The Martinez Family Blog (Lynn and Lorenzo)

Father's Day & Other Thoughts

2007-06-18T09:26:00.001-05:00

Lorenzo pointed out I haven't blogged in a while. I reminded him that it's Lynn and Lorenzo's blog, but I still felt guilty, so here goes.

Yesterday was Father's Day. We had a fantastic meal with Dad Davis and Lorenzo as guests of honor. Judi and I worked hard in the kitchen to prepare a feast of Antipasto, Shrimp, Scallops on a bed of Spinach, Lemon Risotto and Roasted Vegetables. Dessert was a Cherry Pie.
I had more fun cooking than I have in a long time. There is something really fun preparing a meal for people you love.

Lately Alex has been extremely busy. The first week of summer he went to Rocket Camp where he built a telescope, a model of a MARS rover and a rocket. They launched the rocket on the last day. Last week, he was at Dinosaur camp where he learned about dinosaurs. This week his camp is called Adventures at the Pond. I suspect tadpoles will be involved.

Meghan has been attending Blue Ivey and is eagerly awaiting her 4th birthday. It's hard to believe she'll be 4 in less than two weeks! She has been showing me "My Little Pony" things she wants, while mentioning that she needs new puzzles and some princess stuff. As I fixed her hair this morning she mentioned that her hair bows were getting old, so I suspect that's on her list too.

Lorenzo is almost finished with a bout of night shift. I say bout, because it's much like a sickness and comes a few times a year. On Friday, he heads to Vegas for a Bachelor Party for the Putt wedding. He has been missing Trombone practice because of his night shift schedule and is looking forward to getting back to his horn.

Me? I have been traveling for work. I am heading to Mississippi today and was in Kansas last week. After the 4th, I am heading to Vermont for a conference. In addition, I have been taking golf lessons. What an expensive hobby!! I am really enjoying it and Alex wants to learn how to play. I had my first tournment last week and have a few more coming up. If nothing else, the fashion definitely agrees with me.

We have been busy, but happy. I hope this finds you the same way!

Lynn and Lorenzo

Spring has Sprung!

2007-03-19T08:25:00.000-05:00

Greetings and Salutations from Dallas!

It's been too long since I have blogged, but here is an update of all the news that's fit to print.

Meghan is doing very well. Her hair has gotten quite long and she is really enjoying the spring. This weekend she went with me to Lowe's to get some flowers for our front yards. She was my "helper of the day", and contributed by digging about twice as many holes as I needed for the flowers. We had a great time getting the front beds in order. After a long morning of yard work, she took a 3 hour nap and still went to bed on time. I guess I really wore her out. She seems to be on a growth spurt lately and I am amazed how much she has changed in the last year. She is working on her alphabet and can currently accurately pick out about 1/2 of the alphabet. She also can generally tell you a word that starts with the given letter.

Alex is amazing me every day. He is getting pretty lanky now a days. He just finished spring break where he had plenty of time to play and enjoy the rest. He is playing soccer again with the Sting Rays. He has had some great games and is improving as a shooter. I think Coach Tom is happy to see that coming along. School is progressing well for Alex. He is really starting to enjoy reading more. Math and science, however, remain his favorite subjects. He is currently doing a research project on President GW Bush. As you can imagine, I am absolutely thrilled. (NOT) He has been sharing facts about Bush during meals and though I am happy to see Alex show interest in History and Government, I wish he had picked another president. (Kennedy? Lincoln? FDR?) Oh well, next time.

Lorenzo has been busy keeping the house in order. He has been hanging pictures and dealing with different businesses to get screens installed. Working from home has really been a boon for us, as he has been able to interview maids, landscape people and all sorts of other tradesmen. Our house is really coming along and I hope you'll be able to come see it soon!

January through the first week of March for me were spent with American Airlines. I had 3 trips to New Orleans, 1 to San Diego, 1 to Chicago, 1 to Detroit, 1 to Greensboro, 1 to New York, 2 to Denver and 1 to Kansas City. My new job is going well. I am really loving it but it keeps me very busy. You may have heard the Cadbury is splitting the Beverage business. We were notified last week that we will be split, but that doesn't mean much of a change for now. For me, I am focused on my customers. If you get a chance to stop in a bagel shop (Einstein's or Bruegger's) grab a Nantucket Nectars with your bagel and think of me!

So, we have been busy, but we are well. We hope you are too!

Forever, in a good way

2006-12-12T07:58:00.000-06:00

Many of you may know that tomorrow is Lorenzo and my 9th wedding anniversary. Yes, 9 years ago, many of you were with us in South Bend with the snow and excitement of the wedding.

You may remember the rehearsal dinner at Bruno's. Man, that was good pizza.

Perhaps you remember that the organist forgot our wedding. She showed up, but a little bit later than planned.

Maybe you remember the beautiful snow over the rolling hills of the golf course out the windows of our reception hall.

Or, maybe like me, every detail is a cherished memory. Whether it's waking up that morning, and talking to my sister as I tried to style my very long hair or my mother's ice cold hands as she buttoned my dress; or, my soon to be mother in law coming in and snapping pictures of the preparations, so that I would have some pictures to keep. (I am a terrible photographer, because I never remember to take the pictures!) I remember my dad standing with me in the back of the church and saying, "Last chance to change your mind", as he prepared to give me away. I remember crying through the ceremony, but happy tears. I remember having my veil knocked off as Jeff hugged me. I remember shivering with my bridesmaids as we took pictures after the ceremony. I remember dancing with my whole family, old and new, and having to ride to the hotel in the "Nookie Wagon".

I really can't believe that we've been married 9 years, because it seems we've always been Lyn-ZO. It seems we've always had Alex and Meghan. It seems I've always had him to lean on, talk to and come home to.

Well, without the right person, marriage is more work than wonderful. With the right person, it's still a bit of work, but mostly wonderful. With Lorenzo, it's just as I hoped it would be. With Lorenzo marriage is part of what makes me the woman I am.

Happy Anniversary, Lorenzo.

Holiday Decorations

2006-11-27T08:27:00.000-06:00

Happy Holidays Everyone!

I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend, as we did. You can see by this picture that laughter was had by all!

Well, except for Saturday night. Man, the Irish didn't have the game I was hoping for. Oh well, 10 and 2 is still better than 8 and 4 or 7 and 5. We may be BCS bound, or maybe it'll be the Cotton Bowl and we'll have some house guests. We have the house for it!

We had a great few days off. Alex, Meghan, Lorenzo and I spent lots of time together. The kids are really enjoying their playroom and riding bikes in the 70 degree weather. It's great to live in Texas in November. That'll change later this week, though, when the cold front hits. It's supposed to be 20 degrees on Thursday morning. BRRR

We are attacking our Christmas shopping as quickly as possible. We got a few things finished this weekend, but still have more than half of our shopping to finish. Then there's the wrapping and Christmas cards to send. It seems this time of year we don't slow down, but I really love it! It is my favorite time of year for sure.

The kids helped me decorate the tree on Saturday and we are working on our exterior decorating strategy. Lorenzo is really helping with the plans and I am sure we'll get the new house looking festive really soon.

I hope you are all taking the time to enjoy the holidays. Remember to slow down and just enjoy the sparkling lights on a tree.

Happy Holidays!

Redskins for Brady!

2006-11-18T19:17:00.000-06:00

I threatened Lorenzo that I would blog about the Redskin's need to draft Brady Quinn in the draft, so now it's real. Of course, it's sweet for me, because even though I lost Alex to the Cowpatties, my Meghan is a Redskin's fan. As a matter of fact, she can sing Hail to the Redskins almost as well as she sings The Fight Song.

Well, Happy November everyone! I guess I should say Happy Thanksgiving, as we are fast approaching my favorite holiday. It's been a crazily busy fall. Alex just received his 2nd report card of second grade and he made the A Honor Roll, again. His soccer season finished at the end of October with more wins than losses and a few goals for Alex. He is doing great. I can't believe he'll be 8 years old in a week. It's amazing how fast kids grow.

Meghan is doing well. She continues to amaze me day after day. Besides her singing of football songs, she has been busy learning the alphabet and working on her manners in school. She is coming along quickly.

Lorenzo is about to finish another round of night shift and we are looking forward to getting him back to a normal sleep pattern. I have finished my travel for 2006 and am so happy to be home for the remainder of the year.

We are going to be celebrating Thanksgiving in our new house. We moved in 3 weeks ago and are still putting everything in place, but we really love the new house. Lorenzo's office is much bigger than his previous room. As a matter of fact, we are looking for furniture just to fill it out. Of course he is more excited about his media room, but it will be a while before we're ready to put that together. I think he dreams of it anyway, as I see him collecting every electronics store ad he can find.

On the other news front, I am getting a new job in January. I'll soon officially be the Director of Sales: Emerging Markets. To Cadbury, Emerging Markets means Casual Dining in my case. So that means my team and I will be out at great places like Gloria Jean's Coffee Shop and Panda Express trying to establish distribution for great brands like Snapple, Orangina and Nantucket Nectars. In addition, it makes me one of the two most senior women in our sales force. Exciting, isn't it? Anyway, I get a company car again, and boy am I looking forward to that. The CRV has been a great car, but the miles are piling up on her. It'll be nice to be rid of that additional monthly cost.

Well, that's about all the new news. I hope you all have a great Thanksgiving and don't eat too much!

Viva Dr Pepper

2006-09-28T12:31:00.000-05:00

Lorenzo and I have returned from the Dr Pepper Bottler meeting in Las Vegas. Our company has a meeting annually where we entertain our Dr Pepper bottlers and share with them the marketing plans for the new year. I was invited to talk about "data" with a number of our bottlers. Spouses were invited, because most of the bottlers bring their spouses. So, Sunday Lorenzo and I boarded American Airlines and headed out to Vegas.

The flight out was full but uneventful. We were supposed to meet the first of many bottlers for a drink that evening, but he decided "data" wasn't exciting enough to leave the tables on a Sunday night. I wasn't complaining as it meant Lorenzo and I got to have a nice dinner instead. We had a wonderful meal and the desserts were to die for. Lorenzo had a chocolate banana concoction that was divine while I had a chocolate mousse that was heavenly.

Monday was a relatively quiet day with Lorenzo working in the morning. The Wynn has an excellent internet connection if you're curious. I had a few meetings with a few bottlers and they were quite productive. In the afternoon we walked the Strip and gambled at MGM Grand. The tables have a $5 minimum bet at MGM Grand vs. Mostly $15's at The Wynn. After our LONG walk, we hung out by the pool until dinner.

Dinner was interesting because we got to meet Mike Golic. Mike is the Dr Pepper spokesperson this year and he was at the event signing footballs. We got our picture taken and chatting with him for a minute. Being a fellow ND alum, we felt we had something great in common. After our encounter with Mike, we networked and socialized until late in the evening. Lorenzo was out with my former boss until the wee hours gambling and people watching. It seems they had a good time.

Tuesday morning held many meetings, intertwined with good and bad impersonators. We saw a BAD Prince, and decent Springsteen and an awesome Tina Turner. Tuesday afternoon was a golf day for the bottlers, so Lorenzo and I hit the shops looking for better shoes. My feet were killing me!

Tuesday evening was the big event. Dinner was out by the pool and it was good, but the big event was the private concert with Rod Stewart. There were about 200 people in the room and we were really close. Lorenzo will be sharing our pictures later. It was really cool. When the concert ended there was more socializing and another late night for the two of us.

Wednesday morning brought more meetings, a show with Bill Ingvall and long flight home. It was after 8 when we got home last night. We were tired but Lorenzo is now much more suspicious of all my business trips. I am sure he wonders how much work I really do, after all the fun we had in Vegas. My case is not helped by two additional meetings in Vegas this fall, but hey, that's my job!

My Birthday and Other News

2006-09-05T09:37:00.000-05:00

Happy Labor Day! I hope you all enjoyed the day off in honor of my birthday. It rained here and the angels sang hallelujah. Yesterday's weather couldn't have been more wonderful given the hot dry summer we have endured. How many people do you know who would be so happy to see the rain, all day, on their birthday. Further evidence of my quirks, I guess.

We have had a busy end of summer. Alex is back in school. He is a second grader now and is enjoying his new classes. He has decided he likes science best and want to do "liquid science". We think that means chemistry. He has asked us if it would be ok for him to be a scientist when he grows up and how can we say no to that idea?!? Of course, Lorenzo and I want to encourage this curiosity, so any ideas you have for experiments for Alex, send them our way.

Meghan is now officially in pre-school instead of daycare. Her new teacher is Ms. Pearce and she really loves her new class. Her favorite class mates are all boys. (Shocking considering her best friend is her brother, right?) Nathan Colwell, Thomas and Parker are the boys she speaks of most often. It sounds particularly cute, as she speaks of them as hers. For example, "Today I played trucks with my Nathan Colwell." Ms. Pearce seems to love having Meghan in class, she told me that Meghan likes to be her helper and often helps keep the kids in line. When the class gets noisy, she is known to put a hand on a hip and say, "Guyyyyyys". Hard to relate the intonation, but I think you get the point.

Lorenzo and I have had an interesting adventure in home news lately. We have been discussing the idea of buying a bigger home for months, and had previously decided to sell this house in the spring of 2007. Well, on a whim, we looked at some new build options and initiated the process to build our dream house. Ten days later, we stopped and luckily, recouped our initial investment. We have decided to be a bit more methodical in our choice, but are still preparing the house for sale in the spring. As a result, our house looks a little bare as we prepare it for showings, etc. I am glad we "jump started" the process, but I am also glad we've slowed down.

This weekend was a great one and we were able to share it with many of you. Lorenzo threw me a birthday party on Saturday where we watched the Irish win (thank goodness) and had some laughs. It was a great party with good friends and good food. Pam even came in from Houston for the event. It also marked ten years since Lorenzo proposed to me on the steps of the Admin Building at ND. Wow the years have gone by fast, but they have been happy years indeed.

In about two weeks my fall travel schedule ramps up again. Lorenzo will be joining me for my first trip as I have been invited to the Dr Pepper Bottler meeting at the Wynn and spouses were included. We are excited about that trip. When we return, I head to Chicago for three consecutive trips, one of which is the ND Stanford game. We're taking Alex to that and it should be a good time. From there I head back to Vegas for a second conference and then I am home for 12 days straight! Next it's off to Philly for a week and then I return for the weekend and head back to Vegas for another conference. Finally, I have a trip to St Louis and I am done with travel for this year. (I think) At that point, it'll be mid-November so I'll have a turkey to buy and a birthday party for Alex to plan. Our big boy's going to be 8 at Thanksgiving. He's growing so fast.

Well, that's the news from Chez Martinez. I hope this finds you well and take care!

Oh Canada

2006-08-15T10:34:00.000-05:00

Last week I got a reprieve from the Dallas heat. My job took me to Toronto and wow, what a beautiful city. If you've been a long time reader, you remember Corralling Cats. The Toronto meeting was another in the saga of the Global Data Synchronization Network standards development. It was so exciting, that's it's taken me days to get over the meeting to be able to write.

NOT.

But, there was an element of excitement. You see, I was "out of the country" when the UK terrorist ring was discovered and broken up. I had the luck to wake up Thursday morning in my hotel to hear of the possibility of flights blowing up over the Atlantic.

I was scared. When 9/11 happened, I was home. My only family member traveling was my mother in law, who was thankfully, on Southwest Airlines. She arrived safely home that fateful September.

Last week, I monitored the internet all day to understand what I could and couldn't board with. And, whether or not I would be able to fly. My mom, Pam and Lorenzo were all trying to contact me and ensure I was ok. People at work, were calling and e-mailing me, also worried.

We broke our meeting early because the Toronto airport said we should arrive at the airport 4 hours before our flight. After two hours in line and getting through customs, I found many of the colleagues who had been at the meeting, at the bar. We re-convened our meeting in a much more casual setting. After a toast the the people who discovered and prevented this tragedy, we all dived into our 9/11 stories. Some of colleagues had been on the road and drove home. One had been in a hotel next to the towers the night before. She had an early morning meeting and got safely away before the tragedy.

I was here in Dallas, working for the general. (General Mills) I remember wondering where everyone was. I had been at my desk at 7 and nobody was around. I walked toward the noise, (our conference room) and saw the second plane hit. My productivity for the day was obviously over. The general let us go home early to be with our families that day. I remember holding Alex and thinking that our world would never be the same.

In some ways, it is the same. In some ways, it's not.

Travel seems to be rebounding fast since the actual tragedy was avoided. I can tell you boarding is much faster. There isn't as much advantage to having airline status, though, if everyone is checking their bags. There was plenty of overhead space on my flight home. There were entirely empty bins. But hey, I'll gladly check my bag for safety.

Heck, I'd fedex my bags to my destination if required!

If you have to travel, remember hydrate first! And please, be safe.

HOT, HOT, HOT

2006-08-03T09:43:00.000-05:00

Today is August 3 and it's hot. Of course, the rest of the country is dealing with tremendous heat too. When I heard the Minneapolis was hotter at 5am than Dallas, (yes, I said a.m.) than I felt I shouldn't complain. I remember many people had no AC in their houses. Thank the good Lord we have AC!
However, today, the radio DJ announced that today is our 21st day of over 100 degree temperatures. The cold front that will cool most of the country isn't coming to Dallas. I feel license to complain.

Alex has just over two weeks until he starts the second grade. I can't believe how quickly the summer has passed. Of course, I am looking forward to school starting for a few reasons. Number 1: It means fall is closer
Number 2: It means FOOTBALL is closer
Number 3: Our schedules get normal again

Alex, of course, like any kid, isn't looking forward to school as much, but I think that will change when it starts.

Meghan is doing well, except for a recent case of extreme stubbornness. I am blaming the heat instead of her similarity to her mother of course. I have noticed that she likes to go where-ever I go, lately. For example, whenever we run out of something like dog food or paper towels, she'll say "We can get more at the grocery store. I'll go with you." It's really cute. I know she won't want to go to the grocery store forever. Alex has definitely gotten past the fun of the grocery store and would much rather ride his bike, if given the option. I guess they do grow up!

Lorenzo and I hosted a great BBQ this past weekend. We had many friends attend and a few who couldn't make it. It was definitely a lot of fun, and I am so glad we have a nice big kitchen. With the heat of the day, a smaller kitchen might not have fit all of our guests. It worked out nicely.

That's about all I have. I hope some cooler weather finds you soon!

Where did June go?

2006-07-05T15:54:00.000-05:00

I can't believe it's been more than six weeks since my last post. Summer has been flying by and it certainly doesn't appear to be slowing in the near future.

I think I'll start with the most recent events and head backwards in time.

Meghan had her 3rd birthday on Saturday. We had her actual party on Sunday which she really enjoyed. Her cousins from NC were here to visit, so we had a decent size crowd. I can't believe she's already 3. How time flies!

My sister and her family came to visit for the fourth. Jason, my nephew, is a few months younger than Alex and the boys had a fantastic time together. Carly, my niece, is 18 months younger than Meghan which is pretty noticeable now, but will get better as the kids age. I really had a great time with them.

Alex visited Hondo recently and talked his grandparents into taking him to the Alamo. He had heard about the site, but didn't really understand why it was important to Texas history. He enjoyed the visit.

Lorenzo has recently finished another 6 week long night shift stint. Though working from home isn't as bad as 12 hour nights in the office, I know he's glad to be back on day shift.

I have been traveling about once a month recently, with trips to New York, Nashville and Atlanta on my recent iteniary's. Work is keeping me very busy, but hey that's why they pay me the big buck.

Lorenzo and I visited ND for my 10 year reunion. We say a lot of my classmates. Some of my ROTC buddies were there, and it was great to catch up. Liam and Pam, Joy and Andrew and Rachel all kept me and Lorenzo company during the weekend. The weather couldn't have been better with temperate days and cool nights.

We don't have a whole lot of new things going on. We're recovering from the great visit with Susan and her family and preparing to drive to Houston for the weekend. It should be fun.

I hope all is well with you!

Adventures at Mike's Wedding

2006-05-09T11:09:00.000-05:00

My baby brother got married on Saturday in Roxboro, North Carolina. We flew to Raleigh on Thursday to participate in the festivities.

Alex was the ring bearer. Meghan was one of three flower girls. I was a bridesmaid and Lorenzo was an observer.

