Last night I helped my brother-in-law unload a trailer full of sheet rock so he can finish the basement bedrooms which will become our 'home' for the next 4-5 months. The sheets were 16 feet long, and the heaviest thing I've moved in a long time. It actually felt good to get out and do some manual labor, but I'm really glad I don't have to haul sheet rock or plywood on a regular basis.
Speaking of sheet rock and other building supplies, we officially signed the documents with Ivory Homes on Wednesday for the construction of our house. We're very excited and anxious for things to get going. They say it will take about 6 weeks to get permits through the city, and then they'll break ground as soon as they have all of that in place. Then it will go up pretty quick ... they estimated we could be in our house by June, which would be outstanding. Seems like a long way off, but I'm guessing it will actually go fast because we have so much going on.
I officially signed up for the Boise 70.3 half Ironman this coming June. I'm very excited to do it, especially since I signed up last year but knee surgery derailed those plans. I have a lot of work to do over the next 4 months to get ready, but I'm super motivated --- and it really helps that Dave is doing it with me!
Finally, I was at the "Jimmer" game on Wednesday night with Angela. We had awesome seats from a family member, and it was really amazing. I've never seen the Marriott Center that loud, and for the Cougs and Jimmer to perform at that level in such a big game was incredible, if a little unexpected on my part.
Friday, January 28, 2011
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Winter Wonderland
I'm gazing out my office window at the first real winter snow storm we've had since moving to Utah. Kind of cool actually, except that we had some driving plans today that are being somewhat interrupted. As I mentioned in a previous post, it's been quite warm (Angela and I went for a run at lunch yesterday and were both plenty warm in long-sleeve shirts and shorts), so I guess this is a reminder it's still January.
In the 'best news of the week' category, I found out we have two tickets to go to the BYU-SDSU basketball game yesterday. Not sure it gets much better than this... #9 (BYU) vs. #4, the Jimmer Fredette show, 22,000 screaming fans in the Marriott Center... looking forward to it. If common practice holds true to form, my being there automatically dooms BYU to a loss, but what the hey...
Mom and Dad came down to Provo last night for a rendezvous at the BYU Creamery with the our family. It was really fun to see them, and we can't wait for this weekend's Richards family gathering. We've been lucky to spend ample time with LeBras's, just none yet with Richards, so it's time.
And finally, our final construction meeting on the building of our new house is tomorrow morning, so it's good that "we" will have finished making decisions. I'm sure we've picked some great stuff, but I couldn't exactly tell you for sure...
In the 'best news of the week' category, I found out we have two tickets to go to the BYU-SDSU basketball game yesterday. Not sure it gets much better than this... #9 (BYU) vs. #4, the Jimmer Fredette show, 22,000 screaming fans in the Marriott Center... looking forward to it. If common practice holds true to form, my being there automatically dooms BYU to a loss, but what the hey...
Mom and Dad came down to Provo last night for a rendezvous at the BYU Creamery with the our family. It was really fun to see them, and we can't wait for this weekend's Richards family gathering. We've been lucky to spend ample time with LeBras's, just none yet with Richards, so it's time.
And finally, our final construction meeting on the building of our new house is tomorrow morning, so it's good that "we" will have finished making decisions. I'm sure we've picked some great stuff, but I couldn't exactly tell you for sure...
Thursday, January 20, 2011
"Jab this metal spatula in your eye..."
My old running friend and I used to have a routine during long and painful runs. When one of us was hurting, the other would pick up a stick and "Jab this stick in your eye and you'll forget all about your knees/feet/whatever". Well, today I actually tried that, and I didn't like it.
OK, a little background. I've been having trouble with my eyes for about the last year. I've been getting eye infections and have had difficulty with my contact lenses during that time. So we finally decided I should go in and see if I was a candidate for Lasik - I was very excited! Turns out though, that I have two problems. The glands around the eye are supposed to secrete three different fluids - tears, oil, and something else I don't remember - that all work together for the benefit of your eye. Apparently, I have problems with the tear production, in that I don't produce enough, and with the oil secretion, in that it's too thick and just clogs up the pores in my eyelids rather than lubricating my eye. So I'm on a whole slew of eye drops to combat both problems, but in the meantime, they said I had to go to an "Ocular Hygienist" to have my eyelids expressed. Little did I know what I was in store for.
It was all sort of serene at first - they laid me down, put a nice warm towel over my eyes, had spa-like music playing in the background, and had me lay there for 15 minutes. Then just when I was feeling pretty good about life, they came in and the real fun started. They inserted a metal spatula inside my upper and lower eyelids, and then proceeded to scrape the outside of my lids vigorously to squeeze out the excess oils from the pores. Visualize your tender eyelid being compressed forcefully between two metal objects... I guess the good thing was that I was able to generate tears.
