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Below are the 20 most recent journal entries recorded in
tomoye's LiveJournal:
| Monday, June 8th, 2009 | |||
| 10:18 pm | new family member! so, Faolan stayed with us all weekend and was SUCH a wonderful boy. he doesn't seem to care about the cats at all although he hasn't really gotten to meet them up close yet. the cats have been in hiding most of the time although they are starting to get braver by the day. we have decided to adopt him... he really "imprinted" on me, as a neighbor said. he looks big and intimidating, but he's really just a softy and gets along with every person and dog (big and small) he has met so far. he's like my long lost best friend. here he is with mia and missy... faolan and mia chillin:  faolan chasing mia:  missy, mia, and faolan:  i took him for a 3 mile jog/walk today and he was so WIPED that he couldn't sit up while he drank water in the kitchen. he was alone today for ~8 hours in the kitchen blocked by gates that he could easily knock and/or jump over, but when i came home... all he had done was eaten all his food and sucked the peanut butter out of his big bone. GOOD BOY! i mean, who could resist this guy:    | ||
| Thursday, June 4th, 2009 | |||
| 5:49 pm | a new family member? keeping my fingers crossed, but there is a good chance that we will be having a new family member joining us soon. he's going to stay with us a few days this weekend and if he and the cats can get along... we'll be adopting him. faolan is currently being fostered by a friend of mine who fosters GSDs for the virginia german shepherd rescue. he is a shepherd/lab mix, is ~1.5 years old, ~60 pounds and was rescued from a PG county shelter after spending most of his life as a stray. i met him earlier this week and took some pics of him playing with some of his current housemates. he's a very active "puppy", good natured, cute, with a commanding bark which is pretty much everything we want in a dog. faolan on the run  faolan playing with "B"  faolan, rhone, B, and caesar  | ||
| Tuesday, May 5th, 2009 | |||
| 6:43 pm | IC4 closing in, diablo trip, new ride IC4 is less than a week away. it's going to be an interesting event this year. a lot of inner competitions going on this time. diablo opened up this past weekend so we did a last minute trip to ride in the rain and mud on sunday. i'm getting tired of shuttling, so it was nice to ride a gondola at a resort. diablo has a new stunt with a big drop leading into a fun "cannon" jump. here is a little vid clip of a few of us hitting it: ~5.5 weeks left until schools out and it will be summer!!! i also built up a commuter/hardtail xc bike last friday. cheap pricepoint frame, cheap nashbar rigid fork, and a few hand me down parts from friends. i rode it at wakefield on saturday for the first time and my arms were sore from the lack of suspension. i'll be logging a lot of on and off road hours on this bike if it ever actually stops raining.   | ||
| Monday, March 30th, 2009 | |||
| 8:11 pm | back from spring break i guess it's been SEVERAL months since i've updated. today was the first day back after a short spring break spent in austin and forth worth and then back home for a 3-day weekend full of biking in crappy weather. highlights: - kayaking and playing in the frigid pool (even got a little tan) - lots of good mexican food and excellent margaritas - playing with the little ones (i really should start my daytime daddy business venture) - buffalo wild wings (cheap beer and GREAT wings!) - fresh crawfish and oysters (2X) - actually read a book (anthony bourdain's kitchen confidential) - 3 days in a row at the shed consisting of 16.5 miles of xc one day, shuttles/trail work the next day, and then DH shuttles followed by 16 mile xc ride the last day (OUCH! very sore today) - meeting the new niece (well, the doggie named MIA!) lowlights: - too many hangovers - face first crash where my full face helmet left a few bruises on my forehead - crappy DC weather when i come home (rain, fog, rain, fog, hail, rain, fog) - UNC in the final four (at least duke is out) - short spring break this year although some holidays coming up it looks like chairman kaga is going to have to come out of semi-retirement in may for a battle of what could become a future east coast vs. west coast rivalry... oh the secret ingredients swirling through my head!!! | ||
| Friday, November 21st, 2008 | |||
| 11:13 pm | HALEOWEEN update it's a little late, but oh well... some pics from haleoween and my new replacement frame. no content, just pics: new warrantied frame:  closeup of new warrantied frame:  even closer closeup of new warrantied frame:  pumpkin:  i will never wear makeup again for haleoween EVER again!!!:  dr. carnage resurrected!:  dancing with a demon:  | ||
