Miracle Kidney Kitty

A quick update on our cat, our resilient Chunk. He seemed to be on the way down and after the vet checked lab values, she said his only real hope was IV fluids. Given the emotional and financial cost of that prospect, we declined and took him home. At her insistence we took some fluids to put under his skin to ease the discomfort associated with kidney failure. Chunk, however, figured that was all he needed and since starting fluid therapy has bounced back nicely.

He definitely isn’t all they way cured and we know it is now a matter of time. But, that time could be days or years… and we should all appreciate the extra time we get with loved ones. He is very affectionate but with the same sense of attitude, especially after getting his fluids.

So, for the time being he’s doing well and we are grateful and happy to have our friend still with us.

Reprieve

A quick update... we took Chunk into the vet. His kidneys were in full on failure mode. Blood test showed values off the charts. His only hope was going to be staying in the clinic for 3 days with an IV. We decided against that and she sent us home with some fluids to put in him. She said kidney failure is quite painful for cats and that this would ease his discomfort.
Well, over the weekend he has improved quite a bit. He is eating and drinking regularly and seems to be getting around ok. He curled up with me on Saturday for a little nap and has been out and about quite a bit. Even though the end must be inevitable, it is nice that he isn't so sick right now.

Not ready

Here it is, 2am in the morning, and I have cold sweats and shakes, yet I'm fairly certain I'm not sick. Last night I noticed that Chunk, our cat, hasn't eaten for a couple days... maybe more. He'll eat tuna, but not dry food. And, it is obvious things aren't right with him - he's skinny and not quite himself. We, unfortunately, are used to these signs.

Chunk is our oldest pet... we got him about the same time we got Rosa, from the humane society in Roseville, MN. We went there and had picked out one cat to adopt when Amanda spied some kittens and picked out this gray and white one. She couldn't put it down and we decided he had to come home with us, also.

His name was originally Theo. But, as he grew, he quickly filled out, realy filled out, and we often remarked on his "chunkiness." Well, that seemed to stick and he became Chunky or Chunk for eternity.

About 8 or so years ago we learned, through a blood test, that he had kidney issues... maybe he'd start having kidney failure or maybe he just has small, grape-size kidneys. I always thought he'd be the first to go. But, over the last several months we've had to say goodbye to his buddies Rosa and Cody... he's stayed strong... until now, it seems.

When he was young Amanda would often come to bed after a shower with wet hair. He loved that and would paw at it and try and bite it. Over time, though, sleeping on her head was his favorite spot. She would talk about how he was "out of control" last night with taking over her pillow. But, she couldn't resist his soft paws on her neck.

Once, in one of our road trips up the highway, he got his bell rung pretty good. We were driving the big old Ford fullsize van up. We had stopped at Liard hot springs for a dip. Amanda had the side doors open and, as she was finishing up, slammed it shut. It would have closed nicely, except Chunk's head was in the way. She shreeked (I mean, she had slammed it). Chunk fell over, his eyes floating in his head. I picked him up expecting to see brain matter falling out; but, his head was intact. I put him back down where he wobbled a bit and then fell over again. We held him for a while - he looked really dizzy - until he got his bearings. He turned out to be just fine, but always seemed a little sweeter to us after that incident.

I woke up tonight and pet Chunk. It was clear his energy level is down and immediately I knew I wasn't going right back to sleep. I am not ready for another pet to die, not yet. I'm not sure I ever would be, it just seems to be happening on too regular an occurence these past 10 months.

Family Road Trip 2009

Amanda and I have taken several vacations alone, something that we’ve enjoyed and have appreciated the alone time. However, as our kids have gotten a bit older we’ve realized we really wanted some family vacation time. I know, a few years ago I would have thought we were crazy; but, thankfully, we all change.

We cashed in a bunch of our miles and flew down to SFO – we called the Bay Area home from 2000-2003 – for the start of a drive North to Seattle. We flew in late Friday night/Saturday morning and drove down to Mountain View to stay with some friends. One fun note… on the leg from Seattle to SF the plane was fairly empty and Alaska Air bumped our family of 6 up to first class. The boys and girls each got their own seats and lived it up having snacks and root beer floats.

Day 1: Saturday
We spent the day with Kate and Simon and their twin girls Beth and Amy. We met them through the twin connection and they became great friends sharing many hikes around the Bay Area as well as very memorable camping trips to Big Sur and Northern Tahoe. This trip was very relaxing as they have created a back yard oasis with a fire pit, trampoline, guinea pig, and a couple “free range” chickens.

