El and I LOVE Christmas. Not so much the gift giving or partying, eventhough that's great, too. No, we love decorating the house for the holidays. Especially El. We wanted to do something different this year so we moved the location of the tree away from the side of the living room window back some so you could see more of it from the outside. I thought it looked great. El had more ambitious plans apparently.
Let's redesign the tree theme this year! Huh? Yeah after staying up ALL NIGHT Friday she decided to flip the format and make it all orange colored. I had to compromise it to reds, oranges, bronzes and golds. What the hell. Let's see what she does...
Monday, November 28, 2005
We stopped off at Target and Crate & Barrel to get some new warm colored ornaments for El's latest conquest. Nice stuff. I think this girl missed her calling. She's a great nurse, but she's soooo into interior design (and good at it to boot!). She spent quite some time meticulously placing each bulb to balance the tree's symmetry and colors even. I would venture to say it's the best tree we've ever done. Thanks to Lalaine, too, for last year's Crate & Barrel gift certificate. That came in handy to absorb most of the cost...
So what to do with all the extra ornaments from year's past? Well ya buy another tree and stick it in the den! We decided to retire our tiny silver tinsel retro tree and opt out for a fresh Frasier Fir. Rachel swung by to help dress it. I was surprised at how NCIE Target's trees were. Wherever they get their trees from they are very nice shaped and healthy. They may be $5 more than Lowe's or Home Depot but it's worth it - if you need one (and only one) I highly recommend getting one there.
Saturday, November 26, 2005
Black Friday Kicks Ass
Man I hate Black Friday. People are out in droves and El and I were determined to stay the hell outta the way. The only places we braved were Target and Lowes to check out the Christmas Trees and take one home to begin our Christmas holiday.
But who can go to Target without looking around? We did a quick run-through at the holiday decorations and left without making too many purchases - poinsettias, some small bulbs for the tree, etc. People looked like zombies walking between aisles too transfixed to pay attention to other customers, thus blocking aisles or pushing through without so much as an "excuse me". With purchases in hand we got out as quick as possible through the garden section.
Once at Lowe's we found what we were looking for. We picked up an eight-foot Frasier Fir (aaah the smell of a fresh tree!), although I was really pushing for a ten-footer to make the most of our high ceilings. Next year I guess. We immediately got home to unpack our decor and start dressing the tree. Woo hoo! All in all we made out mostly unscathed.
I can't say the same for some who went to the superstores to drop cash on their $200 Kinyo laptop computer or $29 Apex DVD player - I mean don't get into a scuffle over some P.O.S. hardware...
But who can go to Target without looking around? We did a quick run-through at the holiday decorations and left without making too many purchases - poinsettias, some small bulbs for the tree, etc. People looked like zombies walking between aisles too transfixed to pay attention to other customers, thus blocking aisles or pushing through without so much as an "excuse me". With purchases in hand we got out as quick as possible through the garden section.
Once at Lowe's we found what we were looking for. We picked up an eight-foot Frasier Fir (aaah the smell of a fresh tree!), although I was really pushing for a ten-footer to make the most of our high ceilings. Next year I guess. We immediately got home to unpack our decor and start dressing the tree. Woo hoo! All in all we made out mostly unscathed.
I can't say the same for some who went to the superstores to drop cash on their $200 Kinyo laptop computer or $29 Apex DVD player - I mean don't get into a scuffle over some P.O.S. hardware...
Friday, November 25, 2005
Happy Thanksgiving!
It was a last minute decision actually. I was looking forward to a low brow holiday with little or no cooking involved. But come on...who am I kidding. El had to work today and thus ended our initial decision to eat out at a nice joint for dinner. I couldn't make reservations since I didn't know when she'd be coming home. So I got to prepping earlier in the week.
Since I knew we'd never finish eating everything I'd prepare I decided to see who of my buddies had nothing going on - a Straggler's Thanksgiving if you will. Dan, Kam, Scott and Rachel came over to join in the evening.
Since I knew we'd never finish eating everything I'd prepare I decided to see who of my buddies had nothing going on - a Straggler's Thanksgiving if you will. Dan, Kam, Scott and Rachel came over to join in the evening.
What was on the menu? Roasted turkey stuffed with aromatics and roasted root veggies (rutabaga, red and gold beets, parsnips, and carrots; stuffing; seasoned zucchini, squash, broccoli and eggplant; wild rice; mashed garlic potatoes with bacon; sweet corn muffins; green beans and mushrooms sauteed in white wine; honey baked ham from titay; Homemade ice cream sammiches compliments of Scotty; homemade cookies from Kam and Dan; and sweet potato pie.
