♥ Au Naturel ♥

QotD: Summer Solstice

nobody@vox.com(Sheryl) — Sat, 21 Jun 2008 16:24:20 -0700

Yesterday was the summer solstice for those of us in the Northern Hemisphere. How did you celebrate the arrival of summer and the longest day of the year?

Spending more time in the car than ever before. 700 miles of travel and I don't like it! :)

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QotD: Kindgergarten Rules of Wisdom

nobody@vox.com(Sheryl) — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 18:47:31 -0700

What did you learn in kindergarten that you wish you did a better job of applying to the way you live your life today?

In kindergarten I learned to not put too much paint on a picture or it cracks and the picture is ruined. Essentially that equates to everything in moderation. Boy I wish I had applied that to my life!

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The commitment

nobody@vox.com(Sheryl) — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 22:14:20 -0700

After a whirlwind of travel and meetings with Jeff Pulver et al, Ken and I decided to take a day for ourselves yesterday. Just a day of exploring our new community and enjoying each other’s company. Being typical of most newcomers we decided to see what sort of activities were happening at Riverfront Park, Riverpark Square.

We got in the car and drove downtown arriving with the Nikon and our ever present Blackberry’s for capturing the sights and memories. The first sight we were greeted with was a Giant Wagon and in the background some giant children’s blocks.

There were actually a number of interesting sculptures. One is the steel runners. I have no idea how that was done. It must have taken forever to achieve!

Another was the water sculpture.

As we wandered there was a touching veterans statue tribute. I guess there are many similar statues around the world honoring those who died in service to their governments.

What many don’t know or have forgotten, is that Spokane Wa. was the home of the 1974 World Exposition. One of the most obvious reminders is the structure left behind that covers the arcade/amusement park area. I should share with you all that I remember the 1974 World Fair. I attended it. So I actually remember going to this pavillion and I also remember that my very first concert took place at this Expo. Neil Diamond sang Sweet Caroline. I’ll save that story for another time.

Another reminder of that time is something called the skyride. I can tell you that the skyride of today is not much like the skyride of ‘74. That skyride was something like a ski lift. Today it’s enclosed and plexi-glassed in for safety. Still, it’s exciting to travel over Spokane Falls and see the rushing water. During the return ride, we had the windows open and were able to feel the spray from the falls. It was a day of remembering, and a day of making new memories.

As the day wore on we decided on lunch. We walked across the street to a place called the Sawtooth Grill. While we walked we noticed some interesting sights. There was someone, clearly a man, dressed very nicely in womens clothes with a long wig and makeup. Ken and I neither one would have been overly interested except it’s Spokane and something you just don’t see that often. Being dressed in drag isn’t common. We also started wondering why there was so much activity at the park. In the end we chalked it up to the start of summer vacation.

After lunch we wandered around a bit more and headed back to the park where there was a bandstand set up. It was then we realized just what was going on for the day. All the signs in the world hadn’t been enough until then.

(Yes this should have been a clue)

On stage, wearing a black floor length robe, was a man performing a ceremony. We stopped and listened. So intent we didn’t take pictures of what was happening, and in retrospect we wished we had. What we were witnessing was a first for us as an engaged couple. A wedding was taking place. Ok, maybe not a true wedding but a commitment ceremony for the gay couples in the area! What a huge surprise and one we felt blessed to witness. We have neither one witnessed anything like it and it was such a special memory.

One of the neat things was the entertainment. A performer named Auntie Bijou, a ‘woman of a certain age in flats’, did some cabaret music, literally performing Cabaret. She was AWESOME!

Not to be outdone was, “The Giant Ass Drum Corp” performing ‘Tranny- Tude’. It was fabulous!

When we were done watching that, we headed to the carousel ride. It is a beautiful original carousel ride built in 1909.

And what amusement park would be complete without Zoltar? I remember him from the movie ‘Big’ with Tom Hanks. Needless to say we did not get our fortunes told. We did, however, take a picture of Zoltar.

That is the end of a day that was absolutely fabulous. It was a calm, if fun, day after a week of flurry. Now we have to get ready for another week of flurry. Next weekend we move. That we’ll write about at another time.

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Jeff Pulver at IHOP in Bellingham

nobody@vox.com(Sheryl) — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 19:44:02 -0700

Sent via BlackBerry by AT&T

IMG01376.jpg

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Life in a corporate apartment sucks... really!

nobody@vox.com(Sheryl) — Thu, 05 Jun 2008 20:44:24 -0700

We've been here 2 weeks tomorrow. Things have been a little harried with house hunting, house viewing, planning for a quick two day tour of Seattle and Vancouver Ca. for breakfast with Jeff Pulver. It isn't easy, but today it got even worse.

We got 2 ragdoll kittens a couple months ago. They are now 6 months old. Today we reached the ultimate in awful. Abbott, the light blue eyed one, decided it was his day to have intestinal distress. At first we thought maybe he got into something, and maybe he did though for the life of me I couldn't tell you what. We have had to have several bottom baths and while he's still eating and drinking normally, his bum is getting raw and so he is getting a trip to the vet in the morning.

