Addition update - week 15

Week 15
Mon: The first coat of paint went on the ceiling and walls in the bathroom and dressing area, and the ceiling and wall in the powder room.

Tues: The concrete shower floor was poured.

The scallop siding on the side peak was caulked and given top coat of paint. The scallop siding on front dormer was installed, caulked and painted.

Wed: The electrician installed more switches and lights.

Trim was installed around the garage windows and doors.

Thurs: The closet and storage area doors were hung, and trim molding was started on all the new doors and windows.

Fri: trim around glass block window and diamond window.

The brick trim was added to the end of the porch.

The the radiant heat element and tile (for the bathroom) and wood flooring (for the closet/dressing room) arrived, and the exterior garage lights were installed.

Crush du Jour: Raul Olivo

Friday fragments

Welcome to Friday fragments, my weekly recap of topics too big to forget, yet too small to be their own post.

My friend Tony sent me a link to AllMyFaves and I think its pretty cool! There are icons for all (many) of the websites people visit each day. But even more cool is the fact that it logs you in automatically when you click on the icon for a site that requires a login. In other words, click on the Facebook icon and it opens Facebook in a new browser and logs you in. Very cool.

Our cat Pouncer appeared to be improving, ever-so-slowly after his vet visit on Mon. He resumed eating on Mon, and is also walking around the house a little bit now, too. Mostly he just sits and sleeps.
His breathing still sounds terribly raspy so I called the vet on Wed to give her an update. She said the next step would be to sedate Pouncer and use a tiny camera to see if there is some blockage behind his soft palette. She said it is "not an easy procedure" (and likely not an inexpensive one either) so she recommended we wait until Fri to see if the antibiotics were helping. Pouncer stopped eating again on Thurs so we are trying to get him in today for the procedure. Please send positive, healing energies!

After purchasing Big Ella last fall I joined the Straight Eights chapter of Lambda Car Club International, the gay and lesbian car enthusiasts club. Each year Straight Eights has a big car show in late Sept here at the beach called Beach Ball. I've posted photos from past years' car shows, but am really excited to be showing Big Ella this year! Last night Spouse & I went to the social and met some really great gay car guys. Today I'll be going to a small pre-show, and then the big show is on Sat. I ordered and had installed a missing piece of chrome trim, and Big Ella received a wash-n-wax on Wed. She's ready to go!Spouse & I will be wearing our special t-shirts that I designed (from the photo above), and I will take lots of photos and post them next week.

This is a friendly reminder to everyone to PLEASE try and make it to the National Equality March on Oct 11. Equal rights for African Americans were not won with a single march, and equal rights for GLBT people won't be won with a single march either. But we have to show up, be counted, and be heard or we'll never be treated equally.

Joy Behar wrote a brilliant and poignant article about Elton John & David Furnish's attempt to adopt an orphaned HIV+ boy. I couldn't agree with her more! In my opinion, anyone willing and qualified to adopt an orphaned HIV+ child should be allowed to do so without regard for their age, race, or sexual orientation. Its not like there's a line of willing parents waiting outside the orphanage door. I'm just sayin'.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Crush du Jour: Dick Wolf

GPS fun

While on vacation in Portland we used a GPS to help us find our way around. The Newlyweds use it frequently to locate places since they are still getting used to their new area.

Their GPS comes with a few voice/accent choices, such as 'British male', 'British female', 'Australian male', 'Australian female'. A funny conversation occurred regarding our desire for different accents and dialects.

Wouldn't it be funny to have a Paula Deen-like 'Southern female' option? She could give directions like this:

"Hey y'all! In 2.5 miles, turn riiight onto Buttahmilk Driiive, you know, next to the big whiiite dairy faaarm where all them cows are at."

Or, wouldn't it be fun to have a 'Ghetto female' option? She could give directions like this:

"Um, okay... (smacks her chewing gum) look here. Innabouta mile or two, you know, give or take, you gone wanna slide yo ride leff ontah Taylor Skreek, you know, nexta dat off-da-hook beauty shop wheres I git my her did."

I know! FUN, right?

Then we thought about some celebrity voices that might be fun on a GPS. How about Mr. T:

"I pitty da fool who don't turn right on Fouth Avenue!!"

Or, maybe Alex Borstein as Ms. Swan from Saturday Night Live:

"Uh-yeah, okey. I tell you how to get der. I tell you evrytin. You gonna turn. Maybe leff, maybe riii, I not sure but I know you gonna turn. Yeah."

Of course the conversation wouldn't be complete without imagining how the 'Gay male' option might sound:

"First, let me tell you how FAAAAbulous you look today! Seriously! Okay, in 1.375 miles you're going to want to lean that Lexxus to the left onto Lavendar Lane. I love that neighborhood, don't you? Then a block later, roll to the right onto Riviera Road and you're there! Wasn't that easy? I knew we'd get there, Girl."

