The Boys are Here.

The twins arrived Saturday afternoon. Everyone is healthy, happy and at home now. MDH was first and weighed in a 6.8 lbs, while his brother, BPH, popped out 2 minutes later with a weight of 7.5 lbs. Here are their first published photos. MDH wouldn't open his eyes for me but BPH was very photogenic, especially while dad was holding him. Good luck to mom and dad.









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The Spirits of Christmas

Here are some photos of my nieces from Christmas.










I am trying to take more photos of CEA since we have so many of CMA. CEA just started cheesing it up for the camera over Christmas, we may have created a monster. CMA looks very excited for dinner, she had me put her in her seat about 10 minutes before were ready, then she didn't even eat much. It was fun spoiling them for Christmas, good thing as an aunt, spoiling isn't restricted to just December. For more pictures of the girls check out my sister's blog. Click the link Armstrong's Happy Pines on the left side.

Thanks for reading.

Christmas means...

...something different to everyone. Brilliant statement, right. To some it is about religion, others time off but to most it is about getting together with people that you love and spending time with them. This Christmas has been different for me since I don't have the restraints of work holidays to control my time. My sister, the girls and I came over to Ukiah on Thursday to see our parents. Getting two young kids ready to go early in the morning is quite a feat but we got out exactly on time. As expected both parents called to check up on us while making the drive, we made the requisite feeding stop for the eight month old and made it in time for lunch with dad. For the last 3 days we have bounced around having meals, a glass of wine or opening gifts.

The best part of Christmas now is watching my parents spoil my nieces. CMA wants "birthday cake" all the time now, she loves the sweets but doesn't get them that often but a grandpa's job is to indulge so she got blueberry cheesecake and 2 batches of cookies to decorate with frosting. Grandma, on the other hand, gave her a gigantic box of books and a beautiful, red velvet Christmas dress...nah, she's not spoiled. CEA got shorted this year, she only got held, hugged and kissed by anyone that could get their hands on her. Most of the gifts were for her and her sister to share, movies, a mini piano, books all of which big sister opened but right now she just wants the attention. Soon enough her first birthday will be here and all of the gifts will be for her.

Today we also had a great open house/party to celebrate my moms recovery, 14 months after a cancer diagnosis and almost as important, to show of the two granddaughters. It felt like all of Ukiah showed up to celebrate good health and we ate and drank to it. It was especially nice to see my mom's great friend that was our savior while mom was sick. She organized the friends so there was food, took her to doctor's appointments, doled out the medication and made it possible for my sister and I to continue on with our lives, 3 hours from mom. We owe her a lot. The other special visit was from my Aunt and Uncle that traveled from Reno just for the party. They just moved back to the west coast so we are expecting to spend more time with them, what better place to start then Christmas.

My dear readers are all wondering why I am telling about this 2 days before Christmas, how has all this wonderful giving, celebrating and spoiling happened before the actual event. Well, it is called adaptation. My sister's family has their own set of traditions to develop including Church, tree decorating on Christmas eve and time for just them, so tonight they headed back to their home. Life changes and traditions evolve and now Christmas to me means a few days late in December celebrating the past year and looking forward to the next one and it doesn't need to coincide with days off of work or the 24th/25th.

So that is the end of Christmas 2007, part one. I still have Christmas eve with dad's neighbors, Christmas Day with mom watching movies, meeting my 2 newest nephews (they should be arriving any minute now,) and a gigantic Christmas get together with my Bay Area family. (chaos is 11 adults, 5 kids, a 6 six month old and two infants...I can't wait.)

Merry Christmas...however and wherever you spend it.

Anniversary

Over the last weekend I passed a big milestone. A year ago Sunday, I "graduated" from ITMI with big dreams of being a Tour Director. During the two weeks of ITMI '06, I learned a bit, made very good friends and joined a fantastic network. A lot of what we learned was "common knowledge" to me but definitely wasn't for most. That may sound like I am patting myself on the back but it is really to point out that I was made to be a tour director. The past year has brought a lot of change for me and I have to say, there is nothing I regret. Of course, I still have some money in the bank right now. From what I can tell, I have been very successful compared to most from my class. There were a few of us that worked for the student tours and four of us went to Alaska but many have worked other stable jobs in addition to trying the touring experiment.

Though, I could never replace the friends I made in college and could barely survive with out them, I am grateful for the people I have met and friendships I have forged in my new career. During my time in Alaska I met many people but three wonderful ladies will be with me forever. Two of them have been to ITMI and though all three are at very different stages of their lives, from different parts of the country and have different aspirations, they are brilliant, beautiful and successful women that inspire me each time I talk to them.

I may still have to get a temp job but I believe that I will be in much better shape come this time next year. A big part of this business is contacts and persistence and the first comes mostly with time the second comes with desperation. Our Symposium conference is fast approaching and I intend to take full advantage of the contacts while in San Diego.

So after a year of change I look forward to next year, which while having less major change, will hopefully bring more opportunities and I remain optimistic that that will include something a little more exotic then Alaska.

Thanks for reading.

Ah, the young...so impressionable.

I spent the night at my nieces house (okay, it is actually my sister and brother-in-law's house, but really, who do you think I am there to visit) the other night and feel compelled to talk about the brilliance of CM (2+ yr old) a bit more. First off let me say I love the fact that she loves her Auntie so much and I am glad I get to spend all of this time with them since I disappear off to Alaska, Europe or some other place so often. While I was in Alaska, CM could find Alaska on a small globe I gave her right before I left. That is genius if you ask me. Anyway, lately while I have been at their house I have been able to use my computer, so it is out quite often. CM is fascinated by it and wants to look and play with it whenever she can. On my iGoogle home page, I have a live web cam of my favorite building in the world so I can watch the sunrise on it, the twinkling lights at night or just glimpse at it to think about being in Paris again. The first thing CM points to is the picture of my building and asks what it is. Right about then it starts twinkling and she oohs and aahs, that is the way to Auntie's heart. Then she says, in the most adorable voice, "more Eiffel Tower?" What else can I do but acquiesce. I go through the photos from the latest trip and every time she sees me she says "Auntie" and each time the Eiffel Tower is shown, she says "Eiffel Tower." I believe if I keep this up she may be as attached to France as I am. (Rubs hands together with and evil smile) Next step...teach her French.

Thanks for reading.

Leave a message.

