Tuesday, December 25, 2007
Monday, December 17, 2007
Christmas spirit
Hey everyone,
We've had quite an adventure the last few days. We had a fantastic weekend up until late Sunday night. Sunday morning we had brunch with Somer and James at the very classy La Paloma resort, and Sunday night we did a 5k fun run with friends (and Winston) through Winterhaven's Festival of Lights where the houses completely deck out their houses for the holidays. Ben was even brave enough to wear a sparkly Christmas vest, which turned out to be a great way for us walkers to know where the runners in our pack were.
After having some snacks and drinks at Ben and Kara's house after the run, we got back home to find out we were burglarized sometime in the 4 hours we were gone...the front door totally kicked in. Fortunately, they didn't take everything....just things that could fit into my Jansport backpack. This included John's laptop (with all of his research), my Ipod, the Metamorph key from UNC (you science geeks will know how painful that is), and every single piece of jewelry I own(ed). The jewelry part stings a lot, partly because there were some very valuable pieces from John ever since we first started dating, and partly because all of Mom's jewelry was in there too....nice stuff as well as sterling/costume stuff that I would wear to channel Mom's good taste. Grandma's crystal necklace is gone too...fortunately, I got to wear that out on the town not too long ago. I'm devastated about the jewelry, and even more devastated about feeling so violated. These jerk-faces were in our home, snooping, touching everything.
The Tucson Police were fantastic, and given the dollar value of things stolen reached a certain limit, the Crime Scene Unit came out and were fingerprinting the whole house until 1:30 in the morning. They were terrific, and humored me every time I pointed to something and said, "They had to touch that! I didn't put that there." If you know me at all, you won't be surprised to know that when the Crime Scene Unit people commented on how spotless our house was underneath the mess of the burglars, I had a little moment of celebration inside. As mentioned before, Winston was with us while the burglars were here, so he was neither hurt physically or traumatized.
So, we've spent the day cleaning from the burglars and the fingerprinting dust that's everywhere, and dealing with police and insurance report stuff. We are totally spooked, and it will take me a glass of wine (or two) before bed to settle down, but I know that soon we'll be more confident about our safety. I should also say that our landlord has been super....he stayed with us the entire time cops were here, and was here again at 7am with a contractor to discuss the best options for a new front door, and he's now considering a security system. He's owned this house since 1971 and lived in the house the majority of the time since then, and this is the first break-in. Between those comfortable 36 years and the fact that we live on a busy, well-lit road in a house with a well-lit exterior, he's a bit shocked about this incident too....which means he is taking it very seriously.
I also want to mention that Ben and Kara have been so generous....when we told them what happened, within 15 minutes they called and insisted on bringing dinner for us tonight. So, Kara made her family's classic pasta comfort food (with extra for leftovers) and brought a bottle of wine for the four of us to enjoy together. I am so thankful that we have such terrific friends, and hope that they know how much it meant to us.
Sniff, sniff:
Fingerprint dust on cabinets:
We've had quite an adventure the last few days. We had a fantastic weekend up until late Sunday night. Sunday morning we had brunch with Somer and James at the very classy La Paloma resort, and Sunday night we did a 5k fun run with friends (and Winston) through Winterhaven's Festival of Lights where the houses completely deck out their houses for the holidays. Ben was even brave enough to wear a sparkly Christmas vest, which turned out to be a great way for us walkers to know where the runners in our pack were.
