Jan 31, 2012

I worked at my favorite English class during the day at the senior high and all was good. Some classes watched movies and the others did creative writing responses.

I went to Kate's later and we built a fire. Yes, that is a flame thrower and that is how they start fires here. Chuck came over and we hung out around the fire pit having a few drinks and talking.

I left after a while to go to the gym with Ryan and then went back for a little bit before going home for the night.

Jan 30, 2012

I felt like I had to get away for a while and I didn't get a job so I headed south to Susquehanna State Park in Maryland. It didn't take that long to get there, surprisingly. I found the trail and put on my layers and my pack and headed out.

I was bundled up, but as I walked it got warm quickly so I was shedding my layers a bit. The trail was mostly wooded with a few brief breaks for a view over the water.

Eventually I came to another entrance point to the trail where I could get off and check out the scenic view down the Susquehanna River. I love this view of all the bridges in the distance. It was a nice little stop and then I continued on. The path didn't get strenuous until about two miles after this point.

The rolling hills started and there were a few steep spots and stream crossings. That part was fun and there were some ruins of an old barn and silo that I walked through.

I was famished by the time I finished the hike and I headed straight for DuClaw when I got in my car. I sampled a few beers that I hadn't tried before while I waited for my blackened tuna sandwich. The sandwich took forever, but the beer was good and the sandwich was amazing once I finally got it.

I slowly made my way home after this and had a shower and hung out for the rest of the night.

Jan 29, 2012

I went to the gym with Ryan in the morning and did some weights and ab circuits to get the day going.

Shortly after I went to Party City to price out balloons and ended up getting several dozen for a discount and stuffing them into the back of Ryan's car that he graciously loaned me. They never would have fit in mine.

Arianna and Tim followed me over to South Vineland Park where we took a bunch of photos for their engagement shoot. She had the idea to do an Up-themed shoot and I suggested the old style clothes. I got some really cool shots and the balloons were fun. We had a good time. She seemed to really like the photos I showed her.

I went to Longhorn for dinner with my grandmom when I got done and then came home and spent a few hours editing the photos with Kate giving me advice. I'm pretty happy with the result.

Jan 28, 2012

Kate, Chuck, Shannon, and I went to Philly and found our way to The Piazza. We went to El Camino Real for a short time for a drink and then went over to Standard Tap for a better selection of beer.

I went to the main area with Shannon to get my press pass before the concert began. I ran into Mark and talked to him for a bit. It was filling up quickly. I went back to the bar to hang out and drink while the local band played.

I went back for the first few songs of fun. They were really great. I wish I had known more of their music before I saw them. I had a nice vantage point to shoot from in front of the barrier for the first three songs.

After a short break it was time for New Found Glory! I got the same deal with them, shooting from up front for the first three songs. It was great to see them from that perspective.

The crowd had certainly filled in by this point and they were going crazy. It felt like longer than three songs that I was up there.

Once my time was up I gave my camera to Shannon and went back to where I belong in the pit. They played a great set with a few surprise songs I didn't expect. After they finished we sat in the parking lot for a while trying to get out.

We dropped off Shannon and went to The Pour House for some food and drinks before we headed up the road to Delran for a house show. Gardening, Not Architecture was playing in the attic and we got there a little late, but still saw a good portion of her set and it was great.

Speaking of great, her backing band, Dinner and a Suit played next and they were awesome. Chuck and I really liked them and they were really cool guys as well.

We hung out talking to Sarah Saturday for a while. She's always super friendly and talkative. I got a book of photographs she took while on her trips across the country.

We eventually left and came home. It was a great day of music!

Jan 27, 2012

I spent the day editing photos and then getting some business cards printed at Staples and a few other errands. I went to the course for a run. I took a couple of laps around and then took some shots as the sun was going down.

