Posts
Don't Rely on Luck this St. Patrick's Day
6 years ago
Google Search
Custom Search
Monday, November 2, 2009
Olivia and I were included in The Irish Wedding Journal's fall 09 magazine. Its the predominant wedding magazine in Ireland. Take a look!
I posted the pictures for facebook folks, but you couldn't really read the article. Going to try to post here so that everyone can see them.
Saturday, October 24, 2009
I love the fall. Its my favorite time of year. Looking forward to Halloween and my Birthday. All great events =)
We went to Lee Farms in Tualatin. Our first visit and a very fun one. Olivia had a great time eating the apple cider/pumpkin donuts and especially the caramel apple. I enjoyed the great natural apple cider. Unlike at the Farmer's Market, the cider was unpasteurized and never frozen. The way its meant to be.
We went to Lee Farms in Tualatin. Our first visit and a very fun one. Olivia had a great time eating the apple cider/pumpkin donuts and especially the caramel apple. I enjoyed the great natural apple cider. Unlike at the Farmer's Market, the cider was unpasteurized and never frozen. The way its meant to be.
I think Olivia's favorite was petting the baby chickens. She wanted to pet them again on the way out but she'd already sanitized her hands.
Bought 3 gallons of cider. 2 for drinking, one to make hard. We just had a bad experience making hard cider a few days ago. Had a one gallon glass jug explode like a bomb in the middle of the night. Would have killed/horribly injured anyone that was in the room.. we were very lucky. We wont make the same mistakes again.
Olivia picked up 4 pumpkins, a weird green gourd, a bale of hay and some corn stalks. She's ready to decorate the house for the first Halloween in this place.
Enjoy the season!
Monday, September 14, 2009
Olivia has entered the Oregon's Bounty Cuisinternship contest. Here is her entry. Soon, there will be a people's choice award vote. Please keep your eyes open and help her WIN!
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Dion caught his first mouse, EVER, today!!! Congratulations Dion!!
I knew that my years of preaching to him that it was his one job, one that if called upon he better do well, would lead to this day. I always thought it would be Beenie, but Dion proved himself!!
The Story:
We are outside eating dinner. I had just grilled an arm roast from our 1/8th of a cow. It turned out great. Olivia and I each hear a sound. I ask her if there is anything the cats could get into. She says she thought she heard something, I say you definitely heard something. She walks into the house. "Come here! Come here! Dion caught a mouse."
I come up the stairs to see Dion with the mouse in his mouth and Olivia very excitedly worried. Olivia does not like mice. She acts like those cartoons you've seen, short of standing on the chair. She is not happy with me when I run to get the camera to save the moment. Eventually we get the cats locked in a room with the mouse. Olivia is very upset I'm trying to get a picture and tells me not to use the flash because it'll spook Dion. Dion is protecting his catch from his sister, growling when she gets close.
Unfortunately for Olivia, Dion (and Beenie) really don't have the idea to kill the mouse, they want to play with it. I'm enjoying the whole scene, knowing that the mouse can't survive such play. Olivia is worried it will escape and get away. After letting the cats have some fun, I get the mostly dead mouse in a paper bag and take it out of the house.
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
Darby O'Gill and the Little people is a cherished Disney picture about Ireland, its Leprechauns, stars Sean Connery and happens to be one of Olivia's favorite films. We watched it (again) on a train from Dublin -> Galway.
If you haven't seen the film, the important parts for this post is how afraid King Brian (King of the Leprechauns) is of cats.
Now, when we travel we like to bring back a Beenie baby sized souvenir for Athena (aka Beenie), one of Olivia's cats. (Don't worry Dion fans, he gets to play with it too and sometimes gets treats or something.)
The other item to note is that Beenie likes to carry them around, treat them like kittens, and generally allow them to live long fruitful toy lives. First trip to Ireland we brought her back Lambie. Her faithful lamb friend that still enjoys the house today. After the wedding, we brought her King Brian.
Unfortunately, we didn't take any pics of King Brian BEFORE.
Now look at the poor guy after 4 months.
Be afraid, indeed.
Saturday, July 4, 2009
Enjoy the 4th, we will be grilling on a brand new Weber Grill that Erica helped arrive in time for the holiday.
