Restless

"A man climbs the mountains because he needs to climb, because that is the way he is made, Rock and ice and snow and wind and the great blue canopy of the sky are not all that he finds upon the mountain-tops.

He discovers things about his own body and mind that he had almost forgotten in the day-to-day, year-to-year routine of living. He learns what his legs are for, what his lungs are for, what the wise men of old meant by refreshment of the spirit"

-- James Ramsey Ullman

I've been feeling really restless lately. Since our trips to Maine, every day I go to work feels like going another mile away from nature. Working in the middle of the city doesn't help that, either. Surrounded by concrete, metal, and glass, there's not much fresh air in here. I go for walks at lunch to try to calm my nerves, but it doesn't last long.

The remedy? Camping on the weekends and getting outside as much as possible. The hot, humid air is almost gone for the year. My camping season is just starting! I'll go from now until Christmas, if the weather holds.

I have two trips in the plan already. September 9 thru 11 I'm going to Turkey Run State Park. That should be a lot of fun, because Turkey Run has some of the best hiking in central Indiana - and competes with the trails in Southern Indiana for the geological splendor you find in the creekbeds and ravines there.

September 23-25 I'm heading down to North Carolina to visit my old pal Joe Bucki. He's been living in the Asheville area for the last year and a half, and has finally settled down into a house and is ready to accept visitors. But, we won't be staying in the house, we be goin' campin'! I'm Appalachian Trail bound! - or at least for a night. We're going to go out Saturday and camp, then return to civilization on Sunday morning, with just enough time for me to drive back to Indy and get ready for the onslaught of the work-week.

The trips should allow me to at least get some fresh air, though. Lauren is going to Turkey Run, but because of school isn't going to North Carolina with me. I'll miss her, but she said I'd have more fun without her. I guess that's her way of saying that going 3 days without a shower is really kind of a guy thing. I can understand that...and respect it. But for me, that's what it's all about!

Downtown Indy, and Fishing

I've finally developed a roll of film that's been in my big SLR camera for months. Literally months - 2 or 3 I think! They are from an outing I had downtown earlier this summer, and a fishing trip with my dad where we caught some really big largemouth bass. It was fun. Here are the photos!


- He loves this fish, you can tell.


- This is another one, that looks just like the one above.


- Now this one is the same as the one above. Such a nice fish...


- On the circle, Indianapolis, Indiana


- The buffalo head - Downtown Indianapolis, Indiana


- The wedding cake at my Indiana reception this past weekend. It was made by a co-worker's mother-in-law. It was very nice, delicious, and looked really good too!

Cooking with Mark Twain

"Always acknowledge a fault. This will throw those in authority off their guard and give you an opportunity to commit more." - Mark Twain

I've recently been reading Mark Twain's "Following the Equator" - a book about his 19th century travels aboard a cruise ship during a lecturing tour. It is very funny, and full of sayings that just make you chuckle. Some even make you laugh out loud, spurting cola through your nostrils...if you're lucky.

In doing this, I've noticed myself thinking a lot about how he writes, and wondering if that's how he spoke as well. A co-worker and I often muse with the idea, trying to come up with an accent that would serve him well. It comes off sounding like Colonel Sanders - the KFC guy (or at least what we think he would sound like.) A deep southern drawl with big, Multi-syllable words tossed in for decoration. It's really quite humors to listen to, especially when my co-worker's imagination takes hold. He can describe an ordinary wall clock as if it were the most magnificent piece of time keeping machinery ever made by humans.

That was the Twain part of the "Cooking with Mark Twain" entry here. The cooking part just refers to all of the fantastic cookwear Lauren and I have received for our wedding. And not just cookwear, but all kinds of gadgets, too. And I love gadgets. Things that slice, dice, juice, press, and even make pasta (with optional accessories, of course). We received a KitchenAid stand mixer - a thing of mechanical beauty. Just standing there in the kitchen staring at it is where you can find me most mornings....thinking of all the stuff I could mix with it, if only I had the time! So, with two of the biggest cookbooks ever produced, I'm going to start learning to cook. I already have a few standbys, but I'm talking about G.O.U.R.M.E.T. cooking. I'll have you all over to try it as I learn....and you can just deal with the burnt stuff!

New version of Flash!

Hello! For those of you who are geeks like me, you're probably getting all revved up for the new version of Macromedia Flash to arrive, aren't you?

Well I am. I've been reading about it for weeks now. On forums, the Macromedia site, and in the Macromedia Edge newsletter - all of them giving it glowing reviews, and even calling it "the best version of Flash ever!"

