4 months and counting

It's crazy to think that Noah is now over 19 weeks old and how much he has changed.
He is at a fun age where he knows who mommy and daddy are.  When he sees us, it just puts a smile on his face and he is ready to play and talk.  If he could talk, he would have lots to say!
He recently got to watch his first Disney movie: Frozen.  He did fall asleep during it though.
He received his first bike as an Easter gift from Grandpa Jim- a Radio Flyer tricycle.  Soon, he will be able to put his strong legs to use!
We are very fortunate to have grandma watch Noah during the week when Desiree and I are at work.  Luckily, Desiree does not work on Fridays and gets to be home with Noah.  They get a great day of bonding, just the 2 of them.
This weekend, we are looking forward to getting out to the beach to celebrate auntie Darcey's birthday. 
Stay tuned for more adventures.

happy birthday noah?

It is crazy to think that today is Noah's expected birthday.  It's crazy that Desiree would have been pregnant up until today.  However the last 6 weeks have been amazing.  It has had it's challenges, however I wouldn't change it for the world.  Desiree, Noah, and I are all figuring each other out and we are becoming more efficient in his responses and needs.
We got to celebrate your expected birthday with our first date night.  We did an all-you-can-eat at one of our favorite restaurants- Robata.  $20/person for all the sushi and more that your tummy can handle.
Thank you to our family and friends, especially Desiree's mom, for all the love and support.  From prayers, to visits, to meals, it has helped in making the last few weeks go by smoother.
And Noah, thank you for teaching us love and patients.

This is my favorite thing:
(like father, like son)


happy new year!

Happy holidays and happy new year to all!
I have made a New Years resolution to be more active on my blog. Likely though, it will be less of my adventures and have more stories of my family, my son Noah more specifically.
So I hope that I am able to follow suit rather than be another statistic of falling off the New Years resolution and joining the bandwagon of the 50% crowd that quit before the end of January.
It would appear that I'm off to a good start!

an early Christmas gift

Noah Khoi Dinh

December 09, 2013 @ 21:32

Weight: 5lbs; 17.5 inches long

Emergency C-section

> 6 weeks early

Noah looks great and healthy breathing on his own.

Mommy is recovering well and we are both having intimate kangaroo time with Noah.

Thank you for your love, support, and prayers!

america has voted....

And the verdict is....
Today marks the half way point in the pregnancy process where Desiree is 20 weeks along.  Wednesday is our week count day.
Last Friday evening, we had a gender reveal party at the house.  This appearently is the new thing right now.  We got the results of the sex of our baby the day after we returned from vacation and had the Dr's office seal the results in an envelope.  We then dropped off the envelope with special instructions to Publix for them to make us a cake.  The plan was that when we cut the cake in front of family and friends, the color (pink or blue) would reveal the baby's gender.
Desiree was quite dissapointed when we received a call from Publix informing us that they would not be able to die the cake as they do not make their own cakes in house.  They only decorate them.

Fortunately, one of Desiree's patient's spouse makes cakes and offered to make our special cake for us. 

We decorated the house with craft projects that Desiree got ideal from pintrest.  We were blessed to have my mom in town from Atlanta to help us prepare.  Additionally, we had a board that people signed to place their prediction of the baby's gender.  The majority ~60% guess male.  We also had a wives tale board to see if what a few would reveal.  6 of the 8 that we performed indicated a male.

Finally, the time came for us to cut into our cake.

BLUE!  It's a BOY!
We received back our ultrasound that we provided to the baker and there is no confusing the question of the gender.  It CLEARLY showed a boy!

What a great party that we shared with family and friends.  A special thanks to my mom for helping us out!
Now it's time to come up with some names.
Give us some suggestions.

 

 

who loves pastries?

well there's a muffin in the oven!

 We are 13 weeks yesterday and Desiree is beautiful and doing great!

The timer is expected to go off on January 22, 2014!

Explaining the Tour de France

I have been MIA in my post...more so lazy then actually busy, but I do have a couple of races to recap.

However, this the start of the 3rd week of the tour, I need to help those that don't quite grasp the magnitude of the Epic bicycle race.

