This is Emily and Me at Ames Cove. It was a windy day if you can't tell by my hair.

Ames Cove, Cape Rosier, ME

I spent Friday with Emily... her last day in town before she headed off for her 2 month furlow from the Park. Emily and I have been dating for 3 weeks now and I'd have to say it has been the best 3 weeks in my life or atleast in a long time.

I'll post another picture right after this post.

J

This was the sunrise last Thursday morning on my way to work. Time flies when you are having fun!

Work is busy and will be busy for another few weeks.

We finally got some snow... about 4" fell yesterday and they are calling for another 1 - 3"'s tonight.

Well, well... 2006. This picture is from Rusty's Hard Time Hollow in VA on New Year's Day. I had a blast hanging out with the hiker trash that was there. Met some new people and hung out with old friends.

It would appear that 2006 is going to be an interesting year... Banff is in February and then I head to PA again for the INXS concert. It should be a great time. I'll get to see some family that I didn't get to see at Christmas time.

I all hope your 2006 celebrations were excellent and safe.

Fall has been very rainy here in Maine. This is water runoff of Cadillac Mountain back in early November.

Work has been keeping me super busy.

Ahhh, the mighty Saco River in Southern Maine. This is one of our floatilla groups this year. There was a total of 10 canoes and 19 people. I was the odd ball out this year because I was by myself.

It actually was fun being by myself. I carried everybody elses extra stuff and garbage (the only downside). I was able to scoot around both floatilla's very easily.

We left for the might Saco around 12PM on Friday and arrived down in Fryeburg at 5 PM. The weather was nice all weekend long. We got off of the Saco on Sunday afternoon around 5 PM and started our drive home around 6PM. We stopped for dinner in Augusta, before continuing home.

Long Blog Warning!

Well, almost 2 weeks have gone by now. Since my last post excitement has been abound. Labor Day weekend, Mike and I were supposed to go on our annual 35 - 40 mile hike on the Appalachain Trail in Maine. We set out Thurs, Sept 1, for our destination of Monson, Me. About a 1/2 mile before the trail head and 3 hours from Bar Harbor we hit a pot hole. It sounded pretty severe, but we had no idea how severe as of yet.

As we pulled into the parking area, I notice this puff of smoke coming from under the hood. I told Mike to pop the hood so we could get a look. We see oil on the plastic skid plate and then Mike looks under the car and oil is just pouring out of it. Oh Sh*t!!! I pretty much new at this point and time that our hiking trip was going to be cancelled. Mike calls VW roadside assistance and they said they are sending the tow truck out.

While Mike was playing phone tag with VW, he turned his head after he hung the phone and jammed his eyeball into the Thule roof rack on the car. I immediately looked at it and it was just bloodshot. So, I decided to hike Southbound on the AT for a bit to say at least I got to hike a little. I returned 20 minutes later and Mike says, "I see this laser light show in my right eye." I said let me look at it again... WOW! Oh SH*T times 2. His pupil was fully dialated and his left eye was normal. I'm like we need to go to the hospital to get that look at!

The tow truck driver finally arrived 35 minutes later. We loaded the car and took off for Bangor. Mike, Lynne, Molly Mae, and I had to ride in the tow truck driver's wife's car. It is now 10:30PM. We arrive in Bangor at 11:30PM first stop the VW dealership. The service guy tells us he will look at it tomorrow and try to push it through as warranty. Next stop the Hospital. EMMC was pretty dead so we got right in. Mike had his eye looked at and it was just Traumatic Mydrosis. Apparently you can paraylze your iris if you hit your eye hard enough. Mike Gillis came to pick us up at 1:45 AM. We finally got back to Mike and Lynne's at 3 AM. What a fun night that was.

Friday found me hanging out at Mike and Lynne's. I drove Mike to the Optomologist to get his eye looked at some more. No Permanent Damage!

Saturday we went to the Blue Hill Fair. This is the fair that is featured in EB White's book Charolette's Web . We got home from there around 6PM and then met Mike and Tracy for dinner on their sailboat. We got home from there around 9:30 PM.

Sunday, I ran home to check on the cats and headed back to Bar Harbor for Birthday celebrations. Mike and Pete's birthday was Sept 5. So, we went to Miguel's and drank margaritas and had dinner. From there we went back to Pete's apartment for Cake, and then back out to the Lompoc. I am glad that Lynne drove us home.

