Gray sky
I think I moved down south sometime in early 2001. When I made the big move I said to myself “well, no more winters for me.” It’s funny how things change. After over a decade in the warmth of North Carolina, I find myself freezing my ass off in the north, once again. I am constantly amazed at my wife. She is an amazing women who is absolutely thriving in the bleak, grey, frozen tundra that is New York State. I can’t say that I am doing as well.
Chrysa and Twix thrive in the snow.
Growing up in Buffalo there were two Jesse’s. Summer Jesse was fun and energetic. Winter Jesse was moody and lazy. I fear that winter Jesse is trying to come back. I want to start this post with a promise. I promise to be cheerful during the long, sunless hours of winter in Oneonta. I also promise to do a better job of keeping up with this blog. Just because the sun hasn’t come out in 3 weeks doesn’t mean that I get to slack off.
It’s so cold Nick sleeps in front of the vent!
OK…Now that I have that off my chest. This is what we have been up to (in no real order).
Christmas.
While living in North Carolina my buddy, Rob and I, would celebrate “Man Christmas.” “Man Christmas” is sort of like regular Christmas, just with more beer, and video games, and grilled meat. Rob and I would get giant steaks, or ribs, and grill them up while getting a little drunk. Before you think that “Man Christmas” is just for the guys, think again. Chrysa joined us a couple times and had a lovely time.
This year we are close enough for visitors. Chrysa’s parents spent Christmas day with us this year. It was a real nice time. I made steak salad for lunch and pork roast for supper. We ate great food while drinking much better booze than any “Man Christmas.” It was a nice time and it felt real good to be around family for both Thanksgiving and Christmas this year.
Running.
Chrysa and I have been spoiled in terms of running. Raleigh had an amazing greenway system and fantastic run clubs (I’m looking at you RRC). Lafayette didn’t have an extensive greenway but we could step out our door and run on sidewalks for miles. We also knew that the Wabash River Run Club had our back. We are a bit less fortunate in Oneonta. We live on a rural highway so sidewalk running is out of the question. Running downtown is fun, but we are quickly running out of routes. We have found a 2 mile greenway loop. Hopefully that will help us train. We are actively looking for winter races. Chrysa is trying to keep my seasonal affective disorder at bay by getting me moving. Honestly, I don’t know what I would do without her.
Employment.
Chrysa is really enjoying her new job. The people at the new assignment are really nice and she has fit in really well. I got to go to the lab Christmas celebration recently. I made a homemade meatball lasagna. The gang seemed to really like it. Anyone who likes my cooking is OK in my book. I am a complete outsider to them and they made me feel very welcome.
I am also employed again. I have always wanted to get into the food business. In order to break in I have taken a job in the seafood department at the local grocery store. I’m picking up some good knife skills as well as cooking skills. This place is full service. They steam and fry the fish to order so it’s pretty good experience for me. I’ve only been on the job a couple days but, so far, so good!
Keep an eye out for more updates. We are planning a trip to Cooperstown, we have a run coming up, and we are going skiing. The stories should be fun and the pics should be hilarious (I’m not a particularly good skier). We are going to try to make the best of this cold, grey winter.
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