This animation should help.
Enjoy!

new member to the family....kitty

about a month and a half ago, a stray cat started coming around our house.  The first couple times we tried to get her to come closer to us, however she was too timid.  I jokingly said to Desiree, "If she plays, she stays."  This was only a forecast as she did end up coming clsoer and closer to us.  Desiree ended up feeding her initial as we found out that she may have been a neighbor's cat.  We knew that she was at one point an indoor cat as she was declawed.  we let her sleep in the garage with garage door slightly cracked for her to be able to go outside as she pleased. 

After contacting neighbors on facebook, we found out that it actually was not a neighbor and that somebody probably abandonded her.  After feeding her for a few days, this cat would leave, even if you tried.  She knew where the food was, and I was started to get attached.  Desiree as well.  I ended up taking her to the vet and got some flea medication and took her inside the house for the first night of her new life.  I showered and washed her which was not a pleasent experience for her.  We were concerned about her first night indoors as there is always uncertainty if a cat will take to a litter box.  Fortunately for us, she took to it immediately.  That's a relief.

Its now nearly 2 months and we love kitty.  She is beautiful, loving, and healthy and takes well to strangers with the few family gatherings we have had at the house.  we're blessed with having such a great addition- especially since I've always been a dog guy

going green...er

Desiree has been wanting a vegetable garden for some time now and a few weeks ago, we finally built ours and it's working out perfectly.
The schematics are pretty common as most wood that you would purchase would be 8ft long.  We chose cedar because of its rot tolerance and also it is untreated to reduce transfer of the chemicals of treated wood.
Preping the area, we tilled the sod, lined with newspaper and then mesh lining on top.  In the encosed area, we used a mixture of organic potting soil, manuer, compost, and peatmoss.  Outside the enclosure, we mulched the box and the end result looks great.

What are we growing:
herbs:
rosemary
oregano
basil
cilatro

fruits & vegetables:
bell peppers
ocra
tomatos
strawberrys

materials:
4x 2"x6"x8ft
1x 4"x4"x8ft
lots of wood deck nails
mesh lining
newspaper

The final demensions of the box is 4ft x 8ft x 12" high with the 4"x4" cut to 2ft long for inner stakes.

 

Race Report: HITS series Sprint Triathlon

Vitals
Sprint Triathlon Sunday March 24, 2013 7:00AM
Location: Carney Island Park, Ocala, FL Lake Wier
Swim: 750 meter 17:06
T1: 2:32
Bike: 12.43 miles; 33:54; 23mph
T2: 0:55
Run: 5km; 21:36

Total time: 1:16:03
Rank: 5th overall; 1st in Age group

The rundown:
Race day started early as I needed to be on site early enough to pick up my race packet and not feel rushed.  I woke up at 03:40 and we left the house by 04:30 and arrived at Carney Island Park just before 06:00.  I picked up my race packet and with Desiree's help, got prepared with tatoo race numbers and transition zone set up.  We headed down to the beach and It was still pitchdark.  We could barely even see the start line of the saloon much less the police turn around so you're 50 m out.
The swim:
I was sitting towards the front at the beginning of the swim as we headed out towards the first buoy, I was sitting about top 15.  As we rounded the first buoy, the pack started to come together and I had a very difficult time seeing where the second buoy was. The sky was still dark and I was looking to follow the lead boat light, but started to fatigue in the arms and ended up making it out of the water 39th.
T1:
The run out of the water to the transition area was pretty long and when I got to my area, I quickly pulled off my wetsuit. I pulled my bike off the rack but forgot to put my helmet on first and my helmet rolled onto the ground.  I tilted my bike up against me to pick up a helmet, but the bike slid onto the ground as I was struggled to get my helmet on. I finally picked my bike up and got out of transition as quickly as possible.  Just before jumping on month to my bike, I saw that my chain had dropped off the chainring. Fortunately, this was not overwhelming for me, so I quickly shifted into the big ring and spun the crank around to get the chain back onto the crank.

The bike:
I quickly got settled into my rhythm on the bike and was pushing a nice tempo. I made up a lot of ground and passed a bunch of people. I ended passing two females which started three minutes behind me on the swim.  So I realized that I lost a good amount to ground on the swim. however looking to make it back on the bike.  I was never passed on the bike and came into the dismount area feeling pretty good.
T2:
I quickly hustled running into my transition area with my bike mounted on the rack, took my helmet off, got my shoes on, and off I went. Desiree said I beat a few people out a transition which made up a few more places.
The run:
Once I got onto the run course, I was a little concerned that my legs would feel like bricks as I did Earlier in the week running off the bike in training.  I kept calm and consistently my legs turning over realizing I was running low 7:00s  and feeling pretty good. Around the turnaround point, I started counting how many guys were in front of me- about seven.  I run into the final straight seeing the finish line and could hear Desiree's voice cheering me on. She said that I got fifth or sixth and that I was did great.  I felt great after crossing the finish line and felt that I could have push myself harder both on the bike in the run.

