So once again I’ve neglected to be good with updates, so here is a group of them in one go:

Job Hunt:
I am continuing my quest to find a better job at a better company. I have applied to numerous wonderful companies and institutions and am hoping to hear positive news from one of them soon enough. I have unfortunately received a few rejection letters but I am determined to remain positive.

Health:
Things are significantly better on this front. Since the surgery I am up 32.5 pounds. I am actually .5 pounds above my goal weight which is amazing. I’ve had a lot more energy than I can remember having and my physical strength is up. My emotional health has also been affected and in general I am a lot more happy than I had been. For the geeks, a summary: Surgery++

Bike:
Due to the stress of work, time consumption of finding a new job and most importantly the horribly hot weather I had not gotten much of a chance to ride. I had also been kind of scared to attempt to make a trip anywhere and failing. Yesterday instead of doing a quick little fun ride on the same path I always take I made a trip to the local farmers market. The ride went wonderful and I returned home with everything I needed to pick up and more. Very happy about that. I do need to bring the bike into the shop for some free maintenance. The handlebars are a bit loose and are now not 100% lined up with the front tire and there are a few other small things I want taken care of.

Photography:
The decision of what to do for a camera has been answered. My father has decided he is getting a newer camera so I’ll be purchasing his camera from him. It’s a Pentax *ist ds, 6.1MP DSLR with a 18-55mm lens. This is a great starting setup and in time I hope to purchase myself a nice telephoto lens. I am very excited and now just can’t wait for him to get the new one so I can start taking photos again. He said regardless I can borrow it for our vacation next month.

MBA:
On Saturday Kate will be taking her GMAT and once she receives her score she’ll finish the application process for her MBA program. Her company is awesome and has a tuition reimbursement program so we’re very excited for her to go and get her MBA. Once she finishes she’ll be an even greater asset to the business world and I am sure her career is going to skyrocket. I have to say I am envious of her. I am hoping once I get a new job my career can have as great of an outlook as hers and then I can go and get my MBA and make it even better.

Vacation:
Kate and I will be going to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina for vacation of Labor Day weekend. We’re very excited as it will be our first vacation just the two o f us since our honeymoon. We had plans to go to Boston for our one year anniversary but that was right when the major issues with my Crohn’s started up. Instead of Boston for a long weekend I spent it at the hospital. We’re finally making up for that now!

That’s just about it for now. Stay tuned

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For the last 14 or so years I have been a wearer of contact lenses.  This has never been an issue except for the last year.  It seems my eyes are having issues with the contacts and my doctors believe it may very well have to do with my Crohn’s Disease.  Well I was finally low enough on contact lenses to bring myself to an eye doctor.

After a bunch of discussion and a very thorough but non-standard eye exam and hearing all about the last year of my life the eye doctor recommended I not go back to contacts.  He said there was evidence of my eyes swelling from the Crohn’s and that the contacts are just starving my eyes for oxygen.  So after the comprehensive evaluation it was determined I would go back to glasses.

But not jsut regular glasses.  I am in flat-top bifocals so that I can see distance and read without having to rub my nose against the book like I have for my entire life.  The new glasses finally arrived today.

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Managed to fall right asleep last night.  Slept for a while but woke up around 4AM in the mist of some kind of anxiety attack.  I think the stress from work mixed with the dissatisfaction of my job and the shortcomings of my wages are getting the best of me.  I’m looking to rectify this situation and doing all that I can but need to work on the emotional stress more so things like this don’t happen again.

I think right now I just need to hear good news on something personal to cheer me up and give me the energy to go for a while longer.  I am eagerly awaiting the birth of my niece and am sure that going to see her upon her birth will make me a happier man.  She was due on the 9th, but sister still hasn’t released her for us.  I wonder if she is stuck and or if I should head to my sisters with a plunger?

Well, going to try to crawl back into bed next to the wife and get 2 more hours of sleep in.  Even if I can’t sleep, I am better off in bed next to her than alone in this office.

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For the first time in the two months since my surgery I am awake due to a Crohns flare up.  I am dehydrated, tired, suffering pain in places nobody wants pain and becoming quite angry.

The good news is, no stomach pain yet.  That’s wonderful.

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What is Sippin’ By The River you ask? Well, let’s evaluate what is has:
Local wineries displaying their flavors …. Check
Local breweries showcasing their micro brews … Check
Food for the famished … Check
Live music … Check

Sippin’ By The River is held each year at Penn’s Landing in Philadelphia, PA. Last year Kate and I went with the in-laws and we had a blast. We’re certain we will this year as well.

It is scheduled for September the 23rd, 2007 and tickets are already on sale. They are $30 per person if you order now or $40 at the door. Anybody who is interested in joining up with us at the event please comment below! Anybody and everybody is welcome to join us.

UPDATE: I just realized that in the original post I had September 27th listed and not the correct date of the 23rd.  My apologies.