I have changed the settings on the comments field. Anybody can leave a comment, you don't have to have a gmail account, though I highly recommend one. I keep hearing that people are reading but I have little proof, so I want to know. Leave me messages, ask me questions or give my ideas about what you want to hear about. Remember, I have a lot of time on my hands now. All I ask I that you sign your name, so I know who to thank.

Thanks for reading.

Always the Party of the Year.

It must be the Holidays! We had our first of the two big parties of the season. I spent much of Friday evening and Saturday assisting the fine chef, TD, in the kitchen putting together some great food. It is the 7th year of the DP Christmas party and it was a blast. There were about 50 people, lots of food and more then enough alcohol. For many years now, I have been TD's sous chef for the party, this year I got some assistance too. The W's came over early, so CF could have some food fun too. The menu was expansive, we would never have reached the 7:00 pm deadline if we didn't have the extra hands but in the end our menu was as follows: mushroom spread crostini, mini quesadillas, humus and pita chips, twice baked baby potatoes, bacon wrapped pickled watermelon rind, caprese skewers and shrimp spring rolls. I think that is the full list. It was all amazing, tons of work but totally rewarding especially for our amazing chef.

The H's made what is probably the last big excursion before the boys are born, JH looked great though but we can't wait for the boys to get here. Some friends that made the Ireland trip with us came out from Atlanta, it was great to see them. MW wore a dress she bought in Paris and I wore some fabulous tights. It is really the only time I dress up for the year and this year CF bought his wife, his date (me, yes there is story behind that) and the hostess flowers. There were a few casualties due the proficiency of the host's drink making abilities. In the end, everyone survived, though some took longer then others, and is ready to tackle next weekend.

Thanks for reading.

BARCELONA!!!

Writing that makes me think of the Freddie Mercury song from the '92 Olympics, how about you? Sorry this is so late but here goes. Barcelona was our vacation from our vacation. After a relatively easy transfer, flight and taxi ride, we arrived at our apartment. Eventually we were greeted by someone from the rental company. He didn't speak much English so we worked our way through the agreement and basic information about the city in broken Spanish, English and sign language. Finally, we cut him off from trying to tell us more, he left and we settled into our apartment. It was much smaller then our Paris one and didn't have basic necessities like we were used to but we made it our home for a week quite easily. The apartment was situated about 5 blocks from the Sagrada Familia, within walking distance of the heart of the older section of town and only 2 blocks from a Metro station. We had 5+ days in the city, so we could take our time seeing everything and fall into the swing of a Barcelona day. Most days we woke up between 8-9, fixed a breakfast including jamon (Spanish ham,) cheese, some fruit, cereal for mom and croissants for rest. Yes, I got to run to the patisserie and MW got to have Nutella every morning. After that we would head out for some wanderings, find some lunch and back home for a siesta. A few days we headed back out for some food, but most days we had dinner back at our little home. We enjoyed scouring our neighborhood for little shops for our supplies; we found a wine shop, yes it did just sell wine and cava, there were a few carniceria's and cheese shops and a great little bakery/sweets shop. Here are the highlights of trip.

Food - The food in Barcelona is very good, though from I can tell we really didn't eat Catalan food. We had paella one night, tapas for lunch most days and had a lot of fun shopping for the home cooked meals. We found a fantastic place for tapas on the first day, thanks to the research by the W's. It was so good we went back for our last meal out also. For our meal that took the place of Thanksgiving for us, CF & I ran to the carniceria and watched the butcher save the jamon right off the leg hanging over the counter. We both thought that it was a great experience, one you can't have around here. However, the most fun was shopping at the world famous La Boqueria market, right off La Rambla. We knew we wanted to make a big dinner but we had limited supplies at the apartment so it had to be relatively simple. We hit the market in the middle of the day, during siesta, so about half of the stalls were closed. We wandered around checking out the meat and fish, waiting for something to grab us. We narrowed it down to fish and then stood in front of one the many fish stalls to contemplate, thinking we should get something local or exotic. Finally, we decided that we all like salmon the best from the mystery fish we could translate. CF order 4 salmon steaks, so the young girl hauls this huge mostly whole salmon onto the chopping block an proceeds to hack of 4 huge steaks, it was quite a site. We ended up with a kilo of salmon. Then on to the veggies. The asparagus looked fantastic, so that was easy, we also picked up dill, cucumbers and tomato for a sauce for the salmon. We also picked up some prepared lentils as a side, some anchovies, olives and cheese. The market trip was an amazing experience and would be a fantastic way to shop but unfortunately, that is another thing that we can't do around here.

Architecture - Everyone knows about Gaudi, he was truly an inspired artist with an extreme eye for beauty. We visited his Parc Guell, a place designed to be a late 19th c. high class subdivision but it never got off the ground, only two houses were built and the owner eventually donated the property to the city for a park. It now contains many walking paths and the Gaudi museum. What Gaudi did leave behind are the bench park that functions as the roof for what would have been the open air market, two fanciful gate house and the famous tencadris iguana that is the second symbol of the city. The first symbol of the city is the Sagrada Familia, the unfinished cathedral designed by Gaudi. It is open for exploring and the admission is one of the sources of funding, they do not accept any government subsidies, hence it being under construction for 120 years and counting. The interior of this church is going to be amazing, very light and airy but the outside is what attracts so much attention. Three of the sides will each tell a story from Jesus' life, the nativity, the passion and the glory. Two of the sides are finished and the detail is great but the whimsy is what gives this building it's uniqueness. There are large, colorful fruit sculptures, pillars resting on the backs of turtles and a seated bassoonist. We also toured Casa Batlo, a home designed by Gaudi for a businessman. This is the building that people refer to as the dragon house, since the roof looks like scales and the windows look like a mouth with the bones of the eaten holding it open. Other then Gaudi's work, there are many other architecturally interesting buildings to behold as you wander about the city. All you need to do is look up.

That is Barcelona in a nutshell. For the pictures from the trip click the "Check the photos out!" link on the left.

The trip was really wonderful and I believe all of my hard work planning it paid off. I feel a little guilty not putting more work into the day to day itinerary suggestions but it was fun to make it a group effort. It was fun to share may favorite place with my friends and more fun to explore someplace new with them. I will say that the exchange rate really hurt me though. I tried not to take it into consideration too much and have a good time but looking at the depleted bank account makes me wonder if that was a good idea. Europe may be off the docket for vacation next year, maybe somewhere south of the equator with a more favorable exchange rate.

Thanks for reading.

