Isn't Riley looking sharp with his new haircut? It's as if we bought him some new traveling clothes for the move.
Riley is great to rough house with because he is a big, substantial dog. While it is fun to play fetch with him, and he can now catch a frisbee, what I really like is to wrastle with him for his dog toys. He could, of course, do some damage to me with that maw of giant teeth he has, but he's smart enough to know when he is bitting down on a toy and its time to yank and thrash around trying to pry it away from me and when he's grabbed a piece of me.
I have never been a fan of stuffed animals (pretty much dust mite storage bags), but Reily has really helped me understand how much fun a stuffed animal can be.
If someone is outside and I tell Riley to stop barking, he will go take his frustrations out on a stuffed animal -- really show it whose boss.
This is Riley's current favorite. Katie gave it to him when he first arrived at our house. Isn't she sweet? No, not that mangy old cat, Katie. Katie is sweet.
Riley also likes to join me for personal scripture study. He pretty much places his head on top of my scriptures until I give him a really good morning scratching. I wish I could start my day each morning with a real good back scratch or a massage. Wouldn't you? Then he rolls up next to me and sleeps while I finish my scripture study. It is pretty much a morning ritual now. (It's also why I am Riley's favorite.)
After receiving moving quotes and estimating the cubic feet and weight of all our belongings, we decided we needed to loose about 4,000lbs of stuff in order to have an affordable move. For the last two days I have felt like I was on a sinking air balloon frantically hucking stuff overboard to make the balloon level out. Shelley and I have been merciless. I think when Jonathan and Ellie went into their rooms Friday night, they had that feeling you have after you've received a way too short haircut -- you know, its gone, and there's nothing you can do about it!
We have a huge three-car garage, and Shelley and I had to park outside because the entire garage was filled with our household blubber.
We woke up and started moving things out and putting up our signs around 6:30 am. Madison and I were on sign duty and Shelley and Kate were trying to organize everything from the garage out on the driveway. People started showing up at 7am, while I was still putting up signs. And if you were in the market for Marc's tools, this short period of time before I returned was the jackpot baby!! For example, my Paslode cordless framing nail gun that I bought for about $400.00. Well, a nice lady paid 10 bucks for it! When I express a little consternation over the selected price, Kate simply responded, "I wondered why she ran to her car."
Needless to say, there were many, many bargains to be found at our garage sale. I mean we had to get rid of 4000 lbs. For example, I had 500lbs just in dumbbells and other weights. Which actually brings me to another point I learned about moving sales: a guy's stuff obviously weighs more than a girl's stuff. Clearly, tools and sports equipment weigh more, than say craft supplies and Christmas decorations. I mean, anyone can tell that a sewing machine is more important to the well being of the entire family than a commercial grade air hockey table. I am just saying that a moving sale can help solidify families priorities.
One thing that drives me crazy at yard sales are the true hagglers. No matter how good a deal (or should I say "steal") I gave them, they were still going to keep asking for a lower price. But sometimes I just loose it! I feel like I am going to turn into the moving-sale Nazi and scream, "Enough! No deals for you! Get out of my yard! No deals for you!"
There were a couple times during the moving sale though where I did loose my patience, forgot that we were generally negotiating over quarters and single digit dollar increments and the unsuspecting haggler found himself face-to-face with a cold-hearted, Georgetown-law-trained, nerves-of-steel, hired-gun lawyer.
For example, a haggler that has a huge pile of items that even at give-a-way prices adds up to a grand total of $8. The haggler still wants a better deal and offers you $4.50. However, when I accept, he has no change and hands me a five dollar bill. I am sorry, but I won't make change for this person. I don't care if I have so much change in my pockets that when I walk I sound like I am wearing sleigh bells, I am not making change. The price just became $5, take it of leave it. The pile sells for $5!