I went to Kate's for a while and then we met Chuck and went to Hangar 84 for Where the Ocean Meets the Sky's farewell show. A few other bands played as well. They were really good. Makes me wish I saw them more before they lost some members and broke up.

Jan 26, 2012

I worked at the senior high for a half day. I had a few classes with another teacher and he basically let the students do whatever they wanted. It was a little awkward being in that situation since I couldn't do anything anyway.

Later I went to the Oar House with Chuck for a few drinks. Always something new on tap. 

I met Ryan at the gym late. I find that it's good to go to the gym immediately after the bar.

Jan 25, 2012

I worked at Lakeside during the day, but I was looking forward to the fun night ahead at World Cafe Live! Chuck and Kate took me as part of our group Christmas present for the Grilled Cheese and Craft Beer event. Sounds awesome, right?

The place was filled up shortly after we arrived and we had a beer while we waited for things to begin. It's such an awesome idea. They pair types of grilled cheese with different craft beers from all over.

The grilled cheeses were awesome! Some were sweet and others were sharp. There was goat cheese and cream cheese. Much different than I expected. The sandwich one was still my favorite. The beer was amazing though. Stone IPA was great and the Fish 10 Barleywine was crazy good.

After four sandwiches and beers, we finished with an apple cake type of thing with a sweet cheese on it and apple cider. This event was amazing! Great present and something we need to do again soon!

Merry Christmas to me.

Jan 24, 2012

After working a day at Lakeside in an English class Kate and I went to Moore's Beach, a place she suggested would be nice. The whole way we had to skirt the edge of these giant pools of water. We got a little muddy, but I never went in somehow. It was fun finding a way around.

When we got to the beach there were ruins from old buildings and debris from random other things. I took a bunch of shots as the sun was going down and then we decided to head back before it got dark.

I met Ryan at the gym later and we did more circuit training in the training room. I think we were the last ones to leave that night.

Superb.

Jan 23, 2012

I worked in a resource room at Lakeside and spent most of the day listening to the other teacher read to the kids. Later I covered another class running his game of Jeopardy to study for their test.

Later I went to Kate's for dinner and then we had some beers while we watched movies.

 'Twas a good night.

Jan 22, 2012

After a stop at Dick's for some new goggles we headed up to Blue Mountain for the first time of the season. It's much later than we usually go, but the weather has been so warm we had to wait. It wasn't overly crowded for the night session so we got plenty of runs in.

We took our normal break for something to eat and then continued skiing for most of the night. We stayed until almost closing time so we made up for not going for a while. It felt good to be back out on the mountain.

The ride home is always long, but it didn't seem so bad this time. I was ready to get in bed when I got home though. It felt good to take off shoes and socks.

Jan 21, 2012

Ryan and I went to the gym in the morning and did a few circuits then Kate and I went to Parvin for a walk in the snow. It was really beautiful to see everything covered in snow and ice.

We were definitely not the first ones to have the idea to walk around the lake, but Kate noticed frozen leaves and I got some awesome pictures of the ice mold hanging on the branch without a leaf under it.

Chuck joined us later and we went up to the Keswick Theater to see Demetri Martin. We couldn't take photos, but he was very funny, as we expected. He seemed a little out of character at times, but overall the show was really good and we were laughing a lot.

We went across the street to GG Brewer's after the show for something to eat and tried a few of the beers. They all had great names and the red ale and stout were both quite good. I really liked the little bar. It was small yet not cramped.

When we finished we took the long, snowy drive home. It was a good day!

Jan 20, 2012

I had a job at Lakeside for the day and then Kate and I went out for dinner to Saigon. I got the vermicelli, which is always delicious. I think I like the jasmine tea iced more than hot though. It was a good meal.

We went and got the table ready for everyone to come over for poker and we had a big crowd. We had some beers and played for quite a while. Dealing was a fun challenge at such a big table, but it was a fun game. It's usually hard to get that many people out all at once. After most of us were out the few people left in the game divided up the cash and we called it a night.