Quote of the Day.

"Most nomads don't have this many keys." - me

Memories of Paris, part 2

To continue...

Day 5, Thursday - Today dawned as the coldest so far, I was thrilled to have my new scarf when I headed out for croissants that morning. We decided to bite the bullet and hit the museums. Fortunately the group was only terrible excited about the Musee d'Orsay and the l'Orangerie so off we went to find a way back to the Seine. We got lucky and caught a train without too long of a wait. We wandered back through the Louvre courtyard, funny how we keep ending up here, and then across the river. Though it was a cold day, the sun was shining and central Paris looked amazing, I could just stand on the bridge across the Seine for hours. However, if I had I would have been an icicle. CF and I dropped off the rest of the crew at the d'Orsay, he was tired of staring at art, and we headed off to check out a different museum. I know that sounds wrong but we were off to check out the outside of the new quai Branley museum. It is the new home of the Africa/Orient collection but I heard the architecture was pretty amazing. I have to agree, it has great gardens and some crazy reflections of my favorite tower. After two coffees at my favorite 7th arr. cafe we hoofed it back to meet the crew, on the way we were passed by 7 police crowd control vans. Hmm...wonder what they were doing. We then headed off to lunch at a cafe named for MW's favorite Art Deco artist. After a nice lunch, of course, we headed back to try the l'Orangerie again and were rewarded with a great experience. In this perfect setting, the paintings were really amazing. The rooms are oval with a large bench in the center to sit on and just contemplate the art. After our time with Monet, the others took off so they could head out to peripherique to catch a concert, without much help from public transportation. Mom and I headed back too and got very lucky catching a train that delivered us to the Place de Republic, which wasn't far from the apartment. Mom and I decided to stop for some cafe time, we had some of the newly released Beaujolais Nouveau and watched the world pass by. Side note about European fashion at the moment...skinny pants, tall, low heeled boots, long tunics, black or herringbone coat and the requisite scarf, for the women at least. After the cafe we walked back to the apartment. The others were still planning their route to the concert but we just relaxed until dinner time. Mom and I went to a nearby cafe, also recommended by the apartment owners, Chez Justine. It was another great, dark place with excellent food. Though the portions were so big, I wasn't about to finish mine, so I embarrassed myself by asking the waiter for a to go box. So shameful. Oh well, it provided us with part of dinner come Saturday night. Favorite experience of the day - having too many great options for dinner within walking distance.

Day 6, Friday - Today was the Z's last day in town so our big finale with them would be the Eiffel Tower at night. However, for the majority of the day we split up. I intended to start the day with the W's and then go my own way. Our first stop was the Google office with the ridiculous view of the Opera House. Of course we walked there and along the way we stopped at a beautiful cafe to use the bathroom, the odd part was...it was Starbuck's. It really was a neat place inside, why can't they do that here? We found the office after our short stop and had no trouble getting in, the receptionist's only concern was whether we were intending to have lunch or not. Just crazy. From there we back tracked through the Palais Royal, past the Louvre and onto l'isle St. Louis. We found a great, tiny place for lunch and just kicked back for an hour. I had a great smoked salmon pasta and split a caprese salad with MW. We then wandered done the street that runs the long way of the island. I have found some great little shops here in the past. We had success yet again, I found some purple earrings and MW found 2 scarves. After that we wandered down a bit further and found the Berthillon cafe. We split a couple of scoops of ice cream, but wished that we had each had a tub of the caramel au beurre salé glace. Once again salted butter caramel flavor wins hands down. I want to find it here. Any suggestions? After our short encounter with nirvana we turn toward the Latin Quarter for some random wandering. We wandered our way past the Pantheon and into the Luxemburg Gardens. Though the temperature was in the mid 40's there were many people sitting around the gardens enjoying the late fall sun. They had filled the huge stone vases with masses of autumn color flowers giving the garden a brightness that it would have lacked. We wandered through taking photos and then headed out on our way to the Eiffel Tower. We were fortunate enough to come across Pierre Herme again and since CF had promised us all the cafe and macaroons we could want, we headed in to replenish our supply. From there we were on a mission to be at the Eiffel Tower by 5pm. Even in the chilly weather the line of the elevators to the top was quite long so we prepared to wait. By the time we got to the first floor it was dark and the city looked beautiful, practically glittering in the frigid air. We spent about an hour on the tower, unfortunately most of the time was waiting in line for the elevators. However, I still believe that the ET at night is one of the greatest visual experiences I have had. From there we ventured out for dinner after determined that a Seine boat trip would have entailed more waiting around. So I lead my trusting crew back into the 7th arr. to try one of my reliable locations. The first, Chez Agnes, was booked but the second, La Bosquet, was a success. We had a delicious dinner, they make the best onion soup, besides my own, and creme brulee that I have found. We got lucky with the Metro again and got a ride baby to the Place de Republic and we home in no time. Now was the sad part of the evening, we had to say good by to the Z's. They were off early in the morning, headed for home. Favorite experience of the day - cliché but being on the tower when it sparkles for ten minutes.

Day 7, Saturday - Saturday dawned lazy, yet clear again. We all took our time getting ready, we didn't have much energy for a big breakfast following the departure of the Z's. First thing on the agenda was a ride to the airport, without the Metro, the taxi's were impossible get so we decided, like the Z's, to reserve a shuttle. Then on with our day. Mom and my plan for the day was to take the Metro to the Rue Cler area to wonder around and shop and the W's were planning to do as much as possible with their last day. Mom and I got down to the Metro and caught the first train without too much wait. We then proceeded to wait for the next train. As we waited for the next train some announcements were being made and from my understanding they were saying that our line was stopped completely. However, not everyone was leaving the station so I decided to wait for a bit. More people filed in but once they heard the repeated announcement they departed, so my translations were confirmed. So I had to revise our plans for the day and keep the walking to a minimum. Looking at the map I realized we were near the Canal de Midi, so we headed of in that direction. The canal was quite and warm in the sun so we walked almost the entire length and back. We found a great little place to enjoy our last, long lunch in Paris and then wandered our way home. We relaxed for the rest of the afternoon and then just had leftovers for dinner, then packed our luggage and cleaned up the apartment. We were done with our week's stay in Paris. Favorite experience of the day - duh, I was in Paris, what wasn't amazing.

Thanks for reading.

