Saturday Night

Somehow we forgot to take any pictures of the birthday girl. Sorry about that... Happy 30th Kate!

Julia's Dedication

For those of you who were not able to make it...

Manitou Incline

Josh and I took a late lunch yesterday. It was Friday and we just felt like trespassing. Actually, we drove down to Manitou and did the Incline. There weren't very many people there, but we didn't complain. We parked at Barr Trail near the Cog Railway (the train that you can ride all the way to the top of Pikes Peak) and went straight up the Incline. On the way back we took Barr Trail down. Here are some facts and figures about the Incline as well as some pictures. Of course, the pictures don't do it justice.

Incline Length: 1 Mile
Incline Up, Barr Trail Down Length: 3.25 Miles
Vertical Gain: 2000 Feet (left side of below profile)
Average Grade: 41%
Steepest Grade: 68%

'Lil Bopper

One Year Anniversary

Time flies when you're having fun. Today is officially my one year anniversary at
Focus. In honor of this big milestone I decided to reverse-telecommute and write
this blog.

I can wholeheartedly say that I feel very fortunate to have landed here after
leaving the Air Force. This position has been a great fit for me, in every way. It
has the right balance of challenge and downtime, hardwork and time off, pay and
benefits. Those things aside, although I don't "know" everyone that I work with I
do enjoy working with them. We joke around a lot and there hasn't been a day where
I haven't laughed at something or with someone. From what I've read this is the
most important thing for most people: enjoying the people and environment that you
spend the majority of your day with/in.

No place is perfect. However, what I've been blessed with in this job is all (ok,
more) then I could have ever hoped for. From the start I viewed whatever job I got
after getting out of the Air Force as in all likelyhood "transitional". Maybe God
had other ideas...or maybe His concept of time and transition is a lot
different then mine!

Wild Wacky Washington

I realize that this is my second post today, but I couldn't pass this one up. Stacey and I have a long standing joke that if it's weird and on the news, chances are it happened in Washington State (where she grew up and where I lived for 3 years). I know that things happen everywhere, and now that we're looking for these things we see them a lot more then before, but I really believe that there is a disproportional amount of wacky things that come out the land of the eternal cloud.

Today was another one of those days. At lunch, Fox News reported that several multi-million dollar homes outside Seattle had been burned to the ground. The probable cause was arson from the eco-terrorism group known as ELF (Earth Liberation Front). Explosive devices were found inside many of the homes which authorities believe were used to start the fires.

A few hours later a co-worker asked me if I had heard about the "monkey rampage" in Spokane. Apparently, an illegal pet monkey escaped from his owner's house on the South Hill and chased down three people and bit them. Imagine walking down the street and having a monkey jump out of a tree, chase you down, and sink its teeth into you.

Crazy stuff - if anything it helps prove my theory: chances are it happened in Washington.

What's Better Then...

Getting a refund check for a few Benjamins from the IRS? Getting an unexpected refund check for a few Benjamins from the IRS for 2005.

What's worse then having to write a check for a few Benjamins to the IRS? Getting an unexpected refund check for a few Benjamins from the IRS for 2005.

Stacey called them and they confirmed it was for an adjustment for 2005. The problem is, I have no explanation in writing on what it's for nor did I ever receive anything in the past. I'm really hoping that in a few days that piece of mail shows up explaining the whole situation. Until then, I'm just going to sit and stare at it....for months even, if that what it takes to get something else in writing from them. Of course, even if I do get something and later they find out they were wrong (again), I'd owe the entire amount of the check plus any interest. Lovely.

Spurs Confirm Sudduth Signing

(AP) In a bizarre twist of fate, Tottenham Hotspur completed an unexpected February signing minutes before the midnight deadline expired. At approximately 11:58 p.m. on February 29th, the club and the up and coming American star-forward agreed to undisclosed terms. Sources close to the situation say that the deal has been in the works for approximately one week but delayed because “Sudduth didn’t want to miss the latest episode of Lost”.

Sudduth is currently the leading scorer for the local pub side Focus United F.C. (FUFC) in Colorado. When asked about the last minute deal, Sudduth responded “thank God this is a leap year”. He further commented that he looked forward to playing with likes of Keane and Berbatov and that “it’s brilliant to be able to play with brilliant players, ‘cause when they play brilliant it’s brilliant, brilliant, mmmmhmmm”. FUFC declined to comment on the deal, but their spokesman did say that Sudduth is “dangerous!” and “ooof!”. FUFC pub-side trainer, Rex (founder of the Rex Kwan Do Self-Defense System) said of Sudduth from his dojo, “he has the strength of a grizzly, the reflexes of a puma, and the wisdom of a man”.

Ham And Cheese

Vern Fonk Insurance - Shipoopi!

Local commercials are always good for a laugh. Almost every time we watch Gonzaga play on Fox Sports Northwest we get the pleasure of seeing this commercial.

Thanks for visiting my "innermet" page!