Well, that sucks!

Pioneer Square in Seattle is a mixed bag. On the one hand, you have scores of galleries, specialty stores, cafes, bookstores, and places to eat amidst buildings that date back to when this city was founded. On the other hand, Pioneer Square has become a haven for a segment of the populace that is less-than-desirable. One case in point: I was walking into the garage in which I've parked several times as of late before in the past when I noticed two individuals sneaking into a stairway to (supposedly) take drugs.

I mention all this only because our car got broken into last night.

Nothing was taken; I had been playing my iPod in the stereo, and must have left the jack out for all (well, anyone who would be wont to go looking into car windows, in any case) to see; fortunately, Mrs. Burrell didn't raise any fools (just one heathen, but that's a different thing altogether), and I had taken my little iPod nano with me to work. There was absolutely nothing of value in the car itself to be taken.

Still, having my car broken into did feel invasive to me, and on the short (although, not - thankfully - cold) drive home, I did oscillate between fear, anger and helplessness, but thankfully, I was able to regroup rather quickly. I made an appointment with Safelite Auto Glass, and a repairman was able to come out today and replace the broken window.

Tangentially...

I had wanted to re-run one of my past courses this morning using my nifty new Nike+ attachment for my iPod (more on this later), but the dang thing was out of juice, so I had to run the course sans music. Thing is, doing so this morning took me back to a time when I had first started running while in the Navy when it was just me, the open air, the drawing of my breath, and the beating of my heart. There was a sort of almost idyllic purity to just one man and his running in the cold winter morning air.

Still - I do like to have my music with me, if for no other reason than to time myself and keep me honest. And sane.

She's back!!!

Carrie is back home, safe and sound. We're hoping that she'll be back here for the duration, but we also know - both from the past experiences of ourselves and other couples that we know who have had had twins - that there is a distinct she might have to endure yet another hospital stay. However, for at least this week, she's here with me, where she belongs :)

Twas the days before...

I decided to take Wednesday off as a "Charlie - only" sanity day. I figure that I'll be plenty busy during the holidays and the next few pre- and post-baby months, so I should take the opportunity to get these days in while I still can. I visited Carrie briefly in the hospital, then went downtown to see "Avatar", which was a pretty amazing movie, not just because of the 3D or special effects, but also because the acting was (mostly) believable, and the storyline was pretty decent, if not a little hammy and predictable at times.

I had another visit with Carrie after the movie, and our good friend Refugio came in for an hour or so, during which time we exchanged gifts. After I left the hospital and came home, I followed a good movie,"Avatar", with a truly bad one, "GI Joe: The Rise of Cobra". Ughh!

After an early morning visit to the hospital, I made the rounds doing some last-minute shopping:

• Cafe Verite / Cupcake Royale in Madrona
• Trader Joes in Madison Valley / Capitol Hill
• Whole Foods in Cascade / Downtown
• Bob's Meat Locker in Columbia City

At Bob's, I had to wait for about 45 minutes before the butcher took my order because of the long line. A couple of times, people attempted to jump the queue, and let me tell you, hell hath no fury like Christmas shoppers who have been waiting in line when others attempt to get in front of them.

So...

I went home, and started making our Christmas dinner - Beef Bourgninon with Collard Greens, with an appetizer of cheese curds and olives, and fig and eggnog cupcakes for desert (no, I didn't make these...). I was able to get quite a few things done while waiting for the beef dish to cook. I then took the dishes to Carrie in the hospital, where we sat, ate, talked, and just had a generally good time.

I know the hospital might not have been the best place to spend Christmas - but we did have a very special day, since we were together and eagerly awaiting the arrival of the next two members of our family.

Hopefully, Carrie will be home on Monday. She'll still be on bedrest, but at least she'll be here with me, and not at Swedish. I'd like that very much!

Babies sweetly singing wordless lullabies

While Carrie was on bedrest at home recently, Axia had taken to laying on my wife's lap with her ears pressed against Carrie's babyfull belly. I suddenly received a vision of the two kids, in the womb, singing sweet wordless lullabies to the dog and to each other.

33

33 is the title of the very first episode of the re-imagined Battlestar Galactica series. It deals with the civilian fleet, who is fleeing from the carnage wrecked upon their (now) nearly extinct human civilization by the biomechanical Cylons, having to deal with continual attacks by said Cylons that occur every 33 minutes.

33 is also how long it took me to run 5 kilometers this morning in the 25th annual Jingle Bell Run. :)

The run was exausting, but very much worth it. Right towards the very end, we had to climb two blocks up a very steep hill prior to coasting downwards to the finish line. Not so immediately afterwords, I journeyed to see Carrie, who snapped these pics of me in all my glory:

 

This is my very first organized 5k run. For me, it's the culmination of events that had started 15 years ago. When I was in the Navy, I was an avid runner (more so than I am currently), and I was training for a 5k across the Golden Gate bridge. I suffered my very first attack of MS, however, and that pretty much kept me from doing any serious physical activity for a number of months as I had to learn how to walk and use my temporarily paralyzed left side anew. So, for me, this run represents something of both a victory and a commitment - a victory over the ailments of my past, and a commitment to my future physical health.

Now, it's off to take a much-deserved hot shower, take a much-deserved load off my feet, and grab a quick bite to eat before heading back to Swedish this evening.

Boujey

I think that we’re going “boujey”.

Don’t misunderstand me. I think that the two of us – separately and as  a couple – have always had those tendencies.  We both favor Whole Foods, have more than a passing familiarity with the French Language, watch “Masterpiece Contemporary”, have plenty of foreign films in our Netflix queue, are very particular about our coffee, and could very well be outright foodies if it weren’t for the fact that neither one of us are quite that snobby.
 

See? Boujey.
 

I bring this up because when the prospect of Carrie going on bedrest transitioned from a mere possibility to an emerging reality, we decided that it would behoove us to hire a housekeeper to come to our place and give it a deep cleaning.  Now, lest you think that we’ve fully gone over to the darkside (or, as it’s known in local parlance, the East Side), we’ve not gone out and solicited a single individual and put this poor soul on call 24/7 – instead, we contacted a locally owned, environmentally company called Seattle Natural  Cleaning, and we’re having them come out every other week to clean our house.
 

Okay, not totally boujey, but close enough to make me realize that, while we don’t make enough to totally be catered to as often as we’d like (or need), we still do well enough to entertain certain possibilities that are beyond the scope of many. Insert twinges of Middle-Class Liberal guilt here.
 

