May 26, 2008:  Happy Memorial Day everyone!  I hope you are all enjoying your long weekends if you have them.  Lisa did but she started on Friday and has to work a short day today, sucks but at least it should be a quiet day with most people out of town and the doctor's offices still closed.  The week was basically more of the same for us with work and everything.  They moved all of the engineering department into the other building with the rest of the company on Wednesday so I had to trade in my window seat overlooking the yacht club for a cubical with just one wall for privacy, yuck.  The worst part is that my group only has three people in it and they managed to split us up by the tallest cube wall in the area, brilliant planning there.  So now if we have to discuss anything, which we do all the time, we have to get up and walk around the wall.  I know this sounds like whining but we do this a lot, like 20 times a day so a lot of time is wasted by not just being able to talk to each other.  The worst part about it is that they only did it because there were a bunch of empty cubes in that building so when investors would come by they didn't get to see a crazy, loud, bustling office they heard crickets instead.  Someone decided to move all of us from one building to fill in the gaps, which there wasn't quite enough room for so they had to make up cube space out of corners and things.  They got their wish though, loud as hell and nobody can get any work done but at least that space is full now.  I did find out this week that I can't get out of that trip to Honolulu in June, total bummer.  I would be ok with it if I wasn't leaving Lisa with Stella to take care of all week while she works 12 hour shifts.  We haven't quite figured out how that is going o happen yet but we're working on it.  The worst part is that I'm going there to do someone else's job and a little bit of my own.  Don't get me wrong, it will be a cool trip, but the circumstances aren't great.  I'll be there for a week so I'm working on getting a bike box that I can use to pack and take the Prophet along for some island riding.  A friend of mine is also suggesting a trip to Moab for some riding in the fall so the box should come in handy over the years.  If I do end up taking it along and getting in some good riding I'll be sure to take a ton of pictures and may even get to post them up before I get back.  We didn't do all that much around here this weekend.  Saturday we went to Seattle and walked around near the bay and downtown a bit with Stella then took her to the park that I've been doing all my biking at for her introduction to walking off leash on trails.  She did very well and stayed with us the whole time, either a little in front or right behind but always with us.  She was so tired when we got back that we almost had to carry her into the house.  I got some of the garage attic project finished up in the evening and we both crashed pretty early.  Sunday I got up early and hit the trails with John for about 7 miles of muddy singletrack and we started it off as a test for Stella to run with me riding.  She did well but just doesn't have long enough legs or the stamina to really go with us yet.  She isn't afraid of the bike and doesn't try to bike my shoes or legs so she has the right idea, when she gets a little bigger she's going to be a great trail dog.  In the afternoon I worked more on the attic and ran into a little trouble with some wiring.  I say little because it started out that way but it ended up being a mess that could have been very dangerous.  I thought I was being careful with the framing nailer but I ended up hitting a wire with it.  I could smell wood burning and thought I saw where a nail may have just barely pierced a wire.  I shut down the breakers, inspected it and then taped it up, there was barely any mark on it.  When I turned the breakers back on there was a huge ball of fire and smoke from just a few inches away from the spot I taped up.  There was another nail that had gone right into the middle of the wire and I must have moved it just right when taping up the spot that didn't need to be taped.  I had to cut the wire and luckily had enough slack to put in a junction box and splice the wire together with some nuts.  It's fine now and I won't be using the nailer to put up anymore plywood up there.  The problem is that the nails seems to go in unpredictable directions after they first hit the wood, I was aiming fine but it shot out the side of the board right into the wire.  So that side of the attic is done, it took a lot longer than it should have but it's finished and I was able to move a bunch of stuff up there already.  I haven't taken any new pictures yet but I'll try to update the 'Projects' page later today or this week.  I also have a few, more like a hundred, pictures of Stella so keep watch on her page for updates.  I'm out for now, have a great week! 

