allegiance to the Stars who took up residence in Dallas in 1993. Hence, my continued affection for the Stars!)

Their first round, post-season schedule is as follows:

Sat, April 22 3:00 p.m.at Dallas (NBC)
Mon, April 24 9:00 p.m.at Dallas (OLN, TSN)
Wed, April 26 9:30 p.m.at Colorado (OLN, TSN)
Fri, April 28 10:00 p.m.at Colorado (OLN, TSN)
*Sun, April 30 2:00 p.m.at Dallas (NBC)
*Tue, May 2 TBDat Colorado (OLN, TSN)
*Thu, May 4 TBDat Dallas (OLN, TSN)
*if necessary
-- All times Eastern

Wife for Sale

Okay, so the title sounds a little alarming to some, and maybe overly enticing to others.

Anyway, it's not QUITE that bad, perhaps I'm being overly sensitive. So here's the question: Would you let your husband sell a picture of you? (exhibit a)

The verdict is out. What do you think? If you have an opinion, feel free to comment.

Caps Win 6-4!

Regular hockey season is over. We went to the final home game (second to last game of the season). The Caps beat the Atlanta Thrashers by a score of 6-4. It was an exciting game. The first Thrashers goal came 11 seconds into the game; needless to say, we thought we might be leaving early. However, the Caps persevered and came out winners. Olie Kolzig was the definitely a game star, saving 38 out of 42 shots on goal; Matt Pettinger had two goals; and rookie phenom Alexander Ovechkin scored his 52nd goal of the season. Let me put 52 goals in one season into perspective. Only two seasoned players had more goals this year: Jonathan Cheechoo (San Jose) with 56 goals and Jaromir Jagr (NY Rangers) with 54 goals. Ovechkin is just the second NHL rookie to post 50 goals and 100 points. Lest you think I'm overly fawning, expand "Player Notes" under his profile.

So, out of my eleven game season ticket package, I only saw three winning games. Please don't calculate my ROI.

Happy Easter!

We celebrated Easter with friends. What a blessing it is to have such wonderful friends. We played host to hidden Easter baskets, egg hunting, cupcake decorating and lots of fun in the yard. Brunch consisted of a baked egg dish, hash brown casserole, baked french toast, banana bread, cupcakes for the kids and individual bundt cakes for the adults. A beautiful fruit dish and center piece brought by friends topped the meal.

What a different a few months makes. No peeing incidences (see Thanksgiving)!

We hope you had a wonderful Easter too.

Headlines

Packer fans woke to headlines like, "Packers' Favre Will Declare Plans for '06 Season Today" or "Packers' Favre to announce his plans Saturday morning." However, after the delayed press conference in Tunica, Mississippi, at the Brett Favre Fourward Foundation's Celebrity Golf Tournament, the new headlines read, "Favre says he still hasn't decided on future" and "Favre still unsure if he will return next season."

So for now, Packer fans continue to patiently wait to see if their three-time MVP quarterback, who ranks second behind Dan Marino on the NFL’s career list in touchdown passes (396), yards passing (53,615) and completions (4,678); holds the NFL record for most consecutive starts for a quarterback with 221 (241 including the playoffs); has led the Packers to six division crowns; and helped the Packers win the 1997 Super Bowl in New Orleans, a 35-21 victory over New England, returning the Lombardi Trophy to Green Bay for the first time in 29 years, will play a 16th season.
MSNBC Slideshow "Fabulous Favre"

Make a Difference Month

Every year, the company I work for sponsors "Make a Difference Month." This is a time for us to give back to the community a little. This year's project was at the World Vision's Storehouse in Washington, DC. Our morning project was to help sort school supplies on to pallets.

Here's a little information about The Storehouse in Washington, D.C. It serves every public school in the city as well as private schools. Last year it provided school supplies to teachers, counselors, and therapists who put them into the hands of over 79,000 students.

Thanks to corporate donors, The Storehouse is able to keep its shelves stocked with valuable teaching tools and supplies that help even the playing field for students who struggle against poverty. Donors provide top-quality overstock and surplus products, which are distributed to schools in which at least 70 percent of students qualify for a subsidized meal program.

Local volunteers provide the necessary labor to keep the shelves stocked and inventory organized and easy to find for educators. Students from Marva Boatman’s Mamie D. Lee special education school also visit the center regularly through a community-based work program. Her students––ages 12 to 15––learn basic job skills by helping to keep the shelves well stocked and orderly.

My Favorite Time of Year!

This is always one of my very favorite times of the year in Washington.

Cherry Blossom Peak

Beautiful day to walk around the tidal basin in Washington, DC.

Happy Birthday!

In honor of St. Patrick's Day and Mom D's birthday; we're posting in green! Hope you have a very special day, Mom.

Shootout at the OK Corral, mmm...Verizon Center

The newly re-named Verizon Center was host to a very exciting hockey game between the Washington Capitals and the New Jersey Devils. With less than a minute to play, the Caps scored a goal to tie the game 3-3. With the new NHL rules this year, the game went into a 5-minute overtime. With no resulting score, the game then went to a shootout. Each team was given three shots. With each team scoring a goal and the score still tied after each team got three shots, then it went into "sudden death." With the first found of sudden death, each team scored; however, on the second shot of sudden death, the Devils scored and won the game 4-3. The NHL rules conclude that "regardless of the number of goals scored during the shootout portion of overtime, the final score recorded for the game will give the winning team one more goal." It was an exciting game, unfortunately, it would only have been better if the Caps had won!