I set up a wedding website through The Wedding Channel's program. There's not much there yet, but feel free to check it out from time to time.
http://doddsandpaalman.weddings.com
Saturday, May 27, 2006
General Update
It's been a little while since I wrote anything here. It's not really that I've been busy. I don't know. Things are kind of hectic around work. My office is getting boxed in more each day. We're set to move to the other location on June 7th. It should be interesting. Hopefully I'll have New London closed before then. It shouldn't be a problem. What will be the problem is finding everything once it gets over to the other office. *sigh* Why is packing so much more enjoyable than unpacking is?
On an unrelated topic, we've reserved a campsite down at Mirror Lake for the weekend of June 9th. It's down by Baraboo. I've never been to it so it should be interesting. It's the first of four planned camping weekends we've got for the summer. We're going to be trying out some new parks since Penninsula is booked up all summer.
Things seem to be all set for Monday. We'll be going shopping for our stuff today. I get to clean the house and make it all pretty tomorrow. Catherine will be staying with us until Thursday so hopefully the apartment won't be too scary.
The hamsters are doing fine. Pigster is acting kind of weird and has some "poo sticking to his butt" issues, but I think he's alright. Adam gave him a dose of the wet-tail stuff just in case. Barry broke two wheels already but his new one seems to be resilient enough. It's not that he's fat or anything. He just gives it all he's got while running. And he runs pretty much all night. He wore the poor wheels out. Duey is still kind of pudgy. He keeps tipping his wheel over. I tell him it's not going to do him much good laying on its side, but he keeps doing it. Howie just hangs out by himself. He's so easy-going.
We've been watching a lot of movies lately. The reviews are all up on my RT journal. I've also added a few new dishes to the cooking journal. I plan to make a crispy chicken parmesan this afternoon so that should be up sometime today.
On an unrelated topic, we've reserved a campsite down at Mirror Lake for the weekend of June 9th. It's down by Baraboo. I've never been to it so it should be interesting. It's the first of four planned camping weekends we've got for the summer. We're going to be trying out some new parks since Penninsula is booked up all summer.
Things seem to be all set for Monday. We'll be going shopping for our stuff today. I get to clean the house and make it all pretty tomorrow. Catherine will be staying with us until Thursday so hopefully the apartment won't be too scary.
The hamsters are doing fine. Pigster is acting kind of weird and has some "poo sticking to his butt" issues, but I think he's alright. Adam gave him a dose of the wet-tail stuff just in case. Barry broke two wheels already but his new one seems to be resilient enough. It's not that he's fat or anything. He just gives it all he's got while running. And he runs pretty much all night. He wore the poor wheels out. Duey is still kind of pudgy. He keeps tipping his wheel over. I tell him it's not going to do him much good laying on its side, but he keeps doing it. Howie just hangs out by himself. He's so easy-going.
We've been watching a lot of movies lately. The reviews are all up on my RT journal. I've also added a few new dishes to the cooking journal. I plan to make a crispy chicken parmesan this afternoon so that should be up sometime today.
Book Update
Current Progress: as of 5/27/2006
Days Gone: 147 (40.27%)
Books Read: 19(ish) (38.00%)
Pages Read: 6,488 (43.25%)
I finished up Son of the Circus and read The Lovely Bones. Both are up on the review site. Next up: The Little Friend by Donna Tartt.
Days Gone: 147 (40.27%)
Books Read: 19(ish) (38.00%)
Pages Read: 6,488 (43.25%)
I finished up Son of the Circus and read The Lovely Bones. Both are up on the review site. Next up: The Little Friend by Donna Tartt.
Wednesday, May 17, 2006
We've Got an Announcement
At dinner this evening Adam presented me with another ring. There WAS a question attached to this one. :) Of course, I said "yes" so we're engaged. Woo!
No, no dates or anything yet. As soon as we figure it out we'll let everyone know. We're thinking late summer/early fall 2007.
Sunday, May 14, 2006
New York, New York
Ok, so technically that title should be "Buffalo, New York", but that's not a song, now is it.
We headed out for my sister's graduation on Wednesday afternoon. We flew on a teeny plane from Appleton to Buffalo through Cincinnati. Totally uncomfortable, but we made it. We actually arrived about 10 minutes early in Buffalo. We picked up the one bag we checked and headed over to the rental car desk. The lady at the counter took one look at Adam and upgraded us to an SUV. It was a Suzuki. It was a sweet car. Adam really liked it and was complaining last night how he missed his radio controls on the steering wheel. After some navigational adventures we managed to find our hotel. It just happened to be right down the street from the HSBC arena where the Sabers were playing. We just happened to arrive right in the middle of the traffic jam created when crazy hockey fans leave a game in which their team was victorious.
