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March 11, 2001:  Not too much to report.  Last week was a fairly quiet but good week.  Work seemed to fly by.  On Friday night, I went into San Francisco with my friends Brian and Sean and had a great time at Kohime.  It is a sushi bar where a couple of Brian's friends were doing a jazz act.  They are all from Poland and sounded really good!  We stayed there until 1:00 am or so and then headed back to Montero (just outside of Half Moon Bay) where I crashed at their place.  On Saturday, I woke up at 5:00 am and raced to the bathroom where I proceeded to 'get sick'.  YECH!  Must have had some bad sushi or something.  I was wasted for the rest of the day and I think I had a mild case of food poisoning or caught one of those 24 hours bugs.  Either way, when I got back to my place early that afternoon, I just slept for the rest of the day. 

Today, I'm feeling a lot better.  I've got my strength back and am just getting ready to go for a walk.

Well, for those of you who are curious on my trip over to Europe with my sister (who, by the way, is very excited to be going!), here is the itinerary:

Depart USA. (duh!)

Arrive London. After checking into the Imperial Hotel the day is yours to experience London at your leisure. 

London to Amsterdam. A warm welcome from your Contiki crew as we head for the White Cliffs of Dover and our ferry crossing to France. We continue through Belgium to Holland and its capital, Amsterdam for the evening. (D) 

Amsterdam to the Rhine Valley. An orientation tour and a visit to a diamond cutting exhibition. Then to St Goar on the banks of the Rhine. (B, D) 

Rhine Valley to Munich. We follow the Rhine on our way to Bavaria and its capital, Munich. Our orientation tour includes the Marienplatz, with the famous Glockenspiel. Tonight, experience a typical Bavarian beer hall. (B) 

Munich to Austrian Tyrol. A scenic drive through the Bavarian Alps takes us into the heart of the Tyrol. A chance to relax in this picture postcard paradise. (B,D) 

Austrian Tyrol to Venice. Spectacular scenery as we head south to Venice. Enjoy a complimentary motor boat trip to see St Mark’s Square, the Doges’ Palace, the Bridge of Sighs and treat yourself to a gondola ride. (B) 

Venice to Rome. Southwards as we climb through the Appennine Mountains passing medieval hillside villages and travel to the Eternal City, Rome. Tonight a walking tour of this ancient city will include the Trevi Fountain, Piazza Navona, the Pantheon and Piazza Venezia. (B) 

Rome Sightseeing. Today why not discover the ancient ruins of Rome with a local guide and in your free time leisurely discover the secrets of the Vatican City and the Sistene Chapel. (B,D) 

Rome to Florence. We drive to Florence where our local expert guide takes us on a walking tour of the Duomo, Giotto’s Belltower, Piazza della Signoria and the Basilica of Santa Croce. Enjoy a demonstration of Florentine leathercraft. Tonight join the locals at a restaurant or club. (B) 

Florence to Lucerne. A spectacular Alpine drive as we pass Lake Como and head for Switzerland. Lucerne awaits with its cobbled streets, and our orientation tour takes in the beautiful wooden Chapel Bridge. (B,D) 

Lucerne to Paris. Through the French countryside to the romance of Paris. Enjoy a first view of the sights on our evening tour of the illuminations. (B,D) 

Paris Sightseeing. Visit Nôtre Dame Cathedral on our city tour. See the Eiffel Tower, Arc de Triomphe and the Louvre, shop on the Champs Elysées and stroll by the Seine. Tonight, why not experience a Parisian cabaret? (B) 

Paris to London. Going north we first visit the Canadian War Memorial situated near the valley of the Somme. From here to Calais and our cross channel ferry to Dover to arrive in London early evening. (B) 

Hope all is well in your neck of the woods :)

~Penz
 

March 6, 2001:  Thanks to Mark "Hummer" Hamel for this great quote which appears on his web site:

March 4, 2001:  Just chillin' at home today with Justin :)  It's raining outside and we haven't left the house yet (and don't plan to until this evening).  Just enjoying some time w/my cutie :)

Hehehe, well, it was a nice week this week.  The week seemed to fly by at work, which was a good thing.  Still waiting to see what's going to happen there.

Well my brother got a new toy this week.  Check it out (LOL no not his car in the background :)

"Well here it is... the final product. It's looks sweet, too bad its going to snow!!!  Well, here the work I had done...

• Polished the frame, swing arms and all brackets
• Set of chrome wheels
• Chrome swing arm
• tinted windshield
• Carbon fiber pipe
• Custom rear fender
• Custom front & back Blinkers 
• chrome covers on engine
• Undertail custom painted
• Colored gage
• Chrome bar ends

Well, looks like my sister and I are going to Europe in May!   How cool is that!?!?!  My mother is sending the both of us over for two weeks, which is a very cool and kind gesture.  I can't wait!  The best part of the trip will be spending that quality time with my sister.  It's gonna be awesome!  More details on the trip to come in the next few weeks.

Well, hope all is well in your neck of the woods :)

~Penz
 

March 1, 2001:  Well, ok, I've been neglecting my journal.   Sorry!  Guess I've have a lot of things going on lately, some good, some not so good but in the end... it's all good :)

Ok, so let's start with the most stressful thing that happened:

"February 22, 2001

Quintus Corporation today announced that it has entered into an agreement with Avaya Inc. (NYSE: AV), a global leader in business communications solutions and services, in which Avaya will acquire substantially all of Quintus' assets for $30 million in cash and assume certain of Quintus' liabilities up to an additional $30 million.

