Blossom School Charity Event

the lghtig isn't great but jennie and i are in chicago for this great event.

Driving Artwork

I took this photo of the pretty flashing lights on my way back from Detroit a few nights ago. Enjoy!

Big Prizes for the J!

Yum...this is our snack!

Motor City Monday (and Tuesday)

Jennie and I have just arrived in Detroit for the 2007 Conference on Career and Technical Education. We will be here tonight (Sunday) through Tuesday afternoon. This is Jennie's first year attending...my second. These type of events really help teachers keep fresh in the classroom, providing new insights on how to do things we currently do better, and giving new ideas for instruction.

This great view is from our 50th floor hotel room at the Detroit Marriott in the GM Renaissance Center. The dark area on the left is the Detroit River. Follow it up the page to see the lighted outline of the Ambassador Bridge, linking Detroit to Windsor, Ontario (Canada.) Straight ahead just up Jefferson Avenue is Cobo Center and Cobo Arena. In the bottom right-hand corner is the entrance to the Windsor Tunnel, which runs under the Detroit River.

I think we're both looking forward to our couple of days here in Detroit. Mom and Dad have Daisy through Wednesday. Thanks Mom and Dad! Consider this practice for your new puppy! Although by now, you're experts. Please don't feed Daisy too many Chicken McNuggets.

Somehow, the other picture of Sean is missing from my blog. Not wanting him to feel shown up by a certain other MCR-OP (Dayna), I'm putting on this new and improved pic!

Post No. 207

I was planning on throwng a big party for my 200th post on Blogger, but I missed it. It turns out I'm on 207 now! I need to go back and review some of my posts becuase I'm finding it hard to believe that I have THAT much to blog about.

Come to think of it, many of my blog posts have come from my cell phone. Ah, that makes more sense.

In other news, both Jennie and I had to return to school today after our 4 day weekend, due to the freezing temperatures. One of my schools--North Branch--was still off due to a building problem.

My students are currently working on their CIW Site Design Specialist certifications. It's a new program I'm piloting this year. I think I'm one of the first in the state to be teaching it. Jennie and I are one of the first few certified instructors in the country! I think it is going to be good, but I've got a few bumps in the road to get over in order to make it a positive experience for my students. More info is available at www.ciwcertified.com.

I have a meeting in Lansing tomorrow to get my program state approved. So, I must now invest some time into moving my Sirius Satellite Radio from the Pacifica to my Saab! It's cold, but I need it for tomorrow's trip!

No School: Day 2

I would have posted yesterday (aka: No School - Day 1), but I was too busy sleeping until 11am!
:)
Sometimes life is good. Of course, the reason we didn't have school was due to the bone-chilling temperatures around here. I think the low over the past few days has been around -5. With a 10 mph wind, we're talking -25 below zero! Too cold for students to be standing outside.

So, no snow days this year, but 2 cold days so far...

Super Bowl Sunday at The Cottage Inn

Jennie and I spent the early part of Sunday shooting pictures at a fire damaged home in Howell for a video/web project. Afterwards, we met up with her parents in Ann Arbor for some Cottage Inn pizza. It had been a while since we last did the Sunday Cottage Inn dinner. As usual, the pizza, salad and bread were all great! Thanks Mom and Dad Sahakian for the pizza (and left-overs!)

Daisy's New Do

This horribly shot photo from my camera phone (the problem is all the white snow makes poor Daisy look dark) shows Daisy's new hair-do. Just like the old one, only shorter!

Nothing to Report, Sir!

Okay, I've been trying to think about something new to write about, but nothing exciting really comes to mind. I've been diligently reading my "Rough Guide to Switzerland" and learning a lot about the country. Nerdy, I know. Hey, what can I say, I'm excited.

Jennie and I found some great deals at J. Crew today. I'll be wearing my new pants tomorrow. We ate at the all new 5 Star Taco Bell in Lapeer today. There's something wrong about eating 89 cent tacos in such a nice restaurant. I should have taken some photos to share. Maybe sometime soon!

Jennie and I are presenting at a conference in Detroit in March (more to come on that.) We're also teaching a community-education class at the Ed-Tech center on Thursday nights.

Okay, more to come...

Welcome, Mom and Dad!

I wanted to take a minute to welcome my mom and dad to the information Superhighway. Before January 23rd, they were only on the information "highway." Actually, it was more like a dirt trail. I'll still never understand how they managed so long with so-so dial-up internet service. But enough about the past, they now have DSL and I've noticed an increased use of the World Wide Web. Good for you! Since you've got a lot of catching up to do, here is my suggested list of things to do (in no particular order)

-Download all of your Windows updates
-Watch lots of video (YouTube, Google Video, Cable 6, etc.)
-Check your email hourly
-Start a blog
-Scan in photos and upload them to a site to share
-Download Skype
-Get a webcam


Have fun, Mom and Dad!

It's a Good Thing I Like Toblerone!

Jennie and I got some great news today! We both have been accepted into the University of Michigan Flint's Master's of Arts in Education program. It's called "Technology in Education - Global Program."

The program runs 15 months. As someone who loves to travel, the best part about the program is sure to be the two consecutive summer residencies we'll do in Geneva, Switzerland.

So, our planning begins...

So, Step 1 (get everything in order to apply)
DONE

Step 2 (get accepted)
DONE

Step 3 (celebrate)
IN PROGRESS

Step 4 (find money)
IN PROGRESS. If anyone out there reading this has some extra money lying around, I will be taking donations for the next 15 months. Jennie and I are both filling out our FAFSA forms in the hopes of securing some loan money to help us out. We'll be stretched with both of us in the program at the same time. I know we'll work it out, but seriously, if you have extra cash, I take PayPal!

More to come. Thanks to U-M Flint for taking a chance on me! And to those of you who were kind enough to write letters of recommendation, expect some Toblerone sometime in August!

Thirty

Thirty years ago yesterday, the world forever changed. Whether that change was for better or for worse is largely the opinion of who you talk to. I turned the big 3-0 yesterday. Now that I am 30 years and 1 day old, I can tell you that being thirty is much like 29. I am going to use the event of the dawn of my third decade to make some positive changes in my life. Not that I'm doing all that bad, but I would, for example, like to get to the gym more.

Anyway, back to my birthday. Jennie really went all out for my big day this year. She planned a surprise party for me at 227 Bistro in Rochester. Until about midnight the night before, I really had no idea! Here is the abbreviated story:
About a month ago, I noticed that my boss, Tom, had taken me off of a Saturday at WDIV and replaced me with Phil, one of the full time directors. I found it strange that Phil would want to come in on a Saturday. I grilled Jennie about whether or not she had for some reason called Tom. She said yes, and I figured the just wanted to spend the day together. Cool!

Then, about a week later, my friend Todd called and said that he would be coming up from Cleveland to see us. Again, I didn't find this strange, since he owed us a visit anyway. I honestly didn't even know if Todd knew it was my birthday. Still, I had no idea.

It wasn't until about 12:30am Friday night (or Saturday morning) that Jennie, Todd and I were driving back from the city that it hit me. I once again grilled Jennie and she, being a slightly below average liar, cracked. However, I still had no idea who would be there.

The night was great. After a fabulous steak dinner at 227 Bistro, we went to Gus O'Connors, just down the road. You should have been there, it was a great time. Thanks again to my wonderful wife, Jennie, for orchestrating the whole thing. You did an excellent job!

More photos below.....