I'll try to post some pictures after its done.
Friday, June 26, 2009
An annual tradition continues today. The perpetual losers come to Comiskey to see what a World Series Championship Trophy looks like.
I found this great commercial. Enjoy!
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Remember that well known Christmas Program that is famous in Portland, The Portland Revels?
Olivia auditioned and won a spot on the cast. They're doing an Irish theme this year so it will be perfect for her.
Plenty of time to make reservations. (and send Congratulations!)
2009 Performance Schedule:
Friday, December 4th, 7:30pm
Saturday, December 5th, 1pm and 7:30pm
Sunday, December 6th, 1pm and 7 pm
Thursday, December 10th, 7:30pm
Friday, December 11th, 7:30pm
Saturday, December 12th, 1pm and 7:30pm
Sunday, December 13th, 1pm and 5pm
Monday, June 1, 2009
Its been absolutely beautiful here in Portland. Even a little HOT. We just moved, but thats another topic for another post. I had to share this little bit of Rain Phobia courtesy of Olivia. She overheard this in a meeting. (Portlanders live in fear of the ominous rain.)
"Did everyone enjoy the great weather this weekend?"
"Yea! It was great! And now it's going to rain this week, again!"
"It was so nice to have such a warm day so early in the spring."
"But that means we're going to bake in July!"
"Or rain! You never know."
Monday, April 27, 2009
On Sunday afternoon, Olivia and I went up to the Annual Lilac Festival at the Hulda Klager Lilac Gardens. Its located about 30 minutes north of Portland in Washington.
It was a beautiful day and it was nice to be out looking at nature. The lilacs are just now starting to bloom, next weekend will probably be amazing. The smell of lilacs reminds me of my Grandma Bernice. She had two huge lilac trees/bushes outside the front porch and every spring we'd have them outside and in the house. Also, very early in our dating, I gave Olivia a huge bouquet of lilacs and she loved them. Earned a lot of points that day.
My Favorite Color Seen:
Olivia's Favorite:
Enjoy the pictures!
Sunday, April 19, 2009
We went to see our first Portland Beavers game, (also our first time ever going to an AAA baseball game). We had a good time, but there were some BIG plusses and minuses. We even brought home a winner.
+:
Great sightlines, its a small and newer park (PGE Park). We walked up and bought tickets at 1st base for $15.50
Cool new blanket giveaway item
Team has the Padres' 3rd best prospect, 1st baseman Kyle Blanks. (Not sure if he knows Tae Bo)
Really good Philly Cheesesteaks customized in the Widmer Beer garden.
Funny antics/games for the kids inbetween innings
Girls and kids love Lucky, the Beaver Mascot
-:
SMALLEST SEATS EVER. My knees were up against the back of the chair in front of me the whole game. it was uncomfortable and hurt. I don't understand what people were doing. I was trying to straddle it.
Beer cost $8.25! That is more than at Comiskey Park!
The game seemed to move a bit slower. The energy was really low in the crowd.
The seats they sold were all in the same section, so most of the park was empty, except where we were, all in like sardines. Very close for comfort.
Overall, a great time. But we're going to prioritize trying to find some better locations to sit. The "club" level looked nice, but its season tickets only. I just need a place where sitting in the chair isn't limited to people 5'6" and less.
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
My dad would have been 50 today (April 1st.)
I still miss him terribly, every day.
Thursday, March 26, 2009
I started my new job with the Census Bureau yesterday. I've worked for the government before, but they are quite serious. I'm looking forward to a few months of trailblazing. We will be the first people to ever use handheld GPS computers in the Census.
I'll be address canvasing, the most important part of the Census. The rest of the phases are predicated on us getting accurate data. Everyone that works on this after us will be using our data. Its cool to be doing something important. The Census data is used not only for history and statistics, but for assigning congressional districts, electoral votes and appropriation money.
Yesterday I spent the day taking the oath of office, (Yep, I have to defend the Constitution from all enemies, foreign and domestic, too.) getting fingerprinted, and learning the basics of preserving confidential information. Its a big deal there, since the Census is so important and needs the trust of the American People to succeed.
