I am getting worse at this!

OK! I know I vowed to keep this blog more current, but I do have an excuse! Since the last time I updated this page, I have been to:

• Austin, TX
• Fresno, CA
• Ogden, UT
• Dallas, TX
• Kansas City, MO

As you can see, my travel schedule for work has kept me hopping! It has been a while since I have had to travel so much for work, and I seem to find it more of a chore than I have in the past. One good thing - I did get to spend an evening with my nephew, Jason, in Salt Lake City. It appears there is some additional trips on the horizon, but it looks like I will be home for a couple of weeks.

No real exciting news from here. I have been working on a new web site for the Autumn Creek Ranch Property Owners Association and Mimi has been preparing for the spring craft shows. I will post her anticipated show date/times here soon. Other than that, all I do is wash clothes, pack for the next business trip, and catch a plane!

Stay warm! Spring is coming...........

The Winter Blues

I am not starting the New Year right! It has been some time since I updated my blog, so I need to get busy! It appears that 2008 is going to be the year that I travel a lot. My blog is going to sound like a travel log! I spent January 14-18 in New Orleans. It was the first time I have been back there in about 20 years. I stayed in the French Quarter in the Chateau Sonesta. Decent place, but a little too close to Bourbon Street for me! I was in an outside room and had the loud bar music well into the night. The days were filled with BORING meetings, but did get out each night to hear some music, eat some great food, etc.

I finally got a little stretch at home the last couple of weeks. The weather has not been too bad here, but just cold and dreary enough to let you know it is winter. Nothing compared to the temperature at our place in Colorado, though!

Mimi has been working on building her inventory up for her 2008 craft shows. She is planning to do several shows this year. She is working on some new items, so stay tuned!

We saw two movies since I last updated the blog - Michael Clayton and Mad Money. Michael Clayton was so boring I fell asleep, but Mad Money was pretty good.

Other than that - nothing but work (it is filing season, you know!). Till next time.

Happy New Year

I know it has been a while since my last post, but I really do have a good excuse! It has been a busy post-Christmas season. So --- just a few minutes to catch everyone up.

Mimi & I went out to Colorado December 29 - January 6th. We had a good visit with several of our friends and neighbors at Autumn Creek. We learned a few new things and spent some time renewing our spirit! I have listed a few of these experiences in no particular order.

1. When the water/anti-freeze in the drain traps evaporates (or maybe I did not put enough liquid in the traps when we closed down the house in July), you end up with fairly unpleasant smells in the house. Luckily, it did not last for long! Hard to air out the house in the winter, though!
2. We learned a LOT about the New World Order. It is a conspiracy theory that I do not choose to embrace or believe, but it certainly made for interesting conversation.
3. We discovered that we are not very talented at keeping a constant temperature in the house using a wood stove! When we arrived, the house was a chilly 50 degrees. During the week, we got it as warm as 86! Who says it cannot feel like the middle of summer during the dead of winter in Colorado?!?
4. We discussed the Taylor Ranch Uranium Project with several of our neighbors. If you have not heard, an Australia mining company is drilling for uranium on Waugh mountain (very close to our place). For more information, you can read about it in the Autumn Creek Forum.
5. We marveled at the beauty of nature. We saw plenty of wildlife during our outings and enjoyed the beautiful snow covered peaks.
6. Lastly, we thoroughly enjoyed spending some time together - reading a book, snuggling by the fire, cooking dinner, talking a walk, etc.

On January 4th, we headed up to Ft. Collins to spend a couple of days with Dad and Nancy. We had a good visit. We went on the First Friday Art Walk, went to a movie (that was a bust!), and just spent some time catching up.

Back home on January 6th. I washed clothes and then headed out on business! I spent Monday and Tuesday in Austin, TX. On Wednesday, I went to Fresno, CA and stayed until Friday.

This weekend was a whirlwind of activity. We spent most of the weekend catching up on laundry, taking down the Christmas decorations, etc. We did manage to squeeze in a movie on Saturday - Charlie Wilson's War . Not the best movie I have ever seen, but it was interesting...

Well, I have rambled long enough! Till next time........

The Christmas Shopping is Done!

As usual, I saved my Christmas shopping for Mimi until the last moment! As of 2:30p on December 23rd, I am officially done!

I know - I am weird, but I actually enjoy hitting the stores at the last minute and picking out Mimi's Christmas gifts. I usually have a rough idea of what I am going to get her, so it is does not take that long. Good thing since I normally despise shopping! However, during the last minutes before Christmas, I do enjoy the energy level in the stores, the kids are all jumping around, and I like the people watching. I was a little surprised about how laid back it was this year. The malls were busy, but not crowded. I did not have to do "combat parking" - I actually parked very close. The sales were not as good as I expected - have the stores figured out that the people shopping at the last minute are desperate? However, I found everything I was looking for. How good is that?