I don't know how other people handle it but I can tell you living in an apartment that isn't yours, having to hunt after cat drips all evening long has taken it's toll. I'm tired and hoping he is better tomorrow. I am very worried and crossing my fingers all is ok.

Of course this weekend we have a trip planned to go to an all night Graduation party for a niece/cousin. Needless to say, without some significant improvement, we will not be going.

Abbott

I hope our baby is ok. We adore our little bundles of energy!

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Settling in....not settling!

nobody@vox.com(Sheryl) — Sun, 25 May 2008 09:31:44 -0700

Welcome to chaos, or should I say my life? Ken and I arrived in Spokane, (Liberty Lake actually) on Friday, May 23rd. After a harrowing drive that should have taken 5 and a half hours but really took about 8 due to kitty melt down, we arrived at our new apartment in Liberty Lake Wa., a suburb of Spokane Wa.

Having spent all of about 5 minutes unpacking, although it was actually much longer because we had to unpack two vehicles and carry all the stuff up 3 flights of stairs, I realized why it is I don't like apartment living. Besides the fact that we are on the third floor, and it's not a teeny apartment, we have been perpetually calling it the hotel. Both of us have called it that. It doesn't feel even remotely like a home. It feels blah, bland, like every other place on the block. I like quirky houses. I don't like a cookie cutter. Apartments are cookie cutter and they suck.

That was 2 days ago and since then we have spent hours in the car touring the area in search of the right house to suit our lifestyle and family. We have certain needs. We need an office. We need a space to do GeekSpeak TV. We need bedrooms for guests. We need room for the boys. We need proximity to Ken's work for commute time. What we'd like is hard wood floors, a nice kitchen for all those gourmet dinners Ken will be making me ;o) a big closet for our clothes and shoes, and at least 2.5 bathrooms.

I don't know how much time I'll have for posting but as we find things, see things, I'm sure pics will go up on flickr and various other sites. We'll keep you posted as best we can. Anyway, we're here.

living room corp apt.

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A Departure.....

nobody@vox.com(Sheryl) — Fri, 16 May 2008 08:51:29 -0700

We’re moving

We’re moving…again. Are you surprised?

Our life has been a real whirlwind the past few months. We just moved two weeks ago into a home we really like. We’ve been picturing the summer here walking around the small lake and getting to know our new neighbors. There’s a pool and clubhouse that are really nice. We took lots of pictures, but only posted a few to Flickr.

The home we barely knew

Life is a series of surprises, twists and turns. Ken was in the process of transitioning day jobs in his work with the state when he got an offer that we both felt we just couldn’t pass up. So three weeks after moving into what we thought would be our home, we’re moving again. This time, we’re leaving Olympia and moving to Spokane.

We won’t actually live in Spokane proper, but the Spokane Valley. Ken’s new employer is in Liberty Lake. We’ll be moving over into corporate housing on the Memorial Day weekend. That will give us a long weekend to find our way around the area and get a sense of where we are. Ken goes to work in his new role on the 27th.

If moving isn’t enough to keep life interesting, we’ve been working with our good friend Jeff Pulver to coordinate the upcoming Breakfast with Jeff Pulver (and friends) in Seattle . Not only is it a chance to see Jeff again, we’re going to be doing some video as we track A Day in the Life of Jeff for our GeekSpeakTV. To make things a little more interesting, Robert Scoble will be joining Jeff, so this breakfast is with with Jeff and Robert.

Sometime later in the day we’ll kidnap Jeff, and the three of us will be driving to Vancouver after breakfast for Breakfast with Jeff Pulver (and friends) in Vancouver the next day. After more video and networking with another great group of people, we’ll hit the road back to Spokane. We’re looking forward to some time alone with Jeff to hear about his new ventures and just spend some time with one of the neatest people we know.

But wait, there’s more. On July 4th we fly to northern BC. Many of my things are still up there. We’re going to load them up, pick up David, and the three of us will then drive back to Spokane.

Life is going to continue to be busy and exciting for us. We’re still pursuing all our dreams together. Our daily routine
will change and we’ll adapt as we go. We’ll find a way for a little downtime for ourselves along the way. Together. We’re doing everything together. That’s where the real strength lies for us. We have a powerful, magical bond that we’re protecting forever as we journey through life, hand in hand and side by side. Hyperconnected and in love!

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Blogging is not so easy

nobody@vox.com(Sheryl) — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 08:47:50 -0700

I have been remiss writing on here or anywhere. I have had a lot of life experiences but finding the time and energy to actually post is a sort of tedious task I find difficult to conceive most days.

We're moving. We had been living on a temporary basis in a house that was vacant but for sale by someone we knew. What we didn't KNOW was this person was not able to make their mortgage payments and wound up in default. We paid rent every month, but I guess it wasn't enough. We got a default notice posted to our door and then found ourselves in dire need of new digs.

