This morning we had a rude awaking… the phone in our room started ringing around 4:30. Luckily whoever was calling didn’t try to call back after we didn’t answer the phone. We then went back to sleep. I didn’t sleep real well… my knee was kind of bugging me and I couldn’t seem to find a position that it wouldn’t hurt. We finally got out of bed a little after 8 and started our day.

Went to the subway and headed out to Fenway Park. Our plan was to do Fenway, Boston College and Sam Adams. But since after getting off the train and following the one sign that said Fenway we walked probably a mile out of our way, in a circle before even seeing the park. Plus we did this in the sun and heat. Then we walked thru the tour, which wasn’t quite what we thought it wasn’t going to be. We were thinking that we would be seeing parts of the park that not an average person going to a game would see but that wasn’t the case. They just took us to a few different parts of the seats. We did get to see the park from a few different view points but still not what we thought it would be.

After the tour we headed to the team store to get shirts and then headed across the street to the McDonalds. We had a quick lunch and then realized that we could probably just walk back to our hotel. It took us about 30 minutes to walk back but saved us a lot of time trying to figure out where train station was. We didn’t make it to Boston College or Sam Adams. I don’t think we will be going to the Sam Adams Brewery Tour. It is a little out of the way and there is nothing else close to it.

After resting for a bit at the hotel we decided to hop on the train and head to the north end to go to a restaurant called Pizzeria Regina. The pizza was pretty good and we brought some back with us. The north end is mostly Italian and we had some loud Italian guys sitting not to far from us. Cris said at one point that she felt like she was in an episode of Sopranos. But they keep us entertained. We then went to an Italian bakery called Mike’s Pastries. We picked up dessert and a few things for the morning. We then got back on the train with all our goodies and headed back toward the hotel. We made a quick pit stop at the 7-11 to pick up some drinks and forks. We then made our way to the hotel and called it a day. Tomorrow we are planning on going to the U.S.S. Constitution and the Aquarium.

After breakfast today, Cris and I headed out for the Freedom Trail. This is a three mile walk thru downtown Boston and the North End. There is a red line on the ground that you can follow or you can take a guided tour. We decided to head out by ourselves. It starts at Boston Common, which we walked around a little bit before starting the trail. It wasn’t quite what we were expecting but some parts were kind of interesting. We did get to see the resting place of Paul Revere, Sam Adams and John Hancock. We also saw some pretty neat statues and went to Paul Revere’s house. The one bad thing was that it was hot, sunny and kind of humid outside. This made it a bit tougher to keep going.

We finally decided to just head to the Hard Rock for an early dinner. Our waitress was pretty cool and kept us entertained. She then told us a short cut to get back to the train. It did involve going up a lot of steps but it saved us from walking a long way to the other station. We then got back to our hotel and just rested. We are both a little sore but we are still going.

Tomorrow we are going to head to Fenway Park, Sam Adams Brewery and maybe Boston College. We are going to be taking the train out that way. I think we have the subway pretty much figured out so we shouldn’t get lost. I will post more tomorrow.

Today we started our day with breakfast and then headed out for our day. We headed to the subway. There is a station right by our hotel and one across the street. We headed down the stairs to the one by us but found out that we needed to head to the one across the street. We had to get what they call a Charlie Card to put money on for our fares. We were lucky because once we got things figured out a train was just pulling into the station. We only had to go three stops on the green line and then switch to the red line. We again went down the wrong set of stairs but figured things out again and got over to the right train. We finally made it to the Harvard stop and made our way back above ground.

We were right by the main part of the Harvard Campus. We walked around some of the area and saw the statute of the founder of Harvard. After walking around the campus we went in search of stores. We went into a few and got some things. We both picked up Harvard shirts and a few other odds and ends. We then grabbed lunch then went back to the subway. We made it back to our transfer station and again went up the wrong steps. However, there was a nice Bostonian that helped us figure out where we needed to go. The subway is pretty nice. It was kind of an interesting experience. We did make a fiend on the train that we kept running into until we lost him on campus.