Then there are the "unbundlers." For example, Shelley had found in the basement a utility sink in an unopened box that we should have taken back to Home Depot, but we don't have time now. Remember, our balloon is sinking? The tag says it cost $80. A haggler, who kept calling me "chief," said he would pay $5, I said $15. So then he grabs about 100lbs in dumbbells and say he'll give me $20 for the sink and the dumbbells. I agree. So he comes over to pay and says he no longer wants the weights, he'll just take the sink for -- $10. Nice try -- sink sells for $15!>
. Lastly, there was a very nice Russian guy with his cute daughter. She was buying up our girls clothes and we were happy to see that she was happy. At first he said he wanted to buy a piece of sheet metal vent pipe for a buck. Ok, sure. But then he then said he wanted the pieces in the garage too, and I said I didn't have anymore. To my surprise he showed me that under a small pile of scrap lumber there were actually about eight more pieces all in a neat roll. Oh, man! another $90 bucks in Home Depot returns down the drain. Oh, well, too late -- while frustrated with myself, I agree to $1. But then he returns to Marc's wondrous table of tools and it hits me, I have a beautiful pair of duct snips that I bought for about $30 bucks. I walked over to Shelley and Madison and explain that if I was busy with someone else, the duct snipes go for no less than $3 dollars -- non-negotiable. That's right folks, a line had been drawn in the sand at this one-day tool bazaar. The stage was set. As I turn around, he was walking toward me waving the snipes in one hand and with his other hand he held out a quarter and smiled. I smiled too. He complained a lot, and even told me I was ripping him off, but heh -- the snipes sell for $3!>
Its not like we aren't practically giving the stuff away. Right? Remember, our air balloon is sinking, we have to shed 4000lbs. In the end we made just over $500. It made me wonder how the sale would have went if we had just posted a sign that said, "Moving Sale -- All Items $0.25/lb." It would have been fun, like the big lunch buffet bars where you pay by the pound.
As long as we judged well and are not required to immediately repurchase the items at full price, in California, the real savings was the over $2,000 we hopefully are saving by not moving all that stuff.
And, man, we sold almost everything. Even after the official hours were over, people were still coming and we stayed out a little extra time just selling anything thing (half full cans or bags of fertilizer and cleaning supplies, bags of snow melt, light sockets, door knob parts, etc.) for $0.25 or best offer. I am always amazed at what will sell at a yard sale.
And best of all, our household is close to 4000lbs lighter. Packing starts Tuesday!
The big news is that I have a new job. I have been interviewing for about six months with no luck, then I was sitting in the Biltmore Hotel in LA having lunch after interviewing with E&Y, and my phone rang with a "415" number. I thought about all the firms I had interviewed with in SF and anxiously answered. Instead, it was Mary Powell, a good friend of mine that I studied law with at Georgetown. It was about 1:20pm and she had just had lunch with a friend who had mentioned that I had interviewed with their law firm. Mary told me that as soon as she was finished with lunch, she decided to call me because her firm was going to "hire me first." After six months of interviewing, I admit it did feel good to at least be wanted by someone.
So the following Wednesday, I flew out to SF and interviewed with Trucker Huss. Trucker Huss is a very excellent employee-benefits boutique firm in San Francisco. It turns out that a partner and an associate, who happen to specialize in the same area of law as me, left the firm a little over a week ago and the firm needed someone immediately to fill the gap. Which is good, because I really needed a job immediately too. Not only had my funds pretty much depleted, but school was starting and Shelley was becoming a little frantic about where our kids were going to start school.
I interviewed on Thursday, and on Friday Mary called to tell me that Trucker Huss was preparing an offer for me. I really do like the firm, I knew they would provide good terms and that I would accept the offer -- so I shaved my head! I had been wanting to shave my head for a while, but didn't think it would be the best interview look. But now I have no more interviews on the horizon, and I knew that even if it looked horrible, it would grow in enough to be presentable for my first day of work at Trucker Huss.
The next week Trucker Huss called me with the terms of their offer. It was only a little less than I was expecting, but it was a very reasonable offer and I am thrilled to accept it. In fact, we were on the phone around midnight, and I accepted the offer right then. Mary actually called me the next day to make sure I wasn't just loopy tired, and I confirmed that I really did want the job.
Because Trucker Huss needs someone immediately, I need a pay check immediately and school has started in California two days ago, I agreed to begin work on September 8th. That would give us about two weeks to pack up, find a new place to live, etc, etc. . . .