Well, we didn't have to imagine for long. One of the Newlyweds sent me a link to a page where you can download different GPS voices and sure enough, Gay Andrew is there! Click for a sample of Andrew.

You KNOW you want that one.

There's no need to muddle through life with the basic, default GPS voices. Download some FUN ones today!

Crush du Jour: Tyler Sarry

Dumpster diving

A few weeks ago Spouse & I sat down to watch a DVD from Netflix. The title was "Doubt" and we were eager to see this award-winning film.

I popped the DVD into the player and suddenly remembered the trouble we had watching the last DVD. It would play for 5 minutes and then freeze. The remote wouldn't work nor would the buttons on the face of the DVD player. The only way to resolve it was to turn off the DVD player, wait a few seconds, then turn it back on and skip through the chapters to resume where we'd left off. This occurred so many times in the past DVD viewing that I had my 'doubts' about our ability to watch "Doubt". Sure enough, within a few minutes of starting "Doubt" the same thing happened, so we just watched TV instead.

The following weekend I remembered that we had another DVD player in the attic, which had been in our 'beach house' before we lived here, so I decided to swap out the defective DVD player with the 'spare' one. I grabbed a DVD that was handy (not "Doubt") to test out my reconnection efforts of the spare DVD player, and was a little surprised that it worked!

I took the broken DVD out to the trash but since the construction dumpster was closer, I simply tossed it into the dumpster.

Several weeks passed without any time to watch DVDs. In fact, every weekend in Sept and Oct is booked for us, plus our week's vacation in Portland, the car club events this week, and weekend visitors. So last Sun we were relaxing after having returned from Portland very last Sat night, and I thought we should watch "Doubt". Only, the DVD envelope was empty.

I looked behind the TV and between the sofa cushions to see if it had somehow slipped there, but didn't find it. For a moment or two I was dumb-founded. How could I have lost a DVD?

As I often do when something is missing, I mentally retraced my steps to determine when/where was the last time I had handled the DVD. That's when the sickening thought came to me: the DVD was still in the old DVD player I'd tossed in the dumpster.

Fortunately I had not thrown the DVD player in the trash, which had been picked up since I threw away the old DVD player. The dumpster had not, so I tried to climb into it. Yes, dumpster diving at its most literal level! But it was too tall and I did not have a ladder.

When Junior and Jay came to work on the addition on Mon I explained to Junior (who is about 25 years old and slender) what had happened and asked him to climb into the dumpster and get the DVD player. I showed him where I stood when I dropped it in so he wasn't searching the entire 20x10 dumpster.

Within just a few minutes he located the DVD player and extracted "Doubt" from it!

I thanked him profusely and offered to buy him a 6-pack, but he said he didn't drink beer. I asked what else I could do to show my thanks and he said I could buy him lunch. I opened my wallet and suggested he 'should be able to have lunch on this' as I handed him some cash.

He was happy and I was happy. It was a win-win situation.

Crush du Jour: James Wilcox

Happy birthday, Steven!

Last evening we went to Steven's birthday dinner at Rigby's. It was fun!

Rusty (left) puts his head on Steven's (center) shoulder, while Tony (right) looks on.I've mentioned before how Rigby's has really won us over with their consistently good food.

Jason (left), Chris (center), and Liz.

Mondays are all-you-can-eat spaghetti and meatballs for $12.99 nights. The spaghetti and meatballs are both homemade and delicious!

Pete (left), Bob (center), Troy.

One serving of spaghetti and meatballs was enough for me. Oh, and I almost forgot to mention you get a salad and homemade bread, too.

From left to right: Bob, Thad, me, Spouse.

There was plenty of food and plenty of good conversation and laughs. Then came the birthday cake, but Steven blew out the candles before I could get the picture. If you enlarge this photo you'll see the smoke coming from the candles.

We had a great time with great friends.

Happy birthday, Steven!!!

Crush du Jour: Justin Hartley

Weekend highlights

Fortunately our trip home from Portland was uneventful. No flight delays and no noisy infants.

On Sun we unpacked our luggage, did some laundry, and then went to beach. It was a GORGEOUS day and we saw almost everyone we knew there!

While at the gas station, the Jersey Boys (our part-time neighbors who live full-time in NJ) Paul & Chris pulled up to the pump next to me and invited us to their place for martinis. I gladly accepted, and after pumping my gas and running a few errands I returned home to wake up Spouse from his nap. We didn't know the Jersey Boys very well, as we'd just met them and chatted with them on the street a few times. They couldn't have been nicer or sweeter! The 4 of us walked to Second St and had dinner at Agave. Our unexpected cocktails and dinner with the Jersey Boys was absolutely delightful.

