Progress

Well, things have improved a bit since last post. There are scheduled discussions about a new line of work. No actual changes planned yet, but it's a good first step.

Also, The upstairs bathroom is, technically, a room, again. There are walls, without holes, and a ceiling. One more day to finish/sand the edge patching and then it's on to tiling, which is another day or two, then sink/toilet installation, then lighting and we're done. (Then hardwood flooring on the main floor can begin)

The cost of the bathroom also rose by 15% last week - the old tub, which had been sitting in the driveway awaiting trash removal, fell over in a thunderstorm and dented the Miata - this is right up there with denting the BMW with my elbow while changing a tire as far as stupid ways to incur a multi-hundred dollar expense.

In summary, same now as it has ever been, lots to do, little time.

Car nerd moment, and travels.

Note to FIAT: bring this: http://www.fiat500.com/ to the US. With the 1.4 petrol engine (though the parallel twin sounds awesome). and the 500 Italia badge. Cream white exterior, same with the seats, black dash. Will pay cash.

That's exactly what I like in cars - tons of character, economical, practical. Kinda like the mini, but with a more modern style. Ok, it's a 4 wheel interpretation of my Vespa, but that's great.

Anyway.

Philadelphia - neat city - has a bit of a Chicago vibe but with more history.

Morimoto's restaurant - easily in the top 5 most interesting meals I've had. The design of the restaurant itself is incredible - very modern and calming. Melt in your mouth sushi, interesting sake flight choices and presentation, iced green tea noodles with sesame seeds and green onions were excellent, the sea bass was light and fresh - perfect.

(Others in the top 5 include Three Brothers in Milwaukee, 1789 in DC solely for the fig/port dessert, Nepenthe in Big Sur, lunch in Munich's city market on an early summer day, French Laundry is excepted - it's in a different dimension)

The main thing about Philadelphia is that it has that real city feel to it - built over time - with strong middle class and immigrant influences - it a style that can't be designed or marketed. Maybe if Charlotte can go 50 years without tearing anything down it will have some neighborhoods with the same feel. 

Anyway - it's late - time to fall asleep in the Finance book.

Travels and Updates

Going to the mountains was nice. The Laughing Seed and other good food around Asheville, finding one of the best beers I've tasted in a long time at a pizza place in downtown Waynesville (the beer was French Broad Brewery's Pilsner - that's a river btw) and I generally enjoyed being cut off from the normal world.

This weekend we're headed up to Philadelphia - going to Morimoto's restaurant with the parents as a delayed birthday thing -  should be interesting, especially as they don't like sushi. Also that's one more real city on this coast I have yet to visit, so it will be good to wander around and get acquainted with the place.

Project Bathroom - well, the plumbing updates are complete, but it still is not put back together. Things learned so far 1) Kohler makes some really heavy duty pressure balancing valves compared to Moen or other 'normal' faucets. 2) Bathtubs don't bend, well, the porcelain enameled steel ones don't anyway.

School Stuff - Economics is finished- that was a lot of work. Financial Management has started and sounds rather intersting. Learning how risk factors into how much money a business (and via the same methods individuals) makes on a given investment. Essentially, how the stock markets work and how that relates to businesses. 

Random things - I don't use AIM nearly as much as I used to, mainly a result of rarely being at home it seems. Wonder what the best way to keep updated with friends across disparate schedules is?