stitch

in 7th grade or maybe it was 8th, who knows, i was forced with the rest of my class to take 6 weeks periods of electives. these electives included "shop", "technology", "home economics" and some other stuff that i can't remember.

i'm not sure what the point of many of these classes were other than to put us in danger (can you imagine a 12 year old me using a jigsaw?)or bore us to tears. the classes were really more of entertainment than education.

as domestic as i am now i really found home economics to be the most difficult. the year i took it we had to sew pillows. i chose a chocolate chip cookie pattern as it seemed the least complicated. i even somehow convinced my teacher that i hated nuts in my real cookies and didn't want to see them reflected on my pillow to get out of more sewing.

this pillow was probably the most challenging thing i faced throughout my k-12 education...i had a hard time with chemistry my sophomore year but, in all honesty i'd have to say that using a sewing machine was far more confusing to me than ions, compounds and elements.

as with all things i don't immediately excel at, i found sewing stupid. so stupid and below me that i persuaded one of my guy friends (who had already finished his baseball bat pillow) to sit on the opposite side of my machine and actually sew it backwards. in the end he actually did a pretty good job.

i don't believe my lack of sewing skills has hindered my life too much...until now. now i have an amazing opportunity to see the world and what i think is an incredible idea for a children's book series...all of which hinges on a character that needs to be made...which includes not only creating this little guy but actually sewing him together.

so far i've made one and he was a disaster. considering i had to make my own pattern i'm not yet too frustrated about needing to make adjustments. but, if this next one doesn't look much better i'm afraid my 7th grade self will emerge and this idea will be over before it even really began.

black and blue christmas

after 9 months of dealing with my right foot issues i was just starting to walk like a normal person.

so what happens the tuesday before christmas? i fall in a huge hole in the sidewalk in east atlanta and end up breaking my big toe and maybe his buddy next door too!

i find myself again unable to walk, on a couch with my foot elevated and feeling helpless. not exactly the kind of ending to this already difficult year i was hoping for...

i'm trying to keep everything in perspective. it is just a toe or two and it could be a lot worse. i could be like our dear friend who is facing not only another surgery but a series of them on her knee.

a couple of broken toes really isn't the end of the world when you really think about it...right?

where are we?

the nomadic life is going really well thus far. the only issue we've even run into is that our friends don't know where the heck we are, when we are returning or when we're leaving. this confusion has led some people to start trying to tell us "goodbye" when we see them...like "see you in a year" kind of goodbye.

we have over a month before we leave and to help out these should be our whereabouts for the next 33 days...

Dec 21st-26th- Wife is in Albany.
Dec 21st-23rd- I'm in Atlanta at Pablo's.
Dec 24th-26th- I join the wife in Albany.
Dec 27th-Jan 9th- We'll be in Atlanta (base camp is Pablo's) but we'll also go to Athens for a couple of days in there to deal with new house stuff.
Jan 10th-23rd- In Midtown at 4 Seasons.

January 24th- We fly out around 5pm!

timing

with under 40 days to go before we leave the country we still have a laundry list of items to complete before we depart. moving out of our house and having it rented was one of our biggest worries so getting that behind us relieved a lot of stress.

so what do we decide to do with less than 40 days left in the country? buy another house of course!

the house was just renovated by hp and has great high-end finishes...double-headed showers, a really cool tin roof and floors i would kill to have in our atlanta house. it is a 2/2 with a huge fenced in backyard and really close to campus. we close this friday so if you know anyone who is moving to athens we're going to have a great house for rent.

they say timing is everything but i think there is something to be said for taking risks in life...nothing ventured, nothing gained.

life as we knew it

We successfully moved out of the house this past Saturday. As with all moves it was a pain in the rear and the fact that I ended up having to have my wisdom teeth removed Wednesday morning didn't exactly help things move any more smoothly. Hydrocodone and organized moves don't really go hand in hand I guess.

So our lives as nomads have officially begun. It is strange living out of a suitcase and knowing each time I open it that this will be the norm for 2 years. I'm sure all of it will become second nature to me but at this point (day 2) I'm still struggling with how to organize my train case so I can put my makeup and fix my hair without having to pack and repack it 50 times during the process.

Life as we knew it is over and I am strangely at complete peace with that fact. I really think the acupuncturist did something to me in the last session to release me from the bondage of my high strung and worrisome ways...either that or maybe that part of me was located in one of my wisdom teeth.

a very, very, very fine house

waking up this morning i realized we only have 5 more mornings in our house before we leave it for 2+ years.

we've been the only people to inhabit these walls since it was built and it is hard to think of other people living here.

this is where the wife proposed to me while we were under contract, where we've had birthday parties, wedding showers, christmas parties, georgia football parties, bbq's, easter potlucks, poker nights, game nights, brunches, dinner parties...okay so we like to entertain a lot...it is where we've laughed a million laughs, cried from sadness and joy, where i've cooked more food than i can remember, baked a zillion cookies and probably a hundred cakes and had more cocktails with friends than i need to try to calculate...this has been our home for the past 4 years and although i cannot wait for what the future holds, there is a tinge of sadness in leaving it behind.

i know of course, it isn't the actual house that i'm sad to leave but all of our wonderful friends who helped us create such wonderful memories within it's walls.

so, thanks guys...we love you all and are looking forward to creating many more when we return...

economy woes and equal rights-two birds, one stone

See more Jack Black videos at Funny or Die

thanks to hody for this awesome video!

'tis the season to give back

11 days and we're out of the house. obviously, we won't be able to throw our annual holiday charity party this year :(

we are however, still sponsoring families with the genesis shelter thanks to the help of the generous folks in the wife's department at work.

the wife and i are also personally sponsoring a single dad and 2 year old boy. so, if you are looking for a way to give back this holiday season we'd welcome any help in making his christmas a very special one this year.

the son wears a 4T and is in need of clothes and age appropriate educational toys and books. we'll also need target and grocery store gift cards for the dad.

remember, the genesis foundation is always in need of toiletries (soap, shampoo, toothpaste, toothbrushes, etc.) and baby supplies (diapers, wipes, bottles, formula, etc.) for their in-house families. it is an amazing organization that does an incredible job helping homeless families with newborns and young children get back on their feet, get education, find jobs and homes and truly become self-reliant.

i know it is easy to get caught up in the madness that is the holiday season but i hope everyone can pause just a minute and spare just a little to those who truly need it so much.

if you want to donate or want more info on the genesis shelter please just let me know!

“We make a living by what we get. We make a life by what we give.”
Sir Winston Churchill

also needs a good home, or a bad one...i don't really care

We are also selling our coffee and end tables if anyone is interested. If you are, please let me know ASAP...we'll give you a friends and family discount :)

Note: they are much darker in real life.