Originally uploaded by MarkFitz.

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 A Year of Blogging in Review, Jan - April 2005 12/30/2005 10:30:00 AM

Since it's miserable outside and I'm exhausted from our 2:00am PACIFIC (4am Houston time) bedtime last night, but have had too much coffee to get some sleep, I decided to take a look back on this year and bring you all along with me...


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January 2005
First entry of the year. Wow. I don't even remember writing this. But I guess it was a year ago. But that's some funny stuff there.

Bike to work in the snow. Funny. Other places have snow this time of year?

And of course, who can forget the Evil Apartment? Some day, I hope to be able to.


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February 2005
Started the month out in Park City, UT on vacation (picture at right). For the shortest month of the year, a whole lot sure happened!

Google Maps is born. Oh, to have known then just how cool it would become in a short, short year.

My first moblogging experiment. This was a picture I took at my desk. In Chicago. Yeah, I once lived in Chicago.

And shortly thereafter, moblogging from Ireland, where we went for a wedding at the end of the month.


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March 2005
Aahh, Katamari.

I got in trouble for this wedding countdown post... And I'll probably get in trouble for mentioning it again. (but I made up for it with this post)

Looking foward to moving to Houston... Followed by an entry where I really am looking forward to moving...

...wow. Lots of stuff in March. And to finish off this first recap entry, let's head to


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April 2005
Well, how else to start off this month than with an April Fools' prank?

Opening day Cubbies rout of the DBacks does not, sadly, prove predictive of their season.

Wedding budget woes..


Hahahhaahahhaha. (sniffle)


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...and in case you hadn't figured it out yet, the plan is to do two more of these entries (four months per entry, 12 months/year... math is fun).

Hopefully this is a little less self-indulgent than it currently seems to me, and provides you all some entertainment leading up to (and no doubt, beyond) the new year.

Now: naptime! (actually, it's lunchtime. Sigh. Time zone changes + no sleep = weird schedules).
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Originally uploaded by MarkFitz.
The adventure begins. We decided that I would drive D to her interview so I could have the car, but due to confusing directions and a flooded underpass, we got waaaay off track. More updates to come.

Nothing but rain here, but apparently that came down as 7" [of snow] on the mountain..
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 HNY 12/29/2005 08:41:00 AM
Dana and I have been pretty silent over the last several days as the holidays bowled us over and we've only had a few days to recover before having to prep for our trip to the Northwest. Last night I went up in our attic (little more than a small room for the heater/AC unit), and pulled down our dusty snowboards and packed-up winter clothes for our trip to the snow (FWIW, Dana's coat is missing, but she's got a worthy replacement).

The weather looks to be pretty fair in Bend for our trip - 20s-40s the whole time - so we shouldn't have to dresss too warmly. We're there Friday through Monday (our flight Monday leaves at 12:40), so I've got a good three days with nothing to do but have dinner on Friday night with Dana and her interviewers. Obviously we'll be finding something to do for NYE, and maybe I'll make that my job while looking around town on Friday (along with finding someplace that will wax Dana's board).

Overall, I'm excited about the possibilities in Bend - it sounds and looks like a fantastic place that is not only really neat, but has a lot to offer. And we finally watched the DVD that came with the info package the Bend clinic sent us - and while it was cheesy, it was pretty well produced and gave some good insight into the clinic itself. Seems very modern and, well, good.

Otherwise, we've had some mixed news in the last few days. It seems as though we won't be moving to Portland (I'll leave it at that), but more importantly, Dana has been fielding reports that the Steamboat practice is calling her references - a very positive sign, considering they began calling last week when their final interview is/was (presumably) this week - if you're going to cross your fingers for us, this is the weekend to do it!

Other than that, we had a great Christmas. Being with the family was great, as always, but I had to drop the bomb that I would no longer be coming back once a month for work - there's just really no need for me to do that.