But just as my dream job has finally fallen into my lap like manna from heaven, our move seems to be coming together with the help of providence also. We reviewed all the homes for rent and made a list, in order of priority, of the homes we thought we wanted. At the top of the list was an older ranch home in Walnut Creek that was on an acre of land. Shelley's parents were kind enough to go visit all the homes. At the first home, which was also our first pick, Shelley's dad had actually known the owner for over 20 years.
We reviewed the pictures of the house from Shelley's parent's and decided that it was the house for us. You can see pics of the house at Shelley's Blog. Obviously, we were tired of items such as our gourmet kitchen, library, and oversized double shower, and were, instead, ready for a small cozy place where we can raise kids. (Of course, it was also the cheapest rent, and in the end, we are indeed cheap.)
Because the owner was a friend of Shelley's dad, he rented us the place on the spot with no credit check or references. We just sent him the deposit and "a la peanut butter sandwich" -- I have a job and a place to live.
The home is on one acre, and Jonathan was excited because he figured we would not have to go to a range anymore to play paintball. Because he is our little "fruit bat", I think he will actually be most excited about the fruit trees on the property and how much more fun it is to ride a BMX bike on an acre of land, instead of a cul-de-sac. Dang, I am excited for him already!
One of the best things about the rental is that the property is in trust and must to be sold soon, so we have the opportunity to negotiate a rent-to-own agreement. Even the thought that we might end up with an acre of land and a small ranch home in the middle of Walnut Creek makes me dizzy. It would be so unbelievably cool!
Next issue was the whole moving part. I woke up Saturday morning and went to JetBlue online. Amazingly, they had one-way tickets to SFO for $133.00! Wahoo!
Unfortunately, JetBlue will only allow pets that fit under your seat on the plane. That left us in a quandary for what to do with Riley, pictured to the left. Riley can drag Jonathan by the the pant leg through the snow -- he does not fit under my plane seat. Instead, the cheapest flight for Riley and I was on United for $700.00. Boohoo!
On to setting up our move. This will be our first "full pack" move. I am so excited, but I almost can't imagine the move without the elder's quorum coming over to carry everything into the truck and without Shelley and her friends spending endless hours wrapping items in newspaper.
Kate and Maddy are the biggest beneficiaries of the full pack move though. All they have done for the past week is visit their friends and shop for school clothes. With Shelley in full "guilt" mode over moving again, she is pretty much saying "yes" to everything the kids ask. With the full pack, Maddie and Katie do not have much to do other than clean their rooms. Pretty rough, right?
So that's it. On September 4th, we fly to SFO and on September 8th, I start my new job.
I read "The Bourne Identity" by Robert Ludlum for my book club and thought it was a fun, fast-paced thriller. The strength of the book is its plot. Jason Bourne is shot in the head and has amnesia regarding his past life. However, he is surprised to find that he still possesses remarkable skills and knowledge which appear related to espionage. He uses these skills and his limited recollection of a few key events to try and retrace who he is before he is killed by the CIA or a rouge assassin. If you have seen the movie, the book's plot is a bit different and, of course, much more complex. Also, the female character in the book is much more developed and believable. She is an international banking expert for the Canadian government. She is not only capable and helps Bourne several times, but the book has time to create the conflict and sacrifices they each undergo that leads to their falling in love. As a character, Jason Bourne is a true gem because the author gives so many layers to his character. Throughout the book neither the reader, nor Jason Bourne himself, know whether he is a monsterous assasin or a heroic super intellegence agent. Sometimes I felt sympathetic to his dire situation and sometimes I felt repulsed by his cool efficiency in dealing out death and destruction to preserve his own life.
The down side of the book is that the prose is not very rich. Mr. Ludlow seemed to feel that just the pertinent facts were needed to keep the plot speeding along, and so some of the scenes seemed sterile to me. I would definitely recommend this book, but I enjoyed more thrillers such as Patriot Games by Tom Clancy, The Eight by Katherine Neville or The DaVinci Code by Dan Brown because the prose draw me more into the scenes and the characters.