Final thoughts:
I was surprised at how well I did. I realize that my training was going well as I made an effort to run every time off the bike even if it was for only about a mile. I still need more time in the water, especially in open water getting comfortable and fluid.
All in all, it was a great way to start the season with my first triathlon a good result.
Thanks for the support.

Pictures: http://imageshack.us/g/1/10081689/


 

Race Report: Dade City Road Race

Vitals:
Location: Dade City, FL
Distance: 17 mile circuit x 3 laps
Time: ~48 mins
Distance completed: 1 lap, 17 miles
Avg HR: 167 bpm
Avg speed: 22.1 mph
Avg power: 165 wts

The rundown:
Our race was set to start just after 14:00, a few minutes after the pro 1/2.  Unfortunately in regular fashion, we stated late.  14:40 and we finally line up to start our race.  This race being a B/C race, I was just looking to stay out of trouble and get some racing mentality back.  I was feeling good through the 1st half of the race staind towards the middle front and holding my place pretty well. 
About mile 11, there was a crash from another race where somebody's rear wheel came off he was lying in the middle of the road with traffic stopped in both directions.  Our race was temporary haulted as we wheezled through traffic. The race was back on and I was maintaining position in the front 10-15.  About mile 14, somebody crashed in a couple guys in front of me and I slammed on my brakes just enough to not hit the guy immediately in front of me.  I lost my momentum and fought to regoup and and gained back some kind of position before our race was haulted again just a few minutes after our little incident. 
Appearently, there was another crash up the road and the organizers stopped the pro 1/2s and they didn't want us to catch up with them.  Almost 10 minutes later, we were set to roll again and finally completed our 1st lap.  I started the 2nd lap only ot full out into the feed zone and get ready to head back as we had dinner plans.
If it wasn't for the fact that we started late and dinner plans, I would have stayed to complete the race.  I was feeling good and felt that my limited training for this race put me in a competitive position possibly scoring a top 10 finish.
More races to come.

x marks the spot

x or cross, or more specifically cyclocross.

I just finished build a new bike that I'm pretty excited about.  I decided to go with quite a different platform as the skeleton of the bike- a Ritchey Breakaway Cyclocross bike.  The cool thing about the bike is that it is versatile on most terrains being a road bike that can accommodate mountain bike type tires.  More unique to the Ritchey is that the frame is able to disassemble and comes with its own travel case.  The seat tube holds top part of the triangle together, and a coupler holds the bottom.  The cables have a coupler that screws together and apart when you disassemble the frame.  Quite an ingenius concept.  If I were to travel via airplane, ths case is only the size of check-in luggage.  The rest of the faculties of my build are outfitted with Shimano Dura-Ace, FSA, and Zipp.

Vitals:
frameset: Ritchey Breakaway Cyclocross Size 50
shifters, front and rear derailleurs: Dura-Ace
crankset: FSA SL-K lite compact
brakes: Avid Shorty 4
cockpit: Zipp Service Course SL stem and handle bars
pedals: Crank Brothers Candy 2

The bike is quite beautiful and I'm excited to play around with it and take up cyclecross racing next winter.

More Pictures: https://imageshack.com/a/IgeQ/1

exercising the mind..?

This year I embark on a journey.  As my physical training and exercise becomes routine for the upcoming season, I will also be taking online classes.  I will not gain any credits or any academic value.  These are for my own personal and mental growth and knowledge.  On top of it all, the classes are free.

www.coursera.org

The site consists of classes in any type of interest you can imagine- from music to science, business to medicine.  If there is something you want to learn, then there should be something that satisfies your interest. 

One of the coolest things about the site aside from it being free are the participating schools.  You have some of your top IV league institutions or institutions that are leaders in their fields.  John Hopkins, Emory, U Penn, Duke, Brown, Stanford, GA Tech, U of London... to just name a few.

I am currently enrolled in a 7 week class- Personal Finance and am scheduled to start another class towards the end of February- Human Physiology 13 weeks.

