Year End Post

It has been months since our last post. My dear friend, Julia, reminded me that we have a blog and that I should put some of our pictures up. Kon and I are terrible at bringing our camera places and half the time we do remember the battery is dead, so it is slim pickings -- but still fun to share:

We dog sat Lucy recently -- here is Lucy trying to steal Emma's favorite spot on the chair:
We had a week of vacation in October and took a road trip to Mammoth Caves, Kentucky where Kon was "wow'ed" by the formations ...

... and did a little hiking along the Appalachian Trail.
Here is Kon changing the oil on our car -- sorry, I can't figure out how to rotate the picture.
And last, here we are at our friend Julia and Tim's home for Christmas dinner. We didn't have a tree this year, so we borrowed theirs.
Happy 2010 to everyone! Love, Stacy

Another month gone by.

I can't believe that it has already been a month since our last blog update...seems time goes by faster than I can keep up with. Since the last update we have done a few exciting things along with our normal work. We did take some pictures of the fun stuff:

1) A water ski show in Rochester with our friends Niels and Karly with their son Judah;

2) A weekend in northern Wisconsin over the 4th of July with Stacy's cousin Jackie--some water skiing, another water ski show, some fireworks, and visiting Stacy's grandma Rosemary (we were in the town where Stacy's dad, Steve, grew up...very nice);

3)Just over 2 weeks in Mexico--this was part of my elective month, I studied spanish, observed in a clinic, and got to spend some time with my dad and sister who were able to join me (Stacy had to stay and work).

1)Rochester Water Ski Show

Niels, Karly, and Judah at the water ski show in Rochester.
This was my first ever water ski show. I thought it was a lot of fun.

2) Northern Wisconsin Fun

Stacy, her cousin Jackie (on the right), and Jackie's roommate, Becky, dressed up for Independence Day fun.
Emma liked to stand on the front of the kayak, until...she fell off and went swimming.
Some water skiers in Minocqua, WI. I was really shocked with some of the stuff they did and had a great time. They are the oldest, continuously running, amateur water ski show in the country.

They are a big team.

One of their boats has a couple big outboard motors...they can stand the boat almost straight up in the air...I was impressed.
They can do tricks off of the jump while other skiers pass under them.

3)Mexico Trip--Dad was with me for the entire 16 days, Teresa for 10. We took language classes and got to do some sightseeing.

Dad and Teresa with Ramon (cousin Anna's husband who was deported to Mexico over 18 months ago...found out while we were there that he has permission to return, praise God). This picture is in front of the Royal Palace in downtown Mexico City.

A big organ at the Mexico City cathedral...we saw it with Ramon one Friday afternoon.


Another view of the cathedral.
This is the clinic where I observed, Maria Luisa was the manager/nurse/secretary of El Dispensario. She is a very friendly lady.

Teresa at the pyramid at Tepozteco...quite the view.
Here is a view of the pyramid. It is at the top of some cliffs, in an area that seems unlikely for a pyramid. It was a nice hike. Looks like the picture didn't turn out great.
This is me looking as much like a frat guy as I know how...with my new big hat and my incredibly large beer...I felt like all I needed was an Abercrombie shirt.

This is the school where we studied. Our classes were under the tiki huts.

A few of the teachers at the language school.

Nallely was my teacher for the majority of the time I was in language school, she taught me medical spanish.

Here is the family we stayed with in Cuernavaca, Mexico...left to right: dad, Jose Maria, Chema, Alicia, and Diego (I am in front). This family was incredibly friendly and welcoming, Thanks.

I may be able to add more pictures in the coming weeks...I forgot my camera charger, so I didn't take as many pictures as I wanted to, nor as many as dad or Teresa took. Hope you enjoy.

June in Alaska

We just returned from a week long vacation in Anchorage visiting my parents and enjoying the beautiful scenery. Here are some of the highlights!

Emma came along with us and got to meet my parent's dog, Dango, for the first time.
We took a long walk along the coastal trail and watched the airplanes take off and land.
We drove to Whittier for a half day glacier cruise. On the way, we saw some Dall Sheep. Kon was particularly proud of this picture as he used his small tripod and timer to take the picture from the hood of the car.
Here we are on the glacier cruise. We saw otters, bald eagles, and the glaciers calved for us!
Here Kon is sitting with Emma at the top of Flat Top, a short hike from Anchorage. Emma loved hiking and practically threw herself down the mountain. Kon had to hold her back with her leash.
A little rusty on the jumping pictures!
We met Hudson, my cousin Blake and his wife Virginia's first child. He is such a mellow baby and keeps all the adults entertained!
Blake and Virginia took us on a fishing trip. Here we are getting ready to launch Blake's river boat.
Bill, a family friend, flew us home to Anchorage from his Bulchitna Lake Lodge where we stayed for a couple nights. What a fun time!

Now, we're back in Rochester. Starting next Monday, we'll officially be second year residents!

