guest blog...

Ladies and gentlemen. Devoted readers of all shapes and sizes, would
you please put your hands together for a new addition to the ol' blog. Tonight I have a guest in house (actually...I'm a guest in her house, oh well) her name is Tori. Enjoy...

Hello everyone. The other day, Geoff and I ventured south, into the Lewiston-Clarkston
Valley (just as background, this area is on the border of Idaho and
Washington, possess a singularly unpleasant smell due to a paper mill,
and is the place where I lived with Geoff's mom and sister for two
years). The purpose of our mission was to choose and then purchase a
wedding band for Geoff from his old friend Joel Detray (good guy, non-conflict diamonds). As much as I loathed living in Clarkston,
I have to admit it was a fun drive and wonderful visit. It was sunny
and warm, a glorious day, we bought Geoff's ring, and to top it off, we
had scones from Sage Bakery. As an avid lover of scones(and a one-time
baker) I'll say that Sage makes the best scones I have ever had in my
entire life. Geoff agrees. Rachel Graff agrees. Anyone who's tasted Sage
will agree: they are bliss. And what really sets them apart are not the
flavors, though those are amazing (just wrap your mind around raspberry
mango,to start) it's the texture. Sage bakery achieves a perfection of
scone texture that is nigh unattainable. I mean, there are scones, and
there are Sage scones. And this place where heaven comes just a little
closer to earth is in theLewiston-Clarkston Valley. Random!
On the way home we stopped to take pictures of a farmhouse fence made
entirely of old wheels. It's a local landmark and a slight to behold.
The point is, there are beautiful things to be found everywhere, even in places that smell bad and don't have Thai food.
The End.

So guest blog number one has wierd spacing issues. I will try and work that bug out for next time...but I enjoyed it. Thanks to my guest Tori and to the blogspot people that make this all happen, I give you a tip of the cap as well.

Gross!

So last night I worked a 10 hour and six minute shift. That's a long time to be on your feet. There wasn't a lot for me to do in the last 2 hours anyway. But, my manager had called me that morning and asked me if I could stay late to help the graveyard shift guy, since it was an overall busy day. Praise Jesus I have a job though!

Tea Partay

All I ask is that you give this a look and enjoy. I think it is a commercial that didnt actually make it to tv. I cannot take any credit for finding this, thanks are due to Rachel Graff for introducing me to this.

Enjoying some time with the fam.

I have been over on the west side of Washington since Sunday night visiting said family. My dad and I actually went to see the Mariners open their 2007 season on Monday night, and we were privilaged enough to see one of the most dominating pitching performances of my life. After the game I hung out in a local Irish Pub (The Owl and Thistle) with Ben Fife, which was equally as awesome. This has been a nice time away from the Ramada, but I will enjoy being back in Spokane come Thursday. Tomorrow, I hope to play some golf in preparation for The Masters this upcoming weekend. Should be great.

just wanted to say...

...I'm going to eat dinner in three minutes. In fact, I am over at Tori's house and she is watching me type saying that I do in fact only have three minutes. So there. I posted, and I am looking forward to dinner cuz I am hungry. I am probably out of minutes now.

Beatboxing Flute Sesame Street

Most of you have probably seen this guy already (i.e. pinas blog, or just of your own accord) but here you go any way. He is unreal!

huckleberrys are great!

This morning I had two pieces of wheat toast with a little bit of butter and some huckleberry preserves. Simply put, delicious.

The madness is maddening!

This is far and away my favorite season in sports that the year has to offer. These are the lovely moments in time that are affectionately referred to as March Madness. 64 teams are participating in the NCAA Basketball Tournament. Not only is this super event going on, but with the promise of spring comes baseball's spring training.
However, this March is much different for me. My team, Washington State, is actually participating in the tournament for the first time in 13 years. This is the same team that I worked with for two years as a student there. I poured so many hours in to that program, and they were so bad...now they are awesome! The down side of it all (which is also a big upside) I have a job. I missed our first round game which we won, but I am also working today during the entirety of the second round game, its maddening! This tournament is never a guarantee, so I don't know how many more opportunities I'm going to have to see them participate. I am so torn! Oh well, I needed the job and the Lord provided. Maybe I'm getting sick...cough, cough. Go Cougs!

I'm back.