Memories of Paris, part 1

13 days later, 10 days of metro strikes, 3 flights and 1 more world class city later, I realize something, nothing can ruin Paris for me. I know I seem to obsess about this fact quite often, don't worry, in a month or so it will pass. We had a great time in Paris which included food, wine, pastries, lights, smoky cafes, caramel au beurre salé glace and long, long walks.

Day 1, Sunday - We settled into our fantastic apartment. It had 3 bedrooms, 2 baths, dining room, living room & kitchen. It was on the 5th floor but had a typical elevator which fortunately worked during our entire stay. We then took a walk around the neighborhood to get an idea where all the necessities were. After we got settled we walked to the Belleville area for a very good, though a bit expensive Thai dinner. Favorite experience of the day - pulling into Gare de Nord on the train from Brussels.

Day 2, Monday - After a great breakfast, (boys made omelets, I went to the patisserie) we took the metro to the Palais Chaillot so we could enjoy the iconic view of the Eiffel Tower. After pictures, we wandered over to and under the tower, just looking, photographing and enjoying the tower in such beautiful sunshine. We wandered toward Les Invalides and finally into the 6th arrondisement where we stumbled upon a great little cafe for lunch. We were squeezed into the back room and served kir's before we ordered. The menu had a great prix fixe menu with tons of options. I had my first onion soup of the trip and a great salad Niçoise. We then wandered down Blvd. St. Germain and around the neighborhood near St. Sulpice. I knew we were in the area of Pierre Herme, one of the well-known macaroon producers but I didn't know the address. MW is a huge fan of the macaroon and they are one of the desserts my mom could enjoy so I was determined to find it. Then I saw someone eating a macaroon with a PH box. So, in the interest of doing anything to make friends happy, I walked up and asked them where they bought the gems. It turned out it was just behind us. We bought quite a few and shared them, the hands down winner was caramel au beurre salé or salted butter caramel. They were amazing. From there we continued toward Notre Dame and on to the Right Bank were we parted ways. The W's and I wandered into a Scottish bar for a token Guinness and then wandered our way back to our little corner of Paris. After resting up a bit we wandered downstairs to a smoky, dark cafe that served great food accompanied by ambiance. Favorite experience of the day - Standing underneath the tower and looking up the heart of it.

Day 3, Tuesday - Knowing that the transportation strike was beginning tomorrow we decided that the best option was to do the far reaching parts of our itinerary, so off to the Arc de Triomphe we went. The day was overcast but the view from the top is always fantastic. To see the 12 avenues radiating out from the etoile and the cars navigating the circle is a site that you can't see in the U.S. From there we walked the famous Avenue to the Place de la Concorde. After contemplating why the would erect a ferris wheel there during the winter, we dove back down into the metro and took it up to Montmartre. We wandered for a while together then went our separate ways for an hour or so. I went down some of the lesser known side streets so I could just be there. I found a corner cafe and grabbed a coffee and met everyone on the steps of Sacre Coeur. The Z's and CF wanted to go to the Catacombs but MW and I just wanted to wander. So we separated for the rest of the afternoon. MW and I took that metro down to Les Halles and ended up shopping for a while. MW had some success but nothing for me. Then we made our way outside to take some photos in the waning light then wandered toward the Louvre. I love the courtyard of the Louvre in the evening, it is quiet and the color from the setting sun plays off the stone of the museum in a glorious way and even the pyramid softens in the light. From there we caught the metro home. Since mom had stayed in all day, she offered to fix dinner and had done most of the shopping. When we arrived, the boys were headed out for few more things and then the struggle was on to figure out the stove. The meal was quite good considering some of the creative solutions it entailed. Favorite experience of the day - a 5 minute stop for coffee in a corner cafe.

Day 4, Wednesday - The strike was on. Paris is incredibly walkable, however, we were a bit too far from the center to enjoy this feature. It took about 45 minutes just to get to the river from the apartment and off course the weather was cooling. In the hopes that the strike would be short lived we decided to go to the Marais. This area is traditionally the Jewish area, now it is a great place for small, local artisans and some of the best falafels around. We wandered down, split up for some shopping (mom and I found the great dresses that the girls are wearing in the previous post) then met up again for a trip through the Carnavalet Museum. After that stop to see the history of Paris, we picked up some falafels and wandered to the Place des Vosges for a chilly but sunny picnic. The rest of the afternoon took us near the Hotel de Ville for some quality gelato (though the language barrier prevented me from having an afogato) then onto the Louvre courtyard, the Tuilieries garden and finally the l'Orangerie museum. I have been waiting for this museum for 6 years, it is the home to giant waterlily paintings by Monet. However, because of the strikes, they were closing early. Now we had to get home, unfortunately it was exactly 5 pm. We decided to try the Metro, since we knew that line 1 was running 1 out of 2 trains. However, this line which is crowded during rush hour on a normal day, was ridiculous on this day. The W's took off to walk but the Z's, mom and I decided to try a different line but that one looked to not be running at all. So we took off on foot, it was about an hour hike. It ended up being a fascinating walk home, watching the insane traffic trying to get home and the mopeds and bicyclists weaving in and out of the gridlocked traffic. Mom was tired so she decided to stay in and eat leftovers while the 5 of us headed out for dinner. The apartment owners provided some neighborhood places so we tried one. We had a nice French meal and MW & I split a good, inexpensive bottle of wine. Ahhhh, France. Favorite experience of the day - watching the bicyclists take control of the Parisien avenues.

Stay tuned for the rest of the week.

Thanks for reading.

Real life returns

Sorry to leave everyone hanging. I will go back and talk more about the trip but I am going to talk about the recent past first. We all made it back to California safe and on time Saturday. We got up at 5 am Barcelona time, though I hadn't slept since about 2:30 am, finished packing and eating what was left then easily caught a cab at 7 am to the airport. All of our flights were smooth and on time. We did have to go through security a million times it seemed. In Amsterdam, you go through serious security and then are held in a waiting room attached to the gate. Of course they confiscated the water we had just bought and then once on the other side there is nothing to replace it with. The least they could do is have a vending machine. Once in Minneapolis, you have to go through customs and security again. We had good hamburgers near our gate and waited for the lasts flight. It was nice to have some red meat, I didn't have much of that in Europe, mostly fish and lots of jamon. Mom and I got back late that night, unfortunately the sleep that I wanted to engulf me was non existent. The next day we caught up on GA and had Dos Coyotes for lunch, 2 of my favorite things. Sunday afternoon we headed to Foresthill to visit the Armstrong's. Claire was very happy to see me after the initial shyness that she always has and Catherine is as pretty as ever. We spent the evening playing with the kids and had a nice home cooked meal. Monday, after not sleeping again, I was up at 5:30 am and hung out with my sister, then the kids and mom woke up and we had a relaxing morning. I gave Claire a bath then we dressed them in the beautiful Parisian dresses that we found in the Marais. We took some photos, I got to eat some leftover turkey and play with the munchkins a while more. Then my sister and I left Claire with grandma and we took Catherine to Costco. I spent more then I intended but then who doesn't at Costco, then came on home. I will actually be at home for about a week and a half before I am on the road again. At least that is the plan as of now. I promise to do some wrap up of the big Europe adventure and will continue to bore you all on the rest of my life.

