GATSBY LeBLANC!!
Yup...he's totally London bound in 2012. We bought Gatsby this neat-o pen to use to contain him during the day, so that he'll have enough room to walk around and play with his toys, but not be able to scratch up the walls.
Unfortunately, it won't be here until next week. So, to help keep him under control, we put him in our spare room that doesn't have a bed in it and put up a baby gate to keep him in.
So at lunch Brian went home to see how he was doing and make sure he didn't need to go on a short walk.
Therefore, he was quite surprised when he walked in and Gatsby was chilling downstairs. Yup, he totally scaled the 26 inch baby gate, completely unscathed, and spent the rest of the morning exploring the house. Brian quickly realized that it was futile to put him back because he'd just jump out again and might hurt himself (remember: he still has stitches from his surgery). So, instead, Brian put the gate at the top of the stairs and just let Gatsby chill downstairs all afternoon.
When I came home, he was laying on the very top stair beside the baby gate taking a nap. He then got so super excited and spent the rest of the early evening going crazy and playing. Very cute. Not nearly as much humping today, but he's a bit rough when he plays, so we're working on taming that down and playing nice (it should also help when we start our PetSmart obedience class in a few weeks).
He also stayed by himself for about 3o minutes when I went to pick up my dinner. I tried to take him with me in the car, but he freaked out and didn't want to ride. In hindsight, I realize that it's probably just too stressful to do any driving for him right now because he has no idea where he's going and if he'll get to come back home.
Gatsby and I also had a very nice walk this morning, for about an hour to help burn off some energy! (Oh yeah, and he slept really well last night! He cuddled up between us in bed and slept the whole night through except for a few minutes around 4 a.m.)
Now you're probably thinking...if Gatsby could scale the baby gate, he can probably scale the baby pen too. Yup, that's what we're thinking too. So, it will be going back to Amazon when it arrives :-)
And we've decided that we're going to crate train him. After reading a lot about it and getting recommendations from people, it seems like a good idea and really appeals to dogs' native "den" instincts. If you don't believe me, google "crate training" and there are tons of recommendations from many reputable organizations (SPCA, Humane Society, etc.). It's been a hard thing for Brian and me to accept, but we've pretty much figured out that we have to think about it like a dog and not like people.
Fortunately, next week I start working from home twice a week (Wednesdays and Fridays), so there will only be two days in a row that he'll be home by himself. On the other days, he can run around and chill while I work. We just want to make sure to eliminate any temptation for him to get in trouble and we want to establish ourselves as in charge and him as not-dominant. In doing so, it should help him chill out a bit when he plays and stop the humping :-)
BTW, he's now destroyed a second toy.
Toys - 0; Gatsby - 2 (although he does have two toys that he hasn't destroyed yet--we'll see how that turns out after tomorrow)
Oh yeah, and we're getting sod tomorrow! They came today and dug up our yard and all the weeds (even the back yard where they had previously seeded) and put the hydraseed down again in the back. This is good news because we've pretty much sucked at the yard thing so far, so it's nice to start anew.
The bad news though is that they cut our phone line with the back hoe (not so good!), so if you need to call us, call our cells until you hear otherwise. Hopefully, BellSouth can get it fixed quickly. Centex will then reimburse us for the wire reconnection.
And, finally, Shaba Shabu has really good sushi...but they have the absolute hottest wasabi paste that I've ever had (not the stuff the put on the side--the green liquid-y stuff that goes on a wasabi roll). I was literally crying so hard. It was fantastic! (I love that quick, unbearable pain that ends immediately.) :-)
Oh yeah, and some new Gatsby pictures are up and linked on the left side of the blog.
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Gatsby's Here!!
Yay!! I got a call this morning that they were able to do his surgery yesterday, so he was available to come home today. He's all up to date on his shots now and the animal shelter gave him a little microchip. They also removed the dewclaws that were on his hind legs.
Brian and I picked him up around 6:30 p.m. and he's been really awesome ever since. He was very, very, very excited to see us and did a lot of running around in the parking lot at the animal shelter. He saw a couple dogs out there and basically just sniffed them out. No barking or growling and he didn't show his teeth.
He was all over the place in the car and very, very excited. He stayed in the back, but he did demonstrate a behavior that we're now working hard to nip in the bud. We took his bed with us for him to have in the car and once he saw it he started humping it like crazy!
When we got home, we took him on a walk to explore our yard and then eventually brought him inside on the leash and took him around to show him the place. After he calmed down a bit, we took him off the leash and we've let him run around without it ever since. He won't go off away from us and he's following me around everywhere :-) We played with him for a bit and then Brian went to pick up dinner from Applebees. After he left, I sat down to read the paperwork we got from the animal shelter and he crawled up on the couch beside me and took a nap. When Brian got back, we ate our dinner and pretty much ignored him so that he wouldn't beg for food. He basically just walked around the table a couple of times and then chilled at his food bowl and drank a lot of water. We gave him some food and he's been eating it a little at a time.
We've pretty much just been chilling since dinner and Gatsby has been doing the same. We've taken him outside twice since we brought him home and he's really liking his exploration of our cul-de-sac and empty lots. :-)
He hasn't gone to the bathroom inside at all and the only issue has been that he likes to hump the pillows. So we've just taken them away and given him a toy for his aggression. The first toy we gave him was a cute little turtle...but evidently it wasn't really the right one for him because he chewed up the little turtle arms in about an hour. So now he has a new (stronger!) toy and a tennis ball and he's been really happy with those.