But I got a SWEET new jersey that I'll have to get back on the bike to truly enjoy (see here for an approximation - the one she got me is long-sleeve); a new GPS toy that will be coming with us to Bend (hopefully I'll have some sweet data mapped up for you after we return so you can see all the runs we did on the mountain!), and other awesome new goodies. (my new favorite PS2 game evar)

But for now I have to get back to work. Our flight today leaves at 5:50ish and with our big board carrier we'll have to get there pretty early. Luckily it shouldn't be as crazy crowded as it was last week. But our 2.5 hour layover in Portland should give us ample time to.. well.. whatever it is people do between flights in airports.
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Originally uploaded by MarkFitz.
Totally made out with the bride!
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Originally uploaded by MarkFitz.
Keri's boobs!
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Originally uploaded by MarkFitz.
Keri on my blog! At least she has her top on, for once!
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 Bend update 12/21/2005 12:03:00 PM
Pictured to right: Deschutes river

So if you've been paying close attention to Dana's blog, you'll know that we've been invited to Bend, Oregon for yet another of Dana's interviews. And that we'll likely be going over New Year's weekend, a big plus as we didn't yet have NYE plans.

Well, D came home really quick to grab lunch today (I was working on a work problem), and brought in "Christmas presents" that came outside with our mail. One of them was actually a present from Dana's Matron of Honor (Missy, who incidentally called this morning at 5am to announce the birth of her first baby, Edie, who landed in at a healthy so-and-so weight and is to serve as Dana's constant reminder that she wants babies. Maybe, at the very least, it'll stop her complaining about how there's no snow in Houston). The other was a package from the hospital in Bend who's wooing her (us), and I was given permission to open that one (but not Missy's gift).

Inside was quite the little seduction package. DVD ("10 minute introduction to your future"), water bottle (yay!), mini care-beaner, fishing bob (whatever those are called - the red and white floats), golf tees, and a baseball cap! Oh, and a car air freshener (you got me.. people in Oregon have stinky cars from all the fish they catch while mountain climbing to the golf course, all the while staying well hydrated, I guess, relaxing with a DVD carried in their baseball cap).

Also came with a magazine ("Bend Living" or something), but I decided to maintain the integrity of the package for Dana's amusement because it so impressed me. I did take out the bubble-wrap, though, and popped it like you wouldn't believe.

OK, I didn't really pop it, but thought I'd say I did. And now that I've said it, and we've already sent all our gifts that we're not bringing with us on the plane (exit-row seats! BOO-YA!), I think I will pop it.

Oh, and sorry for my hissy-fit yesterday. Skipped my meds again.
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 Spare me. 12/20/2005 02:17:00 PM (See what I'm talking about)
Our country/world is going to shit and this is what people decide to protest? PLEASE!

The next Gallup poll is going to divulge the secret that most men don't wash their hands after using the bathroom. THAT DOESN'T MEAN THEY'RE NOT MAKING OTHER PEOPLE SICK!

Guess what, poll respondents? You might want to sit down for this one... NOT EVERYONE IN OUR SECULAR COUNTRY IS CHRISTIAN! Horrors!

And guess what, pollsters? Just because I happen to like it when someone says "Merry Christmas", and I may even prefer to hear that over "happy holidays"... IT DOESN'T MEAN THAT PEOPLE SHOULD STOP SAYING HAPPY HOLIDAYS, TO THE EXCLUSION OF THE OTHER 40% OF THE POPULATION!
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 SORE! 12/19/2005 07:42:00 AM (See what I'm talking about)
Doing my google image search, I came up with and wanted to use this image (may not be safe for work, depends on your work), but decided that some of my more sensitive readers may not like looking at... well, it's not that bad. Nothing they couldn't show on late-night network TV, I think...

Anyway, I wanted to post for two reasons: one, to get Mikey's post off the top of my page (after all, the Texans actually won yesterday, and how can I post about Cincy and and not the Texans?).. And two, the real reason for the post, was to let my dear readers know how freaking sore I am today. D and I just got a gym membership (sorely needed, I'm afraid), and I kicked my own ass the other day (we went to the gym together, and I'm both proud and surprised to be able to share the fact that I can lift more than she can). But we're paying for our efforts now.

Hopefully today I can sneak out for a while (still have some XMas errands to run) and get a workout in...