Unfortunately, our cat Pouncer was feeling anything BUT delightful. When we returned from our trip we found him wheezing like a human with bronchitis. The poor thing appeared to be laboring for each breath. Our neighbor Claudia had been coming over to feed him and reported to us on Sun that Pouncer hadn't eaten in a week! So I took him to the vet 1st thing this morning (without an appointment so they charged me an extra $35. emergency fee) where he received an exam and blood work-up. The blood test showed all levels to be normal, and the exam indicated his chest was clear. The vet said he was very dehydrated and that his soft palette was enlarged. She suspected he was suffering from inflamed sinuses due to either a seasonal allergy or a tumor. She gave him an injection of fluid containing electrolytes for the dehydration, a steroid injection and an antibiotic injection. She instructed me to call her tomorrow if he did not improve. Happily, when we returned from the vet he ate some food, which was a good sign.

Since I wasn't here to take photos of the progress on the addition, I will simply list what I could see had been worked on: the cracked sidewalk leading to the front door was removed and a new sidewalk was poured; the driveway in front of the garage was poured; the garage door and opener were installed; the scallop siding was installed on the side peak of the garage; cement board was laid on the bathroom floor; the old water heater was removed and the Rinnai tankless water heater was installed.

Crush du Jour: Marco Majewski

Portland - day 6

After coffee and a light breakfast, we went to the Columbia apparel employee store. Jamie is friends with an employee who got us guest passes to shop in the severely discounted employee store. Spouse got 2 pairs of shoes, 2 pairs of pants, and a hat. I got 1 pair of shoes and a fleece hoodie.

Then we had a delicious Indian buffet lunch at Swagat. We were stuffed by the time we left! Then we did a little shopping in the neighborhood called Nobb Hill. The Newlyweds were looking for 2 birthday gifts and I was looking for a gift for our neighbor Claudia who is feeding our cat Pouncer while we're gone. They were successful; I was not, but we enjoyed it anyway. We also stopped in for a small bite of chocolate at Moonstruck. I had a Grand Marnier truffle which was completely amazing.

Next we headed over to the Portland Institute for Contemporary Art (PICA) where we viewed some "interesting" contemporary art installations. Next we went to the Velveteria where we viewed vast collection of paintings on velvet. From Jesus to Elvis, Michael Jackson to Oprah, unicorns to Billie Holliday, that place had everything you'd expect and some things you wouldn't.

We returned home to rest up a bit, then headed out for cocktails at the Rainbow Room, where we met our old buddy Jason and his partner Bob, and the Newlyweds' friends Curt, Mark, and Greg. Afterward we had dinner followed by a drag show at Darcelle's. Darcelle is the legendary 78 year old drag queen who turned her love of drag into a thriving entertainment business, in the same spot for 43 years! It was fabulous and we had a ball.

Then we stopped in at a birthday party for one of the Newlywed's co-workers named Joe. He and his wife Julia were super nice and we enjoyed our short visit at the party. We got back to the Newlywed's house just before midnight, recounted the night's tales, then hit the sack. Then next day we would head back home to DE.

Crush du Jour: Eric Dane

After coffee and a light breakfast, we went to the Columbia apparel employee store. Jamie is friends with an employee who got us guest passes to shop in the severely discounted employee store. Spouse got 2 pairs of shoes, 2 pairs of pants, and a hat. I got 1 pair of shoes and a fleece hoodie.

Then we had a delicious Indian buffet lunch at Swagat. We were stuffed by the time we left! Then we did a little shopping in the neighborhood calle Nobb Hill. The Newlyweds were looking for 2 birthday gifts and I was looking for a gift for our neighbor Claudia who is feeding our cat Pouncer while we're gone. They were successful; I was not, but we enjoyed it anyway. We also stopped in for a small bite of chocolate at Moonstruck. I had a Grand Marnier truffle which was completely amazing.

Next we headed over to the Portland Institute for Contemporary Art (PICA) where we viewed some "interesting" contemporary art installations. Next we went to the Velveteria where we viewed vast collection of paintings on velvet. From Jesus to Elvis, Michael Jackson to Oprah, unicorns to Billie Holliday, that place had something for everyone.

We returned home to rest up a bit, then headed out for cocktails at the Rainbow Room, where we met our old buddy Jason and his partner Bob, and the Newlyweds' friends Curt, Mark, and Greg. Afterward we had dinner followed by a drag show at Darcelle's. Darcelle is the legendary 78 year old drag queen who turned her love of drag into a thriving entertainment business, in the same spot for 43 years! It was fabulous and we had a ball.

Then we stopped in at a birthday party for one of the Newlywed's co-workers named Joe. He and his wife Julia were super nice and we enjoyed our short visit at the party.

Portland - day 5

Thurs morning we had a light breakfast, then headed west to the coast. We stopped in Cannon Beach where we walked on the beach for quite a while, then had lunch at Mo's. I had a dungeoness crab grilled cheese and clam chowder. The entire back wall of Mo's is windows looking out onto the gorgeous ocean.

Then we drove through the seaside towns of Manzanita, Nahalem, Rockaway Beach, Giribaldi, Bay City, and Tillamook. In Tillamook we stopped at the Tillamook Cheese Factory where we got delicious ice cream to sustain us for the drive back to Portland.