In other asides, QFC sucks. For me, the selections are limited, the organization haphazard, and the stores crowded and unfriendly. There are three notable exceptions – the QFC in lower Queen Anne, and the two on Broadway. These stores are large, spacious, well-lit and somewhat pleasant places to shop. Then again, of all the QFC’s in the Puget Sound area, I imagine these three (along with the one in University Villiage) are probably the ones that are most frequented by boujey individuals. Like us.
 

Sigh.

Update 8 December 2009

Long story short: Carrie is back in the hospital.

After spending three days here on the home-version of bedrest, we went in for an ultrasound this morning in the hopes that, at the very least, nothing had changed, or (even better), her cervix length had increased. Sadly, what was revealed to us instead is that the cervix length had shortened to below what the doctors consider to be the acceptable minimum length. She was admitted into the hospital almost immediately, and, judging from the language that the healthcare professionals are using, she'll be at Swedish for the duration, most likely until she hits the 35 week mark.

The good news is that the kids are okay; the bad news is that she won't be here with me.

Why don't I just come out and say it?

Some of you may be wondering why I choose to post the latest news regarding the pregnancy and kids on my blog than posting it straight to Facebook (if you are being directed to here from there) or email (likewise). The answer is simple, but it may be a little off-putting to people.

In my life, I've gotten to know - with varying degrees of familiarity and intimacy - lots of discrete individuals. Many - even within my family - are just acquaintances, some are genuine friends. I (understandably, in my mind at least) prefer to share the deeper details of my life with the latter. Believe it or not, I really don't want just anyone to know that much about the comings and goings of my own life.

Yet, in setting the bar above which friends leap and below which acquaintances slide easily, I do realize that it's not only my own estimation of the intrinsic value of my relationship to another that counts - it's the happy intersection between that and the estimation of the reverse as held by the other that determines the whole.  In more germane terms - I can put the details about my life out there - but how willing are people to actively seek them out, given an easy trail to follow?

Hence - my blogging about the pregnancy, and other issues.  I'm more than willing to let others know what is going on, and invite them continually into my circle of friends. Whether or not they take a step forward on their own, and follow the links (or, even better, elect to either subscribe to or follow this blog) is another matter entirely.

Ahora descienden de mi caja de jabón de.

Update 4 December 2009

I'm still waiting for word of when Carrie will be discharged from the hospital. She's tested positive for Gestational Diabetes, which means (at the very least) she'll need to monitor her glucose levels and watch what she eats. Additionally, she has to take medications which will work to slow or prevent her contractions, which she was having a problem with a couple of days ago. She'll be on bedrest for the foreseeable future. All that aside, she's doing well otherwise, and the kids are doing fine.

A quick update...

On Monday, Carrie was admitted into the hospital due to shortening of her cervix. She's been on bedrest ever since, and today, she's undergoing tests to determine if she has gestational diabetes and is taking medications to prevent the onset of contractions, which she started having in earnest this morning.  I miss here being here at the house with me dearly, but I'm happy that she's at least in a place where she can be monitored so that if anything goes wrong she'll be able to get help quickly.

Cold Turkey...

It was almost a disaster.

Carrie and I had planned on grill-roasting our turkey. I had gotten the turkey prepped, cleaned, rinsed, brined, rinsed again, and set on a nicely preheated, cleaned grill with woodchips for smokiness.

Then it happened.

We ran out of propane - at 3 in the afternoon - on Thanksgiving.

*sigh*

I would like to be able to say "luckily, Lowes was open until 4, and, after much heroic effort and mad-dashing down Beacon Hill, I made it to the store with 10 minutes to spare, and I was able to trade in my existing propane tank for a new one, and all was good." Alas, such was not to be the case. No place that sold propane was open in Seattle, and Carrie and I hastily re-jiggered the course d' cuire, and our Thanksgiving dinner was only an hour delayed.

Everything turned out great  - the appetizers set the stage nicely, the turkey and stuffing was moist, the green beans, cornbread and beets were delicious, and the desert was fantastic.  We spent that meal doing something very un-Thanksgiving-like - watching season three of Deadwood - but to each their own ;)

I spent most of the day after doing projects around the house, attempting to strike items off of the ever-growing list that, inevitably, every homeowing husband finds awaiting him. Lest you think that I do these things grudgingly, however, know that I'd much rather work for our gratification in our own house than someone else's in an apartment - or not at all, even, since the results of my efforts work to enrich our lives directly. Also, before you get the impression that the list is solely a "honey-do" list, let me also add that many of  the items on it were directly contributed by me.

Our Thanksgiving menu

Happy Thanksgiving everybody! Here's what we're having today! 

Thanksgiving menu

Appetizer

Crackers

Cheeses

Olives

Gherkins in vinegar

Main Course

Grill - roasted Turkey w/ homemade cornbread and pork sausage dressing and whole cranberry sauce

Roasted and marinated beets

Baked sweet potatoes with butter

Challah

Steamed green beans in a mustard - shallot vinagrette

Desert

Pumpkin Spice cupcakes w/ cream cheese frosting

Wine selection

2006 Paul Jaboulet Aine Parallele 45

2007 Waterbrook Columbia Valley Pinot Gris

2008 Domingo Molina Torrontes

2008 Felie a Deve Menage a Trois

Beer

Bellhaven Scottish Strout

Samuel Smith Oatmeal Stout

2009 Abyss Reserve

The Day Before

One of  the good things about working in the tech industry is that, if you have the right setup, you can work from home on occasion. Varolii issues laptops to its employees, and the VPN connection is usually very reliable; more often than not, the only chokepoint is my own wireless network; thankfully, since we dumped Clearwire (whose service in both Leschi and mid-Beacon Hill has never been that great in the first place) in favor of Qwest DSL, we don't have much of a problem in that area.

I bring up the above so as to set the stage for the meat of my post today. I elected to work from home because I promised Carrie that I would pick up our Thanksgiving turkey this morning from Bob's Quality Meats in Columbia City so that I could dunk it into a quick-brine solution for overnight. Before I could do that, however, I had to go to a doctor's appointment in Belltown. After that, I would have to make my way to Columbia City, pick up the turkey, then schlep it back home in time to call in for a 11:00 AM meeting and get a few hours of work in before breaking to prep for T-Bird day.

