Bringing It All Together

"Jeerreemmy, Jeerreemmy, Remember I'm helping you now but I'm yours for one third of the year later"

As most of you know Lesley and I have been living all over the country for a number of years, from Louisiana, to Arizona, and Colorado and now Mississippi. The moving has, in effect, spread not only us but our meager possessions across the country. In the past few months we have managed to move a chunk from Arizona to Colorado , and Louisiana to Mississippi. This was good because then we had concentrated everything to two locations, Colorado holding the most. One storage unit and my parents house. Thanksgiving, with our paid holiday's from work, would be the perfect opportunity to fly to Colorado and then drive a Penske truck back to our home in Ridgeland, MS. How hard could it be? Besides.... We would get to see all of our family in Colorado if for only a few hours. After work on Wednesday the 21st we drove to Jackson Int. Airport to catch our flight on the busiest travel day of the year, or at least that's what they say. Do to unforeseen events, and foreseen our plane was one hour and fifteen minutes late leaving Jackson. When we did take off at nearly 500 mph, 8 miles per minute, and flying like a little plane probably shouldn't, in fact the flight attendant could barely stand to teach us what to do in case of emergency because the plane was leaving the ground before she could finish. We landed in Dallas and ran to our connection that was suppose to be leaving as we reached the gate. We were reassured by the attendant at the desk that we hadn't missed the flight, and boarded our plane. To our delight we noticed that the plane was sweltering hot and no noise was heard from the engines... Our flight was delayed 50 minutes because the flight crew was not there. Anyhow, we made it to Colorado in the middle of the night so we could get a few winks before loading our truck and hitting the road, In the morning our yellow chariot awaited us. We got up early and made our way in the 12 degree air to the little storage unit that has housed most of Lesley's possessions for the better part of three years. We loaded all into the truck and drove back to my folks house to load the rest of my stuff. With the help of Tucker, Jane, and my mom we got everything in and it looked like we had a lot more than I remember. Grandma Miller was in Aurora, as well as my Aunt and Uncle and Cousins. The girls gave us a show and Justin tried to compete with them but didn't quite stand up to the challenge. Thanksgiving went by quick and next thing I knew the alarm was sounding its trumpet of "Get On The Road!" We loaded up the truck, Tucker and I, and the "Blue Dazzler", Lesley and Jane, and sped off down the road in the hope that we would miss the snow.... or not. We managed to make it about an hour down the road and the snow picked up and our speed slowed down, to about 35. We never did make it out of the bad weather. The first day snow and the second day rain. It rained all the way back to Jackson. We unloaded on Sunday with the help of Jane and Tucker, Thanks Guys, and finally had everything in one place. We're still unpacking but we can walk through the apartment without zigzagging. Is this the end of the excitement? .... Probably not....but stayed tuned as we try our hand at the deep south. Not to be left for last but the most exciting event was finding out the next monday that Lesley had passed the final part of her CPA. We celebrated of course. I am very proud of her!

