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Tuesday, Feb 9th was my birthday. The big four-five. I'm now officially what I have considered for most of my life to be a GEEZER! The funny part is, I don't really feel mentally all that different than I did at, say, 25. Sans the nagging back pain.

Every year for my birthday, Jessica plans some extravagant trip for us. Two years ago it was dogsledding in PA. Last year it was swimming with the Manatees in Florida. So this year, I really didn't know what to expect. Well, to say she out-did herself would be an understatement. I have no idea how she kept this a secret.

A few years ago, I found out that I had a brother. My biological dad left when I was 4-1/2 years old, and I only saw him twice after that, the last time being when I was around 13. I had no idea what became of him, but a few years ago, my mom decided to try in earnest to find him. Well, she did find him, or rather his obit. We also found his address, and that's when we found out about my brother.

We both crafted a letter to my brother and his mom, not knowing if they even knew we existed. It turns out that they did, and after a trade of phone numbers, I got to talk to him on the phone. He's a tough guy to get ahold of, so several emails went unanswered. I wanted to fly to New Mexico (where he and his mom live), but I could never seem to get anything coordinated. But Jessica did, and that was my birthday trip.

We flew out to NM via Chicago. I was VERY excited when I realized where we were going. My brother, Adam (yes, we have half of U2, all we need is a Dave and a Larry now) lives near Taos. It's an amazing, beautiful place. We both have a LOT in common!

We like:
- Chocolate
- Skiing
- Cars

We dislike:
- Sour cream
- Raw tomatoes

We also both talk extensively through the use of our hands. And we both drive too fast, though he REALLY drives fast! We also have wide feet, but he's really fussy about food, which I'm not at all. He also owns GUNS, including an assault rifle!

He's a really, REALLY nice guy, and it was easy to like him right off the bat. We went skiing at Taos, and everyone knew him, so he basically got us in for free. We are both at about the same level as far as skiing ability goes, so we had a lot of fun.

His mom is great, and much more "hip" than my mom, likely because she's younger. They live in a really gorgeous house that my dad build from scratch (he always was a serious builder) and it has an amazing view of the mountains. It was a very relaxing place to stay, and they were great hosts. We really felt welcome.

I got to meet a lot of people who knew my dad. They all thought I looked a lot like him, more so than my brother. They all went on and on about what a great man my dad was (who knew?) and how they really felt privileged to have known him. My dad had a lot of problems when he was with my mom and me, so it's good to know that he found his footing later in life. It looks like he gave my brother and his mom a really good life, and my life has been pretty blessed too, so all's well that ends well.

All in all it was an amazing trip, and I'm happy to not have to tell people I'm an only child anymore.

Adam and me:



More pics...

These are pretty cool.

This website as DNA.



(from http://www.baekdal.com/)


This website as a funky graph.



(from http://www.aharef.info/static/htmlgraph/)

This wicked hawk I've been trying to get a good pic of. He's pretty elusive, and likes to hang out behind this particular group of houses where he stalks a cat.





Kitties...

Why is it that the majority of the time when people flip you off on the road, it's after THEY'VE done something completely and utterly stupid.

Last night Jess and I were on the road from the Kennedy Center after seeing the Nutcracker. I got a bit turned around in DC, because they sent us out the wrong exit, but I finally found I-66 which takes us to the GW Parkway, then home. The ramp from I-66 to the Parkway is just a piece of elevated highway, designed to be taken at speed. It's a VERY gradual turn, that's banked, and could easily be taken at around 80 in most cars without breaking a sweat.

Last night there was a Toyota Prius in front of us. Everything was fine until we got to that ramp, at which point he dropped down to the low 40's. I moved to the left to take a peek around him and see if there was anything in front of him that I should be worried about (debris, road damage, animal, etc) and noticed him slam on his brakes. I was following at a good distance, so I didn't even really have to take my foot off the gas. He's now down to about 35, and the brakes slam on again, this time harder. Again I was far enough back to be able to just coast and move my foot over the brake pedal, but didn't really need to use them.

By now we're in the high 20's, and I start to worry about someone rear-ending us on this high-speed ramp. We finally make it to the Parkway, and he FLOORs it, unleashing all 5 of his Briggs & Stratton horsepower (not a very green thing to do for a Prius driver). I decide that he's either drunk or texting, so decide to go around him. As we pass him, he shakes his middle finger at us frantically. I still have no clue what his problem was, unless the view out the back of that car makes everyone look like they're tailgating. As such, the incident calls for a few driving tips:

1) If you can't drive, it's not my fault. Take lessons and remember, there's always public transportation.

2) If you can't manage more than 35 on a ramp marked for 55, it's not my fault. Find a wet parking lot to practice in, or take lessons. Don't forget about the public transportation option.

3) If you own a Prius and feel like everyone's tailgating you, have a friend follow you at a safe distance. If he looks like he's tailgating remember he's not, and neither were all those people you've been flipping off since you got the car. They probably think you need psychiatric help. If you just flipped off your friend, you probably do.

4) Remember when you slam on your brakes going 35 in a 55, your action will accordion back through traffic. You could cause and accident and should probably stick to using public transportation. Road rage kills, and so might you.

5) Also remember that flipping off someone else for your screw-up doesn't make your screw-up go away. It just means you screwed up twice.

Thanks for reading, and remember that what's going on in front of your car is always more important than what's going on behind it. Keep that finger where it belongs, and keep your foot on the gas.

Our last show of this tour was Raleigh, NC. This makes seven shows we've seen this tour, with three of them being GA for me, and four for Jess. Of all the shows, Toronto 2 was hands-down the best (pics of the Toronto shows can be found in my gallery), with Raleigh a close second. The DC show was notable because of both the excellent organization of the FedEx field staff (they actually honored the fan-based numbering system, and had a narrow GA line) and the huge rip-off of an included parking charge whether you parked at the venue or not (and we did not).

The NC show was small, but homey. An excellent crowd who seemed to really appreciate U2 being there. They let me bring my good camera in, and I got some decent shots.






















In DC, I was stuck with Jess's old, tiny camera, so I only got a few good shots. There were the best:






So that's it for now, unless of course Jessica buys more tickets for the 2010 leg of the tour. Seeing them in Greece might be fun, since I have family there. We'll see how things (namely our bank account) go by then.