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So a lot has been going on as of late. Time is kind of flying right by. Seems the days go faster when you’re not in misery and pain. Imagine that.

Social Life
As mentioned in the post below Kate and I went to our friends, the Finks, for their pre Fourth of July party. We had an amazing time and for the first time in many moons I was drunk. Man, how wonderful it felt to be drunk again. Keep in mind; I have an amazingly high tolerance for alcohol combined with the fact that I can’t get drunk unless I am VERY comfortable with the people I am around. That is a tribute to Rachel and John for selecting the friends they have; and of course to their friends for allowing Kate and I to fit right in.

On Friday night when we got there John rocked out on his charcoal grill and did some real Southern Styled BBQ cooking making up some delicious ribs. We also made vidallia onions wrapped in bacon. The meal was fantastic and I ate probably close to a rack of ribs myself. After eating the delicious meal we took our drinks and sat around the Finks new fire pit on their brand new stone patio. I have to say, I’m a bit envious of their kicking outdoor setup. Wood second story deck with gas grill and patio seating for six then on the ground level the stone patio with fire pit, seating for four (plus a bench wall that can easily fit 15) and the charcoal grill. Amazing setup which lead to the great success of Saturday.

Saturday afternoon through night was the party. There was more than ample food and drink for all. Hard liquor galore (yay for me!) and a keg of beer. I was drinking bourbon all night and grilling up a storm. I started on the gas grill and quickly moved my way over to the charcoal. Then again later in the night back on the gas. Since I love cooking outdoors I had a blast grilling all night long. However, my drunken ass did manage to burn the inside of both my arms with the lid from the charcoal grill; oops. Oh well.

On Sunday morning a large number of the people from the party went out for breakfast. Afterwards Kate and I went back to the Finks and helped them clean up for relatives visiting later. Then Kate and I made awesome time on our trip home.

This weekend we’re up in CT visiting the in-laws. We left Tuesday early as Kate got out of work at 2:30PM. We finished packing, got in the car and hit the traffic shit pile that is I-95. We decided to hit the DETOUR button on our GPS which routed us off I-95 and onto the Merritt Parkway; an equally slow moving but significantly more scenic route.

The weather was pretty nasty on the Fourth so we stayed in doors, relaxed, drank and then went to see Die Hard 99, oh wait, 4? On Thursday Kate and I worked from home in the morning and I continued throughout the day while Kate and her mom left for Boston to see a Faith Hill and Tim McGraw concert. Tony and I just watched TV, played video games and called it an evening. On Friday I worked for half a day then Tony and I went out shopping for electronics (a new multi-phone setup for their house and a new computer). While we found the phone, we could not find the computer so we had the girls stop by Providence Place Mall in Rhode Island on the way home.

Today the girls went to the gym in the morning and the men went to Lowes to buy supplies to build a shelf for the new downstairs AC unit. Then we went to breakfast. The rest of the days is just relaxation time.

Health
Today is the first day I can recall not feeling so well. My stomach is really not that bad, although I’ve been going to the bathroom way more than I feel is normal even for Crohn’s Disease. Regardless, I am 1,000 times more healthy than two months ago. I think I am up to about 130LBS, maybe more. I’ll wait until Monday morning to weigh myself on my normal scale.

Geekiness – in sections
Camera Woes
I still have no camera which makes me a very sad person. I was really excited to try and do as much as possible this summer taking pictures along the way; however without a camera that becomes VERY hard. I’ve been looking into cameras and I don’t think I can get one for QUITE some time. I am hoping to find one on a great sale at some point; but since I didn’t get the raise I was hoping for I doubt I’ll have one before the holidays.

MacinGeeky
Since Kate is shortly going to start her MBA program she is in desperate need of a new machine. We’re looking at ordering her a MacBook Pro in the coming weeks. This of course is a very large investment so we’re flip flopping from order now to order next month. I think we should just get it over with then start saving for other things.

On Friday Kate and her mom stopped off at the Providence, RI Apple store and picked up a new computer to replace the in-laws failing Dell. They are now Macintosh users and rocking out on a Mac Mini. Very awesome. I can now remotely help with their machine; but even better is no longer worrying about Spyware, Adware and all the other shit that infests MicroSoft systems.

Edumacation
Kate and I are both interested in advancing our careers via education. Kate has always wanted to go back to school and I have just recently realized that the only way I can advance my career quickly is with an MBA. Kate is planning on attending a standard University, maybe even going back to FDU to get her MBA there. I however do to my lack of driving am looking at online education outlets. So far, as scary as it is to say, University of Phoenix online is seeming to be my top choice.

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Life, life is happening and let me tell you it feels GREAT. I’ve had a good week of normal life now and am quite impressed. I’ve been able to do my job, keep active, function and even be an assistance around the house for Kate. It’s wonderful. Over the weekend we were able to go out and enjoy ourselves and all was wonderful with that. Things are on the up-and-up. I have even gained 8 pounds!

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