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John

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Family additions

Last week Laura and I welcomed two new additions to our little family.

A new laptop computer and desktop computer!

The best part is that they are fully potty trained, don't wake us up in the middle of the night, and they'll never have to go to college (although they have had the tendency to talk back once in awhile).

Laura and I had been considering a laptop for awhile. When Laura visits her family in Iowa she would take it with her so she'd never be out of touch with work, not to mention her friend. And I would be able to use it when meeting with my freelance clients to share design ideas and demonstrate website functionality. We share. We're good like that.

We decided on an HP Pavillion Laptop available at Best Buy.


It's a gorgeous, roomy laptop covered in a bronze color accented with chrome. It has Laura's eyes and my love of cheese.

On Friday, we were blessed again with the arrival of my new desktop computer from Dell. I ordered an XPS 420 with a few upgrades and, so far, am very pleased with it.


I've been running Vista for awhile now and my old computer was struggling to keep up with it. I didn't even realize that I purchased that computer over five years ago, which is ancient in terms of performance, so it was time for something new.

Check out the difference in Vista system performance scores! 5.9 is the highest score you can receive with today's hardware (at least that's what I've read). Saweet! And, seriously, it has already saved me time working on things, which is huge!


Not to worry, we aren't abandoning the old system. We have many years and fond memories between us - so I'm going to put it to good use for various testing purposes.

Please join us in welcoming our new additions. We look forward to many years of productivity, games, communication, and browsing.

Did I mention they don't spit up? Awesome.

Thanksgiving

I love Thanksgiving - it signals the beginning of the holiday season and encourages indulgence. Thanksgiving also gives us pause to reflect and count our blessings, the things we are thankful for.

This year I gave sincere thanks for my family, my friends, my job, and, of course, Laura. I am defined by those I am thankful for and, in turn, am eternally grateful. I am luckier than most - and I am thankful for that.

On Thanksgiving, my parents and I descended on my sister's house for an awesome meal (and football). Laura left earlier that morning for Iowa to visit her parents, but left me instructions on how to prepare an awesome salad (she's so awesome).

It was great to catch up with my parents and watch football with my dad - he was an excellent advisor for my football picks, although I did blow it big time on the Philly/Arizona game (ugh).

My niece, Sarah, played the shy girl with me for half of the day, but she and I met across from each other at the dining room table and I was able to get some fun photos of her.


After dinner, Sarah warmed up to dad a bit and let him read to her. I love this picture!


She let me read to her too, but we don't have a record of that. Trust me, it happened! It was a book with a lot of flaps in it, so hidden characters were abound.

We had a great day overall - and it's great to think that mom and dad will be back in three weeks to celebrate Christmas!

I'm back

After a few months on hiatus, I'm back. To usher in my return, I thought I would indulge you (and myself) by participating in THE TAG! I've been tagged by a couple of friends, so I felt it was a good way to get back into the groove.

What's THE TAG? Thanks to a little copy and paste from my friend, Erin, here's the deal:

1. Post the rules on your blog
2. Write 6 random things about yourself
3. Tag 6 people at the end of your post
4. If you are tagged, just do it, and pass the tag along!

Okay, so the rules are now posted. It's time to reveal 6 random things about myself:

1. I am a closet rock star. Depending on the song (and my mood) I am the singer, the lead guitar, rhythm guitar, bass guitar (my favorite), or drums. Give the keyboard to someone else. I know it's completely dorky, but I love to jam out to my favorite songs, sans any instruments.

2. I'm a morning person. I would never have thought I would turn out this way given the fact that I slept in very late during my high school summer vacations. I'm sure my years at Target as Logistics Manager (at the store by 4:30 a.m.) helped mold me in this regard. Depending on what I'm doing, I can be a night owl too, but typically I'm done by 10:30 p.m.

3. I have Amish heritage. Yep. My dad's side of the family is Amish. I am very thankful my dad had the courage to leave his family and blaze his own path. Otherwise I would be on the other end of a horse and buggy right about now.

4. I am a very optimistic person. I approach each day as an opportunity to achieve goals and make today better than yesterday. Along with this, I tend to give everyone the benefit of the doubt on just about everything - I'm not a very suspicious person. But don't let that fool you - if you're trying to screw around, I'll get it.

5. I love golf. Even though I'm really just a hack, I love getting out on the course. My dad has commented that golf is a game for optimists. I think he's 100% correct. Even a lousy day of golf is better than any day at the office.

