I got home from Austin yesterday afternoon at 4pm. The trip was an absolute blast! An outstanding time was had by all. The drive all the way to Texas went well. In fact, it was looking like we would arrive so early, we made a stopover in Dallas to tour Dealey Plaza. Dallas was brightly lit downtown when we rolled in around 5am. Luckily, were ahead of the morning rush hour. The Plaza itself was not what I expected it to be. It was quite a bit smaller than I’d seen in pictures, and looked very uneventful.

We finally arrived in Austin around 10am Friday, and immediately checked into our hotel at the Hampton Inn Downtown. It was very nice. That evening, Chris and Sara’s rehearsal dinner was a lot of fun, and the food was great. Several of us went out on the town to the popular 6th Street after dinner. We went to an Irish pub where we toasted Guinness. It was a blast!

On Saturday, me and Kevin did a walking tour of downtown Austin in the drizzling rain. We visited the capital building, which I found to be very extravagant for a state capital. Saturday night was Chris’s wedding. Me and Kevin had the hardest time directing our cab driver to the wedding location at the Barr Mansion. We called friends and family trying to get someone to find the directions online. Frustrated and late, we arrived in time for the wedding. It was a very nice ceremony — short and very sweet. The bride and groom are genuinely happy. The wedding reception was a ball! The location was very charming and could not have been better.

I flew home to Raleigh yesterday afternoon. It was a stark contrast to the drive all the way to Texas, which took about 20 hours. In the air, I was home in two hours, and I had a great flight. This weekend was so much fun. It was worth every penny, but spending such quality time with the family was priceless. Thanks to everyone who showed me a fun time.

• Austin Photos (Flickr)
• Austin Trip Log (PDF)
• Wedding Website

Today, I embark on a road trip to Austin, TX with my brother (and crew) to attend my cousin’s wedding. I’m very excited, as I have only heard great things about the city. We are driving around the clock to get there, and I’m hopping a flight home on Sunday. This will be a fun adventure, and will be great quality time spent with the family. Off we go!

I bought a new 4 GB iPod Nano yesterday! Hooray! It is so awesome. I’d previously been using a 512k iPod Shuffle. I had to have the Nano. It is so slick, and so beautifully designed. I love the extra storage for my music, and all the features that come with a full-blown iPod. The screen is bright, and extremely sharp. Flipping album covers with Cover Flow is gorgeous and fantastic. It’s music and volume controls are amazing. I love it! I’ll admit that it does weigh a little more than I expected it to. Perhaps I am used to the shuffle, which felt like a small pack of gum. The weight is no worry considering all the goodies that are packed in this little thing.

I have had some confusion of video support, though. I was able to transfer a music video that I’d downloaded via iTunes, and a single MP4 conversion from a DVD using Handbrake. Those played beautifully on the iPod screen. Other videos I’d made with Handbrake weren’t allowed in by the iPod. I don’t know why, since I thought I’d used the correct setting in Handbrake to do so. I’ll have to research that matter further someday. I plan to eventually try a movie rental from iTunes (a new feature), to see how it plays, though I don’t intend to make a habit of renting iTunes movies.

New Year Happy to all. I can’t believe it is 2008 already. Since we crossed 2000 all those years ago, the numbers have fooled me into thinking that much time hasn’t passed. In fact, it has. 1998 is now a full ten years in our past. 2000 to 2008 doesn’t seem that long for some reason, but when you look at the numbers, that is a big chunk of time. Personally, I have high hopes for 2008. I am optimistic that it is going to be a really good year. Cheers!

I couldn’t help but manipulate this picture of my dog Spencer peering out from under a blanket.

If you like to camp and live in the Raleigh, NC area, you must pay a visit to the Jordan Lake campground. Me and Laura camped there last Sunday evening. The campground has many lake view lots to choose from. We picked an incredible wooded lot with a gorgeous view of the water. We had a fantastic time, and the dog enjoyed himself too. The weather was awesome and campers were sparse.

I think Jordan Lake is the number one place to camp if you are in the Raleigh area. Take my advice and check it out. Look the sunset photo I snapped, shown below.

Laura is doing just great now. It has now been over two months since her accident and injury. She is back on her feet now. Yesterday, she bought a cute 2006 Hyundai Accent. It fits her well. It is so great to have things relatively back to normal now after a wild and very unusual two months. Congrats on your new ride, honey!

Yesterday, May 5th, I walked my dog Spencer in the SPCA fundraising walk that took place in downtown Raleigh. It was a 3K (1.8 mile) walk through the city streets. My mom came along for our walk, too. Hopefully it was a fun outing for Spencer. He was a bit nervous and shy around so many hundreds of dogs, but he did get through it. It feels good to donate money to the SPCA. They do so much for homeless pets.

Laura was released from the hospital tonight! Her friend Anna drove her home. Laura has done so well throughout this entire episode. Her progress at home in the few hours she has been here is stunning. She is really handling this all very well. I am so proud of her. She seems determined to use as little help as possible. Her recovery could be as short as eight weeks. We’ll keep our fingers crossed. She is honestly doing so well, I forget she is even hurt. I’m proud of you, honey!

Laura was involved in a terrible car accident this past Friday night (the 13th) after she drove away from work. We spent night night at the hospital until 7:00 in the morning Saturday. It has been a very stressful weekend for us all. She is still in the hospital now, in her own private room, with a chance of being released tomorrow. Her pelvic bone is broken, along with other injuries that I know I won’t be able to explain correctly. Fortunately, surgery is not necessary. Though, a long three month recovery is expected. Everyone is willing to help her for anything she needs. We are all very lucky she will be all right in the end. I care about her deeply. I’m afraid the next few weeks and months will be very trying for her. Hang in there, babe.