Good News.

If you want to read about the good news, you could probably skip to the bottom paragraph. I on the other hand would much rather just tell you how the week and weekend went prior to the good news at the end. So, you decide how you want to approach it.

On Monday, because it was Martin Luther King Day, the office was closed so we all had a day off. I, however coordinated some volunteer activities that involved a number of area university students. Two of our clients had these students assist them with projects in their homes like getting rid of stuff and breaking down boxes. It was a great opportunity for the students to volunteer their time and assist frail older adults. One of the clients was a pack rat/hoarder so I wanted to make sure I was there in the event she decided to turn away the students. Thank goodness that did not happen and I’m glad they were able to get rid of some of the stuff in her home. After the project was completed, I met up with the two groups and we talked about their experience. Overall, it was a very good experience for them and a number of them wished they could have helped for more than an hour which was the time that was slated for the project. As the volunteer coordinator, I’m glad the experience went well for everyone who were involved in it.

Anna and I went to the musical, “Spring Awakening” which won a number of Tony awards a couple of years back. It was an interesting musical – one that required some thought because it dealt with sexual repression in the late 19th century. I’m still kind of at a loss pertaining to whether I thought it was a good musical. After the musical was done, there was a post musical talk led by the cast and it enlightened the story even more. It helped explain certain aspects of the musical, but I still went away with a number of questions. Oh well. It’s about the experience more than anything else. Two of the cast members went to Anna’s school to speak to some of the students and she got to learn more about the musical to the point that she went back the very next night (Friday) to see it again. This time she said she had a much deeper appreciation for it. Good for her.

Saturday was a pretty packed day. I worked in the morning and when I got off, we went to a free classical concert at the Des Moines Art Center. Adam Meyer, who is the brother of Abby, who is part of the young adults group plays the viola as part of a quartet called the Bryant Park Quartet. They spent a week in DM going to different schools and giving classes then the trip culminated with a free concert. All four of the members were trained at Julliard so we are talking about some pretty high caliber artists. The performance was wonderful and it would have been packed if not for the frigid temperatures that day. A lot of people stayed indoors.

We grabbed a quick dinner then were off to Drake for a jazz concert by the artist John Pizzarelli who has his own radio show. Now, this guy was darn amazing and he played a number of well known tunes from yesteryears. There were a lot of people in attendance and it was an amazing concert. Everyone had a blast. Anna saw him a number of years and was impressed with him so she was more than exhilarated to see him again. There’s something about jazz music that just gets to your soul. At the end of the evening, her comment to me was that we most definitely had a very cultural week/weekend.

So, here’s the big news from me. No, I’m not engaged! If I was, you would have found out about it by phone. I did however speak to Anna’s parents on the phone and they gave me their blessing to marry her daughter which is just wonderful. Anna spoke to her parents yesterday evening while I was there and it was a very good and positive experience. After she got off the phone, I told her that I would be calling her folks up later that evening and she gave me the look of, “You must be crazy!” A part of me was really adamant about it since I wanted to ask them on CNY being all auspicious and everything. I spoke to her dad first and we started talking about the weather of all things, then I was put on speaker phone so her mom could be involved in the conversation. When I finally asked the question, her mom gave me her permission right away while her dad jokingly said he has ten days and to give him a call then. We then talked about how much fun and relaxed all of us felt over Christmas, and they could see how Anna and I are a wonderful couple. Al spoke of how much his three daughters mean to him and he’s happy that Anna found someone like me. Oh, I should also say that before they gave me their permission, I made a comment of how if they want, I could get two references from bishops, at least ten priests would vouch for me and close to fifty people would be more than happy to say good things about me. That just cracked them up. They were more than excited about the news and were happy that I asked them permission. Al also said that if he had said no, would I have given up? My answer to it was no, I would not have given up, and I would have still asked Anna to marry me and I would have continued to give him reasons why I would be good for her. I told Al and Karen and I do not make promises, but I promised them that I would treat Anna with respect and dignity the way a husband should treat his wife, and the way any man should treat a lady. Both of them said that it was all they would ask for and were more than exhilarated with my promise. At the end of it, Al commented that he would be proud and honored to have me as part of his family and in my mind, that was the greatest compliment a dad could give. The phone conversation lasted twenty three minutes and twenty one seconds (I know it because of my cell phone!) Both Al and Karen extended an invitation to our family to spend time in North Dakota, and said that he would be honored if we visited them there. I told them that I don’t see a problem in arranging that especially since my parents are retired. I told them that the wedding would take place next year to give everyone more than enough time to prepare and save money for the wedding and he was happy about that.

At the end of the conversation, I felt relieved and to be honest, I really did not feel too worried or anxious. It was very comfortable speaking to them on the phone and I’m glad everything worked out. I told Anna that the ball is now in my court since I have her parent’s permission. She’ll just have to wait for her ring!

That’s the good news I wanted to share with all of you. Yes, the new year definitely started with a bang. Yay for Anna and me!

MLK Day

I have the day off from work today since it's MLK Day which turned out really well for me. I got to clean my apartment and later today will be able to watch Liverpool and Everton. Should be a pretty amazing game. Even with the day off, I'll still going to be coordinating some volunteer work. Not to worry, the time will be comped by the agency. There is a service project involving a number of college students from various DM area colleges. Two of our clients will be assisted by these college students so I'll be there to make sure things are OK and that everything goes according to plan. I'm more concerned about one client in particular who is a "hoarder" and she may just end up backing out at the last minute. I would not want the students to have a negative experience. The almost all the students volunteering from Drake are Malaysians. I guess a lot of it has to do with the fact that they are in DM and probably did not really go anywhere for break. Spring semester classes officially begin tomorrow.