We have since found the water also was not paid by the landlord and are grateful we were able to find a house in short order. It's a bigger house on less property but monthly rate is also less and there are amenities. A community pool, we're on a lake, there are any number of outdoor possibilities and a clubhouse. All part of the HOA perks. Until we're ready to buy this will do nicely. We have some financial things to work out...such as divisions in past relationships etc.

We have my daughter living with us now. She has been trying to find a job in IT. Not an easy thing to do without using connections, something she seems loathe to do. It makes our relationship journey difficult, but not impossible.

We've been working at our new webtv show, GeekSpeak TV. We really enjoy doing it. Sometimes we struggle to get an agenda, but we work it out. There should be a handbook of things you should know to have one of these shows but the truth is it's all so new and no one seems to have a template.

We're trying to find a venue for a breakfast in Seattle. It's part of the Breakfast with Jeff Pulver series. Jeff will of course be there and he recently sent a message to tell us that Robert Scoble also will. He will be co-host. We're excited about this and look forward to spending time with Jeff.

Ken and I had a poll on our website, Stardust Global Ventures, and it was with regard to following around 1 of 5-6 people for a day..shadowing them. Jeff Pulver won the dubious honor of being our first victim. He has very nicely agreed to allow us to film it. We're super thrilled. Ok, I am. ;o) I just love the idea of following Jeff around. He's so interesting. I just wish I could garner his visions by osmosis. I'd love to have one tenth the amount of know how he seems to have and also that ever illusive vision. Some people really seem to get it and beyond getting it, know how to catch the attention of others with their enthusiasm. Jeff is really good at that. During the recent VON.x conference Ken and I attended, Jeff was doing a keynote and I could have just listened all day. He's that engaging!

So for now I'll leave you with my pseudo swan song. Pseudo because I'm not finished blogging. Here or anywhere, but because I'm off on another day full of wonderment. ;o) Oh...and since I didn't share it anywhere other than twitter, have a listen to the song our Good Friend Scott Wilder wrote for our engagement. He's a miracle man with composition. He talked to us and asked about what made this special etc. The culmination is beyond magic. Oh, and he's about to experience his own little magic. He and his wife, Kathie, are expecting their first baby. We are ecstatic for them.
When You Shine

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A Wedding Date To Remember

nobody@vox.com(Sheryl) — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 17:59:41 -0700

Invitation2

We wanted to share with everyone we have finally set a Wedding Date! I know, about time. We set it so far out largely because we want to give people an opportunity to plan to come. We have friends all over the world and yes, we really want you all here! How could we not? After all, our friends are our friends regardless of how we met or where we all live.

We love each and every one of you and look forward to meeting up with you as we continue this very public relationship/engagement/wedding.

Oh, and besides the date, you should all know we will have the wedding somewhere in Washington State. Not sure where yet, but that is for family.

Thank you for all the well wishes and kind words as well as the hand holding and SHARING!

Ken and Sheryl at Peggy Sue's

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Ken asked me to marry him....

nobody@vox.com(Sheryl) — Sun, 23 Mar 2008 07:56:32 -0700

At the VON.x conference in San Jose earlier this week, we shared the most momentous event of our life together. Many readers and friends have seen, but since it was live on stage at VON, and live streamed on the Internet. Now it's here on VOX too.

I can't begin to express how amazing this proposal was. First, it was a secret. Oh...it's not that I had no idea Ken would ask me. Of course I did. It's just...I didn't know where or when, or even how! I also didn't know anything about the ring. I suspected there might be one. I had NO idea what it would look like, How absolutely gorgeous it would be.

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This is not the best picture out there of my ring. But it sort of shows what it's like. It's three center emerald cut diamonds with three princess cut stones on either side. They're colorless so they truly shine! It's just hard to express how beautiful it is.

To be honest, the ring, while magnificent, is not what mattered. Having my son there was a pretty phenomenal thing. David was with us for The entire event. He took many of the pictures including the ones below. He's a good photographer.

The other things that made it so wonderful, besides the obvious part where I proclaim my love for a man I have watched grow emotionally, and lived with, shared my life and family with, was that so many people who have come to genuinely matter to me were present or there shortly after. Alec Suanders, iotum founder and CEO was one of the videographers. So was Dean Elwood. Ken gave him our n95 to use for streaming live to our qik feed. Jeff Pulver was there also streaming live. He and Ken had worked this all up without my being privy to it, but also Jim Courtney, Andy Abramson, James Body (my pink friend of truphone) and Dameon Welch-Abernathy. Dameon was a personal friend prior to this event and he didn't quite make it on time but probably has the best pictures of my ring on his Ovi pic site. Oh and Carmelo Zaccone was there as well and apparently recorded the event. I haven't seen his footage yet. Also Pat Phelan wasn't right there because of meetings, but he was also one of our supporters and now our good friend. He knew Ken before but not me and not David. I know Ken shared in advance the impending event and Pat was excited!

I said yes. ;o)

Here's one of the videos that was streamed live on the Internet.

Proposal

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