the old haunts

one of the things i was most looking forward to with out trip to salt lake city was seeing all the old places again. i spent two years living there and became quite familiar with that town. i was excited to see some of these old places again, but also excited to show diana the places i would often tell stories about. she had never visited before, but was often inundated with my stories about my old apartments, the old coffee shop i worked at (which was also my church), my old school i taught at, and even the comic book shop i loved! it was great to see the old haunts, but it was kind of weird too. some places were just as i remembered them, and some places were gone all together!
i stopped by the coffee shop/church, my old apartments, and the school i worked at.

tune talk

after we had a great time at dinner, diana and i headed over to sean and rachael's house. they had moved since last i visited, so it was fun trying to find their new house. we punched the address into our gps, which started a new round of a little game i like to play called 'the gps is wrong'. now, granted, a gps is supposed to know all the roads in the entire country and give the best ways to get to any given destination, but i often find that it does not always do that. diana always gets so annoyed with me because i think i know a better route than the gps does. the thing is though, i'm usually right! (diana will tell you the opposite...) i've been out of salt lake city for over 7 years, but i'm pretty sure i still know my way to the highway from where we were, and it wasnt the way the gps was telling us! so, after about 10 minutes of fighting the directions it gave (going the right way instead of what it said) i felt like i had gotten us to the right area, so then i followed its directing. eventually we made it to their house, taking the most direct route (thanks to my skills at correcting the gps).
we got there and all hung out around the kitchen table. rachael took us on a tour of the place and we got to see their beautiful home- very impressive! it made diana and i realize just how small of a place we have been living in! we stayed up for a bit playing with their dogs and chatting some more, reliving the old glory days. eventually we got on the topic of music (as sean and i always seem to do!), after about the first half hour of music talk, the girls opted to head to their beds. rachael had to work in the morning, and i think diana was just bored... both sean and i then pulled out our laptops and compared bands we have discovered since i moved. we ended up making a good music swap list for each other, sharing our own treasured music gems! finally exhaustion set in and we both called it a night.
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full of laughs and pasta

tuesday night we finally arrived in salt lake city around 6:00pm! it was great to arrive, but the weather was really bad with fog everywhere, so we didnt even get to enjoy the beautiful mountains.
we had made plans with sean and rachael to meet them downtown for dinner. i didnt remember very well what exactly was down town, but i did remember a chinese place. we got down there about a half hour before we were to meet them. as we were walking around we came across buca di beppo- an amazing italian family style restaurant! we couldnt pass up some good food like that, so we texted them and changed our dinner plans. diana and i got there and found a seat. soon after the arrived! it was so cool to see them again- the crazy thing is that they both looked almost the exact same, even though its been 6 years! we had a really great time catching up and reliving the old stories- especially the 'no pants' incident of '02'!

hotel cheyenne

after about 14 hours of driving, diana and i decided it was time to stop for the night. i had kind of hoped to make it to cheyenne, wyoming by the end of the day, so we pressed through until we got there. eventually we found a hotel that had a good price and a queen size bed (i was shocked at how many hotels had two twin beds but no queen sized beds!) we brought some stuff in, but crashed pretty quickly. its kind of strange that we could be so very tired from just simply riding in a car all day!
in the morning they offered free continental breakfast, but it started at 7:00am. that is way too early, but on the other hand, it was free. oh, the dilemma! we came up with a pretty crafty solution: i got up at seven and got a tray full of food for the two of us, we both ate it all down, and then headed back to bed! we finally got up a couple hours later, packed up and were back on the open road!
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d.b: our trip mascot!

no long distance road trip would be complete with out a silly mascot, right? well, the morning before we headed out we looked around the house for a mascot to bring with us to guide us on our journey. diana grabbed this guy! its actually a rabbity thing from a set of puppy toys we had for poco. we gave him one of the other ones in the set, but kept this one on the shelf.
through out the trip diana and i would play with this little guy and have fun coming up with different names for him. he is a bunny and diana suggested we call him 'dust bunny'! i liked it, but i suggested we just call him d.b. diana and i agreed- d.b. guided us the rest of the way!