After having some snacks and drinks at Ben and Kara's house after the run, we got back home to find out we were burglarized sometime in the 4 hours we were gone...the front door totally kicked in. Fortunately, they didn't take everything....just things that could fit into my Jansport backpack. This included John's laptop (with all of his research), my Ipod, the Metamorph key from UNC (you science geeks will know how painful that is), and every single piece of jewelry I own(ed). The jewelry part stings a lot, partly because there were some very valuable pieces from John ever since we first started dating, and partly because all of Mom's jewelry was in there too....nice stuff as well as sterling/costume stuff that I would wear to channel Mom's good taste. Grandma's crystal necklace is gone too...fortunately, I got to wear that out on the town not too long ago. I'm devastated about the jewelry, and even more devastated about feeling so violated. These jerk-faces were in our home, snooping, touching everything.The Tucson Police were fantastic, and given the dollar value of things stolen reached a certain limit, the Crime Scene Unit came out and were fingerprinting the whole house until 1:30 in the morning. They were terrific, and humored me every time I pointed to something and said, "They had to touch that! I didn't put that there." If you know me at all, you won't be surprised to know that when the Crime Scene Unit people commented on how spotless our house was underneath the mess of the burglars, I had a little moment of celebration inside. As mentioned before, Winston was with us while the burglars were here, so he was neither hurt physically or traumatized.
So, we've spent the day cleaning from the burglars and the fingerprinting dust that's everywhere, and dealing with police and insurance report stuff. We are totally spooked, and it will take me a glass of wine (or two) before bed to settle down, but I know that soon we'll be more confident about our safety. I should also say that our landlord has been super....he stayed with us the entire time cops were here, and was here again at 7am with a contractor to discuss the best options for a new front door, and he's now considering a security system. He's owned this house since 1971 and lived in the house the majority of the time since then, and this is the first break-in. Between those comfortable 36 years and the fact that we live on a busy, well-lit road in a house with a well-lit exterior, he's a bit shocked about this incident too....which means he is taking it very seriously.
I also want to mention that Ben and Kara have been so generous....when we told them what happened, within 15 minutes they called and insisted on bringing dinner for us tonight. So, Kara made her family's classic pasta comfort food (with extra for leftovers) and brought a bottle of wine for the four of us to enjoy together. I am so thankful that we have such terrific friends, and hope that they know how much it meant to us.
Here is our bedroom, where most of the mess was:
Sniff, sniff:
Fingerprint dust on cabinets:
Sunday, November 25, 2007
Thanksgiving fun
Brian and Heather left our house a few hours ago, and all three of us at home are exhausted and already nostalgic about the awesome visit with them. We watched Dad carve their turkey via webcam, cooked a huge Thanksgiving dinner, played around Mt. Lemmon (very cold up at 8,000 ft), saw some great desert critters at the Desert Museum, drank prickly pear margaritas, and played Rock Band on Xbox360. It was so much fun having them here, and great to finally celebrate Thanksgiving with Brian!
Tuesday, November 20, 2007
Go Cats!
We went to our first UofA basketball game with Tim, Ben, and Kara, and it was against the ACC's own Virginia. It was a great game, even if the Wildcats lost. I meant to post this earlier, but things have been busy between preparing for Thanksgiving at our house, work in my lab, and an unhealthy obsession with the dog posted below.
I saw her while volunteering at the shelter, and her cute little face was screaming for a new home with us. Don't worry...we haven't adopted her (yet), but the inner debate between head and heart has been troubling. I mean, we want Winston to be our best buddy....we don't need to become a zoo. She is adorable, and her personality is sweet and calm....she is still available at PACC if anyone is interested in giving her a good home.
I saw her while volunteering at the shelter, and her cute little face was screaming for a new home with us. Don't worry...we haven't adopted her (yet), but the inner debate between head and heart has been troubling. I mean, we want Winston to be our best buddy....we don't need to become a zoo. She is adorable, and her personality is sweet and calm....she is still available at PACC if anyone is interested in giving her a good home.
Saturday, November 10, 2007
Fun Week in the AZ Autumn
Hey everyone!
This was an awesome week. It started with a fun visit with Zach. We showed him our favorite Mexican restaurants in town and between the three of us, drained the Tucson supply of margaritas. It was wonderful to see a familiar face, and to show him our new home. And the week's fun continued with the annual CATwalk, a 5K walk on the UofA campus to benefit women's cancer research. The Hoffmans met us for a brunch at our house, and all four of us (along with Winston and Charlie) did the walk together. You can tell from the picture how excited Winston was for company.
