Hey... I thought it was Spring!

So, last night Michael and I caught up over a few Bourbon’s at a TGI Friday’s down the road. The last time Mike and I visited Friday’s together? 1989. Anyway… as the evening wore on, the window showed us something I thought I wouldn’t be seeing again for a while — snow. And we’re not talking “oh just a little white powder” here, we are talking big, huge, white flakes. Big ones. Coming down like the ground was Macy’s and it was a 90% off sale.

The snow continued throughout the night leaving 4 – 7 inches on the ground (depending on which paper you believe). All I know is that Yeni had to break out the winter boots (She said, “Oh, Winter Boots I thought I would not see you again… but here you are.”) and I got to de-snow the cars yet another time this year.

I will say this though… Looking at snow is nice. Dealing with it, not so much. There’s more pictures below…

Starting the morning

View from our living room

Campus

Near the Lab

It is cold!

Downtown Ann Arbor

Today I posted some pictures on Picasa… they include:

1. Our trip to Cabella’s (45 pictures)
2. January 2009 (34 pictures)
3. February 2009 (33 pictures)
4. Disney March 2009 (46 pictures)
5. March 2009 (15 pictures)

Still to come? Pictures from my sister’s wedding and more!  There’s decent pictures in each section…

Now, you know you can see the entire album, right? Either click here or on the Fred’s Photos link on the right.

We’re not playing the Pyramid here, but wouldn’t that be great? Man, I miss good 70’s game shows. Give me the Pyramid and Match Game and I’m happy as can be. Anyway…

Benjamin Franklin

I’ve always liked Mr. Franklin. Some think he’s the only non-president on money… but those people probably think Mr. Hamilton was once a president. Anyway, Benjamin Franklin is perhaps my favorite American in history. I love his quotes and many of his thoughts can guide us still today.

Today’s the following Benjamin Franklin quote comes to mind:

It is the first responsibility of every citizen to question authority.

Which brings us to…

Ann Arbor Parking

Ok, although I’ve lived in Florida for the past 20 years (and love it), my family is traditionally northern in attitude and heritage. Often my love of Florida is mocked with southern jokes and generalizations. And if Florida somehow makes the news, my phone won’t stop ringing. I still get ribbed over Elian Gonzalez, the 2000 election, Terry Schiavo, and more.

But what does Florida have to do with Ann Arbor Parking? Two words: Sunshine Law. The Sunshine Law provides public access to government (no closed doors, let in the “Sunshine”) and Florida takes this very seriously. Besides criminal and civil penalties for violating the Sunshine Law, it has become such a part of Floridan culture that it’s hard to imagine not getting easy access to public information. After all, this is why the news loves Florida. If something happens in the Sunshine State, it happens in the Sunshine.

Enter the Ann Arbor Downtown Development Authority. This publicly funded group receives their budget from taxes and parking fees. Oh, they also think I’m a security concern.

Yes, even though I have a very clean background (just ask the FBI), the A2DDA thinks I pose a security risk and have blocked my access to their website.

When I look at the list of things that my mom can be proud of, I think:

• Court expert on DUI and Marijuana
• Firearm “incident” in Gainesville
• and now, Security Risk to the Ann Arbor DDA

Thank you DDA for your hard work, and for bringing to mind this other Benjamin Franklin quote:

“We are all born ignorant, but one must work hard to remain stupid”

Which brings us to… (if you want to see more details on Fred vs. the DDA, click here)

Motorcycles

The weather in Ann Arbor warmed up enough to remove the ice and snow from the roads. And it’s been so long since I’ve seen a salt truck that Yeni and I decided to go for a quick ride on Saturday.

It was the first time I was able to ride since December and it took all the stress right from my face, replacing it with a smile.

Yeni and Fred in Dundee

Welcome to Fred’s weekly review for the first “real” week of 2009. What did Fred do this week? Will Fred stop talking in third person? This and many more questions await you in this fantastic update.

Ok — so for the purposes of “whatever” I’m starting a week I guess on Saturday – Friday (if you’re keeping track, the answer to the 3rd person question is ‘Yes’). This week, I:

• Visited Cabellas in Dundee, Michigan
• Made a Lasagna (it was gooood)
• Wrote some code for a Parking Lot Space Available project 
• Smiled when Team Forrest got mentioned on TMCnet’s Blog 
• Drove in the Snow
• Caught up with some old friends
• Tried to make new ones

And that’s pretty much the week that was.

See this and more at the Picasa Site

It’s a start.

Over 1,000 pictures were taken in December, 2008 — perhaps due to the re-purchase of my favorite lens that died or maybe the addition of a new (fancy schmancy) flash. Regardless, many pictures were taken and as always, I like to share.

I’ve selected a few and put them on the Picasa site. I think I may go to Flickr one day, but for now, I have to say I’m pretty happy with Picasa for my needs.