Big n' Easy

The "Big Easy", The "Crescent City", or maybe just New Orleans, the true "Sin City". We just had a remarkable weekend to remember in one of the greatest cities in the country. but lets start at the beginning. We were invited to a wedding for an old friend of the Lynn family, Kyle Edwards. We tried to get geared up and leave work early to make our way the 3 hours from Jackson, MS to New Orleans, LA, but you guys may all know how hard it is to get organized sometimes. We arrived at the wedding just as the bride was walking down the aisle so we slipped in to the back in our street clothes, as we didn't have time to clean up. As we enjoyed our view of the ceremony from the dark shadows in the back we were told politely to leave because this was a "private wedding". "That's ok", says Lesley, "We're invited" I guess we should have known better as everyone else was in black tie dress and I had on a flaming orange jacket and blue jeans. Well, the ceremony ended and we ran for the elevators to pull a James bond and slip into our undercover formal wear. On the way out one of the guests stopped Jane and said "excuse me where is the bathroom?" Jane says "I don't know." anonymous guest said "Oh, I thought you worked here." Well, things are starting off a little strange but this is New Orleans and they can only get stranger. The reception was fun Lesley, Newt, Kristy, Jane and I had a lot of fun dancing and, we enjoyed meeting Kristy. The best part of the evening was the formation of a "Second Line", which is a small jazz combo that marches around parade style showcasing the new bride and groom. This little parade took us weaving all around the French Quarter and past some of the great parts of New Orleans. We had sparklers and white handkerchiefs to wave around on our march. The next day we took our own tour of the city. We visited the famous Cafe Du Monde for some beignets and Cafe Au Lait. We ambled on and met Newt and Kristy for a soft shell crab half loaf at Casamentos. We took a drive through the Garden District and enjoyed the Huge, and I mean Huge, houses. At this point we decided to drive to the lower ninth ward to check out the hurricane damage. It is still very deserted and looks pretty much destroyed. There are blue tarps on everything and a crazy code made of symbols on the doors. The code is a circle with an "X" the x creates quadrants that have mysterious markings representing that the building had been checked, were there live or dead people, or animals, and then maybe a date. Back to the quarter to rest and get ready to do what people do in the French Quarter, EAT. I have heard a lot about Hurricanes and the damage that they cause in New Orleans, but there is another type of Hurricane that can also cause damage. Visit Pat O' Briens and you can walk out with liquid fury. I had never had a Hurricane so I needed to try one. We took our hurricanes and walked to Jackson square and then walked down to look at Old Man River, the Mississippi. Newt and Kristy left us to take a paddle boat ride and we took a carriage ride to learn a little bit about the history of the Quarter. There are many ghosts, vampires and the like hiding out on the third floor of most buildings in the quarter, but we weren't lucky enough to see any. We did see the "House of the Rising Sun", and the two oldest buildings in New Orleans, Jean Lafitte's blacksmith shop, and the convent where nuns invented mosquito net, both buildings are from about 1720. After another stop to watch some jazz and see men walking around in red dresses we drove to Jacques-Imo's for a fabulous dinner of alligator sausage cheesecake, and an assortment of the best food you could ever eat, to tell the truth, everything I ate was about the best I had ever eaten. That about wrapped up our trip because we had to leave the next morning. But, we couldn't leave without one last meal and we choose "Mothers". Mothers is the best ham in the world, or so they say, I gorged myself through the first two thirds of the sandwich before I was completely over taken by how much I had actually eaten...TOO MUCH. The food was great but the next three hours were, well, uncomfortable. That about wraps up our trip to the big easy. Next stop Penske.

No Place Like Home!

I know many of you out there may have thought that we would never stop and find a little place to call home, but we did. we have a tennis court, swimming pool, running path, gym, fishing pond, and abundant wildlife... No it's not a mansion on the hill, but an apartment at the point. We moved into our 600 square feet of heaven on Halloween and began setting up our home. We went bed shopping,
finally unpacked our wedding gifts, and Lesley bought (while I wasn't looking) some nice rockers. That very same week also happened to be Lesley's first day of work with Collins & Corbin, a CPA firm in Jackson. She packed a lunch and headed out the door and we have both been busy ever since. In fact, she is leaving on a work trip out of town for most of this week leaving "me" all alone. I suppose I will fill my time working on one of our wood working projects. I believe that I mentioned in an earlier entry that we had reclaimed some old wood from some farm structures and we are converting it into rustic furnishings. We are working on a book case right now but also have plans for a coffee table, and a set of bed side tables. Well a lot of exciting things are coming up in the next few weeks, but I can't spoil the fun by telling "you guys" about it now so make sure to check in often.

Coming Soon!

Have no fear faithful viewers, updates are coming. We have been very busy in the last two weeks. Lesley started her new job and we moved into our first marital abode. To put it bluntly I just haven't had time to update. The camera has been taking pictures though and the internet is coming to the Johnson home so hang tight.