OK, a little background. I've been having trouble with my eyes for about the last year. I've been getting eye infections and have had difficulty with my contact lenses during that time. So we finally decided I should go in and see if I was a candidate for Lasik - I was very excited! Turns out though, that I have two problems. The glands around the eye are supposed to secrete three different fluids - tears, oil, and something else I don't remember - that all work together for the benefit of your eye. Apparently, I have problems with the tear production, in that I don't produce enough, and with the oil secretion, in that it's too thick and just clogs up the pores in my eyelids rather than lubricating my eye. So I'm on a whole slew of eye drops to combat both problems, but in the meantime, they said I had to go to an "Ocular Hygienist" to have my eyelids expressed. Little did I know what I was in store for.
It was all sort of serene at first - they laid me down, put a nice warm towel over my eyes, had spa-like music playing in the background, and had me lay there for 15 minutes. Then just when I was feeling pretty good about life, they came in and the real fun started. They inserted a metal spatula inside my upper and lower eyelids, and then proceeded to scrape the outside of my lids vigorously to squeeze out the excess oils from the pores. Visualize your tender eyelid being compressed forcefully between two metal objects... I guess the good thing was that I was able to generate tears.
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
Spring already?
Hmm, who was it who said this Utah winter thing was going to be so bad? It's mid January, up in the 40s, sun shining, and I went for a run at lunch with shorts and a long sleeve t-shirt on. Maybe it's not as bad as everyone thought? (I know, I know, I just jinxed it - we're now in for the worst, coldest, winter on record, starting tomorrow).
Our furniture was delivered this morning, and apart from a few big items that didn't fit down the stairs into the basement, and also besides the fact that we took up a little more of the basement than our kind hosts expected us to, I think all went generally well. Problem is, we now have to do some serious sorting down there to find boxes of things we need now, need in the next few months, or don't need at all until after we move into our own house this summer. Let the "spring cleaning" begin!
And most importantly, the girls all started at their new schools today. I can't wait to hear how everything went - hopefully they all had great days and made lots of new friends.
Our furniture was delivered this morning, and apart from a few big items that didn't fit down the stairs into the basement, and also besides the fact that we took up a little more of the basement than our kind hosts expected us to, I think all went generally well. Problem is, we now have to do some serious sorting down there to find boxes of things we need now, need in the next few months, or don't need at all until after we move into our own house this summer. Let the "spring cleaning" begin!
And most importantly, the girls all started at their new schools today. I can't wait to hear how everything went - hopefully they all had great days and made lots of new friends.
Monday, January 17, 2011
Leaving Los Altos
I chose the picture at the top of this blog to signify the journey our family is making through very important, formative years. Yesterday, we took a literal journey away from things and people we love, toward things and people we also love. It was difficult, it was gut wrenching, it was heart breaking, and it was exhilarating, exciting, and renewing. And it was the first time I'd been able to just sit down and concentrate on one thing (driving in this case), without worrying about packing, moving, cleaning, etc. A friend texted me somewhere in the middle of Nevada asking how we were doing. I realized I had been singing The Eagles at the top of my voice for the last half hour (much to the chagrin of Angela and the kids), and it made me smile that I felt happy.
Man, I feel bipolar...
So we made it to Provo. It was dark and raining, and there was a reception party of family waiting for us. Lots of excited kids, a happy Angela to see her family, and one exhausted overwhelmed Dad - it took me a while to want to even get out of the car. It felt so weird that we were "home". We aren't sure we like the sound of that yet, but we're happy and ready to take on lots of new things.
And to our families, who probably wonder why we're acting so weird when we should be super stoked to be moving home close to everyone (we are, don't get me wrong...), please just understand that we left a part of our collective family heart in Los Altos, California. It's just going to take us a while to learn how to function without that piece.
We love you to all our family and friends, past, present, and future.
Man, I feel bipolar...
So we made it to Provo. It was dark and raining, and there was a reception party of family waiting for us. Lots of excited kids, a happy Angela to see her family, and one exhausted overwhelmed Dad - it took me a while to want to even get out of the car. It felt so weird that we were "home". We aren't sure we like the sound of that yet, but we're happy and ready to take on lots of new things.
And to our families, who probably wonder why we're acting so weird when we should be super stoked to be moving home close to everyone (we are, don't get me wrong...), please just understand that we left a part of our collective family heart in Los Altos, California. It's just going to take us a while to learn how to function without that piece.
We love you to all our family and friends, past, present, and future.
Thursday, December 16, 2010
Leaving Google
- Good friends and people
- Working for the most recognizable company in the world (I admit it, I liked saying, "I work for Google, you heard of them?")
- The swimming pools
- The food. I always said this was something I wouldn't necessarily miss as much, but now that I'm a couple weeks removed from it, I realize how easy it made it for me to eat healthy (or not, when I chose) - including the microkitchen snacks. It's harder for me now to decide what I'm going to eat, and it's easy to fall into bad habits.