My goal is to be enrolled in at least 1 class throughout the whole year.

Thanks Josh for introducing me to this awesome opportunity.

custom fiberglass subwoofer enclosure

 

Just after Christmas, I install a bazooka basstube following the exact instructions from:
Easy bass addition = Bazooka tube | PriusChat

My problem with the basstube is that it doesn't fully capture the the low end well on rock songs and struggled with radio quality. With hip hop, the basstube is quite impressive. The install was very easy as described in the above link.

Therefore, I decided to use the right cubby hole and build a fiberglass enclosure. I was still able to use the wiring harness that I purchased for the bazooka install so I didn't have to re-run any wiring from the dash. It gave me a remote signal and a set of speaker line level for a line-out-converter to use RCAs.

I was able to find trunk liner for a local car audio shop that matches the carpet perfectly.

My subwoofer is an Alpine SWE-10s4 and the amp is a Kenwood KAC-8105d. This is more than enough power for my listening pleasure and catpures the full range of the spectrum with all music genres.

So after about 12 hours, 1 gallon of resin, 1.5 sheets of fiberglass, and some fleece interfacing, I am extremely pleased. I have full access to my trunk and under cargo storage bin.

Special thanks to Chuckie- my brother in law fo helping me with this project.

Pictures: ImageShack Album - 16 images

the pearl princess

About 1 month ago, I finally got a 2012 Toyota Prius in Blizzard Pearl Trim II.  This is the first car that I have had brand new and she'll be a keeper.  This is their least equiped trim level from the factor so it does not have navigation, standard sound system instead of the JBL premium, and comes with standard bluetooth phone/audio.  I'm ok with that.  It did come with tint, floor mats, and Toyoguard Elite.

To trim II level to what I want, here's my strategy for tackling the gap.

I am using the new GoogleMaps app on the iPhone5 which has turn by turn voice direction and is pretty much just as good as a Garmin Nuvi.  Additionally, the GoogleMaps app has live traffic and lifetime maps.

The basic factory sound system is actually pretty good.  The only thing it really lack is capturing lower frequencies.  Therefore, I will be looking to add an amp and subwoofer to compliment the stock tunes.  For simplicity, chose a powered sub package.

As this time, I just installed an 8 inch Bazooka basstube 2 days ago.  The installation was a piece of cake as taking apart the dash to get behind the radio took only about 10 minutes and about 3 to put everything back together.  It's amazing how cars these days are held together by clips.  Also, the Prius 12v battery was located in the trunk making the power and ground cable easy to install.  I ordered a wiring harness so that I would not have to modify any of the stock wiring.  I only had to splice together a few wires to get the sub to pump out the tunes.  I'm a little disappointed in the output of the bazooka.  I was expecting alot more from it.  The sound is actually very clean, however it seems that it's not caputring everything that it should.

Current items used for the install:
1. Bazooka BTA-8250D basstube
2. Bazooka FAST-1761 wiring harness
3. Bazooka FAST BTAH harness extension

I am not looking to install an amp, single subwoofer and build a custom box.
I'm looking at the following items:
1. Kenwood KAC-8105D mono amplifier
2. Alpine SWS-10D2
I'm choosing this specific type of amp because it will allow me to use the Bazooka wiring harness without splicing in a line out converter to run RCA wires.

Now onto the actualy Prius driving experience.  Driving the prius is like playing a video game.  There is a Hybrid System Indicator (HSI) screen this tells you which motor (electric or/and fuel) is currently being used.  The goal is to have it west or to the left of the middle line.  There are other driving technique such as pulse and glide that help with improving fuel economy.  The cool thing is that you can program the car with the current gas price and at the end of each driving trip, there is a summary which includes the cost of that drive.

I'm now looking into inpliment a grill blocking stragetry to improve fuel economy during the winter season.  The hybrid system has an optimal engine operating temperature.  However, driving allows for the ambient air temp to lower the engine temp keeping the engine form reaching its optimal operating temp.  Grill blocking allows the heat produced by the motor to stay without really dropping down with the ambient air temp while driving.

To date, I have has 2 gas fill-ups where the 1st tank I average 51.7 mpg and the second- 53.1 mpg.  Not too bad as the engine has just reached its break-in period and I am still learning efficient driving strategies.  I am hoping that the winter-blend fuel doesn't take a huge toll on my fuel economy and banking on the fact of using the grill blocking technique.

