Janki Method

The Janki Method sounds like a truly great learning tool--and not just for programming.  It seems similar to Pimsleur's language program, but it allows you to create flash cards for anything, and then the program uses an algorithm and your input to know how often to ask the question. I might have to use it to keep my Japanese at a decent level and to improve my Spanish.

Spontaneous Trips: New Braunfels

Last year Joy and I were going to open a wine and coffee bar called Alegria, and we wanted it to have some interesting, unique items, so we went antique shopping and met a guy named Shawn who owned a place called Junkology. He had a fantastic piece of Texan history for sale: a gondola from the HemisFair in San Antonio in '68. He also had the banner. We thought it would make a great addition to our cafe and put down $200 until we could make it back and give him the rest if the money and take the gondola home in a bigger vehicle than what we had with us. Well, the cafe fell through for various reasons and we told Shawn that we couldn't take the gondola. I said I would mail the banner back, but we thought it would be better to just deliver to him at his shop in New Braunfels so we could check out the rest of his shop and find something we could use at our new home, and that we did. Check out our new bikes! Well, old bikes but new to us. It's been a while since I've ridden a bike, so I'm pretty excited about our new adventure. They definitely need some clean up work, which we've already started on. Yea! for learning new things.

While Shawn was cleaning up the bikes a bit and adding air to the tires and so forth, he recommended we walk across the street to a restaurant called Huisache Grill. Boy, are we glad we listened to him. The food was amazing.For starters we had the shrimp cocktail with avocado. Amazing! Then we shared a spinach salad with blue cheese, green apples, candied pecans, pickled red peppers with a vinaigrette on the side and a cup of tortilla soup. For the main course I got the steak medallions. If you go, definitely get the pecan dusted steak medallions with Jack Daniels butter sauce. Delicious! It had green beans and roasted potatoes on the side. Everything was so good. For dessert we had the chocolate buttermilk cake. That was my least favorite thing, but everything else was amazing! Oh, but the ice cream on top was made in house, I believe, and that was really good.

After that we went to Natural Bridge Caverns, a place Joy has been wanting to go to for some time. It had been a while since I'd been. It was just about the same except now they have another cave you can go through but you need special equipment and you have go spelunking to get to the cave and crawl through other parts. I don't think I'm quite ready for that. Maybe next year. We also logged a geocache finding.

Next it was time for dinner, and we debated about going back to Huisache Grill. Yes, it was that good, but instead we went into San Antonio to go to La Fogata to get mole enchiladas. They were perfect. Not too spicy, not too chocolaty. Perfect. Then we drove home. It was truly a great day trip.

Spelling Bee

Tonight I competed in a spelling bee for adults... No, that does not mean we had to spell R-rated words; although, that would have been funny. Hm...maybe an idea for something. No, they were normal words and it went like a regular spelling bee. We made it to round three or four. It's kind of nerve-wracking when a bunch of strangers in really expensive suits are watching you spell and hoping you'll mess up, so you'll have to forgive me if I can't be accurate.

Audience members could help you out by buying a lifeline, which would save you to go on to the next round and cost $500. Yeah, not five dollars but five hundred dollars. Remember the part about expensive suits? Most of the audience was made up of lawyers and some of the teams were lawyers. After the second pair of lawyers had been saved by a lifeline I knew we were not going to win, which helped me relax. I wasn't angry. It was a fundraiser after all, and I think my teammate and I held our own pretty well.

What I Learned from NaNo 2012

This year was a tough one. What I have realized is that it might be my last one--and not because of how tough this year was. I enjoy NaNo, but it seems that I spend the whole year saving up my writing until November 1. I don't think I wrote a single word outside of November--creatively anyway. Not like I used to. I'm sure my wife will be happy to hear this. I still want to participate in some way, so I still want to work on the Houston Night of Inscribing Recklessly. (I think that's the name we came up with.) I still want to support the friends I've made in NaNo, but I want writing to be fun throughout the year. Of course, I say this now in December, and next November might be a whole different story...

New House

I have just been through a month of Hell. Seriously. But it was totally worth it. Joy and I are moving into our new home this weekend. I still can't believe it. I wonder how long it will take to sink in. Maybe when we pay that first mortgage payment.

Dream Job: Day 1

Today I start the job I have been wanting for the past three years. Finally! I am the Oral History and Outreach Archivist at the Houston Metropolitan Research Center. Happiness!!! I have wanted to work here since I started volunteering while working on my master's in Library Science. I can't believe I finally got my dream job.

Cutting Oneself out of Side Zipper Pants

I think that really is the punch line.

I wore one of my favorite pairs of pants to work today. They button and zip on the side. I have had a problem with the zipper only going down halfway for a while now, but today they finally broke. Of course I didn't discover this until I was at work and had to go to the bathroom. I go in and try to unzip, but nothing happens. I really have to go so I try just pulling the zipper apart. No go. SO I go back to my desk and try to finish up the requests I have as fast as I can while bouncing up and down in my chair. I finish, leave early from work, and race home CATCHING EVERY SINGLE LIGHT ON THE WAY. When I finally get in, I grab my scissors from the refrigerator (they're magnetic) and rush into the bathroom to cut the zipper without cutting my pants too bad. Success was followed by sweet relief, if you get my drift. I'm hoping my pants can be saved and can magically be repaired by my alterer. Keeping my fingers crossed!