Having accomplished all of my work-related goals for today, I'm content to sign off and spend the evening with Carrie getting things readiy for a wonderful feast tomorrow.

If I, for some reason, don't say it tomorrow - Happy Thankgiving!

Firs two rooms - done!!

Well, we have two parts of our house pretty much done. First up is the hallway.

Before:

After:

 

As you can see, we've replaced the faux-cantina colors with a warmer sandpiper - tan all around, and painted the ceiling to match.

Next, the kitchen:

 

And after...

The Sandpiper pretty much wraps around here to the wall on  the right in the second "after" photo here, where we decided upon a darker brown with orange highlights in it.  I liked the color scheme before; I love it now, since it's much more "us".

Twilight

Nope, not the movie with the big-haired dude in it (probably more than one, since there are supposedly werewolves in this one, injected to provide a supernatural take on the Hatfields vs. McCoys, I suppose). I prefer my Vampire flicks to run more to either to the classic (think either Nosferatu or Bram Stroker's Dracula) or to the grittily un-romantic (30 Days of Night) than to the (what I view as being ultimately misandronist) drivel that were adapted from Anne Rice's "classics" (and yes, I did read "Interview with a Vampire", "The Vampire Lestat", and "The Queen of the Damned" when I was a much younger person), and the teenage - marketed pap that they, in turn, inspired.

Bloody heck - what was the point of this post?

Oh yeah - it's getting darker much earlier in Seattle now. I think that the sun actually starts going down around 3:30 these days.  No wonder this time of year depresses me so.

Nibbana

I just learned last night that a classmate of mine died recently. She was only a few months younger than I. In truth, even though I do remember having sparse interactions with her twenty years ago, I didn't really know her that well, and, strangely, that makes her death a bit more poignet for me.

Had I known her better, I could regret her passing properly, and perhaps have something a bit more meaningful to offer in the general forum where her friends, family and acquaintances  congregate. As it is, however, I am finding that death hits uncomfortably close to me - which it has done on rather few occasions within memory - and instead of feeling either sadness or nothing, I feel oddly transitional, and almost in denial about my own mortality.

In that sense, therefore, I have this (probably selfish) wish that I either had known this person better or not at all; the former so that I could properly first commiserate her death and then celebrate her life and have both acts convey respect and relevance; the latter so that, just as I do with the many other passing of individuals who are faceless to me, mournfully recognize the abstract concept of the shuffling off of yet another person from this world whilst remaining supremely aware of my own existence - and, for yet a short while longer - blissfully ignorant (or willfully in denial) of the certain alternative. Having slightly known this person, however, I can only, in reality, accomplish but shades of either stance whilst wishing to fully realize one or the other.

On the other hand, perhaps such imperfect ambivalence is but a part of the human experience, and it's out of an overblown sense of my own importance coupled with a denial of the absurd being that I occasionally am that leads me to feel that I need to fully express one stance - intimate regret  - or the other  - distanced acknowledgment. There is a grey line where Yin and Yang meet, and - for but a short while - we all live there, whether we do so consciously or not. Both a desire for the security that I get from certitude and my forgetfulness of how transitory this state of being truly is may be what's causing me to deny the legitimacy of my own feelings in this matter. In that case, I'll happily take my cue from wiser people than me, who have fallen in physical form, but risen anew in memory, and live as such, translated and transformed, until this day. That is the blessing that I wish is bestowed upon my fallen classmate, and is a desire that I have for myself one day.

U.S. Healthworks - a "Like" story

Let me begin by saying that I have no doubt that places such as U.S. Healthworks exist for a reason, and I'm sure that, for many people, the level of care that they receive there is more than adequate to meet their needs. I'd also like to say that I normally dnn't consider myself to be an elitist when it comes to the level of medical help that I feel that I deserve.

That having been said, my visit recently to the USH facility on Denny was creepy, to put it mildly.  The receptionist wasn't the sharpest tack on the posterboard, and kept touching her hands to her face - which I think is a no-no when you are working in a doctor's office. The office itself was unkempt, but nowhere near as disheveled as the MDA (I'm assuming that's some sort of medical assistant) who took me back to the room. Hirsute, overweight, unshaven for probably about three days, dressed in tattered scrubs, and wearing beat-up tennis shoes, I was almost tempted to think that I was - well, on Scrubs! The highlights of my interaction with him: he taking a strange slip of paper from a desk drawer and silently thrusting it towards my mouth, leaving it to me to decipher that said piece of paper was really a disposable thermometer; and him cranking the air pressure to about 300 psi so that he could take my blood pressure. Note to the nurse: after having squeezed my arm from my body, it's bound to be low.

At the very least the doctor herself seemed to be competant at what she does.  But the sheer level of heat in the office was so great that I almost got sick a couple of times, and she had to ask me if nausea was part of my symptoms. Nope - I'm pretty sure that me departing the Sahara in July will help to alleviate this sickness that I'm feeling...

Ah, sigh, such was my experience with Urgent Care in the great state of Washington.  I left with many memories, but - more importantly - I left with prescriptions in hand.

Pretty amazing friends have we

As many of you know, we've spent a lot of time over the past couple of months attempting to paint the majority of our house. We started on Memorial Day weekend with the rather over-eager expectation that we would be able to paint the kitchen, hallway, kids' room and living room over the course of three days. Even if Carrie hadn't needed an emergency appendectomy on that Saturday, just the process of taking down all of the (badly installed) hardware was enough to convince us that we were in for the long haul.

Amidst all of this, I drove down to Eugene, Oregon for training one weekend, and then drove all the way back up from Roseburg (which is a small town about an hour south of Eugene) (don't ask) all pretty much in one shot and royally messed up my back in the process (note to self: when driving long distances, take plenty of breaks to stretch out, and set the seat back a bit so that you're not driving in a ramrod-stiff position for hours on in!). That combined with the insane amount of reaching up that I had to do in order to paint the ceiling pretty much did me in this past weekend. On Saturday afternoon, Carrie and I had to go to U.S. Healthcare so that I could get a prescription for muscle relaxers, pain meds, and anti-inflammatory medications.

U.S. Healthcare – remind me to tell you about that place...

Anyhow....

