Year 25
I meant to write some kind of 2009 wrap-up post, and then a 2010 kick-off post, and all of the sudden it's May. Anyway, a lot of awesome things have happened in the past year, so consider this post a toast.
I met Anna for our first date on April 24th, 2009, which means we just celebrated our first anniversary. I took her to Brenner's steakhouse for some excellent steak and a nice stroll through their Hidden Gardenesque interior. In a sense it's surprising that we've only been together a year, because it feels like we've known each other much longer. We share just about everything together. We tell each other about our work/research...she holds focus mitts and thai pads for me when I can't make it to Muay Thai...she's shown me some Pilates...Toby, her cat, has become our cat...I introduced her to Lost, and she introduced me to “X” and “Death Note”...I introduced her to Blokus and Settlers, and she introduced me to that crazy Russian card game...she introduced me to Battle for Wesnoth, and, well, Andyr, I suppose, introduced both of us to Demigod. Oh! And she comes to hear me sing with G&S groups, and she's joined the MOB on cymbals.
I asked her to come live with me pretty early in our relationship. She was frequently staying weekends, but I felt guilty about keeping her away from her cat. And it just didn't make sense for her to go back and forth in mind. I should have probably thought a bit more about how her parents would react...I've been away from my folks for so long I didn't think twice about pulling her away from her parents. But they've had me over for dinners, and we've had them over for dinners here, and I feel like one of the family already. And my family adores Anna.
I've been really happy to have her here at Kismet. One of the things I was worried about when it came to getting a house was that I felt like it would be a big empty place. I've had an older brother or a roommate pretty much my entire life. Anyhow, that certainly wasn't the only reason to invite Anna to come live with me, but it makes me very happy to have Kismet be /our/ house.
The fact that I have a house is, of course, the other big change in the past year. I've hosted a few parties, and I've had a few house guests so far. It's awesome. It's true, I should be doing more with it, and that's been kind of my informal new year's resolution-to do more around the house. How's that going? Well...we've /started/ a gardening project...and we finally ordered a rug for the family room...we've also talked about where to put photos on walls, but that's yet to be implemented. I have been really happy with the couches, TV, and bedroom furniture that we've purchased. And, of course, that's all the /important/ stuff, so there hasn't been that same sense of urgency for anything else.
Performing as “Pooh-Bah” in the RLOS Mikado was a blast. I had a ton of fun playing that character. I think my singing was so-so, but people generally thought I was really funny in the role. Oh! And getting into the HG&S Pirates last year was quite a surprise. I remember my thinking at the time was that I'd audition for the experience. Well, I certainly got a great experience out of it.
Work's been hectic lately. I put in some extra hours to try to get this design finished, so that I can test a different tool and hopefully finish that in time to return my attention to a third tool. It's been really good experience, though. Of a different sort than singing in a chorus, I suppose, but useful in its own way.
I met Anna for our first date on April 24th, 2009, which means we just celebrated our first anniversary. I took her to Brenner's steakhouse for some excellent steak and a nice stroll through their Hidden Gardenesque interior. In a sense it's surprising that we've only been together a year, because it feels like we've known each other much longer. We share just about everything together. We tell each other about our work/research...she holds focus mitts and thai pads for me when I can't make it to Muay Thai...she's shown me some Pilates...Toby, her cat, has become our cat...I introduced her to Lost, and she introduced me to “X” and “Death Note”...I introduced her to Blokus and Settlers, and she introduced me to that crazy Russian card game...she introduced me to Battle for Wesnoth, and, well, Andyr, I suppose, introduced both of us to Demigod. Oh! And she comes to hear me sing with G&S groups, and she's joined the MOB on cymbals.
I asked her to come live with me pretty early in our relationship. She was frequently staying weekends, but I felt guilty about keeping her away from her cat. And it just didn't make sense for her to go back and forth in mind. I should have probably thought a bit more about how her parents would react...I've been away from my folks for so long I didn't think twice about pulling her away from her parents. But they've had me over for dinners, and we've had them over for dinners here, and I feel like one of the family already. And my family adores Anna.
I've been really happy to have her here at Kismet. One of the things I was worried about when it came to getting a house was that I felt like it would be a big empty place. I've had an older brother or a roommate pretty much my entire life. Anyhow, that certainly wasn't the only reason to invite Anna to come live with me, but it makes me very happy to have Kismet be /our/ house.
The fact that I have a house is, of course, the other big change in the past year. I've hosted a few parties, and I've had a few house guests so far. It's awesome. It's true, I should be doing more with it, and that's been kind of my informal new year's resolution-to do more around the house. How's that going? Well...we've /started/ a gardening project...and we finally ordered a rug for the family room...we've also talked about where to put photos on walls, but that's yet to be implemented. I have been really happy with the couches, TV, and bedroom furniture that we've purchased. And, of course, that's all the /important/ stuff, so there hasn't been that same sense of urgency for anything else.
Performing as “Pooh-Bah” in the RLOS Mikado was a blast. I had a ton of fun playing that character. I think my singing was so-so, but people generally thought I was really funny in the role. Oh! And getting into the HG&S Pirates last year was quite a surprise. I remember my thinking at the time was that I'd audition for the experience. Well, I certainly got a great experience out of it.
Work's been hectic lately. I put in some extra hours to try to get this design finished, so that I can test a different tool and hopefully finish that in time to return my attention to a third tool. It's been really good experience, though. Of a different sort than singing in a chorus, I suppose, but useful in its own way.