Saturday, December 20, 2003

Road trip!

The movers are coming on Monday and so this weekend Bob and I are packing most of our stuff and preparing for the upheaval that is sure to ensue when the guys from fly-by-night-movers show up. All I can say is thank goodness for insurance!

Once our stuff is on its way, the plan is to spend Christmas eve at Dad's house in Connecticut, then drive to Aunt Barbara and Uncle LJ's house for Christmas day. We leave the morning of the 26th headed for Arizona. Bobby and I are making the drive from Peru, VT to Mesa, AZ over the course of several days. We're gonna be making time so we can attend Rick & Kelly Dwyer's annual New Year's Eve party. We decided to take the southern route so we can drive through states we've not explored much to date and to avoid the inconvenience of weather-related delays. The drive should be something unlike anything I've ever experienced but Bob is prepared from the Dwyers' many long haul driving vacations. He's actually excited about spending days on end in the Civic together. I'm a bit apprehensive but he's already prepared with his CD collection, 5 books on CD and a head full of things to gab at me about. Oh yes, and thanks to our friends the Gendrons and the Gottfrieds, we also have a local classic to read on the way-- Jack Kerouac's "novel that defined a generation" -- On the Road This should be a road trip to remember!

Monday, December 08, 2003

Shovelling Technique

We just got our first big snow storm of the season, and it was a good one. On Sunday morning, as things were starting to die down a bit, I headed out for my first shovelling session of the season. Each time I begin work on removing the snow from our modest driveway, I start off with a very methodical approach to the task. After an hour, I'm displaying some of the worst maneuvers known to the trade: The twist and throw with your back, the rapid fire approach (which lasts about 3 shovels full), and of course the long-distance displacement approach (where you get to catch your breath as you move snow from one place to another very far away). After about 3 hours, I know it's time to go in because I've stared at a pile of snow for more than a minute without doing much of anything.

After our first snow storm in this apartment, I headed out in the morning to try my hand at shovelling. My upstairs neighbor, Pete, was hard at work- and had an extra shovel. I didn't want to disappoint him, so I apologized in advance for my poor technique. Pete made me feel right at home- he told me something I'll never forget: "Snow shovelling requires 2 things: A strong back, and a weak mind."

As we prepare to move to Arizona, I'm very much looking forward to simple things like taking out the trash without bundling up, without slipping on ice while digging the trash cans from out of a snow drift, and not having to find a place to put the trash cans along a sidewalk covered in snow. I'll have to check back in August to see how things compare. I'm off to the trash barrels. Wish me luck.

-Bob

Tuesday, December 02, 2003

Aren't you supposed to be working now?

Well, yes but I'm taking a lunch break. More importantly, Christmas is right around the corner and shopping is underway. For those poor souls who have asked for ideas on what to give Bob and I this year, I suppose I could revert to Bob's tired joke, "Is cash a good gift?" The answer: "That depends, how much cash?" If you don't think that's funny anymore I've added a link to my Amazon wish list so we can make this a more market-based exchange. I encourage you to do the same or else you will end up with a) another of the same gift you received last year or b) something I got off eBay. If we're real lucky Bob might also post his wish list since he's probably the more difficult of us (*wink, wink*). Anyway, hope your holiday season is off to a stellar start !

P.S. If anyone out there has an affinity for packing, I'm taking time donations from those who will do a good job packing our junk.
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