Thanks for reading.

Why Do I Love Paris?

That is one of those questions that is impossible to answer simply. I believe that certain things or places can strike a deep chord with people, sometimes it has to do with a memory, your heritage or some unknown. My love is an unknown. It started long ago, watching Greg LeMond ride Le Tour de France, at least that is how I remember it. For an hour every Saturday during July they would show a cut down version of the previous weeks events on the Wide World of Sports on ABC, or something like that. The riders would be whizzing past these amazing old castles, mountains, vineyards, fields and monuments and I was enchanted. Not terribly surprising to note that my other passion is biking now. Then the history of France became a focus for me and the more I traveled here, the more enrapt I became. Today everyone knows my fixation, some say obsession for this country and especially Paris. So as I spend a week here now, I have tried to take some time to note what it is I love so much. Here you go:

• Standing in the middle of a bridge over the Seine and looking east to Notre Dame, the Hotel de Ville and the Louvre and west to La Tour Eiffel, the Grand Palais and the Place de la Concorde.
• Buying croissants in the morning for breakfast.
• The meat shop, next to the patisserie, next to the wine shop, next to the fruit stand, next to the cheese shop, next to the "supermarket" the size of a postage stamp. Interspursed with an eyeglass store, a phone store, a shoe store and a house needs shop.
  
• A fabulous Metro system, even when on strike.
• The sound of the sirens.
• Knowing that behind every huge door with a key pad lies a whole world, that I am just now getting to see.
• The light on the river on a sunny day.
• Seeing La Eiffel Tour peek around so many corners.
• Cafes with tiny tables and the seats all facing the street.
• Knowing that people watching is expected.
• The sound of the French language and wishing that I understood more then every 3rd word.
• Knowing that when I leave for this ninth time, I will be ready to come back for my tenth.

Merci pour lire.

Another day, another strike.

Today was day one of a French transportation strike. Yes, we hit it at the perfect time no metro or buses running and no taxis to be found. Since we knew of the impending strike we planned our dayaccordingly, a trip to the Marais. We awoke a bit late due to a few to many drinks last night bysome and had our breakfast. Side note about breakfast, it has been quite the affair. I make cafetea and run to the pâtisserie for croissants (have I mentioned how much I love doingthat?), the boys make omelettes, we slice up some tomatoes, cheese and fruit, throw downsome Nutella and jam then proceed to have quite a feast. The only drawback is that we neverget out of the apartment before 10:30 - 11:00. However, they are lovely meals but back to the story. So we finally get going and wander down to the Marais. This area is traditionally the Jewish quarter, has many small shops and some great falafels. We hit the shops for about an hour, I found a new scarf (my goal is two) then regrouped at the Musee Carnevalet. We took a look at the history of Paris, with a special stop at the Mucha room for MW. From there we got some falafels to go and wandered to the Place de Vosges to sit. From there we went towards the Louvre to find a gelato shop that MW had read about. They had fantastic gelato then we had some cafe to warm up. From there we continued to the Louve and a stroll through the Tuilleries garden. Our goal was to get to the Musee L'Orangerie where, after 6 years, they finally have the huge Monet lily pad paintings on display in their new building. Here was our first big strike interference, they were closing the museum at 5pm instead of 7pm. It was 4:50, so we couldn't go in. We shall try again tomorrow. Anyway we decided to try to get on the Metro. About half of the trains on the main line were running and when one pulled in it was jam packed. Sardines were more comfortable. So we decided to try a different line, after hiking through the station we got to the platform and the sign said 81 minutes to the next train. We believed that must be a mistake so we waited about ten minutes. Meanwhile, they were making some announcements that I couldn't quite catch, finally I asked someone that was leaving the platform after hearing it. She said that it would be an hour for the next train. Wow. We decided to walk. We zigzagged across town towards the apartment. We tried another metro line and it was just as bad. So back to the street. It was actually quite entertaining. The traffic was barely moving except for the mopeds and bicycles snaking their way through the lines of cars. We saw many near accidents but nothing serious. Finally, an hour plus later we got back to the apartment. Mom did a great job, she was with us the entire day and was still upright. After a few aperatifs and a well earned rest, we ventured out for dinner. It wasn't too far from us and was recommended by the owners of our apartment. The food was good and the atmosphere tres Parisien. A great end to another adventure in Paris.

Thanks for reading.

I Am So Happy.

We arrived yesterday via the Thalys from Brussels and I could almost feel the moment we crossed the border to France. The day was a bit overcast and raining from time to time but I certainly didn't mind. I am in Paris. We arrived at our apartment on the Avenue de Republic out in the 11th Arr. It is on the 4th floor, traditionally Haussmanian and the perfect place to spend a week. The view out the front window is mundane, but fabulous to me at the same time. We can see into our neighbors apartments to observe their everyday life and it doesn't feel like spying. On the opposite corner is a cafe and next door a pharmacy with the ubiquitous glowing green cross. I watched the "little green men," my name for the ever present sanitation crew, clean the sidewalks. Yesterday we got acquainted with our neighborhood by wondering about looking for places to shop for the necessities; cheese, wine, breakfast makings and coffee. This morning, I got to do something that I had always wanted to do, run to the corner patisserie to pick up croissants for breakfast. The building has a tiny 2 person elevator that may or may not be working all the time, we will see. The living room and dining room open on to each other via "French" doors and a parkay floor runs throughout the house. The kitchen is tiny but complete but I believe they have splurged on the refrigerator, it holds much more then the traditional days worth of food. Everyone loves the apartment, it suits us well.