Monday, Mike and I worked on cars.

Tues - today: Work as normal. No poker last night, a first in over a year. Tomorrow, Mike and Lynne, and I head off for the Saco River canoe trip. Will post more next week.

Over and Out!

Time goes by so quickly. Last week was pretty much a blur. All of the problems we have been having at work are finally resolved. The cause? A problem with the APC software and a JAVA certificate it used. This software self destructed on July 27th and was not discovered until August 19th. It screwed up all of our computers causing up to 9 different issues.

On the after work front, we were out sailing on Tuesday and Thursday evenings. Wednesday was poker and I lost big time.

Friday found me down in Bar Harbor fixing a printer at FOA and correcting some network issues for FineLine Builders. After that, I went over to St. Saviour's Church to assist in dress rehersal for First Light: The Oratorio. This is a musical based on the book First Light, a coffee table book with pictures of Acadia and MDI.

Saturday morning I met Mike and Lynne at the pier at 9:30AM. We had special guest coming with us on this sail. Charlie Anderson, owner of Greasel.com, was in town and Mike invited him out for a sail. We returned to the pier around 3 PM. From there, we got ready and headed over to the church for the World Premier of the Oratorio. It was close to a full house. After the show, I crashed at Mike and Lynne's for the night.

I woke up around 10:15AM on Sunday. Mike and I got ready and headed back to the church to set up for the Sunday Matinee of the Oratorio. The music was better, but the slide show suffered due to the sun. I got home around 7:30PM last night and just vegged out.

Hope you all had a good weekend.

J

Well another weekend here and another weekend gone! Friday night was another evening sail. We had Mike and Lynne, Monica, and 2 COA people on board. We sailed around the bay for a bit and then met up with Dave and Allison. We rafted up with them and John Sweet. We floated around for an hour or so and watched the moon rise. When we got back to the COA pier, we ended up having a cookout right there. I left there around 9 PM and headed out to pick up Kaya on the way home. I dog sat Kaya for Keith and Kelly on Friday night into Saturday afternoon.

I dropped Kaya off on the way to my DJ job. It was an excellent party with tons of people who like to dance. I played music from 4:30PM to 2:15 AM. I got home around 3 AM. Sleep was good but not plentiful.

Sunday found me up around 10AM. I got ready to come in to work for a while. I did my work thing and then called Mike to see if he was going out to the boat. He was! We met there around 1:30PM and just did work on the boat in the rain. I got home around 6PM and it was nice. That was the first evening I have been there in a long time.

Oh well... Back to work. More will follow soon.

Joe

What an incredible sunset last night. This was out sailing on Frenchman's Bay!

Another Friday is here. I hope you all have a good weekend. Tomorrow finds me DJ'ing a party and Sunday I will be sailing more.

So how was your weekend?

Mine, busy. Friday night after work, I met Mike at the boat and we went sailing on the bay. Our guests were two girls who are working in town for the summer. It was a relaxing sail with overcast skies. After we got back to the dock and got the boat put away on the mooring, I was asked to go out to the Lompoc with Andrew and crew. So were at the Lompoc and everybody starts showing up. George and Kelly, Julie, Mike Gillis, and the crew I was with. I stayed there for 2 hours and headed home when it started to rain. It was a long (50 minute) motorcycle ride home since it was raining. I did it as fast and as safely as the roads would allow.

Saturday found me up at 8 AM and out the door by 9 AM. I was down in Bar Harbor for the day helping out with the Friends of Acadia Benefit Gala and Auction. This is a huge auction and dinner fund raiser that FOA puts on each year. I think the total raised for this year will be more than last years $400,000 raised. You get to see the richest of the rich at this party. Martha Stewart didn't make it this year due to her extra 3 weeks of house arrest. I ended up getting home around 12:30AM that evening.

Sunday... the day of rest, NOT! I ended up coming into work for close to 6 hours to rebuild 3 PC's that were affected by a storm last week. It was not fun. After I left work, I went down to an ex-coworker's house for dinner. Another excellent meal!

Other than that... work is crazy for a Monday. I am meeting clients tonight for an upcoming DJ job on Aug. 20. Hopefully we'll get to go sailing tomorrow and Thursday nights. Wednesday night is Poker.