Also, D just went to pick up the car (we were car-free all weekend, so stayed pretty close to home) from the shop, and she's driving it out to bumble today for work. I'm waiting on a report to see how much it cost and how it's now driving. Wish us some luck.
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 Merry XMas, Mikeyfitz 12/19/2005 07:28:00 AM
Mikey wanted me to put this ("Funniest. Picture. Ever.") up as my XMas present to him.

Apparently that water in Cincinnati has an effect on the sense of humor.
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 For Scott 12/14/2005 12:53:00 PM (See what I'm talking about)

Click the picture above for a nice musical video.
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 Champagne Tuesday 12/14/2005 09:19:00 AM
I was alerted early yesterday to the fact that Dana and I would be hopping on the other side of the interview for dinner last night - her program director had to go to his daughter's recital and needed D and I to stand in (with the assistant director) for the dinner portion of an interview with a potential incoming fellow (Dana's replacement).

So I "left" work a little early and headed to the gym, came home and showered, and put on a nice new blue shirt that Dana had previously ironed up for me (hey, free dinner at a nice italian place = Mark putting on pants and a shirt). I had the pork chops, Dana had the filet (and because of my damn rule that we can't have the same thing, I couldn't get the filet. But I wouldn't have anyway - it was the most expensive thing on the menu. Dana has no such modesty). To protect her anonymity (and becuase I can't remember her name), I'll just say that the interviewee seemed very nice and (as far as I could tell) knew what she was doing. D and I each had a glass of wine with dinner, and since we ate so early (5:45), we were easily done by 7pm.

Well, Dana and I were all gussied up (OK, I was. She just wore what she wore to work), so we decided to get an after-dinner drink at our favorite after-dinner-drink place (when we're not feeling casual), the bar at Sullivan's Steakhouse. First round, she got a chocolate martini and I got a Stoli gimlet (yum!). After that, she got another and I had no idea what I wanted, so I had a Zambuca (Again, yum!).

As we're finishing up our second cocktail, a young couple sat down at the bar next to us and the young lady (wearing a sequined bebe T-shirt -- Houston is so classy) ordered a champagne, and I thought that looked really good. So, we paid the tab (it's not in Quicken yet, as D was in charge of receipts last night) and headed to Kroger for our fix (and to get some cheese. Our food was good, but they were small servings. And we already had crackers at home).

So we found a little mini-champagne bottle (we weren't about to drink a whole bottle. Come on, people. We're saving THAT kind of drinking for Christmas at the Fitzgerald's), some cheese (I introduced Dana, who was muy skeptical, to Kaukauna Port Wine Cheddar; it is now her favorite), and got out of there.

At home we enjoyed our champagne (and I enjoyed playing with our latest wedding gift - a gadget that takes the air out of open wine bottles to help preserve them - THANKS, youknowwhoyouare!), we almost finished the cheese, and D found a new job to apply to - Colorado Springs.

So today I'm working and D came home as I'm reading the IBM business guidelines (I have to certify that I read them), and she's going to apply to the CS job now. But we're secretly hoping to hear back from Steamboat (8" of snow in the last 24 hours).

Rest assured, as soon as we hear something, you guys will.

Oh, and I guess, in that vein: Dana did hear back from the Salem (Ore) people, who would like to gauge her interest. If I were a gambler, I'd bet against us moving to Salem.

Note: If someone would actually like to check and see if this post is actually more parenthetical than not, I wouldn't be surprised. And I'll post your results. Just think: your own guest-post on my blog! How exciting! (Rules: this note doesn't count as part of the post, so exclude it. Even though I now have a parenthetical rule in here.)
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 Recently 12/13/2005 12:10:00 PM
While I was away in Chicago last week, a package arrived at home: Quicken. Dana and I have been working on getting our finances aligned and in check since we got hitched back in June (Christmas will be our 6-month anniversary, and in honor of that I've decided to get her a half-sheet of paper for the holidays).