Once we got back to our station we headed back to the hotel and just hung out for a little bit. It was pretty warm and muggy out today and we were a little worn out. We then decided to head to a German restaurant that we had read about. We took the train once again out there. The food was pretty good. Cris had a German beer and I had a white Belgian beer (I was thinking of you while drinking it Scott). The waitress talked us into trying this really awesome dessert and then we really just needed to head back to the hotel and rest up. So we decided to call it an early night and started our walk back to the hotel. We made a side trip by a cemetery. Then we were right by the public garden and Cris suggested that we try to see the brass ducks to see if we could get pictures. We got lucky and got our pictures with the big duck. We then finished out trek to the hotel and are now watching comedy on TV. Our favorite, Dane Cook, is coming up next so this will be a short post tonight.

Tomorrow we are going to be heading downtown and starting the Freedom Trail. I am sure we will stray from the trail from time to time. I will post about it tomorrow night.

Today we slept in a little getting up a little after 8. We got dressed and went down to the lobby to get breakfast. They have a decent spread with doughnut sticks, bagels (with cream cheese), big muffins, fresh fruit, coffee, hot chocolate and orange juice. We got our stuff and headed back to our room. After eating breakfast we got ready for our day and headed out. We started by going over to the next street to do some shopping. This street is called Newbury Street and is shopping heaven. However, most of the stores are more of high end stores so we really didn’t do too much shopping. Though when we reached the first end of the street we found the public garden which is kind of a small version of Central Park in NY. We walked all around the garden (park) looking at the statues and taking pictures of flowers (a favorite medium of mine). We tried to get a picture of the brass ducks but there were too many kids around playing on them. We might try again if we are by the park. We worked our way around to where we started and headed the other way down Newbury. This seemed like a never ending street. We finally made the turn around and headed back to our beginning. We did make one stop at a candy store. It seems like a popular store to see around here… we are eating some of our goodies as I type this. We then decided to skip the last block and just head to the hotel to drop off our stuff and figure out where we wanted to go to lunch. We decided to go to the Cheers Bar. I had printed out a map to get there before we left on the trip so I pulled it out to see how we get there. As it turns out it was right by the public garden. We got ready and started our walk. We took a slightly different route than earlier today. We got there and it was pretty crowded. Cris was going to take my picture under the Cheers sign but there was an employee (good looking guy) who asked if we wanted him to take a picture of the two of us together. We said sure and Cris handed over the camera. We then went inside and found out it would have been like a 20 minute wait for a table but that we could eat at the bar. So we pulled up two bar stools and spent our time at the bar. We got a blueberry ale that was pretty good. However, we got it in the souvenir mug that seemed to be bottomless. We both got burgers which were pretty good. It was very crowded in there… it seemed to be a constant stream of people. We finally finished our beer and headed to the gift shop. One of the girls working there was originally from the Kalamazoo area. We then decided to head back to the hotel to rest a bit before heading out for dinner and other stuff. We power walked our way to the hotel and were thankful to see our bed. We just kind of hung out, I did the post on the first day and did some uploading of pictures. It was at that point that we realized just how much we had walked, which we figured had been close to four miles or more. Then we decided to head back to the Prudential Center to go to the food court so Cris could finally get her clam chowder and I got some orange chicken and rice. We then headed further into the Prudential Center and stumbled upon the Skywalk Observatory. We went up to the 50th floor and were able walk around and see a 360 degree view of Boston. It was a little hazy out today but we got some good shots. We even saw a cruise ship out in the ocean and watched a few planes land. We then made the rather quick elevator ride back down to the main floor and headed back to the shopping area. We saw a sign for the Cheesecake Factory so we went to find it. There was quite a line so we decided to try back another day. Then we headed across the street to the Apple store. This is a three floor store with just computers, MP3 players, phones and software. It was kind of neat getting to play with the new iTouch phones. When we left there we were walking back to the hotel and decided to stop at one of the many Starbucks around. We spent a little time there and watched the Boston Fire Department respond to a call at I think an apartment building. Though they didn’t get out their hoses but they did go into the building in their gear. We left before anything major happened. We are now at our room for the night. We decided to call it a day a little early to let our feet rest. I think we are going to be heading out to an area called Harvard Square tomorrow, which is more shopping. That is if we can figure out the subway and not spend all day going back and forth on the train… wish us luck!!!

