Today's Christmas Chapel was outstanding. In short, it was all about music. We started chapel by singing Christmas carols with the house band. At first we sang lots of songs about Frosty, Santa, and Rudolph. I was a bit surprised how many songs about Santa we sang at chapel - for some reason it didn't jive with what I expected considering the source and venue (it was chapel, after all). Of course, we then moved on to what I would call more appropriate chapel songs like Silent Night before scripture reading.
After we had flexed the golden pipes we welcomed the Briar Rose String Quartet to the stage. Their music was outstanding. My favorite instrument is clearly the violin (any variety). From what we were told this is a local group but one that is composed of musicians with national and international experience. That is to say, these 4 were very good. In fact, their performance was flawless. They played about 5 different Christmas carols. Their rendition of O Holy Night made me want to learn to how to play the violin.
The chapel was anchored by a guest appearance by Barlow Girl. If you haven't heard of them, they are a 3 sister Contemporary Christian rock band. They also sang some Christmas carols and 2 songs of their own. It was a pleasure to watch them perform. They are definitely talents in their own right too. Normally when artists are asked to come to chapel they don't really put on a show. The idea is that they come to lead worship. So, is was interesting to see Barlow Girl doing a set that wasn't necessarily a concert. I've included some pictures of them below.
As our CEO Jim Daly said it correctly, "wow, there was a lot of talent on the stage here this afternoon". Sometimes chapel can drag on but not this one. It was a great show.
Due to everything going on during this time of year, I’ve been a bit remiss in not posting that on Thursday our Kitty went to “cat heaven” . She had been fighting kidney problems since we had returned from Hawaii. Although I do know the best veterinarian in town, we decided that this time was the last time we would admit her to the hospital. We had found ourselves in an inevitable cycle of treatment and then weight loss, toxicity (and thus vomiting), and all around poor health due to her failing kidney function. On Thursday we came to the end of the road called “good quality of life” as most pet owners do.
Kitty had been a member of my family since 2002. So, for Stacey, she has been in the picture since we started dating and have been married. Kitty’s story starts in Spokane, WA. A co-worker of mine (Sarah) at Fairchild AFB has rescued her from the pound in 2001. In 2002, she had to PCS and was engaged to a person who was allergic to cats. She asked me if I would be willing to take her cat. I really wasn’t that interested at first but agreed to at least meet her cat. After all, I wasn’t a cat person and as a single guy the thought of owning a cat didn’t seem very heterosexual (maybe that’s just me). My perception of this specific cat changed as soon as we walked through Sarah’s apartment door. Kitty was very excited to see Sarah, and jumped up on the back of the couch to greet her. As Sarah went over greet her, Kitty reared up on her hind legs and nuzzled her face against Sarah’s. To me, that was enough to prove that Kitty was an exceptionally good-natured cat.
When I took her home to my apartment in 2002 she stayed under the bed for about 3 days straight (she was a pretty timid cat). Eventually she came around and then followed me everywhere. Some of my first memories of her were in the bathroom sink. She liked to hop in the sink and lick the underside of the faucet. She also liked to sit in my lap while I was watching television and slept against me every night on the bed. For a single guy that lived alone in an apartment, Kitty was a great little companion even if she was a cat. She was an extremely social cat and behaved in many senses like a dog. Stacey eventually came into the picture and consistent with her temperament (Kitty), she quickly became fond of Stacey. I think during the time we lived in Hawaii Kitty adopted Stacey as her favorite of the two of us. Even during the time she stayed with my parents when I was in Texas, she warmed up to my Dad. The point is, she was a “lover” and that’s something that can make a cat a really good pet. If my Dad thought she was an “awesome cat”, she probably was. He’s seen a few pass through the exam room the past 30 years.