When we arrived at our hotel we immediately noticed it was a little too high-class for our tastes. They had valet parking and really no way to stop and check in without just kind of parking on the side of the circular driveway. When we checked in we discovered that the king-size non-smoking room we had confirmed just hours earlier was a "request" rather than a "guarantee" and we had a double instead. Adam kind of went off on the desk workers but eventually we got the keys and headed to the parking garage. After some elevator confusion we got to the room and almost immediately headed back down to the bar. We spent a couple hours there, most of which were disturbed by two blondes who were being shamelessly hit on by old men. When they revealed they worked for Victoria's Secret I thought I was going to have to ask the bartender for a mop to clean up the drool. Heh. Anyway, we headed back to the room and attemped to sleep. When you're used to a queen size bed it's kind of hard to adjust to being right on top of the other person. Many sides and heads were elbowed, Adam claims I pushed him out of the bed once (which I don't believe), and the night was generally not very restful.
We woke up on Thursday morning to a very loud alarm. About two minutes after it went off I got a call from my brother about breakfast. We hadn't expected everyone else to be so organized. After showering we headed downstairs. We discovered we hadn't activated our parking pass and we couldn't get out of the garage. I ran back to the front desk, but even after it was activated it wouldn't let us out. When we were finally freed from the garage we headed up to the Original Pancake House. After heading the wrong direction off the freeway, we finally arrived. We were totally late. Everyone met everyone else and now Adam has met everyone in my family. After breakfast we headed to the Albright-Knox and the Science museums with my brother and sister-in-law. We headed over to the Chinese restaurant where lunch was to be held and we were actually early until Evan and Jodi realized they didn't have their gifts. So we made a trip back to their hotel and by the time we got back to the restaurant everyone else was there. *sigh* After more food and conversation we ran to the car through the pouring rain and went to a local mall for a while. Then it was off to the graduation ceremony. Amazingly enough we found the rest of our group pretty easily. The ceremony itself wasn't that bad. It ran a little less than 2 hours and the speaker was one of the best I've ever seen. It was actually entertaining to listen to. Aside from some disturbing children (about whom Jodi tells me she plans to blog), and the uncomfortable seats, it was an ok time. After tracking down the graduate, we headed back to the hotel and played a few rounds of Chronology. Then Adam and I headed back to our hotel and went to bed. This time we each took one bed to avoid the chaos of the previous night. I think we both slept a lot better.
We got up bright and early on Friday to go have breakfast with everyone before Evan and Jodi went to catch their flight to Houston. We did the Mother's Day thing since it was so close and said our good-byes. After Evan and Jodi took off, the rest of us decided to meet up for lunch and head to Niagara Falls before Adam and I had to leave. It was great weather for the Falls. We parked on the US side and walked across the Rainbow Bridge into Canada. We stopped for lunch and then walked a ways down the path. We also stopped at the Hershey store on the way back. Then it was time to head back to Buffalo. We had to pay to get back into the United States. They charge you 50 cents to get back in. What a load of crap... Anyway, after sneaking some Cuban cigars through customs (shhh, don't tell anyone) we went back to Buffalo and made it to the airport with plenty of time to spare. Our flights back to Appleton were uneventful considering that Adam's dad had called earlier in the day to tell us Cincinnati was under 6 inches of water. Both flights actually arrived at their destinations early and there was really not a whole lot of turbulence. Adam's dad met us at the airport and after some visiting at their house we headed back home to unpack and unwind. All the hamsters were in their cages and looked like they hadn't even noticed we had been gone.
All in all it was a good trip. Everything went pretty smoothly and the weather was a lot better than it was supposed to have been. Adam is putting his pictures on CD at work today so they'll be posted on the photobucket site soon. Evan already has his up at Doddsnet.
We headed out for my sister's graduation on Wednesday afternoon. We flew on a teeny plane from Appleton to Buffalo through Cincinnati. Totally uncomfortable, but we made it. We actually arrived about 10 minutes early in Buffalo. We picked up the one bag we checked and headed over to the rental car desk. The lady at the counter took one look at Adam and upgraded us to an SUV. It was a Suzuki. It was a sweet car. Adam really liked it and was complaining last night how he missed his radio controls on the steering wheel. After some navigational adventures we managed to find our hotel. It just happened to be right down the street from the HSBC arena where the Sabers were playing. We just happened to arrive right in the middle of the traffic jam created when crazy hockey fans leave a game in which their team was victorious.
