Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Well, I apparently have at least one regular reader, my friend, Jim, from Davenport (Hi, Jim!).

As a result of his email, we're doing a year-rewind in this entry and a brief Holiday update (which will be completed post-New Year's).

At the beginning of this year, I was located just south of Cincinnati, OH.



In July, I learned I was going to move to Las Vegas, NV.

My Dad and my friend, Liz, came to help drive the 2,000 miles west. That was a fun time, even though it was hectic. When we got to Las Vegas, Liz and I had tickets to see the current incarnation of Guns N' Roses at The Joint. I wish my Dad could have stuck around for a bit longer, I have fun hanging out with him.

Liz and I won tickets to Disney Live! Magic Show, Frightdome (can't find our tickets), and Pauly Shore at House of Blues.

Liz' Dad came to visit, as did her mom. Liz, Mark, and Michelle got a new couch when her Mom came out.



Rob came to visit right before Thanksgiving (all of our pictures from that weekend are on Liz and Mark's computer, so they'll be here later).

We went to San Diego for Thanksgiving to visit Aunt Ginger and Uncle Jeffrey. Liz' Mom and Dad met up with us out there. We also visited the zoo and LegoLand (we have to drop the film off to be developed, so pictures will be added later as well).

Jordan, from high school, popped in for a weekend just after Thanksgiving. None of us brought our cameras, but we all met up at the outdoor bar at Caesar's, had lunch at Margaritaville (thank you, Jordan), wandered around the Flamingo (do they feed the flamingos shrimps with food dye as well?), watched an old lady dance in an outfit she should not have been dancing in, and ended the evening driving Jordan back to Circus-Circus.

Things are mellow at work right now, we got delayed. Which is why I spent Christmas in Las Vegas instead of catching a flight to Florida (when we got notice, it was too late to get a good fare).

Christmas was fun, Michelle had a great time delivering and then helping everyone open the gifts. Michelle received several new outfits, three pairs of shoes (including some Crocs), her ornaments, a new suitcase, and a new chair equipped with a cupholder. Liz and Michelle received Santana Moss jerseys from Mark, Mark got Liz and I a room at the Luxor for January 27th, I hope Liz and Mark have a pleasant time at dinner at the Italian restaurant down the hall from the pub, and all of us will be enjoying the Red Rock spa deal we got. I was very proud of Michelle when we opened my gift and she exclaimed "Bob!" (LEGO's Adventures at Bikini Bottom set).

My folks sent me several things, including a book about the Rolling Stones, a new handbag, perfume from my younger sister, and two beautiful bookends (they are stones with various veins of blue color running through them). I feel bad, I had no idea what to get my older sister and her family and after talking to my folks, I was somewhat under the impression that Jamie was not going send a present this year, which is fine, she has 2 kids. My mistake...Jamie sent me steak knives and Weber Grill tools. I need to figure out something to send her, I just have no ideas (any suggestions are welcome).

For New Year's, Liz, Michelle, and I will be catching a flight back to Washington, D.C. Liz and I are attending the Redskins/Giants game, Michelle can chill out with her Grandma and PawPaw, and Mark can relax.

To be continued...

We left out of Las Vegas at 6:30 a.m., which meant we had to arrive at the airport around 4:30 a.m. Our flights were fine, we went through Chicago, not Denver, and arrived at Reagan-National around 2:00 p.m. Liz' Mom and Dad picked us up and we headed back to their house. We had a quiet evening, had fondue for dinner, and started to watch Cars again. I was the first person to fall asleep, followed quickly by Michelle and then Liz.

Saturday morning, we opened presents and then Liz' Mom and Dad headed down to the closest UKrops to pick up some sandwiches for Michelle's party on Monday. Traffic was absolutely horrendous and around 5:00 p.m., her folks called us and told us to give a neighbor a call to see if she could watch Michelle for a bit so Liz and I could start heading toward the football game. We dropped Michelle off, made it to the Franconia-Springfield Metro around 5:20 p.m., and hopped on the train.

If the fare card machine was actually working properly, we would have caught the earlier train. Liz and I transferred at King Street and it was somewhat amusing when we overheard one guy telling his buddy "no, we don't transfer here, they are going to be two minutes behind us all the way." Apparently, he didn't understand how the metro runs, so he and his buddy ended up on our train at the Pentagon. We switched back to the Blue Line at L'Enfant Plaza and found Rob in the process. So, the faulty fare card machine was actually a good thing, as Rob was able to catch the same Blue Line Liz and I were using, find us at L'Enfant Plaza, and ride with us to Morgan Boulevard. We decided to hike down the hill, up the hill, and then around the bend to FedEx instead of catching a $5 shuttle. For those transit folks interested in our trip on the metro, go to www.wmata.com and click on the metro train map.

