Quick Parental Visit My parents came out to visit this weekend. They made last minute plans to come down so they could celebrate our engagement and to help with some of the initial wedding planning. We had dinner in our favorite restaurants, and they had a very nice visit with us. On Friday we managed to get some information on a place for our rehearsal dinner (The Buttes Resort) and we also swung by the Red Mountain Ranch Country Club. The place was already setup for a wedding, so it was nice to see the reception area set up (even if it was not as nice as ours will be - of course!)

Last night we went for dinner at our favorite place: Mastros. Besides the amazing food, the atmosphere of that place is pretty cool. We met Barbara's family there for dinner. I think everyone had a good time. By the end of dinner, my dad was getting drunk, and I was buzzing enough to even let Barbara drive (I must of stunk too.)

My parents gave Barbara a gorgeous set of earrings as an engagement gift. She loves them, and they look gorgeous on her. They also gave me an iPod. I love that thing... it's pretty cool. I think I already filled most of the iPod with my music and my outlook contacts.

It's just a pain that I carry so much stuff now. I've been carrying the ipod with me (to most places.) So now I have my cell phone, my ipod, and my camera! I really need to get a camera cell phone that plays mp3s. That would be cool.  ¶ 4:18 PM 0 Comments Links to this post

  Teppanyaki and Another View Happy Father's Day!

Today we ran around town taking care of some errands and getting some shit done. We checked out some hotels in the area... most of which were decent, but doubtfully a solution for our wedding guests because they are not centrally located. So we'll have to look more into that.

We met up with the rest of Barbara's family for Father's Day/Birthdays/Anniversary dinner tonight. We went for Japanese Teppanyaki. I love the food but you end up smelling like it (the food) by the end of the night. They cook on large, hot grills at your table. The cook was having fun with Jayden - but he was putting on his quiet and shy "act."

The food was very good (as usual.) We go there all the time for sushi. I guess ya know that we go there a lot when the owner of the place comes over to say hello to you and ask you where we've been cause she hasn't seen us in a while! We were actually there about 2 weeks ago! The name of the place is stupid (Got Sushi?) but the food is very good and surprisingly very affordable. Sushi for 2 is only like $30.

After dinner we took the whole family over to the Red Mountain Ranch Country Club to show them our wedding venue choice (*cross our fingers.) It was perfect - we managed to get there around the most beautiful time: sunset just as the lights of the city were starting to come on. We showed them the rooftop ceremony site and the 18th hole ceremony site. Then we went up to the upstairs patio | Pic 2 (our cocktail hour site.) The reception room was locked and set up for what seems like a corporate function, but at least we were able to see inside to show them the layout. I think they were all pretty impressed with out venue!

After seeing the place again, I'm firmly convinced that this place is the place for us! We must get this place. I think it was just hard to visualize Red Mountain before: it was during the day and was set up for a political function. At night, with the amazing view it was much easier to "see" what it would look and feel like... and it's beautiful!

Next step: get the deposit to the event coordinator (too bad she won't be around till Tuesday!)  ¶ 11:09 PM 2 Comments Links to this post

  Wedding Plans Galore! Now that our traveling (Vegas, California, Chicago) is all done for the near future, we've had some time to really sit down and start planning some of our wedding festivities. I got back home on Thursday night, and Barbara overloaded me with all her finding from the wedding expo last Sunday. There definitely was some good information dealing with all aspects of the wedding.

So we looked at several places today: The Red Mountain Ranch Country Club, Las Sendas Country Club, and the Gainey Ranch Golf Club. We had driven by Red Mountain before, and it definitely looked nice. One of the best features (besides the value and real affordability) is it's amazing view of the entire city! We really liked this place.

The other venues were very nice too but didn't offer as much for the price, and we found more things "wrong" than with Red Mountain. We sat down tonight and created a side-by-side comparison of our top 4 venue choices. With that in mind, our top choice is Red Mountain Ranch Country Club. I'm still a little hesitant, but I'm sure it could be beautiful and amazing... I think I need to go back and see it again.  ¶ 10:53 PM 0 Comments Links to this post

  Chicago: Day 5 Whew... my 4 days in Chicago are finally over, and I've made it home in 1 piece! After another night of trying to sleep over the ridiculous snoring of my roommate, I got up around 9, took a shower and headed out to where else: Starbucks! Afterwards I found a Sanrio store for Barbara. Of course I had to get her something from there... she'd kill me if she found out that there was a Sanrio store in Chicago and didn't get her anything.

After visiting Sanrio I had a quick lunch at my favorite lunch spot: chipotle. Yes, Chicago even has Chipotles! I filled my belly with my usual (steak fajita burrito) and then proceeded to go back to the hotel to check out.

Within an hour I was on a shuttle back to Ohare Airport. Ahh... home at last! Ohare Airport is pretty nice - really large, but nice. My flight took off with no problems, and I was back to my fiancee by like 5:30.