When we arrived at our hotel we immediately noticed it was a little too high-class for our tastes. They had valet parking and really no way to stop and check in without just kind of parking on the side of the circular driveway. When we checked in we discovered that the king-size non-smoking room we had confirmed just hours earlier was a "request" rather than a "guarantee" and we had a double instead. Adam kind of went off on the desk workers but eventually we got the keys and headed to the parking garage. After some elevator confusion we got to the room and almost immediately headed back down to the bar. We spent a couple hours there, most of which were disturbed by two blondes who were being shamelessly hit on by old men. When they revealed they worked for Victoria's Secret I thought I was going to have to ask the bartender for a mop to clean up the drool. Heh. Anyway, we headed back to the room and attemped to sleep. When you're used to a queen size bed it's kind of hard to adjust to being right on top of the other person. Many sides and heads were elbowed, Adam claims I pushed him out of the bed once (which I don't believe), and the night was generally not very restful.
We woke up on Thursday morning to a very loud alarm. About two minutes after it went off I got a call from my brother about breakfast. We hadn't expected everyone else to be so organized. After showering we headed downstairs. We discovered we hadn't activated our parking pass and we couldn't get out of the garage. I ran back to the front desk, but even after it was activated it wouldn't let us out. When we were finally freed from the garage we headed up to the Original Pancake House. After heading the wrong direction off the freeway, we finally arrived. We were totally late. Everyone met everyone else and now Adam has met everyone in my family. After breakfast we headed to the Albright-Knox and the Science museums with my brother and sister-in-law. We headed over to the Chinese restaurant where lunch was to be held and we were actually early until Evan and Jodi realized they didn't have their gifts. So we made a trip back to their hotel and by the time we got back to the restaurant everyone else was there. *sigh* After more food and conversation we ran to the car through the pouring rain and went to a local mall for a while. Then it was off to the graduation ceremony. Amazingly enough we found the rest of our group pretty easily. The ceremony itself wasn't that bad. It ran a little less than 2 hours and the speaker was one of the best I've ever seen. It was actually entertaining to listen to. Aside from some disturbing children (about whom Jodi tells me she plans to blog), and the uncomfortable seats, it was an ok time. After tracking down the graduate, we headed back to the hotel and played a few rounds of Chronology. Then Adam and I headed back to our hotel and went to bed. This time we each took one bed to avoid the chaos of the previous night. I think we both slept a lot better.
We got up bright and early on Friday to go have breakfast with everyone before Evan and Jodi went to catch their flight to Houston. We did the Mother's Day thing since it was so close and said our good-byes. After Evan and Jodi took off, the rest of us decided to meet up for lunch and head to Niagara Falls before Adam and I had to leave. It was great weather for the Falls. We parked on the US side and walked across the Rainbow Bridge into Canada. We stopped for lunch and then walked a ways down the path. We also stopped at the Hershey store on the way back. Then it was time to head back to Buffalo. We had to pay to get back into the United States. They charge you 50 cents to get back in. What a load of crap... Anyway, after sneaking some Cuban cigars through customs (shhh, don't tell anyone) we went back to Buffalo and made it to the airport with plenty of time to spare. Our flights back to Appleton were uneventful considering that Adam's dad had called earlier in the day to tell us Cincinnati was under 6 inches of water. Both flights actually arrived at their destinations early and there was really not a whole lot of turbulence. Adam's dad met us at the airport and after some visiting at their house we headed back home to unpack and unwind. All the hamsters were in their cages and looked like they hadn't even noticed we had been gone.
All in all it was a good trip. Everything went pretty smoothly and the weather was a lot better than it was supposed to have been. Adam is putting his pictures on CD at work today so they'll be posted on the photobucket site soon. Evan already has his up at Doddsnet.
Book Update
Current Progress: as of 5/14/2006
Days Gone: 134 (36.71%)
Books Read: 17(ish) (34.00%)
Pages Read: 5,527 (36.85%)
Finished How I Paid for College and have started Irving's A Son of the Circus. It didn't come very highly recommended by my fellow Irving aficionados (my siblings) but I carry on and attempt to read it anyway. If I could get through The Water Method Man I think I can handle an Indian orthopedic surgeon who is obsessed with circus midgets.