That's great, especially since I think MX 2004 Pro is pretty darn good. I started developing for real on Flash 5, 3 years ago. I've seen the program make leaps and bounds since then, and as my development skills get more and more advanced, I have also seen it's limits. Macromedia promises that we won't be disappointed this time....no more staying up until midnight coding some weird work-around for a problem that shouldn't exist - but does. Nope...they're saying this time the program will work with you...not against you!

I'm just curious to know how much the Actionscript is going to change...if at all. Maybe now we can finally make full use of Actionscript 2.0, and use the components without wanting to poke our eyes out?

I'll just have to see. I'm pleading with the bosses to let the department get a few copies to test it out. Who knows...it may really be "the best version ever!"

Pictures

- The harbor - Friendship, Maine


-Bait Shack - Friendship, Maine


- Dave (my new brother-in-law) and I carry the lobsters from the dock to the car for a nice dinner.


-Lobster buoys - Friendship, Maine


-The corner. - Kennybunkport, Maine


-Lauren aboard "Schooner Eleanor" - sailing in the cold Atlantic Ocean off the coast of southern Maine.


- My lovely bride, admiring a mosquito pond outside of Camden, Maine.



- Lauren sleeping on a bench in a park in Camden, Maine. (no, she's not homeless...it was just a nice afternoon for napping on benches.

Back in town.

Hello. I'm back! And now I'm married. I'm not sure it's completely sunk in yet....

The ceremony was absolutely beautiful. I cried like a little baby. I don't know why - it just happened, and once it started, I tried like hell to stop and couldn't until it was all over, and I had to get my self together for pictures!

Here's what I remember - I am standing there beforehand, at this little chapel overlooking the sea (and it was a gorgeous day!). Jason and my dad (the groomsmen) were there with me, and we were just milling around as guests started arriving. There were only 30 guests total, so there wasn't a LOT of milling around...just enough. Then, all of the sudden, I hear a "2 minutes" announcement, and I'm standing next to the lady we hired to do the ceremony. She's a pagan witchdoctor we hired for the non-denominational wedding - KIDDING! She was a local notary, and in Maine, notaries can marry folk. It just seemed simpler to us, and that's what we wanted.

SO, I'm standing there, with my groomsmen and the notary and Lauren's sister Kimmie and our soon-to-be sister in law Cindy (Lauren's brother's fiance) came up the stairs and stood beside us. I recall thinking that they both looked just like Lauren wanted them to - and they had on flip-flops with little sparkling things on them! That was a nice touch!

Then, the pianist started playing the song we picked for Lauren to come up to - Pacabel's Canon - and she came up the chunky rock stairs with her father. As she got closer, I felt it become more and more real. My lower lip began to quiver, and I knew I was a goner!

I shook Roger's hand, and took Lauren's. I was now a total mess. Shaking, trying not to cry, trying to keep looking at Lauren, but that was so tough. So I looked out at the ocean, then to the bridesmaids, then to Lauren. Too tough....back to the ocean - bridesmaids - Lauren... I kept this up for the first half of the ceremony, when the notary was just speaking...then it was our turn.

We had to recite the longest vows ever written. It was seriously 2 double spaced pages of stuff. I remember - Lauren went first. I was a complete wreck by now, because I felt like I really should look at Lauren now, since this is the important part. So, trying to hold it together and look at her, I listened as she repeated the vows. About half way though I looked over at the notary's paperwork. She turned the page...and I saw the remaining vows. I kind of chuckled to myself...thinking "did we pick the longest vows ever or what!" Before I knew it, it was my turn. How was I going to do this?

I have heard stories of people who get married and they say that when they repeat the vows, it's like it comes from somewhere else, outside of their own body. I have to say this was the case for me. I couldn't feel any part of my body, but somehow I was repeating the vows. I didn't know if anyone could hear except for Lauren, because it sounded really quiet, and I recall not being able to open my jaw- for some reason it was locked! But I got through it.

With the vows came the exchange of rings, and then after that came a "rose ceremony", where the first gift is given to one another - a single stemmed rose. I'm working on getting that in written form to post up here. It was really quite lovely.

Then, we were done, and I wanted to gallop out of the chapel. Too bad it's a 5.10 climb out of it, and I had to walk Lauren down the big stones. She had to keep telling me to slow down, because after all, she was wearing heels!

We had photos taken with all kinds of family and friends, and then we went to the reception. It was all very nice. Small, from the heart, and in a beautiful place. I couldn't ask for more.