Do see the movie also, Matt Damon is truely awesome as Jason Bourne in the trilogy of movies.
And even though I want to live younger, when I have my annual physical and the doctor tells me what my blood pressure is, I still have to wait for the doctor to tell me whether such and such number over such and such other number is okay or not. I just can't remember what my blood pressure should be or even whether the big number or the little number should be on top.
And I believe I should take a daily multivitamin, but when I read the list on the back I can't tell whether I need what is on the list or not. For example, where is the vitamin B5? You mean its called pantothenic acid. Oh, right -- I mean, of course it is. You would know that, right?
That is how I felt until I recently read Drs. Oz and Roizen's health guide book called "You, the Owner's Manual." Its not a Harvard Medical Guide and it has no footnotes. It just gives simple explanations about how each system in the body works and then it outlines a "Living Younger Action Plan." I have read all 500+ pages of the book, and you should too. But I know you are busy, not to mention fully employed, and may not have brain power left at the end of the day. So as a benefit of my current unemployment and as my gift to you, here is the "cliff notes" version of the the Living Younger Action Plan. You now have no excuse to "not to be around" for my 100th birthday bash, which will be a major extravaganza.
KNOW THE NUMBERS -- (a) Blood pressure maintained at 115/76. A higher BP level can be considered normal, but maintaining it low at 115/76 can add up to 12 years of life to your cardiovascular system. 12 YEARS! (b) Cholesterol: LDL less than 220 minus your age and HDL greater than 40. (c) Blood sugar (glucose) should be less than 100mg/dL. (d) Eat less than 20 grams of saturated and transfat per day -- eating none is great. (e) Homocysteine should be less than 9 mmol/L. The reason women have heart disease later in life is because they genetically have lower homocysteine levels. Memorize those numbers mate! You can add 25 years to the life of your ticker and veins. (You can lower you homo-cysteine levels by supplementing with Folate (Vitamin B9) and vitamins B6 and B12, all of which is listed below in the Vitamin supplement section). Now, when you go in for your annual physical, first make sure that each of the above is being tested and second, if any of the levels above are too high -- make a plan with your doc to get straight.
STRESS!!!!! is the number one ager of our bodies in general. YOU MUST REDUCE IT!!!! Exercise, meditation, religious devotion, nurturing friendships and playing with a pet can decrease stress. You may not have a pet, but to live younger you must find time each week for sufficient exercise, meditation and nurturing friendships. Put it on the schedule, its a must. Stress can take away over 20 years from your life!
SUPPLEMENTS: (a) take a daily multivitamin with magnesium (400 mg), calcium (600 mg twice daily), vitamin A (1,500 IU), vitamin D (1,000 IU), vitamin C (600 mg twice daily), vitamin E (400 IU), Folate (400 mcg), vitamin B5/pantothenic acid (300 mg), vitamin B6 (6 mg), vitamin B12 (25 mcg), zinc (15 mg) and cooper (2 mg); (b) take 162 milligrams of aspirin (2 baby aspirin) daily and drink 1/2 glass warm water before and after; (c) take Co-enzyme10 up to 1,200 milligrams daily and (d) take 1,500 mg combined of glucosamine sulfate and chondroitin to lubricate your joints. If you do not eat fruit rich in potassium daily, you must add that too.
EAT HEALTHY: (a) 1/2 handful of nuts a day (contain good fats and precursor to serotonin to improve mood); (b) 13.5 ounces of omega-3 rich fish; (c) eat a cup of beans daily (especially soybeans [or tofu] or kidney beans, black beans, pinto beans) (you can soak beans in water overnight to breakdown some of the compounds that cause gas); (d) 31 mg of flavaniods daily from yummy foods such as red grapes, cranberries, chocolate, oranges or onions and tomatoes; (e) drink skimmed milk; (f) consume plenty of fiber (25 g for men and 35 g for women); (g) no more soda pop -- regular or diet! and drink at least 8 glasses of water a day; (h) eat healthy fat at the beginning of meals, but especially before dinner; (i) eat your cruciferous vegetables (broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, etc.) to fight cancer and detox the liver and (j) eat four servings of fruit everyday. I am serious about the soda thing. Studies are showing that people who eat substantial sugar substitutes (i.e., diet soda) are training their brains to think that sweets do not have calories, not good.