Currently, he's taking a nap between us on the floor. On Saturday, he has an appointment with the vet (free of charge from the animal shelter) to get his routine checkup.
Yay for good dogs! (But, if anyone has any good tips to eliminate the humping, let us know!)
We haven't taken a ton of pictures tonight, but I added the ones that we took to our Gatsby album:
http://picasaweb.google.com/lsleblanc82/Gatsby
He's a very happy dog!
Brian and I picked him up around 6:30 p.m. and he's been really awesome ever since. He was very, very, very excited to see us and did a lot of running around in the parking lot at the animal shelter. He saw a couple dogs out there and basically just sniffed them out. No barking or growling and he didn't show his teeth.
He was all over the place in the car and very, very excited. He stayed in the back, but he did demonstrate a behavior that we're now working hard to nip in the bud. We took his bed with us for him to have in the car and once he saw it he started humping it like crazy!
When we got home, we took him on a walk to explore our yard and then eventually brought him inside on the leash and took him around to show him the place. After he calmed down a bit, we took him off the leash and we've let him run around without it ever since. He won't go off away from us and he's following me around everywhere :-) We played with him for a bit and then Brian went to pick up dinner from Applebees. After he left, I sat down to read the paperwork we got from the animal shelter and he crawled up on the couch beside me and took a nap. When Brian got back, we ate our dinner and pretty much ignored him so that he wouldn't beg for food. He basically just walked around the table a couple of times and then chilled at his food bowl and drank a lot of water. We gave him some food and he's been eating it a little at a time.
We've pretty much just been chilling since dinner and Gatsby has been doing the same. We've taken him outside twice since we brought him home and he's really liking his exploration of our cul-de-sac and empty lots. :-)
He hasn't gone to the bathroom inside at all and the only issue has been that he likes to hump the pillows. So we've just taken them away and given him a toy for his aggression. The first toy we gave him was a cute little turtle...but evidently it wasn't really the right one for him because he chewed up the little turtle arms in about an hour. So now he has a new (stronger!) toy and a tennis ball and he's been really happy with those.
Currently, he's taking a nap between us on the floor. On Saturday, he has an appointment with the vet (free of charge from the animal shelter) to get his routine checkup.
Yay for good dogs! (But, if anyone has any good tips to eliminate the humping, let us know!)
We haven't taken a ton of pictures tonight, but I added the ones that we took to our Gatsby album:
http://picasaweb.google.com/lsleblanc82/Gatsby
He's a very happy dog!
Friday, September 19, 2008
One thing's sure and nothing's surer
The rich get richer and the poor get—children.
- F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby
OK, so we're definitely not rich and, therefore, can't get richer (I mean who can in this economy?!)...so we're doing what ol'F. Scott said and getting a child!
But not a human child...
A super, wonderful, cute-as-all-get-out, one-year-old-dog child. I may be a little biased, but I think he's totally awesome.
Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you our new part-beagle, part-(some-type-of) terrier mutt:
GATSBY LeBLANC
We're getting him from the Wake County Animal Shelter and we get to bring him home next Thursday. On Wednesday, he's getting neutered (poor guy!). He's a total bundle of fun. He loves to play and sniff about, but he also seems to be pretty good at laying down and chilling. The only time he really barked was when all of the other dogs were going crazy because we were giving him attention.
His original owners had to give him up because they couldn't afford to keep him any longer! :-( They also gave him the lame name Baileys (like the adult beverage), but he didn't really seem to recognize it today, so we're renaming him.
He's getting a new lease on life and a brand new name to go along with it. :-)
He actually attached to us pretty quickly today—he started jumping around like crazy to keep our attention when we had to leave...it was really sad. I was pretty much fighting back tears (I think it even choked Brian up a little). But we're soooo super excited to bring him home on Thursday. So excited, in fact, that we went PetSmart and got him hooked up with all the essentials. I'm sure he'll be the most spoiled dog on the planet.
A few more pictures from today and his animal shelter "mug" shots:
http://picasaweb.google.com/lsleblanc82/Gatsby
And, yes, he's named after the book because it's the greatest book ever written; I couldn't name my first-born son Gatsby; and we're English nerds.
- F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby
OK, so we're definitely not rich and, therefore, can't get richer (I mean who can in this economy?!)...so we're doing what ol'F. Scott said and getting a child!
But not a human child...
A super, wonderful, cute-as-all-get-out, one-year-old-dog child. I may be a little biased, but I think he's totally awesome.
Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you our new part-beagle, part-(some-type-of) terrier mutt:
GATSBY LeBLANC
We're getting him from the Wake County Animal Shelter and we get to bring him home next Thursday. On Wednesday, he's getting neutered (poor guy!). He's a total bundle of fun. He loves to play and sniff about, but he also seems to be pretty good at laying down and chilling. The only time he really barked was when all of the other dogs were going crazy because we were giving him attention.
His original owners had to give him up because they couldn't afford to keep him any longer! :-( They also gave him the lame name Baileys (like the adult beverage), but he didn't really seem to recognize it today, so we're renaming him.
