3 years

Today is our third year wedding anniversary.

And it's gorgeous outside. Bah!

If you weren't there or don't remember, the actual day was balmy, around 80 degrees and the river was flooded about ten feet as it rained about 5 inches in 6 hours.

But regardless, during the ceremony the sun broke through the clouds for the first time during that day and since our ceremony was barely 3 minutes long, that was a small time frame for the sun to plan that...so, yeah...
The reception was fun, the food was great and the drinks were perfect (beer and wine, hello?)

And each month, each year I love Chris more and more. I guess it helps that I married my best friend.

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On a different note: the news about Dumbledore.

Obvious.

But not.

I think we get so tied up by our definitions and what they should mean, like homosexuality for instance. Does being gay automatically place you in a box where you have to act a certain way, talk a certain way, react a certain way. I think the term gay, along with a lot of other definitions, are limiting.

Dumbledore was Dumbledore. A great wizard, but also a human being with the abilities to fall in love with another human being, make mistakes and try to make up for those mistakes. That is essentially what he tells Harry at the end of Book Seven. He made a mistake in himself, he turned out to fall in love with someone of immense power and knowledge and when he realized that, he spent his life trying to correct that.

Anyways, I try to think about things like that when I put people into boxes. Like "Dallas People" for example. Whenever I get a really rude customer who is demanding at the winery, I automatically mutter the phrase "Dallas People" under my breath. I noticed a difference, generally speaking, in the way people up here treat those in the service industry as opposed to those in Austin.

But I shouldn't do that. It's not fair for those who are from Dallas that I either haven't met yet or know already and they are good people.

But I am human and my need for placing limits on people is reactionary.

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On a different note: I made a perfect score (100) on my chemistry test.

Then, I went into lab and (I feel like) I bombed my lab mid term. Funny uh?

Um, I rock.

So, for two months I have been putting off getting my required textbook for my enology class because it was selling new for 180 dollars and used for a mere 120! And since the move wiped us out and we took a paycut in coming here with me working less, we are broke. All the time. Which is fine, except when you want a good glass of wine and your required textbooks for your classes. Gah.

Well, I finally scraped enough moola to send off for one I found on Amazon for 112. The payment went through and I put it out of my mind.

A couple of days later, I finally check my email to see the money had been debited back to our account and there was an email from the seller informing me he was very sorry, but he didn't see this cut in the book. If I still wanted it, he would sell it to me for 40 bucks, shipping included. The actual damage? None.

There is a cut. But it didn't go through the binding and you can't even see it. Other than that, it's practically brand new! For 35 bucks!

It arrived yesterday and I did a little dance. Because, you know, I rock.

Updated Christmas list

For Chris:
Necessities:
*nice, button down shirts (sizes to come)
*nice work pants (again, sizes to come)
*dress socks

Fun stuff:
*fenders for his bike
*any bike accessory you can think of, just ask me first if he has it already or not
*one of those coffee grinders that you have to grind by hand! The good kind.

For Michelle:
*a hydrometer
*yarn
*a wine aroma kit (some of them are really expensive, I don't want those)
*books-- 10 Greatest Winemakers in America
From Vines to Wines by Jeff Cox
General Viticulture, 2nd ed., 1974 by A. J. Winkler
Field Guide to Diseases, Pests and Disorders of Grapes by Kelly, MacGregor, et al
How to Taste by Jancis Robinson
Viticulture, Volume I by Peter Dry, Brian Coombe
(Most of the books can be found at the UCDavis bookstore or on Amazon)

Labs

Tuesday afternoons these days are spent in a chemistry laboratory (emphasis on the laBORatory because I am a geek). These labs, although somewhat confusing at times, tend to help shed alittle light on what we are studying in class. A little. Not often, but it happens. Stick with me.

This past Tuesday was the lab day from hell, however. And it wasn't only me it was affecting but my lab partner as well. For some reason, our heads were in the clouds. First, I had a caffeine headache that was growing worse by the minute and blinding me to anything in my peripheral vision. That sure didn't help during a very calculated lab procedure.

Two times we tried to complete this lab.

Two times we failed.

Many times we cursed.

Thus, we had to go to an extra lab to re-start and complete the lab today. Thursday...my supposedly short day of school.

One time we tried to complete this lab.

We succeeded and it was so easy, we cursed again for our ignorance, bad moods and headaches on Tuesday.

I took a test in the lecture part of lab that I feel pretty good about but I am a little afraid that I feel good about it because that means there might be a lot of little mistakes that could get the whole problem wrong. What if I worked it out correctly but marked it down wrong on the test? What if I failed to read one decimal place and that makes the whole problem off?

Do I sound like Hermione? Yes, yes I do.

Anyways, all I have to worry about now is getting caught up in my online course (I hate online courses!) which is my viticulture class, finishing my enology quiz for the next weekend class and studying for my chemistry lab exam. What?! Lab! Again!

Groan.

Life in Sherman...

Well, we have been here almost two months now.

Sheesh.

Things are good. My classes are going well, although I am not on a regular studying schedule yet, but it's getting there.

Chris' job is going okay. I helped him grade some quizzes this morning and boy, oh boy, does he have his work cut out for him. Some of these kids have never had to work in class before and they are resistant to starting now.

The house is slowly coming to order. We don't have bookshelves or cases yet and all of our books are just lined up along our living room wall. It looks weird. There are still some boxes hanging around, waiting for us to go through them. I think we haven't yet because we still don't really feel like we live here, like this is home. Maybe we are not unpacking them as a subconscious decision that this will never be our home. Or, maybe we are just lazy.

While I am thinking about it though, here is an early version of our Christmas wish list: (and yes, I have already started gathering materials and ideas for your present)

For Chris:
Necessities:
nice, button down shirts (sizes to come)
nice work pants (again, sizes to come)
dress socks

Fun stuff:
fenders for his bike
any bike accessory you can think of, just ask me first if he has it already or not


For Michelle:
a hydrometer
a carboy
donations towards her school books
yarn
a wine aroma kit (some of them are really expensive, I don't want those)
books-- 10 Greatest Winemakers in America
From Vines to Wines by Jeff Cox
a fermentation lock


The list will be updated from now until Christmas. Also, any of those weird things for me can be found online or at any winemaking store.

Hope all is well with everybody!