I loved Chicago (and would like to go back,) but it's sooo nice to be back home!  ¶ 9:49 PM 0 Comments Links to this post

  Chicago: Day 4 Today I woke up from an awful sleep with the worst roommate ever! Unfortunately golf outing attendees have to be paired up with roommates. Most people have a choice, but since I was a late invite - I had no choice. Initially I was offered a room at the Sheraton for all 4 nights... damn, I should have taken it! Besides being a single, it was also a more spacious room, and it's only 5 minutes away!

There was a breakfast this morning, but I didn't feel like going. So I got up, got ready, and headed out to Starbucks for some coffee. By the time I got back people were starting to wait for the trolly down to the navy pier. It was a beautiful day, so I decided to walk it instead (besides I had done the walk the day before.)

I got down to the Anita Dee II and waited as the other Waterfield people finally found the boat. As I sat there, I was picturing being stuck on a boat with over 150 other people that I had no interest in schmoozing with. But as I was starting to wander away, I saw a bunch of people from our office... so I made the last minute dash to board the ship.

The Anita Dee II was a nice 3 level boat. I'd imagine it could hold a few hundred people. The downstairs was a lounge area with large sectional couches, a baby grand piano, and a bar. The midlevel was a dining room with a bar and a hot buffet lunch setup. Then the top level was an open air deck where you could get a good view of the city.

The food was pretty good, and the cruise was enjoyable. Overall a decent way to kill a few hours of the day. Hell, especially since it was free!

So after the ship, I started walking back to the hotel, but then I changed my mind and hung around the navy pier for a few more hours. I found a couple guys playing their guitars and playing some oldies on stage. So I found a beer garden, got a few beers, a piece of pizza, and enjoyed the music and the view at the edge of Lake Michigan. Once again... a pretty good way to kill a few hours.

By the time I got back to the room, I was kind of tired (especially with the lack of sleep due to my snoring roommate.) He was there (back from golfing.) Both he and I just passed out on our beds. I got up in time to iron some clothes, take a shower, and just make it to the awards banquet just in time.

Wow, it was beautiful! The room had about 250 people seated just about to start dinner. I missed the cocktail hour (which is probably better off anyway.) The banquet room was set up with a balcony area overlooking the main room. Cocktails were upstairs with food downstairs. After a few words from our VP, the dinner began. Of course this food was amazing too (just like the rest of the week.) All the Phoenix people sat together in 2 separate tables.

The awards portion of the banquet took forever (with every award recipients mini-bio and facts.) Our group was getting restless and prayed that our Regional Manager was merciful and got through his awards quickly. Our group is the rowdiest of all the other offices/regions! Many times we were "shh-ed" - I think we were the drunkest too!

The awards banquet finally ended by like 9:30. Everyone headed back to their rooms and got ready for the after party at "Joe's Bar." At this point I was starting to get Waterfielded out, and was tired of drinking and tired of schmoozing.

I went up to the room and my roommate was watching the yankees - dbacks game. Pitiful... absolutely pitiful. Our teem just blows this year. I got into that game (god knows why the hell I bother) and started to get lazy. At this point I got changed and figured it was late enough that most people would be gone to the after party by now. As I went through the lobby, the guys from my office were standing right in the middle of the hotel entrance. Doh! I really don't feel like going.

I got a phone call so that was a decent excuse to get away and go for a walk. Starbucks was closed, but I found a cup of coffee elsewhere. So tonight I ended my night by smoking a cigar, drinking a cup of coffee, and talking to Barbara on the phone before going to bed. Yeah, that's enough for me. There's no way I'd make it till 4 am (time the after party ends!)  ¶ 11:15 PM 0 Comments Links to this post

  Chicago: Day 3 Today was totally free! I had nothing to do - no meetings to go to! I woke up around 10 (again) and got some coffee. I checked out of my hotel and grabbed my luggage and headed over to the new hotel (Hotel Intercontinental.) Since my reservations were done later, they didn't have any room at the hotel where everyone else was staying. So they had to book a room at a nearby hotel.

After I dropped off my luggage, I walked down to the John Hancock building and went up to the 93rd (?) floor observatory. Luckily I had some good weather and could see everything! Afterwards I went down to the Navy Pier.

I had a few beers down there and relaxed by the water for a bit before going back to the hotel to check in. By the time I got there the hotel bar was overflowing with Waterfield People. You could tell by the large mass of people already drinking their faces off and making a lot of noise. The hotel was being taken over with Waterfield people! I saw a few of the guys from the office and proceeded to check in and get settled in the room.

Tonight we had dinner at the Chicago Cultural Center. They rented out a large banquet room for the cocktail hour and dinner. The room was huge and was beautifully decorated with stain glass and tile mosaics. The food was great, they had a nice open bar, and surprisingly they had cigars after dinner! (I grabbed a few.)