He's getting a new lease on life and a brand new name to go along with it. :-)
He actually attached to us pretty quickly today—he started jumping around like crazy to keep our attention when we had to leave...it was really sad. I was pretty much fighting back tears (I think it even choked Brian up a little). But we're soooo super excited to bring him home on Thursday. So excited, in fact, that we went PetSmart and got him hooked up with all the essentials. I'm sure he'll be the most spoiled dog on the planet.
A few more pictures from today and his animal shelter "mug" shots:
http://picasaweb.google.com/lsleblanc82/Gatsby
And, yes, he's named after the book because it's the greatest book ever written; I couldn't name my first-born son Gatsby; and we're English nerds.
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
Yay funniness!
I got an e-mail last night from this guy Jeff, who stumbled across my blog. He is a cartoonist and puts out a comic strip, Deflocked.
He has some samples online and they're pretty funny: www.deflocked.com/samples.html.
He's also in the running with the News and Observer to have his comic strip included in the paper; so if you like his samples, you should vote for him online at http://share.triangle.com/comicsvote.
He has some samples online and they're pretty funny: www.deflocked.com/samples.html.
He's also in the running with the News and Observer to have his comic strip included in the paper; so if you like his samples, you should vote for him online at http://share.triangle.com/comicsvote.
Holy moly it's cold!
Brrr!!
I miss summer! :-(
Also, why does it ALWAYS rain on the day that the trash and recycling bins sit by the road?
I miss summer! :-(
Also, why does it ALWAYS rain on the day that the trash and recycling bins sit by the road?
Monday, September 15, 2008
ISFJ
Today at work we were talking about personality types. I took one of those tests a really long time ago and I had a pretty good idea of what I was, but I wanted to take one again to confirm.
So I did: http://www.humanmetrics.com/cgi-win/JTypes2.asp
I have no idea if that's like super legit, but it's good enough for me.
So, anyway, I am an ISFJ (Introverted, Sensing, Feeling, Judging) and my little blurb is at the bottom of this post. I'd appreciate it if y'all all would read it and then use it in your every interaction with me for the rest of your life. :-)
It's actually pretty right on, except for the part about not being able to deal with chaos at work. I'm actually quite good at that. Oh and the part about being a good interior designer...yeah, not so much, but, otherwise it's really quite accurate. Very interesting.
Also, Brian is the same as me, but not with the same degree of percentages.
The Nurturer
As an ISFJ, your primary mode of living is focused internally, where you takes things in via your five senses in a literal, concrete fashion. Your secondary mode is external, where you deal with things according to how you feel about them, or how they fit into your personal value system.
ISFJs live in a world that is concrete and kind. They are truly warm and kind-hearted, and want to believe the best of people. They value harmony and cooperation, and are likely to be very sensitive to other people's feelings. People value the ISFJ for their consideration and awareness, and their ability to bring out the best in others by their firm desire to believe the best.
ISFJs have a rich inner world that is not usually obvious to observers. They constantly take in information about people and situations that is personally important to them, and store it away. This tremendous store of information is usually startlingly accurate, because the ISFJ has an exceptional memory about things that are important to their value systems. It would not be uncommon for the ISFJ to remember a particular facial expression or conversation in precise detail years after the event occurred, if the situation made an impression on the ISFJ.
ISFJs have a very clear idea of the way things should be, which they strive to attain. They value security and kindness, and respect traditions and laws. They tend to believe that existing systems are there because they work. Therefore, they're not likely to buy into doing things in a new way, unless they're shown in a concrete way why its better than the established method.
ISFJs learn best by doing, rather than by reading about something in a book, or applying theory. For this reason, they are not likely to be found in fields which require a lot of conceptual analysis or theory. They value practical application. Traditional methods of higher education, which require a lot of theorizing and abstraction, are likely to be a chore for the ISFJ. The ISFJ learns a task best by being shown its practical application. Once the task is learned, and its practical importance is understood, the ISFJ will faithfully and tirelessly carry through the task to completion. The ISFJ is extremely dependable.
The ISFJ has an extremely well-developed sense of space, function, and aesthetic appeal. For that reason, they're likely to have beautifully furnished, functional homes. They make extremely good interior decorators. This special ability, combined with their sensitivity to other's feelings and desires, makes them very likely to be great gift-givers - finding the right gift which will be truly appreciated by the recipient.
More so than other types, ISFJs are extremely aware of their own internal feelings, as well as other people's feelings. They do not usually express their own feelings, keeping things inside. If they are negative feelings, they may build up inside the ISFJ until they turn into firm judgments against individuals which are difficult to unseed, once set. Many ISFJs learn to express themselves, and find outlets for their powerful emotions.
Just as the ISFJ is not likely to express their feelings, they are also not likely to let on that they know how others are feeling. However, they will speak up when they feel another individual really needs help, and in such cases they can truly help others become aware of their feelings.
The ISFJ feels a strong sense of responsibility and duty. They take their responsibilities very seriously, and can be counted on to follow through. For this reason, people naturally tend to rely on them. The ISFJ has a difficult time saying "no" when asked to do something, and may become over-burdened. In such cases, the ISFJ does not usually express their difficulties to others, because they intensely dislike conflict, and because they tend to place other people's needs over their own. The ISFJ needs to learn to identify, value, and express their own needs, if they wish to avoid becoming over-worked and taken for granted.