I'll report back soon to let you know how things go.

All in all I am very excited to have the car and really love it.  I think the car looks great and is a perfect fit for our needs.

Modifications to date:
1. removed plastic rim covers (removed the 1st night it was taken home)
2. high quality plastic/rubber all weather cargo liner/mat (christmas gift from the wifey)
3. Curt towing hitch for my hitch mount bike rack (christmas gift from the wifey)
4. LED license plate lightbulbs
5. Bazooka powered basstube

Upcoming mods:
1. Different subwoofer and amplifier upgrade
2. full interior LED bulb change out
3. not sure.
 

car shopping

Car shopping.
I sold my Audi A6 a few weeks prior and we had a Sunday after church without any plans. Yea I know, another car, lol. This next car will be one that I will keep till its run to the ground, not literally. This would also be my first brand new car.
The criteria would be:
1. Fuel economy- I wanted something that would be great on gas. Acceleration and performance would be traded off, but I have had a couple fast cars in the past.
2. Looks- I wanted something appealing to the eye, inside and out.
3. Features- all the standard luxuries in addition to a seamless iPhone integration with the factory entertainment system.
4. Reliability/ maintenance- low cost, high quality, and easy to maintain *no more germans/europeans
5. Functionality- I would need to be able to accommodate my bikes. Also, since this would be a car I would be keeping for a long time, I had to forecast the accommodation of a family- baby seat, stroller, luggage...etc.

The contenders:
1. Lexus CT200h- hybrid 4 door hatch. It houses the same hybrid system as the prius, but only EPA rated at 44/40mpg. Great looks, and meets the criteria above, except number 5 above. The chassis is at least a foot shorter than a Prius. Also it is the most expensive vehicle.
2. Toyota Prius generation III- it fits all the criteria above and we know that I works with kids as our friend Kristi has one. The only thing is that it is not the most appealing to look at. Some have describes its looks as a cockroach.

3. Nissan Altima- all new design with a regular fuel motor with EPA 38/27mpg. That's awesome. It looks great inside and out. What turned us off the most about the car is that the salesman sucked and was really able to tell or show us much about the car that a brochure could.

The winner:

2012 Toyota Prius Gen III trim II. This trim is the most basic o from the factory without navigation, however it is a feature that I could do without for the extra $1200. Also, most factory navigation systems are not as good as a dedicated navigation such as a Garmin Nuvi or a TomTom.



We are in no need of a vehicle now as we are managing quite well just being a 1 vehicle household at this time. I have been commuting on my bike, and Desiree as even started to as well.

Race Report: FRNY Lesbian and Gay Pride- 5 mile- NYC

Race Report: FRNY Lesbian and Gay Pride- 5 mile- NYC
June 23, 2012

Vitals:
Location: Central Park, NYC
Distance: 5 miles
The competition: over 10,000 runners
Time: 35:00
Pace 7:00 minute/mile

the low down:
This was a race that Desiree found while we would be up in NYC. So what the hell, a gay pride race. In Florida, themed races has participants going all out dressing the part. I acquired some formal wear to dress the part for this race- a tuxedo speedo. So we get to the race about 30 minutes early for baggage drop off. I'm standing there dressed, and the next thing I know, I'm stripping down into my formalwear and walking around. The problem is, nobody else really dressed the part. As we made our way towards the start/finish line, I forced Desiree to hold my hand as she was too embarrassed to be Sean with me. And I can only imagine what other people thought, me in my speedo and Desiree with short hair, lol.
I lined up with the 6:45 minute pace group and the split up with Desiree. As we took off, I found myself staying with the crowd around me and looked down at my garmin indicating a current pace of 6:25 and we haven't even completed the first mile. I made myself slow down to better pace myself. Mile 4 was a tough one for me as I dropped to about a 7:20 pace but found a little left in the tank to finish with an average pace of 7:00 minute mile. I met my goal and was happy!
Desiree finished in about 42 minuted with an average pace of around 8:15 minute mile.
It was a great race and a great way to finish our time in NY as we would have to head to the airport a few ours later to return home.
Wen asked what made me think of doing the race in a speedo, my mentality was:
When else can I ever say that I ran through Central Park in a speedo?
:)

the Big Apple

From ithica the next leg of our journey was to head to New York City. This would have a slight detour to visit a friend from college and her family in bridge water, NJ-the Nordstroms. I got to play tennis with the doc before dinner.
The next morning we headed out to make our way to Hoboken for carlo's bakery. It's was Desiree's request and what an awesome experience. You pick whatever pastry you want and you pretty much pay by the weight as we got a chocolate dipped canoli, lobster tail, and a macaroon. All totaling < $5.
We then made our way onto the island of manhattan via the Lincoln tunnel.
We checked into our hotel- the Washington Jefferson which was located a couple block from Times Square on 51st st between 7th and 8th ave. I then dropped off the rental and walked back to the hotel.