This is where my pretty amazing friends come in. One weekend, Carrie's friend Alex (who served as one pretty kick-ass DJ for our wedding) helped us paint, and for two weekends, her friend Refugio and ex, John, chipped in as well. Recently, Carrie's sister, Carla, came up for nine days to help us out. Not only did she help me get virtually all of the painting done in the aforementioned areas, she also caulked the trim, cleaned up the major messes, helped Carrie put a tarp over our leaky shed, and helped Carrie clean out and organize the studio space, freeing up 400 square feet for exercise, crafts, and guest quarters. This is the same woman who, during our wedding a year ago, wrangled the caterers and cafe employees so that our guests would get fed and had plenty of drinks to quench their thirst – so that Carrie and I could enjoy that wonderful evening without a worry in the world.

I'm personally grateful to Alex, Ref, John and Carla for her help, and Carrie and I are breathing much easier in our newly painted residence (pics to come soon), knowing that, at least for now, the big projects are out of the way. I've a list about a mile long (and growing) of items that I need to do, but those are all smaller projects that I can tackle on nights and weekends.

The way things are...

The past twenty years of my life have been spent pretty much going from place to place, never settling in any one locality for more than three years or so. That cycle has been broken a little bit ever since my move here to Washington state, but the nigh-inevitable effects have always been there, and persist to this day: close friendships which may have been formed in one place fade to mere relationships, then silence after I move away, and – given my own rather introverted personality - I am slow to form new ones in my new locale. Meanwhile, my family – on both sides, never the closest or most affectionate bunch – remains pretty much where they were when I left Maryland two decades ago, content to stride in place in both location and life; not that such is necessarily a bad thing, but simply just how things are.

I offer the above preamble to highlight what is probably my biggest fear when it comes to my own impending fatherhood: for the most part -and for the foreseeable future – Carrie and I will be undertaking the wonderful journey that is parenthood pretty much alone. We have a few wonderful friends out here in Seattle, but for many days, it will be the two of us, doing what we can to give our children the love, attention and support that they need and deserve.

This realization saddens and terrifies me in its awesomeness, but it also, strangely, heartens me as well, for there are people upon whose munificence we can occasionally count, and this will (hopefully) motivate my Carrie and me to seek out others who can become friends to us, and whom we can become friends to as well. In this, I see opportunities for a truer appreciation of those who are around us, and who will be, and the expansion of our currently small circle of friends.

That is a good thing!

Latest on Babies...

As some of you may have heard, at the time when Carrie and I found out what gender each of our children were going to be, we also found out that there might be an issue with Baby B. It turns out that there is a growth on its umbilical cord close to where it goes into the baby's abdomen, and that this could be an indicator of a chromosomal abnormality. In the weeks following the discovery, however, we had another series of ultrasonic scans, and the growth which at one time was thought to be originating from the belly is in actuality a good centimetre out. All of the baby's measurements are fine, and it's growing at rate that's consistent with a singleton at its stage (which means that, given that it's a twin, it's actually growing faster than is normal, which is a good thing). So, we and the genetic counsellors are guardedly optimistic that this will be a normal pregnancy.

Throughout all of this, Carrie's family has been greatly supportive, sending us many well-wishes and always showing thier concern by asking us about how the kids are doing. Her sister Carla has even come up for a few days and is helping us out with some of our lingering projects, such as the ever-present painting (more about this later. The two of us are very grateful to have them in our lives.

What we did during our (long) weekend

On Wednesday (the day before Carrie and I went to Utah), I had to take Axia  to be boarded at a place in Kent, Holiday Kennels. Seeing as how we'd be busy that night going to a three-hour class for future parents of multiples, I planned to take Carrie into work, then drop Axia off, then head to work myself a few hours late. Seeing as how the kennel didn't open for drop-offs until later, I elected to go for my very first downtown run along the waterfront.

First leg:

View Larger Map

I went to Downtown Cups, my second favorite cafe in Seattle, and the one to which I've been going for the longest time; I started going there ever since I started working in Seattle back in 2005, while I still lived in Silverdale.

Second leg:

View Larger Map

I did some stretches, and then went to Caffe Bella, my favorite cafe in Seattle, and the fist one that I visited just about every morning when I moved to Belltown in 2006.  In fact, the owner was kind enough to let Carrie and I host a get-together for friends and family on the night before our wedding over a year ago.

As I mentioned before, Carrie and I went to a three hour class for future parents of Multiples at Swedish. Although we didn't learn many new things  tonight (this class is part of a five-week series), we got a chance to be put in touch with other parents who were in the same situation as we are. I'm hoping that we'll be able to find one or more other couples with whom we can trade support.

Thursday through Sunday, Carrie and I were in Utah to visit her family and go to a baby shower which had been put together by Carla, my sister in law. The day that we flew in, Carla, Rus (my father in-law) and Rod (my brother in-law) all went out to eat at Red Iguana, which is easily one of the three best Mexican Restaurants that I've ever eaten at, and has, hands down, the best moles I've ever had. The place opens at 11 for lunch; we arrived at 11:20 to a packed establishment and eight tables ahead of us on the waiting list. The place is simply that good, and if you ever get out to Salt Lake City, I highly recommend making a special visit.


Richfield, Utah is a small town of about 6,000 people 1-1/2 hours south of Salt Lake City. I've been there once before earlier in the year, and things haven't changed much. We stayed at my parent in-law's place for the duration of the visit. Thursday and Friday were pretty much our days to relax, although Carrie and I did prepare some kick-ass slow cooked rubbed ribs and squash Friday night. Saturday was the baby shower, during which we got a ton of baby gear from Carrie's family and friends in Utah; after having met relative upon relative, I escaped with Rus, with whom I spent the next two hours driving around the countryside and generally B-S'ing with before we returned home.


On Sunday, Rus, Carla, Carrie and I drove back into SLC to meet Rod for brunch at Red Rock Brewing Company in downtown SLC. As brunches go, it was fine; as Microbrewerys go, I've seen better in Seattle.


So, we're both back in town now, Axia is resting safe and soundly back home, and life, as it is, has returned back to normal.


And I cannot wait to meet my two precious children!

Γεμινι

A couple of days before our trip to Utah, Carrie and I found out the gender(s) of our soon-to-be children.  I resisted the urge to post the info on Facebook or tell anyone else until after our return so that it would be guaranteed to be a surprise.

We went through a bit of debate as whether or not we should find out; in the end, we decided that since (a) there are many wonderful and generous people in our lives who want to help us out, and (b) finding gender-neutral things for kids is extremely difficult, even in these supposedly enlightened times, it would be good for everyone if we found out.

So, without further ado...

