Maybe it's an original spin, maybe its boring, maybe its hard to follow, but firstly... it makes me feel better to get this out, I actually see a difference in my social interaction, I'm calmer and generally more fun to be around. And lastly, to record it fuckers! Emotions are running so high right now, I've never seen so much drama, it IS expected and I'm ready for it... now. (I think)
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| The Private Booth Chandelier |
This is the seventh part of the "catching up" series, I had planned on having this section completed by the wedding but after recent events I'm not sure if that can happen. Regardless I'll make it all current once I return including the addition of the actual wedding, and our honeymoon in Greece.
So I'm going to continue the rest in chronological order. Rather than start with a wedding story and end with the continuation of my "diary," I'll be writing everything in order of recollection. Thanks for reading.
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| Meghan, Dirty 30 & Bree |
Every year Dorothy has a birthday on February 14th, this year was a little more special since she was turning thirty on Valentines day and her BFF Meghan was visiting for the occasion. I layed out the weekend so my love wouldn't have to worry about it, the first stop was Harney Sushi, the private booth in the back was full and we had ourselves a fine fresh meal. Afterward we made it over to Bree's to meet Bridget & Dave (just in from Phoenix) for some late night cocktails.
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| Las Rocas |
The next day we woke up early, our plan was to head back down to Las Rocas for another look and maybe have a margarita or two. We showed the property off to Meghan after a pleasant tour of Tijuana, and made it back to the states in time for the birthday girl to arrange that evenings events... we were going to our friends bar, Rosie O'Gradys! That night was filled with friends & fun times, the next day we had a BBQ and the VDay/BDay 3 day weekend came to an end.
Every year we've done something special and exciting, I've set the bar pretty high for myself and had a good time doing it - but when its over I need some me time, this year Zach & I headed out to San Diego's East County to find some falls I'd been looking for. The
"Three Sisters" are in the mountains NorthWest of Cuyamaca Peak.
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| The Three Sisters |
After a few dead-ends we found a path that offered a nice vantage to figure out our bearings. Less than a mile in, rather than continuing up the trail to the ridges summit we noticed quite a bit of water flowing across the valley, and some hikers confirmed that continuing downward would prove to be the best experience. We followed what senior citizens would refer to as a very steep and treacherous route towards the valley floor.
The trail was shady, but not beyond our ability, a little further down our vision became more clear and the three different cascades were obvious. They were awesome, and a bit of boulder hopping revealed some very easy to access creeks swollen from the state parks winter runoff. The waterfalls were running extremely fast, and we were careful not to slip on the polished granite. Once we made it to the top we could see back across the valley towards our starting point, going back that way did not look appetizing so we hoped to discover an alternate route.
We continued up the creek, towards a spot we later learned is called the "Devil's Punchbowl" - we actually cut across the creek due to the heavy brush and hiked up the rocky hillside peeking into the "bowl" rather than going through it. We made it to the top and got our best view of the day, the valley opened towards the ocean and we could see the great blue yonder on the horizon, I felt very relaxed.
I'm sometimes amazed at how therapeutic sweating can be, I felt purified and energized regardless of the fact that we weren't exactly sure where we were. We knew the general direction of my truck but she still hadn't come into sight, and we hoped that ridge would be the last one between us and our transportation. We continued on and eventually found our way to the next hilltop, which had a great view of my Tacoma on the other side of a valley :)
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| My Truck, WAY out there parked on the corner |
CLICK HERE for the Full Picasa Album
So life goes on, I keep working for Hat Trick & NBC while planning the wedding and studying html.
Have I mentioned that my sisters pregnant? Yep, niece number two is on the way - this probably didn't help us get along any better - this pregnancy seemed riddled with complications and Avery was having her own difficulties. Around now the 2 1/2 year old got admitted into the hospital, she was running a high fever and was not eating.. I could tell that this was the last thing my sister wanted to deal with. She is completely consumed by her world right now, and she's dedicated to making everything OK for her family. I understood, and was happy when my godDaughter was released the next day.
I had made a plan to meet some friends in JTree over my birthday, Jimmy (who you may remember from the Rainier blog) was taking
a course in the park so Andy & I decided to meet up with him for some not-so-educational support... I was looking forward to climbing for the first time in a very long time! Pat & I made the drive and spent Friday on the rocks.