Once at home we planned a special evening in honor the Newlywed's 4th wedding anniversary. We took them to a restaurant called Ciao Vita, recommended by fellow blogger Kevin. Our table was romantic and dimly lit by a crystal chandelier dripping with prisms and crystal beads; just what we wanted. Our food was delicious and our waiter was attentive but not overly so.

Then it was onto the Eagle for drinks. As we walked in the door we were immediately stunned by seeing several naked men. Lucky for us, it was 'Naked Pool' night. Ever notice how the guys you don't want to see naked are the ones who want to do it?

Then we stopped at an ATM and while Jamie & I withdrew some cash, Michael spotted a giant zucchini at the edge of the parking lot. It was huge! Being the thrifty boys they are, they kept it and vowed to make a huge zucchini bread with it. (I recommended they double-check it for bugs first.)

With cash in hand we headed over to Silverado (NSFW) where we met up with Michael & Jamie's friends Bob, Dean, and Dan. They were sweet guys and we had fun oogling the dancers. It was an unusual but fun night!


Crush du Jour: Dru Bruin

Portland - day 4

Finished with work for the week, the Newlyweds were off work beginning on Wed and were ready to continue showing us the city they love and now call home.

We had a leisurely breakfast of eggs, toast, coffee, and tomatoes with basil from the garden, and then decided to make donut bread pudding (a recipe we remembered seeing on Paula Deen's show) using the left over donuts from the bucket o' donuts. Surprisingly it doesn't call for any butter!

Later we went vintage shopping. Portland has an unbelievable number of vintage shops, from very reasonable to pricey. For me and Spouse it was like going on a tour of art museums!

Next we went to the Pittock Mansion, the former home of Henry and Georgiana Pittock, owners of the Oregonian newspaper. The cashier had trouble with the computer so she said we could go in for free. We left a donation for the preservation society. The mansion was absolutely beautiful, as were the gardens and the views from the hilltop homesite.

Then we continued with more vintage shopping, followed by happy hour at the Kennedy School. Like Edgefield, the Kennedy School is another McMenamin brothers' rehab project where they take a historic building and convert it into a hotel and entertainment complex but retain much of the original character and charm. We had happy hour drinks and snacks instead of dinner. Later that night we ate some of the donut bread pudding and watched a movie.

I'll add photos to this post later.

Crush du Jour: Brandon Routh

Portland - day 3

Day 3 in Portland turned into Free Tuesday!

We met Spirit of St. Lewis and Blair's Corner for breakfast at Petit Provence. We had a delicious breakfast and delightful conversation with them. I had risotto cakes with asparagus and fruit, while Spouse had scrambled eggs and a potato pancake. We had a great time and were very happy our friends were able to meet up with us.

Then we returned to Hawthorn Blvd to visit the vintage shops. So fun! We weren't trying to buy anything, but looking in these vintage shops is like going to a museum for us. It was tres fun!

Next we went to the Chinese Garden downtown. Michael gave us his membership card so we both got in for free! The Chinese Garden was beautiful. Then we walked around downtown a little, but most things around the garden were businesses.

Then we had lunch at the Flying Elephant where Stephen works. Joe had a ham and cheese sandwich and tomato orange soup that was amazing. I had a turkey reuben and spicy Indian lentil soup which deelish. Stephen was so generous and wouldn't allow us to pay for lunch.

We returned home to relax for awhile until the Newlyweds came home. We talked for a while and then decided to go out to dinner. We ended up at Screened Door for some good old fashioned southern food. Spouse had fried chicken, mashed potatoes and greens, while I had catfish, mac-n-cheese and peach salad. We were all too stuffed to even consider dessert. The Newlyweds picked up the check.

We returned home and talked about our plans for the following days, then went to bed.

Free Tuesday was a great day!

Crush du Jour: Claude Simao

Portland - day 2

Stephen picked us up at 10:00 and we went to Washington park and toured the rose garden, which boasts over 500 types of roses. It was gorgeous, and smelled wonderful too.

Next it was onto the Japanese garden which was beautiful, shady, and cool.

Then it was onto the Hawthorn neighborhood where we toured a great vintage store called Vintage Pink. Spouse & I only found about 1,001 things we wanted to bring home with us.

Then we went to Mount Tabor, the only active volcano in the continental US located within a city's limits. Steven took us on a fabulous driving tour of many Portland neighborhoods and we really enjoyed seeing the architecture. Lots of bungalows and cottage style homes; every one charming and unique.

We had a late lunch at one of Stephen's favorite spots the Laughing Planet in the Mississippi neighborhood. We had a tasty lunch and lots of wonderful conversation. Then we visited the Rebuilding Center which really appealed to the 'reuse, reduce, recycle' part of me. Portland is such a green city that almost nothing is considered trash or wasted. I love it! And Portlanders really love their city, too.