Tracy, Mike's bride, is a wonderful lady with a great family who was very hospitable. Tracy's Dad used to work for the local Pepsi bottler, so we had business in common.

The accents were a little stronger than Lorenzo was used to, but we managed to communicate and have a great time.

Thursday we arrived and headed to the mall to get Alex's tux. He was wearing a black tux with tails and a lavender vest/tie. He looked great.

After a successful fitting, we headed to Mike and Tracy's house for a barbecue and a few beers. Susan and her family arrived and a good time was had by all.

Tracy detailed the plan for the next few days including nail appointments, bridal luncheon, rehearsal, hair and makeup appointments and, of course, the wedding! Lorenzo asked if he would see me before Sunday and sadly, he wasn't kidding.

There was drama with a bridesmaid who didn't want to pay for her hair and nails, but beyond that, the weekend went smoothly.

The Spa Gallery, where our hair and makeup were done, is on top of a muffler shop. The ladies who helped us were fantastic, even if the location was a little strange. No weird noises or smells so I can't complain.

The wedding service was beautiful and the weather couldn't have been better. The reception was a lot of fun with lots of dancing and laughter. My mom's Aunt Mary and cousin Barb came from Virginia. My dad's sister, Aunt Betty, brought her daughter, Cherry, and grand-daughter, Amy. My cousin Kevin, brought his wife and children also. I hadn't seen most of them in about 8 years (since Susan's wedding) so I really enjoyed seeing them.

We spent Saturday evening in the hotel lobby visiting with the family and I really enjoyed re-connecting with them.

We had breakfast Sunday at Biscuit-ville and my craving for good southern biscuits was fulfilled. Somehow the McDonald's breakfast from Saturday wasn't near as good. Then it was time to head to the airport and get home.

The trip was great. Between the laughter and happy tears, I couldn't have asked for a better wedding.

Congratulations Mike and Tracy!

Meghan and Mom Cooking

2006-04-25T09:21:00.000-05:00

Meghan and I were cooking this weekend while Alex was out playing with his friends. She is getting so big as you can see.

We had a good time making shish kabobs and finidini.

Alex was having great fun with the new friends in the neighborhood. He came back soaked and dirty. He was playing in "the nasty place". Yes, that's what he called it. I made it clear that I am NOT OK with playing in "the nasty place". He got the message.

I hope you have a great day!

Barcelona and Other Events

2006-04-21T09:14:00.000-05:00

I have been gently reminded that we haven't blogged in while.

It's been a busy spring with soccer, travel, trombone events, piano recitals and school events.

Last night Meghan performed in the Blue Ivey Spring recital. She and her class wore yellow and had yellow duck hats. Meghan had been singing her songs and performing her routine around the house continuously in the past week, so I was pretty sure she would steal the show. Instead, she reacted the same as Alex to his first show. Meghan stood up on stage with her class with her hands folded in front of her. As they sang and performed, she smiled nervously and stared at the audience. Regardless of her fear, she eventually sang a little and even moved. We were all so proud of her performance.

Last week, Alex had his first piano recital. He played Three Little Pigs and Lambs at School. He did a great job as always.

Lorenzo performed with some of his Trombone buddies at a Lutheran Church last Friday night for Holy Week services. It was a cantata. For those, who like me, don't know what that is, it's when there is a choir and group of musicians join together to perform. Yes, I recognize that's not a technical definition, and I am sure Lorenzo will happily correct me for those interested.

Alex has his last soccer game of the spring season tomorrow at 3:30. His skills have continued to improve and it's really fun to watch. His team won a few more games than last season, so they enjoyed it more.

I have been in town for 2 weeks straight and am actually writing this blog from a Texas zip code today. Who knew?

Mom and I returned from Spain on April 7th and WOW! Barcelona is beautiful. I could live there and I did notice there is a Cadbury Chocolate Factory in Barcelona, so I smell opportunity. Or is that chocolate? Either way, I highly recommend visiting that city. The food, architecture, people and pace were wonderful.

You should make time to walk along the beach. There are nude ones so the people watching can be very intertaining! You should have Cava Sangria. You should see Sagrada Familia. You should slow down and enjoy the moment!

Walking the beach along the Med has been on my "Must do before I die list", so I am happy I have done one more!

We had a long layover in London. If you want to see pictures, shoot me an email and I'll send you some.

We are all well and miss you. I hope to hear from you soon!

Meghan-Ness

2006-03-28T07:35:00.000-06:00

B lue Ivey School, Meghan's pre-school, is celebrating The Week of the Young Child next week. They asked us to write a letter explaining why our child is special to us.

Enjoy!

Meghan Katherine Martinez
July 1, 2003

Some of my earliest memories are of dreaming of being a mom. I remember imagining a day when I would have a daughter of my own. I would buy her pretty dresses, put bows in her hair, and paint her toenails. Together we would have tea parties, go to the grocery store and sing silly songs all day.

When Meghan arrived I was on top of the world and have remained there. From the day she was born, I have marveled at her smile and her laugh. She has grown into an amazing girl.

Meghan is special to me because of her “Meghan-ness”. She loves to dance and sing and laugh. She loves to play with her brother, feed the dog and help mom. She loves to ride in “mommie’s red car” with the windows down and the radio up. She loves to have her nails painted, her hair brushed and to shop for shoes.

I love Meghan because she isn’t scared to ask for a hug and kiss, seven times in a row. I love Meghan because she knows what she wants and tries to get it. I love Meghan for her sense of adventure and her passion.

Mostly, I love Meghan because she is Meghan and that’s all there is to it.

What's New In Martinez Land?

2006-03-17T09:51:00.000-06:00

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

It's Friday and I am feeling a little Irish today.

It's been a few weeks since I've blogged. I have been home and working on my next series of travels.

For example, today I head to NC to attend my soon to be sister in law's bridal shower. I am very excited to see everyone. Mike and Tracy are getting married in May and I am very excited for them. Alex will be a ring bearer. I am a bridesmaid with Susan, and the whole event will be fun!

In another week or so, I am heading to Chicago for a day or so, and I do hope I'll have a productive meeting there. On 3/31 I am heading to Barcelona! Not only, is this a business trip for me (so free), but my mom is traveling with me! The meeting is one of those industry events to change the way retailers and suppliers transmit data. I've got to admit that I am SO excited about this location versus Purchase, New York.

In April, I have a few trips to Atlanta and Chicago. In May, again to Atlanta, New York. June is South Bend (10 year reunion!) and New York again. Then, I think I get July off! Whew!

Meghan and Alex are great! Alex has been on Spring Break with Lorenzo this week. They went to Hondo last week and visited with Great Grandma. Since returning home, they've been busy with all other sorts of fun activities. Movies, bowling and shopping...Next year I want to take Spring Break off!

That's about all of the new news. I hope you're well!

Hotel Rants from New York and Connecticut

2006-02-23T18:56:00.000-06:00

So this week, I have been in New York, again. I am at another of my glorious industry meetings where we are trying to change the way suppliers and retailers conduct business. The fun is just absolutely beyond words.

I picked a different hotel for this trip. I have been staying in the Hilton Rye Town each of my previous trips. It’s close to my meeting locations, but it’s a crappy Hilton. Some of you may thing that’s a repetitive statement. I think it’s crappy because, even after you pay the $9.95 for internet service, you’re not guaranteed to actually be able to connect. The showers and bathrooms, in general, aren’t clean. That means the floor hasn’t been mopped upon check-in, the mirror is smudged and the shower/tub is stained or has residue. Finally, the beds pretty much suck.

So, faced with the option of sleeping at the Hilton for 4 nights, I decided to shop for a new hotel.

My company pays $187/night for the Hilton. (What a rip off!) I wanted to ensure I paid no more than that for another hotel. The options were Marriott Courtyard in Rye ($139), Crowne Plaza in White Plains ($169) or Westin in Stamford, CT ($170). Marriott tends to be reliable, but usually there is a reason for a $40 different in hotels. Some colleagues are at the Marriott, and I am taking it out of my option list based upon their feedback. YUCK. The Crown Plaza is a near a mall, and has good restaurants nearby. It was booked for this week, but I think it is becoming my hotel of choice in the area.

Ultimately, I chose the Westin for this trip. I love the heavenly bed and shower, in general.

Unfortunately, this Westin is not up to snuff. In my Starwood member profile, I have requested a non smoking King room. However, upon check in, they gave me a room that had someone else’s stuff in it, and next to the ice machine. So, I headed back to the front desk. When I told the guy, “there’s someone in the room”, he gave me attitude! I asked, “since you’re getting me MY OWN ROOM, can I have one that isn’t next to the ice machine?” Again, I got an eye roll. A few minutes later I got a room. It was empty. It was a non smoking room. It wasn’t a king. But I was tired and not ready for another fight.

The good news was wireless was available and free.

There are only three WEAK lights in the room. It is too dark!

The layout of the room is poor. For example, if you want to watch TV while sitting on something besides the bed, you’re SOL. The desk IS the same continuous piece of furniture as the dresser and the TV is on it. So along the wall opposite the beds you have a dresser, with a 25” TV on it, right next to the TV is the desk work area with phone, right next to that is the minibar and then the “chair” against the window but facing the beds. So if you chose to sit in the chair, you can watch the beds, but couldn’t see the TV. AND you can’t move the chair; there is no place to move it. If I want to work at the desk while watching TV, I am approximate 12” from the TV. Not an optimal watching scenario.

Parking is in a garage under the hotel. As a woman traveling alone and sometimes late at night, I don’t feel particularly safe in the garage. So, I have to use the valet, at an additional charge. I did use the garage the first day, but last night, I used the valet. Maybe I am being paranoid, but I didn’t see any cameras in the garage, and I just wasn’t comfortable with the risk

The restaurant is “gourmet”. You can choose from a $7.00 bowl of clam chowder (this is an appetizer quantity too) or a spring mix salad for $12. There are a few other options, but if you’re not a cuisine type person, you’ll not be pleased with the options. There are many entrée’s available, but the prices range from $25-$52 per plate. For these prices, I’d rather go to a “good restaurant” that doesn't just serve as a profit contributor to the hotel. If I am going to pay at least $25 for an entrée, make it a steak and a good one.

Monday, for lack of options, I ate the chowder and went to bed hungry. Tuesday, I ate at the bar and had a Kobe Burger. The other options at the bar were less gourmet-y, but not to my liking. Wednesday, I missed dinner altogether, because I was at my meetings until very late. Tonight, I will avoid the hotel for dinner at all costs. I’ll find SOMETHING as an option.

So, for all the benefits of the heavenly bed and shower (and I do like them), I won’t stay at this Westin again, most likely. Let’s hope my next New York trip has more notice and I can get into the Crowne Plaza.

Be speckled, Jeweled and Pedicured: Martinez Metrosexual Tendencies & Other Stories

2006-02-23T18:53:00.000-06:00

It’s been a while since Lorenzo and I have blogged. All is well, just very busy. Here are some recent Alex & Meghan stories for your reading pleasure.

Alex got his first set of glasses last week. He now looks more like Lorenzo than ever. Our running joke has always been the “Mini-Me” qualities of Alex to Lorenzo. When they wear their glasses, and ND sweatshirts and jeans, it is even more clear to any observer. Alex is very proud to be wearing glasses like Lorenzo and I. He said, “Now I am part of the family”. Meghan, as a result, wears her Dora sunglasses even more often than before.

Meghan has increased her demands of painted finger and toe nails. I made the mistake of showing her all of my nail polish colors a few weeks ago. As a result, she has decided purple and red toenails are the best. We have to do them in an alternating pattern to have the “finished” look of preference.

Alex decided he needed a haircut on Sunday. His hair was not long, but it was not as neat as he preferred. He pointed out that his sideburns had grown longer than he liked. I had to laugh, as the kid loves to have a haircut, but doesn’t see the need to shampoo his hair daily. Seven year old boys are a hoot!

Meghan discovered the costume jewelry that Susanna passed down. I have been keeping it for Meghan. We put on some clip on earrings, a necklace and her Dora sunglasses for church a few Sunday’s ago. She caught herself in the mirror and turned to me and said, “Mama, I LIKE it.” If I didn’t already know I was in trouble, it’s confirmed.

Alex, in the continuing challenge of being a 7 year old boy, seems to be unable to wear a pair of pants (jeans or other) without tearing a hole in the knee. He has now 9 pair of pants. 4 of them have some sort of a hole in at least one knee. I patched a pair (or two) but the patches didn’t last either. I have decided the blessings of the situation are: you only wear pants for about 4 months in Texas and his legs grow SUPER fast. I am not thrilled with my son wearing pants with holes in the knees, but he can’t seem to keep from putting holes in them, so in order to save the remaining 5 pair from additional holes, I let him wear the hole-y ones more often than I’d like.

Meghan, who seems to be more like me everyday, has apparently developed a sarcastic side. While driving in the car the other day, she asked me to open her bottled water. After opening and returning the bottle, I asked her, “Can you say open in Spanish?” She responded, “Open in Spanish”, to my chagrin and Lorenzo’s laughter. Just so you know, open in Spanish is “Abierto”.

Alex and I are reading “The Phantom Tollbooth” together, when I am home, in the evening. I have been enjoying reading this book again. Whether stories of the Dodecahedron, the Absence of Rhyme & Reason, or the Dangers of the Land of Ignorance, I have been fully enjoying discussing Milo’s progress with Alex. If you haven’t read the book, I highly recommend it.

Meghan and I enjoy Madeline stories. Alex comes in to hear the story each night. The three of us have definitely decided we must go to Paris and see the places that Madeline sees in the stories. I love that my kids are, at least developing, the wanderlust I continually demonstrate. Poor Lorenzo, he’ll be dragged all over the world by the time I am done telling the kids about the cool places we should see!

Alex and Meghan are great playmates, but her aggressive nature and his gentle nature tend to be a very dangerous combination. Last weekend, Alex was resting on the floor when Meghan “mounted her horse & demanded he walk”. She then announced, “I have a horsey!”. The cowgirl in Meghan shines through! I am sure the Texas side of the family will enjoy that.

Some of you may know that Alex’s school is participating in a Jump Rope for Hearts program. His school sent home a form describing how to set up an on-line site to “collect money”. Alex, being his father’s son, wanted to be one of the people who actually did set up the site. We did it together and sent the link and “request” to grandparents and god-parents. Alex is apparently one of about 15 students in his entire school to set up the website. Not only that, but he blew away his goal of $50 with this program. Thank you if you GENEROUSLY supported Alex and his school. I was amazed by your collective response and Alex was very proud of his website and results.

Meghan has developed a love of Veggie Tales. Chick Fil-a gave a CD of 4 Veggie Tales’ songs in her recent kids meal. She has figured out how to make her CD player play and how to adjust the volume…up. She loves to replay her cd. My favorite song is about Larry the Cucumber and his Lost Hairbrush. Apparently, it is also Meghan’s, as she sings along with that song every time. She isn’t always on key and she isn’t always clearly articulating the lyrics, but she does enjoy the song. Lorenzo and I enjoy listening to her “sing” it, too.

Alex recently lost a school library book. It was a biography of George W. Bush. I believe he checked out this book about 6 times this year, already. I am not particularly comfortable with Alex’s interest in our president, but you all know, I am very supportive of Alex’s interest in politics, generally. I am hoping, that like myself, his political opinions will grow (and change!) as he does. At least, since he lost the book, he can’t read it again. Lorenzo thinks it’s fishy that the book disappeared. I can only say, I have no knowledge of the location of the book. $22 later, we have re-imbursed the library and reminded Alex to be more careful of future library books. I hope he doesn’t find any more Bush bio’s.

I hope you enjoyed the stories. Have a great day!

Loverboy

2006-01-31T15:24:00.000-06:00

I hope you enjoyed the recent Alex story about the love note.

Last night at dinner, I discovered the note, wasn't a note at all.

As part of the "100th day of school" celebration, each kid brought 100 of some edible item for use in trail mix.

Haley Hicks brought in conversation hearts. She didn't give the "call me" heart to Alex, but instead turned her 100 hearts into the teacher. The teacher then gave Alex a handful of the trail mix that happened to have the heart in it.

I asked Alex if Haley knew about the "call me" heart.

"When I saw it, I said, 'Haley, this says call me'."

Haley just shrugged her shoulders.

So, Alex isn't the romeo I thought, at least not yet.

Thank goodness, I definitely wasn't ready for that yet.

Race & Relationships

2006-01-30T09:13:00.000-06:00

I have to share an Alex story from the other night.

The four of us were sitting down to dinner when Alex asked Lorenzo, "Dad, are you Mexican American?"

"Yes, Alex and so are you," Lorenzo responded with a smile.

So, Alex turned to me and said, "So, Mom, you're African American, right?"

Trying to suppress a smile, "No, Alex I am not African American."

"What are you, Mom?"

"They call me Caucasian. But, I am mostly English, German and American Indian."

"Well, I told Trey you were African American," Alex said very matter of factly. "I'll have to tell him the truth tomorrow."

"That's fine Alex. Why were you talking about this?," Lorenzo asked.

"We just were," with all the sincerity of a 7 year old.

"Alex, do you know what an African American would look like?" I asked.

"I guess not mom."

"Do you remember Brendan from soccer?"

"Kind of."

"Hmm, how about Condeleza Rice?"

"Yeah, she went to Notre Dame and works for the President, Mom."

"She is African American, Alex."

"Ok"

And he went on to finish his dinner. Who knew that explaining "race" would be so easy?
**********************************
Alex announced that he has received his first love note.

Sunday, after church, Pam, Meghan, Alex and I were in Starbucks enjoying a morning beverage. (I highly recommend the Cinnamon Dolce Latte - they taste like a cinnamon roll!)

"Mom, I got a love note."

"What?!", as Cinnamon Dolce Latte comes dangerously close to coming out of my nose.

"I got a love note."

"Who gave it to you?"

"Haley Hicks"

"What did it say?"

"Call me"

"Do you want to call her?"

"No"

"Do you like her?"

"No, she likes Purdue." This couldn't have been more frank!

At that point, Pam was about to lose her non-fat upside down caramel machiato through her nose.

Yes, it's ND or nowhere.

Too bad for Haley Hicks.

GO IRISH

Cell Phone Etiquette

2006-01-20T09:46:00.000-06:00

We have all seen it happen. You're in a public restroom somewhere, and you hear someone else talking on a cell phone. Why they chose the restroom to have this call, who knows? So, you ask yourself the question, do you flush?

I believe that there is a key decision to be made. If the talker, rude as they are, is also in a stall, flushing is ok. Why? Well, they are going to have to also. Plus, maybe they'll get the hint.

However, if they are by the sink, having not entered the stall, then I can see an argument for delaying the flush, as long as possible.

Let's take an example. You are on a business trip, and your son calls you. You excuse yourself from the group dinner table and need a quiet space to take the call. One option is the bar. Option two is outside. Option three is the restroom. Personally, I avoid the restroom at all costs, but I can understand the need. HOWEVER, I wouldn't enter the stall!

I was at the office the other day. I heard a lady come into the restroom. She initiated her call FROM THE STALL. I was in shock. Timing was not her ally, because there were many flushes occurring.

The questions in my head ranged from "Who is she talking to?" "Can't they hear the flush?" "She is ok with them knowing she is in the bathroom!?!" By the way, she was clearly speaking to her boss. I certainly wouldn't call my boss from the restroom!

I don't get it at all. The restroom should be a private experience, as much as possible even in a public restroom.

It appears that some of the few remaining privacies are being killed with cell phones.

And with that, it's time to flush.
JUST KIDDING!

The Chihuahua Chapter 2

2006-01-13T09:36:00.000-06:00

In my last entry, I think my frustration was obvious. In reflection, however, I've developed a sense of sympathy for The Chihuahua.

She must be a very unhappy puppy. In the last day of our meeting, we cats were hissing or sleeping as she barked. She clearly realized her bark was not a meow. She realized that she was in fact, not, a cat and eventually stopped barking. Defeated and alone, she retreated to the back of the room.

There was a sense of victory for the cats. We had defeated The Chihuahua. It was like someone have given us catnip in the room!

I watched The Chihuahua leave. She left alone. No one said goodbye. Her tail between her legs, she left.

I must admit I truly feel for her. She really could be happier if she could read people. Any one of us cats have hissed at another cat, but we realize when we must stop hissing. Somehow she never learned when to stop barking.