On Friday, July 4, 2008, Cris and I headed to Boston. Our flight left a little after 10 a.m. Mom and Dad dropped us off at the airport and mom only cried a little. Since we were flying Northwest I wanted to make sure we made it to the airport early to give us plenty of time to check our bags. We were able to do that outside and in little time. We then moved on to security. The line was a little long but was moving pretty quickly. It was a lot easier to get thru security with two people. We took our shoes off and got all of our things in the bins. We both got thru the metal detectors without any problems and were not frisked. Then we grabbed our stuff, put our shoes back on and made our way to the terminals. We discovered that our gate was all the way at one end of the terminal… thank goodness for moving sidewalks! Though we did make a pit stop at the Caribou Coffee and got some really good coffee. Then we finished our trek across the airport. We finally got to our gate and had quite a bit of time to kill. We got a few pictures at the airport. I will be posting all pictures on snapfish when I get home and will be sending the link to those that want to see them (I will be posting a few select pics here though). Finally it was time to board the plane. We first had to wait for the first class passengers to board, then it was our turn. We handed over our boarding passes and headed down the ramp toward the plane. We had to stop just outside the plane and I thought Cris was going to run back up the ramp into the airport. But we made it on the plane and found our seats. We weren’t suppose to be sitting by each other but as it worked out the seat next to Cris was empty so I moved next to her. The flight was pretty smooth. We did have some freefall at the start but nothing too major. Then as we got closer to Boston the cloud cover increased and it got a little bumpy. Though we did end up landing about 20 minutes early. The landing was super smooth… we even thank the pilot for such a nice flight. We got lucky at Logan Airport… our gate was real close to the baggage claim area. We got our bags and headed for the taxi area. We had been scared about our flight out here but it was nothing compared to the fear we had on our cab ride to the hotel. We went the wrong way down one way streets, almost hit a girl on her bike and made maneuvers that fighter jet pilots can’t even make. Once we finally found the hotel (The Charlesmark Hotel) Cris and I were thankful to be alive and got our bags from the cabbie. We thought that we would have to just pre-check in and get to our room later since we were about three hours early. However, we were pleasantly surprised that we were able to check in and go to our room since it was ready for us. We checked things out and got settled in and decided to go have our first meal of the day. We went to the California Pizza Kitchen which is at the Prudential Center. On our way thru the Prudential Center we saw some pretty cool stores including a candy store. We stopped there after eating and could have bought pretty much one of everything but controlled ourselves and just got a few items. We then stopped at a Walgreens to get drinks and a snack for later. After lounging in our room for a little bit we decided to head down to the river to see what was happening with the fireworks. There were a lot of people there so we decided to find a spot. Now we didn’t have anything to sit on and it had rained the day before and early yesterday so the ground was still pretty wet. Luckily Cris spotted an empty bench and we took it. At the time it was facing the wrong way but we knew that we could just stand up when the fireworks started. It also worked out good because we were right front and center for the fireworks. We did have to sit on that bench for about 6 hours but it was well worth it. We weren’t able to see the Boston Pops and Rascle Flatts that were performing but they did have it over loud speakers. The fireworks show was spectacular. It put all other firework shows to shame as far as Cris and I are concerned. I was able to video record the show so we will always remember it. Right after the show ended Cris and I started our way back to the hotel. But with half a million people there it was a slow process at times. We had to cross a main road (which was closed) on a bridge and that was the tough part. Once we got to the other side it was pretty clear sailing. We got back to the room a little after 11 and were pretty tired but wired. We watched a little TV, downloaded pictures and videos and then got ready for bed. I will post about today’s adventure later tonight.

