Personal
Rybo and His Graffiti
This is Ryan.
Ryan is a former student of mine who, like Wendy and me, has a lot going on. He’s a full-time student, designs web pages, (kind of) maintains a blog, skateboards, and in his free time (?) paints graffiti and SC-themed images. I took these images of him back in July while he was painting the office of a tech startup here in Columbia. It was really hot that day and remembering it makes me especially thankful for the cooler weather we’re enjoying now. So for now, whatever the weather, cool down with a nice tall glass of Rybo.
This next one is a particular favorite of mine. Ryan painted both sides of the skateboard he’s holding, and the grip tape side is an Imperial stormtrooper.
Yup, that’s my student.
Rybo and His Graffiti
This is Ryan.
Ryan is a former student of mine who, like Wendy and me, has a lot going on. He’s a full-time student, designs web pages, (kind of) maintains a blog, skateboards, and in his free time (?) paints graffiti and SC-themed images. I took these images of him back in July while he was painting the office of a tech startup here in Columbia. It was really hot that day and remembering it makes me especially thankful for the cooler weather we’re enjoying now. So for now, whatever the weather, cool down with a nice tall glass of Rybo.
This next one is a particular favorite of mine. Ryan painted both sides of the skateboard he’s holding, and the grip tape side is an Imperial stormtrooper.
Yup, that’s my student.
Our Anniversary/Wendy’s Birthday
You’re going to have to bear with me on this post, because it’s not a whole lot more than bragging. You see, I’m married to the most awesome woman on the face of the planet. Please don’t get me wrong–there are many awesome women on this planet–I just happen to be married to the most awesome of them all.
This past week, I got to celebrate this amazing woman and our marriage to one another. See, our anniversary was on Wednesday and Wendy’s birthday was on Thursday, meaning that, should I ever forget these dates, I am totally and completely doomed. No, I’m kidding, I have an amazingly patient and forgiving wife but I plan to never test her forgiveness that hard.
Anyway, we started out our anniversary in full wedding mode, with a bridal shoot with the lovely Joie (who you’ll meet next week) at the historic Seibels House and Garden. It’s a gorgeous site, which you can see from this quick snap I took of Wendy while testing light.
After our shoot, we were trying to decide on a place to eat our anniversary dinner. Unfortunately, we were both pretty stuffed up (pollen, anyone?) and didn’t really want to splurge on a fancy meal that we might or might not be able to taste. What to do? Eat at Blue Cactus, of course! Let me be clear–we chose Blue Cactus not because they’re not delicious, but because the way they cook, we knew we’d be able to taste it.
So yeah, in short, there were photos, there were gifts, there was food. It was a good day.
Thursday was set aside for us to celebrate, so there were…more gifts, more photos, and more food. This is Wendy in her new camera t-shirt:
In the photo we’re on our way to the McCutchen House for lunch. If you’ve never eaten there, you must remedy that soon. The food is delicious and the restaurant is staffed by USC students from the School of Hotel, Restaurant & Tourism Management who must be getting graded on their performance because the service is excellent. The McCutchen House is also where Wendy and I had our wedding reception. This visit wasn’t quite as exciting as that one, but we did actually get to eat this time.
There is no explanation for these next photos except that my wife is beautiful and we were messing around:
(I wish Wendy had told me how flat my hair was.)
(Did I mention that the McCutchen House has some great light?)
“Ooh! A brick wall!”
So, after eating and playing around USC, we went shopping so that Wendy could spend a little of her birthday money. I know you’re dying to know what she bought, but hang on!
Finally, we wrapped up our celebration of our anniversary and Wendy’s birthday by treating ourselves to…another photoshoot! This one was at The Inn at Claussen’s–the place we spent our wedding night–and Wendy busted our her birthday purchases:
And if you think blondes have more fun, you haven’t seen anything yet:
So yeah, that’s my wife.
I am more grateful than I can express to have had the joy of spending the last three years of my life with her. She is my constant inspiration and the love of my life. Thank you for three amazing years, Baby, and happy birthday!
Snow in Columbia!
We got snow! Snow!
Yes, on Tuesday night a tiny dusting of snow fell on us here in Columbia, SC. Many of us stayed up late constantly refreshing the school closings page on WISTV.com, only to be met with sadness and frustration. Still, it was a nice reminder of the snow we had in February, and so I thought today I’d post a few pictures Wendy and I took back then.