In my early 20's, I had a boss accuse me of being a chihuahua. She counseled me. She taught me to hiss and de-clawed me. I resented the exercise at the time, but without a doubt I am now grateful.

In a team setting, to be successful, you must read the room. You must also control your own emotions. Finally, even if you have a chihuahua in a room of cats, you must try to de-claw them and teach the dog to hiss.

Corralling Cats

2006-01-11T11:00:00.000-06:00

Yes, I am from Texas, but I am no Cowboy. I have no experience with a Cattle roundup, but being a participant in industry standard setting bodies, I am gaining extreme experience corralling cats.

I have spent the past 3 days in a group made up of manufacturers, retailers and service providers with the express goal of developing and implementing a series of messages to transact price information electronically.

For those who don’t work in the Consumer Products Industry, you should know that today, sales representatives across the world take price data from their internal company’s systems and fill out paper forms to be given to retailers. Some retailers, then literally publish that information in what they call a “price book”. The price book was the main way some manufacturers gather information about their competitors’ prices on items.

In other words, today’s non-electronic methods are not particularly secure. But, it has been the way in which we have operated for at least the ten years I have been in the industry.

The people involved in this committee are mostly from a technical background. They have never actually filled out these forms or seen a price book. So, they are trying to find an extremely secure method to transmit that data. Worthy goal, yes, but it has totally impeded our ability to meet our goal.

I should probably describe the data flow, so that the rest of this makes sense.

I am a manufacturer called Lynn’s Cookie Company and I send my Chocolate Cookie prices for Lorenzo’s Grocery Store to my contracted data pool service provider, X. Lorenzo’s Grocery store uses a different data pool service provider, Y. So, X sends my data to Y. Y then sends my data to Lorenzo’s Grocery Store. (See below)

In addition, there is a standard setting body that has to certify that X & Y meet certain standards.

Readers, I am not the most technically savvy person. However, my experience is deep enough to know that security, as important as it is, can impede our ability to process data in a timely fashion. However, this is my first encounter with the concept of security impeding a group’s ability to even create a hypothetical solution.

I am so frustrated with them. First, I have heard a number of comments.

“My CEO says it must be secure, because it’s our price data.” Fair point, but if you tell your CEO it’s secure, he’ll believe you, as opposed to checking himself, right? And given the billions of records that will be transmitted daily, and broken into spearate pieces, the likelihood of a mean spirited body discovering the price of Lynn’s Chocolate Cookies is slim.

“My company is only willing to allow a partner with which I have a contract to view my data. All else must be passed through encrypted only.” If the standard’s body has certified both of them, then why don’t we trust both?

“But the ideas you’re proposing mean I’ll be changing my backend systems.” DUH! This is a change. Today there is no standard, so when a standard comes change follows.

We all know that my patience, especially in a business environment is not known as endless. However, when you add to this environment, a personality that:
Can not ready body language
Is extremely willing to shanghai the group’s progress based upon her inability to understand the material
Is blunt to the point of rude, continuously
Well, you can imagine that I have really enjoyed this meeting, right?

So, I have been sitting in meetings, with a group of cats who can’t agree, and added a Chihuahua[1] to the meeting, who thinks she’s a cat, but clearly doesn’t think or process as quickly as a cat. And, as natural for a group of cats with one dog, (or dog-like creature) the cats have left (at least mentally) and the Chihuahua keeps barking. Unfortunately, for us cats, we’ve got no-one who can remove the dog (we’ve all been de-clawed), we’ve got no one who can lead us cats anywhere (cats aren’t really known for group behaviors anyway), and we can’t leave (without our claws, we are relegated to being indoor cats).

The good news is that this meeting is over, and we’re not getting together again until the last week in January. I am concentrating on growing some claws in the meantime.

[1] For those who love Chihuahuas, I do not intend for this to be a slight against their personalities, but instead this reference is due to the striking resemblance between the person and an actual Chihuahua.

I've Been Working on the Railroad

2006-01-05T07:55:00.000-06:00

Have you ever noticed that the melody of the Texas Fight Song is the same as "I've Been Working on the Railroad"?

Well, living in Texas, and having Uncle Ernie as a graduate, Texas is one of the few schools that we also root for in college games. Thanks to Uncle Ernie, we have a bottle opener that plays the Texas Fight Song when you use it. Meghan loves it and has figured out how to cue to the music without a bottle. Of course, since I am not a Texas grad, I have delighted in teaching Meghan the words to "I've been working on the railroad", each time the melody plays.

Lorenzo rolls his eyes, and Alex's always finishes the song...LONGHORNS!

As you may have guessed, we've heard the song a few times in the past day or so.

I must admit, I was quite happy to learn that the Longhorns won. It's always ok for me to see USC lose. However, the funny part was listening to Meghan sing "I've been working on the railroad, all the live long day" every time the song starts.

We may live in Texas, but the kids are ND born and bread.

GO IRISH! Beat Georgia Tech....Ramblin Reck... or bumble bees!

And, Congratulations Longhorns.

Celebration and Sedation

2005-12-27T10:29:00.000-06:00

Today is the first day of the Irish's next season. Happy 2006 to you all!

The holidays were wonderful for Clan Martinez. We had a visit from Santa that brought the kids' bicycles. We had a visit from the California Grandparents that brought the kids laughter and much needed day care during the Christmas break. We had a wonderful Christmas Eve where we welcomed my mom into the Davis Family Tradition of Pizza and Tamales. Christmas brought gifts, laughter and happiness. In a year that brought sorrow and difficulty to many, I am very happy to say that 2005 was a great year for our family and I was a little sad to see it draw to an end.

Some key celebrations in 2005 included:

Judi's move to Dallas
My brother Mike's engagement to a great lady, Tracy
Carly, my sister's daughter was born
Lynn's promotion
Alex's acceptance into the Gift and Talented Program
My friend Pam's long awaited wedding
The Redskins beating the Cowboys, twice

Some key sedations in 2005 were:

The horror of Katrina, with friends who have family who lost their homes
The earthquake in Pakistan, with new found friends who lost some family
Medical scares for family and friends
The continued "leadership" of our president
The Irish loss to USC
The Cowboys loss to Redskins, twice (Alex was very un-happy)

Overall, 2005 was definitely filled with more blessings than sorrows for our family. But, in the spirit of Irish fans who just won't die, I must share a few conversations from last night.

First, Alex was very upset by the loss. He was crying by the end of the game. I turned off the TV and turned on my best "mom" voice and said, "Alex, it's only a game. It'll be ok." (Of course, inside I too, was upset, but he didn't need to know that.)

I reminded him it was time for bed and we headed upstairs. Still sniffling, he said, "I really hate Ohio State, Mom."

Understanding his sentiment completely, I said, "You don't have to like them honey. It's just a team."

I reached for his Leprechaun and handed it to Alex. As it began to play The Fight Song, I suggested he go to sleep and dream of playing for The Irish and beating Ohio State. With a weak smile, he said, "Good night, Mom. I love you."

Later, I found Lorenzo in his office. He wasn't crying, but he was annoyed by the outcome. "They're calling for Minter's head. He's the guy who let BC beat us, you know."

"Lorenzo, it's just a game. Alex was crying. He said he hates Ohio State. At least he won't ever want to go there."

"How long has it been since we've won a bowl game honey? 10, no 12 years?!?"

"The last time they won you were a student, Lorenzo. I have an idea, why don't you apply to be a student again? We'll pack up here and move to South Bend. What do you think?"

"Yeah, I'll call my boss right now," he said in pure jest.

"Actually, you know, they haven't won a bowl game since we've known each other," I told him. "Maybe it's us."

So, my dear readers, please let us know how you think we can best break this streak. Should we move to South Bend or break up? I vote for the move!!!

****Please note, this poll is purely in jest!

$425 Seat, and That’s the Cheap One

2005-12-19T10:07:00.000-06:00

So every once and a while, life at the office has it's perks. Last year when I moved to the big cube with a door (but no roof or real privacy) I thought I was moving up in the world. It seemed that my promotion was the beginning to real executive perks.

A year later, I must admit those perks have been few and far between. I still make coffee at least once every day and I still had to coordinate the Thanksgiving Pot Luck, because the SVP looked at the lone woman in the room to do it.

However, redemption or at least acceptance has recently come my way!

Last week, after a very long day, I went back to my cube with a door to pack up and head home. My boss stopped me and asked me if I'd like to go to the Mav's game.

I know, everyone knows I am not the biggest of basketball fans. The last pro game I saw was in Chicago when MJ still played. (Also corporate seats, by the way.) Anyway, after the day, I really wanted to relax with a beer. My boss is cool, so I accepted the offer.

Luckily, Lorenzo was ok with my decision, so with a quick call home we headed downtown.

Kevin and I were joined by two VP's from our department. Rob and Craig have worked together for over 15 years. They are often called Frick & Frack, but many would think of them as a married couple chiding and teasing each other through the evening.

We were to meet 3 other VP's and a SVP at the game. Apparently Cadbury has a suite, but it's not one I was expecting. It's referred to as "The Bunker". People with court-side seats have to have court-side access right?

So, we arrived at the AA Center and took the elevator down to the court area. We walked through the underbelly of the AA Center, passing employees, security and a few players' wives too.

We didn't make it to the right place before tip-off, so we headed to our seats instead. Imagine my surprise to be seated courtside. For those who watch basketball, please pardon my naive descriptions.

On each side of the court, there is usually a long table. Sportscasters usually sit at these tables, and the players go to them to "check-in" to the game. My seat was at that table!

I called Lorenzo because the Phoenix coach was standing right in front of me so there was a good chance I would be on TV. He asked if I was sitting beside Kevin. Kevin has rather recognizable fluffy hair, so I wasn't surprised that Lorenzo might see it. Apparently I was rather blocked by the Phoenix coach, but hey the sentiment is there!

At half time we headed to our bunker. It was a nice suite with 4 TV's, a full bar, and plenty of food. There were even chocolate covered strawberries. I enjoyed them fully.

Apparently, the Dr Pepper suite is very popular because of it's proximity to the floor. Don Nelson, the former Maverick's coach came to use our bathroom twice in the second half. Besides that, two of the ESPN commentators also used our bathroom. The older gentlemen apologized for cutting in front of me. He said he had to get back to the floor.

As the second half started, we traded our "table seats" for the $425 seats that the other Cadbury guests were using. I don't know when a $425 seat became cheap, but that's what they called them. So after another beverage, we headed to our cheap seats and watched the rest of the game. Our seats were behind Mark Cuban's wife.

The game ended and we hit the bunker one last time before heading home. I got to shake hands with Cuban, Nelson and Novitsky on the way out of the AA Center. It was definitely a memorable experience.

For those who care. The Maverick's did win. It was not really close, as the Suns scored first, and that was the only time they led during the game.

Alex is 7

2005-11-26T21:21:00.000-06:00

Happy Holidays!

Well, it's the Saturday night after Thanksgiving, and I am watching the Irish without their best effort. Lorenzo could definitely be in a better mood, but those of you who know him, know that's pretty normal.

Alex had a great 7th birthday. Tom was tender, the desserts were fantastic and with so many blessings, I certainly can't complain about this wonderful holiday. Alex got a Gameboy, a Julius Jones Cowboy's jersey and a new watch. He also got money, and is planning to buy a Gameboy game with his fat wallet.

I took some extra time off work last week and got to see Alex perform a Thanksgiving show at school. There is nothing more cute than seeing a group of 1st graders singing Super Turkey! We had a great day together.

Wednesday, Alex and I saw Chicken Little and had lunch with Susanna. It was another nice day together. Thursday, my mom was over early, and she helped me prepare the meal. The kids had a great day. Unfortunately for Alex, the Cowboys lost, but overall it was a great day.

Friday, we took it easy and decorated for the season. Alex helped me decorate the tree and outside. We were the first ones on our block with our outside lights up. It looks good!

Today, we started with some shopping at Northpark. So far, we have finished about 1/4 of our shopping. I am quite glad to be getting some out of the way!

Tomorrow, we don't have big plans. It will be nice to have an easy day. I am actually ready to head back to work now. Who would have thought?!?

With most of my travels drawing to a close, I am finally able to enjoy some time with the family. It'll be nice to come home to the family most evenings, again.

I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving!

Winter FINALLY Comes to Dallas

2005-11-15T08:38:00.000-06:00

Good Morning All! I hope this finds you well.

When I drove into the office this morning, the skies were gray and foreboding. According to the weather man, we reached our high for the day this morning. We have a risk of freeze overnight and winter is finally here.

I have watched as my crepe myrtles dropped their leaves in the past few weeks. I was surprised, since the temperature has consistently been in the 70's or warmer. I have been wondering if we would ever see some cooler weather. Had it not been for my trips north this fall, I wouldn't have had a reason to wear a sweatshirt yet!

It's a week until Thanksgiving and I am very excited and ready for the holiday season. Thanksgiving is my favorite of all holidays. I know it seems weird for me to choose that one instead of Christmas, but truly Thanksgiving marks the beginning of the holiday season for all. I enjoy it as the beginning. I enjoy the meal with my entire family. I enjoy every aspect of the day from preparation of Tom the Turkey to the nap I tend to fall into during the Cowboy's game.

This year Thanksgiving will be even more special as it falls on Alex's 7th birthday. I can't believe it was 7 years ago that I was stomping around VERY PREGNANT and ready to have that baby. He has grown so much!

He brought home his second report card of first grade last week and again, had made the A honor roll. I am very proud of him, of course. His reading is improving and he has been a god send to Lorenzo in my recent travels, helping out wherever necessary. I think he knows Santa is watching, but I'll take the help wherever I can get it!

Meghan well, she is just two. She is very, VERY stubborn sometimes, but others as sweet as a chocolate cake. This weekend was my first weekend to spend with her in 3 weeks. I enjoyed every moment! Even the stubborn ones. She is talking more and more. She repeats Alex as he practices his spelling words. She loves Maggie and demands a doggie kiss every night. She snuggles better than anyone I know, and this weekend I painted her fingers and toes. Yes, we had homemade pedicures together.

Lorenzo has been busy preparing for the Trombone performances for the holiday season. I believe his group has 4 or 5 appearances scheduled throughout December, but he can only make two. I know he is really enjoying the music and rigor of playing again.

My mom and I are heading to North Carolina this weekend to meet my brother Mike's fiance's family. Tracy is a wonderful young woman and I am sure her family will be just as great. It's been almost 3 years since I have seen my sister, her family and my father. I am looking forward to seeing them, but also a little nervous. I know family is family, but I don't get to see them as often as I'd like. It's always a little scary to see people you love, but know they haven't seen how you may have changed. I am sure it will be fine and a wonderful weekend for all of us!

Pam's wedding! Well, it happened. It was beautiful. It is kind of a blur for me. I can honestly say the reception was AWESOME. I got to visit with friends and parts of Pam's family that I now consider part of my own. It was a truly wonderful day!

Well, with work to do, I must go. Take care!

9 Nights Away From Home

2005-11-02T16:26:00.000-06:00

The big trip I am on (and I mean long when I say big) is one I have known about for months. I left Dallas on Friday Oct 28th after work. I made the 4 hour trek to Houston for the continuation of wedding festivities in anticipation of Pam’s big day.

Houston
The drive to Houston was uneventful, thank heavens. Pam and I had dinner at Momung’s (sp) and planned our very full weekend schedule.

Saturday we had a lot to do. We needed to pick up the wedding bands, some fancy pages for the tables at the wedding and the ingredients for the favors at the wedding. Pam had a very specific idea about how the favors would look on the tables and we needed to get started.

Unfortunately, our most of our volunteer force, which were to help us dip 150 Oreos in chocolate, wrap them and tag them, couldn’t be there to help. Luckily, Pam, her cousin, Mrs. Tyner and I get along well and got straight to work. It was a busy afternoon, both Saturday and Sunday, but we got them all dipped, dried, packaged and tagged without killing each other or coming to blows. I am very proud of how we worked together on that project. Plus there was the added benefit of teasing Pam as much as possible throughout the day.

Saturday night was Pam’s Bachelorette Party. We had so much fun. There were 7 of us ladies (+ Natalie, Cathi’s daughter). We started at Pam’s with a champagne toast and “dressing Pam”. We headed to dinner at Farrago’s in mid-town Houston and then took the train to downtown and hit a bar. It was a very fun evening and to protect the innocent, I’ll omit any explicit details. Suffice it to say, we had a great time.

Sunday, was another day dedicated to the favors. Exhausted, Sunday night, I was very glad I was traveling on Monday. I hoped for some rest.

HA. Monday brought weather to Texas. Weather means flight delays. So, my 9:30 flight out of Houston landed in Dallas at 1pm. (That should have landed at 10:30) I missed my connection to LaGuardia and was put on the 4pm flight. When we pulled back from the gate, we were number 47 in line for take off. I landed in NY at 10:30 that night and got to my hotel about 11:30. What a long day!

Snakes and Parrots in NYC

Have you ever walked around Times Square at 10pm on a Tuesday night? I can personally guarantee that there are more people there at that time, than I have seen in downtown Dallas at any given time.

Last night I got the opportunity to visit NYC for the first time. This year I have been to New York about 5 times, BUT I have always headed to our Rye Brook office and stayed in that area alone.

Last night, a group from the conference I am attending, decided to head to the city. I couldn’t miss it.

We took the train in from the White Plains station and stopped at Grand Central Station. We walked around and went to the arch where you can speak into one corner and hear the comment on the other side. It worked. That was way cool. Have you ever been? What a beautiful building! Train stations today would never look like that.

Kraig who lived in the city a few years back was our tour guide for the evening. We headed to Harlem on the subway to have dinner at a diner near his old stomping ground.

After dinner, we took the subway to Times Square. It was lit up and very bright even though it was 10pm. Those who know me are probably surprised I was out that late, but I can tell you the energy of the city is electric.

While walking around Times Square, I literally saw a man with a large parrot on one shoulder and one very large snake in each hand. He was walking around among the crowds. I AM SO GLAD HE DIDN’T COME CLOSE TO ME. It was too freaky for me. What great people watching!

Did you see the Today Show on Tuesday morning? Katie Couric was on top of Rockefeller Center with the Rockette’s, because it was the first day you could go to the top in 20 years. Of course, we needed to see it. The experience was very cool and well worth the $14. It was a clear and beautiful night. I was most enraptured by the Empire State Building. It was so beautiful.

Finally, we grabbed the subway back to Grand Central and the train back to White Plains. I got back to my hotel about 1:30. It was a late night for me but well worth it.

I must get back to NYC to spend a little more time looking around. It was a great evening.

A Great Weekend

2005-10-24T08:40:00.000-05:00

Have you ever had one of those weekends that you just don't want to end? We did.

It started, for me, on Thursday. I took the day off so I could get the house in order before the big weekend away. This was my second of 4 weekends away from home this month, so the extra time helped set my mind at ease. I cleaned house in the morning and shopped in the afternoon. Overall it was a great day. I also dropped Maggie off at the vet and took Meghan to Mom Davis' house, since she was keeping her for the weekend.

Friday morning started early. Lorenzo, Alex and I had a 8am flight out of DFW to O'hare, so we needed an early start. At 4:44 a.m. Alex came running into the room. He was dressed, his teeth were brushed and he was ready. Obviously, he is my son, as I had been lying in bed for a half an hour awake too.

We got going and headed to the airport. Disappointingly, we discovered that the Chick Fil-a on Macarthur didn't open until 6:30, so we ate that the Chili's in the airport instead. Lorenzo genuinely enjoyed my newly earned gold flight status, as we had special (and I mean shorter) security lines and got to board in Group 1. I must admit, I am enjoying it too.

The flight wasn't exciting and I am glad for that. Alex finished his October book reports, so we could enjoy the weekend without homework over our heads. Once in Chicago, we got in the rental and headed to South Bend.

Traffic wasn't too bad, except for some construction on 294 and 80. We arrived at 1 and stopped in for a quick visit with Putt. Lunch was at Macri's and then we headed to the bookstore for shopping.

After doing our part to bolster the Indiana economy, we had a quick visit with Karen Putt at the alumni office. From there, we split. Alex and Lorenzo headed to the band practice, while I walked over the the Grotto. All of the candles were lit and it was beautiful. There was a priest giving blessings. I thanked God for another wonderful year of blessings and feeling refreshed, went to meet Alex and Lorenzo. The band practice was going well. Alex made some friends with his football and was enjoying running around with them.

