Monopoly Night

I've been going through some...stuff...lately and so Wednesday night Kristin decided to help cheer me up by playing a game! A GAME! She normally doesn't like to play games, but she gave in that night and actually SUGGESTED playing one. I was so happy that she wanted to play a game that I even let her choose the game - Monopoly!

We were just about to get started when our friend Kami stopped over (Lisa stopped over too but had to get back to some homework - who in the world would choose Law School over Monopoly?!? ;)) and decided to join. I don't think I've ever played an entire game of Monopoly before...we were playing the .com edition which my sister purchased for me several years ago. It was cool to see some of the internet companies that made the board who are no longer around - those that had merged, and those that are now bigger than ever. We even talked about some that were missing - like Google...amazing to think that just a few years ago there wasn't such a thing - or at least that it wasn't as big as it is now. CBS MarketWatch is even on the board. Little did I know back then (when I got the game) that I would some day be working for them (although now they are Dow Jones soon to be News Corp). - I was even wearing a MarketWatch shirt - I was in the mood to make money.

The game started well and went on for some time, and then, in the heat of the moment, I convinced Kristin to give me 5 of her properties for 1 of mine (Yahoo which was one of the two big ones - she already had the other big one). Those 5 properties, though, gave me lots of monopolies and it was pretty much all downhill from there. I ended up winning with 3.9 trillion dollars (I wish!).

Here are a few photos of the evening (taken by Kristin since she had already gone bankrupt).

Kami and I battle it out for first place

Kami realizes there is no hope.

I relish my victory...now, if only the money were REAL!

Weekend Visit

Kristin’s parents came to visit last weekend. We had a great time…which I’m told I can’t tell you about. Kristin’s mom threatened me with my life if I dared write anything about what happened…so I’m just going to put the very bare minimum of info here…don’t want to be on the wrong side of my mother-in-law!

Roger and Helen arrived Friday evening, and we visited awhile before heading to Cleveland Wok for dinner (our new favorite Chinese place).

Saturday Kristin, Lisa, Roger, and Helen went to meet Lisa’s family for lunch. I had to miss it, unfortunately, but I hear they had a smashingly good time.


While they were gone I made some cookies that turned out okay even though I didn’t like the Hershey’s Kiss chocolate I used (don’t worry, next time it’s back to plain old chocolate chips). Even with the gross chocolate, Kristin’s parents graciously ate one with a smile!

Saturday afternoon we went to Kristin’s school. She showed us around (I’d already seen it, but she showed us the new section that is being dedicated tomorrow) and introduced her parents to the guinea pigs.

Saturday evening was the much anticipated trip to the CASINO. I think this is the part I’m supposed to edit, so I’ll just say the following:

1. ALL cars do that sometimes, and I truly think it could be bad gas.
2. Video slot machines are apparently far inferior to the good ol’ reel ones.
3. Moe and Mohen sound the same over a loud speaker.
4. There is always room for a little bit of ice cream.
5. Downstairs can mean 30 steps or 3.
6. Whether you’re talking to a yo-yo or a string, bad news is still bad news.
7. Hot chocolate from a microwave is much better than from a machine.

We safely made it back to their hotel in Eagan and visited for awhile before heading back to our apartment.

Sunday morning they stopped by our house for a few minutes before heading on their way back to South Dakota.

The visit was fantastic (she knows I love her family!)! We were so happy to have them come visit and hope they can come again soon (and I promise to research all of the casinos within driving distance between now and then ;)).

Happy Anniversary!

First, let me wish a very happy 4th anniversary to Kristin.

Some of you may be confused. How can it be our 4th anniversary when we just got married in July? Before the big day we always celebrated our anniversary on October 17. That’s the day we first met in person again after several years of very sparse email contact. It kicked off a period of newness, crazy-in-loveness, and me flying to Minnesota at least once a month (sometime 2 or 3 times a month) to visit (thank goodness I moved here the following April or I would now owe the airlines a fortune!).

To celebrate, Kristin informed me today that we are going to see a film I have wanted to see for awhile – she typically doesn’t like going to see movies that I do, so I had given up hope that we would go and resigned myself to the fact that if I wanted to see it I would have to see it on my own or with friends in the next couple of days before it leaves the theater here. But here she is, being the awesome person she is and reminding me, on this, our 4th anniversary, of all the reasons I fell in love with her.

Thank you, darling. Happy Anniversary.

FILM SYNOPSIS

Can the love between two people ever be an abomination? Is the chasm separating gays and lesbians and Christianity too wide to cross? Is the Bible an excuse to hate?