Day 2: Sunday
One of Connor and Andrew’s best friends during our time in California was Brandon Young when we visited our good friends Chris and Alice, Brandon and the boys picked up like they’d never been apart. We played basketball, Wii, and the boys got to have a sleepover with Brandon and his younger brother Bryce. We had a nice dinner alone with Chris and Alice, thanks to some brave babysitters willing to take on 10 kids (ours, theirs, and the Young kids).

Day 3: Monday
We hit the road North driving through SF, across the Golden Gate Bridge, and up to Arcata, where our hotel reservation was. It was a gorgeous drive as we started getting into the Redwoods. Unfortunately, the road was a bit windier than we anticipated and without Dramamine the boys couldn’t take much of it. Connor got pretty sick and Andrew hung on, but didn’t feel well. The girls did great just playing in the back of the van. That evening we went out for pizza at a classic family pizza restaurant – video games, grimy tables, serve your own soda – the boys even mixed their own concotions at the soda machine.

Day 4: Tuesday
After leaving Arcata we continued up the coast to Crescent City (I think it was) and then headed over to Grants Pass to hook up with I-5 and a nice easy drive into Eugene. The weather held for us – no snow in the pass and very little rain. The roads weren’t too curvy, either, and so the boys enjoyed the drive a bit more. The girls have the back seat to each other and just play with their toys and have fun for the entire drive. If Jenna gets tired she just naps for a bit, wakes up, and then starts playing again.
We arrived in Eugene late Tuesday afternoon – a typical damp, gray, and somewhat chilly Eugene afternoon. We took a nice walk around the neighborhood with Jasmine to try and loosen up after sitting all day.

Day 5: Wednesday
Wednesday was a nice relaxing day, especially knowing we had no where to go and no serious agenda. Betsy had planned a dinner for us with Dan and Bob. Dan has a vineyard with primarily Pinot Noir grapes and makes small quantities of his own wine as well as selling a lot of his grapes to other wineries. Bob and his wife have a small importing business bringing small-production French wines into Oregon. It was fun to talk to them in general and also about wine and the wine business. Stacey also made the trek down from Portland to spend the night which we appreciated.
During the day we did a few errands around Eugene making our regular pilgrimage to Trader Joe’s and a good lunch at Café Yumm. That afternoon the kids decided they wanted to stay with Betsy – she was very gracious to even give them that option – and Amanda and I went to visit a few local wineries.
We went to King Estate, a large winery most known for their Pinot Gris. We bought a couple bottles of their Pinot Gris and also did a Pinot Noir flight and decided to take home a bottle of the winemaker’s signature Pinot Noir. King Estate is an absolutely beautiful setting, even in winter. I’ve been on their tour before and it is nice, but wasn’t being offered.
Next on our list was Silvan Ridge/Hinman Cellars. They are a relatively small tasting room with some Pinot Noir and Shiraz (we only did the red tasting list). They were solid quality wines but not exactly blockbuster for my palate.
Finally, we hit Sweet Cheeks. They are so named as their tasting room sits on the intersection of two hills which, when viewed from a distance, looks like some “sweet cheeks.” The tasting room has this great soap stone wood stove. There was no fire burning, not even any coals left, but the stone was still very very warm. Their wines were good. They had a sweet Riesling they had just bottled that was excellent – sweet but with some nice acidity that prevented it from being too syrupy. We bought a couple bottles, one to enjoy with Amanda’s sisters. Later, at a wine store, we ended up buying a bottle (on recommendation) of their Pinot Noir infusion which is Pinot and Cab Franc… should be interesting.

Day 6: Thursday
During dinner last night we sort of invited ourselves out to Dan’s vineyard. He took us on a tour showing us his barrels, his winemaking equipment, and the vineyard. He does a great job taking care of the vineyard, and it shows… there is something calming and enjoyable about being at the top of a rise and looking out over a field of vines.
That afternoon we went driving around Eugene, walking around the U of O campus, and visiting a downtown wine shop. We picked up a couple pizzas for dinner.
The wine shop was combined with an ice cream stand, a coffee stand, and a café with wood-fired pizzas. So, while we picked out wine we had them make and pre-cook a couple pizzas for us which turned out to be very tasty that evening.

Day 7: Friday
Friday was the drive to Seattle. We said our goodbyes to Betsy, which was a little tough on everyone. The boys are always a little sad saying goodbye to people, so they got a little down. The surprise was Carli, though. Typically she’s pretty self-contained, not really letting others affect her emotions much. However, as we pulled away we heard a sob in the back… Carli was crying about leaving and deeply affected, and not because others were crying. While it was sad, Amanda and I were actually encouraged that she’d made such a strong emotional bond and was letting herself feel the heartache of leaving. We considered it a breakthrough.

