Thanksgiving in Boise

This Thanksgiving week I flew with Emily from Oakland, CA to Boise, ID. We drove to the airport together early in the morning Saturday the 19th. It was a quick one hour flight, and before we knew it Chuck was greeting us in the welcoming area at the Boise airport. We grabbed our luggage and headed over to my parent's house. That first day felt like the whole week would go by so leisurely- but looking back over the time it just flew by!

I was lucky to get so much in over the 9 days there. I went out with friends several nights. I had a great time with Chelsie, Andrej and Wes out at Twigs Cellar in downtown Boise. A very quaint wine store where we got a chance to catch up. Afterwards they drove us to Old Chicago in the Ambulance- what a kick! I posted "Always better to arrive in an Ambulance than leave in one!"

Sunday I went to Church with Mom and Dad and then met up with Jenn for lunch at Fork. We spent most of the afternoon just catching up- it was very nice to get so much time with Jenn!

Monday I stopped by my house and helped the guys that came to trim the trees and remove the volunteer trees that needed to be removed. It looked so much better once they were done! That afternoon I went shopping with Mom, Emily and Chuck. Mom got me all sorts of great clothes for Christmas! (I even got to bring some home with me early- yeah!)

Tuesday I spent the day catching up with my friends at Boise State University. I couldn't believe how long I was there chatting with friends I haven't seen in such a long time. That evening I got Mom hooked on Once Upon A Time, my favorite show this season. Revenge has also been very good...

By the time Wednesday came around I hadn't jogged yet, so I went for an 18 mile jog up the greenbelt from my parents house to Boise State University. I thought I'd have a little fun along the way; so I posted to facebook that whoever guessed my mileage the closest I'd buy them lunch. Trisha guessed 18, second highest only to Emily who guessed 22! haha! So I owe Trisha lunch here before too long.

I was so tired and sore after the 18 miles, I wasn't much help setting up the furniture. Fortunately this year Chuck was home and he moved most of the things he could. Emily helped Mom prepare the silverware and place settings. Before I knew it everything was set for Thanksgiving!

That afternoon I took Mom, Dad, Chuck and Emily to the Trans-Siberian orchestra at the Pavilion. It was really cool. The show was a little long for me, there was a running theme and story. Mostly I was there for the music, and it was very good. Here's a picture of Emily and Chuck before the concert began.

Thanksgiving Day happened quickly as always. Just as I finished cutting up the turkey and helping Mom prepare items in the kitchen (and this year, Emily made the stuffing) people started showing up. Yes, Rick, Carrie and Mont were first. Dad opened up the meal with a very nice tribute to the family members. He spoke about each person there and said the nicest things. It was really very wonderful; I think he had us all teary eyed.

That evening Chuck, Emily and me went over to Casey and Kari's house for cards with them and Kari's little brother. We had quite a fun debate over the rules of the new game Chuck had learned from Chris "Shanghai". Apparently there's MANY versions. It was fun, regardless.

Friday I played some racquetball with my Dad. He beat me 3 games in a row. Dang it! I spent the day putting up Christmas lights on the outside of the house for Mom (her yearly Christmas request) and then brought down all the decorations from the attic. Dad put up the tree and Mom decorated the house. It was a nice day with my parents. I went out that night to PF Changs with Andrej, Wes, Kevin, Dan, Chuck, Emily and another couple that were friends of Wes and Andrej. Dinner was delish! Then we hit up Barbacoa for some drinks. It was pretty fancy after the remodel following the fire that gutted the restaurant earlier this year.

Saturday I visited with my friend Jami who had just returned from a trip to Hawaii with her husband Jason. They had such an amazing time! I felt lucky to see all the pictures and memorabilia first hand. Then I grabbed some Costa Vida before heading over to my Aunt Erni's house to have dinner with Chuck, Emily, Mom, Dad, Matt, Artesia, Madeline, Sophie, Clara, and Doc. It was nice hanging out with them. Artesia really showed us how to play Shanghai! Chuck and Emily turned in for the evening after that so I was left to cause mischief and trouble in Boise on my own. I met up with Skylar and Chelsie at the Reef. I met Jeremy there- it was a wonderful last Saturday night in Boise.

Sunday morning was a rush to get everything together in time for my flight, but I managed to do it- somehow!? It was a nice long trip to Boise and made very special with Emily, Chuck and my parents. I'm already looking forward to Christmas in Boise less than a month to go...