Then Stephen dropped us off so we could rest up a bit. After the Newlyweds got home from work we went over to Stephen & Rolfe's for a lovely, casual dinner in the famous Boys' Fort. We started with Rolfe's experimental cucumber cocktails which were VERY tasty, then we had pizza and caprese salad. With the glow of a dozen or so candles, the talk spanned nearly every imaginable topic from real estate to hypnotism, families to lovers, politics to friendships, pets to travel. Between the cocktails, the friends, the food, the dreamy environment, and the idyllic weather, I can't imagine a more relaxing or perfect way to spend a late summer's evening.

I'll add photos to this post after I return home.

Crush du Jour: Zachary Stains

Portland - day 1

Sun morning we got up at 7:45 am PT (10:45 am ET) and had coffee and talked about what to do on our first day in Portland.

First we went to Voodoo Donuts, a local favorite. They make all kinds of crazy donut flavors although the donuts are really good. We decided to buy a bucket o' donuts. Yes, you read correctly, a bucket of donuts. For just $5. you can get a bucket full of day old donuts of all taste varieties. It was such a bargain that we couldn't resist. We ate some there in the delightfully wacky, pink store and took the rest home for future consumption and enjoyment.

Next the Newlyweds drove us in their convertible east to Skamania Lodge in Stevenston, WA for a great brunch. The lodge is a place where weddings, receptions, conferences, and corporate events are held. They have hotel rooms and banquet facilities. Its an absolutely gorgeous setting with magnificent views. The brunch was awesome too. After eating we went a walk around the grounds.

Then we went for a drive along Columbia Gorge Scenic Hwy. We stopped a few beautiful waterfalls, the most notable being Multnomah Falls, the 2nd highest year-round waterfall in the US. We learned that in 1995 a wedding party taking wedding photographs were drenched when a 400-ton boulder fell into a pool! Isn't that crazy? What a memorable wedding day those folks had!

Next we stopped at Edgefield complex, a former poor farm/mental institution, now operated as a winery, brewery, restaurant, bar, hotel, spa, entertainment complex. They did a beautiful job restoring and transforming the elegant old building.

The last stop of our mini road trip was at Vista House. What gorgeous views from the mountain top vantage point!

Once home we relaxed for a while until Steven & Rolfe came over for cocktails and conversation on the patio. Michael whipped up a batch of marionberry martinis using berries from the tree in their back yard. Each time anyone mentioned the marionberries, I kept thinking of the infamous former Mayor of Washington DC, Marion Barry! Then it was on to dinner at Thai Moon where we all enjoyed tasty Thai dinners. Spouse had Pad Thai and I had Massamun curry, along with a tasty cocktail called Thai Me Up. Hmmmm....

Then we went to C.C. Slaughter's for their Sun evening drag show. It was fun, and since there's no smoking in Portland restaurants and bars, it was actually quite enjoyable to be there. We watched the show for an hour or so and then headed home and chatted for a little while before bed.

Our first day in and around Portland was really fun, and I will upload photos to this post next week.

Crush du Jour: Freddie Stroma

Flight fiasco

Saturday morning we left at 7:30 am ET for the 2 hour drive to the airport in Philly. We arrived in plenty of time and made our way to the self-check in kiosk and then to the security entrance. As expected, we had to remove nearly 1/2 our clothing before being allowed to walk through the scanner.

I heard a TSA agent asking no one specific if there were any large electronics like a computer in their suitcase. I said "Yes", to which he replied "Take it out." No "please", no "if you don't mind", just "Take it out." I quickly unzipped my bag and pulled out my laptop. An agent who looked to be about 55 years old handed me a plastic bin into which I was supposed to place the laptop. I said to him "Oh, that's okay. I'm just going to put this into the same bin with my shoes and belt." This seemed perfectly logical to me. One bin, one person. There was plenty of room in the bin with my shoes. However the agent said "Computers don't go in the same bin with shoes" in such a tone as if EVERYONE should know this. "That's why I handing you this bin!" I mean, how STUPID of me to think that I could place my laptop in the same bin as my shoes! Surely this is the first chapter in the "TSA for Dummies" manual I've never heard of but he read in order to get that job.

I sent the suitcase, bin of shoes and belt, and bin of laptop through the scanner, then I walk through the personal scanner. It beeps accusingly. "You've still got metal on you" the TSA agent states. I start patting my front and back pockets but they are empty. Then I realize I'm wearing cargo shortly and that I'd left my cell phone in the lower side pocket. Feeling like an idiot at this point, I go back through the scanner, drop the cell phone into a plastic dog food bowl, send it through the scanner, and walk back through the personal scanner. Finally, success but I felt so dirty and cheap. I was allowed to collect and put on my shoes and belt, put my cell phone back in my pocket, collect my computer and place it back into my suitcase. I felt violated and exhausted and it was only 9:30 in the morning!

