Posted on

Arizona Road Trip: Day 2

Woke up on Sunday and grabbed some free coffee at the hotel and breakfast at the Paradise Cafe. Forgot to mention dinner the night before at Pita Jungle, wouldn’t mind having either of these around here since they were both very good. Went to the 10:45 service at Mike’s church and had the chance to see him preach (his first time?). Helped tear down and headed over to the Ferrulli’s for lunch. Had some In-N-Out and then hung out. Took some good pictures of Bosley.

Hung out a little longer than we had planned so we had an early dinner at Cracker Barrel. Shared some good old chicken and dumplings before hitting the road again.

It was dark by the time we left Pheonix so we couldn’t really see the storm moving in over Northern Arizona. We were heading up the 17 and got a nice view of the electrical storm before the hail started. Checked into our Priceline’d room at the Hilton resort in Oak Creek. I’ve never been in a hotel room with so many doors.

Posted on

Arizona Road Trip: Day 1

Last week Veteran’s Day was on a Tuesday and my regular day off on Monday gave us the opportunity to take a long weekend away to Arizona. Our general plan was to visit Mike and Danielle, go to their church, head up to Sedona, check out the Grand Canyon, eat at Cracker Barrel and explore anything in between.

So Day 1 we drove out on the 10 and made a stop in Papago Park to check out the Hole in the Rock. Walked around a bit and then headed to the hotel to check in. Priceline’d a nice 3-star Courtyard by Marriott in Chandler. Mike and Danielle were doing a movie in the park outreach that night so we stopped by and then visited at their place. Went back to the hotel and slept in possibly the most comfortable bed ever.

Posted on

Republik Of Kalifornia Insanity

I took possession of my new to me Rossi Model 62 .22 pump action rifle yesterday after jumping through a few hoops. I showed up at Ammo Bros a little after 6pm to pick up my gun after the 10 day waiting period. In California the law states that all sales and transfers of firearms must be accompanied by a cable/trigger lock with a receipt from the last 30 days or proof you have a safe. Fine I’ll buy a $5 cable lock, but the guy helping me noticed the chamber wouldn’t accept a cable so I’d need a trigger lock. They didn’t have any so it was off to Turner’s to buy their last trigger lock (rung up at $30, but it had an old $20 sticker on it which they honored) and hurry back to Ammo Bros before they closed.

So they check off that I have the trigger lock and receipt and hand me my gun. So now I have an unopened trigger lock and no lawful requirement that it actually be used. This is just one of California’s wacky gun laws. They should pass a law saying all scooter/motorcycle sales (even private party sales) be accompanied with proof of ownership of a helmet, but then you don’t actually have to wear one while riding. I don’t see why I shouldn’t return the trigger lock and reclaim my $22.

Off to Seattle tonight for a nice little vacation. I hit my one year with the county last week so I can actually use my vacation. Also, my promotion went throught last week so I’m now an Application Developer I.

Posted on

Bike Commute Day 1

I got my rack and pannier bag installed last week and ended up riding to work today. The bag I got works great, more than enough room for a change of clothes, shoes and lunch. Felt a little weird walking into the building in shorts and sandals. My team lead comes in later than me and leaves earlier so I’m changing in her office. I kept a quick pace coming in and got a little sweatier than I wanted so I’ll just have to take my time. I’ll post a picture of my complete commuter setup.

I’ll probably end up really liking a bike commute. At 6:40am the streets are pretty quiet and peaceful which makes for a nice relaxing start. I’ll be forced to bring my lunch more often so I need to start exploring lunches more exciting than PB&J.