On the way up we stopped in Portland to visit Stacey at her home. She made us a wonderful whole-wheat macaroni and cheese, which we all loved. It was a nice stop and, although brief, a good time to catch up on things. Unfortunately, we left just a little later than we wanted and then I think took a wrong turn. So, leaving Portland we hit some traffic. Luckily it wasn’t too bad, I guess, as far as traffic goes. But, for these Alaskans, we were definitely reminded how much we don’t like cities.

We arrived in Seattle and immediately went to the high school to watch Drew play in his first varsity game. Unfortunately, his team didn’t do so well. But, we all enjoyed the high school games. We also fulfilled our promise to the kids of getting a Jamba Juice.

Day 8: Saturday
Saturday the highlight was catching up with some very dear friends from high school, Heather and Jeni. Heather was one of my best friends during high school and also spent quite a bit of time in Eugene, during my college time there. However, over the years we lost touch with each other for various reasons and hadn’t talked or seen each other for probably about 10 years. She now has a beautiful 1 year old daughter. Jeni was a high school friend and also lived right around the corner from me in Eugene one year. I had recently seen her at our (gulp) 20 year high school reunion. However, on this visit I got to meet her two children, who are 5 and 3. And, of course, they got to meet our 4 children. In some ways it seemed like not much time had passed, that we were just out of high school and starting to pretend to be serious about life, but not completely bought in to everything we’re doing; but, just that we’re supposed to be doing it. I guess in some ways it was kind of reassuring; I didn’t feel old, but actually younger. I really appreciated the opportunity to renew those relationships, to see the evidence of time passing, feel and see the confidence that 20 years of real-lfe experiences bring, but also feel a sense of youth.

That evening we had a nice dinner with the Caraway’s and then spent the evening hanging out at home with the family. We have known Todd and Diane since they only had 2 kids (they now have 5) and were young in marriage and life and we were in our first year of marriage (now coming up on 15). We have stayed in touch with them through their moves and all of ours. I lived with them for 3 months while finishing school and we have visited them several times over the years. This visit, however, was the first we’ve done with our entire family. Their twin girls quickly adopted one of our girls and took care of them during our stay. Caleb and the boys immediately hit it off. Spending time with the Caraways is like spending time with a family that is in some ways completely different, but that we’re all completely at ease with. Todd remarked on the same thing – it just feels so comfortable to walk in to their family and make ourselves at home. Their friendship is very valued and I can easily imagine spending time with them 20 years from now.

Day 9: Sunday
Sunday we woke up and took everyone out for a walk. There is a beautiful walk in the forest by their house that has wonderful, quiet trails that wind through rainforest like trees. We said our good byes to the family, made a final quick run to Trader Joe’s and headed to the airport for our flight home.

The kids were excited to come home, I think. Amanda and I were, also. It was a wonderful trip… everything I had hoped and expected it would be. One thing the kids wanted to do while on vacation was see a movie, which we didn’t get to, and so I owe them that. But otherwise it was a success and hopefully goes into our family memory bank forever.

Now if only I'd get some of the pictures up...

Like father, like son, like grandson

Sunday morning the family goes to church. We arrive a bit early as Amanda and I are teaching one of the Sunday School classes. The kids are running around for a while, but then people start coming in and the place starts to fill up. We spend a little time getting our classroom set up, asking the boys to help us out. I run out to get some extra cups and, as I walk into the foyer, I get to witness my son Andrew, in the middle of the room, tucking in his shirt. Unfortunately, he comes from a line of Walch men who show little discretion... his belts undone, pants unbuttoned and pulled down a little bit, and he's getting the shirt all straight before buttoning himself up. Of course, I rush him off to the side a little bit, off the public stage. Although I probably should have been a little embarrassed for him, I really wasn't. He obviously wasn't. And, I doubt my Dad would have been.

Fun with twins

This morning as I'm hustling to get 6 kids out the door to school, I have this play out...

Andrew is standing on the steps, fully dressed in snowpants, coat, etc. Connor tells me he doesn't know where his snow pants are.
"You need to find them, Connor" I say. He starts looking around only because he knows he needs to do something. I resume getting myself ready to go.
Realizing he isn't making any headway and my irritation is increasing, I ask him, "What did you do with them after yesterday?"
"I think I hung them up," he says.
"Well, then they gotta be around here somewhere!" frustration rising in my voice.
Anxiousness is brewing for him now, knowing I'm feeling rushed to get going. He renews his efforts of looking around even though he knows it is futile.
It is time to go and I've boiled over. "CONNOR, WHAT DID YOU DO WITH THEM YESTERDAY AFTER YOU WERE DONE PLAYING?!!?"
"I hung them up, Dad"
"THEN WHERE ARE THEY?"
"Andrew took them"
My mouth drops. Andrew has been watching this whole interaction, his brother nervously hunting around and not ratting him out... just standing there probably hoping beyond hope that a pair of snowpants will drop from the sky.
"Andrew, are those Connor's snowpants?"
"Yes"
"Where are yours"
"I left them at school"

Yes, my friends, they look out for each other to a fault.

