Computer Free Weekends

The last two weekends have been computer free weekends. During both weekends, I've done some fun things and not used my computer at all! This weekend is not one of them, I've been cleaning out my inbox and doing some school work - but most importantly, not working!

The first weekend, MLK weekend, I had a workshop at school to make up for a lost quarter of Managerial Accounting and then a swim meet. This was the first ever, computer free weekend, so I avoided my computer on the Monday holiday. Thank goodness for my phone with a data connection, I was able to post a blog by email and kept Twitter updated.

Last weekend, I spent Saturday snowshoeing in the Steven's Pass back country on an avalanche awareness field trip and the Sunday I went skiing with my family.

The second weekend was definitely the better weekend! On top of just getting out in the snow, I learned how to use avalanche beacons, do snow pack evaluations and avalanche rescues. I've got one more field trip in a few weeks to go in more depth. I hope to spend more time in the mountains this winter (Wade, we need to schedule a camping trip) and having an avalanche certification will make my wife feel more comfortable when I'm out there.

Even better was that on Sunday I ran into a buddy from the Army. It was pretty crazy, I was picking up Kid 2 from ski lessons and another parent was there picking up his daughter and he looks at me and says, "Were you in the Army?" Lo and behold, we had been stationed together in Alaska and our units had deployed to Egypt.

It was a great, crazy coincidence to run into him, as he was one of the officers I had a great deal of respect for. We'll link up at some point in the near future and catch up on old times.

This weekend, alas, has not been a computer free weekend, but I'm catching up on email, bills, homework and more. Enjoy the rest of the weekend!

They didn't mention snow

This spring, I've gone back to coaching soccer. I've got a co-coach and it's kindergarten soccer. We're just working on the basics and the kids aren't old enough to have developed attitudes yet. Amongst everything else I'm doing, it is relaxing and Kid 3 really wanted to play soccer.

The program is really low key - two practices (one of which was optional) and then games begin. Its only Friday evenings, no goalies, no keeping score, just having fun.

The organizers said that practice would be canceled if it was raining. They didn't mention snow. Who would have thought that it would be snowing in mid-April in Seattle. By 6:30 when practice was ending, it was snowing pretty hard. The kids didn't care, they were having too much fun.

I like snow, no matter when it comes. I do wish I was a little more prepared for it, because I've been home for 30 minutes now and my fingers are still warming up. Happy Spring!

Outdoor activities, anyway

This weekend, a college friend and I were planning on going winter camping. We were planning on snowshoeing a short distance into the Cascades, near Snoqualmie Pass, and building a snow cave for the night.

This trip was predicated by a few things:

1. My desire to snowshoe more
2. My desire to camp
3. My desire to rough it a little more than Heather is willing
4. Heather's mandate to use my Christmas gifts before I get anything new at REI

As a quick review, most of what I got for Christmas was field cooking and eating gear. I got a Titanium fork and a spoon which doubles as a tool for my MSR stove. I also got a bowl and a plate, too.

To be able to use this gear, I've got to go on a long enough expedition to have to eat. An overnight trip fits that bill.

So, Wade and I discussed an overnight trip for this long weekend. We watched weather and avalanche forecasts. We discussed what we would eat and what safety equipment we would carry and how we would mitigate risk. I geeked out a little bit and wrote a detailed trip plan.

But Wade started to get sick on Friday afternoon. And it worsened on Saturday. And on Sunday, we called it off. I say that its better to be sick at home than in a snow cave in the middle of no where. We decided we would see how Wade was doing and then maybe do a day trip on Monday.

But contrary to Heather's post, I wasn't bored around the house. We had a great day!

We went biking to Beaver Lake and then Alec and I took some mountain bike trails back to our house. It was a lot of fun and I can feel it in my legs today!

Afterwards, we played in the street (it is a cul de sac) and washed bikes, kids and my MINI.

Heather and I cooked dinner together and we had a nice, albeit short, because we were all tired, evening.

Even though Wade and I didn't go camping this weekend (note the emphasis), we still got some outdoor activities in and as Wade says, "There will be snow for a while; there's lots of it up there."

We'll have more opportunities before the season is over.

Where did all of the Seattlites go?