I'll be back.
J

Another week is gone. I have been working alot of hours over the last couple of weeks, trying to get our network setup correctly. It is almost done and then back to a normal schedule. Tuesday evening involved another sunset sail. Wednesday night was poker night were I ended up being the big winner with $21.00, Thursday night - work, and tonight... another sunset sail after riding the motorcycle to town.

Have a great weekend!

This is how I've been spending my summer. Sailing as much as possible. This is looking towards the Precipe in Acadia National Park.

Life and work have both been busy... Hopefully, I'll be able to update this thing more.

Joe

I don't even know where to begin...

As of January 28th I have started a new job with USA Computer Systems. I am the Network Administrator for this up and coming software company. This job has taught me many new and interesting things.

February 8th - 15th, I was on vacation in Florida with Jenn. We travelled from Ft. Lauderdale to Cumberland Island National Seashore in Georgia and back. We stopped at many cool National Wildlife Refuges and checked many cool little towns.

As of March 3rd, 2005 I am officially divorced.

May came and went. The wettest in history for Maine.

It is now June and the Park is open, the bugs are out, and the tourist are coming back.

WARNING: Long Update

So, I just got home from my trip to PA. I left on December 21st at 12:00 PM and headed south to Rhode Island. I spent the night with my cousin Laura and her husband Jay. Jay is a cook at the Salvation Cafe in Newport, Rhode Island. Laura took me there for dinner since Jay had to work. All of the food was fantastic! I even ate Clam Chowder and for those of you that know me I do not like seafood. The resteraunt was even featured on the Food Network on the $40 a Day Show. After that, we hung out at the loft until Jay was done with work. When Jay got home, we headed over to Jamestown Island and partied at the Naragassett Bar until 1 AM. We got back to there place and crashed. I had to get up early and continue my trip on to PA.

I left Laura and Jay's at 8 AM. Taffic on I-95 sucked! Contruction in 2 places and 1 fatal car wreck which had both lanes closed. I pulled into my grandparents house just at 2:30PM that afternoon. I got cleaned up and went out to finish my Christmas shopping. I could not believe how empty the stores were. After that, I met Mom & Bill for dinner at Fairground's Square Mall. From there, I went to my Dad's for a bit and then drove up to the Pagoda. I tried to take some night time pictures but they did not come out so well.

Thursday found me travelling to Mechanicsburg, PA. I went out there to see Pat and Jessi. I stopped by Wildware Outfitters to visit with Jessi. She was unable to go out to dinner with us that evening. I am just glad I got to see her for a few minutes. From there, I went over to Pat and Paul's house. We caught up on things and then went out for a fantastic dinner. I headed back to Reading just after 6:30 PM. When I got back, I went to my old bowling alley. I got to catch up on things with Mom and Pop Krick and their team. My old Thursday night team was still together and needed a sub. So, I paid the $10 and got to bowl. Let's just say, I am not that great without my own equipment. It was still a blast to hang out with the old team. I'll be taking my bowling equipment on future trips to PA.

Friday, Christmas Eve, I finished all of my shopping and began the ardeous task of wrapping the gifts. It took 2 hours to wrap everything. I bought myself a camera tripod too. Mom and Bill picked me up around 2 PM and we went to the Pagoda Driving Range. We hit a bucket of golf balls and I can still hit them ok. Dinner at Mom's was excellent and we exchanged Christmas gifts. I stopped by Dad's on the way home and arranged our plans for Christmas Day. From there, I went out to take more pictures of the Pagoda and Fire Tower atop of Mt. Penn. They came out some much better with the tripod. After I left there, I drove out to Christmas Village in Bernville to take some cool pics there. It was a quick drive home and to bed because 6 AM was coming fast.

Saturday, Christmas Day, I got to Dad's at 6:45 AM and we left immediately for our day trip to NJ for Christmas. It was good to see Poppy and Lucille. Kyle and I drove around and I was taking more pictures. I love my new digital camera. When we got back, we ate a big feast and relaxed on the couch. We left NJ around 4 PM and got back to Reading just after 6 PM. I stopped by to visit with Adric and his family for about 15 minutes before I continued to Birdsboro to say good bye to Mom and Bill. I got back to granpop's and packed the car up, checked email, and went to bed.

