Our First Anniversary

Nothing to see here, just strolling through the park

This past Monday, May 21, 2012, Kelly and I celebrate our first wedding anniversary. One year ago we were married on top of the Free Library of Philadelphia during a ceremony that was supposed to take place during the ending of the world. Good thing that turned out to be wrong. Even if it hadn't, it was still one helluva party. We were surrounded by friends, family, books, and our city. We couldn't have asked for a better day. Unfortunately for me, I drank just a bit too much the night before and fought off a hangover all day. After nearly refunding what little breakfast I ate - to be fair, it was over cooked, my sausage patties were burnt on the outside and raw in the middle - I recovered just in time for pictures. Good thing too, pictures too for-ev-ver. 

One fine looking group of people

We got through the initial run of pictures and moved on to the ceremony. According to one of those crack-pot apocalypse the world was supposed to end at about the same time our ceremony started. Sure enough, some dark clouds blew in, the wind kicked up, and the bridesmaids and groomsmen got rained on. And just like that, it was gone, the sun came out, and the world kept turning. I made my vows, which were awesome, Kelly made hers, which were nearly as good, we said "I do" and the party was on. 

College crew #1

The dance floor was pretty busy all night, especially when REM's "It's The End of   World as we Know It" came on. There was the obligatory sing along to "Sweet Caroline," and a pretty sweet mix of music all night. 

College crew #2

 I even did my best not to smash cake in Kelly's face. I really wanted to, but her threats were accompanied by a sufficient level of menace that I decided I was better off being nice. Besides, there's years ahead to push her buttons.

Delicious, delicious cake

Good view of a great city

And We're Back!

Got a behind the scenes view while at Brewin for Bruins at the Alaska Zoo

Whew. Sorry for the long absence. April got pretty crazy there for a while. Breakup (the melting season) came and went without any major incidents. It started with lots of standing water and slushly puddles. After a week snow piles started to compress. After a few more weeks the snow was gone. It seemed like it was sunny approximately 37 days in April. The extended sunshine counts as extra days. 

Got a hair cut and shave to go along with breakup

At the end of April, we moved. The owners or our first rental want to sell their home. They offered to let us out of the lease anytime before it ends July 31st. We decided that rather than waste the summer looking for a new place, packing, moving, and unpacking, we'd compress the experience into about a month. We found a sweet new place on the East side of Anchorage, in a neighborhood called the "scenic foothills" near the base of the Chugach Mountains. We're on the second floor of a house. We picked up an extra bedroom and half bath, along with a bigger yard, large shed (complete with electricity!), and a deck that looks out to the mountains. The move at the end of April went smoothly and Kelly and I have settled in nicely.

Nice big dining room windows that look out at the mountains

Ellsworth has had a big of trouble with the move, but that's a 

story for another post.

...Maybe not that much trouble 

Days in Anchorage are topping out at almost 18hrs of daylight. It's been hard to go to work everyday, when the sun is shining so brilliantly outside. It seems to be much nicer during the week than on the weekends. After this winter, that's just cruel. Fortunately the long evenings make for perfect hiking opportunities. Now that the snow is gone and the ground is drying, we'll be getting back out on the trails. Stay tuned for summer adventures.

This is what Alaskan summer are all about