Baby "A"

Baby "B"

Yep - two bouncing baby boys will be making thier way into our lives very soon! :)

Our thanks to Carrie's sister, Carla, as well as her parents for putting together and hosting a baby shower for us during our stay in Utah this past weekend, and our gratitude to all of Carrie's friends and and relatives for thier unbelievable generosity! Its good knowing that there are people who care in the world that we are about to bring our children into!

Le fin de le fin de semaine

This weekend was the first non-painting weekend in a long time (ad the first of at least two to boot!), but that doesn't mean that Carrie and I were any less busy.  On Saturday, we went to an EMOMS consignment sale in Bellevue where we found a ton of used baby clothing for a decent price. Initially the two of us were a bit conflicted about getting consignment anything for our children - after all, we want the best for our precious ones, and part of that involves a degree of environmental stewardship which leads us to want to get organic everything for  them.

But - families hand down clothing and the like to subsequent generations all the time, and each piece of used clothing or furniture reduces our own environmental footprint even more than if we were to buy all new organic clothing and eco-friendly furniture, since we are not consuming newly-made goods.

After the massive consignment sale, we then made our way to another consignment place in Madison Park called Sugarlump, and Birth and Beyond, a maternity boutique store. It was at the latter place that we decided to go with the G-Diapers system. We spend more up front for inserts and pants, but the cloth prefolds themselves are washable, so we don't end up having to spend $50/week for diapers, which I think is worth a little up-front pain (plus, we're not contributing as much to landfills, which is also a nice added bonus).

We also shopped at Target that day for more baby things, and ended our time out relaxing at Stellar Pizza in Georgetown. While goggling the directions, I noticed that (1) it was within easy running distance, and (2) there was a cafe right down the road. So, on Sunday morning,we went shopping for ingrediants so that Carrie could make a batch of her kick-ass chili.

I'm looking forward to next weekend; Carrie and I will be in Utah to see family and go to a baby shower being hosted by her sister. When we get back - I think that I'll have a major announcement! :)

The love of my good and gracious wife

Last night, I went through the same routine that I normally carry out during (mostly) every morning: I took my medication.

I (am supposed to) take Copaxone for my MS every day. I usually do so during the mornings, but I had forgotten to do so yesterday morning, so I took it at night.

For the first time that I can remember, my chest tightened, my heart rate shot througth the roof, I had trouble breathing, and I broke out into a cold sweat.  I had to lay down with my feet elevated for about half and hour, and I (gladly) went to bed pretty much right after dinner.  I'm feeling fine now, but I elected to skip my run this morning in order to get more sleep.

I'm thanking providence that Carrie was there for me, since I was genuinely concerned for my short-term well-being at the time.  She took care of me, and, even though she was out of breath herself and uncomfortable many times throughout the evening due to the strain of carrying twins, she relinquished her usual spot on the couch so that I could be the one laying down instead of her. She took it upon herself to re-read the literature that came with the medication so as to reassure me that this is one of the expected side effects of the medication. The love of a good and gracious person goes far in this world - this was reinforced for me last night.

Fra l'inferno e l'inverno

Well, after another six-week summer here in Seattle, I'm looking at the weather forecasts for the rest of the month, and all I'm seeing is either cloudiness or rain, with highs in the 50's and 60's. If it wasn't the case before, it is now: summer in Seattle  is over.

I'll miss the warmer days and the sun and the opportunities to take many walks, no doubt, but I'll not shed any tears over the heat waves and being stuck in a place that has no AC, that's for sure.

This summer's passing is a bittersweet occasion for me. The beginning saw Carrie getting pregnant with twins, our getting our very first house together, my return to Maryland to see friends that I'd not laid eyes on in two decades (as well as family and friends that I had seen on a more frequent basis over the years), my return to running, and two very momentous birthdays for Carrie and me.

However, the upcoming fall is not without its treats. In a few days, we'll be flying back to Utah to spend more time with my in-laws, finding out the gender(s) of our children, and (hopefully with the help of my sister-in-law) finishing up the ever-present painting project that has consumed so many hours of our lives, as well as finally getting our mess of a studio organized and getting the kids room put together.

Ever since my copacetic autumnal experiences in Maryland, I've come to believe that fall,  is my favorite season, since (for me) it represents  the change from the youthful eagerness of summer into the staid introspection of winter; not so much a sea change as a easy transition in which (at times) elements of both its seasonal bookends are present.

Past the fall, for me, though, lies even greater occasions. Our kids will be born next year, and I may see fall supplanted by winter as my favorite, since it will be the season of the birth of our children.  That is the event that I am most looking forward to!

...and the painting continues...

It seems as if the painting will never end...

I went into this weekend with the intention of fully finishing both the trim in the living room and the entire hallway; however, after having spent most of the day putting two coats of primer and finishing 3/4 of the hallway prior to running out of paint, I had to concede (yet again) that this entire endeavor was going to take a while.  Things are getting done, though, and I should feel grateful for that.

This morning (Sunday), after my run around Greenlake, Carrie and I went to Cyndy's along Aurora for breakfast with her long-time friend, John. We then went shopping for maternity clothes, and became grreatly preturbed that two of the three major department stores in Northgate - Macy's and Nordstrom - didn't even have a maternity section (the young lady at Macy's that we asked didn't even know what "Maternity" meant!!!), leaving JC Penny's the only department store there that did indeed have a section.  Of course, we went to Target and Motherhood, but there selections seem to be limiting after a while.

Oh - and my run...

One of my goals for this year has been to do the entire inner Greenlake run without stopping. It wasn't the easiest thing to do, but I did it! Seeing as how I ran 2.15 miles a couple of days ago, and 2/74 today without stopping, I'm thinking that running  the 2 miles from the light rail station to my house should be no problem whatsoever at this point.

Happy Anniversary, 2009

As of yesterday, Carrie and I have been married an entire year!