This was an awesome week. It started with a fun visit with Zach. We showed him our favorite Mexican restaurants in town and between the three of us, drained the Tucson supply of margaritas. It was wonderful to see a familiar face, and to show him our new home. And the week's fun continued with the annual CATwalk, a 5K walk on the UofA campus to benefit women's cancer research. The Hoffmans met us for a brunch at our house, and all four of us (along with Winston and Charlie) did the walk together. You can tell from the picture how excited Winston was for company.
Friday, November 2, 2007
Wednesday, October 31, 2007
Sunday, October 28, 2007
Home Sweet Home
Hey everyone!
I am finally posting a bunch of pictures of our house. We've been more than settled in for a while, but I really didn't want to post pictures until the last curtain was hung. I'm not sure why.
I am finally posting a bunch of pictures of our house. We've been more than settled in for a while, but I really didn't want to post pictures until the last curtain was hung. I'm not sure why.
And, because visitors are always welcome (cough, cough) I'm posting some pics of the guest room. 
Although it looks like we have many versions of Winston (5 based on these pics), there really can only be one dog like him. Finally, here is a video of one of Winston's favorite features of the house:
Although it looks like we have many versions of Winston (5 based on these pics), there really can only be one dog like him. Finally, here is a video of one of Winston's favorite features of the house:
Monday, October 22, 2007
Congrats to Brian and Heather!
On Thursday night, Brian and Heather got engaged! I am ridiculously happy for them. To read about Brian's proposal, check out his blog's post at http://livefromrodneydrive.blogspot.com/2007/10/eight-years-in-making.html.
Friday, October 12, 2007
Thursday, October 11, 2007
Anniversary dinner
John and I were apart for our anniversary on the 25th, so we didn't get a chance to go out until last weekend. The traditional gift for the third anniversary is leather (hey now!), but for us nothing could honor three wonderful years better than a bubbling pot of cheese. We have always enjoyed fondue, so we had a great dinner at the Melting Pot. For the McCarthy Clan out there, that is Grandma's necklace (thankfully repaired) that Dad used as a weapon against her lounge chair, many years ago.
Friday, October 5, 2007
All done!
I wanted to post some more pictures from our big weekend in Chapel Hill. My defense (successful, by the way) was on Friday, as well as a celebratory happy hour and party at Bob's. At the party, the new Dr. Willow and I received fantastic, personal gifts from both Bob and the lab. Bob gave me an 1898 book on microscopy that he found in Cambridge...this may be why I'm reading it with a British accent. The lab gave me an antique microscope, and I'm currently trying to figure out more about it. The rest of the weekend included the stuffing of faces at Foster's Market, Mama Dip's, Southern Season's Weathervane, and Carolina Inn. I think the entire family had a wonderful time, and I know that the weekend was so memorable and fun for me. I am so lucky to have such an awesome husband, family, advisor, and lab!
My defense begins....
One of my favorite traditions after a defense....defacing university property with a popped champagne cork and signing the damage as a new doc.
Bob, like any great advisor, helped me deface university property.
In Duncan and Connor's absence, Heather tests their playground.
Brian found that Chapel Hill residents renamed these toilet seat covers. Only Brian would have his camera in a public toilet.
Goldstein lab lunch
My defense begins....
One of my favorite traditions after a defense....defacing university property with a popped champagne cork and signing the damage as a new doc.
Bob, like any great advisor, helped me deface university property.
In Duncan and Connor's absence, Heather tests their playground.
Brian found that Chapel Hill residents renamed these toilet seat covers. Only Brian would have his camera in a public toilet.
Friday, September 28, 2007
Big Week!
This past week John and I celebrated our 3rd anniversary and Winston's 1st birthday. Now, we are in NC for my Defense, which is today. I'm feeling good about things, but feeling the jitters from all of the anticipation. I mean, I remember when I was a first-year seeing the more senior graduate students go through this and it felt so far away for me. Now it is hours away. Yikes! Well, everyone is here and John and I had dinner with Dad and Carol, and Brian and Heather. Happy Birthday to Brian....yesterday he turned 31! Also, many congratulations to the new Dr. Willow Gabriel!
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