I was starting to get a lil wasted (a lot of Makers n Cokes.) Chris (one of my co-workers) was getting pretty bad too. He was already slurring his words by the time dinner came around. So he and I decided to start walking back to the hotel. I was initially feeling a little drunk, but by the time we were half way back, I was starting to sober up.

I was finishing up my cigar, so he went up (while I talked on the phone for a bit) and then got a cup of coffee (conveniently there was a Starbucks across the street from the hotel.)

I went up to the room and just relaxed and fell asleep to a movie. When my roommate (sucks but the room was free) got in, he just hit the sack and passed out. Little did I know, but he is a massive snorer. Maybe that's why he didn't have a roommate! It was so bad, that I had to put my headphones on and listen to my cdplayer. But even with that, I could hear his loud snores! Finally, out of exhaustion, I just passed out.  ¶ 11:43 PM 0 Comments Links to this post

  Chicago: Day 2 Today I had some marketing meetings in the afternoon so my morning was free. The bed at the hotel was unbelievably comfortable so I slept till like 10 (which is amazing for me) and leisurely made my way over to the other hotel (where the lunch and meetings were being held.) I was thinking that I was going to need to take a taxi when I looked out the window of my hotel in the morning - it was pouring rain! Sheets and sheets of rain just coming down! I couldn't see 10 feet out the window of my hotel. Damn, I haven't seen rain like that in a while. Sure doesn't rain like this in Arizona!

Due to the bad weather, many meeting participants were late (some never showed up for the meetings.) So we had a leisurely lunch and then started the meeting. Everything went well, but overall - not too exciting. Afterwards I headed back to my hotel to drop my crap off and relax for a bit.

I made my way back to the Hotel Intercontinental to meet up with everyone else for a Greek dinner. We had an amazing dinner consisting of several different appetizers, salmon, chicken, lamb, vegetables, salad, etc. It was very good! Of course I also had a few drinks and everything was wrapped up with a shot of uzo (sp?) for everyone! The stuff smelled like Sambuca, but wasn't as thick but much stronger! Whooo! I'll sleep well tonight!

  ¶ 9:36 PM 0 Comments Links to this post

  Chicago: Day 1 I got into Chicago and my hotel room (on the 29th floor) on this afternoon without any problems. The hotel is pretty nice (and have an amazing view.) I relaxed in the rooom for a bit and then went for a walk around the city. It wasn't that hot, but the humidity was killing me. By the time I got back I was drenched in sweat. Tonight I just relaxed in the hotel and went across the street and caught a movie. I know... not that adventurous, especially in a "new" (for me) city. But I was rather tired and didn't really feel like trekking out and exploring. I watched "Troy." It was a pretty decent movie - the whole time I kept thinking of "Braveheart" though.   ¶ 11:13 PM 0 Comments Links to this post

  and now... Chicago This week was has been pretty busy. After the brief enjoyment of just being engaged, we spent most of the week starting to get down and dirty in wedding planning.

We visited some very nice wedding ceremony/reception venues over the past week (actually 6 already.) Most of the venues that we've come across have been booked for the date that we're interested in. So now we're faced with either finding more places or possibly even changing the date. Fridays seem pretty available - but may be harder for people to attend. We could even do it the weekend before, but I'm not sure if we really want to wait a week for our honeymoon. So I guess we just keep on looking.

Barbara is going to a bridal expo tomorrow with her sisters and Lily. That should be interesting. Good thing I'm not going to be here - at least it's a day with the girls.

While she's in the middle of the wedding frenzy with hundreds of other brides-to-be, I'll be in the air flying to Chicago. I have some marketing meetings to attend on Monday and then a dinner at night. Then on Tuesday I'm free all day until 5:00 pm where there is a cocktail hour and a reception dinner. On Wednesday there is a golf outing (lunch day cruise for non-golfers such as myself) and then an awards banquet that night. My company consists of a bunch of partiers! After the awards banquet dinner there is an "after party" scheduled from 11pm till 4am! On Thursday everyone comes home.

This should be very interesting. This whole trip is for a golf outing that is an award for loan officers that reach certain sales goals. As I am not a loan officer, a lot of the events (meetings and awards) do not apply to me. I haven't met 90% of the people that are going to be there. Most of the people will be high producing people in my company so it should be interesting in seeing the Waterfield personality (I do hear that our Scottsdale branch is notorious for being a bunch of wildmen.) Hopefully, I can "play with the big boys" and don't "let them down." I gues I'll have to severely get my drink on! Hell, why not... it's all on Waterfield. May as well drink up!  ¶ 11:54 PM 0 Comments Links to this post

  And the Wedding Planning Begins... So today we looked at our first wedding venue, The Secret Garden. This particular venue uses Santa Barbara Catering (whose site I've done and updated) as a preferred caterer. The Secret Garden, we later found out, used to be a hippie commune with many interesting characters living there. Known for their wild parties and overgrown bamboo plants, it was later sold and restored and is now considered a historical site.