It seems like only days ago that the two of us had our ceremony at Cafe Zeitgeist in Pioneer Square only a few hours before jetting off to Buenos Aires for our honeymoon, but a year has passed and so much has happened:

• We got the chance to spend ten – yes ten – days snowed in during the great Seattle snow-dump of 2008
• I got the chance to fly to Utah for the very first time, and meet more of Carrie's relatives
• We bought a house together in Beacon Hill, Seattle
• Carrie got pregnant with twins

Quite an eventful year certainly. We commemorated the occasion by getting out of the house for a day and spending it on the Kitsap peninsula. After taking the ferry to Bainbridge Island, we first went to Molly Ward gardens for brunch, then I drove her out to my old haunt in Silverdale so that she could see the suburban sprawl where I used to live. We then went walking around in downtown Poulsbo, where we browsed a couple of antique stores and I got a chance to re-visit a couple of my old hangouts, Sluys bakery (whose donuts puts Krispy Kreme to shame, in my opinion) and Java Shots espresso, both being places that I would occasionally spend a weekend morning. Afterwards, we made our way back to Winslow on Bainbridge island, where we walked around downtown for another little bit, picking up some fresh pasta and sauce to make for dinner at home. A short ferry ride later, and we were back at our abode, a little tired, but happier for having spent yet another day – and year – together.

(Non) mea culpa

A couple of weeks ago, I recounted an incident during my early adulthood in which I lied to my parents and sneaked off down to DC to catch a rock concert with some friends. I was gently reminded that such a revelation might be upsetting to said parents, and that reminder has caused no small amount of introspection on my part. As a soon-to-be father, I can certainly sympathize with such a sentiment. I can certainly see where it would cause me no small amount of distress were I to learn that one of my children had not only lied to me, but crowed about doing so afterwards. Setting aside the specific details of my own upbringing - which, in the grand American scheme of things, was somewhat unusual but by no means unique – all I can say is that the greatest amount of any regret that I may feel stems not from the trip or revelation thereof, but from the falsehood told to facilitate such, and the fact that, were something to have happened during that day, my parents would have been in the dark for an untold number of hours as to my ultimate disposition.

However – and this does have to do with the specifics of my upbringing – I do feel no small amount of regret that, ultimately, in order for me to pursue that particular moment of self-indulgence, the lie - right or wrong, for ill or no - had to be told; such a condition is one that I would hope to avoid bringing about for my children. Easy thing for a parent to say, for a surety, and, in the end, the measured level of veracity of the interaction between a child and its parent is the only surefire way in which to determine whether or not such an endeavourer was ultimately successful. I'd like to think that my parents were largely successful, given that I mostly told the truth to them regarding my comings and goings, and my younger brother, given that his overall temperament and predisposition to general contrariness is almost the polar opposite of mine, probably did even more so. I'd like to be at least as successful as my parents were in my upbringing, but can probably expect not to be any more so.

As for the rest -

Caveat Lector: Those who read the writings of others, especially those with whom they are related to or closely associated with, should probably not be surprised when that person writes something that is not to their total liking; the risks of such are greater when we are dealing with people who have been separated in time and space from one another. People change, and even those with whom we are the most simpatico are likely to let us down with their viewpoints from time to time.

Caveat Scriptor: Those of us who scribe notre mots for public consumption should be mindful of the fact that our audience, be they hand picked or not, is a diverse bunch who will react in different ways from one another to the same series of written words. A lot of this has to do with the depth of their relationships to us – usually those who think that they know us the best may be the most surprised – and disappointed – at some of our revelations. While the more libertarian side of me strongly resists the urge to edit myself or advise such of others, my more learned, experienced and sagacious aspects urrge a strong sense of caution and tact when disseminating ones thoughts.

Finally -

I know that there a few people who had known me at various points during my life who are probably very surprised at the take that I have on several issues presently, given that they knew me as one type  of person. I would like to say that, at the core, I still hold many of the same values and have the same personality that endeared me to my friends at points past, and that any changes evident in my outlook more positively affect the quality of my interactions with people for the better; still, the more pragmatic side of me knows that some of the shifts may be marked enough to effect a sense of disappointment in some; I guess that such is the price that I willingly (but  never gladly) pay for not remaining a static individual.

Life as it is...

A couple of weeks ago, Carrie and I finally took the plunge, made the trip to Lowes, and bought a plethora of painting supplies in the vainglorious assumption that we would be able to prime and paint over 1000 square feet of wall space in a single three-day weekend. Expansion bolts, cheap hardware, generally shoddy shelving and curtain rod installation and time spent on masking and edging said 1000 square feet of wall space quickly brought our rather high hopes skidding earthwards,  and that was before a scary and tense night in the hospital brought on by Carrie going into the initial stages of appendicitis and her recovery from such.

We had spent the next week laying low while Carrie recovered from her surgery, and, as she took her tentative first steps to a life which is for now normal (meaning that she, as the mother of twins, can only be expected to not feel sick or unwell roughly the same percentage of the time as  Carrie-the-not-expectant-mother-of-twins could be expected to feel sick or unwell), we enlisted the aid of friends to help us in our endeavours.

Thankfully, many of them came through for us, and for the past couple of weeks at least two of them have been helping us prime and paint our living room, and prime (at least the high-hiding prime, since the previous owners chose a rather bold colour palette that I can best describe as "Mexican Taqueria"). However, we had to once again readjust our expectations of many things downwards. We were able to get a single coat of paint on the living room walls, we didn't get any trim work done, and the hallway and kitchen are still crying out for attention. Meanwhile, we've decided to re-paint the kids room a slightly less aggressive shade of green (one that does not induce epileptic seizures in otherwise un-challenged individuals), and we've come to the conclusion that, since neither one of us does this for a living, we should opt on the side of sanity and cut ourselves some slack when it comes to how the paint looks on the walls.

So - add a slowly progressing painting project into the many things that we as new homeowners need to get done.  I was going to seal the deck and prune the trees, but the former can wait while it's too late for the latter. I've got to put my personal efforts into "acquiring" a set of sawhorses (Lowes or that nicely-placed set in the common alleyway behind our house will suffice), taking the doors down, resanding them both, refinishing one while repainting the other, and  - oh - the Baby Project awaits.

But it's all good. I mean, I feel much more satisfaction doing these things as a homeowner and knowing that we're investing our time and hearts into something that we'll get the emotional benefit of for as long as we choose to have it rather than doing the same in an apartment and having to get the owner's permission to effect our desires upon our living space. Regardless of how long this process takes - I'll be holding that thought in my heart.

In other news...

A couple of weekends ago, I injured my foot while gallivanting about our backyard sans footwear (a folly I normally from which I normally refrain). I spent the next week or so healing, and then after my drive down to Oregon to attend a training seminar, I spent the next couple of weeks knee-deep in housework. This morning, for the very first time in three weeks, I ran my usual route.