- The beautiful campus - I'll always remember riding the bikes between buildings on sunny days
- The bonuses - $1,000 cash every once in a while, and Christmas gifts (this year was a brand new sweet phone, or a Google TV ... looks like I left a few weeks too early!)
- A publicly traded stock. It wasn't always fun to watch the fluctuations, but it doesn't get much better than when the stock shoots up after a particularly good earnings call.
- Travel. I'm pretty sure my new job isn't going to take me to London or Dublin, or even New York. Those weren't always fun at the time, but it's nice to be able to broaden your geography every once in a while.
- Using all the Google products, including the new and unreleased ones, all the time. I'm relearning Outlook in my new job, and suffering withdrawals from the lack of internal IM.
The good thing is that Google will always be in my memory, and always be on my resume. Could be worse...
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
Hello World!
What an amazing month we've had since I wrote last. There has already been so much change in our lives, it's been impossible to keep up on the blog. But I've been feeling an urgency to pick it back up, and to be more consistent with it, so that we can communicate all the great things in our lives with everyone.
So to recap some of the important background developments, you'll remember that I accepted a new job in Provo, UT. This set off the expected crazy string of events, the first of which was a short trip to Utah to look around for housing.
Angela had been spending a lot of time looking online for homes in Provo, Highland, and Alpine, so we were going to focus our search in those cities. But first we had to get there. We were already going to St George for a few days over Thanksgiving with Spencer and Molly's family, so we decided we would head to Provo for a couple days before since we were going to the state anyway. Problem was, there was a huge storm coming in on the weekend we had to travel, but because we only had a very limited window, and we felt it was important enough for us to house hunt, we decided to chance it and drive through the storm. The usual 11-12 hour trip turned into a 15+ hour trip thanks to a 2 hour stop before Tahoe since they close the roads, a major spin out in which it was a complete miracle we didn't plow into one of the many cars around us when we lost control (and that there was a tow truck 30 seconds behind us to pull us out), and multiple storms along the route that left us driving white-knuckled and slow. But we made it, and it could have been MUCH worse, so we were grateful.
The house hunting was fruitful, but not in the way Angela expected. We spent time driving around looking, and in the end she was really frustrated because she wasn't feeling good about things. I had liked an Ivory Homes development in Provo, but didn't talk much about it because there was lots left to see (it was the first stop of the day), and I didn't want to taint Angela's opinion by offering mine. By day's end she was frustrated, overwhelmed, and wishing we weren't moving. But it turns out that the seeds were planted - more to come later...
St George was a blast. Highlights included:
So to recap some of the important background developments, you'll remember that I accepted a new job in Provo, UT. This set off the expected crazy string of events, the first of which was a short trip to Utah to look around for housing.
Angela had been spending a lot of time looking online for homes in Provo, Highland, and Alpine, so we were going to focus our search in those cities. But first we had to get there. We were already going to St George for a few days over Thanksgiving with Spencer and Molly's family, so we decided we would head to Provo for a couple days before since we were going to the state anyway. Problem was, there was a huge storm coming in on the weekend we had to travel, but because we only had a very limited window, and we felt it was important enough for us to house hunt, we decided to chance it and drive through the storm. The usual 11-12 hour trip turned into a 15+ hour trip thanks to a 2 hour stop before Tahoe since they close the roads, a major spin out in which it was a complete miracle we didn't plow into one of the many cars around us when we lost control (and that there was a tow truck 30 seconds behind us to pull us out), and multiple storms along the route that left us driving white-knuckled and slow. But we made it, and it could have been MUCH worse, so we were grateful.
The house hunting was fruitful, but not in the way Angela expected. We spent time driving around looking, and in the end she was really frustrated because she wasn't feeling good about things. I had liked an Ivory Homes development in Provo, but didn't talk much about it because there was lots left to see (it was the first stop of the day), and I didn't want to taint Angela's opinion by offering mine. By day's end she was frustrated, overwhelmed, and wishing we weren't moving. But it turns out that the seeds were planted - more to come later...
St George was a blast. Highlights included:
- swimming and hot-tubbing at the outdoor pool every day despite the very cold temperatures
- awesome red-rock hikes that the kids really loved, and got us all outside and exercising in a fun way
- a fun visit to Grandma Gurr
- taking the families to the movie Tangled (very good and fun)
- taking the adults to the move Unstoppable (yes, my second time, but well worth it)
- good meals, including a great home-cooked Thanksgiving dinner, as well as a visit to the St George Pizza & Pasta Factory, which was a huge hit (and we also saw some old friends there - Craig and Kay Ward)
- motorcycle and scooter rides around the neighborhood with the kids
- and an amazing round of golf with Spencer at the normally inaccessible private Entrada golf course
And after a great trip to St George, we then made it home in time for our annual 7-year tradition of going with all our awesome friends to the Los Altos Festival of Lights Parade. We will REALLY miss that tradition.
I'll stop there for now. Watch for more updates to come...
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