From there, we made our trip to Meijer to support the tailgate. I got the supplies for Bloody Mary's and we added a few other items.

We had plans to meet Jeff Squyres at Doc Pierce's for dinner at 8. Alex was showing signs of fatigue but wasn't ready to give up yet. We headed to dinner and met up with John Shipman and one of Jeff's computer colleagues. We had fun remebering stories and catching up. About 5 minutes before dinner was served, Alex put his head down and fell asleep. He didn't wake up until morning. Poor kid. When he did finally wake up Saturday he said, "Mom, I don't remember eating my popcorn shrimp.". That's because he didn't.

So, Saturday morning, we awoke early again to prepare for the tailgate. Lorenzo and Alex went out for coffee, donuts and Chick Fil-a, (he was not to be deterred!), while I got up and ready. We helped Putt, Karen Putt and Erin load the cars and headed to campus.

The tailgate was in full swing by 8:45 with flags flying, beer flowing and Mary's mixing. A great time was had by all.

The game started at 1:30 and Alex and I sat together. It was raining slightly, but our ponchos kept us and our nachos dry. There was a family sitting next to us with a son of eight, who made friends quickly with Alex. There were many touchdowns and most were in our end zone. We were in the upper deck behind the students. Alex had a great time and enjoyed the interception for a touchdown the most.

The game ended and we stayed to watch the band play and sing our alma mater. It was a beautiful day for Irish football.

We met Lorenzo back at the tailgate and partied with the group until the sun was well set and the crowds were diminished. With a pizza from Brunos for dinner, our day ended with us watching the replay as we nodded off on the couch.

Sunday, Lorenzo, Alex and I had breakfast at Bibblers and headed back to Chicago. We bought a lottery ticket, because you can't win if you don't play and the jackpot was $125 million. Our flight was again, uneventful, and we made it safely home.

It's been a while since I have seen the Irish win at home. My last few trips to ND have had heartbreaker endings. I am glad we got a win this weekend. But mostly, I am glad to have a family like mine.

Alex was extremely well behaved for the weekend. Lorenzo and I had fun and got to meet some old friends. My in-laws took great care of Meghan, as always, and we all got home safe and sound. This is one of those times that it's really good to be me.

Agony

2005-10-17T11:35:00.000-05:00

It's just not fair that the only 5 minutes of the Irish game that I saw were the most gut wrenching and ultimately heart breaking of all.

Then you add the continuous stream of "oh, it's too bad", "tough loss, Lynn", and "maybe next year" condolences I have received and it's like I can't forget Saturday.

I am proud of the Irish. They played well. We proved USC is not un-stoppable, just damn lucky this week.

Keeping the perspective, for me, helps. The past 3 years we have lost by 31 points. ND has not even been competitive in the second half during the last few years. This year, nail biter is the only word to describe the game. We looked good, period. I am very proud of our team for that.

Oh, if only ...

Lorenzo, Alex and I are heading up on Friday for the BYU game. I hope Charlie has the boys ready, because we need a home win.

GO IRISH

Competing Allegiances

2005-10-14T11:25:00.000-05:00

Oh, to be in South Bend this weekend. Lorenzo and I are really struggling with our obligations and our desires this week. All of you ND fans who can't be in South Bend are probably feeling the same. The kids are ready. Meghan has her ND t-shirt on today and her cheerleader outfit is ready for tomorrow. Alex has his jersey ready for tomorrow. Meghan has been practicing "Go Irish" and Alex is singing The Fight Song.

So, what's the problem, why aren't we there?

It's my fault. When Lorenzo and I put in for tickets this spring, I didn't want to go to SC. Yes, I was a skeptical believer in our ability to be ready. I am at fault.

In addition, we have a few personal commitments this weekend. Alex has soccer games. I am attending a few bridal showers and we're basically out of town the next 3 weekends. Reality, life beyond ND football has intervened.

I am sure some of you don't comprehend that statement. "Life beyond ND Football" may not compute. For my other friends, you're probably saying "Lynn and Lorenzo are finally joining reality". (Mica I mean you.) Say what you may. Think what you think. This reality is not easy for us.

ND football has been our Saturday religion for 13-15 years. It's a tough transition beyond it. BUT, we will be back.

AND, we will be in South Bend next week.

GO IRISH, BEAT TROJANS!

Grand Opening

2005-10-06T15:53:00.000-05:00

Lynn has been traveling a lot lately for her job. She is currently in Florida now but will be back here tonight. This weekend will be the Grand Opening of the new Firewheel Center Mall that is about 3 miles from our home. We have been looking forward to this for a while since it has some nice anchor stores (Dillard’s, Foley, Barnes & Noble) and several other stores where Lynn and I like to shop. There are grand opening event all weekend for it. There will even be a 15 screen AMC theater adjacent to the mall but will not open until later this year. This will be so convenient come Christmas shopping season.

On the kid front, Meghan is, for the most part, potty trained. She has not gone while she is sleeping and has not had an accident for a long time while at her daycare. She is also learning new words everyday and has a tendency to mimic everything you say with pretty good accuracy. Her independent streak is not letting up as evidenced by her desire to climb into her safety seat in the back of my car. She also has to get out by herself while saying, “I do it. I do it.”

Alex made us very proud this week by making the ‘A’ Honor Roll at Kimberlin Academy for the 1^st six weeks of school. He has been doing well on his homework and reading a lot more than the summer. Alex has also been doing well in soccer having scored the first goal of the season for his team. In a classic setting, he played goalie for most of the game and after the half, coach put him at the forward position. In no time at all, he and Caleb, his teammate took the ball into the opponent’s side of the field. With Caleb handling the ball, Alex, moved ahead, called for Caleb to pass to him, fielded the pass, then moved on to score the goal. It was just a perfect play.

Notre Dame is now in their bye week having gone 4-1, the one loss having come at the hands of Michigan St. in overtime. No one thought they would be at this point. Charlie Weis is the man. He has taken a 5-6 team with basically the same players and made them into this offensive machine. Not to get to carried away but the amount of yardage that ND is gaining is high compared to last year and raking 9^th in the nation out of 117 teams. Now the not so good part, the defense still needs work and the secondary is still a trouble spot. However, it does seem that the Irish had adopted a bend-don’t-break philosophy, so while opponents score they do so with field goals and late TDs when the game has already been decided. When the Irish come off the bye week they will be facing USC. Ugghhh. These are the 2-time National Champions USC team that will be coming into ND Stadium next weekend. I have faith in Charlie to come up with a good scheme against this USC team but I am not sure the talent is there to stop USC and come out with a win. But ohh if they did……..

So in lieu of watching ND play, as this is their bye week, I will be attending the Texas-OU game this weekend, thanks to my Uncle Ernie. He got tickets and since he has extra I will be joining him. It will be nice to not really have to have a lot invested emotionally in the game. I would like Texas to win, since I grew up a UT fan but I will not be heartbroken about it if they lose. It will be good to get out and see a game.

We are due a load of wine from one of our favorite wineries around Napa later in the month. Vincent Arroyo Winery http://www.vincentarroyo.com/ is a local favorite and Lynn and I ran across it on the wine tour that we took there for her birthday trip. Our standing order with them should be coming soon. That, in addition, to the wine we recently got from our trip to Temecula, CA will make for a closet full of wine.

All for now.

Lorenzo

AHH Football Season - I love fall

2005-09-26T07:54:00.000-05:00

It's been another great weekend for Fighting Irish fans. The Irish beat Washington and the Martinez household was happy again!

When you add my son's excitement about Dallas beating the 49er's yesterday, all is well. He didn't have such great weekend last week. Not only had the Irish lost a heartbreaker to the Spartans in overtime, but then the Redskins beat his Cowboys on Monday night.

I was actually smiling as I wrote that. You see, I am a born and bread Redskins fan. Living in Dallas, is of course, very hard for me. When you add that my in laws, my husband and my kids all cheer for the Cowboys...Let's just say the drought of the last ten years has been tough. Of course, I've have stayed loyal!

So, in the spirit of the game last week, Alex and I bet on the game. It was a big and important bet. If the Redskins won, Alex had to buy me a piece of candy. If the Cowboys had won, I was to buy him a piece of candy.

Yesterday, I got my candy. We were at Northpark mall and hit the Godiva store. Man, that Dark Chocolate Raspberry Truffle was absolutely fantastic. HAIL TO THE REDSKINS!

Poor Alex, I know he's only six. But, he honored his bet like a man of character. And, his Cowboys won yesterday afternoon. I am very proud of him. He's a good kid.

Remember, Go Irish, Beat Boilermakers!

India - Delayed but finally!

2005-09-22T11:49:00.000-05:00

I am home. I have recovered from jet lag and the cold I caught while there.

When I last posted, I had not yet worked with the AIESEC students. I survived it.

I was partnered with Farhan from Pakistan. He was a great partner. Together, we realized we both talk fast. We also realized that our shared MBA experiences made the material seem easier to teach than it actually was.

The AIESEC group is demanding. They are the idealistic young people we all probably were at the age of 21. Their standards are high. They believe they will change the world, instead of the world changing them. I believe there are some in the group of 550 who will maintain their energy and focus, so that they do change the world. I was reminded of my former self in working with them. I was reminded of the idealistic way I viewed the world, before the cynic in me was trained to believe that you must let go of things you can't control.

You may have wondered why it's taken me so long to finish my post. I could cite many reasons, like my busy schedule or writer's block. In truth, though, I have used this time to really absorb my experience.

I have also thought of myself as someone who is very open to new things, people and experiences. I have always believed that I can handle any situation. As an adult, I have often been accused of being over-confident and strong, so I am rarely shaken in a work situation.

The trip to India itself was amazing. The people I met from Cadbury and ABN-AMRO were fantastic, and I will keep in touch with them. However, my experience with the AIESEC students (or at least one in particular) was not as wonderful.

First, let me explain that comment. Farhan and I had prepared for 3 days to facilitate a leadership training on the Johari window, the formation of teams, and situational leadership. We were both fairly comfortable with the material and presenting it because of work experiences. We had a group of 30 students in our class.

The room was not ideal. I am not kidding when I say it was a stage dressing room. Literally, behind the stage, with mirrors and toilets. So, it wasn't ideal. It was also very poorly ventilated. To me, it was hot. When you add that I woke up with a sore throat and fever that morning, you can imagine how well I was taking the day.

Now, add 30 students who have been partying together for the past 5 days. Most were operating on less than 5 hours of sleep. Our group had about 20 girls and 10 guys. They all spoke English, but their mastery of the language varied greatly.

Ok, so it's hot, they're tired, I feel crappy, and it's time to teach.

Luckily, Farhan was there!

We dove in the the students were responding fairly well. For the most part, I would classify them as intelligent and agressive. These kids really do want to make the world a better place. As the discussion of the Johari window progressed, many of the students wanted to focus on how to tell your leader, when they are doing a bad job. Ok, we all know that is never a fun conversation. I made a recommendation to use examples and try to lead your leader to a conclusion, especially if you don't already have a strong or previous rapport built with that leader. Then it happened.

This person (female) asked very bluntly, "Can you give me recommendation that isn't patronistic?"

I was floored. AND, I am really not used to being floored.

The first thing that came to my mind was "how rude!".
Next, "man would I love to put her in her place!"
Finally, "she's waiting for an answer...."

This may not sound like a big deal, but for me it really colored my whole India experience. This woman was American, so it's not a cultural or lack of English problem. If I worked with her, I would have pulled her aside and asked her to try not to be rude in front of others. BUT, I don't work with her. She saw nothing wrong with her question. She continued behavior like that throughout the day. She really was convinced she was the cat's meow.

Too make it worse, all of my Cadbury and ABN-AMRO colleagues had great experiences with their students. They weren't taken aback, offended or anything but impressed by the AIESEC students. That caused me to really question if the problem I had was my own, instead of the student. Was I really that closed to feedback? Was I really than unable to deal with a strong person?

Obviously, it's taken me weeks to answer that question.

So here's my answer. Rude is rude. She was rude. I am not perfect and I am not always open to feedback, but I do know you can give and receive it in a manner that doesn't close down the other person. Clearly, this woman needs to learn this skill.

AIESEC wasn't filled with people like her, but instead the other 29 students were hungry, smart, aggressive and ready to change the world. They want to make a difference and that is a very good thing. For others who get an opportunity to meet or work with people from AIESEC, remember, they are smart, agressive and trying to make this world better. I am glad I had this experience, and I am glad I can now close it.

If you haven't seen my pictures, here's a link....
http://home.comcast.net/~loremartinez/mainindex.html

Ohhh yesssssss...

2005-09-10T15:17:00.000-05:00

Well the Irish are 2-0. Having beaten a then 22 ranked Pittsburgh team and , within the last hour, a 3rd ranked Michigan team in their home stadium. ND last won at Michigan in 1993 when I was a senior and later went on to contended for the National title. The first half of the today's game was basically the Irish continuing the same offensive plan as they had against Pittsburgh. The second half was us sitting on the ball for the most part, playing pro-style keep away. While I am none to pleased with the second half, that first half against a top 3 team was pretty good. I am liking what I am seeing from this team but they have a loooonnnggg way to go. I fear we may have lost Rhema McKnight in this game with what looked like a pretty bad knee injury. While he is typically not the X or Y receiver he has an uncanny ability to pop-up in the middle, open and with soft hands. Next up? Michigan State at home. No team is a push over, especially when they are playing Notre Dame. Michigan State will be ready to take on the Irish.

On other notes, Meghan wore her ND Cheerleader outfit to the Gamewatch we attended today to see the game. Very cute! Alex and I wore our ND football jerseys.

As I may have mentioned before Alex is a Tiger Cub Scout now and I have to work on teaching the Den cheers and chants at the next meeting which is Monday.

Lynn is back from India and has finally gotten used to the local time zone. While she did not get sick with 'Delhi Belly' she did catch a slight cold the day she returned which she is nearly over now. Check the link to see pictures.

Meghan has gone for 3 days without any accidents in her quest to master potty training. This is barring any overnight accidents which will be taught later. While this will decrease the amount we spend on Pull-Ups, the number of times we go to the bathroom with her has increased 10 fold.

Alex is doing VERY well at Kimberlin Academy and has the progress report to prove it. His reading ability is growing every day and sometimes he surprises me with the words he can read. Initially, subtraction presented some small difficulties for him but after a couple of weeks he is starting to get it.

Soccer season starts in a couple of weeks for Alex and I will be a referee again for the games. This year,however, the quarters are longer and the kids play positions.

All for now.
Go Irish! Beat Spartans!

Lorenzo

And so it begins....

2005-09-02T10:45:00.000-05:00

Its time again. Time for ND Football. I know I know, you are thinking, this guys is nuts. This is all he talks about, well, that and his trombone. Yea well, true, but its not just football, its Notre Dame Football. :)

As of this writing we are 1 day 8 hours from kickoff. Now a lot has been said on Charlie Weis and the hopes that he will bring back ND to the glory it once had on the national stage of collegiate football. In fact, the matchup between Pitt and ND puts two former NFL coaches against each other both with recent departures from the NFL and both having faced each other in NFL matches. Alot has been said about how Weis has altered the attitude of this ND team. Personally, I think that is the key to this season and not the win-loss record. I am pretty sure ND will not be in a BCS bowl this year. The competition is just too strong, and in reality a team can only afford one loss to get to that tier of a bowl. Thinking long-term, however, the attitude of the team and the attractiveness of the staff at ND is what will win over the future recruits. Winning the recruiting battle will be crucial to the upcoming years at ND. The wins will come, especially as Weis brings in his guys from the high school pool. The smart, athletic, nasty guys that get it done on the field. The guys that are prepared for every game, and not relying on mystique or legend to take the ball to the end zone. The guys that hit hard enough to make you see Elvis (the fat one). The guys that can celebrate in the end zone without looking like a Broadway dancer. The guys that will realize the tight-end is open in the middle since the Z-receiver dragged the MLB with him out of his zone.

On another note, the Haiku-Ninja has joined blogland and is posting what has become a new and unusual Notre Dame tradition. The football haiku. Please have a look and be entertained.

Lorenzo

August 29

2005-08-29T18:59:00.000-05:00

Hello again! It's actually the 30th now here, but I'd like to share my experiences from yesterday. It was a very busy day.

I slept in yesterday and it was wonderful. It was 10 before I got out of bed. Our session started at 1pm, so I wasn't late and could catch up on the sleep I desperately needed.

Lunch was at 1. We had our group of Cadbury people and ABN-ABRO people together completely for the first time. Food ranged from Indian to Thai to Cream of Mushroom soup. I had three bowls of the mushroom soup, as it was good and very "American". I enjoyed it a lot and was very hungry, having not eaten since lunch the day before. For those of you who don't know, Thai food is very big in India. This was news to me, too.

So then the session began and finally some questions I have been asking since being told I got to come were answered.

For example, what is AISEC? What does it stand for? Why are we here? What will we do?

So, since I know now, I'll share with you.

As best as I can explain it, AISEC is a 57 year old exchange program for college age students. AISEC used to stand for something, but has recently re-branded itself with just it's name as AISEC, so it doesn't really stand for anything anymore. College students join AISEC for the international exchange and leadership opportunities it provides, as it is a complete volunteer, student run non-profit organization that completely turns it's members every three years. Cadbury and ABN-AMRO are corporate partners who help share leadership development programs with the students and often offer internships. Other international corporations who participate include Microsoft and Unilever. They offer other types of assistance whether through funding or job opportunities for "graduates". AISEC lives on university campuses, so it's a very YOUNG and VIBRANT organization. There is lots of dancing and laughing and staying up VERY LATE. The exist in 90 countries and many of the people here for Cadbury or ABN-AMRO had heard of them. It's not big in the US, so for the few American's here, this is a very new experience.

Yesterday, after we learned about AISEC, we began training for our Developing Leaders Day. We will be paired off with someone from ABN (one Cadbury and one ABN employee) to teach a room of 30-35 AISEC-er's about leadership. Our focus will be the Johari window and situational leadership. Yesterday, we learned mostly about the Johari window. To give a quick recap, the Johari window is a theory of building relationships. In any given relationship there are four dynamic stages: Arena, Blindspot, Untapped Potential and Facade. (You should think of this as a 4 block quandrant with arena in top left, blindspot in top right, untapped potential in bottom right and facade in bottom left) As you develop a relationship with another person, you naturally want to reduce the facade by sharing more about you and reduce your blindspot by learning more about the other person. By reducing the unknown, you are increasing the area of the arena and therefore deepening your relationship and trust with the other person.

In addition, we had to learn a dance. AISEC has developed a culture of dancing, so it's our job to fit it. For those of you who know me, you know I like to dance, but normally am less bashful after a beverage. The dance we will do includes classic moves like the lawn mower, vanity smurf and some fishing thing you would only recognize if I showed you. We should definitely get some laughs, I think.

Today, we have more training. We will focus on situational leadership and then head over to the AISEC party. It's a bazaar which will have elephants, snake charmers and palm readers. I'll take my camera so I can share the experience.

More to follow soon!

Aug 28

2005-08-29T12:10:00.000-05:00

I have arrived in Delhi. I think the last time I slept was for one hour in the Frankfort airport business class lounge. I tried to sleep when I got here, but the street noise and aroma kept waking me up. Plus I was very afraid of oversleeping. I am sure I'll sleep better tonight once I get to Agra.

So far my trip seems to be a trip of smells. The plane, the airport, passengers, cigarettes, my own mosquito repellant...I expect to grow accustomed to the scents soon, but haven't yet. My trip has been relatively uneventful, except for the ride to the hotel last night. The driver was worse than any cabbie I have ever seen. Lanes here, are a suggestion, and any sort of driving rules are definitely not enforced. There was a cow in the road and that was the only thing that made the driver hit the brakes until we arrived at my hotel. With blood pumping and adrenaline rushing, I was very glad to get to the Raddisson. My nerves are still a bit frayed, as I am quite tired and a bit nervous. I look forward to my destination at the Taj View Hotel.

I must also mention breakfast. The food was fine, but the music was...repetitive. Yes, you see there was a continuous instrumental version of "I love you more than I can say" playing. As much as my body demanded caffeine, I had to take leave of the restaurant to escape the music.