We proceeded to the gate, took a seat and waited. And waited. And waited. Finally the gate agent announced that we would not be boarding at the scheduled time because the aircraft had not arrived yet. They estimated it would arrive 20 minutes after its scheduled arrival, and that those with connections elsewhere would be fine. However, our plane arrived 30 minutes after it was scheduled to depart, and had to be unloaded, cleaned, and then loaded back up. We finally left almost an hour later than scheduled. We had the sick feeling we were not going to make our connecting flight in Minneapolis.

The pilot announced that we would make up some of the time due to tail winds, and suggested we may still be able to make our connections. However, when we got close to Minneapolis the pilot was told to circle for a while due to other outgoing and incoming air traffic. We finally landed but were not permitted to taxi to our gate. The pilot announced that from the left side of the plane we could see Air Force One on the tarmac. All airport traffic was ordered to stop in its tracks as we awaited the Presidential Motorcade's approach. Sure enough we saw the motorcade proceed to Air Force One where the President (assumedly) and others boarded the plane and took off.

We were hopeful that the temporary air traffic stoppage might be enough for us to scramble to our connecting flight. But a few minutes later we began to taxi toward our gate when the pilot stopped the plane and announced that the previous aircraft had not yet vacated our gate, and that we would have to wait until it did. Our hearts sunk along with our hopes for a smooth trip to Portland.

Once we got to the gate and off the plane we learned the gate location for our connecting flight was on the other side of the airport. (Why do they schedule them that way?) So with bags in tow we raced to the other end of the airport and to our designated gate. However, when we approached the check-in gate, the destination on the monitor was not Portland anymore. Our plane had left and the gate was now assigned to another flight.

We explained our situation to the very nice gate agent who placed a quick call on our behalf. When he hung up he said "We're going to put you on a flight to Seattle that leaves in 15 minutes, and then its just another short shuttle from Seattle down to Portland." As he tore off our boarding passes and handed them to us he said "You need to hurry. This flight is at gate C1." We had arrived at gate C4, run to the other side of the airport, only to be sent right back to the same place we'd arrived! Again with bags in tow we raced back to the C concourse and found our gate. I thrust our boarding passes into the gate agent's hand between heaves of breath. "Oh here you are!" she exclaimed. "John (the first gate agent) called us about you. We announced your names several times over the speaker." As she stamped our boarding passes and handed them back to us she said "Enjoy your flight!"

Fortunately we had no trouble stowing our carry-ons even though the plane was almost at capacity, and settled into our seats. The couple in front of us had a 21-month old child who was badly behaved and screamed and shrieked frequently. His parents seemed rather old for having a child that age so we figured he was a 'later in life' baby whom they were obviously spoiling. About 1/2 way through the flight they called the flight attendant over and worriedly explained that while walking through the plane their son had picked up a peanut and eaten it. Of course, he has a peanut allergy! So there was all kind of drama in front of us with the doting parents and the suspected/anticipated allergic reaction. The flight attendant called ahead and requested paramedics to be on the tarmac when we touched down in Seattle. The child didn't appear to be any worse for wear and continued his bad behavior, much to the dismay of the other passengers.

Our arrival in Seattle at 4:30 PT (7:30 ET) was smooth and we finally had an opportunity to get something to eat and use the restroom. It had been 12 hours since we'd left our house and we were both hungry and eager to relieve ourselves. The restroom on the planes always had a constant waiting line so neither of us used them. I noticed several people who used the restroom more than once, which I found curious.

We boarded the shuttle in Seattle and were delighted with the short duration of the flight and the darling flight attendant. I don't know why, but she and I just bonded instantly. She seemed to be in a giddy mood and I was practically spent so I was nearly giddy too. As the senior flight attendant gave the oral safety message, our flight attendant demonstrated the message with those canned gestures. At one point she made me laugh out loud when demonstrating the 'no smoking' part of the message by waving a single finger back and forth and then simulating removing a cigarette from her mouth. She winked at me when she saw me laugh. That 25 minute flight was the one and only positive experience.

We got into Portland at 6:45 PT (9:45 ET), which meant we'd been in transit for over 14 hours. But our weariness soon changed to smiles when we were greeted by the Newlyweds. Possibly noting our weariness they grabbed our bags from us and carried them to the car. In a flash we were back at their house enjoying cocktails and grilled chicken, eggplant, corn on the cob, and tomato basil salad on their patio.

It was quite a trek, but we survived.

Crush du Jour: Pedro Veral

Addition update - week 13

Week 13
It was quite a short week for the addition. The guys didn't come on Mon since it was a holiday, and they didn't come on Thurs or Fri because they had another, small job to complete. But here's the progress that took place on Tues and Wed.

Mon: Labor day holiday - no work.

Tues: All of the drywall finishing was completed by sanding. This includes the foyer ceiling (removed for HVAC work), the powder room ceiling (removed for plumbing work), the powder room wall where a window used to be, and the new doorway into the garage. The garage received a coat of primer.

