May 232005
 

Before I left for Europe, I went to Kirsten and Barnabas’s wedding. It was a very nice ceremony. Part of the ceremony was unintentionally amusing. Kirsten and Barnabas were attempting to light a unity candle with two individual candles. Unfortunately, the unity candle had a small wick problem. After a five to 10 minute struggle, the candle was lit and everyone applauded. The reception was at a Chinese restaurant. Unfortunately, I had to leave just after the third course. It was a full Chinese banquet, and there were going to be a lot of courses.
Kirsten and Barnabas The church

The day after I returned from Europe, Harlan and Kathleen got married in St. Bartholomew’s Church in New York City. It was a 20-minute service that started promptly. They selected some great musical interludes, and I enjoyed the readings quite a bit as well. The reception was also in the church. The food was great.
Kathleen and Harlan's wedding Kathleen and Harlan's wedding Kathleen and Harlan's wedding

After Harlan and Kathleen’s wedding, I walked around the city a bit with one of the other people from the wedding. It was mid-afternoon when we went our separate ways. I was trying to stay up and out until around 10 pm in order to get over my jet lag, so I went to Otto. I had a good time and enjoyed a little wine. I snapped a headless photo of Bill, one of the bartenders there.
Bill from Otto

 Posted by at 1:20 pm
May 172005
 

Internet access in Europe is very expensive. In our hotel in Milan, high-speed internet access cost 22 Euros per day. In Hamburg, high-speed internet access is only available in some smoking regular rooms and some non-smoking “executive” rooms. (“Executive” equals more expensive for not many more amenities.) And then internet access is 29 Euros per day! You can also buy two hour blocks of 9 Euros. It’s fairly absurd. In the United States, a hotel will charge at most $15 per day. And many hotels provide free internet access. If I weren’t on call for work, I would certainly not pay for the internet access. Of course, if I were on vacation, I wouldn’t even have my laptop with me in the first place.

 Posted by at 12:45 pm
May 172005
 

Today I arrived in Hamburg. Doris and I visited a large market this morning in Milan before we all left for the airport. It was wonderful.

The zucchini blossoms were really amazing. I’m assuming they are available in New York right now and will be shortly. I need to buy some, stuff them, and flash fry them.
Milan market

Milan market

Milan is a port city. It is next to a river that flows into the ocean. I think the fish is better than the meat in Milan. (Not that the meat is too shabby!)
Milan market

 Posted by at 12:42 pm
May 142005
 

My apartment is virtually complete. There are a couple of small items on the punch list. The plumbing work was completed a couple of days ago, and I have an inspection next week. All of my furniture is moved in, except for a sofa that was lost by the moving company. I am around 50% unpacked.

I am evaluating some software for work. Part of this evaluation involves travelling to every vendors’ facilities. I am typing this message in the Delta lounge in Newark. In an hour, I will leave for Milan. After Milan, I will be in Hamburg and then Amsterdam before returning on Friday for the marriage of Harlan and Kathleen. (Today I was at the wedding of Kirsten and Barnabas. I had to leave early to make my flight out.

In the coming weeks, I will also be traveling to Provo, Boston, Toronto, and Denver. It’s a lot of travel in a short period of time. Ironically, all of this travel came up after my apartment was completed. This is ironic because when I was renovating, I barely did any travel for work.

Of course, not that I will really write about dating in detail, but the dating life has been interesting for the past couple of weeks. In the apocryphal Chinese curse sense.

Finally, I haven’t been getting a ton of sleep. One feature of my new apartment is that it gets a lot of light. This is great in that I wake up early. Unfortunately, I have still been staying up late.

I’m a bit worn out. Life at home and at work have both been very busy. I have been taking a lot out on friends; fortunately they put up with me being a bit stressed out. (I hope you all know who you are.)

So to sum up:

  • Nearly completed apartment
  • Missing sofa
  • Lots of work
  • Lots of travel
  • Not a lot of sleep

Yee ha!

 Posted by at 9:48 pm
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