Here are a few pictures of our first day…

Today my puppy, Abigail Merlot, turns three. I can’t believe how quickly time has passed. It seems like only yesterday that I was picking up this 12 week old puppy from my brothers house. At that time she was so small and skinny that I would carry her on my shoulder. I kind of miss those days but I am glad she learned how to get up and down the stairs… there is no way I could carry her now that she is over 50 pounds! Abby is such a good dog. I wish I could keep some of her DNA and have clone after clone of her. But then again, I wouldn’t want a dog obsessed with pizza (like in the movie Multiplicity). I also believe that Abby has the spirits of dogs pasted with her. Go ahead and laugh if you want but I do believe that white “orbs” in photographs are spirits caught on film (or memory card). In a lot of pictures of Abby she has two to four “orbs” with her. I like to believe that they are Nicky, Cookie, Murray and Jo-Jo. So Happy Birthday my puppy.

So it’s been a little bit since my last post…. I know you have probably read this before! Well a few things have happened since then so I will fill you in on them.

School…

I have been out of school for a while now. I got an A in my last class, which I really enjoyed. I currently am waiting to hear back from the director of the new program I am in. I just declared a new (second) major and they went and changed the program around. So I have a few questions that I was hopping to get answered before I register for the next semester (which is July 1st). But I think I have figured out things on my own and will be signing up for one class. I am now in the media and communication arts program in the photography specialty… so beware that I will be trying to take more photos at family gatherings and such.

Work…

At the end of May (the 31st) I finished my eighth year at DSI. I can’t believe how fast the last eight years have gone by. Just before my anniversary date, I was told by the H.R. Manager that the “big guy” wanted to know what his “key players” plans were for the near and far future. I guess I am one of those players because I was told to type up my goals for my job, what I liked/disliked about my current position and my goals for myself and the company for the next few years at least. After thinking about it for a little bit I came to the conclusion that I am pretty happy here but would like to get more involved with the marketing aspect of the company. So I typed up my document and discussed it with the H.R. Manager. Well it seems that management really does listen. I have already been handed a small project of gathering information for a promotional idea we are working on. I was also just informed that I will be assisting with the design of a booth for our salesmen to use at trade shows. I have also been working on a few pages to update our web site. I was also told to look for a better camera for myself at work. He has also been talking about having me spend some time with the professional photographer that we have used to learn a few things from him. I am very excited about this possibility. As I mentioned above I am in the photography specialty and my next class will be introduction to photography. If I get to work with this guy it could really help not only at work but also at school and maybe make a good connection to use in the future… you never know. The boss also told me to look for a video camera so that I can go along with our technicians and video record the job to use on the web site and at trade shows. So unless something unexpected happens I think I will be at DSI for quite a while still.

Life in General…

I am now just a few days away from leaving for Boston. I really can’t wait. I know I have been driving people crazy by talking so much about the trip. There are so many things that Cris and I want to do while we are there. Like I have said before I am going to try to blog every day while on vacation. I will even try to post a few pictures along the way. We are sure to have plenty of pictures to pick from. Both Cris and I will have digital cameras, plus I now have a small digital video camera to use. Snapfish is really going to love me in the next few weeks.

Abby is about to turn three (as far as I can tell her birthday is July 3). I can’t believe that she has been with me for almost three years… I didn’t get her until September. She has been such a great dog. She is super cuddly and extremely good with kids. Almost every day when I take her for a walk kids flock to her. Kids I don’t even know seem to know her. And I have to say I am pretty impressed with how many of the kids ask if they can pet her before they touch her. I have also noticed that she is more protective of me and the house. She has been barking more but only when she sees someone she isn’t really familiar with.