*********************
We had a five hour bus ride to Agra from Dehli. The bus was air conditioned but the roads were very bumpy indeed. In India, apparently the horn is as common as a turning signal in the US. The drivers use the horn to warn pedestrians to get out of the road. They use the horns like we use high beams to tell slower cars to get out of the way. They use horns to show impatience and generally, they use horns. The noise, of not just the bus I was riding in, but of other vehicles on the road kept me from sleeping much on the way from Dehli. Besides, there was too much to see.

The people are very friendly. They frequently wave and smile at us through the bus window. Often, I feel oppulent as I sit in the bus with air conditioning and two seats to myself, while they have 5 people crowded onto a scooter. (That is not an exaggeration!) I saw monkeys and more cows. I saw many stray dogs. The saris on the ladies were beautiful and I saw many little girls whose smiles reminded me so much of my Meghan. Oh, I do miss the kids!

We arrived at our hotel about 1pm. It is named the Taj View, but that only means that you can see the tips of the Taj from the top floor of the hotel, about 5 rooms. I had suspected as much, but had to laugh anyway.

There was a large group of Cadbury and ABN employees that arrived at the same time. We had lunch and headed out to see the Taj for real. WOW! I can really only say wow, as my descriptions would only be filled with words and the experience was amazing!. I took over forty pictures, and when I get home and Lorenzo can download them for me...I'll post them for you. We had a wonderful experience.

Did you know the four pillars outside of the Taj Mahal actually lean? They are not perpendicular to the ground, as you would expect. Why? Because the designer wanted them to protect the main building and if they should ever fall, they would fall outward, not inward towards the tomb. Did you know the Taj was designed by a 22 year old? The precous gems that inlay the marble of the Taj range from jade to onyx. Oh it's beautiful. Not only that, did you know that all four sides of the Taj are exactly the same? If it weren't for the movement of the sun, you could not tell them apart. You walk barefoot onto the actual building. You can feel the heat of the sun permeating from the marble. On the shady side, you can feel the coolness of the marble. It really was an experience for all of the senses.

After our 2.5 hours at the Taj, we headed to a shop where descendents of the artist families who inlaid the gemstones into the marble still work today. We got to see a pair as they worked. What an amazing craft. If you come here, you should be warned that many people will try to sell you things that look like the art from these families, but you can easily be fooled and swindled.

Speaking of swindled! Oh the peddlers! They literally attack you when you go out. I was amazed. Of course, I am clearly a tourist and they target me worse than some of my counterparts who blend it better with the population. It's ok, I know how to say no and move on. Besides, it's part of the charm, right? Ok, at least part of the experience.

By the way, about the weather. It's hot, but not terribly so. It is very much like Dallas, so I can't complain really. There is air conditioning in my hotel, so I have been quite comfortable so far.

It's actually Monday here now. I slept in this morning, because our project starts at 1. I'll try to write again soon!

Leaving Soon

2005-08-23T15:37:00.000-05:00

As many of you know, I am heading to India later this week. I have been preparing for this trip most of the summer and am now pretty excited about this endeavor. But, truth be told, I am nervous too.

As a preview, here are some links of my accomodations:

Flights:
http://www.lufthansa-business-class.de/uk/html/uk_lh_0_0.html
Pretty spiffy, huh?

Hotels:
http://www.tajhotels.com/Leisure/Taj%20View%20Hotel,AGRA/default.htm
Looks pretty nice right?

These are clearly beautiful places, but the in between spots aren't so lush. I know this will be an interesting trip. I will meet facinating people, see new things and have a great time, but I am nervous. I lived in a foreign country as a kid, where we were reminded how not to be "ugly Americans". I hope I remember those guidelines.

I know I am spoiled here with my air-conditioning, clean tap water and bug zapper...and I know I'll appreciate it even more when I return.

I am excited and nervous, but I know it'll be great.

I'll have Lorenzo help me post pictures upon my return. Take care!

Dilbert Worthy

2005-08-18T13:49:00.000-05:00

I am sure all readers who work in any corporate environment have had their share of Dilbert moments. I have to share my most recent one.

The department I work in is "semi" IT. I say that because my department manages a really big database and tends to know more about how it works than our actual IT department. In addition, we have more people in our team who fundamentally understand database structure than our IT department does. (Of course, that could be my misconception)

Anyway, one of my colleagues found and reported an issue in our database to our IT department. For this to make sense, you must understand that components of our database are viewable through an extranet site. In this instance, information that should be viewable on the extranet was not being shown. She double checked the source data and the information was tied, as far as she could tell, so she wanted to have IT look at the joins.

57 hours later, the ticket was closed by IT. Without even consulting us, they determined that our user needed a new monitor.

I believe that says it all.

Chapter 3 - Risk Averse

2005-08-15T15:08:00.000-05:00

Before I jump into the next chapter, I have to mention Alex's first day of school. I can't believe he's in first grade now. He catches the bus right outside our house. I just love this picture Lorenzo took this morning.

======================

I opened my first savings account when I was 8 years old. I remember going into Navy Federal Credit Union with my dad and some money I had received for my birthday. He wanted me to save it. Of course, being 8, I wanted to buy something important like a Barbie or candy, but no, Dad told me to save it. I did, of course.

From then on, when I got money, Dad would usually strongly suggest I save half and spend half. Generally, baby sitting, summer jobs, and any other money I got over the years went into that account. I watched it pile up. When I finished high school, I had just over $2,000 in that account. I needed every penny for ND.

After 4 years of building debt instead of equity, (college does that to all of us, right?), I got a job and tried to start saving again. I didn't save half, who could? But I did have a crafty plan. You see, I was traveling a good bit, being in sales. So, I had an expense account. Well, I'd pay my business costs out of my own money, and when my reimbursement came in, I deposited into a different bank. FOR ALL YOU DEVIOUS PEOPLE OUT THERE, THIS WAS COMPLETELY ABOVE BOARD. I was young, naive and COMPLETELY honest back then. By putting my money in a place I couldn't easily access it, I was able to save almost $3,000 in a year. It came in handy, later when Lorenzo and I were paying for our wedding.

So, what did I find? Well, saving is as easy as choosing to do it. The rainy day fund, in the coffee tin in the cupboard, never worked for me, because it was too tempting to have money sitting around accessible. However, a barrier to my funds made the world of difference.

So, I am financially, by nurture a saver. Ok, how does that make me risk averse?

Let's discuss my professional history, sort of. The week I graduated high school, I knew I needed a summer job. For those of you who have been to Quantico, Virginia, you may know that there aren't many great jobs for non-military, non-degreed personnel. Me, I was just looking for some summer work. So, I went to the places that were most likely to hire. I should add that, at the time, I could only borrow my parents' car. The job had to be close by. I started at the local Burger King. On Okinawa, BK was the only fast food place, so I had a bias. No luck, I wasn't 18, and you couldn't work at BK until 18 due to the flame grill. Bummer. Next, I headed to Wendy's. I filled out an application and was told the manager would call me.

I still didn't have a job, so I went to McDonald's. I didn't really want to work at McDonald's, but not having a job, wasn't a pleasant idea either. So, I went in. The manager was on duty and hired me immediately. I went home and told my parents I had a job!

A few years later, I was finishing ND and needed a job in a bad way. All that school loan debt headed straight at me and no job was not a pleasant future. I should state that my dad offered to let me come home to NC and look for a job after I finished. I was comforted by that option, but really wanted to find my own job. I went on 18 first interviews. I went on about 5 second interviews. I got an offer. General Mills wanted me...to move to Detroit! Before I accepted, I was told I had an offer with a bank in Virginia. No details, though. I had no idea if the salary would be ok. Would there be benefits? The Virginia job was closer to my parents, but the Detroit job was closer to Lorenzo. Yes, these were factors to me! What's the saying? "A bird in the hands worth two in the bush." General Mills was the choice. When the Virginia bank offer came, it was lower anyway.

So, I am risk averse professionally. Onto dating...

When I was in high school, I wasn't much of a dater. As a matter of fact, it was my junior year before any boy's reciprocated feelings for me. I'd like to think they just weren't mature enough for me, but I was probably just the brainy, nerdy red head. So, anyway...With dates being a rarity instead of common, my philosophy was the first one who asks, is who I say yes to. This philosophy worked well, since generally only one person asked me out for any night. Until Prom, my senior year. I actually had 3 different people ask me to Prom. That was completely unexpected for me. Not only that, I wished I had gone with the third person. So, everyone once in a while, the risk averse part of me doesn't pay off. Since I am not dating anymore, I am perfectly comfortable with that, though!

So, I guess whether it's finances, professional or personal, risk averse is a good way to describe me. Whether by nature or nurture, I've become the person who doesn't bet in Vegas. It's just not worth the risk.

I guess that ends my three part series. I hope you enjoyed it!

Chapter 2: Early Bird

2005-08-09T07:42:00.000-05:00

Do you know any Marines? Have you heard of boot camp? Do you know what time drill instructors rouse Marine recruits at boot camp? Let's suffice it to say, early. Now imagine being raised by a man who spent over 20 years in the Marine Corps. That only begins to explain my early bird habits.

I have strong early memories of my father running into my sister and my bedroom with a large stock pot and wooden spoon hollering, "Good morning! Good morning! Good morning! Rise and shine!" I remember being told to get up at 5:30 on Saturday mornings so that we could get a good breakfast before starting the yard work. I remember hearing, "We do more by 9 am than most people do all day." It's true for the military personnel and true for their families by association.

When I left the family home and went to college, I was so used to getting up early that I really bugged my room-mate with my schedule. She was a natural night person, so we definitely clashed. To complicate matters, my dad tended to call at 6 am. My room-mate, justifiably, thought I had the strangest family. In defense of my dad, there was a time difference, so it was 7 where he was, but 7 was still too early for communication to my room-mate.

I am a firm believer of the idea that you are what you are, when it comes to sleep. So what does that mean really? Well, it means that regardless of when you go to sleep, your natural pattern will remain with you. For example, throughout college, I stretched my bedtime to 11-12pm most nights, while still rising at 6am most days. Tired as I was, I couldn't comfortably sleep easily past 6. It was just my way. I was and remain a morning person.

My kids have become the same. The schedule I live by, has trained them to be early risers. They rise daily between 5 and 5:30, but they go to sleep between 7 and 8. It puts kind of a crimp in any night life I may have, but you may have noticed by now, I don't even really pretend to have a night life, except for the occasional date with my husband.

That fairly well sums up the early bird piece. Soon Chapter 3 ... Risk Averse.

Chapter I: Foodie

2005-08-09T07:40:00.000-05:00

I must tell you about how I got to be here. It all started in my mama’s kitchen. Of course it did, right? Don’t all foodies learn to love food at home? Well, my mama was a great cook. I say was, because she doesn’t cook much any more. “Now that the family’s gone, there just isn’t much a reason to cook a big pot of spaghetti or a pot roast on Sunday”, she says. And I can’t really argue, she’s right, cooking for one is not easy because managing portion sizes to the point where you don’t have to eat the same thing for a week is a real challenge. I tried it when I lived alone, and soon pretty much gave up, too.
Anyway, back to mama’s kitchen. I can remember helping her in the kitchen in my earliest memories. Whether it was that Sunday after church pot roast or chicken & dumplin’s on a cold wintry day, watching and eventually helping her turn ingredients into a satisfying meal for the family was the epitome of love to me. It always seemed that mama, who demonstrated her love for us in so many ways, did it most eloquently with a big meal.
Every Sunday morning, we would start the week with a trip to the commissary. Up and down every aisle, we would go each week. We’d plan menu’s, consider prices and add treats for the family. We’d leave the store with two full carts most weeks, but know for sure that we’d be back the following week. Of course, with a family of five who love food, it’s tough not fill two baskets, especially once the kids grow into their teen years.
When we got home, we’d put away the food, clean vegetables and fruit and begin to prepare the Sunday meal. My favorite was fried chicken. Daddy’s originally from the south, so even though mama’s wasn’t, she learned to cook as his family had. It made for a great combination of foods crossing the palate over the years. When you add the years we spent in Japan, there was ultimately no food I wouldn’t try at least once. Mama, she learned how to cook most all of them, and by osmosis or dedicated lessons on a particular dish, I learned them too.
So I do the same now, for my family. I am happiest when I am preparing the meals. It really doesn’t matter what stage the preparation is, either. For example, I’ve been experimenting with gardening for about 5 years, so that I can have my own source of some ingredients. This year, it’s tomatoes and cucumbers. As a matter of fact, I’ve got tomatoes out the ears right now. Oh, they are wonderful! Last year, I had chili peppers. From jalapeno’s to habenero’s, I had ton’s of peppers through out the summer. Next year, I am planning to extend my gardening space, for the express purpose of being able to grow even more vegetables.
I don’t just grow vegetables though. I have a raspberry bush and two blackberry bushes. I also have experimented with mint. If you’ve never grown mint, I don’t really recommend it. It’ll take over your space. It grows like squash really, and will dominate your entire garden, or you’ll fight it forever. Quite annoying.
So from the garden, I head to my kitchen. I LOVE MY KITCHEN. It has 5 windows and looks into my back yard. It is big enough to entertain in, while still feeling cozy. My husband put a radio/cd player in the kitchen so I can jam while I cook. If you want to see me at my happiest, you’ll find me there on a Saturday or Sunday, chopping or cooking. My kids will be running through with their Tonka trucks and the radio will be playing songs I can sing to. I can’t easily recollect a time that I am more relaxed or content than those times.

Introduction: Lynn the Risk Averse, Early Bird, Foodie

2005-08-02T15:31:00.000-05:00

So there I was sitting on the piano, wearing nothing but a smile. I've always wanted to use that line in a conversation. It suggests my story will be racy, exciting and even sensual.
Sensual, that's probably not the word my friends would use to describe me. Sensual suggests confidence in oneself. It suggests beauty and a connection to the external world that I don't pretend to understand. The closest I could come is probably savory. Come on, admit it, can't you just imagine the taste of a rich chocolate cake with deep creamy icing. The cake, moist and almost melting on your tongue. The icing lingering on your lip to the point that you must wipe it away. Is your mouth watering? Mine is.
I am a chef by hobby. Perhaps you could tell from my passionate description of that cake. Being a chef as a profession is not practical for me. Why? Well, the hours stink. Consider when you most often eat out. If you make a reservation at a restaurant, the average dinner time will range from 7 to 9 pm, with dinner often lasting into the wee hours of the morning. I am not a night person. As a matter of fact, I am the complete opposite of a night person, most days rising at 5 am and heading to be around 9pm. So, as you can see a chef job would probably not be ideal for me.
Of course, there is always a breakfast / lunch place, and believe me, I've considered it. I make great breakfasts. I have mastered waffles, pancakes, all varieties of omlettes, eggs, breakfast meats and most recently fritattas. I can make muffins, cinnamon rolls, various breads and even operate a cappucino machine from a stint at Gloria Jean's Coffee Shop in college. Ultimately though, no matter how much I love the idea of running my own business, there is risk.
Risk is something I don't handle well. Strangely, regardless of subject I tend to be extremely risk averse. I can't really articulate why, but suffice it to say if there is a conservative and safer position on one side of any spectrum, you'll generally find me there. So why do you need to know that, well, so you can understand me, I guess. What have you learned so far? I am a risk averse, early bird, foodie, who wishes she was more exciting, or at least confident.

Chapter I "Foodie" to follow

Bits and one Rant

2005-07-28T14:02:00.000-05:00

Watched Mind of Mencia on Comedy Central last night freaking hilarious, being Hispanic myself I could relate to a lot of the jokes. Still, I think everyone would find something funny about it.

BTW, if you ever get a foot amputated and don’t want to part with it just do what this guy did, but you may have to move to Lawrence KS. Check with your local law enforcement.

Freakshow of the week award goes to Noel Divine from Florida.
Soon to start his junior campaign, Noel is already projected to be a blue-chipper in the recruiting field as a running back. In the pictures found in the link he was 15 years old and doing a 315 lbs bench press and a 225 lb incline. Oh, did I mention he is also the adopted son of Deion Saunders? Deion is moving him to the Dallas area and putting him in a 2A school north of Frisco. To his credit, Noel has gone through a lot for a teenager as both his parents are dead and until the adoption was living at a friend's house.

The Space Shuttle Program is grounded again all because of a plate sized piece of foam. Okay I am sure there is much more to this but I am rather disappointed. It is my opinion that we need to stop spending tons of money on the Space Shuttle and start to focus on the next generation vehicle that will take us back to the Moon and Mars. I think we are starting to see the beginning of the end of the Shuttle program. We need to start diverting funds to the next program and get back in the game. Private companies are already able to achieve manned sub-orbital flights on their own and, more than likely, in ten years will be able to get to low even high orbit on their own. While this is not a bad thing I think the US Government should be a leader in this field. I think Congress has to make a rule that NASA will be funded, not with a yearly budget, but with a planned goal based budget that will prevent NASA wasting time begging Congress for scraps every year. I also think NASA should start asking for money from the general public and fundraise like public television does. I am sure there are laws against it but in this case there should not be.

Lorenzo

Of Shoes and Ships and Sealing Wax & Cabbages and Kings

2005-07-26T14:19:00.000-05:00

Shoes
If you read this often, you know of Meghan's love of shoes. This relatively new phenomenon has grown because of her recent birthday. She received 4 pair of "dress up shoes" for her birthday and has been clomping around the house ever since. This weekend, while shopping with my mother in law, (who I believe contributed the "Shoe Gene") I saw a harbinger of things to come. Lorenzo and I should buy stock now in all fashion shoe houses, because we are in trouble.
We were in Foley's at Northpark. Meghan's feet are growing and they had a significant sale, so I agreed with Susanna that we should check out the children's shoe section. Meghan was thrilled to see the shoe department. The department was in total disarray because of the sale and lack of salespeople (that's another story), so I sat down on the floor and started sorting through to find some that were her size.
Meghan had a plan of her own. She first demanded "shoes!". This, of course, means "Mom, please take off my current shoes." I obliged. She then started taking random shoes she found and trying them on. If she couldn't get the shoe on herself, she would come to me, take my cheeks in her hands, turn my face toward her and say, "MA!".
I found 5 pair that were her size. 4 pair were tennis shoes of different varieties and one pair were a dressier shoe. They ranged in color from white to pink, some had lights, some had velcro, one had princesses on the side. For those who don't buy kid's shoes, they have some very cool features these days!
Meghan was very willing to try on all 5 pair. She stood up, took a few steps in each. She didn't fall in love with any particular pair. Instead she continued on shopping. She found a pair of size 11 black low top converse that she liked. (She wears a size 6.5.) She found two different pairs of boots she liked. The first was a pink suede, fur lined boot that covered her entire leg because it was so big. The second was a rainbow striped ran boot that was also very big.
If there were ever a time to have a camera phone, shoe shopping with Meghan is that time. I was exasperated by her patience to continue trying on new shoes! I finally selected one pair of the tennis shoes to buy for her. She had no interest in those shoes, though, because she had already tried them on. She would have been perfectly happy trying on shoes until the store closed. My daughter is a shoe salesperson's nightmare at 2. I can only imagine her teen years.
Luckily, after I bought the shoes, she did indeed want to wear them. So in her new pink tennis shoes, she strolled out of Foley's happy with her shoes.
Ships and Sealing Wax and Cabbages and Kings
I didn't really have posts for the others, but had the Lewis Carroll quote in my head.

Of things Blue and Gold....

2005-07-22T19:08:00.000-05:00

So as most of you know Lynn and I are Notre Dame alumni. We have just completed an annual ND ritual that ranks high on the list of many alumni.

The Notre Dame Football Ticket Lottery.

This process is very involved. Perhaps too involved in the eyes of observers, who I am sure just don't understand the need for all the fuss. It is just a football game. No, I say. It's Notre Dame Football. BIG Difference.

To say ND makes money off of this lottery is an understatement. I mean, how can they not? Your first step in becoming eligible is to become attend ND and graduate. Thus you just spent a ton on tuition. Second, once you are alumni you have to contribute to the ND Annual Fund in order to get the form that will allow you to enter the lottery. Making the contribution does not guarantee you will get tickets. This contribution is a minimum $50 for Young Alumni (those that have graduated within 7 years) and $100 for Alumni. Once that is taken care of you wait for the lottery form to show up in the mail sometime in April. At this point you pick the games you want to attend and how many tickets you want to buy. Note that there are limits on the number of tickets you can purchase per game. Single ticket prices this year were $56 dollars each. This, of course, is up from last year. Oh, and don’t forget the $15 mandatory service charge for each application. So once this is sent in you get to wait till mid July to get the results. Thankfully, we won tickets on all but one of the games we requested. Ironically, we can only attend one game this year (BYU) so we are helping out others in need with the tickets we will not be able to use. You can figure out that the cost of just getting a ticket can be high, but it is ND Football. You could say we are a bit obsessed.

