Yep, that's right! I'm breaking radio silence and coming back on the air. Did you peeps miss me?

A whole lot has been going on since my last post. I interviewed for my job, and that went really well. I'm hoping to get official news this week, but I feel pretty good about my chances. I'm really excited to get this worked out because I really like working at IDDL.

Carly was back a few weeks ago and we had an absolute blast! It was sooooo wonderful to see her smiling face and spend some quality time with her (and her wonderful grandparents!). Here's a pic from one of our outings:

My second trip up to McAfee's Knob for '06...would love to get up there this fall!

But the most recent change was that today Dave and I signed a lease on a great apartment in Blacksburg! It's a 3 bedroom place on Ellett Road and we should be moved in sometime over the course of the next week. I've really enjoyed my time here back with Mom, but it's now time for Josh to grow up and spread his wings.

On the playing front, I'm doing trombone ensemble and tuba/euph again at VT and today was asked to play Mahler 1 with the NRVSO. I'm also lining up several gigs later this year with a fantastic quintet in Roanoke and hoping to hear about some work again with the RSO as they've got some great programs this season. We'll see how the next few months go, but I'd really like to work up another recital.

So things will be a bit busy around here now. Work is picking up, gigs coming in, and living back in the 'burg again....an exciting time for me.....

And there's more on the horizon.....

So this was a pic that I took a few weeks ago when the pond had shut down. It's of the large slate on the top of the waterfall and this time of year, it is usually covered with an ample amount of string algae. But after the algae dried out, there was this wondrous spectacle of varying shades of green that really caught my eye:

Speaking of catching my eye, there is the someone in town who caught my eye many, many years ago. We were able to spend a wonderful weekend together, as well as with her grandparents. I must say that she and I are two of the luckiest people I know to have the families that we do.....parents, siblings, aunts/uncles, cousins and most importantly, our grandparents.

Our grandparents are of a generation that has arguably seen the most amazing series of events in one lifetime. To have been born in the Depression, witnessed or participated in WWII, the rise and ultimate fall of Communism, JFK, Vietnam and the Internet--all in a very short amount of time is truly remarkable. Our grandparents, like so many of their generation, came from very meager backgrounds and worked extremely hard to provide for our parents, who have labored to provide for us and to create the homes that we now cherish. We all stand on the shoulders of their dedication.

But at the root of all of that was their uncompromising commitment to the ideal and sense of family. I count myself lucky every day for my family and I know she does as well. It gives me a goal to strive for when I begin a family of my own someday as it is one of, if not, the nearest and dearest things in our hearts.

Sorry for the delay in updates, but things have been crazy busy around here lately! I got to finish off my stay in Madison by:

a. Sleeping in for the first time in weeks
b. Eating very good Mexican food
c. Shopping for goodies at the best farmer's market EVER
d. Hitting up a decent used CD shop and a GREAT record store
e. SUSHI
f. The strangest movie experience of my life

So all told, it was a good last day in Wisconsin. The flight home was a bit crazy......we got on a muuuuch earlier flight to Chicago and was planning on getting home about 5 hours earlier....but then we got caught in Chicago and sat for 4 extra hours--so much for getting home early.

So anyway, here's my pic from the last day in Madison:



These were flowers from memorial outside of the State Capital building....

Well, today was the last day of the conference and now it's time to do a little relaxing. After a few more sessions this morning, my brain was done and I need to NOT think about eLearning for a bit. Maybe focus on Guinness consumption for a day or so? That or cheese.

Anyway, this morning we went up onto the rooftop garden of the convention center and had some nice views of the lake and a fountain that faced the Capital:

But they've also got some really nice flower beds around with lots of nice stuff:

This afternoon was filled with some time in the hot tub to relax and then it was off to the gym for a 60-minute workout on the elliptical. Whew! 725 calories later, I was ready for dinner! So we just had the 'all-you-can-eat' battered cod dinner downstairs and I AM STUFFED!!!

A little time to get the feeling back in my toes and then we'll be off to catch a local legend named Pat McGurdy over at the Student Union on the lake.....has been advertised as THE event to see in Madison. Tomorrow is the Farmer's Market and then who knows what. Sunday I'll finally get to head home and back to it again.

Hope you are well, wherever you are...

Well, today was a particularly nice day here in Madison. The weather was near perfect and that made a HUGE difference in getting around town. After a scrumptious breakfast of a zuccinni/roasted red pepper/goat cheese omelet with Pete and Tom, we made our way to the conference center to take in some lectures on distance learning. After listening to a few of these talks, I realize that while I'm a fish outta water, I'm in a very good place at IDDL and we're doing the right stuff. I got to run into a former coworker, Murat, who is now working out at Norfolk State and it was good to see him. The afternoon was more of the same and then back to the hotel for some time in the hot tub......much needed for my stressed out back!

The one thing that I would have loved to see while here was a show at a local theater by the band, Ween.....

Unfortunately the show was sold out, but lucky for us, the band was staying in our hotel. And I got to see them standing outside, waiting for their ride to the venue! Kinda sweet!

There was supposed to be a concert outside last night, but because of the threat of major thunderstorms, everything got postponed until tonight. So it was off to Ian's again for pizza, only this time, we got it to go and took it out on the lawn to listen to the Madison Chamber Orchestra play on the steps of the Capital Building....pretty neat.

This time it was Mac & Cheese pizza next to the buffalo chicken....mmmmm.....

Well, that's about all I got for you kids tonight. I'm once again pooped and needing more sleep before heading back down to the fitness room tomorrow.....another 45 minutes on the elliptical for me! G'nite, peeps!

So Day 2 was the 'money day'. We did our 3-hour presentation (+2 hours of setup and then more for cleaning up the lab computers) and for the second time this week--no lunch. But that will change today! I would have posted last night, but to be honest, I passed out at about 8:30 and then got up this morning at 7 for my workout. Now it's off for blueberry pancakes and a day of lectures.

So here's dinner from last night:

Chicken burrito pizza next to black bean/guacamole/feta......mmmmm

Well, there'll be more to report later today. Ciao!

Well, we made it.....after a few short flights and miserable conditions with the ground temp at around 100 degrees, we made it. The flight to Chicago was short and uneventful.....just the way I like to travel!

Goodbye, Virginia....

Then it was off the plane in Chicago and into the sauna that was yesterday!!! Unfortunately, we got stuck at the gate for an extra 25 minutes with virtually no A/C and trapped in a big metal can. Thankfully, that flight was short and the Madison Airport was nice and chilly! After a short ride to the hotel, we decided to hit the ground running and find some dinner. We ended up at a local Nepali restaurant called 'Himal Chuli' and it was pretty good. It left me wanting a little more heat and substance (for the price), but regardless, it was pretty good. Then we were off to check in at the conference registration at the Monona Terrace and on the way, we crossed the Capital and most of downtown Madison. They've got cows everywhere in the city!!!! Seriously!

Ok, ok....they're not real cows, but decorated statues of cows all over the city.....much like the Hokie Birds all over Blacksburg! This one was prolly my favorite:

This one is called: Frank Loin Wright

Anyway, we ended up chilling at the Student Union on one of the Lake Mendota and while it was a bit muggy, it was still nice to chill out with a cold beer and some good salty popcorn next to the water.

So here's a summary of the the day's events in my first ever podcast:

madison_1