PS. That pic is my new official Census 2010 messenger bag. Its VERY heavy. I should be getting back into better shape lugging that around the neighborhoods.
Next week, training...
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Took a good couple hours (and several Guinnesses) to make the Corned Beef and Cabbage. It looked great, smelled good, was a beautiful piece of meat. Unfortunately, the butcher did not cure the brisket long enough. In the center, you could see a strip where the cure didn't even make it and it looked more like a regular brisket. REALLY disappointing. It was like eating a roast more than the traditional favorite. I was/am quite upset about it. I look forward to this meal every year. Thats what I get for trying to go natural. Next year, we either are back to a conventional brisket or we cure it ourselves at home.
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Just back from Ireland in time to celebrate St. Patrick's Day. Every year, I make Corned Beef and Cabbage. Olivia is excited because its one of the few meals that I can cook and she still be able to smile while eating.
This year, I wanted to extend my preference for humanely treated, grass fed beef to my Irish celebration. There is no way your typical Corned Beef at the store has been treated well for .39 a pound. Anyway, last week I called up our butcher and put in an order. He asked me if I wanted the whole brisket, I asked how big that was. He says "I don't know exactly but around 4 pounds or so." I reply, "So no bigger than 5 pounds?" He affirms and I make the order. Fast forward to last night. Olivia picks up the meat on the way home. She asks me how much I think its going to cost, I give a reasonable price based on 4-5 pounds. Nope, its higher, because its 8 pounds of corned beef. Ha. Thats not what I was expecting. That might actually last a day or two, even with my ravenous appetite.
I included a picture of it pre-preparation. The Guinness is there for scale, and not because I've already started drinking today.
Saturday, March 14, 2009
It finally happened. Olivia and I got married in Clifden, Ireland on February 28. It truly was a wonderful day and everything that people say/write/make movies about came true. We had a great time with our family and friends that made the long trip. I'm happy to report that quite a few of those people have told us how much fun the wedding/trip was and some even said it was the best wedding EVER! =)
We don't have any official photographs yet, but that's the Church we got married in. It would be too much to write of every cool/funny thing that happened in our 2 weeks in Ireland, but I think I'll try to shoot for 4 anecdotes a week for a while. There's a lot to be shared.
I feel very lucky and Olivia is excited because we might end up in an Irish Wedding Magazine.
On a Portland front, I've accepted a temporary position with the Census 2010. I start in a few weeks, so thats something.
Sunday, February 15, 2009
Last Tuesday, Olivia and I flew back down to Los Angeles for a small claims court date. It was our second trip, the first one in December was pretty much a waste of time. Olivia doesn't have much vacation time with our Irish Wedding coming up, so we have to fly down just for the day. The short long story of it goes like this. We left the place in immaculate condition, bending over backwards for every crazy request by our living in London slumlord, and she still didn't give us our rather large security deposit back. She acts like she doesn't have to follow California Law or Human codes of moral behavior.
Result? She didn't show up, AGAIN. This time the judge gave us the maximum amount for small claims court and advised us that she'll probably appeal. Thats fine. She'll have to show up or hire someone to show up. Then it will be over.
It sucks, its time consuming, but you have to stand up for yourself.
Friday, January 16, 2009
Here are some pictures from the Holidays/Snow Storm!
Enjoy!
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
So its been a long time since I updated. One of my NY resolutions was to get back on the ball with this.
All started getting behind because of my Awesome Bachelor Party that was thrown by Best Man Weston and Groomsman Mike D. It stalled because its pretty hard to write an interesting a fun tale without including the details that each of us will swear never happened. However, the biggest amount of time was spent trying to come up with words that would accurately describe some of the smells that none of us (including one unfortunate cab driver) will ever forget from that weekend.
The next weekend, Cousin Erica and J came out to celebrate Thanksgiving and my 30th Birthday weekend. That was a great surprise and it was great having them out here for the weekend. I wish they had stayed longer/forever.
Following that was the great Portland Snow Storm of '08. Worst snow in 40 years. I took some pictures and I'll post a seperate "remembering the snow storm" entry in a bit.
Well, that gets it started again.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