Sunday, the alarm went off at 4:30 AM. UGGHHH! I rolled out of bed, started the car, and got ready to leave. I was out the door at 5AM. 10 minutes into the trip, my windshield wipers broke while cleaning the ice off of the windshield. I immediately began to fear the worst. The trip did not require their use the rest of the way home. I made it back to my house in 9 hours 15 minutes. I rearranged some gifts and then headed to Bar Harbor to drop them off with Mike and Lynne and Todd and Kirsten. I finally got home just after 7PM and did nothing for the rest of the evening.

Monday morning, I woke up to 4 inches of new snow. I am glad that it waited until I got home. I still had no wipers, but that was ok. They closed our office at 1 PM because of the weather and I drove to Bangor to have the wipers fixed. I got home just after 5 PM, ate dinner, cleaned the stickers off the windows, and watched The Terminal. I give it 2 thumbs up.

Well, that wraps up this update. Sorry it was so long.

Well alot has happend in the last 6 months. Angela and I are getting divorced. The divorce will be finalized on December 30, 2004. I have moved into the new house. I will be posting pictures soon. This will be the first year that I have been home for Christmas in the last 6 years. More updates will follow soon.

A new record. 2 months without an update. Let me sum it up in a nutshell "BUSY!"

For the last month and a half, I have been preparing documentation and implementing procedures for the new project I am in charge of at the bank. We are replacing over 130 PC's in all of our branches. So far 3 are done and 10 are left. This project consumes most of my days now. At night, I do not feel like updating anything.

I am quite relieved, Angela and I are on vacation in Pennsylvania until 4/28. We drove to PA on 4/21 and have been busy here as well. We went to NJ on Friday morning to visit with my Grandparents, then we drove to Balitmore for the weekend to visit with close friends, and then we drove to Harrisburg to visit with some more friends. We arrived back in Reading on Monday night. Today is a day of rest before we drive home. We'll do some shopping and hit some golf balls.

Hopefully I'll get some pictures posted soon on the website.

Joe

Well no updates have occurred in 2 weeks. This past weekend was a long weekend for us. It was our 6th annual Banff Mountain Film Festival Weekend. I had to work on Friday and Saturday at the new Rockland Branch. Angela attended the Friday night Toga party, which did not have to many people at this year. On Saturday afternoon, we played a $10/person round of Poker. Angela played and won a total of $17.00. She was the second highest winner. Saturday night was the Mountain Culture Films, which were all good. After the movies, we went back to Mike and Lynne’s to party some more. On Sunday, we got up late and met everyone for a hike around Jordan Pond. It was a Sunny, but cold day. After the walk we got showered up and ready for the Sunday night Mountain Sports films. Once again, another night without any boring films. After the movies once again it was party time. Monday was a slow and quiet day for us. We went up to Mike and Lynne’s to say good buy to the Baltimore crew. After that we went to Wal-Mart and the grocery store. Angela went to book club on Monday night. Tuesday we hosted poker night at our house. I was doing all right until we played a game of guts. I lost $5.00 in a matter of 3 hands. Oh well…

Work is going well right now. Angela’s immigration paperwork is completed and we are planning a trip to PA the first week of April.

TTFN.

The onion soup party was a success. Both pots of soup were gone by 10PM. We partied until midnight.

Since then, things have been extremely hectic between life and work. I have made another trip to NB to get the mail and some more things from the house, We have been looking at land to purchase, playing poker every Wednesday night, and so on… Work has been extremely busy with our upcoming Rockland Branch acquisition; almost as crazy as the Sovereign Bank Days.

Thank goodness the weekend is upon us. I will try to have an update on Monday.

I went home to NB 2 weekends ago. It was a fun drive in the snow both ways. Not to much has happened since then.

Movies that we recently watched include: Liar, Liar; Bruce Almighty, Lara Croft The Cradle of Life, and Seabiscuit. Angela and I highly recommend Seabiscuit!

Last night was poker night at Mike and Lynne’s. I ended up winning $2.20 on top of my original $5. Tonight we prepare for our visitors. Kevin and Patricia are coming to visit us for the weekend. Tomorrow night we are having, “Joe's Fabulous Five Onion Soup Gathering” as Angela put in the email. Should be a nice gathering of friends and family as always.

This coming weekend is a long weekend for me. I’ll have to post an update of all of our activities that we did.

GO EAGLES!!!!!