6. I'm a comic book fan. I've collected comic books since I was old enough to read them. For me, a good comic book has to have a good story and really great art - I'm a very visual guy. I'm a mainstream DC and Marvel fan (The Avengers, Spider Man, Justice League of America, Ultimates, X-Men, etc.) and can tell you pretty much about any of them, so if you have questions, just ask. Riiiiiight.

I'm supposed to TAG 6 more people, but I don't have that many people on my blog list, so I'll just pick KATIE and JODIE (if they haven't done this already).

More to come!

The stuff of nightmares

Courtesy of www.coryhollenhorst.com.

Laura's birthday

Happy birthday to my wonderful girlfriend, Laura!


To celebrate Laura's birthday, we met Amy and Dewey at Wildfire in Eden Prairie on Saturday evening - Laura absolutely LOVES the Halibut at Wildfire, and it did not disappoint. Afterwards we finished the evening at the ever popular Redstone restaurant and enjoyed their patio since the weather was nearly perfect.


A little plug for the iPhone. I had installed a free application called Shazam earlier in the day and it really came in handy at Redstone. Shazam is a song recognition application - it's really amazing. If you hear a song on the radio or in a restaurant and want to know the name of it and the artist, just press the button. For about 20 seconds, the iPhone listens to the song, analyzes it, and then displays the information - from there you can buy it from iTunes if you so choose. We did this probably a dozen times on the patio at Redstone, it was really fun! For the record, they played tunes by Jimmy Doresey, Fred Astare, Rosemary Clooney, Diana Krall, and Earth Wind and Fire, just to name a few.

Sunday was Laura's actual birthday and the first words out of her mouth were "I want pancakes". And since it's a rule in our home to give the birthday child whatever they want for breakfast, I placed an order at Perkins and picked it up so we could eat in our pajamas.

In the afternoon we saw The Dark Knight at the local AMC theatre. I read a headline today that said The Dark Knight has grossed over $300 million in the past 10 days and is poised to beat Titanic as the highest grossing film of all-time. Laura and I both thought The Dark Knight was FANTASTIC!! You don't even have to be a Batman fan to appreciate the movie.

Keith Ledger's Joker was brilliant. I read the reviews and thought, "Yeah, I get it, he died and we're honoring his memory by giving him good reviews". That is definitely NOT the case. He brought an entirely new dimension to the Joker character I've known since I picked up comic books as a child. I am sad that he's not around to reprise the role - he was amazing.

You won't believe this part. Laura had a hankering for White Castle.

Yeah. Sliders.

So she went to the grocery store to get stuff for salads, and I went to White Castle to get the burgers.

We ended up skipping the salads. Ha!

I just have to say - there is something about birthdays. It's a special day for both the birthday boy/girl and those around them. We tend to measure the day's success on the happiness of the birthday boy/girl, and I'd call this day (weekend) a success. Laura's happiness is of paramount importance to me every day, but especially on her birthday. And if I can make it a good day by doing even the simplest of things, then it was a good day. And it was.

Happy birthday, Laura - I love you!

iPhone

I've been waiting for June 11, 2008 for over a year.

On June 11, 2008 I waited even more.

In two lines.



Apple launched the original iPhone on June 29, 2007 and I immediately wanted one. But with a $599 price tag, I just had to be patient and hope that the price would fall out of orbit in the future. I just couldn't justify spending that much money on a mobile phone. I mean, c'mon. Really.

So when Apple announced the new 3G iPhone and cut the initial price point in half, it had me at hello.

On Friday, June 11, 2008 I woke up at 4:00 a.m. determined to get a new 16GB black iPhone. During my morning shower I actually heard the Rocky theme echo in my shower. Not the "Eye of the Tiger", but the real Rocky theme. With a splash of my aftershave, a zip of my jeans, and a gulp of orange juice, I was out the door on a mission.

My first stop was the AT&T store in Maple Grove. I did a drive-by and saw a line of people wrapped around the building in their comfy nylon chairs. I contemplated on joining them, but declined given that it had rained overnight and the mosquitos and gnats would be incredibly annoying (the line had extended into the grass next to the building).

I opted to stand in line at the AT&T store located in the Eden Prairie Mall. A week prior I had spoken to an AT&T employee and they said the mall would open at 6:00 A.M. to allow iPhone buyers a chance to wait inside. An additional bonus for me was the mall was five minutes from my place of employment.

I arrived at the Eden Prairie Mall at 6:25 A.M.

I was the 20th person in line.