Wed: The garage received a coat of white paint. The space where a window used to be received a coat of primer. The surround of the new door to the garage received a coat of primer. The powder room wall (where a window had been) and the ceiling both got a coat of primer. The new bathroom and closet/dressing room were primed. Water-proof cement board and a rubber shower floor liner were installed in shower room.
Thurs: Jay and Junior did not work here, but Mike the builder and I had our final consultation on the tile lay-out. The tile was delivered and Mike measured out the pattern on the shower wall. The interior doors (toilet room, closet, storage access) were delivered.

Fri: Jay and Junior did not work here, but Mike the builder met the electrician who ran the power from the original breaker box to the 2nd breaker box located inside the garage.

Crush du Jour: Rafael Kilg

Friday fragments

Welcome to Friday fragments, my weekly recap of topics too big to forget, yet too small to be their own post.

The weather this week has been unseasonably cool, only in the 60s and 70s, about 10-15 degrees cooler than usual. Mon & Tues were overcast. Wed & Thurs it rained lightly, then Thurs night it stormed like crazy, and today it rained on and off. This is NOT the way to start a beautiful Sept!

Spouse has been driving me crazy with his procrastinating. Its 9:00 on Fri night and we leave bright and early for Portland in the morning, but he has not yet packed his clothes. He picked out what he wants to take about 2 hours ago, but nothing is folded or packed. This prevents me from relaxing.

Today is the anniversary of Sept 11, 2001. I've been very busy today so I haven't had much time to think about it. Honestly I don't like thinking about it. Living just 3 miles from the Pentagon back then, I remember being truly fearful that day, wondering what would be the next target for catastrophe. I try not to think about that day.

Spouse & I voted today. When one of our senators died, his seat was filled by our former House Representative, so tomorrow we're having a special election to replace our House Representative. If the Democrat wins, we'll have a veto-proof 'super majority' in the State House, so we went to the Board of Elections today and did our civic duty by voting early.

Crush du Jour: Stanley Tucci

Travel plans

Work has been crazy busy this week! Again I was covering for a colleague who was out of the office for 2 days. Plus I am trying to wrap things up with my clients in preparation for my being out all next week.

We leave on Sat for Portland, OR where we will be visiting our dear friends The Newlyweds. Also while we're there we will meet up with fellow blogger Stephen and his partner who also live in Portland.

We are also planning an over-nighter in Seattle, WA so we hope to meet up with fellow blogger Errol while we're there.

Hurray for blogger buddies!

This will be our 1st flight since 2005 and I am NOT looking forward to it. Ever since 9/11/01 airport employees just seem to be looking for ways to ruin your trip. Required removal of your shoes and belt, emptying your pockets, and throwing away your cologne and toiletries if they exceed the minuscule amount allowed. The airlines suggest you arrive 37 hours in advance in order to NOT have your seat given up, and then when you do get on the plane, your seat is narrow and cramped.

As you can see, I do not care for airports and airlines. But I don't want to spend 10 days driving to and from Portland, so I have no options. Instead I'll think positive, happy thoughts and hope for the best.

Crush du Jour: Alec Musser

Considerations

I wish Google Maps had an "Avoid Ghetto" routing option.

More often than not, when someone is telling me a story all I can think about is that I can't wait for them to finish so that I can tell my own story that's not only better, but also more directly involves me.

Nothing stinks more than that moment during an argument when you realize you're wrong.

I don't understand the purpose of the line, "I don't need to drink to have fun." Great, no one does. But why start a fire with flint and sticks when they've invented the lighter?

Have you ever been walking down the street and realized that you're going in the complete opposite direction of where you are supposed to be going? But instead of just turning a 180 and walking back in the direction from which you came, you have to first do something like check your watch or phone or make a grand arm gesture and mutter to yourself to ensure that no one in the surrounding area thinks you're crazy by randomly switching directions on the sidewalk.

I totally take back all those times I didn't want to nap when I was younger.

Do you remember when you were a kid, playing Nintendo and it wouldn't work? You take the cartridge out, blow in it and that would magically fix the problem. Every kid in America did that, but how did we all know how to fix the problem? There was no internet or message boards or FAQ's. We just figured it out. Today's kids are soft.

There is a great need for sarcasm font.

Sometimes, I'll watch a movie that I watched when I was younger and suddenly realize I had no idea what was going on when I first saw it.

I think everyone has a movie that they love so much, it actually becomes stressful to watch it with other people. I'll end up wasting 90 minutes shiftily glancing around to confirm that everyone's laughing at the right parts, then making sure I laugh just a little bit harder (and a millisecond earlier) to prove that I'm still the only one who really, really gets it.

How the heck are you supposed to fold a fitted sheet?

I would rather try to carry 10 plastic grocery bags in each hand than take 2 trips to bring my groceries in.

