June is definitely milestone season in this neck of the woods. Not only is today the third anniversary of my start with the ITOE Technology Architects group (the artists formerly known as the SQL CoE), but this past Sunday marked my tenth(!) anniversary as a full-time employee at Microsoft.  Throw in the end of school last week, the blog’s anniversary on the 22nd, and my wedding anniversary in the middle of July, and there is much to commemorate and celebrate at this time of year. Despite recent

After battling a failed laptop and Tropical Storm Fay, I'm back up and running at our new digs in Central Florida. I thought some of you might be interested in some pictures of where we've landed. The entrance to our place sits at the junction of of two County Roads (let's call them "4" and "4A", to protect the innocent), just off of a U.S. highway, about 3.8 miles north of town proper (“town proper” may be an oxymoron, but that’s more pictures and a different post). Here’s the entire length of "CR

It's been a busy six weeks since I last posted here. I've made substantial progress in my recovery from a burst appendix. My stamina is still limited (my sons blazed right by me on a staircase outside Safeco Field this evening ), and I tend to relapse slightly a couple of times a week, usually as a result of poor dietary choices. I'm slowly learning to live within my limitations in that regard. My work on the SQL RAP 2.2 release is nearly complete, despite the interruption caused by May's events.

Yesterday was a big day in our household. In addition to our two resident mothers, we also commemorated our eldest son's sixteenth birthday. Earlier in the week, after a delicate negotiation, we agreed on a blended celebration dinner at the Benihana restaurant in downtown Seattle. In addition to being the most fun I've had in awhile, the occasion offered myriad object lessons on improving one's reputation, regardless of its current state. The day started with an early call for a baseball game for