New York

Ever since I heard the NPR Fresh Air Interview on the new Broadway play The Book of Mormon I've been planning a trip to New York City. I'm so very lucky to not only have family in New York, but in Manhattan and family that I LOVE!

My cousin Kali and her husband Andy moved back to the upper east side in Manhattan earlier this year and so I was able to stay with them. The first night we had an amazing dinner at Rosa Mexicano and then Andy took us to a local speak easy. How crazy was that- we knocked on a door in a basement and the guy opens the door and says "How many" we say "Three" he says "We don't have room" and closes the door. We wait a bit and then he opens it again and says "How many?" and we say "Three" and he says "Ok, come in." It was such a dark and small venue but in the back there was a small kitchen/bar area where we ordered drinks and talked. The bartender was dressed in 1920's style and did a great job making drinks.

Saturday morning Kali and I went jogging in Central Park which was absolutely beautiful with the leaves changing color. As always, it was nice jogging and chatting with Kali. After our jog we walked past the Metropolitan Museum and then grabbed a Starbucks. What a perfect New York Saturday morning!

After getting ready for the day, we headed out on the subway for the WTC. It was phenomenal seeing Freedom Tower half way built and towering above the other buildings. It was great timing to be in NYC for the Occupy Wall Street movement. I got to see the movement first hand and see the people, tents, signs, police and crowds all first hand! Then we did some much needed retail therapy at century 21 and I picked up a new dress shirt and some 2XST undies. Finally we headed back to Kali's place to rest and then get ready for going to the Broadway play!

The Book of Mormon was absolutely everything I expected and then so much more. It's an expensive trip just for a play, but I want to just to see it again. It was that good. I laughed, I teared up, I clapped and I sang along. And in all of that, I was one with the audience. Yes, the literal credibility of Mormonism was challenged but it wasn't cynical. The 'point' that I took away from the play was really whatever you believe in life is ok, if that's what helps give you purpose.


After the show there was no time to dilly dally; we had to meet up with Andy and his friends who were out celebrating Billy's birthday at the Lambs Club. What a blast! Billy and his wife Liz are a great time! We chatted and drank all evening, and I ended up meeting some guys from Sonoma and San Francisco at the same bar in New York City! Small world! Then we bounced around to some different clubs and ended up back at Kali and Andy's house early the next morning.

Sunday was a nice relaxing day in the city. Kali and I went to Central Park and watched the 2011 New York Marathon runners finishing up the race. Kali was oddly enthusiastic cheering on the runners. Then we checked out Highline Park- what an amazing idea! The city took an old elevated railway and turned it into an elevated walk along park. Brilliant idea! That evening we got ready and headed out to see Avenue Q. I'd heard some of the songs from Kali earlier that year so I had an idea of what to expect. The puppets were great and the story was very cute. I enjoyed the adult themed play very much. It was a great laugh.

After the play we went through Times Square and made our way to Magnolia Bakery where we nabbed some red velvet cupcakes just as they were closing and enjoyed them at Rockerfeller plaza.

A California Halloween

This year I decided to go all out and throw a Halloween party. It wouldn't have been possible without the extra effort by Emily, Chuck and Emma. Thanks to each of you for all your help in making this party a reality! I couldn't have done everything on my own. Having some experience with how these things should go... I got to work in September ordering the reams of black construction paper (to cover the walls) and black plastic (to cover the floors). The most fun was getting the music together and finding that G-Force (my favorite music visualizer) has a current version that works for iTunes and even stand alone on my PC. I also had a lot of fun shopping for all the small party favors with Emma. One of the best things about this Halloween was that my brother Chuck flew in from Boise to surprise my friend and his girlfriend Emily! That Friday night we carved pumpkins to put out front for the party.


Saturday we spent the whole day working on the final party preparations. Emma made some FABULOUS jello shots (THANKS EMMA!) while Chuck, Emily and me put up the black construction paper. Phew- that was a lot of work! Then Emma did an awesome job painting up some black light reflective art on the walls for a very Halloween appropriate effect.


We got the black lights setup, the fog machine going, the pumpkins out front, beer fridge stocked with appropriate adult beverages, candy and food on the table and the music bumping just in time for Peter, Michelle, Annette and Aaron to arrive early and take a few pictures. There were football players, comic book heroes, Disney characters, VAMPIRES; you name it they were there!


