Thursday, December 25, 2014

Happy Holidays!


(Just in case you are curious, this Santa was brought to you by Mother Nature.  It is a Milkweed pod cleverly disguised by my co-worker Jane.)

Monday, December 22, 2014

Ta-Daaaaah!

If you have ever paid attention to a magician, they often seem to say "Ta-daaaah" at the end of a trick that has gone well. This would contrast with "Oh...., uh....ahhhhh, call a paramedic please" after something goes really wrong.

So I'll say it -  "Ta-daaaah!"

I would argue things have gone well over the past few months.  Weddings. Grad schools. Life in general.  

What have I been up to?

Natalie and I got married! How cool is that? You can read about it here.  We' re available as wedding consultants, by the way. Mind you, we won't do a damn thing beyond telling you how to have a great wedding. After all, that is what consultants are all about. Brain power.  Our price structure begins are $250 a hour.....

I've been to Wheeling, West Virginia. No, not really. Well, really. No....not. Okay, sort of.  Not 2014 Wheeling. How about 1850's Wheeling?  

Let me start over. I built Wheeling, West Virginia...for my Digital Cultural Heritage class.  My team had to re-create 1850's  Wheeling using the amazing Google software SketchUp.  In the end, I think we did pretty well!


Using cool, old fire insurance maps called Sanborns, we were were able to cross-reference various resources (including old photos)  and build some buildings. How cool is that?   

The larger building in the middle is the nun factory (known to others as the Female Seminary).  That building was a prominent feature in the late 1800s of Wheeling.  It eventually became the hospital, before it was torn down to become the modern hospital.  The church in the background still stands today.

Here's a closer look at the seminary.  I had to build it.  Don't ask how long it took.  I can't tell you that.  Don't ask my wife how many times I swore.  She won't answer you....



Despite the opinions of some, Detroit  is really making an amazing comeback. It might take a while, but knowing that people are literally on a waiting list to get an apartment downtown, it seems we are on the right track.   Knowing that, is there a better way to celebrate the return of a great city than with a parade? Yeah, probably, but hey, parades are fun! 

Unless, of course, you have coulrophobia...







With Natalie in the final stretches of her grad school adding to our already busy world, birding didn't seem to happen all that much.  Fortunately, we were able to participate in the Anchor Bay Christmas Count.  The lawfirm team of Sherwood, Cypher, Cypher, Berrigan and Overman did well.  How about FIVE Snowy Owls? On just our portion of the count! The count as a whole recorded TWENTY FIVE.  Unbelievable.  (No, the teams did not double count. One team had four owls in one field.  In another location, a photographic analysis of the barring on some birds proved they were not the same bird.)


So Christmas is in a few days.  Natalie and I are trying to get our ducks in a row.  Family obligations.  Cleaning the house. Gift exchanges.  Busy busy busy.  Hell, we're still trying to get the wedding thank you cards out the door!   

Oh goodness, I almost forgot my beer update.  I am so behind on my spreadsheet, I am not sure what to do. Maybe I'll just start the whole thing over again!!!   Naaah. I just have to sit down and do the update.  

We'll keep you posted. More fun coming.....