Winner of the Audience Award for Best Documentary at the Seattle International Film Festival, Dan Karslake's provocative, entertaining documentary brilliantly reconciles homosexuality and Biblical scripture, and in the process reveals that Church-sanctioned anti-gay bias is based almost solely upon a significant (and often malicious) misinterpretation of the Bible. As the film notes, most Christians live their lives today without feeling obliged to kill anyone who works on the Sabbath or eats shrimp (as a literal reading of scripture dictates).


Through the experiences of five very normal, very Christian, very American families -- including those of former House Majority Leader Richard Gephardt and Episcopalian Bishop Gene Robinson -- we discover how insightful people of faith handle the realization of having a gay child. Informed by such respected voices as Bishop Desmond Tutu, Harvard's Peter Gomes, Orthodox Rabbi Steve Greenberg and Reverend Jimmy Creech, FOR THE BIBLE TELLS ME SO offers healing, clarity and understanding to anyone caught in the crosshairs of scripture and sexual identity.

San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders

For the raw emotion, the unconditional love, and the ability to stand up for what you believe in - even when it may not be the most popular position - Mayor Sanders - I applaud you.

Thank you for reminding all of us that hope, optimism, and persistence are important and necessary in the fight for equal rights for all people.

Wedding Photos

It's done! Well, the easy part is, anyway. I finished uploading all of our wedding photos to Shutterfly. Now comes the hard part of picking the ones we want in various books, on the wall, etc. and touching them up. I'm thinking it should all be done by our10th anniversary...maybe ;-)

Before and After

Okay, so my goal was to get my hair chopped the day after the wedding. A lot of people told me not to. So I didn't. But when I woke up a week ago in the middle of the night and found myself being choked by my own hair, I knew I had to do something.

And do something I did...a little more drastic than I thought I might go, but what's done is done!

Before (this morning)


After (a few minutes ago)

PostSecret...

An addiction of mine..."release your secrets and become who you are."

Updated every Sunday (http://www.postsecret.com)

Busy Times!

Whew! It’s been a whirlwind couple of weeks, and the next couple will be just as crazy! The wedding went better than we could have every imagined. Take a look at some of the pictures. Someday soon I hope to write a bit more about the whole wedding experience. It was so great to have our families together and around us as well as so many dear friends. I was overwhelmed by the love and support we received.

Kristin and I left for California the Monday after the wedding. We spent 2 ½ days in Carmel and 2 ½ days in San Francisco. It was a wonderful trip – hopefully I’ll have the time to write up a whole thing on that soon as well - with some great pictures.

Now, we’re in the middle of getting things ready to move! We’ll move to our new abode a week from today. Kristin has been an angel with all the moving stuff – she’s completely taken charge and has done way more than I have in preparation for it – she’s the best!

I will try to post more often after next week. Hope this entry finds you all well…

It's the Little Things....

It’s the little things that annoy me. Like the little stickers we forgot to put on the kisses in the favor boxes causing us to reopen every box and redo them. Like the directions that no matter how many times I redo always seem to have a mistake in them. Like having to go to Target on a daily basis to pick up essentials we didn’t know we needed. Like the piles of to-do lists and sticky note reminders everywhere. Like the stacks of things to take, to pack, to move, to organize.

It’s the little things that are so special. Like the card Kristin gave me “just because.” Like the two sparkly-clean rings sitting in the jewelry drawer just waiting for Friday to get here. Like the dresses hanging on the back of the bedroom doors, pressed and ready to go. Like looking through photos of us to choose eight and getting lost in memories for an hour. Like the fact there are only FIVE days until I marry the woman of my dreams.

12 Days and Counting!

Wedding planning is in full swing. Posts over the next several weeks could be spotty, but I promise to do a great big final wrap-up post after this craziness is all over. Kristin and I have both commented that we don’t remember what we thought about, dreamt about, talked about, or focused on before all of this wedding stuff. I will forever pity any person planning a wedding. Honestly. Even when all the “big” stuff is taken care of there are still millions of decisions to make and things to do (and I used to think wedding planners were useless!).

Don’t get me wrong – we are enjoying every second of all of this, it’s just that sometimes things get a little overwhelming and, unfortunately, the people around us have to pay the price of our short tempers! :)

This has been great, though. It’s been so much fun to plan all of this with Kristin, and I think it’s brought us even closer and has definitely made me love her so much more.

A shout out and a thank you to all of those out there (and there are MANY) who have put in countless hours helping us with different aspects of the planning and to those who listen sympathetically to our rants and cheer along with us at our successes on this journey!