Getting Out There

Ice hockey is not one of those sports you just wake up one day and decide to do. That is, until they build a new ice hockey rink one mile from your house where the red-hot Washington Capitals practice. Ironically, ice hockey is one thing I never played while I lived in Toronto (although floor hockey and ball hockey during recess were regular staples). So, with a new rink in my backyard and the need to find something to keep me physically active, I signed up for skate and play classes about a year ago. It wasn't until the week after Christmas that I took the final plunge by investing in all the equipment (knee/shin pads, pants, chest pad, elbow pads, helmet, gloves, socks...). There was no turning back. So late every Wednesday (from 9:15 pm - 10:45 pm) over the last four weeks I have been learning to skate/shoot/pass and then scrimmage with 30-40 other guys (and gals!) who love the sport. It is a workout! One guy told me he dropped 20 pounds last year just from attending this class once a week. Despite the late hour, I feel energized (and gloriously sweaty) once it is over.

Last night, Missy and her mom (who flew in to visit us) stopped by to see me in action and snapped the photo. So, here is the proof. It is never too late for an old dog to learn a new trick. The key is just getting out there.

Houseguests

We always enjoy having visitors -- especially family! We hosted my (Jason's) parents over the just concluded three-day President's Day weekend. The visit served a double purpose -- spending quality time with mom and dad and finishing up odds and ends from the basement finish project I started with my dad last August. Besides sharing a delicious Valentine's Day dinner at home that Missy cooked, we also visited the Pentagon memorial (to the 9-11 victims) and the Air Force memorial. It was my first visit to the Pentagon memorial. It contains a bench for each person who died at the Pentagon on 9-11. It is a relatively new memorial -- one I suspect will be an important spot in years to come -- especially for educating the generation that will have no memory of that tragic day. My mom noted that she has reached the point where the sixth graders she teaches have only a faint memory of what happened on September 11.

In terms of the basement project, we made great headway. We were able to re-route the plumbing for an outside faucet that was inadvertently attached to the hot water line, and install new electrical outlets and switches for light fixtures. The rooms are really starting to come together. I will post photos soon.

Next up: Missy's mom. She arrives tomorrow night!

A Week Away: An Overdue Report

Let’s face it, traveling is exhausting! Last week involved a late-night flight to Boise, an early-morning flight to Portland, a drive to the beach and back, a back-to-Boise flight, a road trip through Idaho’s Second Congressional District, and, finally, a window seat on a 767 bound for Washington Dulles. In spite of the fact that I am still exhausted, and in spite of the miles traveled, there were several good and wonderful things that happened during last week, including:

1. Sisters. (And Mom and Aunts and Cousins): My dad is the nicest. He picked me up at the airport at 11:30 last Thursday night, then took me back at 5:45 the next morning, all so he could see me for the fifteen minutes we had together on the freeway each way. Over the weekend, we held the first annual Sisterhood Retreat at the Oregon coast with the aunts and cousins on my mom’s side of the family. We had a fabulous time together—playing games, laughing, catching up, freezing on the beach, eating chocolate covered Rice Krispie treats, etc. My time with my non-Idaho extended family is all-too limited, and I’m so glad I was able to be there for the weekend together!

2. Meeting Baby Mason: It may have been a Sisterhood Retreat, but it was also a Weekend of Little Boys. Shaanti and Jenny brought their boys for the weekend, so I got to lay eyes and hands on six week-old Mason. Love him. He is a brick—so solid and thick, and I think he weighs as much as seven month-old Troy!

3. Visiting with Grandad: I would prefer not to admit how long it has been since I last saw my Grandad, who will be 90 in September. It was good to visit the Farm, where many of my favorite childhood memories are set, and to watch Troy eye Grandad’s long beard with very sincere interest…
4. The Parade of Nephews: Until recently, the boys pretty much lived separate little lives, running around in the same circles but not caring much that the other existed. But recently Cole has discovered that it can be fun to make Troy laugh, and Troy has discovered that Cole is pretty much the coolest person ever. Troy smiles all the time, but he really only bursts out laughing when Cole says “boogaboogaboo!” It will be fun to watch them become better friends as they get older. In my severely jet lagged state, I love to just sit and hold both of them in my lap.

5. Coming Home to Jason: We had a great week of work—traveling from one end of the state to the other, and meeting with lots and lots of people—but oh I was ready to come home! How nice to see Jason’s car pull up at Dulles and pour myself into the passenger seat!

Employed (with a job to do)

After several weeks of training, extensive networking, and anxious waiting, today I (Jason) accepted a Fellowship position with the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Appropriations (on the minority/Republican staff). For those of you who never read your government textbook, the Constitution of the United States vested the "power of the purse" in the legislative branch (not the executive). So, while the President and the federal agencies spend the money, they don't get it until the Congress appropriates it each year. The appropriations committee has wide jurisdiction, including having most recently worked on the stimulus bill. It is arguably one of the most powerful and important committees in the Congress. I'm looking forward to this new challenge.

So, my days of employed unemployment come to an end. I've tried to use the time productively, filling each of my waiting hours with the selling of old furniture and other items on craigslist and overseeing the finishing and painting of the walls in the basement. But alas, I'm not made out to be a house husband and I'm ready to get back into the thick of it. And for Missy to come home (she's been traveling since last Thursday). On Monday we start our commuting lives together.