Labor Day Update

Abbi got her hair cut really short this summer. It has been awesome. Much less hair in the house, and she seems to feel wonderful.
Deep fried Snickers bar at the MD State Fair. Worth every single calorie.
I don't understand this one, but the Deep Fried Twinkies are popular.
Giant turkey leg at the MD State Fair. Caele was patiently waiting for a piece to fall . . . but it never happened. Caele came with us to work the BARCS booth at the Fair - she was a "representative" of the rescue dog community - but we had plenty of people asking if she was available for adoption!

We have been so very busy this summer! Turns out that job hunting was a full time job, then when I found a job that was also a full time job! I have neglected the blog, but want to bring folks up to speed on some cool things:

- I am working for the State of Maryland/Department of Health and Mental Hygiene/Family Health Administration/Office of Health Policy and Planning as a Public Health Policy Specialist. I really like it; my boss is a super lady, co-workers are good people, the work is very interesting . . . gush gush gush. Right now I'm working on a big Needs Assessment document about Primary Care in Maryland, as well as learning the process for getting areas in Maryland certified as federal Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSA's). Soon I will be working in our legislative unit as Maryland figures out how to put the laws passed into action here in our state.

- We have started volunteering at BARCS (Baltimore Animal Rescue and Care Shelter): http://baltimoreanimalshelter.org/

Adoption and care used to be part of Baltimore City's Animal Control unit, but 5 years ago that part of the operation was split off to a separate non-profit agency (BARCS). Since then, adoptions are up 3000% (that's three thousand percent, not a typo!!). This is such an exciting time at BARCS as they have made tremendous progress, but there is still so much work to be done in Baltimore City where many people don't understand how to care for an animal, the importance of spaying and neutering, and that pets are lifelong commitments. We are still in training, but so far we are really enjoying ourselves. We have met lots of wonderful people who also care about animal welfare, and what a great feeling to take a shelter dog for a walk and give them a belly rub; they are so excited to see us. We hope that all of our Balto area friends considering adding to their family will look at BARCS first as there are so many wonderful animals there. If you're like us and the "inn is full," please mark Saturday, October 23 on your calendar for Barcstoberfest - BARCS's biggest event of the year. Held at Patterson Park it's a wicked awesome festival for dogs, people, and people who like dogs. We'll be there!

- Next weekend I start a 9-month training to become a certified yoga instructor. This is going to be pretty intense.

- We're still running. I'm registered for the Baltimore half marathon, as well as the Manchester City half marathon.

How to Feed the World

Uncle Bill shared this very cool video with us. I hope that all of you will check it out!

http://dvanw.com/video/videodisplay.html?32

Being back to work full-time doesn't leave much time for blogging . . . but I am hoping to post some updates soon. We've been up to lots of cool stuff, and are looking forward to a weekend of cooler temps here in Charm City.

I have a job!

Hi everyone. I have a job. I start next week. This is very exciting. More to come!

Summer Update

Boy have we been busy! We've been having a great summer despite this heat wave that just won't quit. A few weeks ago we had the Perkins family as house guests - how great to see them! We have been busy on the weekends seeing friends, and I've enjoyed having a little more time to cook again.

The Fourth of July was pretty low-key here - a few friends came by our place for snacks then headed to the Inner Harbor with CDW to see the fireworks. I stayed home with Jackson who is very afraid of both thunder, and fireworks. I'm happy to report that he did quite well as long as he was occupied with games and music. Speaking of Jackson, he was scheduled to give blood for the first time today, but his appointment was cancelled because the vet was very sick. I'll be sure to post the details of all of that when he does finally attend his first appointment.

The job search continues for me. I've had a few interviews now, and I certainly have a favorite place; I think they like me, too. Unfortunately, the position they would like me for is still being fleshed out . . . so I need to keep applying for jobs. That is all that there is to report there.

Indian Loot

Today we celebrated our neighbor/friend's birthday with a delish Indian lunch. After lunch we visited a Patel Brothers grocery store. This is where you can get all of your Indian groceries - what fun! I was inspired and picked up a few instant-style Indian items, hoping that it will give me the confidence to start cooking from my Indian cookbook. It will be quite helpful now to know where to get the Indian ingredients!

I have also included a photo of the rarely seen Belle kitty. She is meowing because she wants me to pet her.

TJ's Greatest Hits

For all of your special occasion transportation needs . . . Wahooptie.Saturday morning we took the camera with us on a hot and steamy 8-mile run through grounds. I thought we were going to melt - but we lived to tell the story.

(Above) My home away from home while at U.Va.

I thought this was a cool pic. The curvy walls to my left enclose the Serpentine Gardens. Straight ahead is The Rotunda at the top of The Lawn. All bow to Mr. Jefferson.
Jody - "Blah blah blah Mr. Jefferson. Blah blah blah Grounds. When I was a first year blah blah blah." On our way to Edgar Allen Poe's room on The Range.JAS kissing Homer's butt, as is ritual when streaking The Lawn. Obviously I didn't streak this morning but maybe I did a few years ago . . .
JAS and CDW hot and sweaty on The Lawn.I had forgotten this about C'ville - the cabs all have these funny slogans and mottoes painted on their trunks.
CDW enjoys an Archer as a big storm rolls over the Blue Ridge Mountains and into the Ville. We were in C'ville less than 48 hours, and managed to have Arch's frozen yogurt twice!
And we continue to eat our way through C'ville with next stop Bodo's Bagels. Bodo's makes the best bagels EVER. This Bodo's is located on The Corner in C'ville (The Corner is the actual name of a little district of shops, restaurants and bars right across the street from Grounds). For the entirety of my college experience the sign here said "Opening Soon." It said opening soon when I visited U.Va. as a high school senior. It said opening soon a year after I graduated. It finally opened a few years after I graduated. I guess that "soon" can be a relative term.
Schroeder family - you know you love St. Maartens! CDW and I split a yummy cheese turkey burger and cheese fries. Heaven! My very fave bar/restaurant hangout in Cville.
There was a photo booth at the Bat Mitzvah party. Fun!

Last weekend we headed down to Charlottesville, VA. Sadly, the hectic pace of graduate school for the last two years prevented me from my usual frequency of visits to my alma mater to relive my glory days . . . so I was pretty excited. We were there to celebrate Brie's Bat Mitzvah, which involved a few great parties, but we also had a lot of unscheduled time, and we took advantage of that.

Surprise Visitors

So one random Thursday afternoon I get a text from my cousin that says "3 hour layover in your neck of the woods." Jess and Marc were en route to NYC, and got stuck in Baltimore for a few extra hours on account of some bad storms. Bummer for them, awesome for us! I picked them up at the airport, and we were able to hang out for just about an hour before I had to drive them back. Oh well - it was wonderful to see my West Coast cuz and her husby even if only for an hour!