Highlight of our trip:
Running through Central Park- we did this twice and then 1 last time which was our 5mile Pride race. This is pretty much where the city is able to run and train as running through the city itself is inefficient because you pretty much have to stop at every block.
Dinner with Karen- I found out that one of my friends that graduated a year after me at Emory is a PT in manhattan. We hooked up with Karen to have dinner and she gave us some excellent suggestions on excellent eateries!
Desserts/sweets/and cupcakes- Max Brennar- this was a recommendation from Karen for a chocolate lover's paradise. We ended having chocolate pizza with roasted marshmallows and nutella with crushed hazelnut. Cupcakes are a staple in NYC- we stopped at a kiosk for 1 bite cupcakes and went to at least 2 other bakeries. One of Desiree's bakery highlights was Lavine's bakery where they have been rated the #1 chocolate chip cookie- a 4 ounce chocolate chip walnut cookie that was served to us fresh out of the oven and when bit into, still having the chocolate ooze.
Shopping- there seems to be no comparison to anywhere else as you can go to any district and find the same shops. High class, elegant, whatever your style is. I introduced Desiree to Century21 and she loved it. We hit up 3 different ones. I ended up finding a store that is a mix between GAP, express, and Lacoste called (insert). We did stop at the famous Macy's. what a mad house that was. We found out after our trip that it still houses the only working wooden escalator. Too bad we didn't know before hand or else we would have found it.
Dining- NYC has some of the best dining. We enjoyed restaurants such as Jay-Z's 40/40 club, Italian restaurant in little Italy, dim sum in Chinatown, sushi, Gotham's bistro. Another restaurant that Karen suggested was a breakfast eatery on the upper east side called Sarah Beth's. Desiree had exquisite fluffy French toast, and I ordered an omelette. The preserves were made in house and was some of the best strawberry jam that I have ever tasted. This ended up being our most expensive meal in all of New York ~$45.
Breakfast off the street- finding a food stand is the way to go for a quick coffee and bagel. Delicious and cheap.
Top of the rock- we were able to make it up to the top of Rockefeller centre just before sunset and got the experience the transition of the city from natural to city light. As the sun slowly crept down below the horizon, you would se another building light up. What a different way to see the city.
Statin Island Ferry- this is a great and free way to get a great view of the Statue of Liberty. We boarded just before sunset and the lighting was perfect to see the port and the Statue. It took about 40mins to get to the other side before just turning around to catch the ferry back to the city.
Highline/ Chelsea Market- Desiree found out a really cool pedestrian walkway that was once an old suspended railroad track that is now paved over and converted into a park. It's located in the lower west side just west of 9th ave and begins at 13th street to 32nd street. A about 17th street, we got off the highline and found Chelsea market. What a cool place which includes shops and restaurants. Amy's bakery is also located here. They make really good breads and are found in many local restaurants and grocery stores.
Getting around/hopstop app- having a car in NYC is very inefficient and expensive as daily parking can cost up to $45. A taxi also gets very expensive. So our weapon of choice as purchasing a weeklong metro card. This allows us access to subways and buses unlimited for the week. We would not have be able to navigate the city if it wasn't for the iPhone app- HopStop. This was a recommendation for Kate Nordstroms's dad and it saved us. We didn't look at a single subway map as the app tells you where you need to pick up the subway or bus, which stop to get off at, and how far to walk before reaching your destination. I also provides alternative routes and give accurate travel times. What a life saver. Even utilizing public transport, we probably walked an average of about 6-7 miles daily. That's probably why you do not see a lot of over weight people except tourists.

I'm that I am leaving out some other details and highlights, but checking back for future adventures as we continue to explore the world.

We can't wait until the next time we get to visit NYC again- whenever that may be.

Ithaca and wedding!!