SLEEP: 7-8 hours for men and 6-7 hours for women. If you do not sleep enough, you brain does not release enough serotonin and you try to make up for it with stimulants such as sugar, caffeine or tobacco.
EXERCISE YOUR BRAIN. Your brain is a muscle that must be worked out by trying something new or testing yourself. The chosen activity should feel like recess, not study hall. Find something challenging that you enjoy doing everyday. Also, take a break and just daydream to keep your brain flexible and your imagination keen.
HELMETS. Wear a helmet when you are biking, blading, climbing or other activities with high probabilities of head trauma.
EXERCISE YOUR BODY. Perform 3 types of exercise weekly: (a) 10 minutes resistance training 3 times a week (by adding more lean muscle you help prevent injuries by taking stress off joints and ligaments and by building stronger bones and you create a fat-burning machine to help with long-term weight loss); (b) 20 minutes of stamina training 3 times a week (to help strengthen your cardiovascular system) and (c) 5 minutes daily of stretching or yoga. If you do not walk 30 minutes a day in your normal daily schedule, you will need to add this in to keep your bones healthy. A note with respect to stamina training -- be nice to your joints. Swimming, biking or an elliptical machine will keep you from sustaining stress injuries from the pounding of repetitive prolonged running. Cross training is actually the best work out for your heart, so mix it up if you can. Also, note that using free weights helps build your balance and core muscles better than machines.
DON'T SMOKE.
GREENERY. Adding plants to your home is the best air filtration system.
PROTECT AGAINST DUST MITES. Wrap your pillows and mattress in impermeable (1 micron-protected) cloth. Why? Otherwise, within two years your pillows accumulate 2 pounds of dust mite excrement, that's right -- mite poop -- that's 2lbs in your pillow! So when you buy those wonderful dual layered feather-core goose down wrapped pillows for just-right comfort, put on a micron wrap or you'll have to chuck your pillows at the end of the year. Ouch! That's expensive trash.
EXPERIMENT WITH FOOD. Use food elimination testing to avoid food allergies. Even low-grade food allergies can make a person have a runny nose or headaches or even feel flu-like symptoms. In this test, you completely eliminate one group of food from your diet for about three days and take notes about your energy levels, fatigue and digestive regularity when you go off the food and then when you go back on the food. Don't forget that food can affect the way your children act and feel, so take note also.
FLOSS. Gum disease and inflammation actually contributes to heart disease. So please, floss.
AVOID TOXINS: (a) drink filtered water; (b) eat unprocessed food; (c) take care not to eat meat from animals exposed to toxins (especially its liver, yes, that means foi gras); (d) wash your fruits and vegetables; (e) wash your hands and (f) evaluate your home' and office air quality.
SEX, SEX, SEX. Have more stress-free, quality, thoughtful sex. From what I've read, quality and thoughtful means more and longer foreplay guys. A person can add up to 8 years to their life by figuring out how to have stress-free, qualify, thoughtful sex. Quickies and affairs do not meet the test. We are talking about the need for the big long-term commitment to extend your life and your happiness.
PROTECT YOUR EARS. Avoid sounds over 85 decibels. That includes snoring. Seriously, you are damaging your spouse's hearing, man!
Wear sun-protection
Wear sun-glasses.
Take a 10-minute break after every two hours in front of the computer or TV screen.
That's it. These are just minimum standard's for living longer, mind you. You can certainly do more. But it seems like a daunting list for me already. I am adding a few good habits at a time.
I have finished the apples and just need to put the final coat on the table, reflections and background. I think I did a much better job on differing tones than on my last painting. I am pretty happy with this and can't wait to paint a new subject.