Well, I am going to put my feet up and see if I can find a football game.

I hope everyone has a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.......

The Christmas Party

Our annual Christmas party is a major event for Mimi. It is not unusual for her to start planning several months in advance. She spends countless hours baking and decorating cookies, planning a full buffet, and decking out the house. Many of our friends are scattered around the metro area from Warrensburg, VA to Annapolis, MD to Martinsburg, WV. This is our opportunity to see friends we only get to see once or twice a year.

This year, Mimi got a special treat. Her mother, May, arrived on Tuesday to help Mimi get ready for the party. It was perfect timing! Mimi was in class all week and was not getting home until after six. Mimi had done a lot of prep work (i.e., making cookie dough, etc.), so her mother took care of baking during the day and Mimi continued her efforts after work.

Friday and Saturday were the typical frantic days. Mimi took off work and went into high gear. With the help of mother and friends (and some help from me!), everything was finished and we were ready for the party on Saturday night!

We had a little bit of a scare with the weather. Possible ice and sleet was predicted to roll in about dusk. I had visions of eating leftovers for a month! Luckily, the Weather Service was wrong and we had a great turnout. I think there was somewhere between 45 - 60 people that made it this year. For a brief moment, I thought we might run out of food! OK, it was only a brief moment. It was probably the closest we came in a quite a few years!

Everyone appeared to have good time. Old friends, some new friends, co-workers, and neighbors made there way here and gave Mimi her "party fix" for another year. As much as we enjoy it, I am glad we do not do it more often. I was beat the next day.........

It is easy to get caught up in the trappings of the season, but there are certainly some nice benefits. Spending time with our family and friends is certainly at the top of this list!

I have been busy!

It has been extremely busy since the last time I posted to the web site, so I will try and catch up! I sent the week of November 25th in San Diego for a manager's meeting. The weather was great and we managed to keep the meetings to eight hours a day, so we were able to enjoy the city in the evening. Had some great sea food and enjoyed seeing the harbor lit up for Christmas.

The real fun started on the 30th. I got up at 4:30 am to catch an early flight home. Arrived about 3:30pm. I took a cab from the airport to Budget truck rental. I rented a van and drove home. Mimi was waiting for me. We loaded up the truck and went over to the Wakefield Rec Center to set up Mimi's booth for the craft show. Finished about 8:00pm, went and got a bite to eat, and then came home. What a long day!



Mimi worked at the craft show both Saturday and Sunday. I did not stay the whole time - went in to spell her a couple of times and did a little Christmas shopping. On Saturday night, we decided to rearrange the booth since we did not like the way we set it up.
On Sunday morning, we completed setup. Mimi and her friend Deirdre worked the booth and I went out to get the Christmas tree. The craft show ended at four, so I went to help Mimi breakdown, load/unload the truck, and return the rental van. All in all, Mimi did really well and made a dent in her inventory.

The week of December 2 was fairly uneventful. I spent time on several projects at work. Nothing exciting, but interesting enough to make the days go by fast. This weekend, we went to see the move Enchanted, went to the Sugar Loaf Craft Festival, and spent the remainder of the weekend getting ready for our big Christmas party next week. Will give an update on the party next week.

Well, I better get back to work! I need to pay bills and then go see what my next assignment is - I think quality control testing the cookies Mimi is baking should be my top priority! Till next time....

The Thanksgiving Holiday is over

As I write this, we are down to the last few hours of the holiday weekend. We had an enjoyable time the last few days. On Wednesday night, we went to see Beowulf. I can't say that I was that impressed. The animation was great, but the story line was slow and character development was weak. We went early enough to get the matinee price, so was not a total loss {grin}.

Turkey Day was busy. We cooked all morning and had some neighbors over to celebrate with us. After cleaning up the kitchen, I snoozed and watched football the rest of the afternoon.

It was back to work on Friday. Mimi is out of leave and I decided to just go ahead and work. I did get to work at home, so that made it a little more bearable.

I was really lazy on Saturday. Did not get up until about 10. Of course, it could be that I played on the computer until late on Friday since I could not sleep. We went out to lunchat Chevy's, but managed to avoid the crowds at the stores. Later in the day, we went to see another movie, Mr. Magorium's Magic Emporium with some friends. It was a great movie. It was very well done and a lot of fun. Went to Frank's for dinner afterward.

Sunday was laundry day and Mimi getting ready for her next craft show. I watched a close game between Washington and Tampa Bay. Washington played a great second half, but could not make up for their mistakes in the first half. Finally, we went out for Chinese food tonight with some friends.

I feel like I gained 100 pounds this weekend, but it was nice to spend time with friends. I also got a good football fix in (did not list all the games I watched). And the biggest bonus was I did not go into a single store this weekend!

Anyway, hope everyone had an enjoyable holiday!