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Weekend Update

Brian — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 19:44:24 +0000

Friday Night was the Battle for Burbank. Every year Burbank High School and John Burroughs High School, the two Burbank High Schools, face off on the football field. This year the winner of the game got to go on to league, which added a little more excitement. While neither Erin nor I have ties to either school it’s still fun to go with some friends and most of the Burbank community.

Saturday morning I got up and put the cabinet doors back on my freshly painted cabinets. It looked pretty nice.

Saturday afternoon we had a BATH (BBQ at the House) for a good friend who’s about to have a baby. We have started this tradition where every time one of the guys get married, or has a baby, we get together and have a BATH, while the girls have their shower. It’s kind of goofy, but it’s a fun tradition. We grilled up some carne asada, and had all the fixings for some good tacos.

Sunday it was my turn again to lead worship at church. I received quite a few compliments on my song selection this time around. I think it’s easy to tell when I put some good time into preparing, not that I ever just throw a service together but you get the idea.

Erin and I spent the rest of the afternoon at home. We did a little yard work in the front and then spent the rest of the afternoon in doors. Erin did a lot of work on our finances and I did some shredding, filing, organizing and cleaning.

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A Little Project

Brian — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 03:26:23 +0000

I started a little painting project tonight because the cable was out. Pictured is a cabinet in the laundry area that I have been meaning to paint for a while. This is after the first coat of primer.

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The French Press

Brian — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 18:01:00 +0000

I don’t think it’s any secret that I like coffee. Among my circle of friends I’m known to be one who over indulges upon occasion, causing long restless nights and shakey mornings. I wouldn’t call myself a coffee snob because it’s rare that I turn my nose at any particular coffee, be it of fine or of lesser quality; however this weekend, I have seen the light and it is called the French Press.

I’ve used a French Press before and have actually owned one for quite a while, but this weekend, I decided to pull my large press out of the cabinet and give it another try. Boy was I amazed at the results. Gone was the burnt flavor which, I assume is a result of the stained coffee pot. Instead I could taste more complexity in the flavor of the coffee. My cheap Costco coffee beans suddenly had been given new life.

Now, for those of you who aren’t familiar with the Frech Press, making coffee with one is a slightly more involved process than using your normal coffee pot. However, it’s not too bad. You start out with course ground coffee and pour it into the glass cylinder. I use my own grinder so I’m still learning to grind the beans more coarsly than usual. I’m used to grinding the heck out of them. After the coffee is in the glass cyliner you pour boiling water into the cylinder leaving some room at the top. I like to boil my water with a tea kettle on the stove to add to the romance of the moments. A microwave would do just fine as well.

Once you’ve poured the hot water over the coffee you stir the mixture. I use a plastic spoon, so that there’s little chance I’ll crack the glass. The next step is to put the lid on your press and wait. I give it about 4 minutes. The longer you wait the stronger the coffee. After 4 minutes you push the filter down through the coffee slowly. This filters the grounds from the coffee so you can drink it without having to chew. And finally, you’re ready to pour a cup and enjoy your brew.

Tree Trimming

Brian — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 17:27:00 +0000

Did you know that you aren't supposed to trim the trees in the parkway in front of your house?

Erin and I thought we'd check with the city before attempting to trim the tree in our front yard since there had been such a hoopla surrounding a young couple trimming a tree in Glendale in 2007. I'm glad we did, apparently the city has to do it. Anyway, we're now on the list to have our tree trimmed. Hopefully it'll happen soon, there are a lot of dead branches just waiting to fall on a parked car.

I wonder if the city's responsible for tree branches falling and damaging cars?

Merry Christmas

Brian — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 06:34:00 +0000

I know it’s a little early yet, but Erin and I bought a tree and decorated our house tonight so I figure it’s time to start wishing people a Merry Christmas. Merry Christmas!

Extended Weekend Update

Brian — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 02:10:00 +0000

My boss was kind enough to allow me to extend my holiday weekend one extra day, so my weekend was from Wednesday though Sunday. Now that’s what I call a weekend.

Wednesday

Ahh, a day off. Erin and I ran around town taking care of a few errands in the rain before we headed down to my parents for a little Thanksgiving/Birthday meal.

Every year for the last several years my brother, Greg, and I have celebrated our birthday’s with the family the day before Thanksgiving. It’s become a nice little tradition that I’ve grown to really love. Not only do I get to have my mom’s turkey dinner for my birthday, but it makes it easier to split up the holiday with the in-laws.

Thursday

Happy Birthday to me! After sleeping in a little, I opened my present from Erin before it was time to head over to the in-laws for Thanksgiving preparation and celebration. My present from Erin was a pair of the beauties you see above. They are Rainbow Mocca Loafs. Perfect for the Rainbow Sandal lover in all. Now I can, truely wear Rainbows year-round.

The rest of the day was full of eating, football and a little Rook.

Friday

Erin and I ran a few errands before heading out to Long Beach for a friend’s wedding. We had a great time.

Saturday

We spent almost the entire day searching for Christmas lights for our house. They have to be just perfect, you know.

After our long day of shopping we sat down to watch some TV and discovered that we had HBO for free all weekend. That night we watch 8 of 10 episodes of HBO’s True Blood series. I won’t recommend the show to anyone, because of it’s graphic content, but we were hooked by the story line.

Sunday

Went to Church, mowed the lawn, and hung Christmas lights on half the house before we went off to Group.