Anyway, please let me know what you think of the photos so far…

Fred with Bear in Montgomery, MI

I learned that Colombian tradition places a lot of emphasis on Christmas Eve.

Last night, after eating tamales and playing Wii at Michael’s, Yeni’s family and I returned to the house, ate more tamales with friends, and then opened presents. I received some excellent presents this year, including Spider-man trinkets and a new Harley outfit for the bear.

We crashed very late and woke up to find much of Ann Arbor closed. The snow had let up and the roads, although icy, were mostly clear — so Yeni and I loaded up the family in the truck and headed outside the house.

Earlier in the year, Yeni and I stumbled upon a great little area called Chelsea (during one of the Harley rides we could take before riding the Harley would result in severe frost pain). We thought it would be great to show everyone this quaint little town and took the very long way through some Michigan side roads. After detouring through Saline and Montgomery, we arrived in Chelsea. We played in the snow for a while, looked at the Jiffy Mix factory, and headed back to Ann Arbor.

Yeni playing Wii

Back in town, I introduced Yeni’s family to my family’s Christmas traditions — and headed to Great Lakes Chinese Restaurant. We sat at the last available table and it was standing room only for those unlucky soles who arrived just minutes after us. The place was packed, and after finishing our delicious meal, we headed back to Michael’s for some more Wii action.

A lovely day.

Yesterday was a “travel day,” with all the reminders of why I do not like to fly. But, thanks to modern travel, I made it home safe and sound. The temperature last night? 1° F. Ouch.

Snow in the neighborhood is piled higher than the mailboxes.

Yesterday, we woke up at 5am and headed through the snow to take me to the airport. Even after spending 5 hours on the tarmac (and being de-iced from a de-icer named Fred), I still have to say I love American Airlines.

Don’t get me wrong, I do not like flying. I hate almost everything about it… From taking off your shoes to the airline reps behind the counter (has anyone ever had a positive experience with a gate agent??), from flight attendants to busy crowds, flying today for me is a last option. I’d much rather drive than fly on any given day, and, if time isn’t a factor (like Thanksgiving), it’s exactly what I do. I remember once being excited about flying and loving going to Airports, flying in airplanes, and just traveling by air. Loved it. Much like my hair, those days are gone.

But, I digress. So, if I have to fly, I like American Airlines. Let’s put it this way. When I’ve missed connecting flights from other airlines, getting a new flight was a hassle. Hassle and drama, drama, drama. With American, by the time I got off the plane, they had already reserved me a seat on one flight and put me on standby for another. (I ended up getting the standby ).

Anyway, I made it to San Francisco and had a great dinner with my sister, Scott, my parents, Tovah, David, and Scott’s mother and father. We were celebrating Scott’s graduation from college and was a great reason to see so many people that I love.

On plan for today? Dim Sum with the family and then throwing a duck into the ocean in remembrance of Forrest (today’s the 2nd anniversary). Also, it’s the first anniversary of Shadow’s passing.

See also:

• Lyrics to Come Monday by Jimmy Buffett (hence the title of this post)

Notice the de-icer’s cool name? (it’s Fred )

On my way to San Francisco to catch up with my sister, Scott, my parents, Tovah, and David!

You have to love technology today. My Blackberry can take video, pictures, and play MP3′s. Plus, unlike my iPhone, my calls don’t drop. Granted I’ve only had the phone 2 days, but I’m very impressed so far.

This video is taken from my Blackberry while taxiing out to the runway at Detroit’s DTW airport. Sadly, we didn’t take off for another 3 hours.

No much to report on a very busy mid-week. We received a big snowfall last night, which found myself prepping Yeni’s car for work this morning. Can’t say I’m enjoying the though of repeating that action for the next several months. It was c-o-l-d, cold. Oh, and snowy. Last time I was near that much snow, Mom made me a cup of cocoa with little marshmallows — of course they were real marshmallows added to the cup… not the pre-mixed yucky ones.

Things of interest today:

• This mom from Gainesville has to get some sort of Mother of the Year award.
• Blogged to VoIP Tech Chat (was short and sweet)
• Helped move my cousin’s site to a new host
• Looking at switching to Verizon very, very soon.

And that’s the news that’s fit to print. Oh, I also changed the design of this site around a little.

Made it home safe and sound. The entire community is covered in white, like some sort of Christmas card. Off to bed!

Yeni and our new winter placemats.

ANN ARBOR — Can you believe it’s snowed already? I mean… come on! It’s not even Thanksgiving yet. Well, luckily, Yeni and I literally just bought a coat for me before the snow fell. When I say just bought, I mean… like maybe 2 hours before the snow started coming down.

Yeni was so excited and I was… well… let’s just say… We’re not in Florida anymore, Toto.