AT&T employees surveyed the crowd one-by-one asking what kind of iPhone they wanted, if they were changing carriers, things like that. They were also handing out free bottles of water and some snacks from a nearby Caribou coffee.

Around 7:45 A.M. people started showing up in front of me, courtesy of people holding a spot for them. Hey, nice.

8:00 A.M. the doors opened.

Groups of 10 were being allowed inside.

At 8:30 A.M. I was the fourth in line to get in the door. I looked inside the store's window to see the action inside. It looked like an airline counter with half a dozen people behind the counter with a line of buyers in line.

One of the AT&T guys came out and said, "We're almost out of 16GB black iPhones" and indicated with his hands where he thought the supply would end. He estimated a few people behind me.

I hoped against hope. I thought, "C'mon, I was the 20th person in line, even though five inconsiderate and disrespectful jerks cut in front of me during the last few minutes. It just can't happen this way."

Then the hammer fell.

"We are out of the 16GB black iPhone."

There were three people ahead of me. I didn't even make to the doorway. I was four people away from getting what I wanted. F*ck. I was pissed.

I left the line. I left my spot. Gave it to someone else. Seeya.

I jumped in my car and drove to Southdale mall. Southdale had an Apple store and I thought they might have more in stock than an AT&T store.


I walked in to see every high school student in the south metro standing in line to get one. Seriously, it looked like an America's Got Talent audition line, although I didn't see any juggling acts or acappella boys bands. I turned around and thought, "forget it."

I went to work around 11:00 A.M.(hello, gotta work) and was not happy. Got through the day and thought about stopping at the Ridgedale Apple store on the way home.



Sure enough, a long line, but not quite a long as I had imagined. I walked by the Apple store and asked a clerk if they had any 16GB black iPhones left. "Only white", she replied. I left and went home.

Once home, Laura and I went to the grocery store and began talking about what we wanted to do that evening. Go out for dinner? Rent a movie? Wait in line all evening for an iPhone?

After expressing my disappointment at not getting an iPhone, Laura suggested I call the Apple store at the Mall of America. I told her there was no way they'd still have any in stock at that time. In her infinite wisdom she casually said, "Well, you'll never know unless you call." So I called.

"Hi, I'm wondering if you've ever heard of the iPhone", I joked with the guy who answered.

"Hahaha! Yes, I just heard of it today. In fact, you're the first person to call about it." (I always love retail humor.)

"I know this is a longshot, but I'm wondering if you have any 16GB black iPhones left."

"Yes we do!"

"You do?!?"

"Yes, but we have about 200 people in line right now..."

"Would you say you have enough 16GB black iPhones for, say, half of them?"

"I really couldn't say..."

I hung up the phone and told Laura the news. Then she asked me, "If they run out of black phones, are you going to be happy with the white one?" I pondered her question, "At this point, I think I would be."

She continued, "Because, really, it's the same phone. And you're going to have a cover on it 99% of the time protecting it anyway", and even though that basic reasoning made perfect sense, the fact is that I didn't even think of that. I was stuck on the color black, but the fact of the matter is that it wouldn't matter 99% of the time. This is one of the many reasons I love Laura.

We hopped in the jeep and headed down to the Apple store at the Mall of America.



We arrived at 7:15 p.m. and, to our delight, the line didn't seem to be that bad. We had fantasies of getting through the line, driving back to Maple Grove and hitting Champps for a late dinner and drinks while playing with our iPhones.

Maybe not.

We stood in line for two hours when we were finally ushered inside...where we waited in another line for another hour. It was a little stuffy in the Apple store, but I guess that will happen when you cram a couple of hundred people into a box.

After an hour we were greeted by our personal shopper, Zack. Or, as Laura and I like to call him, "Zack on Crack". Zack on Crack had been working since the store opened and was supposed to go home an hour before he helped us. But due to the heavy volume of traffic, he was asked to stick around to help. Lucky us.

If you've never been to an Apple store, here's the scoop. They don't have cash registers or your typical check-out counter. Each sales person has a handheld device which can swipe your credit card and send your receipt to your e-mail address. So when you're ready to go, you just tell any available rep anywhere in the store and they'll take your money and send you on your way.

Zack on Crack dropped is handheld device right in front of us and the touchscreen didn't respond too well after that. And to make matters even more enjoyable, it seemed like Zack on Crack was exhausted and wasn't too confident in his abilities to transfer our accounts from Verizon to an AT&T family plan. He asked multiple questions of his co-workers, asked us for the same information about a dozen times.