It was a great night with good friends and family and made for a wonderful Halloween. You know it's a good party when it ends with me blowing up my subwoofer! Definitely time to invest in a state of the art sound system. Now the only question is what am I going to be next year...!?

Six Flags Fright Night

Today I met up with Peter, Michelle, Jason and Kevin. We went to Six Flags "Discovery Kingdom" in Vallejo, CA. The park is having a special event called Fright Night. Starting at 6:30pm they have a short performance of Zombies with an end result of them being released upon the park to haunt and terrorize the park goers. It was the perfect occasion because apparently there had been a cheer conference that day and there were hundreds of Junior and Senior high cheerleaders wandering the park. Once the Zombies were let loose upon them, there was screaming and running and general terror and chaos. It was fun!!!

Earlier in the day Peter, Jason, Kevin and me went on the Medusa roller coaster ride. I was nervous as I'm not the type to go on the roller coasters that go upside down. Totally not my thing- but I did it and survived! I don't think I breathed in the whole time; just a lot of screaming and holding my breath.

Then everyone else went on the roller coaster where your legs hang out the bottom and it goes upside down in a cork screw fashion. I'm glad I skipped that one- ugh! Upset stomach for sure!

I was thrilled with the quality of the pictures my new iPhone 4S takes. All the pictures here were from my phone. Even the one where the roller coaster was zooming along about 45 miles per hour and you can see Peter in the picture. That's pretty cool.

It was a great day- I'm glad we got season passes!

Occupy Wallstreet

Today I thought I'd go see in person what all the hubbub was about in the news with the Occupy Wall Street protests. The general sentiment of the nation on these protests I think is best summed up by this picture circulating on facebook:

I can't say I agreed with everything the people were protesting- but I do feel strongly we need further government oversight of our financial sector. Rachel Maddow had a great perspective in her October 13th show. Right now, Obama is trying to get a "Jobs" bill through that would create jobs by putting people to work on our decaying infrastructure. However, what are Republicans working on? Federally they spent the day putting a THRID ban on abortion funding. It's already stopped, twice in fact. But they spent today putting a third ban in place, yes, the entire day. At the state level? Well Wisconsin has made it more difficult if not impossible for the next election cycle. In the words of the poll workers who did a test run "It's very, very confusing". At the local level? Well in Florida, Republicans have pushed through a change with the drinking water so that Fluoride will no longer be added to their water supply. Because as we all know instead of reducing tooth decay by an estimated 40%, Fluoride actually is a form of government sponsored mind control... oh please!

At a time when our nation needs to be focused on the economy and the President is encouraging this, these are the things Republicans are working on. I was very glad to be in attendance and stand in solidarity with the Occupy Wall Street movement in San Francisco.

iPhone 4S

Today I went into work as usual... and promptly went home! My new iPhone 4S was on it's way to my house and I couldn't stand the thought of missing it! I actually was rather productive in the morning, but as the day wore on I was more and more anxious that perhaps it was delayed or shipped to the wrong address. UPS made me wait until 5:15PM before they delivered it. Well, it's here now and I'm THRILLED!

White, 64GB, 8 mega pixel camera, 1080p HD, iOS5, Siri (voice command and recognition software), Dual Core A5 processors, iCloud, iMessage, Notification Center and tons of new features. Yes, I'm in geeky iPhone heaven. ^_^

Sonoma County Harvest Festival

This weekend was the Sonoma County Harvest Festival at the fairgrounds in Santa Rosa. Pictured above is Emily, Michelle, Peter, me and Emma. Michelle drove us up so the rest of us could enjoy the wines! There were so many things to do! There were booths with fresh honey, wine sauces for desert, cooking, everything you could think of. I ended up buying two desert wine sauces and a chipotle barbecue sauce.

We all had a great time sampling the different wines available to us; especially the booth that Emily knew the hostess! They just kept pouring and pouring and pouring... we all REALLY enjoyed that booth! ^_^

After the Harvest Festival in Santa Rosa, Emily and me went to the Sonoma State University Harvest Festival put on by Prelude at the Green Music Center. There was a nice spread of appetizers to enjoy and we each got our own collectible Lagunitas mug complete with Lagunitas beer.
It was a nice event and fun way to ring in the Harvest season!