ISFJs need positive feedback from others. In the absence of positive feedback, or in the face of criticism, the ISFJ gets discouraged, and may even become depressed. When down on themselves or under great stress, the ISFJ begins to imagine all of the things that might go critically wrong in their life. They have strong feelings of inadequacy, and become convinced that "everything is all wrong", or "I can't do anything right".
The ISFJ is warm, generous, and dependable. They have many special gifts to offer, in their sensitivity to others, and their strong ability to keep things running smoothly. They need to remember to not be overly critical of themselves, and to give themselves some of the warmth and love which they freely dispense to others.
Jungian functional preference ordering:
Dominant: Introverted Sensing
Auxiliary: Extroverted Feeling
Tertiary: Introverted Thinking
Inferior: Extroverted Intuition
So I did: http://www.humanmetrics.com/cgi-win/JTypes2.asp
I have no idea if that's like super legit, but it's good enough for me.
So, anyway, I am an ISFJ (Introverted, Sensing, Feeling, Judging) and my little blurb is at the bottom of this post. I'd appreciate it if y'all all would read it and then use it in your every interaction with me for the rest of your life. :-)
It's actually pretty right on, except for the part about not being able to deal with chaos at work. I'm actually quite good at that. Oh and the part about being a good interior designer...yeah, not so much, but, otherwise it's really quite accurate. Very interesting.
Also, Brian is the same as me, but not with the same degree of percentages.
The Nurturer
As an ISFJ, your primary mode of living is focused internally, where you takes things in via your five senses in a literal, concrete fashion. Your secondary mode is external, where you deal with things according to how you feel about them, or how they fit into your personal value system.
ISFJs live in a world that is concrete and kind. They are truly warm and kind-hearted, and want to believe the best of people. They value harmony and cooperation, and are likely to be very sensitive to other people's feelings. People value the ISFJ for their consideration and awareness, and their ability to bring out the best in others by their firm desire to believe the best.
ISFJs have a rich inner world that is not usually obvious to observers. They constantly take in information about people and situations that is personally important to them, and store it away. This tremendous store of information is usually startlingly accurate, because the ISFJ has an exceptional memory about things that are important to their value systems. It would not be uncommon for the ISFJ to remember a particular facial expression or conversation in precise detail years after the event occurred, if the situation made an impression on the ISFJ.
ISFJs have a very clear idea of the way things should be, which they strive to attain. They value security and kindness, and respect traditions and laws. They tend to believe that existing systems are there because they work. Therefore, they're not likely to buy into doing things in a new way, unless they're shown in a concrete way why its better than the established method.
ISFJs learn best by doing, rather than by reading about something in a book, or applying theory. For this reason, they are not likely to be found in fields which require a lot of conceptual analysis or theory. They value practical application. Traditional methods of higher education, which require a lot of theorizing and abstraction, are likely to be a chore for the ISFJ. The ISFJ learns a task best by being shown its practical application. Once the task is learned, and its practical importance is understood, the ISFJ will faithfully and tirelessly carry through the task to completion. The ISFJ is extremely dependable.
The ISFJ has an extremely well-developed sense of space, function, and aesthetic appeal. For that reason, they're likely to have beautifully furnished, functional homes. They make extremely good interior decorators. This special ability, combined with their sensitivity to other's feelings and desires, makes them very likely to be great gift-givers - finding the right gift which will be truly appreciated by the recipient.
More so than other types, ISFJs are extremely aware of their own internal feelings, as well as other people's feelings. They do not usually express their own feelings, keeping things inside. If they are negative feelings, they may build up inside the ISFJ until they turn into firm judgments against individuals which are difficult to unseed, once set. Many ISFJs learn to express themselves, and find outlets for their powerful emotions.
Just as the ISFJ is not likely to express their feelings, they are also not likely to let on that they know how others are feeling. However, they will speak up when they feel another individual really needs help, and in such cases they can truly help others become aware of their feelings.
The ISFJ feels a strong sense of responsibility and duty. They take their responsibilities very seriously, and can be counted on to follow through. For this reason, people naturally tend to rely on them. The ISFJ has a difficult time saying "no" when asked to do something, and may become over-burdened. In such cases, the ISFJ does not usually express their difficulties to others, because they intensely dislike conflict, and because they tend to place other people's needs over their own. The ISFJ needs to learn to identify, value, and express their own needs, if they wish to avoid becoming over-worked and taken for granted.
ISFJs need positive feedback from others. In the absence of positive feedback, or in the face of criticism, the ISFJ gets discouraged, and may even become depressed. When down on themselves or under great stress, the ISFJ begins to imagine all of the things that might go critically wrong in their life. They have strong feelings of inadequacy, and become convinced that "everything is all wrong", or "I can't do anything right".
The ISFJ is warm, generous, and dependable. They have many special gifts to offer, in their sensitivity to others, and their strong ability to keep things running smoothly. They need to remember to not be overly critical of themselves, and to give themselves some of the warmth and love which they freely dispense to others.
Jungian functional preference ordering:
Dominant: Introverted Sensing
Auxiliary: Extroverted Feeling
Tertiary: Introverted Thinking
Inferior: Extroverted Intuition
B! I! N! G! O!