Now can this possibly be worth it? Well in a word “Yes.” The people that we get to see and times we spend together there are certainly “priceless.” Win or lose, it is like one big party. ND does not have a Homecoming game anymore and has not for quite sometime? Why? Well, it is a moot point. So many alumni come to the games that there is not a need for one. You are bound to see someone you know in a chance meeting.

As of this writing there are 43 days left till kickoff against Pitt. Go Irish! Beat Panthers!

On another ND related note I have recently altered a trombone of mine in anticipation of next years ND Band Alumni Reunion. I know, I know, I am crazy and wacky but I should get good T.V. time, lol. I am including pictures below.

For those who care, this is a used Blessing B128 model I got at a music store. The trombone had been refurbished so I got it at a good price. The hardest part of this process was finding someone who would do a good job relacquering the bell. I had heard of, and seen, other trombones that had custom lacquer jobs but no one in the DFW area does this. Well, not without spray paint and some tape. So I asked around and after about a month heard that Brook Mays bought a respected music store in Abilene that was known for its refurbishment talent and had become their new Brook Mays Refurbishment Center. They also did custom lacquer jobs. SCORE!

After a few email exchanges I was set. Basically, I only wanted the bell of the horn relacquered. The original slide would serve as the ‘gold’ in the blue/gold motif I wanted. The bell had to be stripped of its original lacquer and then nickel plated. The nickel would allow the blue to show up better and not be tinted by the actual brass underneath the original lacquer. Once the nickel set in the blue lacquer was applied. This is just like the normal brass lacquer that is applied to horns, just, well, blue. With the nickel background the blue turns brighter. You take care of the blue lacquer just like you would on a normal horn so there is no hassle with maintenance. I am very pleased to say the least.

Note the mouthpiece. This is a 6 ½ AL Kelly Crystal Blue mouthpiece. It is made out of Lexan which is similar to the material that comprises bulletproof glass and safety eyeglass lenses. This also has the advantage of not conducting heat or cold. Pretty neat huh!

I have figured out how to put some permanent links on the sidebar to the left of this writing so be sure and check those out. It lists other blogs, ND related stuff and trombone related stuff.

ND Nation is a message board for ND Sport Fans, and not just football.
Blue Gray Sky Blog is another ND Football related link but with great writing and well thought out articles.
Jeff Squyres is a very good friend of mine from college and you can see how he is handling is computer related work and twin daughters at the same time.
nonchalantsavant post some rather interesting finds on the internet and will entertain you at the office while you are bored
The Phantom Professor caused quite a stir at a local university here in Dallas with her behind the scenes look at the state of academics and the mental state of her students. This is good writing and reading.
The Online Trombone Journal is the online haven for trombonists around the world.
I perform with the NDTC
GrooveBone is an internet radio station devoted to trombone performances and the music behind them.

I will list links for Lynn once she tells me what she would like (This is a hint).

Bravery is the heart that loves beyond all reason

2005-07-11T07:34:00.000-05:00

Last night, at dinner with a very dear friend, I discovered a new level of respect for those who love deeply, in a very classical "un-requited love".

I remember reading stories and poems written hundreds of years ago obsessing with the idea and complete romance of un-requited love. Oh, to be pined for as the subjects of those works were. That was the ultimate in romance to me.

I really never considered being the "lover" instead of the "love-e". The very idea of putting my heart out there so openly, so exposed, was not only scary to me, but it was the complete opposite of romance. It would be perfectly fine to be loved by someone, but to love someone so deeply and completely, who didn't love me back. To me, that was un-fathomable...Until yesterday.

My very good friend has had a few too many forays into un-requited love, in my opinion. A heart shouldn't be broken that many times. It doesn't seem fair that there are those who have truly loved so deeply, and then there are those, who will only allow themselves into a relationship where they are the object of love.

Ultimately, though my friend has not yet given up on love. With or without my sage wisdom (ha ha), my friend knows that to love truly and deeply, and to ultimately find love in return, you must allow your heart to be exposed and raw. Pain and risk, be damned. To love, you must be brave.

Typhoid Lynn

2005-07-11T06:34:00.000-05:00

So in preparation for her trip to India, Lynn has had to get immunized against all sorts of diseases that we don't really have to worry about here in the States. 7 shots in all. Not only that but the typhoid immunization is actually a course of 4 pills every other day until gone. These pills contain attenuated Salmonella Typhi bacteria and they are in our fridge. I just find it kinda weird that bacteria that has killed millions in the course of our history is sitting next to the butter, attenuated or not. Thankfully, her last dose is tonight so that will be over with.

I am back on nights for six weeks. Ughhhh.

I found a rare version of the Notre Dame Victory March done by Tommy Dorsey and his orchestra on the internet recently. It was recorded from an old 78rpm and is a very decent recording. Basically it is a swing version of the famous tune. I also found a John Valby version of the same song. Valby's version and lyrics are, well, not very polictically correct and should not be heard by anyone younger than 30. The lyrics might make a Marine blush! :) It should be noted that Valby can be considered the father of the old Trombone Pre-Rally drinking songs that were sung at ND. This is more of a forgotten art now since pre-rallies (quick 20 to 30 minute parties given by section or sections after marching practice of a home game and before that night's pep rally) do not exist for the ND Marching Band anymore, or so they say.

Saw, The Grudge, last night. I would say it is pretty much like The Ring, but only at half strength. Glad I did not pay to see it at the theaters.

Alex is becoming quite a reader over the summer and is doing well on his summer workbooks. It is amazing to see how much he soaks up knowledge wise.

Meghan has all her teeth for her age but two and is slowly getting a bigger vocabulary. (Previous sentence editted, thanks Anonymous)

All for now.....

Lorenzo

Tomorrow

2005-07-08T10:41:00.000-05:00

Images through glass
Flow by fast
Light changes
Colors vary
Sounds dim
As the days pass
The reflection too
Fades into
Tomorrow

Lynn's Thoughts on US "Leadership"

2005-07-06T07:36:00.000-05:00

I have been listening to the news on radio and T.V. for a few days in preparation for the G-8 summit. Unless you have been in a hole, you know that the plight of poor nations, particularly in Africa, are a major topic of discussion.

Those who know me, know that I am not the biggest fan of our current president. His decisions are not at all aligned with those I would make in his position. In my opinion, he is in the back pocket of big business and since they have bank rolled him and the congress we are focused on US business alone, and have even forgotten the people in our great nation.

I am disappointed that we have moved from a nation that leads other nations to a nation that offends, disappoints and even attacks other nations. We have sent our troops to Iraq and Afghanistan for un-successful missions. We are asking the working people of the US to give up their families and fight in a war that we will not win. It seems to be un-endable, unless we pull out. Our president wouldn't understand that, because when he "served his country" he did it in the US without the pains, longing and frustration our military servicemen are now feeling away from home.

My father fought in Vietnam. He served his country with pride for over 20 years in the US Marine Corps. I am proud to say I am a Marine brat and that I have known many honorable men and women in all services throughout my life. I never served, but I hold those who follow the orders of our Commander in Chief in the up-most regard. They are doing as ordered. They deserve hero parades. They deserve better pay. They deserve to be in a war they can win, or they deserve to come home to their families and country that loves them.

At the conference this week, it is rumored that Prime Minister Blair will try to get the 8 nations present to agree that global warming is a problem that must be addressed. I wish him very good luck getting America to agree. It seems that would be a great coup. Our current administration seems to believe that though global warming is a problem, it's a slow problem. Yes, we should reduce the gas emissions but slowly.

In truth, the United States emits well over it's fair share of harmful gases. The emissions will only grow as emerging nations industrialize. However, to keep the US ahead in economic development, our leadership would prefer to ask companies to voluntarily reduce emissions. For those who work for companies in America, have you ever known them to voluntarily do the right thing? Do companies in America reduce paychecks for CEO's and Executives, or lay off the masses? Do CEO's and Executives lose their pensions and health coverage? Do companies even pay taxes in your district?

We may be a great nation, but I think that is because of the painstaking work done by the American public in spite of our leadership. If I wanted my company to make political decisions, I would have gone to work for the government instead of private industry. President Bush would be an inspiration if he made decisions based upon the people who need him to lead, instead of the companies that pay for his elections.

I didn't vote for him. I hope and pray, that we can find a candidate that is willing to make the hard decisions. I want to find a person that will bring America back to a leadership position in the world, instead of one that holds the others back.

KABOOM

2005-07-04T19:05:00.000-05:00

Lorenzo here. First of all, Happy 4th of July! A heartfelt thanks to all the servicemen and servicewomen that are busy doing their duty here and abroad.

July 1st was our daughter's 2nd birthday!!! Whoo Hoo! She is a big girl now. We had a small party for her and family and friends which was quite fun. Meghan, it seems, has a thing for shoes. The gifts that got the most reaction were 'dress-up' shoes that came with a Barbie 'dress-up' kit. Her eyes lit up and she let out a loud 'Shhhhoooooeeess!!' for everyone to hear. Too cute!

Meghan with her ssshhhhooooeeess!!!

Also this weekend we had Lynn's brother, Mike, and his girlfriend, Tracy, in town. It was good to have both in town as it had been a while since Lynn had seen her brother. July 3rd the four of us were able to go to Sambuca in Addison, Tx to sample the fireworks that were part of that city's Kaboomtown celebration. Also, of note was the band playing there. Idle Hands is a coverband whose keyboardist also plays in the trombone choir that I play in. The four of us were able to enjoy a great night on the town and some awesome fireworks.

Previous to this was the North Dallas Trombone choir's June 29th performance at the St Andrews Methodist Church in Plano, TX. Talk about a venue. I walked in and was pretty impressed with the Church. The architecture reminded me of Bass Performance Hall in Ft. Worth, well, minus the Mezzanine Level up, but dang! This church also has the third-largest pipe organ in the area. Just a beautiful piece of work.

St. Andrews from the stage/altar

The organ and my trombone to the right

I walked in and played note or two and noted the acoustics. The sound delay was, well, in my mind, perfect. I looked up and saw why. The ceiling has acoutic damping layers. The woodworking, the flat-screen plasma tvs in the foyers, the sound of the organ, this was a awesome venue. What made it even cooler was that we played one piece that had organ accompaniment and fortissimo and fortississimos toward the end. Gotta love controlled loudness.

India

2005-07-04T10:38:00.000-05:00

I am doing research for an exciting trip I have coming up. I found out last week that Cadbury is sending me to India in late August.

Developing Leaders Day is a consortium initiative jointed developed by Cadbury and AIESEC International (http://www.aiesec.org/). 15 Cadbury employees were picked to join in teaching young people from across the world about leadership. I will be paired with someone from AIESEC and we will prepare lessons and then teach for a day.

All of this will take place in Agra, India. For those of you who don't know, as I didn't last week, the Taj Mahal is in Agra. I am so excited to get to see that magnificent structure. It will definitely be a memorable experience.

However, the trip over will probably be one I'd like to forget. I called Friday to make my flight plans and here are a few details.

I depart DFW on Friday 8/26 at about 3pm. I'll fly directly from Dallas to Frankfort, Germany. I have a few hour layover there before I head to Delhi, India. I arrive in Delhi at 2am local time on Sunday. From there I have 5 hour trip (they did not specify mode of transportation) to get to Agra. Once in Agra, I have to adjust to the time zone changes and prepare to work.

When I return home, it'll be even better. Many of you know that my birthday is Sept 4. I'll have the longest birthday ever, this year. I leave Delhi, at 2am the morning of Sept 4 and fly back to Frankfort. Again, I have a layover for a few hours and then head home to Dallas. When I land it'll be 3ish local time, still the 4th. Hey, at least I'll get home for my birthday!

I don't know a lot about this trip yet, but I am extremely excited. This will be a great chance to see and learn and I can't wait!

Security is in your pants

2005-07-01T10:57:00.000-05:00

Lorenzo and I planned a day to take Alex to Six Flags a few months ago. We thought it would be fun to spend the day with just him and enjoy the park together. Meghan just can't enjoy an amusement park like him yet, and this would be a good chance for us to have some fun for just Alex.

Wednesday was the big day. I was excited to have a day off work in the middle of the week, and spending the day with my two favorite men is always wonderful. We were up early, took Meghan to Blue Ivey and went out for breakfast. We decided to go with IHOP because it's closest to the freeway. There I did discover that Funnel Cakes for breakfast aren't just available in Arkansas. Somehow, I avoided them again.

After a good breakfast, we hit Starbucks for coffee on the way to Arlington and got on the road. Since there were three of us in the car, we could use the HOV and got there in record time.

Upon arrival (before the park opened), we had a few minutes to people watch. Those of you who know me well know this is one of my favorite pastimes. You can definitely see interesting things when people watching. Wednesday was no exception.

I was covering Alex and Lorenzo with sunscreen when a beat up Hyundai pulled into the lot near us. This four door sedan was full of people. As a matter of fact there were 3 adults and four kids in the car. (Actually, one of the "adults" could have been a teenager, but she was smoking a cigarette, so I assume she was 18.)

I feel I must describe this car, because it was the whole scene that made it memorable. The car was black. It had no hubcaps on the wheels. There was a major dent in the hood of the car that had clearly been beat back into "normal" shape. The paint was rusting in spots. There was a sunroof that was damaged pretty badly. The chrome that should have laid flat to the sun room was at about a 45 degree angle to the roof of the car. The windows were down, suggesting the air conditioner wasn't working. This car was in bad shape.

First, the smoking teenager/adult got out. She sucked the cigarette to the filter in one quick strong draw. It was actually impressive to see a cigarette shrivel that fast.

Next, the four kids in the back with her came scrambling out. They appeared pretty normal. The smoking teenager/adult proceeded to arrange her too short shorts that were clearly riding into the nether-regions. Her mother/sister got out next. I believe they had the same tailor for their shorts, because she soon demonstrated the same issue.

Finally, the driver/father/brother (oldest man) got out. He held the door open called to one of the 4 kids. After watching for a few seconds, I realized he had asked for help putting the windows up in the car. He didn't roll up the window, however. Instead, he literally pulled the window up from inside the door frame and had his assistant hold the window while he pushed it closed.

The security system wasn't completely engaged yet. No, this man had a plan to ensure his car was there when he returned from a day of coasters and fun at the park. So he opened the hood of the car and removed two different components from the car/engine and slipped them into his pockets. (I am obviously not a mechanic and I don't claim to be) I really had to ask myself if any self respecting thief would choose to steal this beat up, window doesn't work, Hyundai instead of the other functional cars in the parking lot.

After they headed into the park and Lorenzo, Alex and I were sufficiently protected from the sun, we headed into the park behind this clan. We had a great time on Wednesday riding coasters and walking around. We got back to our car around 3:30 and the black Hyundai was still waiting. I hope they made it home safe.

Forget Lojack, forget The Club, just drive a beat up car and carry small necessary components in your pockets...Security is in your pants!

Funnel Cakes for Breakfast

2005-06-27T11:26:00.000-05:00

Happy Monday from Arkansas!

I am up hear for a little known retailer meeting. It seems weird to say "up here" when I am referring to Arkansas. Somehow, Bentonville seems down south and Dallas doesn't to me.

Regardless, it's been a interesting trip, so far. I had a 6:45 flight from DFW. Since I live in Garland, a 4:00am wake up call had me pretty hungry when I landed. On my way to our office, I passed an IHOP and thought, "Breakfast sounds good to me." Quick u-turn, and yes, I was seated quickly with coffee waiting.

My waitress was training, so I had the belief I would get some service from one of the two waitresses who came for my order. I was wrong. I was handed a menu and noticed that they were serving funnel cakes. Yes, you read that right. I should remind you I was in an IHOP, not at a state fair. The options were eggs, 2 links sausage and a side of "red, white and blue funnel cakes", or you could add a side of funnel cakes to any order for $1.49.

After I read the menu twice, and double checked the other tables, to ensure this wasn't a joke for the out of towner's, I decided to pass on the funnel cakes. However, they were very popular. The tables on both sides of me order the tasty treats.

Don't get me wrong. At the state fair, I am as ready for funnel cakes as the next gal, but with breakfast, I'll have to pass.

In case you're ever in need of funnel cakes for breakfast...Arkansas is the place!

Wynn, Chocolate Volcanoes and Tales from the Road

2005-06-22T14:28:00.000-05:00

I’ve been on the road more than home lately. Without email, text messaging and voicemail, I am sure this would be a lot harder than it is. Luckily, with all the technology, I am not as out of the loop as I would have once been. Now, that I have properly bowed to the technology gods, I can continue my entry.

Last week, I was at a conference in Vegas. My boss was supposed to attend, but was moving, so I got to go. The location was The Wynn. Wow It is a beautiful hotel/casino. I put the words in that order because it really seems appropriate.

For those of you who don’t know, The Wynn opened this spring. It is one the newest Vegas Casinos, but it was created with a business traveler in mind. For example, the desk had a printer fax with the cable internet access. All wires were provided by the hotel. The phone service was VOIP. Customizable voice mail was available and the business office was well equipped.

For the non business visitor, there were many amenities that made the customer feel special. For example, two robes and set’s of slippers available per room. Two flat screen TV’s, one in the main room and one in the bathroom. Also, cable music stations were available. HUGE BATHTUB! When I say huge, I could lay down in it. I know b/c I did. Stand alone shower and his/her sinks. And for the perpetual dieter, which I am not, there is a scale. Of course this is on top of the other standard hotel amenities you would expect. PS. For women, the hair dryer is a good quality, not the wall unit.

What about the rest of the hotel, beyond the room? There were about 5 restaurants I saw. I didn’t experience any of them. I was on a business trip. However, the Spa is very nice. The massage is well worth the cost. The pool area is large. It’s not particularly family friendly, (Mandalay Bay is better), but it is pleasant and a great place for adults to relax. And, for those interested in sunburns in weird places, there is a topless sunbathing area. For the high dollar sunbather, there are cabanas to rent including food/drinks, shaded cooled sofa, and bed/lounger. It looked decadent.

Finally, since I was on business, I must comment on the meeting facilities. They are a long walk from the room, but they are good. You would think, in a casino, you’d hear slots and smell smoke. Not so at all. The only downer was there was no wireless access in the meeting rooms. Seemed like a missed opportunity to me.

Overall, I’d definitely recommend the Wynn if you’re staying in Vegas soon. It was really a nice place to be.

On to Milwaukee, and no I am not kidding!
I am at Miller today. This is an industry meeting for DSD and it’s not as exciting as I might have hoped. Hotel wise, I am staying at the Milwaukee Hilton. No need to elaborate, it’s a Hilton, and very non-mentionable.

However, dinner last night had a great story. We were at the BBQ Brew house. It’s a steak, ribs and microbrew place. What a great concept for a restaurant! The dinner was good and the beverages flowed freely. Finally, it was time to order dessert. A colleague from PepsiCo, Gina, ordered the Chocolate Volcano. For the women reading this would seem to be a great dessert choice, right? Well, in a very high school like moment, when the dessert was delivered, I was definitely glad I opted for the cheesecake instead.

Gina was presented with a dessert that can only be described as extremely phallic in nature. It was chocolate, it was standing up, it had a hard coating (like a dipped cone at Dairy Queen) and a drizzle of cream from the peak. Poor Gina. The laughter, jokes and comments were reminiscent of a high school lunch room and it only got worse as she tapped it with a fork and announced, “It’s really hard”. My cheeks hurt from laughing.

If you’re ever in Milwaukee and head to the BBQ Brew house, I recommend passing on the Chocolate Volcano. Gina said it was good, but the harassment may not be worth the taste.

Tonight, we are heading to a Brewer’s/Cubs game. Go Cubs!

I head home to Dallas on Thursday and head to Houston from there. Alex and I are visiting Pam for wedding planning and beach visit. It should be a good but busy weekend.

Monday, I am heading to Arkansas. I now know that business travel isn’t near as glamorous as I used to believe. With such exciting locales, it’s kind of hard to be ok with missing my family.