We had fun at the game, even though we lost. Rob went with David, his brother-in-law, and our friend, Bartley, was there as well. We met up with Bartley after the game. Things were not as festive in the band area after the game this year, perhaps it is because our season ended and there are no play-offs for us. Last year, there was food all over the place and people partying in the band lot. I'm figuring that may be the reason that the FedEx sign is not on, like it was last year. We hiked back up to the metro, took the Blue Line all the way around (we were on the last train), left Rob at Van Dorn Street, and finally arrived at Franconia-Springfield. We made it home sometime after 3:00 a.m.

On Sunday, Liz and Michelle went to visit Sandy and Ned, Mark's folks, and her Dad went to church. Liz' Mom and I hung out, reading the paper, and trying to figure out if it would be better for me to go to DC today or tomorrow for Ford's Lying in State. We figured today would be better because dinner was going to be served after 7:00 p.m. because there was a church service that evening vs. Michelle's party at 1:00 p.m. the following day. I was dropped off at the Franconia-Springfield metro, took the same Blue/Yellow combination into the District, and deboarded at the Archives/Navy Memorial Station just before 3:00 p.m.

I walked along Pennsylvania Avenue, toward the Capitol, not knowing what to expect. Rob and I attended President Reagan's Lying in State in June 2004. He and I got in line at 6:00 p.m., after scoring a most excellent parking spot (I was able to see my car from all points, so I knew it hadn't been stolen), and walked down the steps of the Capitol at 11:30 p.m. When Rob and I walked back to my car, we were amazed that the line had grown by at least twice the size of that at 6:00 p.m.

This time, as I approached the Capitol, the line was disappointing, in my opinion. Admittedly, the Reagan administration coordinated the fall of the Soviet Union, along with Margaret Thatcher and Pope John Paul II. But Ford also served as President of the United States and that in itself deserves respect (note: friends will have to drag me to Clinton's and Carter's, but I will attend out of respect for the dead, as much as I disagree with their positions).

At Reagan's, the Capitol Police had a "check" area, where folks could check their cameras, bottles of water, sunscreen, etc, and pick them up afterwards. There was no check-point this time around, people were allowed to take such items into the Capitol. The Capitol Police were not as militant this time, perhaps because this was the second Lying in State in just a few years and they learned from Reagan's or perhaps because they were not expecting the massive turnout that Reagan's produced.

I was offended when people used digital cameras to record their journey around the casket, I don't record my friends' funerals, why would I record this? Yes, it is an event, but one has to remember the person inside the casket and their family. The chick recording her trip around the casket reminded me of the lady's cell phone that went off TWICE during The Changing of the Guard at Reagan's. I tell my family and friends about the experience and that is their memory, although my Dad watched C-Span for hours in order to see Rob and I walk through the chamber at Reagan's. Anyhow, I was in line at 3:15 p.m. and walking down the steps at 4:15 p.m. God Bless You, President Ford, and thank you for your service to our country.


Since paying respect to President Ford took quite a bit less time than we all expected, I headed on over to the Archives. Since I arrived about 4:50 p.m., right before closing, I decided to take the "American Triangle" tour (reference to the Louvre in Paris) and see the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights. There was time for me to actually read the information in the display cases, unlike my trip in elementary school, when there was no time whatsoever. In addition to the Triangle, there was Ford's first Oath of Office and excepts from his final State of the Union address as well as the 1297 version of the Magna Carta. The Archives closed at 5:30 p.m., at which point in time I headed off to catch the Red Line to Shady Grove to meet up with Liz and Michelle up at Ned and Sandy's.

Dinner was excellent. Duck is good, very good (damn, the lamb Liz' Mom made us out here was really good as well). I will now blame Liz and her family for my more expensive dining habits. Although, I do miss my Daddy's steaks. My Dad redeemed the Petty's gift card for New Year's dinner.

After dinner, Liz and I headed over to Rob's for a New Year's party. We got there later than expected, but had fun. It was nice to see everyone in one location and Liz and I liked our hats (although, Liz' didn't stay on very well). Rob was wearing a little hat inside a big hat, which was cute, imo.

Monday was Miss Michelle's third birthday party...and she is only two. God help us all when she hits 10, 16, then 18, and finally 21.

The party was somewhat delayed due to a 4 car pile-up on 95 South near the Lorton exit. And Michelle took a nap. Liz went upstairs to wake up Michelle so she could make an appearance at her own party. We had fun, it was nice to see folks from Liz' church again, and Michelle had fun opening her gifts. We were somewhat disappointed that more people didn't make it, Liz' folks planned for 60 and only 20 turned out.

Our flights home were fine, Michelle was a bit more fussy this time around. She calmed down a tad after we got the minimeal (Liz and I redeemed free drink coupons), and took a second nap after she and Liz returned from the restroom (Michelle got mad b/c she couldn't roam the plane/not get back into her seat, which reminded me of Anna being stuck in a car-seat for 3 days as my older sister and I drove from South Bend, IN to Bismarck, ND).

Overall, it was a very fun holiday. Michelle is a good plane traveler, she deals with the change in elevation/altitude very well.

I'll update the pictures as soon as I can, Liz' Dad has some saved on his machine.

And Happy New Year to All!