View Larger Map

I made it from Orcas to Mrytle to Graham - 1.5 miles - without stopping,but the uphill grade on the way northwards from Myrtle back to Orcas, proved just a bit much for me, and I had to walk for a couple of blocks before running the rest of the way back to Orcas. Still, I think that I did rather well for not having ran for the past three weeks.

Concerning running:

I've a couple of personal challenges that I'd like to take on before the year lets out:

• A lap around Greenlake (Inner): About 3 miles
• A lap around Seward Park: I think that this is around 2 miles
• Going Northward on Queen Anne Ave.: Not very far (maybe a mile), but all uphill.
  

11 September 2009

Amidst the cacophony of words both more eloquent and coarse than mine, in the fray with those both more sage and less discrete, I shall add my thoughts regarding this day.

As an American, I feel a sense of loss over those who had died, a sense of rage over those who seek to do us harm, and a sense of fear that, the fact being that there are some amongst us who have and still seek to politicize the events that happened on this day eight years ago to justify their own narrow-mindedness, we have lost the humility, perspective, gregariousness and moral high ground that we so proudly bore as Americans in the weeks following the tragedy.

As one who was once a member of this nations military, I still feel shocked and humiliated that, for all our mighty weaponry and high technology, we were unable to prevent the actions of a dedicated few who harmed - and hated - so many.

As a Spiritual Person, it angers me to know that there are those who use faith without insight to justify their evil deeds, and it saddens me to know that there are those amongst us who can casually disregard the one sacred tenant held by all Great Faiths:

• Buddhism: " One who, while himself seeking happiness, oppresses with violence other beings who also desire happiness, will not attain happiness hereafter."
• Judaism: "That which is hateful to you, do not do to your fellow."
• Islam: "Hurt no one so that no one may hurt you"
• Christianity: "Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets."
• Hinduism: "One should never do that to another which one regards as injurious to one’s own self."
• Confucianism: "Never impose on others what you would not choose for yourself."

May this day be forever one of insight, reflection and renewed dedication of, not only one American to another, but of one faithfiul citizen of the world to all others.

Labor Day weekend

The long weekend started out innocuously enough. Saturday morning, we arose to a meal of buttermilk pancakes and scrambled eggs, then we went about prepping the baby's room for painting.

Along with removing all of the doors and light fixtures, we had to remove the blinds, curtain rods, and shelves that the previous owners had left behind.  Around this time came my first point of contention with them: not only did they use a system that was a bear to remove, but they used cheap hardware in the form of brass flathead screws that was a pain to remove. I ended up having to tear the shelf rods from the walls, leaving behind hugte holes and tears in the drywall that required the generous application of spackle.

So- stuff removed, bare wood surfaces sanded (they are getting painted as well), and walls washed. Time for the primer - and point of contention #2: the ceiling in both the kids' room and our bedroom has this rather unsightly popcorn texture to it; that means that I'll have to put not one, but two generous coats of primer just to fill in the uneven parts.

Despite all this, things were swimming along smoothly enough until Carrie started having severe abdominal pains during the afternoon.  It turns out that she was in the early stages of appendicitis, and needed to be taken to the ER so that she could get an appendectomy. We were both very fearful, not just because of the fact that she needed surgery, but also because we were unsure of the effect that the anesthesia and any subsequent pain medication would have on the twins. All three individuals made it past the surgery okay, though, and they are back home resting and recovering. Today (Tuesday), she's up and walking around, although with a bit of difficulty alternating between standing up and sitting  / laying down. Still, she's in considerably less discomfort than she was, and that's saying a lot, I think!

In other news:

View Larger Map

I had made an abbreviated version of this run earlier,but I hadn't realized that, by cutting out the run from Orcas to Dawson, I was cheating myself out of .3 mile. The extra distance didn't take that much longer to do, and I felt a lot better once I got to Columbia City Bakery. Lest ye wonder why I take the time to run down there, Carrie and I love thier pastries., breads and sandwiches, and their Torta Rustica is a treat that, if you can get a hold of it, is something to be treasured alongside a fine wine. If Carrie can't come with me, then I'l run to the bakery, get a espresso and pastry, pick up something for Carrie, and walk back. Why walk? Well, I do live on Beacon Hill!

Confessions of an (almost) ex-Linux Geek

Thursday, I took my Mac into the Apple Store in Southcenter to get fixed, so I'm temporarily using my work computer that has Linux installed on it.  At one point, I had thought about ditching the Mac for a Linux-installed PC, and the prices of new Mac Laptops are slowly pushing me in that direction. The thing is, though, I'm noticing that Firefox on Ubuntu is a bit slower than it is in other platforms, and the embedded Flash support for the 64 bit version of Ubuntu is sadly inconsistant. Also - OpenOffice still doesn't offer full support for the .docx / .xslx / .pptx formats, and I'm noticing that even editing plain old .doc files produces some weird, undesirable effects when you open up said edited documents in Word. And finally, there is no nifty MP3 storefront available for Linux that rivals iTunes. Given those facts and the fact that I'm tied to my iPod (plus also want to get an iPhone at some point in the future), and I may just suck up the cost, get a new Mac, and throw Ubuntu on a partition and use either Parallels (if my version supports the newer Ubuntu distro) or Sun's VirtualBox to run it. I'll only need $2500. Oh well - maybe I can claim it as a businesss expense...?

My weekend - first time on a new run - more mashups - second playlist of 2009

On Saturday, Carrie and I (after a nice hearty breakfast of grilled chicken sausage and eggs) went into Ranier Valley in Seattle so that we could go to a sale being held by Kate Spade, featuring her organics line of baby clothes. Now this was quite an event, since ordinarily this line of clothes sells for beucoup dineros in her retail stores, and this weekly sale was featuring many of her leftover and discontinued styles for wholesale prices; additionally, they were firre-selling everything at half off, so Carrie and I walked out of there having spent $130.00 for what could easily have been $500 worth of clothes.

Like I had mentioned, this was being held in Ranier Valley, which is a neighborhood just south of the trendier Columbia City business district, which happens to be where our favorite butcher, bakery, farmers market and diner is located at. Ranier Valley itself, however, is strictly a working-class neighborhood that has unfortunately suffered the effects of urban blight and neglect. So the neighborhood has its own set of problems; however, it's not an entirely bad place, and there are more than a few fine establishments there, so to hear well-off people complain about having to drive into the "Ghetto" in order to get their discounted Kate Spade Organics baby clothes was more than a little sickening. If these people felt so strongly about having to suffer the presence of the less fortunate while they themselves fill thier minivans and SUV's with discounted boutique baby clothes, they should have saved themselves the drive and paid retail price at a mall in the exurbs.

