14Aug2005 - On Turning 40 and other musings

The picture is of a house in Old Wethersfield that is being renovated to it's previous grandeur. Not exactly in our neighbourhood but just a few minutes away. I'm not sure what the architectural style is but it sure is grand. I have started to post photo albums at the following link. Thanks to my cousin/friend Kirk for hosting the pics and knowing so much more about PC's than I do! You are a God (ok demi god)

http://www.bohica.net/photos/index.php?cat=10006

So far it includes a few wedding pictures and some pics of the house, dogs and the area around the house (some of which have been on previous pages here on the blog). I will make an album for Boston soon and plan to do the same when we head to New Hampshire next week. We're heading up to White Mountain National Forest to meet Ryan and Cristina (friends from San Antonio). It is home to Mt. Washington which is the highest Mountain peak on the East Coast. It's Kyla's 1st birthday on the 21st so we will celebrate it there. We're staying at a place called the Lazy Dog Inn, which is a B&B catering to dogs. The place is pretty cool! It includes doggie daycare and if we go out Brodie and Kyla will have their own space to hang out that is "climate controlled". In 2005 the Inn was voted "Most Pet Friendly B&B in North America", lucky dogs.

So today I enter my 40th year, 4 decades...Do I feel any different you ask? Not really. Do I have any regrets? Not really. Do I feel ultimately fulfilled? Yup. I've got a beautiful wife (kinda hot too), two great dogs, a wonderful place to live (actually 2 now) and my most pressing responsibility (at the moment) is to write a blog and water the dogs. BTW, thanks to all of you that sent cards for my birthday. I enjoyed them all (even the nasty ones).

Rayne is enjoying her job so far, in particular the people have been great. Last month when she went to Red Deer she had two fellows with her. One had been to Canada before (Toronto I believe but that's hardly Canada) and the other had never been at all. Not wanting her co-workers to think that TO and Red Deer were all that we had to offer, Rayne took a detour with the guys and went to Banff for dinner (since they had to fly out from Calgary the next morning). They were suitably impressed.

Another of her co-workers just attended a series of meetings in the Vancouver office (where Rayne and I used to work). When he came back he went straight to Rayne's desk, and asked Rayne if she was insane. Perplexed by the question and with a number of other staff members around the gent went on to explain that the office there (in Vancouver) was right on the ocean and in fact the view was of the False Creek yacht club. Rayne laughed as I suspect the others did too and she has been directing the staff to a Vancouver website that has some very nice pics on it (although I have taken some of the same places that I think are better, what me a Leo with ego?) here is the link:

http://www.seestanleypark.com/oursites/oursites.htm

On a side note. There was a fellow in Rayne's office recently that came from another part of the States. His first comment about the area was............the insane drivers. I feel somewhat vindicated given that other people feel the same way!

Brodie and Kyla bought me birthday presents, go figure. I'm not sure exactly where they got the cash or the wherewithal but I am glad to say they got me a "Day of Relaxation". The contents included Harrry Potter's 4th book (and for all the the 40+ year olds out there if you haven't read one of the books you should, they are fantastic), a gift certificate at the golf course across the street, a Godiva chocolate bar (who says chocolate is just for women) and a 1/2 hour massage at the "SPA" (never been to a spa). Looking forward to the day!

The weather here is not just a sidebar for the salon or barbershop. Last year they had a total of 9 days of 90f+ for the entire summer. This year they have had 9 days so far (90f+) in August (yes it's the 14th) and 25 days since solstice. In my books that's a cooker. Lo0oking forward to fall when they have all those pretty colours (or colors, in American) and some temperatures that are reasonable. Yesterday it was 98f with humidity of 60-75% (which means it feels like 108+), the man who invented air conditioning really should be in some kind of hall of fame.

ciao for now

Kevin and Rayne