May 19, 2008:  Hey everyone, I'm happy to report that we had a great weekend, the weather was awesome and Lisa was off work, what else could a guy ask for right?  There wasn't much to report at work for either of us during the week, just work.  I was able to get out with the guys for a nice mountain bike ride on Thursday night and wanted to again over the weekend but it was way too hot outside.  I know it sounds like crazy talk but it was in the 90's and sunny in Seattle and the Mariner's won two in a row!  We were able to get a good start on the garage storage project and hope to finish it up next weekend.  The folding, retractable ladder is finished and the lights and power outlet are up and running.  Check out those pictures and the pictures of the shed floor while you're there and keep watch for more.  We spent as much time as we could outside with Stella and took her on a few short adventures.  Out here you can take a dog just about everywhere, including Lowe's or Home Depot as long as they are on a leash and under control.  Seeing as we go to both of those places quite frequently we figured it would be a good idea to get her used to both places as a young puppy.  We started work on the garage attic project so she got to make a couple trips out this weekend and was extremely well behaved each time.  When we started putting her in the crate we keep in the Element she wasn't a big fan but she is quickly learning that fun things seem to happen after she goes for a ride in that crate so she seems to be totally cool with it now.  After seeing the other puppies from her litter and talking to the other owners we upped her amount of food a little more and she seems to have grown another few inches in the last week.  We went to a small lake near here with a nice path around it and some cool mountains all around.  Lisa grabbed a couple pictures and you can find them on Stella's page under 'Just Us' to the left.  She seems to be learning a lot more every day as well, good and bad.  Her puppy classes are over but the next class will be starting soon so ti will be nice to get her back into training again, she takes to it like a champ.  I found out today that I have to go to Hawaii for a week at the end of June which sounds great but really will be more of a bother than anything else.  I'll be alone, working all day outside in the sun and part of a few nights as well, and it's going to be tricky for Lisa to take care of Stella and work her normal shifts at the pharmacy.  I'm sure we'll figure it out but it would just be easier if I didn't have to go.  I'd much rather go there for my first time with Lisa and a suitcase full of clothes to enjoy some hiking, biking and maybe even kayaking, not a suitcase full of tools.  Anyway, have a great week and I hope you enjoy the updated pictures. 

May 11, 2008:  Hope you all had a great weekend, we are just wrapping ours up now and it's been great.  Jenn and Scott arrived earlier in the week and seemed to be having a great time, the weather hasn't been great but it is spring so that's generally what you get here.  Friday the tiles came in for the shed and after we got back from puppy class I was able to get all but three installed before I ran out of gas for the night.  I finished up the last ones in the morning on Saturday and it looks awesome, totally glad I did it.  Earlier in the week I was checking the hot tub chemical levels and noticed that the calcium was very low so I added the right amount.  Quickly I realized that was a bad idea as the water turned a milky white and I remembered that you aren't supposed to do that when using the PH lock that we put in it a few weeks ago when we did a water change.  The instructions told me to use something else to clear it up so I did and it worked great overnight.  I realized the next day however that all it did is cause all the calcium to attach itself to the tub as a hard, white, chalk like film.  I drained the water and spent four hours scrubbing to get it off, not my favorite way to spend a night.  It's all better now though and I certainly won't make that mistake again.  So Saturday night we went to a Mariner's game and Sunday we went to Ridgeback Fun Day with Stella, her mom, and five of her litter mates.  It was a lot of fun for us and the dogs.  She got to try lure coursing, sheep herding, agility, and played really hard with the other dogs and puppies.  I updated the pictures on her page to the left under 'Just Us' then 'Stella' if you want to take a look.  I'm going to run for now, Stella just got a bath and is passed out in front of the fireplace and dinner is ready so I'm out, enjoy the new photos and we'll talk again soon. 

May 8, 2008:  Wow it feels like it's been forever and I guess it kind of has.  We have been so busy I haven't had time to do much and I'll do my best to catch you up but will miss a bunch of stuff for sure.  My parents came to visit and had a great time, we got to go to Leavenworth and all kinds of fun places around the city.  The weather wasn't great but it stayed dry most of the time so that worked out to be good enough.  I got the shed painted the day they arrived and it actually looks pretty good.  I have rubber floor tiles on order and they should arrive tomorrow so if all goes well I'll get them installed on Saturday and the entire shed will be officially done.  My dad and I went out to a stone yard and picked up a stair tread to put in front of the door so now my parents can say they own a piece of Seattle and I don't trip while walking into the shed, it's really a win win situation.  Stella has been doing well at her puppy classes but we still have to work on the jumping and getting up on the furniture.  She has grown inches this week and put on almost 5 pounds so now she can really jump up onto things that she couldn't reach before, it's becoming a problem.  I've been able to get out a few times and do some riding so that's been fun, I'm hoping to get out this weekend as well if the weather stays mostly dry.  Naomi and Kyle had the baby a couple days before my parents arrived.  Indiana or Indi for short arrive a couple weeks early but is a very healthy and happy baby.  I believe Lisa has some pictures and I'll try to post one up for you to see real soon.  Jenn and Scott are here visiting this week.  Jenn is interested in going back to school at a local university for a completely different degree, kinda of like what Lisa did and she's here to check out the campus and figure out if they like the area or not.  They are crashing at our place for a few nights and then staying in Seattle over the weekend and exploring things there.  We might meet them Saturday night for a baseball game even though the Mariner's are doing aweful, maybe it will be the night they turn it around.  Anyway, I should get back to work for at least a little while but I'm glad we talked, it was nice.  Keep watching Stella's page for some new pictures, she's absolutely huge now and has plenty more to grow.  She was at about 27 pounds the other day so by now she's probably rockin 30 or more.  Have a great weekend and we'll talk more soon.