Finally, around 11:00 p.m. SUCCESS! Laura's phone was activated and working! Her number is the primary number in our Family Plan, so she had to have her phone activated before my phone could be added.

But Zack on Crack was having problems porting my existing number to the new iPhone. The shift manager, Matt, stepped in to help out and figured out that Zack on Crack was trying to activate one iPhone while trying to port my number to a different iPhone.

It was 11:45 p.m. - the Apple store was closed, employees had gone home, but Matt had stayed late and solved the problem. He even gave us a $50 gift card to thank us for our patience. Awesome.

And was it worth it?

Considering you can't just walk into an Apple store and buy an iPhone today (there is a waiting list of 2-3 weeks), the answer is a resounding YES! Despite my personal enjoyment of the iPhone, my biggest smile came from Laura's reaction the next morning. As I was finishing the activation process on Saturday morning via iTunes, Laura was downstairs playing with her iPhone. I'd hear giggles and laughs as she discovered how to do different things.

Finally she said, "This is so cool! Why would anyone ever have a regular cellphone?"

Exactly.

P.S. The white iPhone is HOT!

Summer must be on the way

This past weekend was a busy and fun one! Dare I say summer is on the way?

As noted in the previous post, Sean, Ed, and I golfed in the MCD Open and took first place honors in their scramble tournament Friday evening. I can think of one or two worse things than starting the weekend a little early with some golf. Afterwards we all met at Jethro's Bar and Grill where Jay proceeded to dish out the door prizes and awards. Did I mention I had the world’s best patty melt there? Mmmm.

Saturday started out early as Laura and I hit the LifeTime Fitness for 45 minutes of cardio. We were trying to be good and rev up the metabolisms in leau of the day's activities. Vroom! Vroom!

Jill and Jeff invited a bunch of us over to their place for a little BBQ in the afternoon. It was really nice to see everyone after being virtual shut-ins for most of the winter. I was especially happy to finally meet Hannah, Chris and Katie's daughter. She is absolutely cute beyond words – nice work, you two.


Chris and Katie's oldest, Caleb, and Jay and Beth's youngest, Nicholas, became fast friends while playing together in the backyard. Somehow the playset became a ship sailing the seas with sharks surrounding them – I love that about kids!


Nick was the proud owner of his mom's golfing trophy from the tournament the evening before and would not part with it. Caleb created his own trophy from a TruGreen yard sign. Crafty Caleb, who knew?


The older boys, Ian and Jacob, spent their time in the basement playing games on the Nintendo Wii. Oh, they resurfaced when the chow was ready, but quickly resumed the gaming. You have to admire their dedication and persistence. Right?


The Stanton family pooch, Cleo, got into the act by playing a little baseball with Jeff. This particular pitch resulted in an inside-the-fence home run and Jeff was pulled after only one inning. Better luck next time, kid. Pack your bags, you're going back down to the minors.


Laura and I really enjoyed seeing everyone, filling up our tummies with some great food, and look forward to seeing everyone in another month at the annual Stanton summer party at the cabin.


Later that evening, Laura and I attended a wedding reception for friends that were married several months ago in Mexico. We met Amy and Dewey out for a few pre-reception cocktails. The girls chatted and got caught up while Dewey and I kept our eye on the U.S. Open at the bar. Go Tiger!


The reception was at Dellwood Hills Golf Club in White Bear Lake, MN. The bride, Tiffany, greeted us at the reception entrance where the girls visited and listened to all the juicy details of the wedding and recent life thereafter.


While the girls mingled inside during the reception, Dewey and I stepped outside to admire the gorgeous course. C'mon. Was there really a choice? You might as well dress us in metal pants and turn on a gigantic magnet. It was a perfect evening for golf, but it just wasn’t in the cards (deep sigh).



Sunday was a little less busy, although I did get to golf with Sean, Jay, and Ed at Cedarholm again. Not one of my better games, so we'll just leave it at that.

Isn't it great that summer seems to finally be here?

1st place

Sean, Ed, and I played in a golf tournament this evening at Island Lake Golf Center in Shoreview, MN. Our buddy, Jay, was the coordinator - it was his company's tournament, Medical Concepts Development (MCD).

Island Lake Golf Center is a nice 3-par course (par is 28) and we played a scramble format. Our group won by shooting one under - we shot a 27 - amid strong wind and minor drizzle.

We won super cheesy trophies!

Sweet.