Before entering the cafe, you will enjoy the scents of basil and mint plants that are mixed into the beautiful garden of flowers and chili peppers surrounding the outside dining area. In this way you are subtly introduced to the secret of Courtside Thai's success -- the abundant use of fresh herbs and spices. So when you are ordering, don't jump for your traditional pad thai, but look for the dishes described with delicious herb and spice combinations. For example, start with the Tom Yum soup or Grilled Shrimp and Mango Salad. The Tom Yum soup has a savory broth of fresh lemongrass and chili peppers with mushrooms and your choice of meat. Just sipping the broth is a treat, but watch out for the chunks of lemon grass -- biting into a piece can pack an unexpected punch. In the salad, the grilled shrimp is really a side treat; it is the spicy lime dressing and mangos combined with fresh scallions and mint leaves that steals the show.
The cafe serves great appetizers. Even the "traditional" chicken satay is marinated in a spicy lemon mix and served with a sweet and crunchy peanut sauce. It is simply better than your normal satay. I admit that once I was served a summer roll with shrimp and the mint leaves totally over-powered everything else. Otherwise, I have been pleasantly surprised by the quality dishes served at this cafe.
As far as entrees, I would suggest you review the Menu before you go. There are just too many superb selections. I will point out just a couple of my favorites. I like the chef's special, which is not on the menu, tilapia fillet cooked in the chili peppers and served with seasoned green beans. Also, the Courtside Catfish will totally change your perspective on how good catfish can be. If you do not favor seafood or curry, then try the honey roasted duck. And if you do not like spicy, then go to the Irish pub next door!
If the weather is nice, enjoy the outside dining area. It is wonderful. The inside dining area is a mix of Thai decor with impressionist era paintings, table tops and color scheme. It is okay, nothing special. The service can sometimes be slow and erratic. We have even had entrees come out at different times. This is especially annoying at lunch time when time is short.
But in the evening when I want relax in the outside dining court and enjoy very good Thai food, the erratic services doesn't bother me at all. I have never needed reservations for a table at lunch or dinner service.
Courtside Thai is located in historic downtown Fairfax at 3981 Chain Bridge Rd, Fairfax 22030, between Main Street & North Street. The cafe does not have its own parking, so you will need to park either on the street or at one of the public garages and to walk to the cafe.
Last night was pure bliss. I locked myself in my office and painted. It has been a long time. First I added a grey scale undercoat for the reflections of the apples and then I added the yellow to the apples. When that dries, I can work on painting the final red coat on the apples, inserting highlights and begin painting the table.
Shelley found a draft painting of mine that I have not worked on for about two years. This is an under coat of the apples to try and capture the shading correct. I have not even started on the grain of the table or the shadows. I am so excited to start work on it. It is like finding an old friend and I have a chance to catch up. So I set up my easel in my office and have laid out my paints. I can't wait to start making these apples come to life. I will post my progress.
I have two teenage girls, and they are absolutely in love with a vampire named Edward. Edward is the main character in Stephanie Myer's latest book, "Breaking Dawn" which was released today at 12:00 am.
And apparently my girls are not the only one's with this crush. Last night pre-release parties at local booksellers were the place to be. Hundreds of girls showed up, some dressed in prom dresses and others with home made tee-shirts expressing their affection for Edward the Vampire, or sometimes even for Jacob the slighted Werewolf. Bella, the heroine in the book chose Edward as her love, but some think she would have been better off with Jacob. Why? I don' t know, I'm just the Dad. You will have to read the books.
We went to a couple of the prerelease parties, and here are some pictures of the happy partiers.
Maddie and her friend Amy met up to squeal together.
Apparently it's not an easy choice.
There's a prom? I don't get it.
And take a look at some of the elaborate activities booksellers put on for their loyal customers last night:
Flower making, because...I don't know.
I get bookmarks!
So they can always remember their special night.
And what prom/book release could be complete without vampire black nails. Hey, if no ones making "Edward Black" nail polish, I thought of it first.
Awwww.
And now, armed with their prom pictures, blood red flowers, bookmarks and Edward Black nails, both my babies are holed up in their rooms still awake trying to make it to the final page.
Isn't Riley looking sharp with his new haircut? It's as if we bought him some new traveling clothes for the move.
I have never been a fan of stuffed animals (pretty much dust mite storage bags), but Reily has really helped me understand how much fun a stuffed animal can be.
Posts