Movies, DU, and Other Ramblings

The last two weeks have brought a little bit of a routine into our lives (It's a new experience for us). I have had days of 8 to 5 as has Lesley with all of her studying for the last part of her CPA test, which she took this past Thursday YEAH. We made a trip back to the farm last week to get our last load of stuff as well as take a small vacation. While we were there we reclaimed some wood from the old "Over Head Barn" to construct some furniture out of, stay tuned to the blog for glimpses of our wood working ventures. The barn has had it rough lately because of a freak cloud burst that shifted it off of its peers and gave the whole structure a little push towards the ground. I don't know what the out come will be but we want to preserve, in one form or another, some of the resources used, i.e. wood, old nails, barbed wire etc. If many of you were at our wedding back in May you may recall that some movies were being filmed in the area. One in particular with Denzel Washington and, Forest Whittaker titled "the Great Debaters" was filmed on parts of the farm. Well the popularity of the historic structures and beautiful scenery has caught on and they are getting ready to film another film with the use of "Ida Bell's house" They have striped the modern siding off of it to reveal the origanal clap board, are reparing the
front porch and have built a stage behind, for what I can only guess. It is exciting to see so much going on at the old farm. Work has been going well, I keep myself busy with ArcGIS, mapping wetlands, and farmlands for conservation. I enjoy it.
Lesley starts her new job at the CPA firm on Monday and we move into our new place on Wednesday. It will be busy; you can read all about it very soon.

Rock-Tober

GO Rockies! 21-1 (Update! We're in the world series and the Red Sox are beating the "Rocks" out of us 0-2 in the series. Come on Roxs let's go!

"It's Like Coming Home"

Well Lesley and I have found ourselves in another part of the country. I have had the opportunity to accept a job with Ducks Unlimited, the largest wetlands conservation org, at their Southern Regional Office as a GIS Technician. The offer was made while we were living in Colorado and after weighing our options we decided to make a move, another one, and Have landed in Jackson, Mississippi. We have been settling into the deep south, some of us are more accustomed to it than others, but by-and-by we have been getting use to things. My first day at DU was a new experience because never have I had a full time office job before. They showed me to my office, my very own, with desk, computer, and all the office accouterments one could need. Did I mention that no one else shares my room! Well, they loaded me up with work and I haven't seen anyone since. We had the opportunity to go to an SEC conference football game last weekend to see the Rebels of OLE' MISS take on the Bull Dogs of Louisiana Tech. The game was a southern experience. Ole Miss tailgates like no one else in the land. They bring chandeliers and hang them from the trees while they sip on mint juleps. A little more proper then the tailgating that I'm use to, but I suppose if your in the south for a while it's not to be missed. Lesley's Grandmother came along as well as Tucker, Hollis, and Bobby Jeffcoat (He deserves an entry unto himself). If this is any hint at what the next year will hold then we should have some good stories to tell.

Catching Waves in Sayulita

Sorry that this took so long to post but we have been very busy. This is part 2 to our Mexico vacation... the surf part. We spent most of the trip surfing but it's hard to take photos in the ocean so pictures (and videos) are a comodity. But we have it so enjoy part 2.

This is a short clip of Ross and I catching the same wave. Etiquette says look to your left on a right break. I guess I should have let Ross have this one, but I just couldn't give it up.This is Newt's last wave after a brutal mugging by a rampant surfboard.

Of course Les went surfing too. We had a lot of fun and can't wait to go back!

Hombre de la resaca de Niza - Part 1

Como Sta? We have just returned from Sayulita Mexico, a small fishing/ surfing village outside Puerta Vallerta. It was so much fun to travel to a far off destination with the muggy sweaty climate offset by the sweet salty air and the ocean steps outside of our front door. We surfed every day Ross and Newt were kind enough to give Les and I some pointers that helped us on our new found path to Surfing Nirvana. Our feet were treated to a painful shredding on the rocks, not to mention our backs, arms, knees and anything else that had the happy misfortune of coming into contact with the bottom of the ocean. The tropical climate led to happy encounters with new birds and giant iguanas as well. When we weren't surfing we were sleeping, and when we weren't sleeping we were eating. The food in Sayulita was good o'l fashion Mexican cuisine and we also enjoyed Cerveza Pacifico and margaritas. We did make one trip out into the vast pacific ocean to go deep sea fishing. Some of the most fascinating creatures live in the ocean, things that are found in books and on TV I.E. Jaws I, II, and III. We saw sharks, dolphins (like Flipper), sea turtles and an assortment of little fish. We caught around 15 mahi mahi, and they put up a fight. We had our very own Mexican cook come to our casa and prepare the fish for us for dinner (Yumm... the ceviche was amazing!) We had more fish then we could eat so we kept four of them for dinner and gave the rest away to El Capitan our fishing guide. He spoke no english and was probably very entertained with six of us all swinging hooks on this little boat. This was my first trip out of the country and I look forward to more explorations around the world. Next Stop Ducks Unlimited.