Wedding Preparations in the Country
(6-15 July 2003)

15 July 2003
-The exhaustion continues.  2 more runs to the airport adds up to something in the neighborhood of 8-10 visits to the airport during the week, almost all of them to Oakland International.
-That was an infinitely better All-Star Game than last year.  & the Mariners have a real shot at Game 1 of the World Series landing in Seattle!
-As I start looking at computer stuff again (briefly, since we're probably leaving for Vancouver Island tomorrow), I must note that the book is now listed on Barnes & Noble.  Still only for sale at VBW, though.
-For the sake of clarity, while Amazon & BN get their act together, I have perma-linked VBW's page for my book in the heading for this page above.

14 July 2003
-Sheer exhaustion coming out of the most momentous day of my life.  Hung out with a few people who were still around after the wedding & shared some more good times.  But I'm way more tired than I should be.
-Wearing a ring is taking some getting used to.  But it's so much fun!

13 July 2003
[from Laurel Mill Lodge, California]
-I guess I am one of the only people who would have a stickball game three hours before getting married.  But I wouldn't have it any other way.
-I wouldn't change a thing.  My life is perfect.  Thank you, Emily.  I love my wife.

12 July 2003
[from Laurel Mill Lodge, California]
-An overnight discussion yielded some of the more interesting insights into my friends in a long time.  If I had to have a bachelor party, going into the woods with friends, playing cards, & talking politics & theology is about the best I could have.
-So many people here I like!  & they keep showing up!  How will I ever be able to soak up these 36 hours sufficiently?!

11 July 2003
Happy Birthday to Dom Williams
-My friends have always valued a good joke.  & even more, they value a bad joke.

10 July 2003
-Friends coming in right & left.  I'm beginning to sense how incredible this weekend's going to be.
-So many things never change.  Even when they do.

9 July 2003
-Going to get the marriage license with my parents was wonderful.  Soon, there will be two Clayton couples in the immediate family!
-"Pirates of the Caribbean" is a phenomenal film.  How can you argue with a movie about pirates based on the best ride at Disneyland?  Arr!  The most fun movie I've seen a goodly long time.

8 July 2003
-Saw Gris & a ballgame with him & Adam Dunbar of old-school fame, now all grown up.  The Giants won 8-3 without Barry Bonds, & then we lost Adam.  Much of the rest of the day was spent in a madcap, movie-style chase of Adam, complete with being in the same place he just was while he was in the same place we just were.  I have a sunburn, some exhaustion, but the satisfaction of finally finding everyone.
-Today is the release date!!  For some reason, my friends at VBW gave me no advance warning.  So even though Amazon thinks the book was released last month for some reason, it came out today.  & since it was just released, it is listed but not yet available at Amazon.  It is as yet unlisted on Barnes & Noble.  So right now, the only place to buy it is direct from the publisher.  Go buy it now!

7 July 2003
-My interview today at the Seneca Center went fairly well I would surmise.  While I had vastly less experience in the field than almost anyone else in the 10- to 12-person group interview, it seemed I had consistently some of the best responses to questions.  Here's hoping they're looking for fresh ideas from people not brought up in the system.  It seems their philosophy is a spot-on match with mine as well, minimizing mechanical restraint & medication wherever possible.  Getting hired by them, if it happens, looks like it will take quite a while, however.

6 July 2003
-It really feels like this upcoming wedding should be a one-year anniversary party instead.  Emily & I didn't get married last summer so that we could maximize everyone's ability to come to the event & make sure there was enough time to plan it without surprising everyone.  The result has been that this apparent change in status feels a lot less dramatic than it would have a year ago.  Jordan, recently married himself, assures me that the change seems substantial even when one doesn't expect it to.  & while I could see how that's possible, & I see very subtle changes here & there, the bulk of life just doesn't seem like it's going to change.  I feel like we've been married a year already, & we're only just celebrating it next week.
-Pando has effectively been belled.  She actually just has a small metal nametag dangling from her collar so that if she ever did escape the confines of our apartment, we could hopefully get her back.  But now she has a faint jingle whenever she walks.  It doesn't seem to bother her, which is good since I kind of like it.

Introspection, My Worst Friend* (Current)
Ye Olde Archive (Past)
Introspection Directory (Source)
The Blue Pyramid (Home)