That was the beginning of the day. Now, they are both sick, throwing up. Connor at least had dinner, which was a pasta sauce with some carrots and brocolli. I made him try one piece of brocolli. He tried shoveling his carrots off to the side but I caught him and made him eat a carrot, too.
2 hours later he's got his head in a bucket. He pukes up all of dinner and, just as he finishes a big one, he lifts his head up, barely above the bucket, and says to me, "It's because of the vegetables, dad"

He is persistent, that's for sure.

Lots of ups and downs

Well, it certainly has been a little bit since I last updated this and oh so much has happened. Our summer was fun, but very full, and we had a few heartaches along the way.

We moved into our new home, really my old home, but now our new home. The process was somewhat anxiety-laden since we sold our house and had a pretty quick turnaround on that, plus we had lots of family visiting during that time. We really like it here, though, and have started settling in. Having more space is definitely nice when kids come over to play. And, now that it is winter, I finally get to put my car in the garage.

Unfortunately, one of our cats, Cody, got really sick. He finally got to a point where it was obvious he wasn't comfortable and we decided to take him in and put him down. We suspected kidney failure; even though he was young, he had all the signs. That was a hard thing, especially after losing Rosa not long ago. Cody did have a bit of a thing for Rosa, though, and would typically curl up with her, so maybe he wanted to spend more time with her.

On the positive side, Amanda completed her second half-marathon and I completed my first marathon. Given the hectic summer we had, we were both proud of ourselves and I was very happy with my time... I did just about a 10 minute mile for the race.

Amanda and I also did our annual Seldovia trip. The berries were out in full force this year and we loaded up on Salmon and Blueberries. We'll make our Seldovia jam and enjoy that this winter.

Now, in mid-October, it is winter here. So, we're hunkering down and looking forward to some cozy fires. More on that to come.

Mid-summer update

Well, in Alaska mid-August is really the end of summer. But, with the way this summer has gone, we’re going to have to try and milk a few extra weeks out of it. I think we’ve had only a handful of days that have reached 65, let alone 70 degrees. We’ve made the best of it, however.

I’ve been training for a marathon, which is this week. As you’ll see a bit later, some life events came up that superseded training and so I’m not as ready as I had hoped, but I’ll still attempt it. I did run a half-marathon and did quite well finishing in just over 2 hours. I also did my first open-water triathlon. My sister Sara and I flew up to Big Lake and did the Big Lake Triathlon. It is a sprint-distance tri with a 900 yard swim. Overall I did real well in that finishing in 1 hour 27 minutes and feeling really good.

We also moved homes – the big event that caused my training to stall out for a week. Our house sold and closed a little faster than we had expected… we were grateful it sold, though, and happy to move on to the next chapter of our lives. So, we’ve been living out of boxes while we get the bedrooms ready and hopefully things will be somewhat organized and ready for the school year.

Amanda’s parents came up for a few weeks. Her dad, Vern, came along on our annual dipnetting trip and saw the bountiful harvest come in. He’s really enjoyed the fruits of that trip – smoked salmon, canned salmon, and fresh salmon filets. We also did a halibut charter and got about 100 pounds of halibut. So, we’re feeling pretty good about our freezer situation for the winter. Amanda’s sister, Lana, also came up for a visit. Even though the weather hasn’t been great we’re hoping she has a good time and comes to visit more often.

The kids are gearing up for the school year – the boys for 2nd grade and the girls for kindergarten. They are all excited, as are we. Our schools start early here and unfortunately we’ll have to pull them out for a couple days right at the start to do our annual Valdez camping/fishing trip… but, priorities, you know! We’ll head down there for Labor Day weekend. Last year we had about 25+ people come down for a big potluck. This year I imagine the number will be a bit smaller, considering the price of gas, but we’re still hoping for a good turnout, and some good fishing.

Tri-family fun

2 weeks ago was the Eagle River Tri, which I did. It was my third year doing it and each year I think I’ll be able to spend more time training; it doesn’t happen. This year was no exception… I didn’t do any swimming and very little biking to prepare. My training has been focused on running – I’m hoping to do a marathon in August. So, my only goal going into it was to beat last years time, which was about 1:31.

When the results came in I was toward the very bottom of my age group. The only 2 below me were one that was a few minutes slower and one that didn’t finish. However, here is what I LOVE about individual events like a tri – I was extremely excited. My overall time was 1:27:17! I was on a high for the next week… it felt really good. Although, now I’ve got a new time to beat for next year, and of course, I have great plans for training.