my little geologist

diana loves rocks. when she first went to college she was a geology major- thats how much she loves rocks! i havent really seen that side of her before, but while we were driving through some of the different parts of wyoming and utah she went nuts for the landscapes! once we got out of the great plains of the midwest we started to see the start of the rockies and diana was thrilled! she just kept ranting and raving about all the cool rock formations and layer composites and all kinds of stuff. she grabbed the camera and just kept shooting everything she saw! this picture is actually a composite of some (not all...) of the pictures she took while we were driving. always asking if we could get off the highway so she could collect rock samples! by the time we got to utah she made sure we went to a book store so we could get her a couple books on geology so she could identify and explain what we were seeing.
it was a side i certainly didnt expect to see from my wife, but it was really cool to see her so excited! i also got to hear some fun stories of the different class trips she went on with her geology classes in college.

on the road

after getting everything squared away for the trip (which involved a late night drive to diana's dad to take our dog and a midnight laundry run), we were ready to roll! we filled up the car and were on our way. we left the house around 7:30am. it was funny, i went on mapquest to check the directions and it gave me 7 steps, the first six were really short, trying to get me to the highway, and then it said 'when you are on highway 80, stay on it for 1400 miles till you arrive in salt lake city'! yikes!
i still hadnt gotten ahold of sean and rachael yet... around about omaha sean called. i chatted with him a bit and said that diana and i were thinking about stopping by sometime and were wondering if they would be up for it. i tried to play it off as casual as i could... he said 'sure!' i asked 'how about tomorrow?' he was pretty surprised but they gave it the go ahead! we were already 8 hours in to our 22 hour drive by the time we actually got the ok to stay at there house. probably should have planned that better...
well, it was a really long trip, we made some pretty good time- mostly because i was going as fast as i could to get out of nebraska! man, that state sure aint pretty!
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unplanned road trip!

one of the things diana and i talked about during our anniversary dinner was that we wished we could travel more. we got talking about how we would love to go to just hit the road and go! on the way home from the dinner i asked her a crazy question: 'if we want to go on more road trips, how about we just do it? lets go on a road trip right now!' so we did!
it worked well for us because i happened to have spring break for the next week and diana doesnt have a job yet, so we started making plans. by the time we had gotten home from dinner we had it all worked out: we were going to utah and visiting my friends sean and rachael! one small problem: we needed to tell them that...

the cake (one year later)

in following with tradition, diana and i had a piece of our wedding cake on our first anniversary! i remember after the wedding thinking 'there is no way we are going to keep that in the freezer a whole year!' as it turns out, its really easy to keep something in the freezer for a year... or two... or three (i'm looking at you sausage patties from 2005!)
we were both really excited to fulfil this final part of our wedding activities. the most surprising thing about it all was that the cake itself was still actually pretty good! i've heard it said that you are newlyweds until you eat the last piece of cake. well, this whole newlywed thing has been going so well, i almost hate to see it go. my mom had the foresight to put three pieces in the container, so diana and i figure we will have another piece next year, and another one the year after that! so we've got two more years as newlyweds!
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one year

we made it! recently diana and i celebrated our one year anniversary! wow, i cant believe its been a year. there are some days where i cant believe its only been a year, and there are other days when i cant believe its already been a year!
i've got to say, its been even better than i thought it would be. the year has been filled with great times, good times, and just plain ol' times (which sometimes actually turn out to be the great times!)
for our anniversary i surprised diana with dinner at a fancy restaurant. the place is called the lighthouse, its in cedar rapids, about a 45 minute drive from our place. i had called to make the reservations about two weeks ahead so as to be sure to get a spot! i didnt tell her at all where we were going, i just told her to dress up!
when we arrived she was very happily surprised! the restaurant is right on the edge of cedar lake, with a great view! we got there just in time to see the sunset- it was beautiful! we had a great time talking about the year and about each other.
one year down, hopefully many more to go!
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game night

barbara has had a bit of free time lately, and has been kind enough to spend it with her sister diana and i! recently she came over and we spent the night staying up way too late playing board games. we had an awesome time playing one of my favorites: monopoly! a couple years ago my parents got me the grand rapids edition of the game, but ive never been able to con anyone... er, um... i mean i've never been able to encourage anyone enough to play it with me- till now! it was really fun seeing all the grand rapids companies represented through out the board. the game pieces are even grand rapids stuff- i got to be the calder! it was super nerdy, but a ton of fun!