| Wednesday, October 29th, 2008 | |||
| 5:20 pm | new frame on the way! so my specialized sx trail frame met it's demise thanks to the last jump (called freebird, about a 15 foot tall lip) on the slopestyle course at highland over columbus day weekend:  i didn't realize it that weekend after the crash although my headset kept coming loose. i realized it this past sunday at the shed when i discovered this:  i promptly and very disappointingly dismantled the bike:  it cracked all the way through the headtube:  luckily, i'm getting it warrantied by specialized and they have some 08 frames in stock for these rare occasions (never heard of a head tube on one of these cracking like this) and i should hopefully receive this frame by the end of this week although i'm not thrilled by the paint job (but like the price = free):  the dwindling daylight is depressing... dug at 495 yesterday via headlamp. got an idea for halloween and hope it comes together. | ||
| Friday, October 24th, 2008 | |||
| 11:26 pm | another couple of months pass, some more biking trips... i went to highland over the columbus day weekend and had a blast. i wish it was closer. i want to go again. we had a camera although as usual, we were too busy riding to take any real action shots or vids. i did manage to get a sweet shot of a goon jumping over GJ!  i think there might be something seriously wrong with my ankle although i don't want to see a doctor because i know it will be bad news (injury from early june). today was the last day of the first advisory which means the school year is already 1/4 of the way done! i have a lot to say about what's been going on in the world, but will just keep it real with biking vids from recent 495 action instead!!! new fun jumps getting trained at 495 (the goon and pjb) one more time... (the goon and pjb again) | ||
| Monday, August 25th, 2008 | |||
| 8:10 pm | goodbye summer, hello new school year... another fun filled summer is being replaced by the new school year. today was the first official day of school with students. it keeps getting easier and easier each year although letting go of summer seems to get harder and harder. i finished off the summer with a wonderful trip to the beach filled with lots of good food, drinks, friends, sun, and the ocean. goodbye summer... until next year! bonfire on the last night of the NE bike trip of 08':  the night sky surrounding the bonfire:  | ||
| Wednesday, August 6th, 2008 | |||
| 9:11 am | NE Resort Tour 2008 i just got back monday night from the Northeast Resort Tour 2008 Trip. it was a great trip where we covered a lot of ground, rose to new heights in riding, and found an amazing resort in New Hampshire (Highland Mountain). My full ride report can be found here with tons of pictures. a few teaser photos:    less than 2 weeks to go for my summer break... there will be a lot of riding, digging, and a beach trip. | ||
| Friday, July 25th, 2008 | |||
| 10:50 pm | this time, not crashing on my bike + "new" frame crash: got into my first car accident ever last thursday. i was on my way to 495 with my bike to go dirt jumping. the toyota highlander in front of me comes to a complete stop as traffic started to build up on the american legion bridge. i slow down and come to a stop and hear screeching (turn down the stereo because i thought it was vromb making the noise) and glass flies all over the inside of my car. the gmc pickup behind me (tree service truck hauling a trailer full of crap) smashed into my rear and pushed me into the suv in front of me. my car took most of the damage. thankfully, no one was hurt except the front wheel of my bike (rim replaced). i've been driving around a rental car since last friday and my car might be ready by next friday. gmc driver's insurance is liable for everything in the accident. the poor scion:  new frame: just in time for the NE trip, i picked up a new frame. it's an '07 specialized sx trail that will be far more versatile than my r9. i will be selling the r9 and making this my all around DH/FR/AM bike. i can't wait to ride it for the first time tomorrow at the shed... it will be with me on my NE trip tour journey of resorts and dirt jumping spots from here to bromont, canada and back that starts this monday. pics of the "new" bike:    | ||
| Thursday, July 17th, 2008 | |||
