Wuv, twue wuv, and mawwiage..

So it’s 112 days until the wedding. It seems like it was only yesterday that I hadn’t slept in 3 days and was irresponsibly driving down to Carmel to propose to the future wife. That was almost a year ago…

It’s insane how quickly the time has gone since that day and even more insane is how much has transpired since that took place. In the time that we got engaged. We went from living in downtown Pacific Heights – San Francisco, to downtown suburban apartment life where the nearest city is Manhattan 30 minutes away. We went from car pooling 5 mornings a week to owning two cars that both get parked in gated-secure parking for under $150 a month. We went from exploring a new and fantastic restaurant in the city for under $20- to trying to figure out where restaurants are that are within 20 minutes driving. We went from having the occasional weekend plans with friends- to having almost every single weekend booked from now until the end of the summer between family and friends.

Life is really different- but it has been exciting and excellent preparation for our marriage. We have learned to explore, learn, grow, and venture to new places together and appreciate each other at the same time.

The calendar seems to fill up quicker and quicker and I am excited that the weather is starting to heat up a little bit. While it was a mild winter here, it was also hard to get used to the change in climates. I do miss San Francisco weather tremendously –but I am eager to experience my first East Coast summer in almost 5 years.
Blog posting has been a little infrequent as of late because I simply haven’t had the time. The Sox Sweep this weekend was fantastic, and our weekend was pretty fun.

Friday night we watched the Sox game. Saturday Megs and I went into the city and Met up with Ankil and Anju for the Mets game. We had planned to stay in the city for dinner, but a day in the sun proved to be more tiring that expected. Sunday Meg, Eric (Koster Sr), and I went down to visit Charlie (Megs younger brother) at law school in Camden. We had a really nice afternoon and enjoyed a relaxing dinner together at this very pleasant restaurant in Collingswood called “word of mouth.” The food was excellent- and the conversation was great! All in all- it was a really good weekend. I have been inspired to be more active and healthy as of late. Megs is getting in shape for the wedding and for as tired as I am- It is somewhat motivating me to get to the gym.

That’s all the news for now. Stay posted for more.

The $5 option!

This weekend begins the 2nd annual soon to be family gambling forum. My soon-t0-be brother-in-law Charlie and I have a running $5 per series bet on when the Spankees and Red Sox play.

Here are my 3 reasons why this weekend will probably turn in my favor.

Finally a cause I can support!

Found him a new job....

If Imus the a-hole does get canned... He could always try out for the role of Hedwig in the next Harry Potter movie... Or at least the owls stunt double.

ZZZZzzzzz.....

Tired today... Very, very tired.

Season premier of Entourage was "ehhh.." at best.

Google and the brother-in-law.

If you are anything like the rest of the computer literate populous of the world you have done something that we all do.. you’ve probably googled yourself. I know that when I have looked up myself or friends – at most there is MAYBE one or two entries if you’re lucky.

I have known my brother-in-law since I was 15, and in all the time I have known him, one thing about him that I have always found fascinating is that when it comes to his work- it’s not a job- it’s a passion.

I am in absolute awe that he has dedicated himself to using his intellect (and believe me, in that noggin there’s enough for a small country to spread around) to bring about environmental awareness and progressive change on a local, national, and now global level. In the 13 years I have known Max, he has made his life about reversing the effects of climate change, and improving the world by means of disseminating pertinent information that can, and will bring about environmental policy and emissions/ green house gasses/ and natural resources consumption change.

How does this tie into google you ask? Well when most of us google ourselves and get those one or possibly two hits- they are usually about a blog, or some picture from 1998 when we joined a school club. Max on the other hand, as of this morning had 7 consecutive pages of direct links that personified his commitment to his work. Almost every single link specified a discussion, lecture, paper, or policy proposal exploring the current state of the environment, climate, and options for positive change.

Although I have a smug and sarcastic sense of humor, the one thing that I have really learned to appreciate about the research and work that Max has done is that it has actually inspired people to action- EVEN ME! As a result of listening to Max talk, and reading some of his work (although most of it is a little technical and over my head) I have tried to drive cars that give off lower emissions, I have registered to the green party, and try to vote not only by party lines, but by the candidate who walks and talks environmental preservation and positive change,.

In summation- I thank Max for dedicating his life to teaching people (one at a time if necessary) about the options and opportunities to make the world a better place. You deserve the 7 pages of links and more! Keep up the good fight!

Harbinger. 03.31.07

This weekend was really fantastic. Megs and I had my old friend Kiersten come up for part of the weekend. This was really special for me as Kiersten is not only one of my oldest friends, but also is like a sister to me. The visit was the first time in nearly 4 years that we have seen one another, and it was amazing that our friendship hasn’t skipped a beat.

The 3 of us went into the city and saw our first Harbinger show at Don Hill’s in the village. This show was incredible for a multitude of reasons. The music was really good, the band played very well, and most importantly my younger brother-in-law Alex (who is an outstanding musician to begin with) was on the top of his game for this show. The band opened with a cover of “Master of puppets” by Metalica, then followed by two originals, and ended the set with an Arch Enemy cover. Heavy metal is not exactly my cup of tea, but I couldn’t help but be thoroughly impressed by the musicianship and performance quality of the band

Here are some pictures that were captured at the show.