talk soup

monday night diana and i finally used the last of our christmas gift certificates and went for dinner at panera bread! it had been a long time since i had been there (i used to go there at least once a week before we got wifi at the house...). we got some yummy dinner and found a seat.
we had an amazing time! it was probably the new springtime like weather outside, but it was just so relaxing, comfortable and warm. we just sat there and talked, laughed, and ate for an hour or two! ever since diana has been done with school she has been so much more relaxed and worry-free! this is something that i really appreciate because then we are both able to enjoy our time together and just take it easy. we didnt have anywhere to go, and we didnt have any clock to race to get there. oh, and the chocolaty dessert certainly made her even happier! life is good.

plumb solver

oh, the work of a landlord is never done! diana and i live in a duplex which we own. that means that we share a wall with a renter. our current renter is a guy named john, he's a great guy who loves to chat and pays on time (that last one is the most important one!). the duplex itself is a pretty good building and doesnt usually take much to upkeep it, that makes it really easy to be a good landlord! over the weekend i got a call from john that the bathtub faucet was leaking pretty good. when ever i get calls like that i get worried because i am not what you would call a 'handy man'. papa is, but unfortunately i did not acquire that part of the DNA... i try my best, but i usually just confuse myself and have to call in someone who knows what they are doing! i try my best and can sometimes fall into a solution that works, but i have always taken my dads advice: when it comes to water stuff- call a professional! now with this leak it had me worried because whenever you have to call a professional it ends up costing hundreds of dollars! well, i went over than and john and i looked at the problem. we began tinkering around with the faucet handles looking for an answer. john called his dad and asked him to come over and take a look at it (his dad is a handy guy, thankfully!) he pulled it apart and determined that the handle just needed a new rubber washer. i ran to menards (along with diana- she used to work at home depot in the bathroom department, so she knew exactly what we were looking for!) and picked up the part. got home and replaced the old one, and voala! the leak stopped! ah, i love it when a pricey problem can actually be fixed with a 49 cent part! amazing! thanks to john's dad and my wife, we just saved ourselves some big money! oh, maybe thats where menards comes up with their slogan...

sunday dinner

sunday afternoon we all gathered around the feast mom had prepared for us. the kids were over and even got to thank their aunt-in-law barbara for the great gifts she gave them last time we were home! it was, and always is, a great time spent with the family. diana got to spend some quality time with the girls, i got to spend some quality time with papa, and barbara got to spend some quality time with my friends. ok, that last one is a bit weird- but true! leaving time came too early, but i insisted. i had to get home to watch the oscars, after all!

pub and more

that night we went out with the guys. we met up at their place and then headed over to the new hangout: chicago dr. pub. some of the guys beat us there and picked a seat, unfortunately it was a seat on the loud side of the pub right in the center of the huge blaring speakers (at least thats what it seemed like...). we sat there for about an hour staring at each other because it was too loud to actually talk even when yelling. i grew weary of it quickly, so diana and i moved over to the other side of the pub where you can actually hear each other. jill soon followed. after about twenty minutes everyone else had shuffled over to the reasonably volumed area as well. aside from the headache, we went on to have a pretty good time there! diana and barbara were able to catch up and both were enjoying the chance to talk with jill. the guys and i had a good time talking as well. as the night was winding down at the pub, we headed back to the guys house. by now it was about 2:00am, which for most was getting late, but for barbara- the night was just getting started! (she works nights, so the night was literally just getting started!) we hung out there talking with aaron for a while longer, having fun and being silly. by 4:30am diana and i finally decided to call it quits, even if barbara wasnt even remotely tired!
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girls versus boys

