Anthological

So tomorrow I’m heading to Portland, OR for an Ad Operations conference that starts Sunday evening.  Tons of good info to be had from folks in my shoes at other publisher sites, and of course it’s good to get out of the house from time to time.

I’m heading up a day early, landing around 1pm PST on Saturday. The plan is to meet Ernie at the airport and head to the hostel where we’ll be cheaply spending the night after an exhausting day and evening.

Plan is to rent road bikes and travel a circuitous route around Portland, of which we have several options picked out.  After a day of hard cycling and what will probably be a very welcome shower, the plan is then to hit up Portland’s microbreweries/pubs, for which they are apparently somewhat famous.  Any suggestions on places to check out are welcome.

In other news:

Next week and the week after I have a couple new folks starting with us at work, and I’m looking forward to hazing  training them. Yay for finally replacing the folks who left earlier this year

My parents are moving again, and I hope the move goes very smoothly.  I also hope they grow to love their new location and that the house ends up being somewhere they can cool their heels for a number of years!  Looking forward to helping out with fix-up projects with dad.

My nephews Stephen and Elliott keep getting cuter and showing off more ‘personality’… lol.. check out the newest addition to the remake of “Dallas”: 

Whew.  Since I signed up for the March 2009 featured 2d artist slot at the Art Market Gallery, I have had a low-level anxiety fever running in the back of my mind.

“will I finish enough pieces in time?”

“will the paintings show well together, in a cohesive fashion that really says what I’m trying to say?”

“will they like me, really really like me?”

Thankfully, the show is now hanging and looks good.  Mucho props to my lovely lady who patiently helped me get everything set up. She wrote down my inventory tags on teeny bits of sticker paper, helped me hold up and position works to determine where the nails had to go, and pulled me away before I ended up moving all the paintings into configuration #492 in the pursuit of perfection.  All this with a rumbling tummy and only a few complaints about how she would have to eat an arm soon or die.   What did she get out of all this?  A hubby who could finally relax, and steaming McDonald’s fries, now with less Hubby Guilt(tm).

If anyone wants to see a great gallery opening (many terrific artists’ work is up, lots of it new), and chat with many of the artists themselves, come on down to the gallery this Friday, March 6th.  The show runs from 5-9, but people often linger till later and downtown is HOPPING on First Fridays.  Come check it out!~