Well I think that is enough for now. I am sure more things have happened but I really can’t think of anything else worth mentioning. Until next time…

YEAH!!!!!! The Detriot Red Wings have won their 11th cup! WAY TO GO BOYS!!!!!!!

I know this site hasn’t been very active lately. One reason is due to having some major problems with my laptop. Since the beginning of February thru this last Monday, I had taken my laptop to the Geek Squad four times. The first time the wireless internet card stopped working. Well they fixed that but cause another problem. My screen would randomly scramble and freeze up my computer. So I took it back to the Geek Squad and they supposedly fixed it. However, the night I picked it up the same thing happened. I took it back two days later (because of school) and waited for them to fix it again. Finally they fixed that problem but two weeks after picking it up (for the third time) the wireless card stopped working again. By this time I was so fed up with Best Buy and the Geek Squad that I decided once this whole thing was done I would never step in a Best Buy again. I mean over a four month period Best Buy had my computer at least two months of that time. And most of the time that I had it the computer wasn’t working properly. So I took the computer back for the forth time. This time I was informed that since I had been having so many problems with it in such a short time it may qualify under the “No Lemon Law” and I could possibly get a new laptop. At least this gave me some light at the end of this very dark tunnel I had been in. So they sent the computer back out to service and a week later (this last Tuesday) I called to check on the status of the computer and was told to bring in my stuff and pick out a new laptop. I was very happy about this. So Wednesday I went to Best Buy and picked out a new laptop. It is pretty much the same as my last one just with a few upgrades since it is this years model. I am not on the internet yet, I have to wait for my brother Todd to have a free evening to hook it up to the wireless in the house. I just hope that I don’t run into the same problems with this one that the other one had. So once it is up and online I will try to post more. If nothing else I will be trying to post every day when I am on my vacation in Boston. It is nice getting to look back at my trip to Georgia and see all the things I did.

Yesterday while driving to the store on my way home from work, I saw something that I won’t soon forget. I was headed to the strip mall at Hoover-11. I was driving southbound on Hoover and got stopped at the light to cross over eleven mile (also known as the service drive for 696). Just as my light turned green I heard brakes squeal and looked up to see a lime green Ford Escape flip over… I just remember seeing green and then the metal undercarriage of the car. I was on the phone with Cris and she heard my intake of breath, then I swore and told her that someone had just flipped their car, that I was going to call 911 and that I would call her back. I then drove the rest of the way across eleven mile and pulled into the gas station on the corner. People had already gotten out of their cars and were by the SUV. When I finally got thru to the emergency operator she asked if I was calling about Hoover/11. I said yes and she said they were already on their way. Then I just sat there, in my car, thinking that this couldn’t be happening. From where I was I could see the SUV, which was laying on the driver side of the car with the undercarriage of the car just inches from the guard railing to the expressway. Had the car turned a little bit more before landing the car would have ended up rolling down the embankment and onto the expressway (during rush hour). It was then that I also noticed that I was shaking. I called Cris back as I watch people around the car trying to see if there was anything they could do to help but came up empty handed. A few moments later the first police car showed up followed by a police SUV. It took a few moments longer for the fire truck and ambulance to arrive. At that point they pretty much had the area blocked from view. I still sat there for a few more minutes talking to Cris, trying to calm myself. Finally when I felt better, I pulled out of the parking lot and made my way down to my destination. I then ended the call with Cris and then called mom, who was also in that area to let her know that I would be running a little late and that I was okay.

I’m not sure if the driver of the SVU survived or not. Like I said, once all the emergency people were there they had things pretty covered up and I really didn’t want to be around to see how they would have gotten into the car. I am pretty sure that this accident happened because the driver of the SVU was going too fast, trying to beat a light that was about to turn red and just lost control making a left turn. I can still see the car flipping over in my head. It happened so fast yet it seemed like it was in slow motion. I don’t think I will be able to forget witnessing something like this. So please, anyone reading this that drives an SUV take corners with great caution so that others won’t have to witness an accident like this.