Our first day out was so close to perfect. The sun was shining brightly with little wind. I took the crew to the Trocadero stop for their (well the W's) first sighting of my favorite view. It does seem a bit cheesy for me to love the Eiffel Tower so much but I unabashadly do. We took lots of photos and then crossed the river to take some more. We then wondered somewhat aimlessly through the 7th, 6th and 5th Arrondisments. Hunger caught up with us around 1:30 and we lucked upon a small restaurant the perfect menu for us. I was able to get Onion soup, though not the greatest, and a large salad. Most followed suit. We then shopped a bit and ventured across to Notre Dame and into the Right Bank. The group split up for a few hours and then regrouped back at the apartment. CF and I ran to the market to refresh our breakfast makings and then we headed down to the cafe next door for a nice dinner.

I believe the W's are falling for my city and that makes me happy. I know the others were already fans but I love to get the new recruits.

I know I haven't put any pictures yet but be sure to check MW's photos, they are so much better then mine.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/simplywithstyle/collections/72157602883992864/

Thanks for reading.

Eating & Drinking Our Way Through Belgium

When I say Belgium, what do you think of? No, not surrendering to the German's after a few days, not being the EU capital and not Hercule Poirot. Though those are all valid, we are not celebrating those, we are celebrating the beer and the multitude carb-loaded foods.

Way back in the planning stage of this trip, I asked the W's where they would like to go, other then Paris. Without too much thought DW, better known as CF around here, quickly said Belgium. I thought that was a great idea and only latter did I realized that his mind was already scheming. He had heard a lot about the beer culture here and following our pilgrimage to stout beers holy land last year, knew that this would be the place for us. CF studied long and hard on the topic and came up with his manifesto. He went even further and found the best bars for us to go to enjoy this multitude of brewed goodness. We started off with a bang at a bar, Delirium, in Brussels that carries near 2000 beers. We tried our small share. We also toured the only brewery still brewing in Brussels. This remarkable little brewery, Cantillon, does things the old fashioned way and makes a great beer called gueuze, that is quite sour and much to KZ's liking. In Gent we found the Waterhuis aan de Bierkant, a quaint, cozy place on the river through town with a nice selection of beers. Next door, was Dreupelkot, a genever (gin) cafe, yes this place was all gin. Genever is made from grain and they love to add flavors to it. The grumpy gentlemen running the bar had been there for 35 years and made his own mixes. We tried tiramisu, vanilla, pepper and anise. Here in Bruges, we didn't have quite the number of bars to go to that DW researched but we did go on another brewery tour. The De Halve Mann brewery, or Half Moon, is the last one in Bruges. There just isn't room in these old city centers to have a huge brewery and the trucks for delivery can't maneuver. We dropped in for drinks at a bar/hotel/restaurant called Erasmus, which actually had a bunch of beers on tap. It is unusual to see beers on tap here since bottle conditioning is a how most of these beers get their distinct flavors. Not only do they mostly come in bottles but every beer has its own glass, the style determined by the type of beer. Erasmus was such a great stop that we made reservations for dinner the next night. The last great beer spot we went to was t'Beertje Brugge. It was off one of the main streets and had 200+ beers to drink. When we arrived the place was packed and we had to split up to a couple of tables. We think we were in the touristy room but it was a pretty cool place anyway. Well those were the highlights, drinking your way through Belgium is definitely a good idea during the fall, so you have an excuse to get out of the rain.

As far as food, it is very simple...fries, waffles and chocolate. We had quite a bit of it too. The fries come with everything or can be bought at street vendors, which usually are the best. Waffles are sold as street food with chocolate, whipped cream or plain and not as breakfast food. Chocolate shops are everywhere and in all kinds of flavors. They are so much better then what you find in the US. Of course, it is hard to find a chocolate shop in the US. We actually had some very good real food too. Moules Frites was a big hit.

We enjoyed Belgium but I am so excited to be moving on to Paris.

Thanks for reading.

We're Here!!!

We all made it. We are currently packing up for our departure to Brugge. We spent two days each in Brussels and Ghent, both are great cities. Brussels is definitely a big city with a very international feel, while Ghent is much smaller with a high university student population and small winding streets. Our two b & b's have been perfect, well located and with great proprietors. We have been getting up and having breakfast between 8 & 9 am then head out to explore the town, after a late or small lunch we walk a bit more then find a pub for good quality Belgium beer, CF really did his homework. Then some down time in the early evening then off for dinner. Mom is doing very well, we usually give here the afternoon off to rest while we find some beers but I believe she is enjoying herself. My other traveling companions are great as expected, we had plenty of practice in Ireland. I am really enjoying Belgium but can't wait to get to Paris.

If you want to see pictures check out MW's blog, listed on the left side and check out her flickr photos. I will upload photos in Brugge.

Thanks for reading.

The End of Another Chapter

Today was my last day of working before my 3 week vacation. On a more serious note, it is also my last day of scheduled work until April. I am trying to not dwell on that fact but it keeps creeping into my thoughts. I am constantly on the look out for possibilities but so far nothing has fallen into my lap. My co-worker at NVBT, that I have been working Wine to Waves with, is going to give me the names of her contacts with Destination Management Companies in San Francisco. Hopefully, that will get me days here and there and it will get me experience working in San Francisco. Okay enough of that.

This last Wine to Waves trip went very well. I had no trips to the hospital, though we did have an accident that put one of the guests in the van for the rest of the day. This was a group of nine friends that bike, vacation, drink & buy wine together, from Colorado. Since they were all friends some things were easier, we didn't have to facilitate conversation and they were very good about taking care each other. On the flip side though, we were not quite a part of the group and they had a tendency to make a group decision to change things that took away our control. Our weather was very nice except for some fog in the last two days and I felt much stronger on the bike this time compared to last.

Now onto the best part. Europe. It is only 2 days til departure, I guess it is time to start getting ready. Actually, the wardrobe is planned, clean and set aside. Now to figure out accessories, bags and books. Mom arrives tomorrow and my sister and family will come down for a visit on Friday. Then we leave on Saturday around 1:00pm. I hope to blog a bit from Europe but if not I will give a full wrap up with photos when I return.

Enjoy November everyone, see you when it is over.

Thanks for reading.

Pic 1. - Autumn light shining in a yet to be picked vineyard.
Pic 2. - My well organized group on morning one.
Pic 3. - It doesn't take long to get into action at Hess Collection.
Pic 4. - Cellar door at Hess
Pic 5. - Breakfast practice for France
Pic 6. - My co-guide, JW, working hard.
Pic 7. - Just north of Bodega Bay
Pic 8. - The last lunch in Calistoga.

