i had an excellent trip (thanks everyone!). i knew i needed to get away, i just didnt realize how much i needed it! i have just started my FINAL year of school (time flies...) this week so things have gotten even more hectic, yet again.

i have become a total dutchaphile! i totally dig that culture! and, somewhat surprisingly, their food (at least some of it: dig those frites speciaal!!)

check out the photos. these arent all of them as my camera went crapola 5 days before i left. i will post more when i get copies from erin and joy.

Tomorrow I am off to the Netheralnds! Yippie! I havent been over the Pond for 6 years. It will be good to get the hell off this continent for a while. I have come to realize that I need to get out of this country (preferably to some place where English is not the native tongue) at least every 2 years in order to maintain my sanity.

I got FRIED! Amber and I went skiing for the FIRST time at The Canyons in Park City. Totally sweet. I, however, did not utilize the appropriate UV protections and got uber burnt. We both did very well though. We took a 2.5 hour lesson, had lunch, then hit the green trails. I did undertake a single blue wth kevinat the end of the day (yea...I bit it after snapping my pole!)...But at least i gave it a shot!

It was good to see kevin, not to mention the incredible scenery! I cant wait to get back there! Keving lives 6 miles up a mountain! You cant even drive all the way to his house (he is renting at present while his house is being finished)...you have to take snowmobiles! crazy!

see the pix section. i will post more when i get them all formatted.

man, am i LAZY! well...i have also been super busy this semester! finals again have arrived. two weeks of hell. except this time around, the "hell" doesnt end after finals are done: i still have to finish writing my law review note. enough bitching....

there are some new pix, though not many. i cant remember if i posted the images of my hop plants before harvest. they did REALLY well overall, especially for their first year. i got about 3oz of centennials. i also got a weird rash on my hand from picking the little buggers (next year: gloves).

oh...the above text is from Marbury v. Madison (1803). interesting read...

well...let me back up. this is Keaten. super cute. Amber, Sydney, and I went to Grand Haven over last weekend to visit Sophie and Chad (and Keaten). Soph just birthed the little bugger at the begining of the summer. tons o' fun being there. they have such a great place. i love their backyard (Chad said it's just wood for appx 5 miles...no neighbors!)!!

I started school again this week. Round 2. One more to go! It will be interesting this year, especially since I am working and not just hittin the books. I am already starting to stress about law review and writing this friggin note! I really have no burning desire to even be on law review, save the fact that it looks really good on your resume. Stupid law school prestige.

Anyway, back to me bitching...I really need to revamp my site. I hate it. SO boring!

summer has been SUPER busy! school is starting aug 22 and this summer has flown by! we have been up to MI 3 times already, and are headed up this weekend for a family reunion on amber's side, her sister is coming down the weekend after, then we are back to MI (west coast) to visit sophie and the new baby. whew!

our last trip to MI was for Inge and Marks wedding (see pics). and...we adopted a dog last week (who has already managed to get sprayed by a skunk!)! her name is sydney. 16 months. 50 lbs.

maybe school starting isnt so bad?!?!

i dont know why it is that i cant keep myself on top of updating my site regularly! lazy, i guess. work has been super hectic, but i am learning a ton. its weird to be working again after almost a whole year not being gainfully employed.

amber and i have been trying to make the most of our summer. we went camping in near-southern ohio. there is this reclaimed land that is owned by a power company that the public is allowed to use for free. totally beautiful! super hilly, quiet. i took a mini-movie of me driving fast on the roads down there but i cant figure out how to post it. (totally like those BMW comercials!)

we have been gone so much this summer it is unreal! we have been to MI 2 or 3 times already, and still are heading back at least 3 more before all is said and done! crazy!

check out the photos...

the first weekend, amber and i went to amish country in geauga county for the weekend. did some hiking in a state park, chilled out. got some kick ass cheese! it was great.

last weekend (memorial day), i built our deck, with obvious help. ed and i sank the footers on saturday. sunday, i pounded out the rest. monday: WTF: built some stairs!

i have also been working now for almost 2 weeks. weird working again after almost a year off (paid work, at least!). work is super busy, at least from my perspective. there is so much i need to learn...

the centenials are doing uch better than the fuggles (at least at present). check the photo section.

finals are almost over. only one more (property) on thurday, then first year is all over!

i keep finding myself getting anxious and worked up over finals i have already taken! i guess it must be anout not having any control over it anymore....what ever it is, it is providing me with ample material to obsess over!

our classes end tomorrow (tues), then we have 1 week for studying. my first final (torts) is next tuesday. i'm nervous...not that i dont know all this crap, but its just the stress of finals, etc.

its hard to imagine that my first year of law school is almost over! totally flew by!

2 weeks from yesterday, classes end. and then...may 10, finals begin.

the end of my first year of law school. weird.

amber and i have been trying to spend time working in our yard. we are (rather, I AM) going to build a deck (with help from family/friends, obviously!). i am super anxious to get started!! we bought wood last sunday, after amber's parents left...

see the pix for recent shots...

i also have planted 4 hop plants (rhizomes, to be exact). 2 are doing quite well. the other 2 (Fuggles), have yet to even sprout ( i think it's because they aren't getting enough sun...). if no signs o' life by saturday, they are being moved "into the light" in an attempt to recue them!

i do have some pix i will post (this evening i hope!)...we've been working in the garden...and my hops are growing!

stay tuned...

enough bitching, damn it!

the semester is wearing on fast. we have finals coming up again in about 5-6 weeks. seems like they just ended (fall)! i am worried about maintaining my GPA and class rank (3.75 and 5/154, respectively). i know i was worried last semester, too, but i just dont want to mess anything up! i know i can only do my best, etc., but- i cant seem to find any motivation! i'm not the only one either...many people are feeling this way....

i start a new job on friday: rather large domestic relations firm in cleveland. i'm super excited that they offered me (a 1st year) such a great position! also, its yet another thing i will worry about: squeezing in part-time work next year plus classes!! ..................................................................