I finally got around to scanning some photos from my trip to Nevada and Utah. Check them out on my photo page: http://flickr.com/photos/zigawatt/

I was sitting at my desk this afternoon (Emily was manning the fort at the Volusia Asset office), when I suddenly heard a knock at the door. Could it be Abe or Diane making an unannounced visit? Maybe the delivery man? Nope. I opened the door and saw a middle aged woman with two young children. "Hi" they said. "We're here to welcome you as new members to the Temple". "Um, OK." They handed me a bag with some jew stuff in it. "Thanks, for the stuff." They stood there staring at me. "I appreciate you coming by..." More blank stares. "Thanks again." I slowly began to close the door. "Um it was nice meeting you." They said.

I closed the door and recoiled at the shock of the strange visit. What freaks. I never even joined the stupid temple.

I made a smoker out of a large terra-cotta pot, an electric burner and a grate from a small Webber grill. Last weekend Abe, Emily and I spent all day smoking some ribs slathering on my homemade BBQ sauce. Needless to say, the results were phenomenal. Next I'm going to make a brisket!

Thanks to everyone who voted for my song in the "Chunks Beatmix Beatdown" contest. I WON!!! You can all come over and watch my brand new Tivo anytime you want (assuming I ever set it up).

Emily, my parents and I just got back from our whirlwind tour of the DC/Baltimore area. Here's the summary:

We left for the airport at 2:00. Flight left at 4:00. Got in around 6:00. Rented a car and drove into DC - 8:00. Got on the metro and took it all the way out to Springfield. Got picked up at the metro and finally arrived at 10:30. We almost could have driven!

Friday we had a leisurely breakfast, then I took the metro into DC while Emily went shopping with her mom. I met my dad at the spy museum. I couldn't find him at first, then a saw someone hiding behind a newspaper with eye-holes cut out and I knew that must be him. We went through the museum, which was very interesting, before heading over to the National Gallery. They had an exhibit by the photographer Irving Penn and an expressionist exhibit (including works by Van Gogh, Monet, and Degas). We met up with the rest of my family and Em's family for dinner at Chef Geoff's. The food was great, as always. After dinner, Lindsey, Emily and I went to Walmart, where we tried on funny hats and got farted on, before picking up Kat.

Saturday Emily and I went over her friend Rachel's house for a bit before heading to the Tyson's Corner Mall. I had to walk around the mall alone most of the time while Emily tried on dresses. They dropped Emily and I off at my sister's house after shopping, so we could go to Baltimore. We had dinner at the Hantman's party for Josh's graduation and Michael's birthday.

Sunday morning we had brunch at my Grandparent's house. Emily was introduced to my mom's yenta friends before we left for the inner harbor. Our first stop was the Dime Museum, a collection of artifacts from carnival sideshows and traveling freak shows. Very interesting! Then we parked the car and walked around the pier while waiting for the baseball game. We arrived at the stadium during the second inning. The Orioles were already losing 6 to 0. The game was fun, but Baltimore never recovered.

Today we ate breakfast at the hotel before starting the long journey home. It was a nice trip, but I hope I don't have to see those people again for a long time! Just Kidding.