Yesterday, Seattle got another dose of winter weather. On the Eastside, we had snow (albeit not very much) and a snow day was called. Not a snow day for me, either in work or B-school, but for the kids.

As the time approached for me to leave for school, I kept checking traffic and the roads were all green and wide open. This seemed very strange to me. Maybe the weather was creating a problem for the traffic reporting sensors. This is Seattle, where a little snow snarls the roads!

Work kept me, so I didn't leave any earlier than usual. I was a little worried, but if I was going to be late, so were others. It took me far less than the usual amount of time to get to school - the roads were in fine condition and wide open! It was bizarre?

Where was everyone yesterday?

Did they just stay home?

Did they go to the mountains to take advantage of the snow?

I think that this one is going to be a mystery to me for a while. The traffic was exactly opposite of what I expected it to be based upon the morning conditions.

Long time, no blogging

So, I apologize for the long break between postings. It has been a few hectic weeks in our house, but things are beginning to wind down for the end of the year.

I have started a few posts and saved them in draft. Since they aren't really time sensitive, I'll finish them and post them later. But really, I haven't forgotten about my blog.

Nor have my friends forgotten about my wife's blog! I've had more than one person ask when is Heather going to post again. They tell me that my writing is good, but hers really makes them laugh! Come on, I'm funny too, aren't I?

Finals are done (last week) and my last work trip of the year is done (last week), Heather did some last minute traveling (last week) resulting in a change to my work trip, our oldest swam at the PNS sectionals (all last weekend) and then we took some well deserved time and relaxed in Seattle (photos) and went snowshoeing (this weekend).

I'm just glad it is winding down. I'm even going to take some time off! Yes, I'll really try to not work.

This weekend, I mentioned that we went snowshoeing. It was great. I just wanted to try it out, to see how it went for our family and everybody picked it up right away. I hadn't snow shoed (is that a word) since I was in the Army in Alaska and we used gigantic snowshoes. We rented some new modern ones from REI and they worked great. I caught the bug again - I want snow shoes.

We went up to the Nordic center at the Snoqualmie Summit and since the power was out, they weren't charging for the trail pass. It took a while to get everybody's snow shoes on (yes, I put on 4 and half pairs of snowshoes and I got warmed up just with that activity). We wandered off into the woods for about a mile in and turned around at a bridge? that was too narrow for me to be comfortable with my kids crossing it. It was just hiking in the snow. Serene, calm, in the outdoors.

I enjoyed it so much that I was trying to find someone who wasn't working on Monday, so I could take the day off and go again before I returned the snow shoes. I called quite a few friends, but alas, I couldn't find anyone, but it was better that way -things at work blew up, so I'm glad I didn't go.

I've now spent a great deal of time pining after snow shoes, which model, how much gear would I carry (and as a result would the snowshoes have to hold up). I'll be going again this winter. It would be a great way to experience Mount Rainier too.

More photos

Snow day 3 in the Issaquah School District

We are having our third snow day in a row! It looks like it is warming up outside, but there is still snow on the ground and ice on the street (at least in front on our house). However the snow days appear to be coming to an end, so says the Issaquah School District.

UPDATE

Issaquah Schools and all school-related activities are once again cancelled today, Thursday, November 30.

Although roads in some areas of the District are ice free, many roads remain treacherous to navigate. While we want students to return to classrooms as soon as possible, we put their safety first.

We expect school to resume on a normal schedule tomorrow. Thank you for your flexibility during the storm.

Sorry kiddos! Enjoy the last day!

Coming home to the snow in Seattle

My trip home wasn't uneventful, but I got home and that made me happy. The office in Glendale is pretty close to the Burbank (aka Bob Hope International) Airport, so I was able to get there quickly. I had some time to spare, but I couldn't remember my T-Mobile wi-fi hotspot account user name, so I responded to emails off-line.

About thirty minutes before the flight's departure time, people started lining up. Normal practice on South West, but I was flying Alaska. It was weird. And then, in another display of strangeness, they announced that they would load the aircraft from the rear to the front. It makes perfect sense. I was sitting towards the back of the plane, so I got to get on quickly - all those people in line had to step aside.

