I get to do really fun stuff at work

The firsts

It's hard to decide whether you like your new home when you move into it. At first everything is very strange. The rooms, the refrigerator, the shower, and even the light switches are just all wrong. Or maybe not wrong, but different. However,  once you hit a few milestones and do all the "firsts", the new place begins to feel like home.

First glass of water.

First shower.

First night.

First time filling up the fridge with groceries.

First time cooking a meal.

First time watching a show on the couch.

First time blogging from your living room.

Back Home

I've been back home in NC for a week now. Despite the facts that I'm not actually settled in our house yet, I've  been extremely busy, I'm starting a new job at a new school, and I've hardly had time to tell up from down it still feels 100% g-r-e-a-t to be home.

Here's the sunset from the Durham Bulls game on Friday night to prove it:

Makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

The last time I dr(o)(i)ve across the United States

This guy is a delight in the car

The Open Road

What a good freind!

Yes, dogs, this is the last time. We promise...

Utaaaaahhhh...Still my favorite state to drive through

I mean, really. I took this photo outside of a sketchy gas station/casino and it's still beautiful.

Lovely sunset on Salt Lake

Home. The first beautiful thing after Utah.

:)

Visitors

This week Jessica and Bryce came for a visit and though it was slightly stressful to think that a week of what should be packing was to be spent as a week of hosting, I can't think of a better way to spend my last week in Oregon. Guests force you to get out and do stuff, to enjoy the place and everything that makes you like it. This is just what we did.

Not pictured: copious amount of food and beer, 2 cookouts, a rousing game of Mind Meld, a trip to Dexter, Portland eats, river floating, and the large collection of pint glasses acquired by Jessica and Bryce.

How to Beat the Heat on a 104 degree day with no AC

Go to Pacific Coast, sit on a rock. Feel very cold.

When you decide that it is too cold on the beach, hike down a trail and find a creek. Don't forget your chairs and beers.

And dogs!

Submerge feet in cool stream.

Drink a giant cold beer while feet are in said stream.

Hug someone you love.

Watch the stream and your dogs.

Realax, you feel much cooler now.

Enjoy!

Have another beer.

Fall asleep in the car on the way home.

The Game of Life

I played Life with Charlote while in Pittsburgh last week and was struck by the amazing/true/misguided/brilliant/insightful/horrifying things that this game teaches our youth about "life".

-spin a wheel and draw a card to decide your career (is it really that random?)

-choose go to college and make more money or end up with vocational job (vocational work isn't so bad, nor is it certain you'll make the big bucks these days with a college education)

-stop at the stop sign to get married (this is a requirement?)

- choose between the family path or the career path (must one choose?)

-land on a spot and sue your opponents for 100,000$ each (let's teach them to show no mercy!)

-buy your dream home, which can only be a mansion, luxury apartment, cape style house, or a delux trailer (bigger is always better, apparently...)

-retire happily in a huge mansion if you are the player with the most money at the end (money=happiness, clearly)

Naturally, I won the game but it was close. It came down to a 20,000$ difference in our final "salaries", so I decided to teach Charlotte a lesson about coming out on top: I gave her 10,000$ so we could both win the game of life and retire happily in the mansion together. 

"See?" I told her, "It doesn't really matter who has the most money. We can still retire together and be happy just hanging out". 

I'm not quite sure the point was made.