September 17, 2011

Wow, getting caught up on everything has been really hard. It is now mid September and I haven't had much of a chance to sit down and regather since I left for Utah for Meryl's wedding on 9-1-11.

The trip to Utah was fast, furious, and fun. It was great to hang out with my family again. I don't seem to get much of a chance to see them while at home as I am always running in 10 directions at once. But, with this trip, we shared a house and got a chance to hang together 24/7 for several days. The wedding was AWESOME! Meryl and Ryan did an amazing job of keeping it light but also still meaningful.

Their backdrop for their ceremony of the red canyons of Utah was stunning. The reception was outdoors and very laid back. I can honestly say I haven't danced that much in a long time.

I got a chance to get out and hike even though I am 95% sure that I broke some bones in my foot on the Sunday before I left for Utah. It was painful the entire time (and still is) but, I managed to hike with lots of help from Ibuprofin! One hike was really amazing as it was almost straight up for quite a long time. I am really surprised I made it because of my age, my foot, and the heat of the day.

Getting back from Utah was another matter. A rock kicked up from a truck and hit the windshield of the rental car that I had. I am still waiting to see if I have to pay for that. I also came home to find that the house had no power for several days and the basement was flooded and the fridge full of rotted food. So, that was just a great welcome home. Also, as expected, when I walked back into work, there was so much work piled up that it had to be put in a huge box that was placed on my desk.

This past Thursday night was the release of the complete Star Wars saga on Blu Ray. I did a troop for the release which was scheduled for midnight. I got a few hours of sleep when I got home from work and then woke up at 10:00 PM and loaded up Artoo and headed for the Orland Hills Walmart. There were not as many people at this midnight release as in previous ones, but the die hards were out and it was a LOT of fun. I got home at 1:30 AM and just stayed up as it was time to get ready to go to work anyway.

Today I am headed for Indiana to the Dunes State Park for the Midwest Builders Gathering. Should be fun and hope to get some advice on my dome motor project.