We moved, bought a house and Stacey became pregnant with Julia all about the same time. This was also when Kitty started having problems with her kidneys. Later, we picked up Quincey which added to our family as well. Unfortunately, due to our changing situation but more due to her failing health, Kitty slowly faded more and more into the background of our everyday life. A few years ago, she would have invited herself into the center of our home life. The past year or two, we didn’t see much of her unless we cracked open a can of tuna fish. For Stacey and me this was an obvious departure from her normal behavior proving that she just didn’t feel well anymore.
Julia hasn’t asked too many questions about Kitty since Thursday. She knows Kitty isn’t around anymore, but I don’t know if she understands fully. We’ve told her that she was “sick”, “has gone bye-bye”, “won’t be right back”, etc. He accepts our answer at the time with as much thought as it probably takes her to ask the question (little, I’m saying). She asks every now and then in passing but I don’t think it’s a major issue for her at this point. It was probably good timing as far as Julia is concerned (age and she’s going to be getting a brother or sister in 6 months). When I put Kitty in the pet carrier Thursday morning, Julia did catch on that Kitty didn't like the idea. She went over to the cage and patted the top of it and said "don't worry Kitty". It was adorable to see Julia try and comfort her.
At any rate, it has been a little different coming home and not being greeted at the door. At night when heading upstairs, I still think I see her in the shadows – she was dark colored and I had to watch where I stepped at night so I wouldn’t step on her. It is funny how habits form and how I expect to see her (and sometimes think I see her) just because I have over the past 7 years or so. At the end of the day she was just an animal (i.e. replaceable, etc)…but one that’s been part of our life for years. What I find interesting is not that I miss her much – more that without her around things are different. The routine and what I’ve known for the last 7 years is no longer. I’m not saying it’s good or bad, just different. My mind expects to see something and it doesn’t anymore. It’s a weird feeling even if I’m not that emotional about it. I come around the corner expecting to see something or someone and they/it aren’t there. It’s a surreal sort of feeling.
Julia tears into her new desk...and then climbs it. I guess since we didn't put the toys together ahead of time (rookie mistake), there's not much else she could do with it at first except use it as a jungle gym.
Have you guys seen these "bikes"? They're supposed to help toddlers learn the basics of riding a bike without having to worry about pedaling. When we were in Crested Butte this summer we saw a little boy riding down the street on one.
This video was taken only a minute or two after she opened the gift from my parents. That is, this was her first attempt at learning to ride it. This summer we'll take it outside where she'll really be able to learn how cruise around on it. She's enjoyed cruising around our basement the past few days.
My favorite part is the second clip about a minute into the video. She's very proud and wants to make sure Umpa (i.e. Grandpa) sees what a good job she's doing.
Here's a video of us singing Happy Birthday to Julia. Check out the smirk at the camera a few seconds in and how excited she gets when Stacey removes Max and Ruby from the cake. Who blows out their own birthday candle(s) at age 2? That seems WAY too advanced.
We celebrated Julia's second birthday on Sunday with both sets of parents. Julia was super-cute and had so much fun opening her presents. The big gifts were a new kitchen set, a new drawing table, a shiny new bike, a cute Starbucksesque shirt, and an outfit. It was a lot of fun to watch her having fun. She's so cute, funny and smart it's ridiculous. I can't believe it's already been two years!
Music by Bing Crosby (You Are My Sunshine)
England, Algeria, and Slovenia! I'm so excited that we drew England. It will be a lot of fun to see the USA play all of the English players that I watch play on a weekly basis. Not only that, but it's going to be the first game of the group and on a Saturday (June 12th). Could this be a repeat of the famous 1950 win over England (otherwise known as the Miracle on Grass)?
As far as the rest of the group goes I couldn't be happier. I think it's naive at this point to take anyone for granted, but the other two teams are hardly powerhouses in the football world and just barely qualified. Relative to who else we could have drawn from their respective pots, these two countries would surely be considered in the easier half. Sure, they beat some other good teams to get here, but that's true of anyone in the World Cup (except maybe the Asian teams!). Everyone at next summer's tournament had to beat someone else to get this far...hence the word "qualification". So, even though it won't be easy I think we'll have enough to advance out of this group. Then again, you never know what team is going to show up and so I also wouldn't be surprised if we're "put in our footballing place" like we were 4 years ago.