For group we wondered around the Americana in Glendale and saw the (fake) snow. It was pretty.

We spent the rest of the evening watching the remaining two episodes of True Blood and went to bed.

Burbank Winter Shelter Update

Brian — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 23:05:00 +0000

Here’s an update on the status of the Burbank Winter Shelter. I’m a little behind in the times, but oh well.

So, it looks like all signs are go for the shelter to be opened December 1st through March 15th at the National Guard Armory down the street from my house. I have to admit, even with my strong feelings about needing to help the homeless and those less fortunate than I, I’m a little apprehensive about having a shelter in my back yard. I understand why people would oppose it.

Truth is, the city and those running the shelter seem to be doing everything in their power to ensure the saftey of the neighborhood, and as it is, Burbank PD patrols the area pretty regularly already. I’m sure we’ll be kept safe.

Shelter residents will be bussed into the location in the afternoon and back out in the morning which should really mean little impact for people like me. And, to be honest, I didn’t even notice that the shelter was opened last year when I moved into the area in January, and I anticipate it will be the same this year.

I’m excited that my city is taking steps to help those who have had a stroke of bad luck. I hope this small hand out will help a few have a happier holiday season.

Weekend Update

Brian — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 05:39:00 +0000

I'm not feeling up to a normal weekend update this week so I'll leave you with a few words that represent my weekend.

Mustang valve covers
Toilet repair
Righteous Kill
Guitar
Invasion
FriendSpeak Seminar
Parents
Home alone (not the movie)
Church

Joys of Home Ownership: Electricity

Brian — Wed, 17 Sep 2008 16:18:00 +0000

We’re having a little electricity problem at the homestead. Currently there is no power going to the air conditioner, the lights in the spare bedroom, the lights in the bathroom or the lights in the office. I’m not sure how all of those are connected, as I thought they were on different circuits, but I know very little about electricity and wiring.

I think the problem actually started a while back when the lights in those rooms began to flicker. It struck me as odd at the time, but I just figured I hadn’t noticed it before. The flickering got progressively worse until one night the lights in the previously mentioned rooms and the air conditioner all shut off.

I was fairly confident at the time that a circuit had tripped so I went out in the dark, with flashlight in hand, to check the circuit box. Unfortunately, when I got there I saw that nothing had been tripped. Not sure what to do at that point I flipped a few circuits back and forth just for good measure and headed back inside defeated. As I stepped inside the door and was beginning to explain to Erin that I didn’t know what to do the lights and air came on. Problem solved… although I had no idea what prompted the electricity to come back on, or shut off in the first place.

Since that night the electricity has played its tricks a few more times. One of the odd things about it, in my opinion, is that it’ll just shut off for a while and then come back on, as if nothing happened. Another odd thing is that the power outlets in the rooms affected by the power outage work. It’s only the lights that go out… well the lights and the air.

Anyway, I was ok living in this situation temporarily until the electricity went out, and stayed out. The last two mornings I’ve showered in the dark and haven’t had air conditioning. It hasn’t been bad, since the weather has cooled off but it’s a little annoying.

So, now I’m thinking I’m going to have to call in an electrician. I was hoping to avoid it, but I think rather than risk electrocution, it would be better to hire a professional. Ugh! Oh, the joys of home ownership.

Weekend Update

Brian — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 16:55:00 +0000

The theme of this weekend was “relax.” It’s pretty rare that Erin and I don’t have a billion things to accomplish in a given weekend, and this weekend was pretty relaxed, as far as weekends go. Here’s my quick recap.

Friday Night

Erin and I straightened up the house a little, had a quick bit to eat at Porto’s and visited with a friend. It was a nice quiet evening.

Saturday

I had a lot of household chores to take care of so I worked on those after watching a couple episodes of Beverly Hills 90210. This is quickly becoming my Saturday tradition. It used to be that I would watch the VH1 Top 20 Countdown, but since I discovered BH 90210 reruns I haven’t been the same.

Sometime during my BH 90210 morning marathon I received a text message from my Dad informing me that the father of a friend of mine passed away in the tragic train wreck in Chatsworth on Friday afternoon. It was pretty disturbing news. My Dad and I texted back and forth for a while and I check in with my sister out at Pepperdine who is also friends with the daughter.

After my texting I worked on a couple household chores and then Erin and I went and watched USC demolish Ohio State with a couple friends. It was a fun game to watch, if you were rooting for the Trojans.

After the game Erin and I headed on over to the good ole AMC theater and watched the new Coen Bros. movie, Burn After Reading. The movie was laced with obscenity after obscenity and some graphic violence, but somehow it managed to be pretty funny. I can’t really recommend it to anyone, but I enjoyed it.

Sunday

Sunday was pretty normal. I taught the teen class and did announcements during the worship service. I followed that up with lunch and a devotional at the youth small group and then went home for a rare Sunday afternoon nap.

I awoke from my nap a little restless and ready to do something so Erin and I walked around The Great Indoors. We had never been there before. It’s quite a store. A little pricey for my taste, but there was a lot of cool looking stuff. While we were there I had my first Pumpkin Spice Frappuccino of the season from Starbucks.

After that little expedition we had dinner at NYPD Pizza and then headed home to catch up on last week’s TV. We watched the new 90210 and then Fringe. Erin had missed the first viewing of Fringe because she was out of town.