CLEAN

The maid came today - for the first time but not for the last. Since we hit "debt free" we budgeted for someone to clean the house occasionally. She did it while I was at work today and it was GREAT to come home to a very clean house.

We also budgeted for a new laptop. Alan bought an HP Sunday and picked it up today, the release day of Windows Vista. So I'm on the old model while he is trying to set up the new.

Opera

Sometimes in January I pick a theme and do a little self-study of a topic I'm interested in. Around Christmas I read about Physics - a topic I had a poor education in and do not have any natural aptitude for, but one I've been frustrated by my ignorance of. (I know there are lots of preposition problems in that sentence) I enjoyed Understanding Einstein and Physics for Dummies.

So in January I went to the library and checked out Opera for Dummies (with a CD) and the NPR Curious Listener's Guide to Classical Music. I have had a little education and exposure to this topic and enjoyed reading about it this month.

And today I went to see the Converse College Opera Theatre production of Die Fledermaus (The Bat or Flying Mouse, originally in French, by Johann Strauss Jr). It was three hours long (well worth the price of admission) and I went an hour early to catch the Opera Talk by a Converse professor, explaining what I needed to notice about the plot and music. Mercifully, the production was in English. The vocalists and orchestra did a great job. The sets and costumes were well done too. I just wish I had eaten more. By the end of the second Act, I was starving. A lawyer I practice in family court is a baritone with a PhD in music, and he played one of the main characters today.

Can't say I'm going to be a big opera fan, but I've enjoyed learning. Alan and I listened to the CD on the way to church this morning, and I read aloud the notes in the book, describing by the second counter what to listen for in the music and explaining the plot, scene and translating the words. I liked learning that way.

Good things

Actually I rode my bike to work THREE times last week - MT&W before the weather turned cold and rainy on Th. The schedule is not looking favorable for a ride this week, tho'. Too much court, esp. in Union. But Thanks go out to my honey for taking me for a walk in the evenings lately. A new thing for us. We have never been a good walking pair before, but he bought us red flashing lights to wear, so in the evenings we usually bundle up and walk about 2 miles in the neighborhood. We are also on the brink of being Debt Free (thanks Dave Ramsey). The student loan is leaving us in just a few days, and then all our money will be ours. We are having a good time "telling our money where to go" on paper these days. Last night Alan even went online and chose a new Compassion kid for us to sponsor and sent the whole year's support. Eduardo Padilla of Honduras was born on our wedding day, so he is 14 now. Another thing I am very excited about these days is GTR - the Georgia Tandem Rally 2007. It filled in a week (75 teams) but we got in this year and are looking forward to FUN in LaGrange in May.

A biking day

Today I met a goal I've had for a LONG time - to ride my bike to work. It's only a mile, but I really enjoyed the ride. It changed my attitude about the workday. Riding home was great too. Seemed like it only took about 2 minutes. Alan came in just after I did and we got the tandem on the road for the first time this year. Just around the neighborhood, down the Hub City Connector trail. Maybe 5 miles. And then I was so energized I walked 1.5 miles on the treadmill.

Snowmobiling & scenery

The view from the snowmobile parking area and play meadow

The whole crew: Wayne, Alan, Eddins on Freebie, Me, then Carrie, Savannah, Kate and Sarah (not necessarily in that order)

Me and Alan
Look who is driving!

Wayne, Eddins, and Alan

Alan turning from the trail onto single track


Me driving on the trail

Carrie just being sporty

New for 2007

Here she is. Annalisa Bradlee McCall born on her mother's birthday, December 28th. Congratulations to Delisa and Brad.


There he is. The Man in his new wool cycling jersey. Thanks to his parents for this great Christmas gift. Alan wore it 4 times while we were in Colorado - twice snowboarding and twice snowmobiling. He even got comments on this shirt in traffic. We got caught in a blizzard and as we inched along I-70 down the mountain, the driver of the truck beside us asked him about the shirt.


Snowshoeing -- What fun! No, you don't usually need a helmet but I had just gotten off the snowmobile. Wayne got the shoes for Christmas, and I got to try them out on the culdesac in all that snow. Alan used our new digital camera (again, thanks to his parents) to practice his photography skills. Mostly he took lots of snow and scenery and pics of me in an orange helmet or an orange hat. Not too exciting.

He didn't get to bicycle any this trip. We never saw the ground. They had about 2 feet of snow when we arrived and got 8-10 inches more while we were there. And have had another storm since. Oh how happy I am to live in SC, but all that snow was fun to visit.