September 26, 2004:

A couple of amazing pictures taken by Mark and Jessica Hamel while they were on vacation a couple of weeks ago out near the Grand Canyon. These picture were taken during one of their hikes, and they look like something you'd find in a National Geographic magazine! Beautiful!! :Penz

September 24, 2004:  

Chris Allen (Justin's brother) came out for a visit last week to see Justin. On Saturday, I took him up to Napa for the morning. We visited St. Superey, Girgich and BV Vineyards. It was a nice little visit, and although we realize wine may not be Christopher's main drink he does enjoy the sweeter white wines :)  That afternoon, we went to In and Out Burger for lunch and that evening we met up with Justin and had dinner at Chevy's.

It was another long week at work and it looks like it's going to keep on going for at least another couple of weeks <sigh>.  This is one nasty escalation I'm working and I just don't like getting up at 5:30 AM, but then again, who does!?!? :)   Ahhh well, I guess I'll start going to bed a bit earlier now.

:Penz

September 18, 2004:  Ugghh, what a week! Work has been a bear this week. Last Friday, I got sucked into a nasty customer escalation that was going down the tubes, fast! And of course, when things get really bad, well, they always seem to end up at my doorstep to give the 'last ditch effort'. LOL, so much fun! Well, just to whine a bit (cause I can, damn it! :), since last Friday, each workday I've been up at 5:00 AM so that I can participate on our daily status calls (the customer is on the East Coast, and us West Coast folk just love that three hour time difference that early in the AM. NOT!) and I've typically been working until about 8 or 9 PM each day. Yes, that makes for a long week, and a very sleepy and cranky Scott.  Ahh well, by the end of next week, it should be over and done with....

Ok, enough bitching on that subject :)

Scott and Tanya sent me some cute pictures of Megan! She turned 6 months old on September 8th. Isn't she cute!?!!? Of course she is and that's cause she takes after her mommy :-)  If she took after her father, in this picture, she'd be drunk, farting and looking at the refrigerator trying to figure out how to open it and find a chicken leg to gnaw on :)

On Sunday September, 12, I went to see Dave Matthews Band in Golden Gate park!  I had an awesome time. That morning, I met up with David, Don, Kevin and Jerry for brunch down at the Beach Chalet Restaurant. David and I got there about an hour or so early, so after a walk along the sea wall, we headed inside and sat at the bar for a bit and enjoyed a mimosa or two before the rst of the group arrived. Fashionably late, the rest of the group showed up and we sat down for a tasty brunch (the eggs benedict with Dungeness Crab were awesome!). Once we were finished with brunch, David took off to go do work and the rest of us walked to Golden Gate park (only about a 15 minute walk from the restaurant. Quite nice!

We got there around 1:45 as the show was supposed to start at 2:00. Heheh, well, the band started fashionably late as well and at 3:30 the show began. Happily, the crew and I used that hour and a half wisely, and enjoyed the pluther of shirtless eye candy that was walking around (most of them shirtless!). Hehehe, gotta love a summer day in CA! 

Well, for a free concert, the show was pretty sweet! The sound was excellent and complemented by the big screens on the field, it was a great performance to see.  Here is the set list:

Sunday Sep 12 2004 - Dave Matthews Band - Golden Gate Park - Polo Field

* As a special treat, Carlos Santana came on stage and  jammed with DMB for a few songs. Carlos joined the Band for “Warehouse”, “Sugar Will” & “All Along The Watchtower”.  That was awesome!!

Thanks again to Don for getting me my free ticket and helping make this a really fun day!

And this past Thursday we had another great night of poker at at Club Quagga! We gathered at my place for a night of Texas Hold "Em. $20 buy in gets you a night worth of fun, plenty of entertainment and a lots of good wine, cigars, trash talk and fun! The participants this week were:

Alex "The Hutch" Hutcheson	Ryan "Bacchus" O'Donnell
Richie aka Iron Man	David "Rocket Man" Parker

The big winner was Hutch that night. Rocket Man walked away with his money plus $3.and the rest of us, well, were taken on an entertaining ride to poverty :)

Let's see, what else is going on? Oh yeah, I'm flying back East in November for a week or so. Will be seeing friends and family while I'm back and this time, will be hitting the CT area. I'm planning on seeing Rico/Melissa and their two kids as well as a few other good friends that I haven't seen in a while. More details on that to come.

Ok, time to head out and start the weekend! I hope all is well in your world :-)

All the best,

:Penz

September 11, 2004: 

Zulakya and Graham sharing a smile together after a dinner in San Francisco :)

Graham in Vermont, 1995/1996. Picture courtesy of Frank Garcia

This amazing photo of the "Tribute of Light" was taken by Clifton Bazar.  Click here to check out his site.

The World I Know
Collective Soul

Has our conscience shown? 
Has the sweet breeze blown? 
Has all the kindness gone? 
Hope still lingers on. 
I drink myself of newfound pity 
Sitting alone in New York City 
And I don't know why. 

Are we listening 
To hymns of offering? 
Have we eyes to see 
That love is gathering? 
All the words that I've been reading 
Have now started the act of bleeding 
Into one. 

So I walk up on high 
And I step to the edge 
To see my world below. 
And I laugh at myself 
As the tears roll down. 
'Cause it's the world I know. 
It's the world I know.

And especially today, in my heart are kind and loving thoughts of Les and Pauline Berkeley (Graham's parents), Becky & Lisa (two of Graham's most esteemed friends) and my friend David Parker who also lost a friend in the WTC.

With love in my heart (and a bottle of good wine in my belly), I bid you all a goodnight.

All the best,

:Penz