Everything turned out great. Downed a few bottles of vino, great company and conversation and no KP for me afterwards! Thanks Rach and El for knocking that stuff out - I know you were tired from work, El.
Everything turned out great. Downed a few bottles of vino, great company and conversation and no KP for me afterwards! Thanks Rach and El for knocking that stuff out - I know you were tired from work, El.
I know it's a lot of work, but hell I'm a glutton for punishment. Besides like the A-Team said..."I love it when a plan works out."
Today is a half day at work (where I'm updating my blog and I plan on heading out to go go-cart racing with the fellas for lunch and then meet El at home for lunch. Traditionally we pick our tree the day after Thanksgiving when all the sale vultures come out for Black Friday. Welp here's to the upcoming holiday season, not breaking the bank, and no stress!
Today is a half day at work (where I'm updating my blog and I plan on heading out to go go-cart racing with the fellas for lunch and then meet El at home for lunch. Traditionally we pick our tree the day after Thanksgiving when all the sale vultures come out for Black Friday. Welp here's to the upcoming holiday season, not breaking the bank, and no stress!
Thursday, November 17, 2005
Who stole the show for me? The locals, X:144 and SPS. X:144 rhymes definitely shined and loved his flow better than anyone else's all night. SPS made me appreciate a great DJ again. What a difference it makes.
Was it the 5 Guinesses that made me impatient to get the hell outta there in the middle of The Perceptionist's show? Was it they came on WAY too late (12:30) on a school night? Was it having to endure 3 other groups who had to set up and play their set first? Was it all the ugly chicks in the joint vs. the sausage fest of guys? Was it all the smoke? I don't know for sure, but it was agreed between Ed and I to break the hell out before the headliners finished their set.
Check out X:144 and SPS site and take a listen. These guys rocked the mic like it was nobody's business. I love underground hip hop like Ugly Duckling, The Roots, People Under The Stairs and Little Brother. Just not Tuesday night.
I was never a real big Mr. Lif fan - so much politics and other BS that I can do without. Overall it wasn't bad - I was jsut ready to get the hell out. So I lost 3 hours of my life and $12 at the door. Not too bad since I got to experience SPS and X:144.
Was it the 5 Guinesses that made me impatient to get the hell outta there in the middle of The Perceptionist's show? Was it they came on WAY too late (12:30) on a school night? Was it having to endure 3 other groups who had to set up and play their set first? Was it all the ugly chicks in the joint vs. the sausage fest of guys? Was it all the smoke? I don't know for sure, but it was agreed between Ed and I to break the hell out before the headliners finished their set.
Check out X:144 and SPS site and take a listen. These guys rocked the mic like it was nobody's business. I love underground hip hop like Ugly Duckling, The Roots, People Under The Stairs and Little Brother. Just not Tuesday night.
I was never a real big Mr. Lif fan - so much politics and other BS that I can do without. Overall it wasn't bad - I was jsut ready to get the hell out. So I lost 3 hours of my life and $12 at the door. Not too bad since I got to experience SPS and X:144.
Now you you can't ALWAYS get a fantastic show like Karl Denson's Tiny Universe and Tuesday night at The Social was a perfect example. Tuesday was Phat & Jazzy night featuring The Perceptionists, a hip hop trio that's been getting good reviews and touring quite a bit. Their album Black Dialogue has gotten decent reviews and I even bought a couple of their tunes online (5 O'Clock and Career Finders with Shock G of Digital Underground - remember THOSE guys???). Both songs sample jazz hooks and beats with smooth vocals - definitely a studio production judging from the live performance this past Tuesday.
Ed and I decided to break our No School Night Outings rule to check these guys out. We got there at 10pm after meeting up with some friends at The Filling Station, a local watering hole, to celebrate Ingrid's 23rd birthday (Happy Birthday Ingrid!). There must have been 3 or 4 opening acts, which normally I wouldn't complain about. But for the most part the opening acts started strong and ended kinda so-so.
Asamov from Jacksonville had a great group vibe and are popular in their hometown, but here they were just 5 guys on stage screaming at you.
Cool Calm Pete (nice name) featured three guys who seemed to have a better vibe. Odd that no one was black in the rap trio - but hey...music has no colors. Too bad the petite Japanese rapper had his mic on mute. His flow was too blurred compared to his Vanilla Ice counterpart, who seemed to be more energetic and clear - speak INTO the mic please.
Again these two were OK. Funny they came on later. You would think at a show the later the band came you would assume they would be better. Not necessarily so.
