September 29, 2004
MONSTER Park
I just read on the ESPN web site that Candlestick park in San Francisco has sold it's naming rights (again) and now will be called Monster park. Ya know, after the huge San Francisco business Monster Cable? Now I have always been on the side of the fence against the renaming of stadiums and well.... I still am! And I'm not just complaining about stadium renaming but the renaming of ANYTHING really. I mean, here I am, I have put all the time and effort into learning the name of something and the powers that be decide to change it? That would be like your boss coming into work every other week and saying, " From now on my name is Bubba!" I mean as fun as it would be to call your boss Bubba there's just something odd and wrong about doing so. I guess what annoys me most about this is the 'niners spokesman who said, "San Francisco prides itself on being different and this is just another example of us standing out in a crowd". What the @#$%? Changing the name of your stadium makes you stand out in a crowd? Hmmm ok.... I mean it's not like any other sports teams EVER change their names. I know they just changed the Giants stadium from Pac-Bell to SBC park so maybe they do think it's a "San Francisco" thing? So be it then, I guess. May the 'niners find their success of old in their new MONSTER park. And just to acknowledge my own contradiction in beliefs raise your glass to my favorite sports stadium Weeghman Park errr I mean Cubs Park.... no wait.....it's Wrigley Field!!!
September 15, 2004
20 week scan
Today was the baby's 20 week scan. Wow, I can't believe we are already halfway there. Nonetheless, the scan went very well. The doctor still thinks it will be a girl, just as Julie and I have suspected all along. The scan revealed that the baby was healthy, very mobile, and that she enjoys sucking her thumb. (See photo) From what I understand, babies often suck their thumb in the womb, but it's rare to actually catch them on film. I thought it was rather funny. In any case, the baby and Julie are both well, thus making me very happy. I'm off to bed now so enjoy the photo and I will chat more later.
September 12, 2004
Maui
Well, as promised here are a few photo's of our Maui honeymoon. We really didn't take a lot of photos... mainly because we were always sleeping, eating, or in the ocean where my camera is known to not work so well. We however had a really great time! We rented a Mustang convertible for our stay there and took several drives just exploring and site seeing. We went snorkeling a few times and I even conquered my fear of suffocation by going diving. So ya know, not being a certified diver and all, I went on an "introductory" dive. Most intro dives consist of a class and then a very restricted dive with an instructor. Well, not so much for me as I went with the Maui dive shop and the only class we had was on the boat before we got into the water when the guy said, "Oh remember to NOT hold your breath, ok?." "Ummmmm..... sure whatever dude." I happily replied. Oh and he said something about exploding organs or something like that but I didn't figure it was too important, right? Anyway, the dive itself actually went really well. I had a very friendly 6 foot white tip shark swim right by me. Oddly enough I was unphased by the whole thing. I did however think to myself, "Hmmmm..... I wonder how long it would take a shark to figure out that there really isn't ANY meat on me at all?" We went down about 50 feet right off the shore of this tiny island called Molokini. Jules snorkeled while I was diving so she didn't get the pleasure of meeting Mr. Shark. All in all... a great time was had by all. I already want to go back! However, the 11 hour time change to London really screwed with me. It has taken me an entire week to get back to a normal sleep schedule. I guess it's just a small price to pay for paradise, right? So without further babbling heres a few photo's of Maui's great sunsets followed by a photo of Julie and I out on a catamaran. Enjoy!
September 07, 2004
The Weddin'
Well, we have returned to the UK all hitched and stuff. As usual, I am jet lagged from the trip. I'm expecting this time to be a bit worse, though. We spent Saturday in Hawaii, Sunday in San Francisco, and Monday in London. That's a whole lotta flyin' yo. In any case, the past two weeks were awesome. (Yes I said awesome) The wedding ceremony was great. Greg and Monica did a fabulous job!! Julie's parents were brilliant as well. They truly made it something that Julie and I will never forget. The whole week just hanging out with friends and family was truly special. And as a bonus, having 5 year old Maddie sing for us at the reception made it even more special. Matt's best man speech made me laugh (a lot) and even made me tear up at one point. Jeff did some really nice standin'. Couldn't have stood without him. He actually became our second wedding photographer so we could have a plethora of photos to choose from. And having said that, if you want to view his photo's click HERE. If you would like to see the photo's that the wedding photographer took click HERE. (Note: you will have to log in as Greene with a password of London) And if you just want another perspective on the wedding... go check out Matt's blog. I will post some pictures of our trip to Hawaii later in the week. I think I have given you enough to look at for now. All in all, a great two weeks.... I'm VERY VERY tired and so I must sleep. Talk to you when I wake.....