The pots for the World Cup draw on Friday were announced today! In the end, there weren’t any big surprises. In fact, the only difference from my previous post that I made predicting the pots is that Netherlands are a seeded team and France is not. Otherwise, it was exactly the same as I expected (not taking into account the specific pot number from 2-4 because it’s irrelevant).
So since this afternoon was a slow one at work I made my official unofficial mock draw. What I didn’t know last time (in addition to the official final pots) is that FIFA won’t allow the African and South American teams in Pot 1 to draw another team from their region. That changes things a bit and ensures each group will have as much regional variety as possible.
Official Pots
Pot 1: South Africa, Brazil, Germany, Italy, Spain, England, Netherlands, Argentina
Pot 2: South Korea, Japan, Australia, North Korea, Mexico, USA, Honduras, New Zealand
Pot 3: Uruguay, Chile, Paraguay, Ghana, Cameroon, Cote d’Ivoire, Nigeria, Algeria
Pot 4: Portugal, France, Switzerland, Slovenia, Greece, Denmark, Serbia, Slovakia
My Mock Draw
Group A: (Cumulative World Ranking = 136)
South Africa (they are automatically assigned the first spot as hosts)
Mexico
Chile
Switzerland
Group B: (Cumulative World Ranking = 90)
England
South Korea
Nigeria
France
Group C: (Cumulative World Ranking = 108)
Netherlands
New Zealand
Ivory Coast
Greece
Group D: (Cumulative World Ranking = 139)
Spain
North Korea
Algeria
Denmark
Group E: (Cumulative World Ranking = 71)
Argentina
Australia
Ghana
Portugal
Group F: (Cumulative World Ranking = 84)
Brazil
Honduras
Cameroon
Slovenia
Group G: (Cumulative World Ranking = 100)
Italy
Japan
Uruguay
Slovakia
Group H: (Cumulative World Ranking = 70)
Germany
USA
Paraguay
Serbia
(this could be the group of death - yikes!)(what's even more weird is that the first time I also drew USA, Paraguay, and Serbia together - and in group H - what are the chances of that???)
Round of 16, based on my mock draw
Chile A1
France B2
Mexico A2
England B1
Netherlands C1
Denmark D2
Ivory Coast C2
Spain D1
Argentina E1
Cameroon F2
Portugal E2
Brazil F1
Italy G1
Paraguay H2 (just edging the USA by a point)
Japan G2
Germany H1
Quarterfinals
Chile
England
Netherlands
Spain
Argentina
Brazil
Italy
Germany
…and I’ll stop there since picking the winners after this stage is even more pointless then this entire mock draw post! Anyone else care to make a mock draw (cough, Matt, cough)?
It's been a long process, but I finally finished about 25% of the windows in the house this weekend. I learned a few things from this first batch of windows which will hopefully save me some time and effort in the coming weeks.
In the end I had to do some extra caulking and painting but it made all the difference. One thing I have learned is no matter how well you do everything else, the finishing touches are what decide whether a project looks bad, acceptable, or great. Since we've put so much effort into the details on the other things we've done I couldn't let this project near the very end of my list of things to do slide. I had to re-motivate myself a few times to approach the finishing and painting with the same level of detail as past projects.
Of course, now that it's over I'm glad I put the effort forth. I guess I just embraced the old saying, "if something's worth doing it's worth doing well". It would have been pointless to put forth the effort up to this point and then cut corners in the most important and last step. As always, I'm happy with the results. As I just mentioned, I don't think I'll ever do something like this and not be happy with the result though...because I'll just keeping messing with it until I am. While I agree that no one else will ever notice or care - that is, I'll be the only one who knows about X, I just can't accept other people's evaluations as my own or good enough for me. This just proves that I'm an internally motivated person and that I do things like this because I enjoy them and not for other people. In the realm of personality traits, that's probably and strength and a weakness.