Yup.
I listened to 151 games of BINGO! being called this weekend. I kid you not. Brian called 150 games and his dad called 1.
Our former church has a big fall festival/fair thing each year in September and Brian has been in charge of the BINGO! booth for the past few years. Usually, I'm away on the weekends because of App. games, but because they were on a bye this weekend, I was at home to help.
Brian, being the highly trained radio professional that he is, is rather good at calling BINGO! numbers and has it down to a science. He was averaging about 6 minutes per game (including the time it took between games to collect money). This year, we did something a bit new though and we created a spreadsheet and macro to track our earnings. The way it works is that half of the pot is paid out in winnings and the other half goes to the church. Well...we made $1,979 for the church. Pretty sweet, huh?! Our little macro was banging...it quickly calculated the amount per pot and per church (with any odd quarters going to the church) and then recorded all the earnings on another sheet that was time stamped so that we could see how we were doing per hour. Since Brian was on the mic, I was pretty much in charge of all the money...for every single game. He charges 25c/card and $1/5 cards for regular BINGO! and then charges $1/card for coverall games, which are the ones that pay out the best. Brian's mom won $68 during one game and we gave away two pots on Saturday night that were more than $100 each. Very cool that it's all going to a good cause.
I can still hear BINGO! numbers in my head.
On Sunday, we went to church and then pretty much vegged out all day, going to Brian's parents' house for dinner and the Steelers/Browns game Sunday night. Sadly, the Browns were not victorious. However, the Panthers were victorious Sunday afternoon and, in fact, are starting 2-0 for the first time since they went to the Super Bowl. This is a good thing.
In other news, we also have a new neighbor. We haven't met him yet, but we know that he exists.
Yay for neighbors.
I listened to 151 games of BINGO! being called this weekend. I kid you not. Brian called 150 games and his dad called 1.
Our former church has a big fall festival/fair thing each year in September and Brian has been in charge of the BINGO! booth for the past few years. Usually, I'm away on the weekends because of App. games, but because they were on a bye this weekend, I was at home to help.
Brian, being the highly trained radio professional that he is, is rather good at calling BINGO! numbers and has it down to a science. He was averaging about 6 minutes per game (including the time it took between games to collect money). This year, we did something a bit new though and we created a spreadsheet and macro to track our earnings. The way it works is that half of the pot is paid out in winnings and the other half goes to the church. Well...we made $1,979 for the church. Pretty sweet, huh?! Our little macro was banging...it quickly calculated the amount per pot and per church (with any odd quarters going to the church) and then recorded all the earnings on another sheet that was time stamped so that we could see how we were doing per hour. Since Brian was on the mic, I was pretty much in charge of all the money...for every single game. He charges 25c/card and $1/5 cards for regular BINGO! and then charges $1/card for coverall games, which are the ones that pay out the best. Brian's mom won $68 during one game and we gave away two pots on Saturday night that were more than $100 each. Very cool that it's all going to a good cause.
I can still hear BINGO! numbers in my head.
On Sunday, we went to church and then pretty much vegged out all day, going to Brian's parents' house for dinner and the Steelers/Browns game Sunday night. Sadly, the Browns were not victorious. However, the Panthers were victorious Sunday afternoon and, in fact, are starting 2-0 for the first time since they went to the Super Bowl. This is a good thing.
In other news, we also have a new neighbor. We haven't met him yet, but we know that he exists.
Yay for neighbors.
Sunday, September 7, 2008
Football Season is the Second Greatest Season!!
(The first best is Christmas!--only 108 days away!)
So, Brian's mom was chastising me at dinner for being lax on blog posts, so here I am!
We had a very lovely weekend. I worked from home on Friday and spent some time in the afternoon bringing in all our "blowable" objects. No fear, though, as soon as the winds were safely under tropical storm force, Brian set the birdfeeder back up and all of our birds are happy! Mom, dad, Cal, and Clay came in Friday night and went to dinner at the Lonestar in Knightdale. Cal and I had a very yummy Portabella Steak Salad. The highlight of the dinner was when Brian looked over at the TV over the bar and saw Jim Cantore in Atlantic Beach. Not cool.
Fortunately, in K-town, all we had was a lot of rain and some wind. It was really a good event for us because everything is nice and green now. In Ocean, mom, dad, and Clay had no damage and only some high winds--they actually had very little rain from the whole storm.
Early Saturday morning, the five of us were up and at'em and en route to Boone. It was pouring rain from Raleigh->Winston; gorgeous and sunny up US-421; and chilly, cloudy, and sprinkly all day in Boone. No worries for the Apps, though, who polished off Jacksonville University 56-7. For those of you who don't know, Appalachian is undergoing a major stadium renovation and it is looking awesome!! The stadium won't be finished until next year, but the visitor's side is now finished and it's very cool. I snapped some pictures while we were there and I'll try to get them up later this week. Next weekend, App will be playing Bye and the following weekend they're going to be Harrisionburg, Va. to play JMU (which is a big-time-serious game in the world of FCS action). So, I'm actually going to be completely in town for the next two weekends. Crazy, huh?
