Tuesday Hike ....

Tuesday was vacation day. Of course a relaxing vacation is to head to Shenandoah Park and Hike Old Rag. For those unfamiliar, Old Rag is a easy to moderate hike with some nice big boulders on top of the mountain. Seven of us met in Centreville and then drove out to the park. Depending on where you check the hike supposedly takes anywhere from 4-1/2 to 5-1/2 hours and we had planned to do it in less than 4.

We started hiking a little after 8 and as we headed up we could see the fog was settling in so big spectacular views was not going to be an option. Two of us, myself and Siri, kept a steady pace and we were soon ahead of everyone stopping a couple of times so we could keep the group together. We hit the summit in 1-3/4 hours had a quick snack and then decided to head down. Most of the group decided to climb back down the way we came, a 3 mile hike, while Siri and myself decided we would take the 4-1/2 mile trail that included the fire road. We of course made it a challenge to see who could get to the parking lot faster. One other person decided to join us and off we went. Well we made the parking lot in under 45 minutes (yes we were moving) and decided to cool off in the spring close by.

After everyone else made it down, all in less than 3-1/2 hours, we headed to Thornton Grill in Sperryville for some lunch and then back to DC. It was a great hike and my legs reminded me of it this morning.

Have a great week and cu l8r .....

A month to study ....

Things are moving fairly fast on the naturalization front, or at least they appear to be moving. I just received notice for my interview which is October 20th. This interview is where they test knowledge of US History, understanding of the language etc... Not sure where it fits on the timeline for naturalization but I am a bit surprised it has come up this quick. I guess I should be excited about it - but it also means I will need to take a look at the example questions to make sure I do not make any mistakes. I guess it is convenient that Tika is taking AP US History - maybe I will get her to quiz me.

---- cu

Back from Ottawa ....

It was a long weekend but it was a fun one.

Went to Ottawa for a couple of days of work and then had some down time as well. Some former colleagues had arranged a reunion/fund-raiser. The reunion part was people that had been at Entrust mostly during the IPO time. I got to see people who I had not seen in 10 years as well as catching up with friends who are living all over. It was a great event and we raised over $27,000 for the Ottawa Hospital Foundation.

I also got to spend some time with my brother Wayne and the family. Nothing like playing catch and doing chalk drawings on the driveway. I also got to catch up with my dear old friend Malcolm, who also happens to be Martika's godfather. We had a great evening catching up and having a few beers (ok - one more poured then should have been).

All in all a GREAT weekend.

---- cu

Reston Triathlon ....

What a variety of a weekend. Saturday I was volunteering at the Reston Triathlon packet pick up. The early morning was ok but by mid morning Tropical Storm Hanna let us know that she was going to have an influence and at times it was truly raining horizontal. The day was great - I got to meet lots of great people in the AM and even get some insider information which will be good for next years race. I got to spend most of the afternoon in a great long conversation - thanks for the tea Miho :-).

Sunday was the day of the race - sunny and warm. Because of the rain Saturday they canceled the swim, too much debris in the lake, so the race became a duathlon. I volunteered as a bike marshal - making sure the bikers were safe and that the drivers knew what was going on. It was a little bit frustrating knowing that the race dropped my worst event and that there were a number of people that dropped out leaving empty spots. It would have been great to race - BUT volunteering is very rewarding in a different way. Again I met some great people and left the race motivated to make sure I am in and ready for next years event.

Off to Ottawa Wednesday --- hope all have a GREAT week.

Gary