Three Drummers and an Alto.

Last weekend, the "Girls" threw a baby shower. Now this wasn't just any shower, this one was for our much anticipated twin boys, who are due to arrive in early January. Mom looks fantastic and is so organized, though none us are surprised by that. They have a ton of loot though definitely not enough diapers. The party-goers consisted of our friends from college and the two grandmas. Friday night, TD and I made all types of appetizers; mango salsa, mushroom spread, artichoke something or other, believe me they tasted incredible, I'm just not very good at describing them. TI was the ringleader, as usual, she found the perfect decorations, a brilliant cake lady and brought the beverages. LK made some diaper drum cakes, so cute, and organized our gift to the growing family. KA sent her good wishes from Atlanta and we all wished she could be there. Fortunately for JH, she had a personal gift retriever and opener, free of charge. EI is doing a great job at being the oldest cousin.

So after a wonderful day with our friends, my parting words to the boys were to wait for their aunt to get back from Europe before they arrive.

Pic. 1 - JH with the loot. Doesn't she look great?
Pic. 2 - The amazing drum cakes.
Pic. 3 - A roomful of friends, big ones for the grown ups and little ones for the guests of honor.
Pic. 4 - Amazing chocolate drum favors made by TD's mom.
Pic. 5 - Yes, the boys have no choice but to be Aggies.
Pic. 6 - Two very happy grandma's practicing.

Some Days Clarity, Other Days Pain

Instead of working today I went for a bike ride. Kind of ironic. Generally, I know I want to go for a ride and know that once on the bike I will be happy but the actual putting on of the gear and getting out the door can be a mental battle. Today was one of the rare days that I was extremely eager to get out and ride. The weather is beautiful, I could ride my speed on my bike, not worrying about guests that don't understand the intricacies of a hybrid bike and I could go as far as I wanted. I planned 40 miles, knowing that I would probably go 30 only. When I ride my bike, problems that I have been mulling over develop solutions with only the assistance of a familiar road and my mp3 player. Well, that is most of the time. Today, was different, today the whole ride was pain. I hit the 7.5 mile mark and was already thinking about going back, usually I have settled into a nice rhythm but I continued on anyway. At 10 miles, I needed to stretch and my saddle was already becoming uncomfortable. When I hit the turn around point in Winters, I took a short break but all that was on my mind was how much I didn't want to bike the miles back instead of reveling in the scenery. I remount and head back. The 15 long miles felt like the entire 30, all I can think about is each individual pedal stroke. I notice that my bike is dirty and the chain needs to be cleaned. Then each bump in the road is bothering me and my feet are becoming numb. I have to continuously stand up and stretch my legs. Of course, as I get back into town, all the lights are against me. I am so relieved as I pull into my house and I all I want is a hot shower. It is an extremely disturbing experience to not enjoy something I love so much so my solution...go out tomorrow and try for 50 miles. ;)

Thanks for reading.

Funny Business at Work.

Working in Napa has been a great experience all around. NBVT has tripled in growth over the last 3 years and really doesn't show signs of stopping. And though we are hiring more guides and expanding the facilities the business still feels small. In the morning everyone is joking around, making digs at each other and having a really good time. And it is encouraged. The people working there appreciate what they have and really put a lot of energy and enthusiasm into there jobs. Everyone does a little of everything. The shop guys drive the vans and lead tours during the winter or in a pinch, the guides wash the vans, change bike tires and check in guests. The supervisors do it all. In addition, the owner's parents have been around lately. Dad was painting door frames and working on bikes.
Sometimes though funny things happen to your schedule. I was originally scheduled to work Monday - Thursday and then start a W2W tour on Sunday. Last week, the Thursday was cut. Then while at work today my boss asked me to work on Saturday since he needed another guide and then I could get things together for our Sunday morning departure. Then in the afternoon he told me he didn't need me tomorrow either. So now I have 3 days on my hands to fill. I think I have some vacation planning that could use some attention.
Other days you have to be serious. On Monday, one of my guests had an accident and broke her arm. That really got my attention since that is the second trip to the hospital in 3 weeks for my guests. Let me just remind you cyclists out there, never use just your front brake, you are liable to end up on the ground. The whole group was a bit shook up about that but we recovered and vowed to have fun for our lost comrades. I love the fact that I can be outside all day, enjoying people that are enjoying life.

In other news:
Thanks to those that have left comments, I enjoy reading them. Unfortunately, not all of the names that show up are identifiable to me. So if it isn't obvious by your screen name who you are, I would love you to give me some more info, either in the comment field or e-mail me, so I know who is paying attention.
I added a link to my new Flickr account. I will still post photos on the blog but if you want to see more, check it out.

Thanks for reading.

What else am I up to? Part 1

This new life is weird. Okay, that is a simplification but it is accurate. The 8am-6pm days are long gone and weekends no longer hold much meaning. My days off can be anywhere from 4 days consecutive and may encompass a weekend to one day in the middle of the week. Working in Napa has been a lot of fun and I am sad to see it coming to an end for the year. However, it's end means that my vacation is almost here. Don't laugh. I know many believe I am on a long vacation but being responsible for people's vacations is stressful. Which brings me to the 1st part of what I do with my non-work time... plan a vacation for myself and others. I am realizing that I must be crazy, didn't I just say it is stressful to be responsible for others vacations? Oh well, they survived Ireland, they will survive this. What is "this" you ask? For those that don't know, (I am just realizing that many haven't heard about this adventure) my mom, the Z's, the W's and I are headed to Europe for a few weeks. The W's are already there, DW is working in Zurich for a week, then they are off to Amsterdam for a week. Finally on 11/3, they will meet the rest of us in Brussels for the start of our adventure. After 2 days in Brussels we will head to Ghent for 2 days and then Brugge for 3. Belgium will be all about beer, chocolate and moules frites. Then I get to show off the love of my life to everyone. We will be in Paris for 7 glorious, marvelous, heavenly days. We have rented an apartment in the 11th, which I have never done before and a leisurely, tentative schedule. The Z's will be leaving us at the end of the week while rest of us fly to Barcelona and explore yet another new country. We will also have a nice little apartment there, not too far from the old part of town. So stay tuned for stories about our European Adventure 2007.

Thanks for reading.