Luckily, after this round of travel, I am on a brief hiatus. I don’t expect it to last, but I will enjoy the time home. I am so blessed that I have Lorenzo, two grandmas, and a grandpa to take care of my family when I am gone. I couldn’t be on the road without the peace of mind they offer.

If there are two take aways from this entry, remember Wynn – yes; Chocolate Volcano - no.

Alex and Marriage

2005-06-09T13:51:00.000-05:00

Alex is a very smart six year old. He has a great smile, a hearty laugh like Lorenzo and a heart of gold. I love spending time with him, because you just never know what he'll say next.

Yesterday, he brought up a new idea that was really quite funny. We were getting ready for work and day care when he asked about marriage.

"Mom, does the person I marry have to be a Martinez?"

Being from North Carolina, I certainly didn't want to encourage marriage within the family. I figured I should clarify.
"Alex, did you mean can you only marry people named Martinez?"

"Yes, Mom, you know not every one has our last name. But you're married to Dad and your last name is Martinez." There was a very "duh mom" feeling to this explanation.

"Alex you don't have to marry someone who already has Martinez as a last name. Traditionally, the woman takes the last name of the man. My name used to be Cherry."

"That's good mom. I don't know a lot of Martinez's. It'll be easier if I don't have to look for them only."

Child logic is so simple, it just makes you smile sometimes.

Vacation II

2005-06-06T11:04:00.000-05:00

Okay, actually Lynn pretty much summed it up in her entry but I thought I would enter some of the highlights below that I remember.

The flight out was just fine and had no issues. Lynn and I did notice one young woman pretty much covered in tattoos. Now I don't really have an issue with people with tattoos but this woman had her arms, portion of her legs, cleavage, and some of her hands covered with tattoos. That and she was sporting a Pippi Longstalking hairdo but with vertical pigtails and red hair. Needless to say it was a lot of tattoos. When Lynn and I first saw her we both thought her dress (which was multicolored) had sleeves and covered her shoulders. Nope, that was the tattoos. That gives you an idea how how much coverage we are talking about. One thing I did note was that on the plane (I was sitting in the aisle as was she but 4 rows behind her) I saw she had a tattoo in her armpit that had text on it. I noticed since the text continued from out of her underarm. I could not make it out but I thought of some examples:
"Smell me later"
"Scratch and DON'T sniff"
"Contents under pressure"

So we land in Long Beach and had a good drive to Temecula. The whole visit was great and Lynn has already mentioned the wineries. Some highlights/comments:

We had visited the wineries in Temecula Valley 5 years ago and at that time it was just a few wineries with light traffic. I was very much a novice at wines and had no idea what I liked or did not like. Now it seems it is booming. I know it was a holiday weekend but in the past you could even talk to the owner or winemaker and they would tell you all about the wines, the process, etc. but not this trip, which seems ashame. Some of the notables were Ponte, Maurice Car'rie, Churon, Filsinger, Van Roekel, Wilson Creek, and Keyways. Now most wineries only sell their wines in-house, but some distribute locally in the area at a much cheaper price. This is why we always go to Long's Drugs afterwards ( this is like a CVS ). A bottle of wine at Maurice Car'rie would sell at $12 or $15 but at Long's you can find it for $4 or $8. Needless to say we stocked up on what we could.

Alex got to meet Jayden, his younger cousin and Lynn and I noted how Jayden sort of took to Alex since he was older and, in his eyes, very cool to play with. Alex had fun too but I think he had some trouble getting used to being a 'big brother'. Alex would sometimes get after Jayden for doing something Alex didn't want him to do or whatnot. Alex even got after Jayden in his sleep on one night. As we were still awake about 10PM, Alex just started saying in his sleep "Jayden...JAYDEN." It was too funny.

Meghan found solace away from the two boys playing in a swing that was hanging from the deck in the backyard. She would just swing in there for about 20 or 30 minutes at a time, just taking it easy. Sometimes with her juice, other times just with her own thoughts. Talk about relaxing.

Meghan enjoying the swing

Meghan checking her messages

After we had stocked up and visited for a few days it was off to Disney which is about a 30 minute drive from Temecula.

We pretty much checked in at the hotel, which was located across the street from Disneyland, and headed over. This was very convenient as it was easy for us to get Meghan back to the room for her naps but allow Alex to stay at the park with either Lynn or I.

While Disneyland is smaller than Walt Disney World, it seems a bit more manageable and less chaotic. I did very little planning for the trip unlike the trip to Walt Disney World and sort of let things happen as we can upon them. Alex had a great time and even rode some of the bigger rides which included two rollercoasters. This is a big step for him and we were glad to see that he was just fine with the rides etc. Meghan took it all in stride and had a pretty good time. Mostly she was interested in steering her own stroller around the parks and eating.

Here are some pictures we took at Disney. I had heard about the firehouse apartment that Walt had on a Disney special on TLC or the Travel Channel. The same special mentioned the center of Disney marked with a golden spike, which I found. And, oh yes, there be trombones there too! Arrrgghhhh!!!!

Firehouse at Disney. The apartment above the garage is where Walt would stay sometimes and watch the crowds.

This is the exact center of Disney. Do you know where you can find this?

Trombones at Disney

Riding Dumbo

Lunch at California Adventure

A Mickey chip.

Alex participating at Playhouse Disney on Stage in California Adventure

Meghan having a gummy worm snack

On Wednesday we went back to Long Beach and decided to drive around and try to go to the beach and visit the Aquarium of the Pacific. It ended up being way too cold for a beach visit so we drove the PCH to Newport and back and got to see the Pacific from the comfort of the car we rented. The Aquarium was very cool. There were petting pools so that you could touch sharks and stingrays and other aquatic life that you don't see every day.

A stingray at the Aquarium trying to see what is on the other side of the pool wall.

Feeding time for the sea lion at the Aquarium of the Pacfic in Long Beach, CA

Alex remembered one type of jellyfish that we saw at the Aquarium from a IMAX film we saw about 2 or 3 months ago. They are unique in that they are from Palau and live in a fresh water lake. Not only that but they do not sting and they make their own food inside their bodies. Well, in the IMAX film the person who describes them says they are farmer jellies, where as at the Aquarium they were labled as something else. Alex turned to me and out of the blue tells me that that is wrong. "They are called farmer jellies like in that IMAX film we saw and they make their own food." Sometimes he just comes right out and blows me away with what he remembers and understands.

We actually went back home on Thursday with an uneventful flight. Well, mostly. Meghan had some issues since she started to teethe with her 2-year molars starting to come out, so the flight could have been a bit more tranquil. :) In any event we had a good and relaxing weekend before it was back to the grind on Monday.

Later,

Lorenzo

Vacation

2005-05-31T22:04:00.000-05:00

Today is Tuesday and we have been in California since Friday. THIS IS AWESOME.

I should warn you, Lorenzo completely intends to create an entry, so this will only have partial coverage of the vacation.

We are in Anaheim and have spent two fantastic days at Disney. My knees, hips and legs are throbbing from a second day of walking, but it's been great.

Friday, we flew AA from DFW to Long Beach and drove to Temecula where Jesse/Jan live. We got to meet Lorenzo's nephew Jayden and the kids really enjoyed playing with him. He is three, so splits the difference between Alex and Meghan nicely.

We spent Saturday at Chez Martinez, with the exception of a trip to 3 wineries. Temecula has quite the wine valley and Lorenzo and I tasted quite a few. It was a sunny but cool day, so the weather was perfect. This kids played at the house while Jan, Lorenzo and I ventured out.

Sunday was more relaxing and more wine. This time, we went to 5 wineries. The smaller ones were definitely the best. We tasted a strawberry champagne, a pineapple champagne and a rasberry champagne. (I spelled raspberry wrong on purpose...It was actually spelled wrong on signs in the winery. SHAMEFUL!) We also tasted this fantastic late harvest....It was like CHOCOLATE. Yes, we got some of that. Wonderfully, we found some great deals on wine in the local Long's. You can save a ton of $$ if you buy in the drug store when possible. Long's has great deals. When we got back from the vineyards, we warmed up the hot tub and had a soak. What a wonderful way to end a weekend.

Monday - project Disney. We started with a last breakfast at Chez Martinez. I found it funny that Alex wanted to know when we were going to eat out. I suggested he buy the family a meal, but he didn't think that was funny. After a good breakfast we headed out.

It took about an hour to get from Temecula to Anaheim. No traffic and no issues. We checked into the hotel and headed to the park. Wonderfully, we could literally walk from our hotel to the park. We rode a number of rides. The crowds weren't bad at all. The weather was really pleasant, too. We enjoyed the Disney park and had a great time.

Today, Alex and I spent the day at California Adventure. We rode a number of rides twice. The crowds were non existent, so we could walk on to most everything. What a great, great day. To those wanting to visit Disneyland, remember that CA kids don't get out of school until June, so Memorial Day week is a great time to visit. Also, CA Adventure has less congestion than the traditional park. PLUS, it's newer.

Tomorrow, we are heading to the beach and aquarium. Thursday, we're heading home to TX.

This has been a great trip.

MA!

2005-05-24T14:54:00.000-05:00

I just have to share three funny Meghan stories.

First, as you may know, Meghan's vocabulary is growing by the day. She has been saying shoes and toothbrush and Maggie for quite a while. I was disturbed however that she wasn't saying mommy. She had da-da down. She even has a version of Alex. Mom, however, seemed out of the question.

In the past week, she has fixed that. She has found a way to get my attention, and mommy isn't her first choice. No, instead we get the full body MA! A picture is worth a thousand words. Imagine a 2 foot girl standing at attention and yelling MA. When you don't answer, she comes closer, MA. If you still don't answer, she'll come closer still MA!

It can be quite comical for the one viewing the event.

Story number 2
Lorenzo and I have fought for years about the proper placement of blankets and sheets on the bed. I prefer a neat bed. Blankets smooth, sheets tucked, general order. Lorenzo prefers chaos. He believes the sheets and blankets should roll with you when you move. That creates a very messy bed and frequent sleep fights.

We have noticed that Alex is a chaotic sleeper too. He rolls and moves and creates a very messy bed. We hadn't noticed a Meghan pattern until recently.

Meghan is a neat sleeper. As Lorenzo put her to bed last night, she first arranged her pillow so that Buzz Lightyear was face up and vertical. Then she laid down and pointed to the blankets. Lorenzo covered her up, but the blankets weren't straight. She directed him to fix the problem. Yes, she is a neat sleeper, like me.

Story number 3
There is a story about a young red headed girl from North Carolina. When she was about 2, she spent a week with her Aunt Betty and Uncle Murray. Betty and Murray were farmers and they had hogs. At the time, they were raising chickens too, so breakfasts were really good down on the farm.

According to the story, one morning, after spending a week with Aunt Betty and Uncle Murray, that young red headed girl was eating breakfast when her mother returned to take her home. Her mother was horrified to find her young girl standing up in her chair with a mouth full of sausage, chewing as she held an additional piece of sausage in her left hand and grabbed for a third piece of sausage with her right. Her mother admonished her behavior and told her to sit down.

Murray stopped that young mom and explained, if he had to kill another hog that young red headed girl could have as much sausage as she pleased.

Now, to the present. This morning, I made eggs, sausage and toast for breakfast. I made 7 sausage patties believing that should be plenty for the four of us. Alex had a piece. Lorenzo had a piece. I had a piece. Meghan had the remaining four. I believe the little red headed girl lives on in Meghan.

I hope you enjoyed the stories.

Congratulations - Not so perfect attendance

2005-05-23T13:26:00.000-05:00

Alex graduated today. Lorenzo video'ed it and I took pictures. If you haven't been to a kindergarten graduation, let me paint a scene for you.

First, the location? The cafetorium. That word in itself sends a picture. Yes, it's an elementary school cafeteria that has a partial stage at the front. You're wondering, what does that mean, Lynn? Well, on the wall opposite of the lunch line, there is a large curtained area. There is a stage, if you can call a four foot deep raised platform a stage. Hence, cafetorium.

There were about 40 chairs lined up for the graduates to wait for their diplomas. There were tables with stools (child sized stools-says my rear) for the audience to watch. They played Pomp and Circumstance as the kids entered. You should have seen the smiles and grins. These kids were definitely proud of themselves, but not near so much as the parents.

The principal introduced herself and the teachers. Then, there were awards to be given. Now, I distinctly remember the Perfect Attendance awards from my school days. There were about 8 children who received these. (Please note, Alex wasn't one of them. There are ND games, you know!) Keeley Elementary also has citizenship awards. I remember those too. BUT, I don't remember the Not So Perfect Attendance Award. This award went to children with only 1-2 absences. Are we going too far with awards, here? What's next? The almost Honor Roll.

Finally, for the diplomas. These kids moved fast. 40 diplomas in about 5 minutes. I am not kidding! I literally missed a picture of Alex shaking hands with the principal. The camera couldn't focus fast enough.

I guess that's a sign of the year in general. Alex has finished kindergarten and when I think about it, the year really did fly by, like the diploma ceremony. I know he's six and a very big boy now, but I do distinctly remember him being unable to hold his head up. When I took him to school in August for his first day, I thought I wouldn't stop crying on the way to work. I wasn't sad, just emotional. Today, it's the same.

Lorenzo says I'll be a real wreck in another 12 years. True, but I'll still have the fast and un-focused memories of diplomas rushing by.

Gucci bikini wearing Oprah roadies

2005-05-19T07:53:00.000-05:00

Yesterday I was on a flight from New York to Dallas with a group of Oprah roadies. Apparently, Oprah will be in Dallas at a convention this weekend. Her pre-work group was on my flight and surrounding my seat.

Please bear in mind, these people were clear to say they worked for the magazine and not the show. There were 7 people in all. I was amazed at the amount of fashion magazines and technical gadgets they all carried. These people were all 25 or younger. They were all in jeans, so I originally assumed it was some kind of "friends from college" trip.

They are staying at The Crescent. They were looking for good bar/restaurants and shopping areas. Interestingly, they wanted cowboy hats. When I told them finding a true cowboy hat in Dallas would not be easy, but they should instead go to Fort Worth, they were very disappointed.

The most interesting tid-bit I learned was that apparently the men in the group (a very fashionable pair, indeed), were looking forward to wearing their new Gucci bikini's. Yes you did read that right. Imagine, my inability to hold in a laugh.

I must say, I was thanking god for my MP3 player, for it allowed me to tune them out. I didn't know how old and un-cool I had become until I sat amongst these "cool" people. Unfortunately, the battery died in my player about an hour into the flight. I left the headphones on, however, and pretended to sleep.

Dallas, I hope you're ready for this group of cowboy hat searching, Gucci bikini wearing Oprah roadies. It should be an interesting weekend.

Ouch....

2005-05-17T20:18:00.000-05:00

I did a lot of running/walking this weekend. Worked out Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday along with being the ref for my son's soccer games on Saturday and Sunday. My shins and ankles hurt. When I was in marching band in college I used to get the same pain in my shins because sometimes we would practice on turf. For some reason the combination of the tennis shoes I wore and the turf would just kill my shins. Didn't happen all the time but when it did I hated it, much like Monday.

Sunday was go, go, go, one thing after another. As we (meaning my family and I ) enter the summer months I am finding we are getting a lot of use out of our new grill. This past Sunday we had over Lynn's book club for dinner and discussion. While I am not officially a member I know all the folks that come over so I don't really have to read the books :) This club has slowly evolved to a movie club since most of the members have not really been reading the books. I think they should rename it a media club since they have already covered two forms of media, each of which are on the opposite sides of the spectrum, books and movies.

I will be missing trombone practice this week to attend the high school graduation of my Aunt's daughter, thus my cousin. The size of her graduating class?

3

Mine was 492. I remember this because I had to include it on the college applications I filled out and because I had about ten copies of my transcript laying about my senior year in high school. Weird how we remember strange details of experiences that we have. Now this being a very private school and Catholic, the ceremony is actually a Mass and Graduation all in one. Should be interesting.

Less than a week til Alex graduates Kindergarten. He is excited as he should be. And who wouldn't? He is getting this ceremony, a small reception at the end, and he gets to pick the place where we have dinner that evening. Not to mention the pizza party at his school the next day (Would love to see that lesson plan. Activity: eating pizza. Relevance to curriculum: None what so ever). AND he is traveling to CA the day after school gets out to go to Disney. This kid is living a charmed life. The one let down is that they will not be wearing gowns or mortarboards. Bummer.

Lynn is in New York today and tomorrow leading the corporate struggle involved in selling Dr. Pepper. She will be back tomorrow night at which point I will have only one demand of her. To snuggle up to me in bed when she gets home. I hate sleeping without her as I tend to wake up a lot when she is not there. Just does not feel right.

I am thinking of doing some audio blogging while we are in CA. I have not tried it yet and it sounds like a cool feature. Stay tuned.

Later....

Goodbye and thanks for all the fish....

2005-05-10T13:51:00.000-05:00

I saw Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy this past week and really enjoyed it. It has been a while since I had read the books and it was nice to see the characters on the screen. There were a few cameos as well. The Marvin the Robot from the BBC series was in the movie as was the actor who played Arthur Dent in the same series. Douglas Adam's widow and daughter are also in the movie but in a very brief scene.

Alex is graduating kindergarten on May 23rd. It is pretty exciting. I am curious to see if they are still handing out the Bachelor of Rhymes diploma I got when I graduated.

The infamous Notre Dame ticket application has been sent back to the ND ticket office requesting a total of 6 tickets. Hopefully we get all six.

I got to see some very short snippits of Star Wars Episode III recently and I was very impressed. It was a short scene with Obi-Wan and Anakin fighting. It was so fast and intense. Unfortunately I will not be able to actually see the movie until a couple of weeks after its release. In the past I have worked the weekend before the release with allowed me to be off for the actual release date. No go this year. But I imagine I will see it for download on the internet this week or next.

I was told by someone that Oregon Rieslings are awesome. Well I had one on Mother's Day and wow! It was really good. Gonna have to plan a trip out there at some point. Till then I will just go back to Best Cellars, the wine store where we got it.

I had a physical recently and I am one healthy specimen. Normal blood work and outstanding blood pressure. I even got a tetanus booster. Not painful going in at all but by the 3rd day the injection site hurt like hell. Thankfully you only need a booster every ten years.

Princess Pam and "The Dress"

2005-04-27T09:10:00.000-05:00

My best friend, Pam, is planning a wedding. She and Liam haven't set a date, but plan for a fall wedding this year. They have been dating for almost 3 years and are a great match.

Pam came to visit this past weekend and we had a wonderful time. In order to help ensure her wedding planning experience had all the "bells and whistles", I booked appointments with Neiman Marcus Bridal Salon and Stanley Korshak in downtown Dallas. To be honest, these appointments were as much for the memory as for the possibility of finding "The Dress".

So, dressed for shopping at Neimans (please understand that means "better than our normal jeans on Saturday"), we grabbed the DART rail from Garland to downtown Dallas. I must admit, I am not familiar with downtown. On every occasion that I have driven myself, there has been at least two U-turns and many curses in the experience. I live and work in the 'burbs, so downtown is not familiar. I believed that the train would be a good option to keep me from cursing and while minimizing the U-turns. Upon arrival downtown, we had missed a few of Liam's calls. He is in Holland on business and Pam hadn't spoken to him recently. We high-tailed it to Neimans (about 2 blocks) and tried to call Liam back. Luckily, she reached him after a few tries. The bride was beginning to relax. We grabbed coffee and a cookie at the espresso bar and headed to the bridal salon.

For those who have never experienced Neiman's, you should know it's nick name is "Needless Markup". The typical shopper has Texas sized diamond rings and earrings and frequently will look down their nose at you if you're not dressed for shopping.

I checked Pam in while she finished her call with Liam and Bev came to assist us in finding "the dress". Bev's husband is an attorney in Dallas, so she and Pam found an immediate bond. Bev was clearly focused on Pam, as the bride, so she wanted to ensure Pam found "the dress" at Neimans. Of course, price was not discussed, it wouldn't matter at Neiman's. Instead, we went straight for the rows of dresses to consider.