we recently headed up to grand rapids to see the family again. it had been quite a while since our last visit- we hadnt seen them since christmas! we arrived friday night because my mom and sister made plans to attend a women's weekend in holland and invited diana to join them! soon after we arrived i tucked diana into bed, she had an early morning with the ladies ahead. well, i didnt have an early morning ahead, so i went back out and stopped over to see the guys. i spent an hour or two with jeffry lee, aaron, keith, and freddie at the guys place just chilling out and chatting. we soon realized that we were all very hungry, so we took the show on the road and spent an hour or two at denny's chowing down! we had a great time, and nobody ended up shirtless.
the next morning diana and mom headed out to pick up jill and go to holland. papa and i got to spend the day together! we didnt really have anything planned, but knew we were up for something. we ended up going to lunch with tim and the kids at new beginnings. it was great to see the kids again- bubba is getting so old! though this picture might show otherwise, he is getting so big and mature! give him another year or two and he will be more mature than his uncle...
after lunch papa and i went back home. i had brought home a bunch of movies in case papa wanted to watch them, so we decided to put one in and have a movie afternoon! we watched the new star trek, papa and i have always enjoyed star trek together so i was eager for him to see this one. he enjoyed it and we enjoyed our time together. within a couple hours the girls were back home and we got some pizzas! barbara had the weekend off, so she joined us as well. diana said that she had a good time with mom and jill (and a couple cousins and an aunt who went along too!) and loved having the time together.
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lakeshore focus

there is a local show on here that is produced in chicago called lakeshore focus. it covers any regional news that is going on, focusing on one topic a week. recently they had an episode devoted to the holocaust due to a new exibit opening at the center for visual and performing arts. some how someone got the number of joyce, the social studies and geography teacher at my school. she was invited to be on the panel to talk about the holocaust and the importance of teaching it in schools. see, she has a passion for that subject and devotes a portion of her class to learning about it. she went and joined the discussion with a couple leaders from the jewish federation of northwest indiana. she did a great job examining the subject and even got in a few nice plugs for our school! it was really cool to see her hold her own along with these men who do this for a living. great job, joyce! i've heard that they will soon be posting the whole episode on their website. when that happens i will be sure to add a link to it!

lobster fest

diana calls me out of the blue right after she gets out of school: 'want to have some lobster?' my first thought is 'diana, we just went out for dinner two nights ago...' then she explains herself: she got a call from her mom saying that she and david wanted to meet up with us at red lobster in michigan city. oh, now that i can do!
right away when diana got home we hopped in the car and headed to michigan city (its about the halfway point between mom and us). turns out barbara was able to come too! we got there a couple minutes before them, put in our name, and soon were chowing down on cheese biscuits and delicious crawlies from the deep! it was great, as always, to see her family. diana was really excited to see her mom and sister again so unexpectedly- i think those three have some strange connection that when ever they are together they are instantly recharged and feeling great, no matter what kind of day they may have had. diana spent the rest of the week grinning ear to ear! and after eating at red lobster, my belly was doing the same...

pulling her hair out

diana had been worried about taking her final exam at school for months now. one of the last things that she has to do at cosmetology school is pass all her finals. these are timed tests where she has to do certain hair styles, cuts, sets, curlers, and all kinds of other hair related things. in preparation for the tests she even took home some of the mannequin heads she had at school to practice (those heads are very creepy, by the way...). she kept getting frustrated because she was able to do everything, and do it well, but she had a couple things she couldnt do in the twenty minute time frame they allotted her. sure, she could do it in twenty one minutes, but that wasnt going to cut it!
well, the day of her tests she got up really early so she could get to school and have the chance to practice one last time. in the afternoon i got a text from her saying that she passed most of it (she has the opportunity to take small portions of it over again if she needs to, and she did need to...)! i was really excited for her- all that stress is finally over! so, i did the good husband thing, and went out and got her some flowers to give her when she got home. a couple days later she retook the parts she missed and this time passed with time to spare! way to go, diana!

dentist

i recently chipped a tooth. ouch. well, the bigger pain was yet to come! soon after i made an appointment with my dentist to have him check out what the problem was and how to fix it. i got pretty lucky in that the tooth was chipped, but there wasnt any real pain from it. when i went in to see the dentist he took a look at it and told me i needed to have it crowned. argh. the problem is that i dont have any dental insurance (which seems to be the only insurance that i actually need...) so whatever the dentist does i will have to pay for all of it. well, i had the tooth grinded down and have a temporary one in there now. soon i have to go back so i can get the permanent one put it, and the dentist said i need at least three more. yikes! i am just going to plan on winning the lottery soon...