A Perfect Wedding

Niki and I were married on December 12th, at a little Chapel in Winona Lake, Indiana. It was a bright and clear day, and she was absolutely beautiful. A small group of family and friends attended, and my grandmother surprised me by making the drive in from Chicago by herself. What a nice treat!

I have a heart full of gratitude, because God has blessed me. I am so happy that my heart was open enough to allow that blessing, that I didn't dwell on loss, even while battling with it every day. He certainly has a plan. I've always known there is one, even though I never understand where it's going, or where I am along the way. I trust in Him, and thank God for bringing Niki into my life.

I am excited about the future, my future with Niki.

I'm Engaged!

Saturday night was our night for celebrating the 234th birthday of the
United States Marine Corps. My sister and brother-in-law were in
attendance. I think they had fun. We'll all remember it forever,
that's for sure.

I had a surprise Saturday night.

I arranged for my boss get on stage and claim "it's a tradition here for
the Operations Officer to lead us with the first dance."

I pulled Niki's seat back, and asked her to join me. We walked to the
center of the ballroom and I retrieved the microphone. I wished a happy
birthday to all the Marines in attendance. They cheered back with their
grunts and calls of motivation. Then I turned to Niki and said...

"My heart wants for nothing else than to make you my wife."

Her eyes grew wide as I dropped to one knee and pulled out a diamond
ring from my pocket.

The Marines cheered, and I waited for the noise to subside before
saying...

"Niki, will you marry me?"

There were more cheers, and my hands trembled as I placed the ring on
her finger.

Then we danced. And smiled.

Life is too short not to act when you know it's right. Each day is too
precious not to dare to love, and to act on your instincts when the
opportunities present themselves. I acted, nervously but boldly. And I
plan to make her happy for the rest of her life.

Semper Fidelis means "Always Faithful."

'Ever will I be.

Enduro - Endured

No injuries. All smiles.

Group Shot. We're tired puppies.

Scenic View of the Trail Ahead of Us.

A River Crossing.

Loose Rocks on a Long Hill.

Mogollon Rim Rendezvous - Bubble Gum Day

Today is done and no injuries. Pictures here.


I did have some trouble though. I misread my GPS and went off-course. The terrain was tight pine forest and I was too far committed when I realized my mistake. Instead of backtracking, I tried to cut my own trail up a hill in the forest in order to save time. Bad decision! Trees down everywhere! I jumped two trees just fine, but the third got me, and the bike went down. Turns out in Arizona, the pine trees have many branches that each break off and make sharp edges. :( Why can't they make trees like they do in Indiana? So I pick up the bike, and gas is pouring out of the side of the tank and onto my leg. Punctured.

So I McGuyver'd it. Here's my bubble gum "fix". Quotation marks means the stream of gas went from looking like a horse peeing to a slow trickle. I went 92.3 miles more and finished the day! Sorry, Allyn, about your bike. I'll get you a new tank. What a good lesson learned though! What fun!

Walking In Autumn

Walking with Niki and Kai in the Park lately....


All I could say when I saw this was "Can you please stop pimping out our dog?"

Customer Service as a Nice Surprise

Sometimes companies can surprise you. I bought a handheld GPS from
Amazon.com on October 12th. I needed it for an Enduro Race in Arizona
on the 24th. I decided to go with the free shipping option because the
delivery date was estimated to be October 20th. The 20th came with no
package on my doorstep, so I decided to track it down...

Amazon's website gave a tracking number with the United States Postal
Service, and kept the estimated delivery date at October 20th. I went
to USPS.com, but they had no record of the package. Hmmph. UPS.com was
next, but they didn't have it either. Finally, I found that FedEx had
it and had sent it from Ohio to Pennsylvania, and weren't planning to
deliver it until the 24th (when I'd be in Arizona).

I filled out a customer service complaint, not with the expectation for
action on Amazon's part, but more as a form of therapy for myself. I
wanted to inform them that if it didn't arrive by the 23rd, I'd be
buying it locally and returning their shipment. I added to boot that I
would not be using Amazon in the future.

So last night I received this email. I was completely surprised, and
completely happy. In true "Dumb and Dumber" fashion, I thought "then
you go and TOTALLY redeem yourself!"

-----Original Message-----
From: "Amazon.com Customer Service" <cust.service03@amazon.com>
Sent: Tue, 20 Oct 2009 17:49:57 Pacific Daylight Time
To: Me
Subject: Your Amazon.com Order #XXX-XX-XXXXX-XX

Hello,

I'm extremely sorry to hear that this package hasn't yet arrived to you.

Your package was shipped on Oct 14, 2009 by a service called FedEx
SmartPost. FedEx takes these shipments from our fulfillment centers and
delivers them to the U.S. Post Office closest to the destination. The
U.S. Postal Service will make the final delivery.
I understand that you need this shipment by Oct 24, 2009 and the
tracking information on carriers website states that it will be arrived
on Oct 24, 2009.
To ensure that you receive your items as soon as possible for you needs,
I've placed a new order that's listed below. We'll ship it to the same
address as soon as possible. I've also upgraded the shipping method to
One-Day Shipping at no additional charge.

Estimated Delivery Date: Oct 22, 2009
There's no charge for this replacement order.

If the original order does show up, please use our Online Returns Center
to return the extra order or refuse the package :
http://www.amazon.com/returns

We look forward to your next visit.

Best regards,

Balaji K.
Amazon.com
We're Building Earth's Most Customer-Centric Company
http://www.amazon.com/your-account

Camping With Dad

I am currently 3 days into a 10-day vacation. I spent the first two with Dad in the Daniel Boone National Forest. I don't think I've ever camped with just him and me. It was really nice to spend time with him, and to hike to some really awesome places. I want to make that kind of trip a once-per-year deal from now on.

The next 6 days will be here in Florida. Niki and I plan to do nothing but relax...