Actually, I think what contributed to a somewhat dramatic improvement this year is general fitness level. My running is definitely taken up a notch this year and so, overall, I think I am in better shape and able to push myself a bit more. I also think that with this being my third year, I’m more comfortable with the course and pacing myself in swimming. Also, I knew I could push myself a bit harder during the bike since the run was my best event.

However, the real fun came after the race. The boys participated in the kids version of the triathlon – 1 lap in the pool, a 4 mile bike ride, and then a half mile run. I stayed with Connor; Amanda stayed with Andrew. They did great! Connor was smiling and waving at people as he ran; they really enjoyed it, which is the point. Several of their friends at school were also doing including their cousin, Kiera. It was really a great thing to be a triathlon family and I’m sure in a couple years the girls will be jumping in, also.

Balance

I read a great statement that basically said life, like wine, is all about balance. As I explore and expand my knowledge and appreciation of wine, I believe understanding balance is a critical, if not the most critical, aspect of wine. It isn’t just about the varietal – Cabernet, Merlot, Chardonnay, etc. – and it isn’t just about the style – fruit forward, old world, sweet, dry, etc. It is about balance. When I appreciate a wine a lot has to do with the setting, my mood, the food, the time of year, the people, all the things that go into the experience of drinking and enjoying the wine. And with all that, the balance of the wine seems to be a consistent appreciation aspect of all wines.

Similarly, life is about balance as well. Do me a favor… form a mental picture of something in balance. For me, it is a point with a plank balanced on it and a ball bearing on top of the plank. The fulcrum point is a triangle, made out of titanium, polished perfectly. It is a 2D picture. The ball bearing is titanium or platinum… something steely and reflective. They start out perfectly balanced… the ball right over the fulcrum point, steady, not moving.

What does it take to make the ball move? Can you even perceive a change in the angle of the plank when the ball starts rolling? When the ball moves further from the fulcrum, the plank starts moving. To bring the ball back to center, it takes more dramatic moves from the plank; overcompensating, catching the ball as it careens from one side to the other, trying to find the way back to balance.

In life we strive for balance, at least Amanda and I do. We want to enjoy life to the full, in all its wonder and multiple facets. But, to do that, there has to be balance. One aspect can’t outweigh the others. When it does, our life is out of balance and we feel it. Contemplate this – think about the intricacies of relationships, of life choices, of career, spiritual life, family, personal growth, personal enrichment, marriage, parenting, family fun, and on and on.

Now, think back to your mental image of balance? If it is anything like mine, it doesn’t take much to start the ball moving off the center, to lose balance. It isn’t the big decisions or actions in our lives that disrupt balance; it is all the small ones. If we make a small move that disrupts balance, catch it early, the adjustments are easy. But, if we make big moves, regaining balance is harder, takes more dramatic movements, and will result in several over corrections before we’re able to start bringing it back in order.

Maybe this visualization exercise and contemplation didn’t help you; but, ever since hearing that statement I’ve been thinking about it. I feel relatively centered right now, but my desires and ambitions tend to pull at me. The imagery of balance and maintaining or keeping a balanced life really helps keep those desires in check. Plus, contemplating the balance of my life in respect to the balance of a wine adds depth and appreciation to both.

The wrap up, finally

In Paris we had a poor Internet connection. In Amsterdam the weather was nice. We came home and life took over. So here I am, finally doing a synopsis of the last week of our trip.

Luxembourg – great country. We stayed in Echternach which is a cool little town. The main street was a shopping street with an outdoor gelato stand (yum!), wine shops and a market. We went to dinner at a pizzeria the first night and while out and about the next day we saw the restaurateur; he recognized us and said hello. That’s the kind of town it is.

Luxembourg the country has all sorts of recreational activities from biking, adventure sports, and camping. We took a couple drives up the river through beautiful vineyards, visited a couple wineries, and saw a couple castles.

From there Amanda and I took a train to Paris. We got to see the Paris Marathon, which as pretty inspiring. Our favorite scene was at the finish, at about the 2:35 mark or so, a blind runner (with a running partner) came in. We were positioned right on a curve and as they went around the curve the partner just nudged the blind runner to keep on the path – it was surprisingly moving.

The next day we went out for a run and came across a bunch of police activity at the base of the Eifel Tower. As we waited around we realized the Olympic Torch was going to be coming through (or down). So, we waited around and were rewarded with seeing the torch come down the stairs of the tower and run off (to further controversy, it turns out). We didn’t have our cameras but ran into an American student studying art for a bit there who got some pictures for us (www.andybloxham.com). Turns out some of his pictures even got on CNN, including one of the back of my head! Check it out at: http://www.ireport.com/docs/DOC-9544.