Our vacation began flying to NYC and then a connecting to Syracuse. We then rented a car and took a scenic drive along lake Cayuga- the longest of the finger lakes. Stopped in Auburn, NY for lunch. Along the route to Ithaca, we stopped at a few wineries and soaked in the beautiful nature scene. We made it to our hotel in time to get cleaned up before heading to Anna's parents house for the rehearsal dinner. Yummy food from ithaca bakery. Anna's parents house was apparently built in the 1700s but has been remodeled and additions built. Wat a beautiful house though. We got to meet friends and family members and spend time with the bride and groom for a relaxing evening on the eve of the wedding.
The next morning, Desiree wakes me up and asks, "do you know what time it is?". Based on how sunny it was, I guessed around 07:30. However I was corrected with 05:30. The combination of the sun rising earlier and our room didn't have any blackout drapes. We decided to roam the local scenery and hopped in the car and drive around Ithaca and Cornell University to embrace the beauty of this area of the country. We stopped and walked around campus and took lots of pictures as Desiree has been intrigued with the "Christmas trees" all around as palm trees grow in florida. While walking around campus, we found chalked arrows and realized it was for the morning wedding day 10K fun run. The route was beautiful and took us from the parent's house around campus following familiar arrows placed strategically through campus and looping back to the house where we were greeted with breakfast. Everybody regrouped before leaving to relax before the wedding. We followed another couple to the local farmer's market. This was very well organized with produce, crafts, plants, and good eats.
We made our way back to the hotel to become beautified for the wedding on the beautiful historic campus of Cornell University.  The ceremony was held at the 1st president's house: A.D. White House in the amazing scenery of the back garden/lawn.  The ceremony was eclectic with readings, passages, and songs performed by family members before we headed to Williard Straight Hall for the reception.
What a banging party.  The outside patio of W.S. Hall overlooked a beautiful view of downtown Ithica and a distance Lake Cayuga.  The whole evening was lovely with meeting new friends, eating amazing food, drink, dessert, and dancing.  What more could you ask for!  And, how amazing to say that you were at a wedding at Cornell University.
Sunday, we went to church that we ran past during out 10k wedding run and joined Chris, Anna and company for bunch at the Siliciano residence.  Our day culminated handing out with the newly weds, and Chris's sister at a lake house on the opposite side of Lake Cayuga from Cornell.
The next morning would be waking up to the early rising sun and going for a run from the hotel around an accidentally stumbled upon trail before continuing to the next short leg of our vacation to Bridgewater, NJ to visit and stay a night with a friend from college and her family.
We left Ithica and drove through scenic NY before heading into Pennsylvania and ending up in NJ.  We stopped in Stroudsburg for lunch and a little sight seeing and arrived at the Nordstrom's residence in the afternoon.  I introduced Desiree to the family and before I knew it, I was putting tennis shoes on and playing some tennis with Dr Nordstrom.  He definitely schooled me as it has been over 3 years since I've picked up a racquet much less shuffle my feet.  I felt that I held my own as I struggled to hit a basic forehand ground stroke.  It was nice to have no pressure playing against a 50+ y/o guy who plays a couple times a week with collegiate players.
We fortunately had very hospitable accomidations before heading to New York and making a stop in Hoboken for some Carlo's Bakery goods and then into the city.

it's alive: EPS + 11 = italian beauty

The rap sheet:
Frame/Fork: Colnago EPS MTBK
Groupset: Campagnolo EPS
Handlebars: Zipp Carbon SL2
Stem: Shimano Pro carbon
Wheels: Powertap SL+ Mavic Open Pro
Water Cages: Tacx Tao Carbon
Data recording: Garmin 310XT

I have decided with on how my italian steed will be complimented.  I decided to go with Campagnolo Super Record 11.  I had the opportunity to go for a really good training ride yesterday riding the new group.  I finished the build Friday night.  The groupset is over 1 lbs. lighter then Shimano Dura Ace 7900 and the shifters feel more ergonomic in my hands.  The shifting is crips and precise.  Just as you would expect for the italians.

I didn't have any campagnolo wheels.  However, I don't ride with normal wheels.  I train and race with power, so I didn't need a campy wheelset.  I just bought a campy powertap freehub and I'm up and recording my metrics.

I have to say that this is the best bike I have ever ridden and am becoming a Campagnolo convert. 

Pictures Here. Enjoy.