We got back to Knightdale pretty late Saturday night, partially because we had an awesome supper at Ishi Japanese Restaurant in Winston-Salem. I had this totally banging Rainbow Roll and the Friendly Pyramid Roll (don't you just love the names of sushi rolls?!?). Anyway, the fish was super fresh and it was all very delicious. If you like sushi and you're ever in Winston-Salem, I highly recommend you check it out (if you have a sushi-phobe in your group, they also have yummy hibachi).
On Sunday, Family Samuels + 1 was back off to the east and Brian and I were off to church. We served as Eucharistic Ministers and found out that OLL has a new music director--a very accomplished guy, who has studied under Marie Claire Alain in Paris. It's pretty exciting; I think I may have to join the handbell choir, which I've kinda missed over the last few years. After church, we met up with Brian's parents at TGI Friday's for lunch. The food was good, but the service definitely left something to be desired...
We were back home for about 45 minutes after lunch and then headed out to meet Brian's dad and brother at Blinco's to watch the 4:15 NFL action. Normally, I prefer to watch football games from the awesomeness of my own couch and our HDTV, but today was a bit different because both the Browns and the Panthers were on for the late-afternoon games. The Browns' result wasn't too hot, but the Panthers totally rocked the house, winning the game on the last play.
I totally love football. It is seriously the greatest sport ever. It's so much fun to have games to go to on Saturdays and others to watch on Sunday and Monday nights!
In the world of fantasy football, I'm playing Brian tonight in the Road Geek league, so I'll report tomorrow on my victory :-)
Speaking of football--did you know that Brett Favre is out of retirement? Who knew?
So, Brian's mom was chastising me at dinner for being lax on blog posts, so here I am!
We had a very lovely weekend. I worked from home on Friday and spent some time in the afternoon bringing in all our "blowable" objects. No fear, though, as soon as the winds were safely under tropical storm force, Brian set the birdfeeder back up and all of our birds are happy! Mom, dad, Cal, and Clay came in Friday night and went to dinner at the Lonestar in Knightdale. Cal and I had a very yummy Portabella Steak Salad. The highlight of the dinner was when Brian looked over at the TV over the bar and saw Jim Cantore in Atlantic Beach. Not cool.
Fortunately, in K-town, all we had was a lot of rain and some wind. It was really a good event for us because everything is nice and green now. In Ocean, mom, dad, and Clay had no damage and only some high winds--they actually had very little rain from the whole storm.
Early Saturday morning, the five of us were up and at'em and en route to Boone. It was pouring rain from Raleigh->Winston; gorgeous and sunny up US-421; and chilly, cloudy, and sprinkly all day in Boone. No worries for the Apps, though, who polished off Jacksonville University 56-7. For those of you who don't know, Appalachian is undergoing a major stadium renovation and it is looking awesome!! The stadium won't be finished until next year, but the visitor's side is now finished and it's very cool. I snapped some pictures while we were there and I'll try to get them up later this week. Next weekend, App will be playing Bye and the following weekend they're going to be Harrisionburg, Va. to play JMU (which is a big-time-serious game in the world of FCS action). So, I'm actually going to be completely in town for the next two weekends. Crazy, huh?
We got back to Knightdale pretty late Saturday night, partially because we had an awesome supper at Ishi Japanese Restaurant in Winston-Salem. I had this totally banging Rainbow Roll and the Friendly Pyramid Roll (don't you just love the names of sushi rolls?!?). Anyway, the fish was super fresh and it was all very delicious. If you like sushi and you're ever in Winston-Salem, I highly recommend you check it out (if you have a sushi-phobe in your group, they also have yummy hibachi).
On Sunday, Family Samuels + 1 was back off to the east and Brian and I were off to church. We served as Eucharistic Ministers and found out that OLL has a new music director--a very accomplished guy, who has studied under Marie Claire Alain in Paris. It's pretty exciting; I think I may have to join the handbell choir, which I've kinda missed over the last few years. After church, we met up with Brian's parents at TGI Friday's for lunch. The food was good, but the service definitely left something to be desired...
We were back home for about 45 minutes after lunch and then headed out to meet Brian's dad and brother at Blinco's to watch the 4:15 NFL action. Normally, I prefer to watch football games from the awesomeness of my own couch and our HDTV, but today was a bit different because both the Browns and the Panthers were on for the late-afternoon games. The Browns' result wasn't too hot, but the Panthers totally rocked the house, winning the game on the last play.
I totally love football. It is seriously the greatest sport ever. It's so much fun to have games to go to on Saturdays and others to watch on Sunday and Monday nights!
In the world of fantasy football, I'm playing Brian tonight in the Road Geek league, so I'll report tomorrow on my victory :-)
Speaking of football--did you know that Brett Favre is out of retirement? Who knew?
Monday, September 1, 2008
Laissez Les Bon Temps Roulez!
As I mentioned at the end of last night's post, despite the hurricane drama, we had a really good time at the game and in New Orleans.
Friday night, Brian and I headed to Bourbon Street and we were able to have a really good laugh when we saw a whole bunch of male "preachers" protesting gay sex. The signs were hilarious. We were totally cracking up and were able to snap a few shots (us and lots of other tourists).