Well, for Thanksgiving my supervisor at work rewarded our team (as his way of saying "Thanks") with Amazon.com gift certificates. I decided it wouldn't exactly be putting it to the use he intended if I didn't buy something for myself with it (as opposed to using it instead on XMas gifts for others), so I bit the bullet and bought Quicken Premier 2006 to help D and I manage our money and plan for our eventual debt reduction.

It's pretty nice. With three separate checking accounts (one or two closing soon) and several meager savings accounts (and more than a half dozen loans), it was really time for us to get organized beyond the Excel spreadsheet I've been updating for the last three years. It will also be a good way for D and I to visualize how we're spending our money, and I think it will become more and more valuable over time (just as my Excel spreadsheet has).

Also, instead of shoehorning Dana into my cock-eyed account balancing scheme, and my adopting her religious zeal for "updating the checkbook", we can both learn a new way of doing things now.

Hence, the picture above of a scale (balance, get it?) with a red background (um, we're SEVERELY in the red. Deep, deep red). Luckily, the bulk of our redness is repayable over 30 years (thanks, federal government med school loans), and everything seems like it will be pretty manageable. And finally we don't have to worry about this cloudy, amorphous amount of debt hanging over our heads. It is now clearly and explicitly outlined. And it only took us most of the afternoon to set up.

Notes: surprisingly, our joint account with a regional bank down here that I thought was kind of ghetto, has the best interface with Quicken. My old personal accounts both have to be manually downloaded from that bank's website, and my one credit card can't export data to Quicken at all. Dana's card(s) were easily updated in the system, and my IBM 401(k) info was pulled right in - including all the fund details and how my shares are broken down. And the 401(k) that is still hanging around at ABN AMRO (my former employer) has no export utility at all, so the details of that will remain unavailable (in Quicken) until I roll it in to my IBM 401(k) in March (after ABN pays up for this year's profit sharing).

Actually, as of right now, the only financial details not in there are Dana's old checking account in Chicago, her paycheck, and our car loan, only because she's switching her direct deposit to our shared checking account, and the car loan (one more payment) is withdrawn automatically from her old personal account. After this month, the loan is paid off, her personal checking account goes goodbye, and her paycheck is direct-deposited in our shared account. No reason to set it all up now only to have it go away in a half month.

I bet you're all really happy you have such a good understanding of our financial set-up now. and actually, I'm going to go back and edit out all the bank names I foolishly included because there are bad people out there on the Internets, you know.
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 The Bug came through! 12/12/2005 08:14:00 AM
For those of you that don't know, my sister (not sure if flickr link will work, or if her stuff is all private) is in New Zealand for a year bumming around. I've been waiting for her to click on my Google Maps thing so I could have the little marker in NZ, and when I checked today, she had come through.

Thanks, Bugs! (We call her Bugs/"The Bug" for some reason I've never understood)
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Originally uploaded by MarkFitz.
Wrigley sunrise.
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 Bend 12/08/2005 08:57:00 AM
Well, the odds, if nothing else, are getting better for the Pacific Northwest. I just heard from Dana this morning (heading from the interview in Portland, OR to the one in Salem, OR) that she in fact DID hear back from the practice in Bend, Oregon. Nothing has been arranged yet, but it is decidedly a "good thing" that she heard back from them.

Also, yesterday she was the last interviewee at the practice in Portland - and they would like to have an offer (and decision) made by Christmas (Steamboat had a similar timeline).

If we can make the trip out to Bend before Christmas (I would definitely be going along this time to check the area out), that would be ideal. IF we do get an offer (or, if we're lucky, offers), it would nice to have the Bend interview under our (Dana's) belt(s)..

Either way, things seem to be coming down to the wire, so wish us (Dana) luck!
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 I am Scott's Christmas List 12/08/2005 08:09:00 AM
Holiday Robot Buyers Guide (Gizmodo)
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 Dana interview update 12/07/2005 02:07:00 PM
Just got a call from Dana, she's very excited about the group in Portland, halfway through the first of two interviews (tomorrow she's meeting the group she spoke with on Monday).