The place was perfect. Beautiful details and woodwork and an amazing exit from the second floor down a long staircase that led to the ceremony/grassy area. We loved this place, but after seeing the price of their wedding packages, we decided to keep on searching. Besides, the first place can't be it!

Tomorrow we have an appointment to meet with an event coordinator for a place in north scottsdale(Carefree Resort & Villas.) I'm anxious to see the venue, but I expect it to be fairly expensive.

I think on the way back, we're going to walk through the Scottsdale Plaza Resort. So far, this place seems like it may be the most promising. I guess we'll see!

It's funny, it seems like everyone is so surprised that we're starting to plan things already. Today is only day 4 of being engaged, but I think we're going to need all the time possible to plan this thing. At the very minimum, we need to get the venue reserved. I think we'll both feel better once the place is set.  ¶ 11:40 PM 0 Comments Links to this post

  DTripTV Watch as Republicans are voted off of Republican Survivor... internet users vote off Republicans. New episodes every Thursday morning.

DTripTV.com  ¶ 4:43 PM 0 Comments Links to this post

  Engagement!!!! So after almost 2 1/2 years of dating, Barbara and I finally got engaged over the weekend! We're both so excited!

We were in Anaheim for her cousin's wedding (on Saturday) and left last night to come back home to Phoenix. It happened yesterday in Corona del Mar - right of the Pacific Coast Highway right by the water. She was absolutely shocked and overwhelmed! It was a beautiful day, and we were at a great spot overlooking the ocean. We were talking about weddings and rings, when I pulled out the ring box from my pocket. Her jaw dropped to the ground, and her eyes were in wide-eyed disbelief. I got down on one knee and asked the ultimate question. She was crying so much that she didn't hear me, so I had to ask again! She absolutely loved the ring!



We had to get back to the car because we had to make our way back to the airport. Besides we had so many people to call (most of which weren't even home at the time!) As we made our way back to the airport we wanted to stop and get some food, but there was no decent place available. We drove away a little further, and we coincidentally found Pei Wei's - which happend to be the place that we had our first "date" (Scottsdale location.)After our late lunch, we headed to the airport and continued to phone all our relatives and friends.

We're both still buzzing from the new engagement. I think it hit the both of us when yesterday we were at the airport talking to one of the relatives, and on the phone I said, "Barbara and I are getting married!" Those words seemed so new and foreign. Even Barbara did a double take like "woh, we really are doing this!"

At this point we're thinking of doing it in mid March of 2005. Only 9 months away! More information to come and of course I'll be making a web page/site devoted to the wedding at some point!  ¶ 2:20 PM 2 Comments Links to this post

  California Wedding Ok, weekend #2 of filled with travel... tomorrow morning Barbara and I fly to Orange Country for her cousin's wedding. This should be pretty interesting since I've never have been to a traditional Vietnamese wedding before. I'll take a ton of photos. The ceremony is at her uncle's house in the morning, and then the reception is at night at the hotel where we're staying!

And then we come back on Sunday night. Just a quick weekend in California. At least this time we're flying and then just renting a car there... woo - finally being over 25 comes in handy (car rental)!!  ¶ 11:53 PM 2 Comments Links to this post

  Air Conditioning Worries? We started to hear some bad noises coming from our central air conditioning unit outside last night. I'm hoping it's nothing - especially since it's gone away and hasn't really made any more noise. But never the less, that can't be good. Luckily our home warranty (which covers most of the ac unit) is still valid - for 2 more weeks! Well, at least I have them coming out on Monday afternoon to take a look at it. Figures that it's starting at the beginning of our real heat! It was 110 today!  ¶ 8:01 PM 0 Comments Links to this post

  New Layout... Again! Surprise, surprise... a new site layout. I was starting to get bored of the other layout. It was starting to get a little too cluttered. So many links... so much text. Hopefully this will be a little more simplified. Another feature I added to my site is an audio blog. So turn up your volume and see what nonsense I have to talk about!

This week was fairly quick (nice short 4 day work week!) After a very quick trip up to Vegas, it was nice being home for a few days and not driving much.

So now one more day of work this week, and then we're off to a wedding in California. This should be pretty interesting. At least this time we're flying!  ¶ 1:30 AM 0 Comments Links to this post

  Al Gore's Remarks on the Iraq Crisis In case you missed it, here is the inspiring and animated speech given by the former vice president Al Gore.


Download the audio of the speech (15.1 Mb)
from AlGoreDemocrats.com

  ¶ 9:24 AM 0 Comments Links to this post