The airline also announced that our "non-stop flight to Seattle would make an intermittent stop in Sacramento to refuel." Evidently, the winds were high and we needed to take off on a short runway. With the plane as full and heavy as it was, we wouldn't have made it with a full tank of gas. It delayed our flight by about an hour. It sucked, but there were some advantages. Fewer crazies on the streets when we got here.

Listening to the news, I expected it to be a real challenge driving home. It was 19 degrees outside and my MINI needed snow brushed off and the windows scraped. The driver side door handle had frozen shut, so I had to crawl in through the passenger seat. I was happy because I found a watch cap in my trunk and the seat heaters were warm!

The interstates were all clear, but wet - obviously salted or some thing done to keep the ice from forming. As I got closer to Bellevue on 405, there was sometimes a build up of ice between the lanes, but people drove appropriately. It was no big deal.

Once I left the interstate, it was a different story entirely. I don't think the roads in Issaquah or Sammamish were salted, plowed or otherwise. There really were cars just stopped in lanes, abandoned. I even saw a car with tire chains abandoned on the side of the road. I had no issues driving, stopping or turning - my MINI is front wheel drive and that makes a world of difference.

The roads were icy but not undriveable. I can see that school buses would have difficulty and school was canceled again (text message received while I was on the airplane letting me know school was canceled today).

It is supposed to snow more tonight and record lows are supposed to be broken. Ah, this is really winter! I like looking out my window and seeing snow covered bushes, lawn furniture and mountains. I like this.

Snow day!!!

At 4:10 am my phone started ringing, receiving a text message. School is canceled! But darn it, I'm not there!

I understand it was pretty nasty at home yesterday - it took over 2 hours to get home from swim practice last night. I hear that there is over 8" of snow at my house!

I hope they stay warm and enjoy the snow.

Post holiday travel

This was written in my Moleskine while waiting for my flight to Burbank to take off.

Since we moved to Seattle (and kept my job in Oakland), I have started to travel quite a bit. Today, I begin a series of trips. For the next three weeks, Monday, Tuesday and sometimes Wednesday, I'll be somewhere else.

But with all this traveling, I've begun to notice some things about my fellow travelers.

Usually, the first flight of the day is primarily business travelers. Sure, try to carry as much in a carry on as possible, but they are ready or laptop screening or already have their gels, liquids and toothpaste in a ziploc bag. They move through security quickly. They get on the plane and pull out the Wall Street Journal or Fortune magazine.

This trip is right after Thanksgiving weekend. These travelers are different. I'm on the first flight to Burbank, Monday morning and this plane is full of college students going back to school. College students have the same gadgets as business travelers, but the security lines are slower. Instead of business publications, it is text books: Introduction to Neuro Science, Italian Songs and Arias. Instead of leather briefcases, it is nylon backpacks and messenger bags.

This trip was oversold - something I haven't seen in a while (since my last ill fated trip right before the Fourth of July). Unlike what I've seen on Airplane, the guy who was bumped was polite and understanding as he was moved to standby on another oversold flight. Considering that he was at the end of the jetway, almost on the play, his behavior was pretty exemplary.

As we wait for de-icing, the plane has a certain quietude to it, sort of like a library: the rustle of papers, an occasional quiet whisper. Which decays as we roll into 15 minutes late for departure.

It is still snowing!

So, it has been snowing since about 4:30pm. The snow flakes are pretty big and it doesn't look like it is going to let up. I'm going to the airport tomorrow morning, so we'll have to see how it is then (maybe I'll get a mo-blog off).

But the kids are enjoying it!


Here is a longer one! And for those of you privacy minded (paranoid) this one isn't in the public search! How about that!

We've had snow!

For the last two days, when I wake up, there has been snow on the ground at our house. Not a measurable amount, but only collecting on the colder parts of the ground (no grass, on top of the shed, etc.).

This is interesting, for our second winter, because this time around it is all happening earlier.

But in true Seattle fashion, it is here one minute and gone the next. The snow will have melted by 10 am and most likely the sun will come out.

Yesterday, I left the house at 7:45 to take Alec to swim practice in Kent. By the time I was half way there, the roads were dry and I wished I had brought my sunglasses. Such is life in the Northwest!

Today, it is quite windy. Hopefully, trees stay upright, the roads stay open and the power stays on!