Anyway, she likes the city (even though it's raining now), had a good time at lunch with one of the offices (the interviewing group today has two locations), and she called while on her way to the second location. More updates as I get them (as long as I'm still at work when she talks to me).
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 Today's BS: Marquette Dental Student Suspended Over Blog Posts 12/07/2005 02:01:00 PM (See what I'm talking about)
Wow. I'm glad I didn't go to Marquette, or this would really piss me off.
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 Chicago report 12/07/2005 09:17:00 AM
Though it's cold in Chicago (I'm in Chicago this week), it doesn't feel like it's as cold as they've been screaming about all week (though I've spent no more than 10 minutes outside at any time, so that might account for that perception).

Either way, things have been going well. Productivity is noticably up, but more because I revamped my own priorities than anything else. I kickstarted it by showing something I'd been working on to the manager whose team could benefit most from it, and he was very impressed, so I've been hacking away at that this week. I hope to finish and launch this updated page before I leave.

Otherwise, tonight is XMas shopping night - though I might go with dad to the gym first - we'll have to see.

Dana called last night a little past midnight, having safely arrived in Portland (it was only 10pm there), but still having to drive to her hotel. I want to call, but her interview today doesn't start until 11 (Pacific), and she hasn't been feeling well, so I'll get her in a couple hours, methinks.

That's really all I have to report right now. Back to work for me!
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 Dear mystery reader... 12/02/2005 07:58:00 AM (See what I'm talking about)
If you haven't clicked on it yet, to the right of this article appears a button that says "Map of Site Visitors". If you click on it, you'll notice that someone in Arizona has been reading the blog (who, I know not).

Well, from this article at CNN, we are made aware of who is currently in Arizona, and all I have to say is this:

Jen - sorry, babe. You missed your chance. I'm with Dana now.
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 I have no class. 12/01/2005 01:27:00 PM
Well, no more "brain class" at Rice, that is -- my final one was last night. There is another next Wednesday, but I will be out of town in Chicago for work and miss it.

Overall, I was VERY impressed. I got a little worried when I showed up the first day and the majority of my classmates were.. how to put it delicately... of an older demographic -- but none of the lectures were dumbed-down for us, and I really felt like I was learning about cutting-edge research. Yesterday's lecture was especially interesting to me - it was all about Bioinformatics (Wikipedia: "the use of techniques from applied mathematics, informatics, statistics, and computer science to solve biological problems.") and how we make memories. Very interesting stuff.

Anyway, I was sufficiently inspired to look at information on bioinformatics on my Blackberry at great risk to myself as I walked across Rice Village and a number of busy streets (OK, one) in the DARK while walking to the bar to meet Dana. Anyway, the class got me excited.

So today I looked at the continuing education site for Rice and while they don't have a detailed class schedule posted yet, they do have a "sneak peek", on which two classes definitely got my attention: "The Solar System and the Mind of Man" (um, can you think of a better class?), and "Theatrical Adaptation: Re-Inventing Material for the Stage" (why not put that degree to some use? Besides, I've been looking for a 'project' to consume myself with).

Note: yes, the above link is some wildly inappropriate humor. But I figured "self immolation" was a good - if inaccurate - synonym for "consume myself". Hence the link to that entry. Besides, maybe it'll spark some interesting conversation.

Note on the note: the pun "spark... conversation" was unintended, but a humorous accident, so I left it.

Now that I've thoroughly disgusted/offended/entertained (I'm looking at you, BJ) everyone, I'll leave you all with one final tidbit.

I just started reading a modern translation of Don Quixote by Edith Grossman (Don Quixote, of course, the brain-child of Miguel de Cervantes, and widely lauded -- this I didn't know before reading the introduction -- as being the first modern novel). Also interesting, Cervantes wrote in the time of Shakespeare, but it's likely they didn't know of each other. Funny.

Anyway, I'm on the fifth chapter (of many) but much to my pleasant surprise it's a very entertaining - and very EASY - read. So, it comes with my recommendation (thus far). Of course, it's hardly an unknown book, but if you haven't picked it up, it'll not only make you look intelligent (really impresses the wife when I choose to read in leiu of playing videogames), but it's quite possible to be entertained as well.

If only Terry Gilliam's movie version didn't fail miserably.
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