Ed and I decided to break our No School Night Outings rule to check these guys out. We got there at 10pm after meeting up with some friends at The Filling Station, a local watering hole, to celebrate Ingrid's 23rd birthday (Happy Birthday Ingrid!). There must have been 3 or 4 opening acts, which normally I wouldn't complain about. But for the most part the opening acts started strong and ended kinda so-so.
Asamov from Jacksonville had a great group vibe and are popular in their hometown, but here they were just 5 guys on stage screaming at you.
Cool Calm Pete (nice name) featured three guys who seemed to have a better vibe. Odd that no one was black in the rap trio - but hey...music has no colors. Too bad the petite Japanese rapper had his mic on mute. His flow was too blurred compared to his Vanilla Ice counterpart, who seemed to be more energetic and clear - speak INTO the mic please.
Again these two were OK. Funny they came on later. You would think at a show the later the band came you would assume they would be better. Not necessarily so.
LIVE! At The Social!
I remember back in Charleston when my buddy Dave, Clay and I were heavy into live music. It really didn't seem to matter too much what genre it was (well for the most part at least - L7 really gave me a headache) so long as it was live. Every week we were hitting maybe 1-2 shows of local or headliners.
There's defintely something about seeing a band live vs. hearing their studio produced album, especially if you're in a smaller venue. Being in the middle of a crowd totally immersed into the band's performance was sooo different than popping in a CD for a listen. Plus, it helped that booze was always on hand.
One group a friend from work, Bartels, introduced me to last Friday was Karl Denson. He had played previously with Lenny Kravitz and the Greyboy Allstars. Now apparently as a VERY popular jazz influenced jam band (gauging from crowd at The Social) we checked them out after a brief Happy Hour at McCormick and Schmick with Paul, Tommy, Ingrid and Brian. Damn that was good! These guys went off - total stage performance - they kept grooving all through the night. I'd definitely see them again...
There's defintely something about seeing a band live vs. hearing their studio produced album, especially if you're in a smaller venue. Being in the middle of a crowd totally immersed into the band's performance was sooo different than popping in a CD for a listen. Plus, it helped that booze was always on hand.
One group a friend from work, Bartels, introduced me to last Friday was Karl Denson. He had played previously with Lenny Kravitz and the Greyboy Allstars. Now apparently as a VERY popular jazz influenced jam band (gauging from crowd at The Social) we checked them out after a brief Happy Hour at McCormick and Schmick with Paul, Tommy, Ingrid and Brian. Damn that was good! These guys went off - total stage performance - they kept grooving all through the night. I'd definitely see them again...
Monday, November 07, 2005
Does Paula Really Deserve Her Own Blog???
Cindy and Darlene were kind enough to host Paula's birthday at their lakehome. Great weather, great company, great everything. Basically a relaxing way to wind down the weekend otherwise spent at home CLEANING. It's pretty obvious from this photo that PAULA LOVES HER BIRTHDAY...
Friday, November 04, 2005
Right outside of Monkey Bar. El, Tommy, Ingrid, Paulie, Ed-Fu, Sanne and Erin...
So we started on Wall Street where we hung out mostly by the Monkey Bar section. Later we moved on to Sky60 while Tommy and Paul explored Independence.
A lotta fun, with a lot hilarious moments. Wouldn't you agree Tommy?
So we started on Wall Street where we hung out mostly by the Monkey Bar section. Later we moved on to Sky60 while Tommy and Paul explored Independence.
A lotta fun, with a lot hilarious moments. Wouldn't you agree Tommy?
Aaah what's a party without a tiny bit of food? El adn I prepared "White Castle style" miniburgers with pepperjack and blue cheese, beef souvlaki kebobs with tzatziki sauce and nan, homemade mac and cheese, eggrolls with sweet and sour sauce.
Other tasty treats included:
Potato salad and Jell-O shooters / Paul
Halloween Cake / Sanne & Ingrid
Chocolate Cake and Homemade Salsa with Blue Tortillas/Scott & Brynn
Famous Artichoke Dip/Cindy & Darlene
Hot Olives/Brent & Paula
Cookies/Tommy & Lindsay
Deviled Eggs/Rachel
Raspberry Wheat Brew/Chris & Tammy
Jocularity/Brian
And, of course, CANDY! there was so much food leftover - luckily we didn't have to coook too much the next couple of days.