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| Andrew, Me, Jimmy & Pat |
That evening Dottie & Pat's girl Lisa graced us with their presence and we had snuggle buddies for the night...
Some random things to note
I took the CBEST (California Basic Educational Skills Test) - one of my many brilliant ideas, essentially anyone who has a Bachelors Degree can pass this test to become certified to substitute teach in the various San Diego area school districts. I didn't receive approval till almost summer so I'll be ready when I return to attack this hopefully consistent temporary weekday employment. The money is OK and might inspire me to take my interest in teaching to the next level, that is whatever level seems to offer the most lucrative & long-term possibilities.
I also took the test to become a census worker. It was a civil service exam that I actually studied for, when the test concluded the moderator complimented me for only missing 2. I would have sworn I was a shoe-in for some type of position. I guess they had enough by the time my grades made it into the system, I followed up a few times but they never seemed to be looking for more help. I spent a good 5 hours setting up, studying and taking that exam, it pissed me off when I didn't get a call, I figured it was a perfect fit since I couldn't accept anything permanent due to my summer travel plans. Fuck the census, I was actually looking forward to being part of something that huge, now I've just learned once again that the government is not to be relied upon, just appreciated.
Yes I'm anal-retentive, obsessively compulsive and overly thorough. Yes, I know! Like I've said already you either love me or hate me. To know me is to understand, accept and sometimes appreciate these (most of the time) annoying traits.
Willy the Wedding Coordinator did not know me, but I'll bet he does now ;) I would wait about a month between my interrogative emails, saving up my questions till I got a reply from my previously listed inquiries. I spoke as clearly as I could muster since his first language was Spanish, and I'm pleased with the results. He confessed to my fiancée when she visited him in May that I was of the most involved grooms he'd ever dealt with, and that actually made me happy. I knew Las Rocas knows how to put on a wedding, but add in her vision and my attention to detail and we should be good to go.
I've been to a few weddings in my life, and one thing I always thought would be a good idea was passing out shot glasses as the wedding favors. Once again my old friend Zach had the answer, we could design a logo and have it applied to the shooter, he does this every year on pint glasses when he goes home to Antes Creek for PA's Opening Day of Fishing Season. After some deliberation and re-designs we sent our idea along with the preferred colors to discountmugs.com for production. The investment wasn't outrageous, and I'm able to keep a bunch so overall I'm happy with this idea. She gets her expensive pictures, and we get to give fun gifts to our guests.
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More time passes, more planning happens, things are falling in place and overall the only thing I'm disappointed about is the lack of response I've been receiving from the job front. Yes I'm working for Hat Trick and NBC, along with planning our summer matrimony, but for my free time I'd traded studying HTML for sending resumes and filling out online employment forms. It was miserable and monotonous, I had it dialed in to about 30 minutes for one job posting. Every form required you read every inch to verify you were filling in the blanks properly, yet they all asked the same questions.
My eyes hurt from reading the monitor, I now look at the computer as work, staring at the screen quenches my organizational needs but I appreciate every moment my eyes aren't staring at a LCD of some sort. I do this because I really want to find something more permanent, a friend had recently broken his jaw and opened my eyes to how delicate we are, and how insecure I feel doing anything "dangerous" while not carrying a personal health insurance policy.
Towards mid-May Dorothy & I decided we needed to get away, there was an event outside of the town of Joshua Tree that I had been considering, and since she had that Friday off we loaded the truck and made the drive. The Joshua Tree Lakes Campground holds two music festivals every year, this one incorporated the up and coming electronic styles I've been listening to and the stages did not disappoint. Dottie & I enjoyed some late nights with friends in the clean crisp Mojave desert air, it was the perfect remedy for our work strained bodies.
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| Courtesy L. Rose |
I'm gonna conclude this for now and pick up Chapter 8 with June and my Bachelor Party in Vegas... standby friends, we're just over a month away from the wedding! We started with Breaking Up and will end just before we head to Las Rocas. Its not much further now, a little more and I'll be writing about our adventures in Greece!
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