After two days in Paris we did hit a bit of a low spot, emotionally. Our room was really really small, even by Paris standards. The weather was cold and a bit rainy. The Parisian culture is quite a bit different and takes a little bit of getting used to. And, Amanda and I got in a bit of a fight. We got over that quickly, though, and actually enjoyed the last couple days there in Paris. We got into more of a relaxed mode, I think, and enjoyed what we could despite the weather.

After our time there we took a train back to Amsterdam. The weather turned nice and we met back up with Randy and Sandy to share travel stories. We had some amazing dinners – the diversity in food choices, really good food choices, is wonderful in Amsterdam. Amanda and I rented bikes and toured Amsterdam that way, which was a blast. I decided if I went back I’d stay further out of town and rent a bike the whole time I was there.

That was the end of our Europe trip – it ended on a high note, for sure. However, we were ready to be reunited with our kids. When we got home all of them were very excited to see us which, of course, made us feel warm and special. And, I think we’ve decided that will be the last major trip we go on without them for a while.

It’s a discovery

That’s what he said at breakfast. We just happened onto this hotel in Valkenburg, on our drive from Amsterdam to Luxembourg. And it was a discovery… it was a small European boutique hotel meets South Miami Beach experience, but they were much too coordinated to actually put out a pink flamingo. The Hotel LeTo is run by two men and they definitely have a unique decorating style. The front courtyard area has 2 giant lamps for street lights. The hotel is painted yellow and blue (there are lots of primary colors used throughout) and the windows have yellow or blue lace curtains. In the bathroom the towel hooks are the rear ends of dogs with tails to hang the hooks on to. There are Betty Boop statues in the lobby as well as several variants of purple, red, or yellow trendy but cheap looking chairs. I mean, everywhere you look there is something odd and new, yet somehow it all seems to follow a décor and it all goes together… it is so random it almost has an order and pattern.

What sealed the deal was the breakfast. We expected cereal, yogurt, juice, and bread. But, we came down to a table set for four, several kinds of juices, a huge bread bowl, eggs, banana fruit smoothies, fresh fruit, and supreme service. The table took the décor to a whole new level – all the silverware was cute little figures, the coffee and tea pots were weird garden-type creatures that poured coffee out of their mouth, and the egg holders had craftsy-like knit egg covers. It was an entertaining breakfast ensemble and made for a great start to the morning.

For the rest of the day we went and visited the caves which have drawings from hundreds of years ago, include clandestine worship areas (including a confessional carved out of the stone) and tributes to the WW2 liberation forces. During the Christmas time they host a craft fair in the caves, which must be incredible.

Amsterdam and iTunes

When music sharing on the Internet became popular the record companies were scrambling, trying to find a way to stop file swapping and illegal distribution of their music. They spent millions, even pursuing the tract of suing individuals (the top pirates) while millions went ahead and downloaded Napster and grabbed some music.

We all knew it was crazy to try and stop it. Yeah, they had to try, but the demand was way too high; the convenience of the mp3 format was coming and the record companies were seen as out-of-touch corporations trying to stop inevitability. Raise your hand – how many of you illegally downloaded music even though you typically consider yourself above thievery?

Then Steve Jobs came along with iTunes, a perfectly simple solution that the corporate record company machines should have come up with initially themselves. Songs were 99 cents. Now law-abiding music lovers – you can put your hands down now – like yourselves could download music and enjoy it on the go. And the rest is history.

Why bring this up as I sit in a perfectly welcoming bed and breakfast in Amsterdam. Well, Amsterdam has taken a similar approach to soft drugs and prostitution. Last night we went for a tour of the red light district of Amsterdam. There is a main street with the peep shows, sex shows, sex shops, etc. But there is also all of the side streets, alleys, etc. with red lights. These red lights are windows with women (and a few other varieties) posing and advertising themselves. Behind them is a bed. When they are busy, the drapes are closed. Prostitutes here have a union, they are regulated; they make up to 60,000 Euro a year. If they happen to contract AIDS during their work they will receive a subsidized apartment to encourage them to leave the business.

Now, I know this approach isn’t palatable to everyone and many conservatives would never be able to accept this sort of approach to a moral violation. But, it definitely is a different way to approach controlling a problem that seems inevitable. Similarly, Amsterdam has taken a similar stance on soft drugs – they turn a blind eye – but are still tough on hard drugs. As such, they have less problems with hard drugs.

Anyway, enough political philosophy, we’re in Amsterdam and enjoying ourselves. The B&B we are staying at is incredibly inviting run by Peter Boogard (http://www.boogaardsbnb.com/), an ex-New York opera singer. He is very hospitable and social and instantly makes you feel at home. Yesterday we put in a full day with Canal tours, the Van Gogh museum, a tour of the Anne Frank house, and a lot of walking. The weather isn’t great but the rain held off most of the day.

