Merry Christmas! -- 2006 In Review

Well, now that I am married I suppose I am obligated to start the tradition of putting together the yearly letter. Rather than following tradition and sending one out in the mail, I think I will just stick with my blog. So ... lets get started.


All in all this has been a pretty hectic year for Janel and I. About this time last year I was packing up my stuff in Champaign for the short move back up to Chicago. After a busy holidays, Janel and I got married and went on our honeymoon to Cabo San Lucas on the Baja Peninsula in Mexico. Baja was very nice ... I would definitely recommend it to anyone (particularly those on the W coast because it is so close). I still think that Kauai (Hawaii) and Virgin Gorda (Caribbean) are my two favorite beach destinations.


Honeymoon Photo


After our honeymoon, we came home for ~3 days and then headed on out to Portland to begin our new life as a married couple. I had three weeks before my job started, during which we spent almost all our time getting situated (and in the process spending a lot of money). The job at Intel started well (and continues to go well). My bosses are both good guys and I enjoy both working and screwing around with my co-workers. February and March in Portland were mostly spent continuing to settle in. This was good timing since the weather was not all that great. We did do a few nice hikes, including one to Multnomah Falls when everything was still frozen. I would highly recommend checking out the gorge in the winter -- the waterfalls are great when covered with ice. We tried to do the loop trail @ Multnomah but had to turn back after a couple of miles because the trail was iced over in a dangerous place.


Winter Multnomah Falls Photo


Janel started subbing for the Beaverton School District around March I believe, and landed a full-time subbing position for a girl on maternity leave at Aloha High School in April. This eventually turned into an offer for a full time position there which she gladly accepted. Janel really likes the administrations and her co-workers in the math department. There are a few younger people in the department who are a lot of fun. More on Janel and teaching later ...


This summer was a lot of fun. We went hiking what seemed like every weekend. The northwest is a great place in the summer for people like me :). We also went on a trip to France. I had a paper in a conference out there so I got work to pay for part of it :). We spent a lot of time up on the NW coast (on the English Channel) and a few days in Paris. France was great. I was a bit worried that the French might be a bit unfriendly to us ... but we only felt that way one time while we were there. We tried to speak our terrible French with them ... and I think they found it amusing and therefore liked us. It did get a bit old after a while though. One funny example: whenever I went to a gas station, I would have to go to pumps 1, 2, or 3 because those were the only numbers I knew when I went inside to pay. Oh well ... small price to pay :). Paris was a lot of fun. We did all the standard tourist things ... and were also there when France upset Brazil in the World Cup. Needless to say ... it was pandemonium afterwards :). Here is a picture from the palace of versailles:


France - Versailles Photo


Before the summer came to a close, I went on a backpacking trip to Mt. Rainier w/ Allen, Jame, and Todd. We did the Northern Loop (~38 miles) in 3 nights. It was a great hike, although Jame hurt his knee and had to go out early w/ Allen. I would highly recommend this trip ... but keep in mind that it has a lot of brutal elevation changes ... and is a bit harder than one may think. With that said ... it was not that bad of a hike :). The last two days Todd and I were able to finish before lunch time.


Mt. Rainier Photo


The one bad part of the trip (for me) was that I pulled my groin. I have never done that before ... and it is not a lot of fun. Janel and I have been playing a lot of soccer (well ... Janel has at least ... I have been playing some) and I tried to go back to it after a couple of weeks but that was not a good idea. Soccer has been a lot of fun though. I have been playing one night a week on a co-ed team w/ Janel, and she has been playing on 2 women's teams in addition to that. We have mostly been playing indoor (it is a lot easier to find 7 people than 11+), but Janel has also played a bit of outdoor.


This school year Janel is teaching Adv. Algebra 2 and Algebra Survey. She is enjoying parts of it, but is really busy and stressed at times. This is totally normal for first year teachers ... and I am looking forward to things settling down a bit next year when she does not have to prepare new lesson plans for two different classes each night. I would say more ... but I feel like I should keep my comments to a minimum in case any of her students ever happen upon this page. She has lots of good stories about the crazy things students do :) ... it would make a great blog :P. Too bad that probably would not be very professional.


In September I climbed Mt. St. Helens (which just reopened in July) with some co-workers. It was a great hike ... although a lot more treacherous than I had anticipated. The fact that I was still nursing my afore mentioned groin injury did not help matters. I would highly recommend this scramble.


Mt. St. Helens Photo


My mom was diagnosed with breast cancer this fall. She is currently on round 4 of 6 of chemo, after which they will take a look at the size of the tumor and decide what type of surgery to do. My Dad and her have been holding up pretty well ... but it has been tough.


The fall has been pretty uneventful out here. We have been making sure to catch every bears game (I am sick of BW3's). Soon we will be heading home for Christmas. We are looking forward to seeing our families and friends again. Both our parents visited over the summer, and I made a weekend trip home to see everyone in November ... but Janel has not seen anyone in her family (except her parents this summer) since the wedding.


Hope all is well with you! Merry Christmas.


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Silver Falls and More

Allen and I went on nice 8 mile hike at Silver Falls on Saturday. We were supposed to be accompanied by Michelle and Aparna ... but they needed a bit more sleep after a late night of dancing :). Janel was stuck in a teacher's class all day, and was not able to join us. Saturday evening we went to a Christmas potluck for the math department. It was okay ... but lots of teacher talk :P. Afterwards we went to a birthday party with some of the younger teachers from Janel's department. We had a good time ... and it was nice to meet some new people. I also got to play some DDR for the first time in a long long time ... which was pretty amusing. We had did not get home until 1:30 or so ... so we slept in on Sunday and then went to brunch @ "Mothers" in downtown Portland. The food there was pretty good ... but I will probably try some other places before going back. The rest of the day was pretty uneventful ... chores and such. 2 more weeks until Christmas! (one more week of school for janel).