Pam told Bev that she wasn't really interested in a strapless gown, because she didn't feel they fit her well. For the first few minutes, Bev tried hard to change Pam's mind. Bev did catch on, however, when Pam's shoulders turned red. She was clearly uncomfortable in strapless gowns. This limited the choices that Neiman's could offer, but Bev was still confident she could find "the dress". After a number of dresses that were definitely no's, Pam found a beautiful gown. It was pricey and would take 7 months to get delivered, plus 3 fittings (in Dallas), but there was a bonus! She could have the dress fed-exed to Houston. The reality of the Dallas purchase of a wedding dress for a Houston bride had obviously not hit Bev. She seemed confident that even though there is a Neiman's in Houston, we would obviously order from her. Reality and Neiman Marcus, aren't necessarily in the same universe.

With that dress in mind, we left the Bridal Salon and headed for the shoe department. Pam and I can not resist a shoe department. We looked at Manolo Blahnik's, Anne Klein and Stuart Weitzman. We found a cute Anne Klein for the wedding shoe, but it definitely wasn't "the perfect shoe". It was a little tall, so we left shoes without a purchase. For Pam and I, that is rare indeed.

We had lunch in the Neiman's cafe. They had a great clam chowder and half sandwich. It was good and refreshed us for Stanley Korshak.

Out of Neiman's we headed towards "The Adolphus" hotel. We would need a cab to get to The Crescent. It was over a mile, and I am not willing to walk that in heels unless absolutely necessary. The cabby was from Ghana and was very nice, indeed.

We made it the Korshak salon right on time. Wendy was our bridal consultant and I can't possible express the difference in the experience from Neiman's. Wendy was great. First, she was a normal person. She wasn't a size 2 with a Texas sized rock on her finger. Second, she clearly was a bridal consultant because she loves it. She had pictures in her salon of other brides she had helped on their day. Finally, she was excellent at building relationships and Pam and I were immediately at ease with her.

Wendy took us back to her salon and asked about what Pam wanted. Pam, tired from the day so far, was at a loss, so I guided Wendy through Pam's likes and dislikes. Wendy immediately picked up on the "no strapless" parameter and ran off to find some gowns.

Pam began trying on gown after gown. She tried on a pink one that was really interesting. There was one that appeared to have wings and a great one that had a meringue pie look to it. We all laughed when Pam tried to imitate Liam's accent, "Pom, you look rather like a pie".

Wendy and I bonded while teasing Pam about here concerns with each dress. We explained that Pam had found a great dress in Houston, but hadn't confirmed her decision yet. Wendy offered to check if she had the same dress. She did!

Pam was able to directly compare her newest favorite from Stanley to the dress she had found in Houston. The Houston dress won, and Wendy did realize that Pam would buy the dress in Houston for the ease of fittings, etc. HOWEVER, she was not done. She looked for tiara's, purses and shoes to tempt Pam with.

All in all, Wendy did a great job. Pam found "the shoe" with Wendy. Pam fell in love with a tiara, that was pricey but beautiful and found a great bag that she may order. Most importantly, Pam felt like a princess for a few hours, and all women should experience that feeling.

When it comes time to order my bridesmaid gown, I'll definitely go back to Wendy. She was wonderful and I can't imagine giving my business to another person.

Our day ended with one last bit of decadence. After a little shopping in "The Shops at the Crescent", we went to "The Adolphus" hotel for tea. We enjoyed finger sandwiches, decadent desserts and three different teas. It was a wonderful day and I couldn't have had more fun.

There is not doubt in my mind that Pam's wedding will be a great event. I can only hope she will feel that the planning for it was fun too.

2005-04-17T19:21:00.000-05:00

Whew, lots o stuff the last 4 days

Well I am finally off nights and got Wednesday thru Sunday off. I am going to be back on days starting tomorrow.

Wednesday I stayed up and worked out.

Thursday, since I was off and Lynn had plenty of vacation , she took off the day to join me. We had an excellent time. It was perfect weather here in Dallas and we went to Northpark Mall after working out in the morning. Lynn shopped and I just enjoyed being out and about that day. We had lunch at McCormick's and Schmidt's. Kind of a swanky seafood restaurant. I had an excellent salmon club with a St.Arnold's amber, while Lynn had white wine with scallops. Their crab bisque is awesome as well. Lynn later bought 4 suits that day for work since her weight loss has caused her older suits to not really fit anymore.

Friday I was able to spend alone but we FINALLY got the GE guy to come out and fix the microwave that has been broken for the last week. Model JVM1631WB002 for those that are interested. It seems that when Sanyo built the magnetron that went into this model, they were not precisely tuned. This means that they will work and heat like they should but regular usage will wear on the part and eventually cause it to fail. A tuned magnetron will not wear as fast and should have lasted at least twice as long as this one. Well its working now. Amazing how much you cant really do without one nowadays.Alex attended his first Mini-camp for peewee flag football later in the evening. He really enjoyed but we are not sure if he is still interested in football as a participant. He seemed to be wavering by the time he got home but he still wants to attend the next one in two weeks. We will see.

Saturday I went to the Leon Brown Trombone Days at University of North Texas. Dr. Brown is a professor emeritus at UNT and they named this little clinic/conference after him. Very cool. Myself and a couple of trombonists from the trombone choir I play with attended. There was a small exhibit area for a trombone manufacturer (Weril, from Brazil), a performing group from Brazil, aptly named the Brazilian Trombone Ensemble, and a local music store showing ensemble and soloist music. The Ensemble was just outstanding and incredible to hear. The day consisted of a warmup and reading session where the complete trombone faculty took part ( http://www.unttrombones.com/faculty/ ) . This was followed by the Ensemble concert. Again, just incredible. We had the opportunity to hear the UNT Trombone Choir as well and I was just blown away. Their lead player was play high Ds and Es above the staff AND doing liptrills with them. Just outstanding ability and tone. Also was able to see a contrabass trombone in action. Very impressive.

Leon Brown Trombone Days Flyer

Had to leave early to see Alex's soccer game later in the afternoon. He played very hard and managed to score a goal on a steal that he took all the way down the field. The team lost but it was really a hardfought game. Coach kept him in the whole game and he was exhausted but he had the stamina to be a contributer until the final whistle.

Sunday we went to see the Texas Rangers play the Toronto Blue Jays. The Rangers managed to win but almost blew a 6 run lead. In the 9th the Rangers put in reliever Fransiiiiccoooo Cooooorrrrrdddeeeerrrooooo, who came into the field to a standing ovation. The game was over in 12 pitches. I marked the game which for me lets me follow it better.

Father and Son at the Ranger Game

So a pretty eventful 4 days, tonight , Sunday I we are just going to take it easy. Later

Catching up

2005-04-01T19:04:00.000-06:00

Okay, so we are a bit behind on the blog. Here are some tidbits to catch us up on our story.

Lynn is doing well at work. She is making VPs and CEOs know who she is in a good way with her ideas and initiative. She is kicking corporate butt.
We have a new floor downstairs. We took out the carpet and added wood laminate. It actually matches our cabinets and looks awesome. The dog is having some issues with it with the loss of effective traction on those hard corners she takes now and then.
Trombone choir is going well. Every week it seems we are reading 4 or 5 new tunes and have a couple of gigs scheduled. One of our planned events is actually recording a Christmas album before November. I have never been in a real recording studio before so I am excited about that.
I am working the night shift currently with two more weeks to go. I don't like working the night shift.
Lynn gave up cheese for lent and lost 8 lbs over the 40 day/night stint.
Meghan is hitting the terrible two's stage. The nice thing is that we are experienced with it since we went through it with Alex, the bad thing is that Meghan has a high pitched scream. And my dentist wonders why I am gritting my teeth.
Alex has been accepted to the Talented & Gifted program within the Garland ISD. He passed two rounds of testing to get accepted. Once we told him he got in we asked if he thought the tests were hard. His answer ? "Naw, I thought I would get in."
Soccer season is in full swing and Alex's team has won 3/4 games. Last night Alex scored a goal while I was on the field refing the game.
I am a dandelion killer. I noticed some of them in the backyard and bought that new Ortho weed spray at Home Depot. One squirt = one very dead/brown dandelion. Two squirts = a small piece of land that is devoid of all life. MMmmmmuuuuhhhaahhahahahahahahaha.

Okay that is it for now.

Book Club

2005-03-07T14:24:00.000-06:00

Last fall I joined a book club. Joined may not be the right word. Really, I agreed to read books and meet my friends for dinner. I thought this was a great way to keep me reading. When I finished my MBA my appetite for reading was much smaller, so book club would get me back in the groove.
It has worked rather well. I have read a book of short stories, "The Pilot's Wife", "Cry the Beloved Country", a autobiograhpy of Michael Crighton and "Kafka on the Shore".
Unfortunately, my group has not actually read the books. That makes discussions less fruitful, as you can imagine. At first, I found it kind of funny. I reconciled myself that it was a reason to get together with my friends and drink wine. Lately, I have grown more frustrated.
First, there is the cost of the books. They aren't necessarily cheap. Then, there is my time. I haven't liked every book, and in one case, I had aleady read the book before. I knew it was not an exciting read, but I bought the book. I read it, again. I didn't enjoy it, again, but I was ready. I was the only group member to finish the book.
Last night was the limit. We were supposed to read "Kafka On the Shore". It was a little weird, but it was a good book. Most of them didn't even get past the second chapter.
I could see that, if we were reading James Joyce or other classics. But we read Oprah Book Club books. C'mon guys, turn off your brain and read. I guess what frustrates me more than anything is the time element. I make time to read these books. I am busy. I am a mom. I am a wife. I work. YET, I read the books each month.
My club has one other married person. None of the members have children. What are they doing? Sleeping?!?
ARGH!
I recommended doing a movie night, instead of a book for the next meeting. I still want to get together and drink wine, but hey, let's committ to discussing whatever it is we have agreed to. I can only hope they can find 2-3 hours in a month to squeeze in a movie.

Arranged Marriage

2005-02-10T08:35:00.000-06:00

Today I read of Prince Charles' decision to marry Camilla Parker Bowles. This is of particular interest to me, because my best friend, Pam, is one of Princess Diana's biggest fans. I learned more about Diana in my first year of living with Pam, than I ever really thought I could know.

I find it interesting that we live in the 21st century, and arranged marriage is still preferred for some "classes". I doubt I'll ever really like Camilla and Charles, but I will say they seem a much more natural match than Diana and Charles ever did. They are closer in age. They are closer in looks, quite frankly.

Even though, in America, you don't normally see parents choosing spouses for their children anymore, you do still see the "stigma" of loving someone your family/parents/society may not expect.

I have been very blessed in my marriage. Lorenzo and I met and fell in love and there wasn't anyone who tried to stop us. I still believe that is partially because I would have ignored any advice that was contrary to my own desires (I am stubborn like that), but I also believe it is because people saw the love that Lorenzo and I feel for each other. I wish that all couples got that benefit of the doubt.

Marriage is a work in progress. There are times, when the romance simmers, (I refuse to believe it actually dies), that you make not want to spend time with your spouse. There are moments, you may not like them very much at all. AND, if you had to deal with that, on top of not loving that person in the first place, how can you really expect that marriage to be solid or to last the test of time?

There are some who say that the passion you feel in love fades. Arranged marriage works because you know it's not ever based upon passion. What a sad state!

There are times when the memory of that first kiss Lorenzo gave me (and it was a doozy) puts a smile on my face that lasts for hours. There are times when the feeling of him stroking my hair makes me feel like the most beautiful woman in the world. There are times, when I see him teaching Alex math or giving Meghan a bath, that I could explode with love for him.

I refuse to believe that emotion like that comes with arranged marriage.

Charles and Camilla, good luck to you. I hope your marriage gives you happiness.

Of twins, trips and shopping..

2005-02-09T08:53:00.000-06:00

I have recently returned from Louisville, KY for the Baptism of my goddaughter Kaitlyn Squyres. Jeff, her dad, is the godfather to my son, Alex. A very nice time indeed. A lot of the Squyres clan was in town for the occasion, naturally, and everyone had a good time. Tracy's mother (Jeff's mother-in-law) is quite a cook and made some great meals. The twins were actually very behaved during the ceremony and did not cry once. A large feat since they are getting over colic. It was really fun to be a part of this occasion and nice to have a trip but I did miss my kids. I got to carry Kaitlyn in her baby pouch holder thingy for a while and even gave her medicine. She is still trying to sit up and has a field day gnawing your fingers if you let her. Quite the cute little button but then again I am her godfather.

This is Kaitlyn and me :)

The week so far has been pretty hectic as my team has effectively lost two of its members in the last month. This means the same amount of trouble tickets for less people. Thus I am working harder. This is not a bad thing as it makes the days go by but it can be stressful as you are talking to one person, updating a ticket , and IMing with your boss all at the same time. But hey, they pay me well.

As part of this team member loss, my team lead Emel asked me to see if I knew anyone who may be able to join my team. I called an old friend, John Rhea recently and we caught up on the phone. Seems he is still in the SAP Basis Administrator business but actually heads his own team now. I doubt he would leave his job for what we have to offer. The pay is pretty equal but to leave a job as part of a demotion does not make sense. I hope he will but even my team lead says this is probably not going to happen since John wants to work from home in Arkansas as part of a possible move. Its a long shot. For now we just get to deal with the tickets and the higher work load.

Last night Lynn and I went to Victoria's Secret for a ' special shopping event'. Lol. We actually got an invitation to go to the VS store at Northpark. You actually had to call a number and make a reservation. Its actually a good marketing tool. There were nice hors d'vours there including chocolate covered strawberries. Lynn got a make over and some lingerie but what kinda made the night was I was out with my wife on a week night. We have Lynn's mother to thank for that. Since she is now a Dallas resident she just came over and watched the kids for us while we went out. It was nice since Lynn and I went to that McCormick's(sp?) restaurant at Northpark and ate in the bar area. We got to meet James the chef and we chatted about seafood etc. We had crab bisque and I had a salmon club while Lynn had sushi. I was actually able to have St. Arnolds beer since they have it on tap at the restaurant. This is a brewery I have actually visited while in Houston staffed on a job. And not only that, the Notre Dame Men's basketball team beat undefeated and number 4 ranked, Boston College, heretofore known as Fredo College. The defeat was even better since they were being covered by every major sports media outlet in the nation since they were one of two teams left without a loss. Ahh sweet victory and a great night.

Managing Schedules

2005-02-01T08:47:00.000-06:00

You may or may not know that I got promoted in January. I am very excited about my new opportunity, but I must admit it's tough to adjust to the new pace. As many of you know, Lorenzo and I both work. We have two children and now, two Grandmas in the local area. Who could ask for more?

With my new role, I have on average one or two business trips per month. Some require over-night stays and others require a 3:30 start to make the 6:00 am flights. In cases like these, Lorenzo has to manage drop off and pick up of the kids. In the event his work schedule doesn't allow that, we ask for Grandma services. Usually, that causes no immediate issues. However, there are times that is a challenge.

What I find most challenging is the on-going coordination of schedules. At work, I have a secretary to help me coordinate my business schedule with my colleagues or customers. At home, there is no secretary. Lorenzo and I spent over an hour on Sunday morning trying to get on the same page. It seems a little excessive, but with Lorenzo's need for time, planning and structure, we really are better off with the time dedicated.

I would love to find a gadget (b/c Lorenzo likes those) to help us coordinate total schedules (mine, his and Grandmas'). I have found the email trail, though easy to initiate, get's forgotten by some parties sometimes. One Grandma still uses the paper checkbook size calendars to manage her schedule, one grandma doesn't have a system, and Lorenzo depends on me to keep him straight.

There must be a better way. If you have any ideas, I am definitely open

American Idol

2005-01-26T19:49:00.000-06:00

Alex and I really got into watching American Idol last year. We were very excited to watch it this year. In the very painful beginning, with the good and bad singers, it has been really fun to hear him tell me who is good and who is bad.

For example, the 44 year old who had lied to be on the show. "Mom, he is NOT making it to Hollywood."

The 22 year old psychic... "Mom, she can't sing."

Simon Cowell, my six year old son Alex, has you beat. He assesses the pathetic in about 3 seconds. No need to spend 30-60 seconds enduring the painful.

The showgirl who could sing..."She's pretty good mom."

The Vegas Cowgirl "Viva Las Vegas"..."She is just weird mom, she isn't going to Hollywood."

I think Alex would add value to the panel and give Paula someone other than Simon to kiss. Besides, Alex is much better looking and sweeter.

I am really enjoying American Idol with Alex. As a mom, it's very hard to find a show I can enjoy with my son. Fox isn't normally the channel that has clean shows, but this is one I do like.

If you don't watch it, I would strongly recommend it to you and your family. The laughs are definitely worth it.

Ya know back in the old days it was called a sacbut.....

2005-01-24T17:00:00.000-06:00

Just got done practicing.

I play the trombone. Have since the 6th grade when I just kinda fell into it. I was taken to the middle school I was going to attend in the latter part of summer before my 6th grade year began and was pretty much told to pick an instrument. Now originally I was wanting to play the drums (percussion) but with my mother's sanity and hearing on the line I was told that I really needed to know how to play piano before even attempting to bang a drum. So, on to the piccolo. Yea right. Then the assistant band director picked up the long instrument , told me it was a trombone , and to buzz my lips and blow here. Well I did. I let out a big SPLAT, right at the same time the head band director for the school was in my crosshairs. It was enough to stop him in his path and look right at me and exclaim "Now that is a Trombone Player!" Well, not one to ignore fate, I settled on that instrument.

My trombone playing has allowed me to literally go places. I have been to all sorts of cities and played in all sorts of facilities and universities in high school and college. Its been a pretty cool ride. Once I graduated college I just stopped except for playing every 4 years at my university's Band Alumni Reunion ( that would be the University of Notre Dame Marching Band). Well, I got the bug again. I went to Northpark Mall in Dallas and heard the North Dallas Trombone Choir for a Christmas performance. 15 men and women playing trombone for a nice sized holiday crowd. That got the juices flowing. Thankfully they do not mandate tryouts to join. All I had to do was show up at the practices. I have been going the last month and our first performance is this Friday. I am pretty excited to be performing again. It has been going well and being a pretty decent player I have been doing pretty good.

On another note I was very happy with the Patriots performance last night. My wife wasn't but I was ( eventhough she is also an ND grad). This is another notch in Charlie Weis' belt and hopefully with a win at the SuperBowl, another ring. Of course my motive is that with a new Superbowl ring and a good first year as ND head coach he is going to start getting the players that will bring back the reputation that ND had in the early 1990s.

My son, Alex lost another tooth today and doesn't have very many baby teeth to go. Also, he got called back to do a second round of testing for the Talented & Gifted program in his school district. I am pretty proud of him and hope he does well. He is a bright kid but the last thing we are doing is pressuring him. We wanted to have him try out for it just to see how he would do but we were not expecting to actually get in. Now we are half way there so lets see how it goes.

The Steelers

2005-01-24T10:43:00.000-06:00

I have been a Steelers fan since the early 80's. I remember it vividly. It was September and my family had gone to Pennsylvania for my great grandfather's funeral. It happened to coincide with my birthday. Unfortunately, the dress my mom had bought me didn't fit, so my parents bought me a new coat. It was a Steelers ski jacket with the zip off sleeves. From that moment I became a devoted fan.

I am so bummed about last night. I think Cower's decision to go for the field goal on 4th down on the two was a chicken decision. He coached like Ty, quite frankly. Sometimes, being conservative and safe is the wrong decision.

Oh well, either way I believe he was out-coached and the Steelers were out-played. As much as I hate to admit it, the Pat's were the better team yesterday and proved it on the field.

I am very much looking forward to the game in two weeks. I will be cheering for the Eagles, but believe Bellichek(sp) and the Pat's will probably be up and ready to dominate the game. I have been a McNabb fan since he was at Syracuse and I will stay loyal regardless of the odds.

Go Eagles!

Breaker breaker....

2005-01-23T15:12:00.000-06:00

Well we finally took the plundge and created a Blog. My friend Jeff (jeff.squyres.com) has had one for a while. Custom made and maintained. So, as usual I waited to find a free, dumbed downed, point and click option that can be maintained anytime, anywhere with all the bells and whistles.

This blog will be maintained by my wife and myself. We live in a suburb of Dallas and do pretty well for ourselves. Not a lot to discuss currently as this is playoff Sunday and it is hard to do two things at once. Lynn is going to cheer for the Steelers but I will be backing the Patriots as the Offensive Coordinator is the new Notre Dame head coach.

As we get used to Blogger/Picasa/Audioblogger/Hello functionality I imagine this blog will get a bit more detailed and active. For now we are just doing the text.