I think part of a best friend's job should be to immediately clear your computer history if you die.

The only time I look forward to a red light is when I'm trying to finish a text.

A recent study has shown that playing beer pong contributes to the spread of mono and the flu. Yeah, if you stink at it.

Was learning cursive really necessary?

"LOL" has gone from meaning, "laugh out loud" to "I have nothing else to say".

I have a hard time deciphering the fine line between boredom and hunger.

Answering the same letter three times or more in a row on a Scantron test is absolutely petrifying.

My brother's Municipal League baseball team is named the Stepdads. Seeing as none of the guys on the team are actual stepdads, I inquired about the name. He explained, "Cuz we beat you, and you hate us." Classy, bro.

Whenever someone says "I'm not book smart, but I'm street smart", all I hear is "I'm not real smart, but I'm imaginary smart".

How many times is it appropriate to say "What?" before you just nod and smile because you still didn't hear what they said?

Every time I have to spell a word over the phone using 'as in' examples, I will undoubtedly draw a blank and sound like a complete idiot. Today I had to spell my boss's last name to an attorney and said "Yes that's G as in... (10 second lapse) ...ummm... Goonies".

What would happen if I hired two private investigators to follow each other?

While driving yesterday I saw a banana peel in the road and instinctively swerved to avoid it...thanks Mario Kart.

MapQuest really needs to start their directions on #5. Pretty sure I know how to get out of my neighborhood.

Obituaries would be a lot more interesting if they told you how the person died.

I find it hard to believe there are actually people who get in the shower first and THEN turn on the water.

Shirts get dirty. Underwear gets dirty. Pants? Pants never get dirty, and you can wear them forever.

I can't remember the last time I wasn't at least kind of tired.

Bad decisions make good stories.

Is it just me or do high school girls get sluttier and sluttier every year?

If Carmen San Diego and Waldo ever got together, their offspring would probably just be completely invisible.

Why is it that during an ice-breaker, when the whole room has to go around and say their name and where they are from, I get so incredibly nervous? Like I know my name, I know where I'm from, this shouldn't be a problem.

You never know when it will strike, but there comes a moment at work when you've made up your mind that you just aren't doing anything productive for the rest of the day.

Can we all just agree to ignore whatever comes after DVDs? I don't want to have to restart my collection.

There's no worse feeling than that millisecond you're sure you are going to die after leaning your chair back a little too far.

I'm always slightly terrified when I exit out of Word and it asks me if I want to save any changes to my ten page memo that I swear I did not make any changes to.

"Do not machine wash or tumble dry" means I will never wash this ever.

I hate being the one with the remote in a room full of people watching TV. There's so much pressure. 'I love this show, but will they judge me if I keep it on? I bet everyone is wishing we weren't watching this. It's only a matter of time before they all get up and leave the room. Will we still be friends after this?'

I hate when I just miss a call by the last ring (Hello? Hello? Damnit!), but when I immediately call back, it rings nine times and goes to voicemail. What'd you do after I didn't answer? Drop the phone and runaway?

I hate leaving my house confident and looking good and then not seeing anyone of importance the entire day. What a waste.

I like all of the music in my iTunes, except when it's on shuffle, then I like about one in every fifteen songs in my iTunes.

Why is a school zone 20 mph? That seems like the optimal cruising speed for pedophiles.

As a driver I hate pedestrians, and as a pedestrian I hate drivers, but no matter what the mode of transportation, I always hate cyclists.

Sometimes I'll look down at my watch 3 consecutive times and still not know what time it is.

It should probably be called Unplanned Parenthood.

I keep some people's phone numbers in my phone just so I know not to answer when they call.

I think that if, years down the road when I'm trying to have a kid, I find out that I'm sterile, most of my disappointment will stem from the fact that I was not aware of my condition in college.

Even if I knew your social security number, I wouldn't know what do to with it.

Even under ideal conditions people have trouble locating their car keys in a pocket and Pinning the Tail on the Donkey, but I'd bet my ass everyone can find and push the Snooze button from 3 feet away, in about 1.7 seconds, eyes closed, first time, every time.

My 4-year old son asked me in the car the other day "Dad what would happen if you ran over a ninja?" How the hell do I respond to that?

It really pisses me off when I want to read a story on CNN.com and the link takes me to a video instead of text.

I wonder if cops ever get pissed off at the fact that everyone they drive behind obeys the speed limit.

I think the freezer deserves a light as well.

I disagree with Kay Jewelers. I would bet on any given Friday or Saturday night more kisses begin with Miller Lites than Kay.

The other night I ordered takeout, and when I looked in the bag, I saw they had included four sets of plastic silverware. In other words, someone at the restaurant packed my order, took a second to think about it, and then estimated that there must be at least four people eating to require such a large amount of food. Too bad I was eating by myself. There's nothing like being made to feel like fat by a stranger before dinner.


Crush du Jour: Shawn Christian