Brian and I had the best dinner ever at La Bayou Restaurant on Bourbon Street (http://www.labayourestaurant.com/). I had the "Taste of New Orleans," which had three specialties: Red Beans & Rice, Jambalaya, and Chicken Andouille Gumbo. Brian had the Cajun Burger Po'boy. And we both shared a piece of chocolate cake. All of which were un-damn-real awesome. The next time that we're in New Orleans--we will totally be dining there again. With my dinner I had a Hurricane drink. I think they must have been trying to get rid of all their alcohol pre-Gustav because it was one of the strongest drinks I've ever had. Seriously. I was totally buzzing, even after eating all that fantastic New Orleans cuisine! My trusty DD husband had a Diet Coke; no surprises there! :-)
After dinner, we walked around Bourbon Street for a bit and I bought a shot glass. The shot glass has all of the famous streets in the French Quarter and it's really quite cool looking. One funny thing, though, was that they also had the exact same shot glass that I bought in New Orleans when I was there 10 years ago. I guess there isn't a big market for new shot glass designs! :-)
Saturday morning came VERY early. A few months ago, dad signed us up to tailgate with Appalachian's Alumni Association. When the game was starting at 4 p.m., this was awesome because we would be tailgating around noon and eating awesome Cajun cuisine.
Well...when the game was moved to 10 a.m....they still had all that food ordered, so that pushed tailgate up to 7 a.m. and, of course, we were there. My dad is (well, let's just say...) regimented when it comes to arriving at football games on time (and in his defense, I agree with him because I want to experience everything [like the band marching in, pregame festivities, etc.]--not be stuck in traffic or walking to our seats at kickoff).
So, anyway, we were up and at'em at 6 a.m. and we were on our way to the game and tailgate by 6:45 a.m. We got to the tailgate at 7:30 a.m. and we were "mangez-ing" gumbo, jambalaya, stuffed sausage, crawfish etouffée, and seafood alfredo! (Oh yeah, and we were washing it all down with Bloody Marys, beer, and Diet Cokes.) It was AWESOME!!!! Even though it was so early--the food tasted soooo good!!! I might seriously be changing my favorite foods to Cajun cuisine. App.'s Alumni Association did a really good job. They had long picnic tables that were under these huge oak trees and a local Cajun band. The music was good and the atmosphere was very festive and fun (even though lots of people had driven through the night from Boone to make it to the game on time).
After the tailgate, we started making our way to our seat and, of course, we had to walk completely around to the other side of the stadium to get to Gate 18 (which was NOT well signed) and then we had to walk up a series of 50 billion ramps (OK, more like 20) to make it to row O in section 641. I seriously think that we were at Boone elevation (3,333 feet) by the time we made it to our seats.
Oh yeah...and it was hot...and humid. Did I say humid? It really gave "Death Valley" its name. We were all soaking wet for the entire game (but, fortunately, not too sunburnt). It was to the point where I couldn't even rest my arms on my legs because they kept sliding off. I think each of us drank at least two liters of water during the game. It was still completely awesome. I say if you're going to experience Baton Rouge, you might as well experience it to the fullest!!! It was so very cool to experience a game at Tiger Stadium--that place is HUGE!!! Even though Michigan has about 20,001 more seats, due to the stadium design, LSU's stadium looks so much bigger. We were probably 50 feet ABOVE the scoreboards. However, even though we were so high, you could still see the game sooo well. There was nothing obstructing our view and we could totally see the entire field and all the plays unfold perfectly.
It was awesome. I LOVE FOOTBALL! :-)
The outcome wasn't the best ever for App, but that was pretty much expected. LSU is definitely not Michigan. Their o-line is HUGE and strong (same for the defense, which totally shut down Armanti Edwards and Coco Hillary). I can't wait to cheer for them for the rest of the year. Their fans were great and Brian said that their radio crew was giving App. mad props all broadcast!
It's hard to get a read on how App will look this year because LSU was so dominating. I think they'll be strong and national championship contenders, but we'll definitely know more when they play Jacksonville on Saturday in Boone.
I also wanted to briefly discuss our rental car--a Chrysler PT Cruiser. Although Hertz rocked, the car was pretty lame. It didn't ride too smoothly and the gas mileage sucked (20 mpg on the highway--a far cry from the 40-45 mpg that we get in our Civics). Not to mention, the car just looks stupid and Brian looked like a total nerd driving it. :-)
The fun pictures from our trip are up at http://picasaweb.google.com/lsleblanc82/NOLAFunAndLSU
and my dad's pictures are up at http://picasaweb.google.com/samuels.jay/NewAlbum91081020AM?authkey=G-VYyuvbpK4&pli=1&gsessionid=dLjlrJhJpwDKeFbjGL3nzg.
You can see in my dad's pictures how tired I was Saturday morning in the pregame pictures.
Also, we're definitely watching Hurricane Hanna (I added Weather Underground's five day forecast tracker to the left side of the blog). With my grandmother's house in OKI, Callie in Wilmington, and my parents and Clay in Morehead, we have plenty of coastal interests. Not to mention, the storm could track into Knightdale or farther west and completely drench Boone for the football game on Saturday. If it goes NC coastal, we might have four house guests who are fleeing their second hurricane in one week! :-(
Friday night, Brian and I headed to Bourbon Street and we were able to have a really good laugh when we saw a whole bunch of male "preachers" protesting gay sex. The signs were hilarious. We were totally cracking up and were able to snap a few shots (us and lots of other tourists).
