Tuesday, January 25, 2005
babies, holidays, and moving
I'm falling behind on getting pictures updated, so I wanted to put up a quick entry to point out the new ones.
The first set of pictures aren't mine, but they are perhaps the most important. John and Jeanne welcomed their second daughter on the 8th of January - Julia Marie. Click here to see their beautiful new little one.
The second set of photos is from our annual post-Hanukkah Hanukkah get together. As a family, we never seem to be able to get the whole group together until January each year. As always, it was a great time, and we really enjoyed getting to see everyone. Click here for those photos.
The final set of pictures is from our move day at work. My area moved into the new RadioShack campus on Monday, the 24th. Here are the pictures I took that day. We are still getting used to the new facility, but I'm sure we'll adjust quickly. The new building is wonderful! It is beautiful and RadioShack has done a great job of adding ammenties and the latest technology to ensure we are a cutting-edge campus.
Hope that helps you to get caught up on the photos. More to come soon, I'm sure...
Sunday, January 16, 2005
mercury and makeovers
Thought it was time for a quick update of what has been going on around the Lennard house these days. Including things my wife's superstitions keep me from talking about... Hint: Check out the Christmas 2004 pictures. Things have been hectic and time seems to be flying by.
We have purchased new furniture for the living room and have already had new flooring put down. We will soon be painting the living room and expect delivery of the furniture in the next two or three weeks. We hope it will arrive in time for the Superbowl. Click here for pictures of the work done so far. The captions on the pictures will detail the work.
Sticking with the theme of things flying by, we ate at the Mercury Grill last night. We were lucky enough to again get to celebrate with Bob and Liz on their anniversary. After eating there, I see why the restaurant is touted as one of the best in Dallas. The food was superb; the portions were ample but not gluttonous. The unique blend of flavors and fresh ingredients kept you mouth excited with the flavors.
The hostess seated us in the side dining room -- which turned out to be perfect. Eagles tunes played lightly in the background and on a baby grand player piano in the back dining room behind ours. The music was always present, but never overbearing. The tables were nicely spaced and the room was quiet enough that you were rarely aware of the other diners around you. The main dining room was a bit louder and we were glad to have been placed where we were.
It is wonderful to get to eat with good friends in a place like the Mercury Grill because of the pace of the meal. We were there for 2 and a half hours. You never felt rushed by the other patrons waiting in the lobby for a chance to sit down and have a meal of their own. We laughed, told stories and spun tales, and throughly enjoyed ourselves with Bob and Liz. After dinner, we returned to their house for another couple of hours. After nights like last night I am reminded that these are the evenings which give life its richness. Not because of the wonderful meal but because of the wonderful company.
Quick picture update -- Kishore sent over pictures from the New Year's celebration with the offshore CTS team. He has taken pictures of the decorations and the activities that went on. Thanks to him for sending the pictures over. You can check them out here.
Sunday, January 2, 2005
happy holidays and a great new year!
I hope this entry finds everyone doing well. I just wanted to take a moment to wish everyone happy holidays and wish you the best in the new year. With tragedies like the tsunami, it is emphasizes how fragile and fortunate we all are. It makes me appreciate the time I was able to spend with my friends and family during this holiday season that much more.
We made a brief trip to Wichita Falls for Becky's birthday and Christmas Eve. We had a birthday dinner with Phyllis and Gary on the 23rd. On Christmas Eve, we were able to get together with my step brother, his wife, and their precious daughter - Brent, Cory, and Skylar. We then spent Christmas day with my Mom, my stepdad Skip, Becky my sister, my nephews Robert and Jake, Uncle Duck (Doug), Danny, Kelli, Kaleigh, and Avery. It was great to see everyone and get to spend some time together. Not to mention the other holiday tradition - eating too much food and enjoying every minute of it.
We continued our other holiday tradition by spending New Year's Eve with Bob and Liz. As always, they threw the best of parties. The company was outstanding, and the food and margaritas were perfect. We were forced to make an early exit this year - right after midnight. Becky was worn out, and these days it was long past her bedtime.
Click here for pictures from Christmas day.
Saturday, January 1, 2005
Today's Pictures (Day 12, October 29, 2003)
Dive Log for Day 12:
1st Dive Info:
Location: Tiputa Pass, Rangiroa
Time In: 7:41a - 3000 psi Time Out: 8:28a 600 psi
Max Depth: 65 ft Bottom Time: 47 minutes (3 minute safety stop)
Temps - Air: 80 F Surface: 80F Bottom: 80F
Visibility: 60 ft
2nd Dive Info:
Location: Tiputa Pass, Rangiroa
Time In: 1:58p - 3200 psi Time Out: 2:36p 1000 psi
Max Depth: 77 ft Bottom Time: 38 minutes (3 minutes safety stop)
Temps - Air: 83 F Surface: 80F Bottom: 80F
Visibility: 60 ft
Rangiroa and its Tiputa Pass are highly rated dive sites in the dive community. Unfortunately, as the luck would have it, only one out of my three dives turned out to justify the hype I'd read before diving off Rangiroa. That is one of the worst and greatest things about scuba diving. You never know until a dive is over whether it was a bust or one of the best dives you've ever had.
After diving with the grey sharks off of Bora Bora, I was anticipating another great shark dive in the waters off Rangiroa. We ran through our briefing at the dive shack while the locals loaded our equipment onto the zodiacs that would take us out to the pass. The divemaster took time to explain how the tides and other factors affected the currents in the pass. This morning, the section we were diving would have light current, but it wouldn't hinder our diving at all.
We buddied up and headed out to the zodiacs. The trip out to the pass is short. We were in the water within 15 minutes of leaving the dock. A quick back roll into the water and we were swimming toward the reef that lay below at about 40 feet. After a slow descent, the divemaster did a quick head count and we began our slow examination of the reef around us.
Today's Pictures (Day 11, October 28, 2003)
Editor's Note: With it being yet another new year, I thought it was about time I got back to finishing these entries. Only two more days to go...
It was time to move on to the next island on this morning. We rose with the sun and quickly finished packing up the room. After a small breakfast, we climbed back on the hotel's water shuttle to the airport and smiled on the island paradise of Bora Bora once last time.
We departed for our next stop on the trip, Rangiroa. Rangiroa is very different in geography from Tahiti, Moorea, and Bora Bora. The later three belong to the Society Islands. Rangiroa is a member of the Tuamotu Archipelago. And unlike it Society Island cousins, it is an atoll. Since the island is on top of the reef, it is flat - incredibly flat. Kansas in the South Pacific flat....
We arrived on Rangiroa in the early afternoon. The flight into the Tuamotus was amazing. Seeing the atolls scattered in a huge group among the vast Pacific Ocean was a wondrous thing. One of these days, I'll have to dump the video I took from the flight to a digital movie format and post them on the site. It is something everyone should see.
As soon as we stepped off the plane, it was apparent that we'd entered an even more remote part of the world than the Society Islands. It also seemed much hotter than any of the other islands we'd visited. We'd learn while we stayed there our initial impression was correct. We spent more time in the pool on Rangiroa than any other island. It was an infinity pool and the perfect cure for the flesh-searing, intense sun.
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