Backpacking Packing List

This is a packing list for a backpacking trip of 2-3 nights. For a longer trip, you should not need much else ... except maybe some additional clothing. You may also not need some of the gear in warm environments. I will try to make these things clear. This list includes the clothing that you will start out wearing.

Clothing should not be cotton if possible. You can probably get away with underwear, but the less cotton the better. Cotton T-shirts suck after they are covered with dirt and sweat. Sweatshirts are also crappy.

Group Gear
[ ] Tent
- Tent, Rain Fly, Steaks, Poles
[ ] Water Filter
[ ] Water Purification Tablets (critical when your filter breaks/clogs)
[ ] Stove
[ ] Cook Gear
[ ] Rope
[ ] Compass
[ ] GPS
[ ] Field Guide for those unexpected events
[ ] Topo Maps
[ ] Trowel
[ ] Matches (waterproof), Lighter
[ ] Toilet Paper
[ ] MSR DromLite Water Bag (so you don't have to pump in the morning)

Base Clothing/Gear
[ ] 2 Pair Underwear
- non-cotton are preferable
[ ] 1-2 Pair Pants w/ Zip-Off Shorts
- Can be expensive, 1 pair w/ a pair of regular shorts is an option
[ ] 2 Short-sleave light weight shirts
- REI and Pategonia both have these, cost ~$25 a piece
[ ] Rain Gear - Top and Bottom
- Poncho is a Cheap Alternative
- Sierra Designs makes some nice cheaper raingear, breathable is best though
[ ] Sun Glasses
[ ] Watch
[ ] Boots
[ ] 2-3 Pair Wool Socks
[ ] 2-3 Pair Liner Socks
- The silk variety cost a bit more but are worth it
[ ] Sandals or tennis shoes for camp
[ ] Hat (anything with a brim)

Cool-Weather Clothing (layers are best)
[ ] 1-2 Pair Light or Medium Weight Long-Sleave base layer
[ ] Fleece
[ ] Gloves (2-3 pairs for snow, or 1 pair with 2-3 pairs of liners)
[ ] Stocking Cap
[ ] Water-proof pants or snow-pants

Additional (optional) Clothing
[ ] Gaiters (necessary in some cold-weather environments)
[ ] Biking Gloves - good for Trekking Poles and Climbing on Things
[ ] Trekking Poles
[ ] Swimsuit

Hygene and Misc
Some of this gear can be shared ...
[ ] Toothbrush
[ ] Toothpaste
[ ] Sunscreen
[ ] Insect Repelant (100% Deet)

Personal Gear
[ ] Sleeping Bag
[ ] Air Mattress
[ ] Backpack
[ ] Backpack Rain Cover (a poncho can do the trick too)
[ ] Knife (at least one person in the group should have one)
[ ] Nelgene Bottle(s) and/or Hydration Bag - enough to hold ~100oz
[ ] Cup
[ ] Spoon
[ ] Camera
[ ] Head Lamp w/ Extra Batteries (or flashlight)
[ ] Book?
[ ] Camping Towel (Brand: MSR PackTowel, Medium or Large)

First Aid Gear
[ ] Mole Skin
[ ] Medical Tape
[ ] Duct Tape
[ ] Ibuprofen (more than you think you will need)
[ ] Tylenol w/ Codeine or Vycodin if you can get it
[ ] Imodium
[ ] Band-Aids
[ ] Ace Bandage
[ ] Gauze Roll
[ ] Benadril (a small amount)
[ ] Wound Dressing
[ ] Triple Antibiotic Ointment
[ ] Antiseptic
[ ] Small First-Aid book

Other Stuff Not to Forget
[ ] Tampons
[ ] Prescriptions
[ ] Glasses preferably, or Contacts
[ ] Contact Care Stuff (grab a travel size)

Food and Such
In general, the average person requires ~2 lbs of food per day. Food should all be repacked (except for freeze-dried dinners). This will reduce size and garbage.

The meals listed below are just some options.

[ ] Vitamins (this is optional for shorter trips, necessary for longer)
[ ] 2 Garbage Bags
[ ] Zip-lock bags to contain all meals
[ ] 4 Extra Large Ziplocks
[ ] 4 Extra Small Ziplocks

Breakfast
Pop Tarts
Instant Oatmeal
Granola

Lunch
Pita Bread / Lavash
Peanut Butter and Jelly
Sausage (good to freeze it before you go) - will last a day or two
Dried Fruit
Apple for Day 1 is good

Dinner
Freeze dried stuff is best. Beef Stroganoff is the best.

Snacks
Granola Bars
Cliff Bars
Pop Tarts
Trail Mix

Forums down

Not sure why ... but my forums seem to have died. It was a beta version of PHPBB3 ... and they just released a new rev ... so I will probably just reinstall and start from scratch. The new beta is not compatable with the old database so we will loose all the old posts and such (oh my).


Yesterday I had a ridiculous amount of web traffic and I suspect something broke in the process.


UPDATE: I have installed the new beta and it is up and running.

blog photos down

I am getting some strange behavior where a website is downloading my blog photos over and over again. I have taken them down temporarily in hopes that it will stop. You can still access all my photos in the photo gallery ... it is just the ones on the blog are turned off.


Update: The photos are back up and the offending domain has been blocked.