Brian and I had the best dinner ever at La Bayou Restaurant on Bourbon Street (http://www.labayourestaurant.com/). I had the "Taste of New Orleans," which had three specialties: Red Beans & Rice, Jambalaya, and Chicken Andouille Gumbo. Brian had the Cajun Burger Po'boy. And we both shared a piece of chocolate cake. All of which were un-damn-real awesome. The next time that we're in New Orleans--we will totally be dining there again. With my dinner I had a Hurricane drink. I think they must have been trying to get rid of all their alcohol pre-Gustav because it was one of the strongest drinks I've ever had. Seriously. I was totally buzzing, even after eating all that fantastic New Orleans cuisine! My trusty DD husband had a Diet Coke; no surprises there! :-)
After dinner, we walked around Bourbon Street for a bit and I bought a shot glass. The shot glass has all of the famous streets in the French Quarter and it's really quite cool looking. One funny thing, though, was that they also had the exact same shot glass that I bought in New Orleans when I was there 10 years ago. I guess there isn't a big market for new shot glass designs! :-)
Saturday morning came VERY early. A few months ago, dad signed us up to tailgate with Appalachian's Alumni Association. When the game was starting at 4 p.m., this was awesome because we would be tailgating around noon and eating awesome Cajun cuisine.
Well...when the game was moved to 10 a.m....they still had all that food ordered, so that pushed tailgate up to 7 a.m. and, of course, we were there. My dad is (well, let's just say...) regimented when it comes to arriving at football games on time (and in his defense, I agree with him because I want to experience everything [like the band marching in, pregame festivities, etc.]--not be stuck in traffic or walking to our seats at kickoff).
So, anyway, we were up and at'em at 6 a.m. and we were on our way to the game and tailgate by 6:45 a.m. We got to the tailgate at 7:30 a.m. and we were "mangez-ing" gumbo, jambalaya, stuffed sausage, crawfish etouffée, and seafood alfredo! (Oh yeah, and we were washing it all down with Bloody Marys, beer, and Diet Cokes.) It was AWESOME!!!! Even though it was so early--the food tasted soooo good!!! I might seriously be changing my favorite foods to Cajun cuisine. App.'s Alumni Association did a really good job. They had long picnic tables that were under these huge oak trees and a local Cajun band. The music was good and the atmosphere was very festive and fun (even though lots of people had driven through the night from Boone to make it to the game on time).
After the tailgate, we started making our way to our seat and, of course, we had to walk completely around to the other side of the stadium to get to Gate 18 (which was NOT well signed) and then we had to walk up a series of 50 billion ramps (OK, more like 20) to make it to row O in section 641. I seriously think that we were at Boone elevation (3,333 feet) by the time we made it to our seats.
Oh yeah...and it was hot...and humid. Did I say humid? It really gave "Death Valley" its name. We were all soaking wet for the entire game (but, fortunately, not too sunburnt). It was to the point where I couldn't even rest my arms on my legs because they kept sliding off. I think each of us drank at least two liters of water during the game. It was still completely awesome. I say if you're going to experience Baton Rouge, you might as well experience it to the fullest!!! It was so very cool to experience a game at Tiger Stadium--that place is HUGE!!! Even though Michigan has about 20,001 more seats, due to the stadium design, LSU's stadium looks so much bigger. We were probably 50 feet ABOVE the scoreboards. However, even though we were so high, you could still see the game sooo well. There was nothing obstructing our view and we could totally see the entire field and all the plays unfold perfectly.
It was awesome. I LOVE FOOTBALL! :-)
The outcome wasn't the best ever for App, but that was pretty much expected. LSU is definitely not Michigan. Their o-line is HUGE and strong (same for the defense, which totally shut down Armanti Edwards and Coco Hillary). I can't wait to cheer for them for the rest of the year. Their fans were great and Brian said that their radio crew was giving App. mad props all broadcast!
It's hard to get a read on how App will look this year because LSU was so dominating. I think they'll be strong and national championship contenders, but we'll definitely know more when they play Jacksonville on Saturday in Boone.
I also wanted to briefly discuss our rental car--a Chrysler PT Cruiser. Although Hertz rocked, the car was pretty lame. It didn't ride too smoothly and the gas mileage sucked (20 mpg on the highway--a far cry from the 40-45 mpg that we get in our Civics). Not to mention, the car just looks stupid and Brian looked like a total nerd driving it. :-)
The fun pictures from our trip are up at http://picasaweb.google.com/lsleblanc82/NOLAFunAndLSU
and my dad's pictures are up at http://picasaweb.google.com/samuels.jay/NewAlbum91081020AM?authkey=G-VYyuvbpK4&pli=1&gsessionid=dLjlrJhJpwDKeFbjGL3nzg.
You can see in my dad's pictures how tired I was Saturday morning in the pregame pictures.
Also, we're definitely watching Hurricane Hanna (I added Weather Underground's five day forecast tracker to the left side of the blog). With my grandmother's house in OKI, Callie in Wilmington, and my parents and Clay in Morehead, we have plenty of coastal interests. Not to mention, the storm could track into Knightdale or farther west and completely drench Boone for the football game on Saturday. If it goes NC coastal, we might have four house guests who are fleeing their second hurricane in one week! :-(
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