I'm Taking A Poll

Nothing too exciting happening this week (so far).  We grilled out last night w/ all of our work folks staying in our hotel.  We made Bloody Mary Steaks, Grilled Romaine Salad, & potatoes, mushrooms, & onions.  It was quite yummy.

Sydney has plans on Saturday to baby sit the cutest little twins.  Their dad works w/ Bryan.  Sydney met their mom last week when we were unloading the U-Haul.  She immediately got Syd's number & called her yesterday to line up Saturday night.  We went over there tonight so that Sydney could have some one on one time w/ them.  They are so cute!  7 month old boy & girl (Gavin & Hope). 

Afterward, we went to eat.  We had passed a Thai restaurant on the way over so we decided on the way back we would stop there.  Service wasnt that great but the food was pretty good.  Toward the end, a lady walked over & announced herself by saying "I'm taking a poll.  Did you enjoy what you ate?"  At first we thought she worked there & was just making sure we were happy.  Oh no, she was there w/ her 2 daughters (who were mortified, by the way) & they had never eaten there before.  She went around to every table & said the same thing.  I had told her the coconut - curry soup was excellent.  So a few minutes later, she called me over to her table.  "I cant find this on the menu".  I showed her where it was & she was happy.  Too funny. 

The things I am finding in Iowa just become more & more bizarre! 

I bet its like Picaddilly.... Look at all those old people - Sydney

I got up w/ Bryan this morning & went down to breakfast w/ him.  He went to work & I went back to the room.  Sydney was starting to stir around so I went back down w/ her & had coffee while she had her breakfast.  She & I went & had our nails done.  It was a Vietnamese place & they barely spoke English the whole time we were there.  Whatever they were talking about must have been really funny cause they laughed & laughed.  Syd & I were very curious.

We drove over into Illinois to the mall in Moline.  The only info that we had was that the mall in on John Deer Road.  It was a pretty big mall so we found it pretty easily.  When we got there it was right around lunch time & we were hungry.  We found a mall directory quickly & scanned our restaurant choices.  Pitiful is the only description I can give.  We decided to check out Bishop's Buffet.  As we are approaching, Sydney says "I bet its like a Picadilly.... Look at all those old people" HAHA.  Sure enough.  She nailed that one!

We are sitting outside by the pool this afternoon listening to music on my laptop & enjoying this weather while we can as I know it will quickly turn!

Goodbye Tom & Ann - 8/26

This week is Tom's last week at Rock Island so we all went out to dinner to wish them well.  We went back to The Boathouse Restaurant.  It was much better this time so we have definitely decided that it must depend on the chef.  There were about 25 - 30 of us there.  They set up 2 long tables & gave each table to 2 different waitresses.  When Bryan, Syd & I got there, there were only 2 spots left at the 1st table so we sat at the 2nd table.  Once we got seated, our waitress (We'll call her the old lady) came over & got our drink order.  Shortly after, a few people from the other table moved over to our table (Did you expect anything less?).  The old lady nearly blew a gasket announcing that we were being difficult because we were moving around.  That set the fuel to blazing so a few people had to move around just out of spite.  Then some guy (I surely hope he isnt the manager) came over & told us we had to pick a seat & stay in it because it is just too confusing.  They are now going to give everyone who moved a ticket to pay later & start their tabs over.  I asked him why the old lady couldn't just rip out her piece of paper she wrote our order on & give it to the other little young chick.  Apparently, that's not allowed.  Needless to say, people continued to move around & the top of that guy's head nearly blew off!

All in all it was a great time & this southerner got a real kick out of the whole thing.

I will teach these Iowans to lighten up if its the last thing I do!

Wednesday 8/25

The hotel grills hamburgers & hotdogs for all of the guests on Wednesday nights.  Free beer & wine is the key to the success of this weekly treat!

We went to look at another house.  I really like it a lot but trying not to get my hopes up too high since the last one fell through.  The last folks went w/ someone else because they could move in right away.  These folks aren't planning to move until October so that shouldn't be a problem.  Hotel life for almost 2 months will be interesting though.

1st Day at Rock Island 8/23

I admit, I was a little nervous on the 1st day that I was at Rock Island.  I had to go to the security office & get my visitor pass which will be good for 30 days while my I am getting my security clearance.  Bryan was great & told me exactly where to go, who to see, etc.  I guess it wasn't so hard since he did this same thing just a few months ago.

When I arrived at my new office, it was rather sad.  I had a desk but not even a chair.  So I have taken over Toralf's (Bryan's boss & one of the partners in the company) Office.  He wasn't there & he doesn't use that office anyway so I figure, possession is 9/10ths of the law & I am now possessing that office.  Actually, I talked w/ Julie (the partner that I report to) & she said is was her intention for me to be in that office so there ya go!  It's officially mine.

I was a little limited on what I could do since I didn't have a printer yet.  But I did the best I could.  Had to stay up late on Monday to finish up a few things but I have confidence that when I get my scanner/printer, things will be much smoother.

Telesto is renting my office space from another consulting firm.  They have a Keurig Coffee Pot which all you know, made me smile!  AUsome!

I went over to the command center & met a few folks but didn't see Bryan.  I was a little disappointed but I quickly got over it when I saw him later that night.  It doesn't look like he & I will see much of each other on the base since we are in different buildings but that's ok too.  Both of us being here still beats being 1/2 way across the country from each other.

We decided to pick up Sydney & go to eat at "The Boathouse Restaurant".  When I came out to visit in June, we ate there & it was really good.  That must have been the opening act or the normal chef was off, because we didn't enjoy our dinner at all.  The restaurant sits right on the Mississippi & the view is just beautiful.  We sat outside on the back deck & the flies just about carried Sydney away.  Never realized there would be such a fly problem in Iowa.

We Screamed The Whole Way - 8/22/10

Bryan & I left the house in Alabaster around 7am.  We had spent the night w/ Jenn & Shawn the night before & stopped at McDonald's on the way to the house & picked up breakfast.  Swallowed that down really quick (both of us were so anxious that neither of us had much of an appetite) & hit the road.  Puppy was not interested in her new kitty carrier AT ALL but we managed to get her in there somehow.  Gracie, being the experience traveler, had no problem finding a comfy spot in the floor board & settling right in.  Puppy, on the other hand, cried for a few minutes before settling down.  All in all, they both were really good.  We didn't have to drug either one of them.

That truck had the worst road noise I have ever experienced.  I had bought a new book on Thursday while I as at the airport & Bryan had me reading it aloud to him.  I had gotten The Sh*t My Dad Says.  It is really funny.  There was so much noise that any conversation that took place during the entire trip, required us to scream at each other!

We arrived in Davenport around 9pm.  We had stopped several times along the way to gas up, grab a bite to eat, walk Gracie, etc.  Bryan's friend Bruce, travels right through Chicago every week & volunteered to pick Sydney up so that we would not have to drive all the way to Chicago to get her.  Bruce stays at the same hotel that Bryan & I are at so it was really convenient.

Sydney got there around 11:30 & we all hit the hay, preparing for our 1st full day in Iowa on Monday.