Other tasty treats included:
Potato salad and Jell-O shooters / Paul
Halloween Cake / Sanne & Ingrid
Chocolate Cake and Homemade Salsa with Blue Tortillas/Scott & Brynn
Famous Artichoke Dip/Cindy & Darlene
Hot Olives/Brent & Paula
Cookies/Tommy & Lindsay
Deviled Eggs/Rachel
Raspberry Wheat Brew/Chris & Tammy
Jocularity/Brian
And, of course, CANDY! there was so much food leftover - luckily we didn't have to coook too much the next couple of days.
Mattie was kind enough to bring a keg of his now famous Raspberry Wheat brew. Here he samples the bubbling cauldron of spiked punch. A-a-aalmost..needs more batwing.
El and I spent the month in preparation. Blacklights, webbing, flicker bulbs in all the chandeliers, creepy old paintings on the walls, fog machines and dry ice, glowing pumpkins and small blue lights adorned the house. Lit candles, a custom built coffin compliemnts of Dan Bratkovich, and plenty of special bulbs and a dressed up mannequin courtesy of Ed-Fu's Party Props completed the transformation. Bwahahaha!!!
Halloween Shindig!
Past couple years, Paulie has hosted a Halloween Party. This year I decided to be a team player and give him a break. So come on over! We invited a small crew to enjoy some booze, grubbage and hang out before we made the trek to downtown to where the real party was...
ADIOS!!!
So that's it! FINALLY got around to posting the journal! Overall it was a good trip. There's always that last journey that everyone loves - going home. We'll try maintain contact as best we can we Trevor and Cheryl. Of course, we talk to Jen on a regular basis. The flight home was easy and we parted ways in Atlanta. We took the next day to rest up and get settled back in.
What's the next trip? Quite possibly Greece. But if we get lucky and have an "addition" maybe we'll keep it domestic and see more of the good ole U.S.!
What's the next trip? Quite possibly Greece. But if we get lucky and have an "addition" maybe we'll keep it domestic and see more of the good ole U.S.!
Hands down the most memorable couple of our trip was Trevor and Cheryl from Australia. The Australians are always sooo laid back and easy to talk to no matter what country we visit. We still maintain contact with them and hope to visit some day. Yo Trev! You two are always welcome to stay adn visit if ever in Florida!
Right smack in the middle of the synagogue was the main chapel. Of course, dotted along the sides of the curch were smaller chapels. This thing was gi-hug-ic. Details of the site were amazing. I realize that baroque and such is not my bag, but I still am shocked at much work went into the architecture. The one thing I'll give Spain over Itlay is their dilligence at maintaining their historical sites. Italy does too, don't get me wrong, but somehow the Spanish people do it better. Everything is very clean and the people are respectful of their heritage. Props to them.
The Mosque of the Caliphs and the Synagogue were HUGE to say the least. It was typical of the time that whenever a temple, mosque or what have you got outted by the Catholics that the Christians wouldn't tear the original building but rather encapsulate it - thank Allah for that!
So what we saw was a very nontraditional church of sandstone and limestone in this cool off white and reddish color. We got there early enough that tourists hadn't seeped in yet (other than us). I was able to click away on the camera unmolested.
So what we saw was a very nontraditional church of sandstone and limestone in this cool off white and reddish color. We got there early enough that tourists hadn't seeped in yet (other than us). I was able to click away on the camera unmolested.
Last Day!
DAY 8
This morning our journey takes us through the Guadalquivir Valley to Cordoba. Our tour featured the Mosque of the Caliphs and the Synagogue. Then we made our way across the plains of La Mancha before we went back to Madrid.
This morning our journey takes us through the Guadalquivir Valley to Cordoba. Our tour featured the Mosque of the Caliphs and the Synagogue. Then we made our way across the plains of La Mancha before we went back to Madrid.
Anyways, after dinner we made our way to the theatre. I guess we got there late cos it was PACKED with the dinner crowd as well. But Marte managed to reserve some seats for us in the front of the auditorium. I'll tell you what - it was quite the challenge to focus, frame and adjust lighting on the new Nikon quickly to capture the whirling dancers. I must've shot close to 100 photos.
The dancers were dressed in both traditonal and more modern garb. 3 guitarists played on as the dancers got their groove on. Pretty amazing. It was so entrancing it was hard to shoot and watch.
With light sources changing and getting dark and then light, the subjects moving so quickly all over the stage it was probably one of the hardest things I've ever shot.
The dancers were dressed in both traditonal and more modern garb. 3 guitarists played on as the dancers got their groove on. Pretty amazing. It was so entrancing it was hard to shoot and watch.
With light sources changing and getting dark and then light, the subjects moving so quickly all over the stage it was probably one of the hardest things I've ever shot.
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