Spring update.

I have included some photos of Stacy's trip to Germany with her mom. They traveled in March to participate in the wedding off one of Stacy's college friends, Ryan, to a German girl, Anne. I will let Stacy tell more about the trip if she wants...I didn't get to go along.
Stacy read from Velveteen Rabbit as part of the ceremony.


Stacy got a new weed pulling tool. She has a lot of fun spending time in the yard pulling dandelions. The new tool allows her to do it without bending down all the time. Our yard looks better since she started using the tool, but we have a long way to go before we are anywhere near weed free.



Here are some pictures of Memorial Day spent with Stacy's cousin Jackie. We drove to her place north of St. Paul and spent Sunday night and Monday with her. We went to a park on the St. Croix River just east of the twin cities. We were able to take our dogs, Emma and Miller, and had a nice time in great weather. We have enjoyed hanging out with Jackie a number of times since we have moved here.


Just today I bought a product for headlight refinishing...it is supposed to refinish the lens and get rid of the haziness. My headlights were pretty hazy, and the product is only $20 at Walmart, so I decided to try it. I haven't driven the car in the dark since doing it, but it does look better. Hopefully the function will also be better. I included a picture of the bag...kind of like an infomercial below complete with before and after photos. That's about it for now. Stacy and I leave for Alaska next week to visit Steve and Narumi, Stacy's parents. We are pretty excited about the trip. I will try to update the blog with some pictures when we get back. Hope this finds you well.

Recreational activity!

Last Saturday we had the opportunity to see Storyhill in concert in Zumbrota (a little town about 25 miles from Rochester). It was a great concert. We were in the second row. Unfortunately we forgot our camera, so we didn't get any actual pictures. I stole this one from the world wide web. The guys are originally from Montana and have a bunch of references to Montana stuff in their music. It made me miss Montana when I listened. They have ties to the area (John, the guy on the left in the picture, went to college out here), so we should get a chance to listen again in the future. Things are going well otherwise. Stacy starts a busier rotation on Saturday in the MICU (medical ICU). I get to work in the emergency department again. Dad comes to visit next weekend. I will try to update after his visit and all the exciting things we will get to do (the plan is to put a new back door on the house...I bet you can't wait for some pictures of that).

Flatus

I came across this passage while studying today. I thought it very funny and descriptive. I realize that not everyone will agree with me, but I still wanted to share. I hope that you can at least get a chuckle from this...

From The Merck Manual, 16th edition:

Flatulence: Among those who are flatulent, the quantity and frequency of gas passage shows great variability. As with bowel frequency, persons who complain of flatulence often have a misconception of what is normal. In a study of 8 normal men aged 25 to 35 yr, the average number of gas passages was 13 ± 4 in one day with an upper limit of 21/day, which overlapped with many persons who complained of excess flatus. On the other hand, one study noted a person who expelled gas as often as 141 times daily, including 70 passages in one 4-hour period. Hence, objectively recording flatus frequency should be the first step in evaluating a complaint of excessive flatulence.

This symptom, which can cause great psychosocial distress, is unofficially described according to its salient characteristics:
· The "slider" (crowded elevator type), which is released slowly and noiselessly, sometimes with devastating effect;
· The open sphincter, or "pooh" type, which is said to be of higher temperature and more aromatic;
· The staccato or drumbeat type, pleasantly passed in privacy; and
· The "bark" type (described in a personal communication), characterized by a sharp exclamatory eruption that effectively interrupts (and often concludes) conversation. Aromaticity is not a prominent feature.

Rarely, this usually distressing symptom has been turned to advantage, as with a Frenchman referred to as "Le Petomane," who became affluent as an effluent performer who played tunes with the gas from his rectum on the Moulin Rouge stage. Despite the flammable nature of flatal H2 and CH4, no hazard is likely to those working near open flames, and youngsters have even been known to make a game of expelling gas over a match flame. However, gas explosion, rarely with fatal outcome, has been reported during jejunal and colonic surgery, and even during proctosigmoidoscopic procedures, where diathermy was used.

This last week Tuesday, March 10 was my mom's birthday. It was a sad day...I wish that I had been able to be home with my dad and sister to celebrate her life and her birthday and to mourn her loss. I cried more on Tuesday than I had in quite a while. That same day I got a couple of emails from our Swiss relative. One of these included an older photo that I wanted to share. This photo shows, in the back row (the big people, left to right), Dad's Swiss second cousin Ursula, Dad, Dad's Swiss second cousin Margrit, Mom, and Aunt Ginnie. In the front row (the little people) are Teresa and my cousins Ali and Dusty.

I hope this posting finds you all well. I am doing OK as I remember Mom frequently this week and as I miss Stacy (she is in Germany with her mom and friend Julia for the wedding of her friend Ryan...hopefully she will bring some pictures we can share).

God Bless,

KON