| 10:31 am | one month to go before the end of summer... a lot has been going on this summer. i've actually worked some over the summer to earn some extra $$ and to develop some curriculum. i've spent a lot of time on my bikes as usual and have been still recovering from the ankle injury from a few months back. what happened recently? - big tree in backyard got struck by lightening and cost a fortune to get cut down, RIP big tree - went to TX at the beginning of the summer, ate and drank too much - fishing trip was successful in catching lots of spade fish (sashimi, ceviche, fried, and grilled) - have had lots of family and folks visiting the house and did a lot of cooking and grilling out (got a "new" grill) - R's been gone and will be gone a bunch more on trips for work - spending a lot of time out at 495 riding at working on dirt jumps - another new trail at the shed what's in store for the rest of summer? - one more week of work next week (9am-1pm, $35/hour, can't complain) - planning the NE remix bike tour - might make a trip to san diego - will spend more time in the outer banks this year (the best way to end my summer) too many words, let the pictures speak... it was all good on the way out (for A)  under the chesapeake bay bridge  heading back  the loot  9 pounder?  diving board stunt at shed:  another angle (looks a lot smaller in the pics):  heckler xc set up:  weird andy poppin the cherry of the new jump at 495:  | ||
| Monday, June 2nd, 2008 | |||
| 7:04 pm | 7.5 more days to go until summer break! what has been happening lately? - lots of gardening/planting going on in the yard (need to have a housewarming party still) - amazing H/FR trip to diablo a week after opening weekend with some NYC bar hopping and not enough sleep in between - severely sprained my ankle about 1.5 weeks ago DJing at 495 on some new stuff - called in sick the next day to get xrays, negative on breakage/dislocation - went on a DH/FR trip the next day for the weekend at snowshoe (on barely walkable ankle) - lost my wallet with too much $$ (1st time in my life) at snowshoe somewhere between the hot tub, whiskey, bike shop, and bar - built 90% of a new trail at the shed this past weekend - ankle is still severely swollen and bruised what will be happening? - possible 2nd trip of the year to diablo coming up this weekend - going to TX right after school ends - going on my first chartered fishing trip the day after coming back from TX - need to get back and work some more at 495 to have a DJ filled summer - need to finish and work on a few more trails at the shed - planning another potential trip to BC for a 1-2 week bike trip random snapshots: late night departure for diablo weekend trip:  view from rooftop of a friend's brother's apartment in NJ overlooking NYC  the massive apartment common space (big enough for mini skate park):  mmmm... freshly mixed grapefruit margaritas in between DH runs at diablo (bartender = stiff, the obama supporter)  freshly rebuilt dirt jumps:  freshly sprained ankle (before it REALLY started to swell):  | ||
| Monday, April 28th, 2008 | |||
| 7:05 pm | crash pic on log ride... another great weekend at the shed although sunday was a washout, AGAIN! here are a few pics from the friday evening ride... i will never ride a 60d* on my front tire again, i will never ride a 60d on my front tire again... i'm batting a perfect 0.00 with a 60d (0 for 2) and a perfect 1.00 (many for many) with a tacky front tire on the log ride. looks good so far:  oooops:  *60d refers to the durometer of the tire. the higher the number, the less sticky (although it wears out quicker). i usually ride a 42d to prevent "slippery" situations. | ||
| Saturday, April 5th, 2008 | |||
| 8:30 pm | time for some shed action... mucho props to our horrible dc area weather forecasting... i am SO looking forward to shuttling the shed tomorrow. we have quite a trail network and the ever so PC friendly trail names speak for themselves (it's so great to hear "hardcore" DHers mention these trails by name): - tosser (best trail name and trail ever!) - homo - pantyline - creampie - dick n' fart (not the real name, but what we call it) - evolution (not named by us) anyways, back in the summer... a photographer was out there taking some shots and here are a few: me hitting a little jump  a buddy and i training a big gap  | ||
| Monday, March 17th, 2008 | |||
| 7:30 pm | backyard improvements... i spent much of the weekend with trips to fredneck, md (to collect rocks) and home depot. this resulted in building tree rings with rock, a gazebo with a pebble rock base/patio, raised garden bed, a bird bath, and digging some holes for some trees. before:  after:  the rest of the pics can be found here:
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| Thursday, February 28th, 2008 | |||
