Good Things Happen in CA

Earlier this month I took a much-needed 10-day timeout from life in Massachusetts and headed back to the homeland. California was great. Despite the fact that the parents left town soon after I got home (I've never been a very good planner...) I got to see lots of other family, including the sis, along with more friends than I'd expected.

In addition to all the people I saw, there were also two big trips while I was at home. First there was Ashley's wedding. It was the first wedding of one of my peers, which made it a little amazing, but it was also at the Ritz in Half Moon Bay, and everything about it was awesome; the ceremony, the party, the food, the people. We even split a room for the night. (We stayed at the freakin' Ritz!) Tons of fun and way too cool to write it all down, so I'll give you this...


The second trip I made while I was out west was an overnight trip up to Jeff's cabin in Tahoe for a triathlon at Donner Lake. I competed as part of a relay, with my friend Jay (above in the pink) leading off for the swim, Jeff taking over for a tough bike ride up a big old hill, and me finishing off with a run around the lake. It was a great time and an awesome team effort from everyone helped our relay beat out about 40 other teams for the win. Also, there are some pics of the race here, but it doesn't really include the whole team...

Anyways, great race, great wedding, great trip.

Party Time

All modesty out the door for a moment. I think my housemates and I threw a pretty good party last weekend. It certainly surpassed our expectations, and the comments we received were all positive. And a note to anyone who attempts to emulate our success: butcher paper on the walls and lots of Sharpies makes for a good time.

Furthermore, the enthusiasm that everyone in the apartment put into the planning -- from the website, to printing up pictures of global warming and nukes, to the trip to Home Depot for "bird flu" masks -- was impressive. It brings to mind a quote from Hannibal Smith of The A Team, who said, "I love it when a plan comes together."