So, the big news from me definitely has to do with the fact that I bought Anna's engagement ring. We had looked at rings so she knows what she'll be getting, but the one thing she does not know is how many carats. I won't say more in this e mail since I'm pretty sure she does check my blog once in a while. Let's just say I'm extremely happy with the purchase. I agree with the comment from the jeweler when he called me to tell me that the ring had arrived. It was stunning. Talk about a big step forward on my part. Wow wee! In so many ways, it's exciting yet scary in a good way.

Later that day, we went to Barnes and Noble. I've not been there in quite some time so I got to catch up on my magazine reading. We then went to her friend's house for dinner. I won't call it a dinner party. It's just a group of friends getting together. The same people at the dinner a couple of weeks ago, were there on Saturday. All of us had a fun time just chatting and playing a couple of board games. You know, I'm definitely getting the hang of this couple thing especially when I spend time with other couples! Jorie and Brian hosted and this time we got to see their little 18 month old daughter Aubrey who was at home the last time they came to the dinner. She's such a cutie, and she's actually in a 2009 calendar. Initially she was shy, but later on she warmed up to us. Too bad it was close to her bed time so we really did not get to spend all that much time with her. We were supposed to head over to Brian's house for a party, but I was way tired when we left Jorie and Brian's place. I called to let Brian know that we may not show up.

Not too much happened on Sunday. I sang with the 2nd Sunday group and we did a really good job. Anna and I went out for brunch before I worked at the facility. It was overall a very quiet evening which was nice.

My new work schedule began on Saturday. I work on Saturday mornings from 6am-2pm, but no longer work on Monday and Tuesday evenings which is nice. Initially, it was a little weird working on Saturday morning, but it ended up pretty well. Most of the residents just go back to bed after they've taken their medication so the morning tends to be really quiet.

I guess that's all the news from me for this week. Have a good one!

A nice routine.

Well, I figured it’s still kind of early in the morning and I don’t have too much going on yet. So, I might as well write to all of you now.
The past weekend was nice. More so because I got to chat with all of you and that’s always nice. Sometimes I can’t help it when the phone connection is not the best. Before I forget, here is my work schedule for all of you. Wednesday evening, I work at the facility from 3:45PM-10:30PM, Friday from 3:45PM-10PM, Saturday from 6AM-2PM and Sunday from 2-10PM. I no longer work on Monday and Tuesday evenings. This schedule will start this Saturday. If it changes, I’ll let you know.

Not too much really happened the past week. Things are definitely going back to a nice, comfortable routine. We watched the movie, “Bride Wars” on Saturday because we’ve been watching a number of dramas the past weekend so we figured it would be nice for a change to just watch a fun comedy and that’s exactly what it was. Sometimes, it’s just good to watch a silly movie just for the sake of it. Later that evening, we both went to Ann’s for conversation and dinner. Anna had to leave earlier since her band had a gig, but I stayed and chatted with Ann till probably 11:30PM.

On Sunday right after Mass, we went to Sr. Carola’s apartment for a nice and simple brunch. We both have not seen her since the start of the new year so that was nice to catch up. She’s been keeping herself busy after retiring from St. Kate’s working at a florist and also as a chaplain at the Catholic hospital in Des Moines.

That’s really how the week has been. Weather wise, it’s going to be interesting because I believe today we are expecting blizzard conditions with roughly two to three inches of snow and close to 40 mph winds. Trust me, driving in those conditions can be hazardous to one’s health. The next storm is expected to come arrive on Wednesday. That’s the Iowa weather for you.

Well, that’s all the news from my end. Talk to you soon!

New Year.

Before the day escapes me once again, I had better write to all of you. It’s kind of quiet now so should be able to type out my note.

Let’s see, last week being New Year and all, the focus was definitely on New Year’s Eve. I had made dinner reservations at Proof Restaurant for the both of us and it’s a restaurant we both thoroughly enjoy. Nothing about the meal disappointed us and it was a very nice and relaxing evening. I told Anna that she might want to dress us for the evening since I’ll be wearing a suit and tie. She had no idea what I had planned for New Year’s Eve. She just knew that we were going to Proof. Over dinner I told her that we’ll be headed to the DM Symphony New Year’s Eve concert and she had an inkling that was what I had planned. It got quite a lot of publicity over the weeks and we were both pumped about it. It was a special symphony because they had Cirque performers doing their act while the symphony played in the background. It was mesmerizing to say the least and that’s exactly what a number of us from St. Kate’s agreed. The best part about it was the fact that it was a sold out concert and that has not happen in years. What a wonderful way to ring in the New Year. After the concert, we both changed into more comfortable clothing and headed to Joel and Kathy to ring in the year. Kathy’s sister, Barb and her husband, Paul have been spending New Year’s Eve in DM for some years now and I always look forward to seeing the kids. It was a fun time and the kids have definitely grown. What’s different this year is that I did not need to babysit them. We left the Olahs a little after 1AM and the kids were still awake. We definitely had a good time.

Not too much else really took place over the week. I met up with my former religious education students and that was nice. Two of them will be studying abroad so it was nice to see them prior to their leaving. I also met up with Matt and Alisha. I’ve not seen Alisha since the wedding in May so that was nice. Matt has been back a couple of times so I did see him in passing. Anna and I watched the movie Valkyrie starring Tom Cruise about the plot to assassinate Hitler. That was a good movie. Did not know that there were at least fifteen known attempts to get rid of him. How sad that not one was successful. We also met up with Fr. Jim for dinner one evening. We took him out for dinner and it was a very nice and relaxing evening. That’s kind of how the week went. Overall, it was quiet, relaxing and stress free. Just the way one would want to start the New Year.

Work wise, things are back to normal. People have returned from their vacation and things have picked up from where it was left off for holiday season. Life is good so there’s no complaints from me.

That’s all the news I guess for now.