I don't know if i was just recovering from the previous post, or if it was something else, but I acknowledge the fact that I have not posted in a while. Needless to say (because I already said it) I'm back. Tori and I were down in California since Thursday and we got back yesterday afternoon. We split time between Calvin Crest, Sacramento and Ripon. We enjoyed our time taking our engagement pictures up at camp. We actually had to snowshoe down to Sherwood because the snow was still so deep on the trails that have been covered by shade. The picture experience should be a post in and of itself. We also had some time in Sacto with Toris family, which was nice, and drum roll please...we spent time in beautiful Ripon, CA with our friends the Pinas (I don't know how to put a tilde over the n.) The whole trip happened so fast, but we both had an awesome time. For now, its back to the Ramada Inn.

Bubba vs. the deer

Today I witnessed one of the most amazing things my eyes have ever seen. Four youngish deer were in the Crotty's back yard. I was watching them watch the creek and watch me as they walked on their way. And then Bob (Mr. Crotty) got the idea that we should let Bubba have a go at them. I thought that was an ok idea knowing there was zero chance for Bubba to do anything remotly close to what he wanted to do to them. For some back story, the Crotty's dog Bubba, a 13 or so (nobody really knows how old he is, they got him as a stray) year old dog is a huskyish, wolfish, muttish type dog, and he is obviously getting up in years. But upon seeing the deer he took off after them, as he has done many times before. And of course...they ran off. End of story right? Wrong.
I watched Bubba as he continued to follow close behind (as close as the deer would let him.) And then he took off again. Three of the deer evaded him, but one freaked out and ran in to a fence, giving Bubba just enough time to hurl his mass at it; and he knocked the deer off its pins! (This is the point in the story where the squeamish should no longer continue their reading, but I must continue) Bubba proceeded to gnaw on the deers back leg. The deer got up, and Bubba knocked it over again The deer got a up a second time and Bubba knocked it over again and continued to gnaw. This was obviously causing a lot of ruckus so the neighbors were out trying to see what was going on, and what was letting out that God awful cry. Finally the deer got up a third time, and was able to zig zag the grasp of the leaping K-9. As Bubba chased after the deer(barking an insane bark that I had never heard uttered from his jowls previously) I was left to ponder what had just happened.
I'm pretty sure the deer made it away, and I was able to call Bubba off and grab him by the collar. But as he was running circles around me he had a crazed look in his eye, not to mention a mouth full of deer hair. I was in a state of shock. I will never look at the dog the same as we go on future walks together. I have a new found respect for said dog, and who knows if he wont be sizing me up next time. For know that's a risk I am willing to take in adventures with Bubba the deer slayer. Deep breath...wow.

guess who got a job?

Me! Praise Jesus. The search is over, I am in. I will now be your very own Front Desk Agent at the Ramada Inn in Spokane, by the Airport. I love the fact that I am an agent, I feel so Jack Bauer about the whole thing. I am going in today to fill out paper work and get the grad tour, and from there we will see where it goes. Thanks so much for all of the prayers, and now; its time to go to work!

Bathroomology

Last night Tori and I went out to dinner with Bob and Nancy Crotty at the Old Spaghetti Factory. The night was great, the conversation was great, and...come on...the Old Spaghetti Factory was pretty darn good too. But toward the end of our meal I made my way over to the bano (sorry about the lack of a tilde, I don't know how to do it) and upon arrival and stay, I noticed that the cleanliness of the room of rest, was very nice. When my business there was finished, I took the time to check out some of my favorite "hot spots" (for those of you who don't know what hot spots are, they are those places that are commonly missed when cleaning a bathroom appropriately, as well as places where hands often go) and to my delight, they were taken care of. The person(s) in charge of accommodations at the OSF are on top of their game. At least they were that night. As you all know (or at least know by now) I have mad appreciation for a clean b-room. Props to the Old Spaghetti Factory for their diligence in camode cleansing. Any other restaurants/places that any of you have noticed have a respect for the same fine art? Let me tell you, its a true pleasure.

an update

Still no job. Although over the weekend I didn't really look because of the holiday and the fact that Jeff and Krista Crotty were in town. It was fun seeing them and hanging out with them and their family. Many good stories, and many good times. The dogs have officially been watched, and I am not too much worse for the ware (I cant really speak for the dogs though.) And so I am off, back out to job search and see what happens. There you go.