Days Gone: 134 (36.71%)
Books Read: 17(ish) (34.00%)
Pages Read: 5,527 (36.85%)
Finished How I Paid for College and have started Irving's A Son of the Circus. It didn't come very highly recommended by my fellow Irving aficionados (my siblings) but I carry on and attempt to read it anyway. If I could get through The Water Method Man I think I can handle an Indian orthopedic surgeon who is obsessed with circus midgets.
Friday, May 05, 2006
Oscar Movie Progress
A History of Violence
Batman Begins
Brokeback Mountain
Capote
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Cinderella Man
Crash
Good Night, and Good Luck.
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
Howl’s Moving Castle
Hustle & Flow
Junebug
King Kong
Match Point
Memoirs of a Geisha
Mrs. Henderson Presents
Munich
North Country
Pride & Prejudice
Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith
Syriana
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
The Constant Gardener
The New World
The Squid and the Whale
Tim Burton’s Corpse Bride
Transamerica
Walk the Line
Wallace & Gromit in The Curse of the Were-Rabbit
War of the Worlds
We'll be renting A History of Violence and Transamerica tonight and we plan to go see Batman Begins at the Big Picture on Sunday.
Batman Begins
Brokeback Mountain
Capote
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Cinderella Man
Crash
Good Night, and Good Luck.
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
Howl’s Moving Castle
Hustle & Flow
Junebug
King Kong
Match Point
Memoirs of a Geisha
Mrs. Henderson Presents
Munich
North Country
Pride & Prejudice
Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith
Syriana
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
The Constant Gardener
The New World
The Squid and the Whale
Tim Burton’s Corpse Bride
Transamerica
Walk the Line
Wallace & Gromit in The Curse of the Were-Rabbit
War of the Worlds
We'll be renting A History of Violence and Transamerica tonight and we plan to go see Batman Begins at the Big Picture on Sunday.
Wednesday, May 03, 2006
Book (and other) Update(s)
Current Progress: as of 5/3/2006
Days Gone: 123 (33.70%)
Books Read: 15(ish) (30.00%)
Pages Read: 5,094 (33.96%)
Woo! Finally my pages read is more than the days gone! I'm ahead of the game. At least for now...
Anyway, I just finished The Time Traveler's Wife. It is one of the best books I've read in quite a while. I'd absolutely recommend that everyone go out and read it. :)
In other news... not much is happening. The lack of blog postings should be an indication of that. I've been trying to go on a diet and exercise more but so far nothing seems to be happening. It gets me bummed sometimes. Especially when Jodi goes and posts on her blog about how eating healthy and being fit is so easy. (Heh, just kidding, Jodi. Kinda...) *sigh*
In still other news... The Big Kmart is officially defunct. They took down the letters off the front of the building about a month ago now. They redid the boards behind them and are in the process of repainting the entire building a dark red color. The lighted sign on the tall pole was taken down yesterday and replaced with a blue "Sears Grand" sign. The end of an era... Pffft. Just about no one expects the Kmart moonlighting as a Sears to do any better than the Kmart as itself did. You can dress it up anyway you like but in the long run, it's still the same store. But then again that might just be my bitterness talking.
Other than that I'm just living life, waiting for my mini-vacation next week.
Days Gone: 123 (33.70%)
Books Read: 15(ish) (30.00%)
Pages Read: 5,094 (33.96%)
Woo! Finally my pages read is more than the days gone! I'm ahead of the game. At least for now...
Anyway, I just finished The Time Traveler's Wife. It is one of the best books I've read in quite a while. I'd absolutely recommend that everyone go out and read it. :)
In other news... not much is happening. The lack of blog postings should be an indication of that. I've been trying to go on a diet and exercise more but so far nothing seems to be happening. It gets me bummed sometimes. Especially when Jodi goes and posts on her blog about how eating healthy and being fit is so easy. (Heh, just kidding, Jodi. Kinda...) *sigh*
In still other news... The Big Kmart is officially defunct. They took down the letters off the front of the building about a month ago now. They redid the boards behind them and are in the process of repainting the entire building a dark red color. The lighted sign on the tall pole was taken down yesterday and replaced with a blue "Sears Grand" sign. The end of an era... Pffft. Just about no one expects the Kmart moonlighting as a Sears to do any better than the Kmart as itself did. You can dress it up anyway you like but in the long run, it's still the same store. But then again that might just be my bitterness talking.
Other than that I'm just living life, waiting for my mini-vacation next week.
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