Rosa Lynn Walch: 8/20/1994-3/6/2008

We adopted Rosa from the Ramsey County Humane Society in St. Paul, MN after being married about 7+ months or so. Amanda met her but I'm the one who picked her up and brought her home. She had been in "custody" for about 6 months and they figured she was only about 9 months old. So, for convenience, we put her birthday on our anniversary. She was nearing the end of her stay at the shelter... 6 months is pretty long. She'd been on tv and was their obviously their oldest resident. They just knew she'd get adopted.

It took the first year or so to get her stable and adapted into our life. But, she quickly became a family fixture. Those years in Minnesota we did a lot of driving - Iowa, Wisconsin, Colorado. She went everywhere with us, laying in the back seat, resting her head on our shoulders. She drove the Alaska Highway a few times with us, rode a plane from Anchorage to Seattle, lived with several different families while we found a permanent place to live, and narrowly avoided being sent back to the doggie slammer one Labor Day weekend in Madison.

Whenever a visitor came over that didn't necessarily like dogs, she scoped them out. She'd go over to them and gently rest her head on their lap, working to win them over. Many of them she did. She would chase Chunky (the cat) down from the counter on command. Chunky would jump up, we'd yell "get the kitty" and off she'd go to nose and cajole the cat off the counters quickly.

She was well trained - would not only come, sit, and stay for an hour or more. She would go the bathroom on command. She was very smart and so eager to please that training her was easy and it stuck, even when she was off leash. Her name was Rosa, but Amanda always called her Rosa Lynn, so that's her unofficial middle name.

She only had two flaws. One, she had the worst breath imaginable... dead fish breath, is what we labeled it. And, every once in a while she would have a nervous attack and eat or lick everything in sight - blankets, carpet, plants, dirt. It would come up later, or out, for that matter. We were never sure what triggered these attacks, but we thought it was something between an upset stomach and a large part of her early life spent in a shelter. Luckily, we still have a blanket with a corner missing due to one of her episodes.

She loved running free and I loved it that she seemed most excited being an Alaska dog. When we took trips to Flat Top, she'd run all over the hill chasing the chirping ground squirrels. She'd always come back and check on us, but then hear a "chirp" and take off again. She loved Big Lake, also, and was a great swimmer. We could throw the ball out as far as we wanted and she'd go get it.

In fact, there was an infatuation with tennis balls. She loved them. The funny thing is she'd find one no matter where we were at. Sometimes we'd take walks by a tennis court and that was just torturous for her. Other times we'd go for a walk in some random spot and she'd go off for a while only to return with a tennis ball.

She introduced all four of our kids to dogs. She was great with our boys, as they were infants and toddlers and pulled, jumped, and layed on her. She was gentle as Jenna and Carli both learned how to have a pet. Our cats loved her and Cody often curled up and slept next to her. She loved chasing dogs, or being chased, but was pretty picky about the dogs that she'd be friends with and the ones she'd turn up her nose at. She liked Pepper because she'd bark and Pepper would go running. Even in her old age, she could do a pretty good job of keeping up with Pepper.

In the end, she had cancer and likely pretty severe internal bleeding. The kids got to say goodbye. While at home, with all of us crying and telling her we loved her, she looked scared and uncomfortable. At the vet, I took her in and laid her on the table. She looked much more at peace, more relaxed like she knew it was time. However, even though she knew and I knew it was time, it is so hard to say goodbye to such a dear friend. I know all dogs go to heaven and I told her about all the friends she'd see up there. I miss her so much and am thankful that she was so good to us.

Best Friend 2

Rosa is on her last few days here. She has a bleeding tumor and likely internal bleeding. She doesn't seem to be in pain, but she is weaker.

One other story... many years ago my friend Tad and I decided to bike up Powerline Pass. I think it is about 12 miles one way and the last part gets pretty rocky. Rosa went everywhere with me and so of course, she came on this excursion. She stuck with us to the top but when we got there I noticed she was slowing down and during one rest stop, I noticed her paws were starting to bleed. Well, we were at the top and there wasn't any way of getting her down... she was going to have to muscle through it. And she did... she followed quite a ways behind us and I stopped frequently to wait up for her. But, she kept plugging along all the way down. That night I had to carry her out of the car as she was so sore.

Best friend 1

My aunt wrote me today with some sentiments on dogs, the best being there is a reason dog is God spelled backwards. Our oldest dog, Rosa, is really getting old. She's not eating much, has a bit of trouble keeping it down when she does eat, and is loosing weight rapidly. She seems fine and is still getting around ok, but she has declined so fast this past month or two that it's hard not to brace for an end. And, it's really hard facing that fact again, with a dog that's so close. So, I thought I'd try and share some memories now, while she's still here.