Concurrently, Quintus announced today that it had voluntarily filed petitions in the U.S. District Court in Wilmington, Delaware for relief under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code. In order for the agreement with Avaya to go forward, Quintus also filed a motion seeking the Court's approval of the asset purchase agreement with Avaya pursuant to section 363 of the Bankruptcy Code."

As you can imagine, we are in the midst of lots of change and turmoil right now.  We are taking it day by day, and hoping that the Quintus/Avaya thing works out.  Who is Avaya?  In a nutshell, they are a start up company which spun off of Lucent Technologies last March.  Unlike many startups which are only a year old, they have about 28,000 employees and over 7.5 billion dollars in capitol.  Hahahaha, yep, those are some big numbers folks!  It'll be interesting to see what happens.  Right now, my job looks like it'll still be there for a while, though I've been smart and have my resume all polished up and ready to if need be.

For all the latest information, visit the Quintus web site. I'll keep you posted on my situation as it unfolds.

Well, needless to say, this little fiasco has caused my a lot of stress lately, but to the rescue, were a few good friends who came out to see me last week.  On Wednesday night, Alex McCabe arrived.  I picked him up at SFO and then we went over to Fremont where we met Justin and his friend Chris for dinner at the Elephant bar. 

On Thursday, I spent half the day at Quintus dealing with the situation noted above.  I got out of there around noon.  That afternoon/night  I took Alex into San Francisco and showed him some killer views of the city from the Marin headlands (overlooking the Golden Gate bridge) and Twin Peaks (overlooking the city).  We had a great dinner at an Ethopian restaurant down in the Mission District.  On Friday, I worked during the day, and we hung out that night and got to bed at a decent hour. 

On Saturday, we picked up William "Spidey" Wright who flew into SFO jumpseat on DHL.  It was so good to see my bro!  I've missed him dearly!! The three of us headed into the city for breakfast at Savor in Noe Valley and then at 10:45 we were back at SFO to pick up Sean Joyce.  Finally, the group was all together.  We spend the day cruising around the bay area.  We stopped by Rob and Susan's in Atherton, and then cruised over to Stanford University.  We had lunch at The Oasis in Palo Alto and then it was to the Stanford Shopping Center to pick up some steaks (Fred's Beef from Schuabe's) and veggies for dinner.  We then meandered back to Dublin.  That night, I cooked up a big meal and we spent the night getting drunk, reliving old memories and catching up.  It was a great night!!

On Sunday, I dropped Sean off at the airport and tried to get rid of Alex.  Hehehe, his flight got cancelled due to weather, so about an hour after I dropped him off, I picked him back up (after I picked up Justin at San Jose State).  Spidey was still sleeping at home, working off a heck of a hangover.  The three of us headed into the city, and yep, ended up at Savor again for breakfast!  Hehehehe, after that, I dropped Justin off at school and then headed back to Dublin with Alex where we met up with Spidey.  We all hung out for the afternoon and then went out for dinner.

On Monday, I dropped Alex off at SJC airport at 6:30 am (yawn) and then headed back up to Dublin, where I went back to bed for a few hours.  Once I got up, I made breakfast for Spidey and then we headed into San Francisco for the rest of the day.  We had a great time kickin' around the city and sadly, around 6:30, I dropped my brother off at the airport for his trip back home.

It was really great seeing all three of my friends.  It gave me a chance to re-enegergize my batteries and flush out all of my emotions and stress.  All in all, a very healthy visit!

Today, I awoke to some very sad news.  Ric and Jill Dagenais's dog Grindle (pictured on the right) died last night of a heart attack. 

"I have very sad news this morning, Grindle passed away early this morning.  She apparently was stricken with a heart attack which no one saw coming.  She will be greatly missed in our home.

Jill and I picked Grindle up a little over 8 years ago and instantly fell in love with her.  She was a very gentle and kind dog except when she thought I was hurting Jill (she bared her teeth and growled a couple of times at me) and she even stopped Jill's car from being stolen.  We miss her immensely."  ~Ric

This dog was a very special part of their family and it saddens me to know that she has left a void in their lives .  Thankfully, she did not suffer and was with her family when she unexpectedly passed away.  Ric and Jill, you are in my thoughts....

On another sad note, my fathers condition continues to slowly deteriorate.  He has become less and less responsive to all of us.  He no longer can/will talk to us on the phone.  As of today, he has stopped taking his insulin.  He is an angry, sad, and tired man who just wants to die.  To be honest, at this point, I just want him to be at peace.  I hope he finds it soon.

And then, on a slightly more positive note, my brother is doing a lot better.  He's enjoying his new job and recently went out and purchased a new motorcycle!  It's a limited edition bike very similar to the one that James Canders bought in January of this year.  Tim's going to have some pictures to me over the next week or so.

Looks like my sister and I will be taking a trip together in May.  We're heading to Europe, care of my mom!  More information on this trip to follow soon, but in short, looks like we'll be taking 14 days overseas!!!  Hehehe, that would kick ass!! :-)

Adam "Skinny Daug" Arnold has put his portfolio online.  It's awesome! Check it out !!

Catch ya later!! ~Penz

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