| 7:11 pm | summer DH race published in decline magazine the year has been going great at school. i'm making BIG strides in teaching. it just might be my calling in life... teaching. i do have the pressure of teaching the most 10th graders for the standardized testing this year. i hope we can make AYP. ANYWAYS, i just recently found out that my name is in the current issue of decline magazine (my favorite mountain bike magazine) for a race i did back in september. i thought it was pretty cool that decline published the names of a bunch of local jokers. here is part of the magazine cover.  my name is under the "amateur men 30-39: downhill" category. i was MASSIVELY hung over and was in 1st place until those 3 dudes listed in front of me (serious racers) killed me.  | ||
| Friday, January 25th, 2008 | |||
| 11:24 pm | week one in the new house so, we got most of our stuff moved into the new house thanks to loads of help last weekend! loading up the truck was such a pain in the ass, but we got stuff unloaded pretty quickly. R caught a bad cold saturday night so i did a lot of the unpacking while she was trying to recover. there is so much to do with moving. our new house is AMAZING! i love the location, i love the layout of the house, love the fireplace, and i love the space. my commute is about a 20 minute drive each way which isn't so bad considering that i have to get to columbia heights, dc. we got some paint tonight and started on the dining room which is similar to what we did in our apartment. painting is such a pain in the ass, but the results are so gratifying. i just wish it was easier. what else is going on... let's see, i've been playing basketball about 2 times a week and i just starting playing indoor soccer with some other teachers at my school in a league. i scored 6 goals in our 12-9 loss last weekend... we did play with no subs and only 5 players versus their 6 which wasn't so bad. i'm hitting up elizabeth furnace tomorrow for a fat burning, freezing cold, ride... i miss the summer and british columbia. | ||
| Wednesday, January 16th, 2008 | |||
| 7:28 pm | home owner - day one! well, we now officially own a home. the closing yesterday went very smoothly and took less than an hour. we are now official home owners for one day. the move and official first live in date will be this saturday. the timing of having a 3-day weekend couldn't be any better. i can't wait to have a bigger, better kitchen and start to work on the backyard! | ||
| Wednesday, January 9th, 2008 | |||
| 10:31 pm | dc nostalgia the closer and closer we come to our closing date, i'm becoming more and more nostalgic about DC living. it's conveniences, it's local dives, and commuting. i love having a 5 minute walk commute to work. i love having asylum's happy hour with cheap tacos, wings, and beer mondays through fridays. i love having most conveniences within a few minutes of walking distance from our apartment. moving to silver spring won't make things that much more inconvenient, but i know i will miss the short walk to work each morning. i had to get a parking spot and code to enter the parking garage and it will take me between 20-45 minutes to get to/from work because of traffic. that sucks relative to a 5 minute walk which means getting up a little bit earlier. oh well, i can't wait to have our own rooms, more space, a backyard, and a place that we own. PS: ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} therokenman, i will now be closer to one of your favorite shopping spots off of colesville road... | ||
| Saturday, January 5th, 2008 | |||
| 12:52 am | things are falling into place we have started to pack. our appraisal came in a few days ago and our new house is worth about $20k more than what we offered to buy it for, so we have a bit of instant equity (until/unless the market continues to spiral downward). regardless, there are some plans in the making for improving the place and i can't wait. i speak as if we own it already, but it won't be truly official until the 15th. all things considered, i think we are getting a good deal. 1) we want to get out of the city 2) we want to have close access to 495/95 3) we will be in easy commuting distance to dc (metro/drive/bike) 4) we want to have more living space 5) we want to have a backyard all of our requirements have been meet and the transition into controlling our budget will be the biggest challenge to meet. ideally, i would love to have one of these in my backyard someday (even with "round and round" on continuous loud speaker loop blasting): wouldn't life be grande if we could live here for the majority of summer though? MMMMmmmmmmMMMMMmmmm. damn, BC is beautiful and amazing! in unrelated news, i danced my ass off last night and i think it was mostly due to the fact that 2501 actually spun a bunch of songs that weren't videos and it was great. my neck was delightfully sore today. | ||