Rosa is the most loyal dog I know. My son Andrew had an exchange with Amanda the other day...
Andrew: Pepper (our other dog) loves to be pet; she loves everyone.
Mom: Yeah, she does, Andrew.
Andrew: But Mom, why does Rosa only love Daddy and follow him around?

She does... always has. It really has only been the past week or two when she's been willing to leave me and go find a more comfortable spot to lie down. It drives my Mom and Dad crazy. They take care of her at times when we're gone, feed her, walk her, give her treats. Yet, no matter how long were gone, when I come back in the house she comes right to me.

She's still Rosa, she just doesn't do some of the same things she used to. It's pretty hard to get her riled up to want to bark and fight with me. And she doesn't really chase after Pepper much anymore. She's hard of hearing, well basically deaf, and so she doesn't cock her head to the side when I talk to her and ask her questions she can't understand. One benefit to being deaf, she can't hear Amanda and I when we raise our voices to each other... that used to make her very nervous and she'd go into the corner and shake until we reassured her. We always knew when we were in a fight because Rosa was nervous. But, she still has soft eyes filled with adornment. She is still loyal and wants to be with us. And, she's still here and can comfort Amanda and I as we remember all the life she's lived with us.

5K at ten below

Last weekend we spent Saturday up at Willow during their annual winter festival. It was cold! There was a 5k race on Saturday that I did... there were 14 of us and it was an absolutely gorgeous day out. The course actually turned out to be 3.4 miles and I did just about a 9 minute mile. That's pretty good for me at this point as I'm just getting back into regular running.

That morning we had a fabulous pancake breakfast in support of the PTA. At first I thought the $9 price tag was a little steep, but they did it up right. There was sausage, eggs, huge pancakes, biscuits and gravy, juice, coffee, great service... it was very well done and I'm planning on returning next year.

After the race the kids had a bunch of activities - sledding, find the marshmallow in the snow, stuff like that. There were snow machine races all day and a dog pulling contest, also. Our girls participated whole-heartedly in the marshmallow find contest. Carli was so focused she threw off the glove and plunged her hand directly in the snow... and it was still below zero! She's definitely a northern girl!

We spent the rest of the night and Sunday at Big Lake. When we left Big Lake around noon it was 22 below zero! Needless to say, we didn't do much outside.

The weather is turning a bit warmer here - 15 today - which is nice. We're all looking forward to a little spring winter activity.

Changing palate, vegetables, and life

Some notes on wine:

I bought another bottle of Black Chook today, actually two bottles. I had this wine first several months ago when I was doing a sampling of Shiraz. I remember liking it as a fruity, new world wine with some nice complexity. Interestingly, this time my first impression was, "man, is this stuff sweet and fruity" and not in a completely enjoyable way. My second and subsequent drinks the fruit mellowed, and a bit of the complexity I remembered came back.

BTW, for those of you out there that just drink wine, try swishing! I've been doing that more and more - Amanda hates doing it - but it really ups the enjoyment factor for me.

Anyway, I think it was a moment when I realized my palate changes. Wines that were enjoyable and I preferred even 3, 4, or 5 months ago aren't as exciting. Which is why, I think, drinking and exploring wine is so fun... it is constantly changing.

Another note - Amanda and I have been trying to increase our fruit and veggie intake a lot. We've been doing more stir-fry veggies at night. The last two meals I've had the Black Chook Shiraz, a pretty full-bodied wine, and a very decent Chateau St. Michelle Cabernet Sauvignon that was pretty full. Both of those wines went GREAT with stir-fry veggies.

A quick life update - I haven't gotten Christmas cards out to some of my good friends... wow, I'm lame. Maybe by July. We are starting sushi family nights so those should be fun. I've made a few sightseeing and $100 burger flights but nothing notable. Unfortunately, I don't think I'll be going to skis this year. I'd love to, but am not motivated enough to get a spot on the lake and switch over for just a month or so. The end of March we're heading to Europe so I'd have to switch back before then. And finally, both our girls are now 5!

More later. Sit back, have a glass of wine and enjoy a conversation with the one you love!

Cold and fast

Well, not really fast, but when it is colder I run faster. Since the new year I've been reasserting my training regimen. Of course, after taking a few months basically off from any running, I am quite a bit slower. But, the two fastest runs I've had have been when it's been 6 and 0 degrees. Today it was zero or below and I ran 4.5 miles averaging under 9:30 miles... for right now, that's great for me!

Also, we had a friend over who mentioned they visited the blog to catch up on our family. Unfortunately, I haven't done a good job at updating it. Maybe that'll change... hopefully the beginning of 2008 will have some fun things to write about!

Happy New Year!

Thanksgiving

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving!