First Harvest

This past March we bought a couple of citrus trees which included an Improved Meyer Lemon, and a satsuma orange tree. I was told that we may not have fruit for the first year. This has held true for the satsuma orange tree, but look at the size of these lemons!!!!!!!!!

I think a lemon meringue pie may be in order :-)

-Greg

A Working Christmas List... (Will be updated with hyperlinks)

in general... I'd rather have dollars than a gift card because they have more flexible spending (or SAVING!) properties. With that being said here's a pretty all inclusive list.

A New String Line Trimmer (Stihl: electric or non-electric)

"Make it Fast Cook it Slow" by Stephanie O'Dae

"Jam it, Pickle It, Cure It"

"Good Eats: The Early Years"
"Essential Yoga" Olivia H. Miller

Music CDs - Four of a Kind, Music for Trombone Quartet;

Movies (Alien 1-3 Triple Pack, Grand Torino, Mr. Holland's Opus, Shine, Lord of the Rings Box Set, Indiana Jones box set)

Guitar Pickups - (Fender "Texas Special" Strat Pickup Set)

Trombone Mutes (Trumcor Super Stealth - for practicing, Jo-Ral B3- harmon style "wah" mute)

Guitar Strings (Acoustic: D'Addario Phosphor Bronze Medium; Electric: D'Addario EXL 115w Blues/Jazz Wound 3rd)

Shaving Brush and Stand

Shaving Creams (Trumper Violet, Taylor of Old Bond Sandalwood)

Mukka Express (Ebay)

Espresso Machine (DeLonghi)

Camera Flash

Bike Trainer

Running Shoes (Asics GT-2150 Size 9 4E)

Train-a-thon...

Lately, I have been sleep deprived. And yes, tonight's post is evidence of my latest contribution to this very problem. This past week I had to work a night shift and then over the weekend we had an hour time change.

All I can say is that I relate to Charlie Brown's sentiment.

My training has been thrown off SOOOO much over the past couple of weeks. I can only blame myself, but life get's busy ya know? I DID manage to run while I was out of town in San Francisco. This was an accomplishment in it of itself because who wants to leave the comforts of sleeping in at a nice hotel while on "vacation"? It was well worth it though. I got to jog out to a view of the Golden Gate Bridge and back... during sunrise. There were several other runners out along the same route and I felt like I belonged to an elite club. Artists were setting up there displays, there was fresh fruit being put out at a street market, and there was the aroma of sourdough from the local bakery. Down by the bay there was a lingering scent of seawater, and basil if you can believe it or not. I'm not sure where the latter came from, but it was there. There was even one street vendor that was cooking a big pot of what I would have guessed was chowder.

But enough about San Fran.

I'm trying to get back on track with training this week and it is challenging. I just did the math on my marathon goal and made the distinct realization that my initial goal may be pretty unrealistic. I'm hoping to keep an average pace of 10:30, but that didn't account for fade. My first Marathon was finished in 5:55:22. So maybe a more reasonable goal would be to shave at least 30 minutes from my time making it an average pace of 12:24.

I'm gonna train like I'm shooting for a 4:30 finish though :-) (Within reason. Believe me... I listen to what my body tells me. Well... except for the "sleepy" signals. I think there's a blown fuse ;-)

74 days and counting!

♪♫♫... I don't wanna grow up! ♪♫♪...

Sometimes, I wish I could be a kid again. Maybe that's what vacations are all about. Are we there yet?

:-)

Ode to autumn

Today was a long day. I'm not sure why exactly it just felt long and lonely.

There were several things that I wanted to get done, but it just didn't happen. I suppose that is why by the grace of God there is a new day each day. What do you think? I found myself longing for an adventure and the chance to experience Him in the wilderness. To come back refreshed and realize that this life... even the day-to-day stuff is a blessing and an adventure in and of itself.

I'd love to be driving somewhere right now. A long road trip with a destiny in mind.

I remember traveling to see Yosemite with Bruce, Ben and Kelly. I remember what it felt like to catch a cab back to the airport from Bear Trap Ranch in Colorado. I remember reading Through Painted Desserts and feeling like I had been to Oregon even though I've never tasted the salty woods of the Pacific Northwest. I remember Melissa falling asleep on my shoulder driving home from Fredericksburg and what it felt like sail the Atlantic with her off of the coast of Maine.

I look forward to the winter memories that come so quickly around the bend. I hope to savor a glass of blueberry wine from the fruit that we picked this summer. I hope that it is as good as the one that we tasted on our Honeymoon.

For all that I have had the pleasure of sharing words and time with... for imparting a memory to this heart of mine -- I raise a glass for you and offer a toast to thine.

feeling encouraged.

Today has been a good day. I got up and set out on a run this morning at 6:30(ish). It hurt and I walked a lot of it, but it felt good to just be out there and get back on track with my training schedule. When I got home I weighed in at the lowest I've weighed in years! Course, not low enough that I'm gonna post it here mind you ;-)

Anyway, success was how I felt the day begin.

I went to the Between Jobs Ministry (or "BJM" as it's called) and it was very encouraging to me. I was reminded of how I am valuable and how God has a plan. Those two things are SO powerful and yet, I don't believe hardly anyone (let alone myself) is reminded nearly often enough of those facts.

So, I got a card today which closed with some scripture and these two statements.

"Smile. You have God's seal of approval." I teared up at the very notion... and I did. Smile, that is. May it encourage you also.

... even if you don't know all the answers, or know exactly where the next step may land you. God knows and hopefully that's enough to comfort you.

~Greg

Leisurely Sunday Afternoon

Currently, I'm laying on our living room floor typing on Mel's old [working!] laptop and she is chilling out on the couch trying to feel better while surfing the web and listening to Taylor Swift. I have to say... I love afternoons like this.

It's leisurely, ya know? Even the windchimes are relaxed while hanging from the eves of our back patio.

Alas, I have an overgrown lawn that whines for attention and a grocery list that is destined to be filled out, but they must wait for the moment.

Last night was the first time we were able to hang out with our friends Lauren and Rodney in a long while. We were seeking something low key but arrived at quite the opposite. I'll let you check our Melissa's blog for all the details on the fire across the street. Needless to say, I didn't get to bed as early as I would have liked, but midnight is better than some nights I suppose.

Yesterday, I also had the joy of running 12 miles with my wife. Even though, we don't always stay together on the route, I love the fact that we are participating in something together with the same goal in mind AND we're staying healthy and getting in better shape to boot!

How else could we fill up the day yesterday? Well, Melissa and I are good about filling our plates, so what better way to do it than to go to my twin nieces first birthday party yesterday (but we did manage to sneak a birthday card to Dad at the party too :-) ? They are growing up altogether too fast. Sometimes I wish that life would slow down a bit more. I suppose that's part of the reason it's nice to write right now. But I digress...

My family was there (Grandparents, Brother-n-laws' immediate family, my parents...) and Lisa and Jeff's growing collection of friends that are in a similar life stage as them. It really warms my heart to see Lisa and Jeff in the role of Mom and Dad. God has specially equipped them to do this job just as he has equipped them to do so many other things well. I like seeing them slow down a bit to parent and plant roots vs. the somewhat "busy" lifestyle that had enveloped them a few years ago.

Melissa and I are still figuring out this chartered voyage. I'm still figuring out myself. Sometimes I feel as though my targeted goals are a bit myopic however. The most challenging task for me right now is knowing myself.... and being honest about it.

In closing, I'll leave you with a few pics of Sarah and Jessica enjoying their first cakes. Pretty precious, huh? :-)