There aren’t a whole lot of pictures because (1) while I can handle the cold and wet it doesn’t seem ideal for cameras and (2) it’s all well and good to take pictures, but when you get snow in Columbia it’s important to put the camera down and play in it, so that’s what we did.
Since most of us in South Carolina aren’t very familiar with snow, I’ve prepared a brief primer on proper snow behavior. Let’s start with Snow 101: Snowflake catching.
Next, stand in awe upon realizing that it’s actually snowing.
Next, simply delight in the snow.
After that, realize you’re freezing because you have no clothing appropriate for snow and go inside.
Finally, after you’ve had a chance to warm up, forget that you have no appropriate clothing, raid your kitchen, and go outside and build a snowman.
Our snowman featured a real corn-cob pipe (well, a real corn-cob left over from Chili’s, anyway), a cucumber nose, and two eyes (and a mouth) made out of coffee beans. We felt he represented us well.
We hope our fellow South Carolinians enjoyed the snow and that you’ll all come back tomorrow for the Friday edition of FIVE (business) DAYS OF BLOGGING.
Candide
Friday before last Wendy and I had the pleasure of attending a production of Candide put on by the Alliance Française de Columbia. From their web page:
The Alliance Française is a worldwide non-profit organization founded in Paris in 1883. It is part of a network of over 1,000 chapters in 133 countries. In the United States, the Alliance Française counts more than 140 locations…The mission of The Alliance is to encourage the study of the French language and the various cultures of French-speaking countries and, more specifically, to foster friendly relations between the French-speaking and American peoples.
For those unfamiliar, Candide was written by Voltaire and ridicules the philosophical optimism of Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz. The play was performed entirely in French, which means that Wendy enjoyed the subtlety of the satire while I laughed when someone died in an especially comic way. All told, though, it was a lot of fun, with flying sheep, horses whose galloping sounded suspiciously like coconuts, and a hero who saves the girl, even though she’s gotten very, very ugly.
If you are a student of French or are simply interested in French culture, get in touch with the Alliance and get involved, and be sure to keep your eyes out for another performance next year!
Here are a few shots we took of the magnificent cast.
At last, we meet our daring hero Candide…and his flying sheep.
And finally, the entire cast of Candide.
Thanks for sticking around for the third day of the FIVE (business) DAYS OF BLOGGING. There are two more days to go, and I hope you’ll join us for both of them. See you tomorrow!
Christmas in Maryland
We have delayed far too long in posting pics from our Christmas visit to Maryland. After waiting out one of this year’s infamous snow storms, J.P. and I finally made it to the home of my big sis, bro-in-law, and favorite kids. Get ready for the cuteness!
Meet Ethan. Ethan loves to read and play, and he insists on giving you a full tour of the toy box as soon as you walk through the door.
I love this next picture Loren took of Ethan watching J.P. juggle some blocks. At the time, I was helping my mom prepare for our family photo. Just look at those bright eyes and that smile!
Here he is opening up some cardboard blocks that took the adults about half an hour to assemble (actually, I’m not sure how long it took us, but those blocks are not coming apart again for some time… too many little cardboard teeth).
Ethan wasn’t as excited about the shark poncho we picked out as he was the blocks, books and puzzles. I can’t blame the kid, but I sure am glad we got this picture out of it.
This is Brooke, Ethan’s beautiful baby sister. She is sweet and sociable and thinks Ethan is the funniest thing around. Brooke’s laugh alone is enough to make my day (this is what I’m talking about).
Here’s Poppy snoozing with little Brooke…
…and Pop holding Brooke after her nap.
Ethan is a wonderful big brother who will frequently bring his little sis toys to hold and even try to make sure she’s present for story time. But even the best older siblings will sometimes compete for attention…
The trip was awesome! Mainly, we lounged around, played with the kids, hung out with Betsy and Loren, and ate their food. My mom and dad were there, too, so we had some bonus family time consisting of caroling, continued eating, and of course a family photo shoot.
Betsy and Loren are amazing parents and, honestly, first class human beings. They are family and friends we continue to look up to.
Currently, Loren, Betsy, Ethan and Brooke are reunited after Loren’s recent trip to help out in the aftermath of the earthquake in Haiti. You can view some of his pictures from the trip here. Welcome home, Loren! We love you!