crab apple tree pruning and dog watching

It is almost as if I am a part of the Crotty family. In this time of transition (and what feels like utter chaos) I am just living. I help out the Crotty's by doing projects that they would like to have done, if they had the time. In a small way, it is my way of saying thank you to them for allowing Tori and I to live so close, and they aren't even charging me; so generous. And this weekend I am going to be watching Matt and Laura Crotty's dogs and cats as they leave town to go skiing with Laura's sister (some much needed time away.) I help out where I can for now while I am officially looking for any job that will pay me actual money. I am putting production on the back burner for now (as North by Northwest has obviously backburnered me.) Oh well, life goes on. So if any of you out there know of anyone looking to hire in the Spokane area, I am interested...

will they come, or wont they come?

That is the question. As Tori and I are (trying) to finalize our guest list we are ever asking ourselves, will they be able to come or not? As we labor over these names that we love, it is SO hard to draw a definitive line. We were given a number of 175 that can attend and recept after the wedding. We feel like we could do that with just our friends (especially Calvin Crest folk.) But as the drive to 175 continues, we realize that all of our family and us are included in that number which makes it tough to whittle that number down. This is hard. But, I am ever impressed with the grace and tact that Tori is displaying throughout this whole process, she is carrying the load and doing an amazing job of it. It is a pleasure to see her in action, and even though stress comes and stress goes, it is a privilege to see how generally happy she is about all of the goings on. I am proud of her. She's a champ. Me on the other hand I just follow along, encourage, and try not to get too in the way, while helping sift out the details and offer my opinion. I guess you can never know just how stressful wedding planning/engagement is, until you yourself are in the middle of it. That's all for now.

Im frustrated

The job search here in Spokane is not going as well as planned. That is just the problem, I was made to believe that there was not going to be an actual search and that I was shoe in for the very job that I wanted (full time, benefits, everything) and now I am contacting these people every so often and they just take their time and throw me a bone here and there, but I am getting tired of it. I don't know exactly what I am going to do if this doesn't work out. Plus I am getting married in 5 months. I am happy about that. But, that means I am not just looking out for myself any more. I am going to have a wife. I am going to have to look out for the both of us, and this situation isn't working out. Needless to say I am a touch stressed. Other things are going well, but this one glaring issue is on the forefront of my mind. I would appreciate your thoughts and your prayers.
On a different and brighter note, I had an awesome dinner with Tony Biasell the other night. It was grand.

She's Back!

Last night at 5:25, yes, in the middle of the Super Bowl (I could have cared less) Tori arrived in Spokane. It has been nice, catching up on life. She shared stories of Spain with me and would I share stories of life here in Spokane, while she was gone. We had dinner, we went and sipped on coffee, I really just wanted to look at her for a while but we had to go our separate ways. Soon enough, even that will change. Today has been a day of getting things back in order again, and her final semester begins tomorrow. The fridge is stocked clothes are washed, and now its time to to try and fight off the jet lag, a process that no doubt will take a while. But, shes back...and that's just fine with me.

I have a dream...

There will be more to come on this later I have discussed this briefly with Ben Fife and at length last night with Shalene (come on we all only know one Shalene.) I cannot wait for Tori to get home!

the secret's in the sauce...I think?

Last night I was over at the neighbors house watching 24 and the Gonzaga basketball game. As the night was wearing on (pleasant of course) I began to notice a very pungent aroma. Understand that this neighbor (who will remain nameless) has two very old dogs, so naturally I became very suspicious. Every ten minutes or so that same smell would come wafting up my way and I couldn't figure it out, being that the dogs had been moving around. And that's when it hit me...Could it be me? No. It cant be. Or could it. I did have some pretty killer chili earlier that day, and well...we've all been there. So now I am paying really close attention to see who or what this odor was emanating from and as I am continuing to watch the game I couldn't help but chuckle to myself about my thoughts and this tricky situation.
The episode of 24 was great and the Bulldogs wound up winning, and in the end I was able to pin the malfeasance on to one of the dogs and my mind was laid to rest...at least I think it was that dog.

Under a week...

...until Tori comes home from Spain. Continued prayers for safe travel would be great. She is set to arrive the night of the 4th.