Wine 2 Waves

Last week I got to do my first over-the-road (tour director speak for multi-day trips) tour that was not in Alaska. This was a 5 day bike tour for NBVT, there were two guides and 8 guests. Well we started with 8 guests but that is part of the story. The tour starts in Yountville with a nice breakfast at Pacific Blues, then we head towards the Carneros region with a stop at Artesa Winery, which has an amazing view of the south valley and on a clear day, San Francisco. Then on to Folio, the new Mondavi venture, where we had a picnic lunch then headed on to Sonoma. My job on this day was to drive the van, pick up lunch and deliver luggage. I really enjoyed it. That night our guests stayed at two very nice hotels, MacArthur Place and El Dorado Hotel and we all ate dinner at the El Dorado Kitchen, right on the square. Unfortunately, one of the ladies on our trip had some trouble with her sit bones and was in a lot of pain so when we got ready to head out the next morning she wasn't up to it, so she road in the van. JW drove in the morning, so she picked up lunch and luggage. We had a beautiful ride up through the Valley of the Moon, then over the hills into Rohnert Park near Sonoma State University. We did have one hill that I was not up to but the rest of the ride was rolling and fun. We had another picnic lunch in Cotati, the JW took over the biking. There was a tough hill in our path but right before it one of our guests had an accident. It was on a downhill and his back tire slid out from under him. He really banged up his arm and I had to take him and his wife (the van passenger) to the hospital in Sebastopol. From there I checked on all my riders as I headed on to Bodega Bay to deliver luggage. There are really only two nice hotels in Bodega Bay, The Inn at the Tides and the Bodega Bay Lodge and Spa. I had to shower quickly and get back on the road to get my guests from the hospital in Sebastopol. I turned out his road rash needed serious cleaning out and 10 stitches. We jammed back to Bodega Bay in time to pick up the rest of the group and go to dinner at Rocker Oysterfellers. Crazy name but great food. Though it stormed overnight, it was beautiful and clear the next morning for the ride up the coast and then inland through the Russian River Valley. We lunched at Korbel, after a little champagne tasting, then continued on toward Healdsburg via the funky town of Guerneville. At this point two of our guests left the tour. The rest of the guests stayed in an amazing place right on the square, called Healdsburg Hotel. It is relatively new but used existing buildings and has a trendy, modern feel. We had dinner at the Dry Creek Kitchen, the Michael Palmer restaurant attached to the hotel. I don't know who Micheal Palmer is but apparently he is famous and we had phenomenal food once again. The next morning we headed of to Calistoga, it was only a half day so we lunched at the Calistoga Inn and Brewery. The rest of the days consisted of sitting in a cafe and reading, then some time in the hot spring pools of our hotel. That night we ate at Brennan's, what can I say, not a bad days work. On our last day, it rained and it was my day on the bike. I did my best to not too obviously convince the ladies (the husbands were a no go, one had a sore arm the other had better sense) that biking was not the best idea. So we packed everything up on the van and went to taste at a winery (I know, shocking), the ladies hoping that the rain would let up and me knowing that this day could get very wet. Well, we biked, there was no stopping them. We got wet, cold, went very fast and had a lot of fun. We looked like drowned rats when we got back to Yountville, so we showered and went off to have some hot, Mexican food to close out the tour.
The tour was great and I can't wait to do the next one, I just hope that I am in better shape and the rain holds off until November.

Thanks for reading.

Pic 1 - Entry to Artesa in Carneros
Pic 2 - Carneros vineyards
Pic 3 - Getting ready in Sonoma
Pic 4 - Windmill between Sonoma & Rohnert Park
Pic 5 - Bodega Bay from the Inn at the Tides
Pic 6 - Inn at the Tides
Pic 7 - Monte Rio thinks very highly of themselves
Pic 8 - Hop Kiln Winery in the Russian River Valley
Pic 9 - Vineyards in the Russian River Valley

From Alaska to Napa

After my few days off and whirlwind travel to see everyone, I started my next stint in my new career. I have been working quite a bit in Napa and at least some of it has been on the bike. As a guide I have to split time driving the support van and being the bike guide. Obviously, I enjoy one much more then the other but I am getting to work. And I must say I am very lucky to be working in such a beautiful place. We often forget how beautiful the world right around us is and we go looking across the world for something to impress us. I am very guilty of this, look at how much time I have spent in Europe, especially France and though I believe that there are some places that strike a deep, resonant chord with an individual and deserve our extra attention since it makes us feel so good to be there (my heart is always in Paris,) we should spend some time appreciating what is in our backyard. Being a guide allows me to an extra opportunity to do this, I get to see Napa and California through the eyes of people from all over the country and beyond. September and early October are a great time to visit the wine country, since it looks like how people imagine it. Heavy, bunches of grapes hanging on fully, foliaged vines that are tinged with color. As we head toward the end of October, there are fewer grapes but more color, and the smell of fermenting fruit fills the air. I am truly enjoying working in Napa and though the commute is a bit long it is all worth it. It has also given me a great chance to visit my Aunt, Uncle and cousins as well and generously they have offered me a bed to combat the time commuting. NVBT is also planning on expanding their offered tours beyond the day trips and the Wine to Waves, so that could provide not only more work but even more opportunity for me to explore my backyard.

Pic. 1 - The NVBT support van, oh yeah, nice back drop.
Pic. 2 - A back road in the Carneros area.
Pic. 3 - View of the south Napa Valley from Bouchaine Winery.
Pic. 4 & 5 - Early morning in the Napa Valley.
Pic. 6 - Somebody in Yountville already has my dream home.
Pic. 7 - Duh!

Home Sweet Home

I have now been back for 10 days and it feels like forever. Alaska really seems ages ago, most likely because I have been on the go since I returned. Greeting me at the airport on my return was my sister and nieces along with KB, which was a huge surprise. From there on it was a whirlwind.

• Visiting with my nieces and nephews, oh yeah and their parents.
• Biking, biking, biking.
• Eating home cooked food, especially TD's.
• Football Sunday.
• A ton of work on the schedule for October.
• Many days of weather above 75 degrees.
• Redecorating my room and getting it organized...though that isn't done yet.
• Lots of Grey's Anatomy with KB.
• A fridge drawer full of various cheeses. Yes, I relish the small things.
  

Things like sleeping in my own bed and not living out of a suitcase are nice but I am just fine having that be a small part of my life. Thanks for reading about my first huge adventure. I do intend to continue this blog, I hope you enjoy it.

Thanks for reading.