jeepers creepers

remember how I got lasik back in august? I would you like to meet my doctor, michael mockovak. yes, the doctor who just 2 1/2 months ago zapped my eyes, was just arrested for trying to hire a russian hitman to kill his partner at clearly lasik. apparently, he was trying to make these arrangements in august, which was when I was his patient. creepy, huh?

in other, less crazy news, i've been busy updating my genealogy blogs herbst (paternal, paternal line), botz (paternal, maternal), ross (maternal paternal), and lang (maternal, maternal). i've been trying to include photos, and historical documents to make it more interesting to read. if you are related to me, or just want to humor me...go check them out.

knit-wise, i've been trying to use up scraps of yarn by knitting these mitered squares that will hopefully be turned into a blanket someday. i've done 4 this week and am pretty tired of it and I think that's my limit. i'm going to try to find a cute cowl to knit using only 123 yeards of dk weight yarn. so far, i think cat bordhi's, moebius is the winner.

adavis

the fabulous anna davis graced us with her presence this weekend. it was a sneak attack...i was totally clueless that she was arriving. normally, i am not a fan of surprises, but rarely are they this good. she arrived friday evening and left  this morning - but we packed a lot in to her 3 night stay.

highlights of the anna davis weekend

1. saturday we braved the early hour and cold temperatures and waited in line for a couple of hours for the goodwill glitter sale. there were several great purchases: a faux fur coat  for aaron, a scarlett o'hara dress for me, a barbie dress and a mistress dress for anna, and a sweet suit for brendan, and a pretty dress for rachel.
2. made brunch family style at brendan's house
3. gorged ourselves on indian food
4. played shuffle board at the twilight
5. slept in on sunday, then had a run around greenlake
6. taco truck lunch followed by a game of settlers
7. we tried to recreate the pushups shown in this video 
8. drinks at the pi

exhausting, yes, but oh-so-worth it.

random wednesday

1. happy veteran's day to all of our wonderful service men and women. our world is a better place because of you and i can't thank you enough.
2. i've started a knit night at a local pub every monday with rachel. this makes me happy. we were the recipients of many stares from men as they approached the bathroom.
3. lately i've really been into crossword puzzles. i have a new york times book that i've been working in and occasionally have the usa today crossword up on the computer. i'm not sure how this has started, but it's good for your brain, right?
4. i've also been slowly getting back into genealogy. i'm trying not to become too obsessed with it because that is how i burn myself out. 

• last week i ordered my great-grandfather's death certificate, my grandmother's birth certificate,   and my grandparents marriage certificate. it is all i can do to contain my excitement when i get home to see if they arrived yet.

• someone answered my photo request on findagrave.com and took a picture of my great-great-great grandparents tombstone (thomas ross and mary ann mccormick)

• i've also set up 4 new blogs to be genealogy related (one for each grandparent's surname/family)

• yes, this is me taking it slow
  

congratulations, larry

october 3, 2009 my little brother, larry, got married. lorenz basil herbst who:

when we were children stuck the wheels to his remote car into my hair and pressed go

played hamsters with me in the dryer

when he was 3 tried to break down the door on an amusement park ride (the hellevator) because it was scaring me

would sit for hours at the table with a mouth full of food that he wouldn't swallow

wouldn't play house with me, but would play "kevin and mom"

threw a baseball clear across the field yelling like crazy for me to move - and it hit me in the temple anyway.

told mom when i had caught the living room rug on fire, then promptly found me hiding under the bed and sang "you are in soooooo much trouble"

would only play barbies with me if he could be the car that talked and flew

threatened to blackmail me when he saw i had wrote in my diary that i thought bill clinton would be a good president

drew me a large snoopy as a birthday card (i still have it)

after i "bumped" another car in the parking lot, held my hand when i told my mom and also told her not to yell at me because i was really scared

i always admired for being only himself and never compromising (even when it would have been easier)

thank you, larry, for being a terrific brother. i loved every single second (almost) growing up with you. congratulations on your wedding; thanks for giving me a new sister. i'm really happy for you both.