But that's just me. And I digress.

When we had first looked at what was then our future house together, Carrie and I fell in love with the place, but we knew that a few things had to be changed, chief amongst them the color scheme. The previous owners definitely had thier own sense of style and asthetics, which is fine, but it's not ours. So, we went down to Lowes with a basic idea of what needed to be changed, got a few paint samples, took them back home, and put them on our walls. Sunday, satisfied that we had made the right choices, we went back to Lowes and bought four gallons of primer and five gallons of paint so that we can paint the living room, kitchen, hallway and kids room. We'll also be painting our front door as well, so hopefully, the weather this weekend will cooperate and be decent enough for us to leave everything open so that we can air the place out without freezing to death.

Run to Columbia City Bakery

Saturday morning, I ran to the bakery to pick up my daily quad shot of espresso with vanilla and some breakfast items for Carrie. It took me 14 minutes to run down there, about 25 minutes to make my way back up. Going down was much easier than coming back up - we do live on Beacon Hill... :)


View Larger Map

!@Twitter

One of the frequent misconceptions that some may have about me when it comes to blogging is that this is something that I do every day, or maybe even several times a week. Sometimes this is true, but - more often - I find myself with free time during which I can compose several different posts and then save them in draft form; I can then push my drafts to "published" status a few days later, and still be able to contribute something of meaning every day - or at least on a far more frequent schedule than would be possible if I were only posting whenever inspiration struck. I also believe in only posting thoughts that are substantial meaning that a fair bit of time and effort has gone into formulating, polishing, and transcribing them; this,to me, usually requires more than 144 characters ;)

Oh - and about the title -

For those of you who aren't scripters or programmers, I usually lapse into boolean jargon when saying that "something" is equal to (or isn't equal to) "something". In other words, if I wanted to say that "me blogging all the time at work" is equal to "me looking for a new job soon", I'd put it like this:

Me blogging all the time at work == me looking for a job soon.

I use the double-equals sign ("=="), since in most programming languages, "==" is a statement of equivalence, while "=" is assignment. If I wanted to take a placeholder, call it "a", and then assign it a value of "2", I would say this:

a=2

This convention should be familiar to anyone who has taken high-school algebra; "a" would be called an "attribute" while "2" would be the value assigned to attribute "a", just as 3.14 is the value assigned to Pi (Π), which is also a constant, or value that never changes.

I digress. If I wanted to assert that "a" did indeed already equal "2", I would say this:

a==2

the mathematical equivalent:
a ≡ 2

Conversely, if I wanted to assert that "a" does not equal "2", I would say this:

a!=2

the exclamation point ("!") being a sign of negation in many languages. In mathematical terms, it would be the same as:

a ≠ 2

A few more:

"a" is equal to either "2" or "3":

a == 2 || a == 3
a ≡ 2 ∨ a ≡ 3

"a" is greater than "2"
a > 2 (same in both)

"a" is less than "2"
a < 2 (same in both)

"a" is less than or equal to "2"
a <= 2
a ≥ 2

"a" is less than or equal to "2"
a <= 2
a ≤ 2

Okay - I think that I'll stop now... :)

HEAT!!!

Well - it's back. The almost-oppressive heat that haunted us a few weeks ago has returned to put in an unwelcome encore performance. Fortunately, Carrie and I didn't take down the Ghetto AC unit that we had put up last month, and probably won't until late September, when we can be (reasonably) assured that this foolishness is behind us.

People who live in other parts of the country (except for San Francisco) probably won't get the point of my grousing, but people in Seattle generally aren't used to - and don't like - extremes of any kind (weather-wise, I mean); get too much above 75 in the summer, or below 40 in the winter, and you've got our attention. And our complaints :)

The complicated narrative of a simple life

It occurs to me that lately, I've been "phoning it in" by posting little mini-vignettes related to mashups that are wrapped in a malleable gossamer façade mimicking sincerity, structure and substance. While such may make for a numerically impressive post count, it's ends up being inconsequential at its core.

But what to do when inspiration for the great missive of worth is lacking? Does one simply and blithely accept that, on this day, the muse is elsewhere, and, resigned to such a faith, elect to wait for her return, upon which ideas shall flow as a great river from the soul to the fingertips, whereupon they will be transcribed in binary form into the great ether that we call the World Wide Web? Or rather, does one, desiring not to lose the essential shell of ones art (even though it be hollow for the instance), commit ones and zeroes to their apportioned space, knowing that this particular sequence may be as insubstantial as the physical weight of the means of transmission? To do the former invites a sense of rarity, and, consequentially, disinterest on the part of the reader due to too great a temporal span between conveyances; to do the latter almost foreshadows a sense of desperation on the authors behalf, and for a surety generates an unwelcome noise-to-signal ratio heavily imbalanced to the favour of the former, thus creating disinterest on the part of the reader due to the general disinclination to constantly separate dross from gold whilst sifting through streams of literary conceit.

The question need not be anything less than trinary in nature, for, where inspiration may be lacking, possessing a certain grammatical and syntactical acumen may suffice, and, in part, serve as an adequate apparition for the true nature that the author indeed aspires to posses and display. When such a course is followed, it is hoped by the author that the reader willingly mistake such empty rhetorical flourishes for genuine belabored thought; such an endeavor could be assisted and enhanced by pre-pending a lofty title to the post in question, therefore generating an expectation of a certain loftiness in the mind of the reader - one that can only be dispelled by a certain close reading that demands more of an investment of time and mental facility than most are wont to spend. In this case, said author should be amiable enough to, at the very least, define his post as being nothing less pretentious than a complicated narrative of a simple life, sow the fertile grounds of his space with high words and phrases, and bid the reader a fond adieu, with the assurance that, perhaps next time, something of true worth shall indeed find its way into a land that is not to be.

All the way there and back again...

A few weeks ahead of schedule, I managed to make it all the way from Orcas to Columbian Way on Beacon Avenue South. It's 1.2 miles round trip, and it took me about 12 minutes to do it - but hey, that's a start, and considering that I've just taken up running in the past month for the first time in six years, I think that it's a pretty signifigant accomplishment for me. Meaning I'm pretty proud of myself :)


View Larger Map