Keeping Up With Things

Hi all,

It's been a long while since we've last posted, but we've been really, really busy over the last few weeks: Lauren with mid-terms and classes, me with wrapping up the last few weeks at my (now former) job at the plant, and both of us trying to get caught up on house cleaning and various home repair projects. We mostly wanted to get as much done as possible prior to having company (Lauren's friend Jenny) over this weekend for Homecoming festivities and the game of the week (yet another close near-heartbreaker, as our Bearcats barely beat Washburn by 1 point! And this after almost giving the game away in the last 3 minutes). Once again, we're left grateful that they won, but scratching our heads at the last four games (which they've won by a grand total of roughly 10 points).

Once again, we're in a transition period ... me moving on to a new job (and the longer commute and being home later in the evenings), and adjustments from that. But we'll manage.

We Wimped Out

We had tickets for today's football game. We even braved the rain for the tailgating prior to the game. But with an hour rain delay due to the thunderstorms rumbling through the area and the rain coming down, we huddled underneath the stands for a bit, then wimped out and went home, where we're listening to the game via streaming media (we live at the lowest point in the neighborhood and have trouble with radio reception). So we're home doing a little bit of home improvement/winterization before settling down to a nice fall nap with the Woodwick candle crackling nicely.

Two More Weeks to Go

I got my e-mail this afternoon with my orientation schedule for the new job. It sounds like I'll be working in a different (read, more casual) environment, as I'll be working at what Cerner calls their "Innovation Campus". It certainly sounds more laid back than your traditional office environment (in other words, jeans are permissible) ... I'll probably do business casual most of the time, though.

Honestly, I'm looking forward to the challenge of the new job. Now I just have to put in my last two weeks at the old one.

The Fall Classic and The Harvest Festival

This weekend found us traveling down to KC for the "Big Game", as Northwest played my old alma mater, Pitt State, at Arrowhead Stadium.

Okay, I was expecting a blowout. So was the Morning Sun's forecaster. We were both wrong, and instead, we were treated to an "edge of your seat win it on the last play in overtime" thriller.





























This morning, home from the game, we also found the opportunity to experience a bit of history. One of the sister churches in the West Missouri Episcopal diocese, St. Oswalds-in-the Fields, holds an annual Harvest Festival every fall. Built like its namesake church across the pond, St. Oswalds has stood in the country for decades and it's still going strong.

New Opportunities and Moving Forward

Hey all,

Looks like it's one of those months where I get a whole new set of challenges. Specifically, I successfully applied for and (pending final acceptance of their offer this evening), gained a new job working for Cerner, a medical software corporation down in KC, as a document developer (i.e., a technical writer). That was one of the "promising" prospects I mentioned in an earlier posting.

On one hand, it's going to be a long (roughly an hour plus forty) commute each way every day, but it will be worth it to once again have a job with benefits (paid holidays, vacation, and health insurance), plus a better salary than I could hope to make at most of the jobs here in town.

So, that puts me in my last two weeks working as a temporary, and my last two weeks (hopefully) of blue-collar factory work. I've toyed with the idea of writing up my blue-collar experience in a blog post, but that may wait. I don't want to burn any bridges at the plant; after all, I do owe them (especially the folks at Northwest Services), quite a lot, given I was out of unemployment money when they hired me. Maybe later.

So, it's a time of new opportunities and moving forward in a lot of ways, and it looks like I'll be doing it for a great company.

Another Week ...

It's been an interesting weekend and start to the week here in Maryville ... we haven't been writing as much on the blog as of late because we've been busy living instead.

Saturday found us out and about at the local Arts Festival, where we found a wonderful lithograph for Lauren's office which features the front of the Admin building, the bell tower, and Northwest's mascot, Bobby the Bearcat. We also did some Christmas shopping (the whos and whats will have to remain a mystery, of course), and also tried out the coffee (KC's own Roasterie blend) at the Bookstop, which is (thanks to the untimely demise of Main Street Coffee), the only public coffeeshop in town (unless you count Java City, on campus, or the local McDonalds, which recently installed custom coffee equipment towards becoming a McStarbucks).

We also discovered that afternoon (pleasantly so), that we have a new co-favorite in our quest for "favorite local BBQ": a local caterer, Quick Draw Todd's, served up a subtle "smoked but juicy" pulled pork and brisket that left us very impressed. Of course, we still like Bubba's, but for different reasons. We're hoping that maybe Todd can do a smoked turkey breast for us for Thanksgiving this year.

That evening found us at the Bearcat's latest home football game. Final score: Us 86, the other Bearcats (SBU): 13. The next game is the annual Fall Classic vs. my old alma mater, Pitt State, down at Arrowhead Stadium. As much as I love my old school and hope that there would be a decent game this coming weekend, there are a couple of worrisome items which would indicate otherwise:

1. Pitt doesn't have a run defense like it used to have, giving up 200 yard running games in several of its last games. Northwest has an exceptionally strong running game this year.
   
2. Pitt is down to their 3rd string QB, while Northwest has all 3 QBs back in the game.
   
3. Previous to last weekend, Pitt lost to Missouri Western, a team which Northwest beat handily and which Washburn, a non-ranked team, also beat this past weekend.
   
4. Northwest set MIAA offensive (points scored) and defensive (running yards allowed) records in last week's game against SBU, while Pitt struggled to a 2 OT win against Central Missouri last weekend.
   

The prognosticator for the Pittsburg paper, the Morning Sun's own Fearless Forecaster, hasn't called the game yet and won't until this Thursday, but after last weekend (and after last year's game, which the Bearcats won, 41-14, despite being minus Omon at running back), I'm spotting the Bearcats about 40 points this go around.