Monday, August 5, 2013

ROLL CALL!  We are long overdue for an omnibus Thing Thrower check-in. In recent weeks, some of you have posted wedding announcements, others baby announcements, so if there is any news you'd like to share with us, now's a great time.

90 comments:

  1. Hi, I'm Russ! No recent news that I can think of. But, in the next six weeks or so, I plan to be officially divorced, to visit Aruba with my daughter, and to watch said daughter turn 10. Add in a new studio album from Sting, a new Jhumpa Lahiri book, and a new movie from Neill Blomkamp, and it looks to be a nice stretch coming up!

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  2. Not a lot of news here! The husband and I finally went on our official honeymoon, meaning that I have finally made it to France. We were quite pleased with our trip, as were various providers of wine. We also went to London. While we did make the Harry Potter Studio Tour (awesome, especially paired with a somewhat more adult morning and lunch at the Tate Modern), we did not make the London Eye. So, of course, we must return.


    Rereading Harry Potter (what?), but otherwise, happily imbibing lots of murder mysteries, including the really-written-by-JK-Rowling one. (I liked it. My dad thinks she uses too many adjectives.) I have a lot of books queued up for my upcoming vacation in Maine, including the Questlove memoir, which looks interesting. We are not sure what TV to consume next, as I think that we are looking for a break from violence (meaning, not Breaking Bad yet).

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  3. Watts here. And I've been following my new spiritual leader Matthew McConaughey and have just kep' livin'.

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  4. andrewraff11:56 AM

    No major life news for me, at least not compared with all of my contemporaries have suddenly shifted into making babies. But, I did run the NYC triathlon (my first ever) last month. I've intermittently been working on a new photography project to attempt to document one of Manhattan's most charming blocks, New Street (and become less of a terrible photographer). I've also been working on updating some web programming skills so that I can redo my once-again-very stale personal website. But, I need to go on vacation ASAP and get away, even though I don't have anything planned.

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  5. Maret Orliss12:10 PM

    Not a lot of news on my end either, but all is well. I'm heading up to Monterey this coming weekend for my 20th high school reunion, I've been enjoying being a first time aunt to my perfect nephew who just turned 7 months old yesterday, and other than that, the usual combo of work and play.

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  6. Benner12:28 PM

    Moved to DC about 9 months ago.

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  7. Here are my updates: off to Nantucket next week for a lie-on-beach-do-nothing vacation. Taking book recommendations! Training for the Nike Women's Half Marathon in San Francisco with Team in Training again. Also there is a boy and a picture and he's in it. (Except not really, as he hates pictures.)

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  8. Dan Suitor12:35 PM

    It's not particularly recent, but I moved to Colorado about six months back (Boulder, specifically) as a result of my efforts to become gainfully employed after 16 years of formal education. I'm thoroughly enjoying the craft beer culture, lower blood-oxygenation levels, and becoming the unofficial class mascot of the CU Law 2L class.

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  9. Karen Peters12:58 PM

    Thanks for doing this - I love hearing how everyone is doing!
    It's been a good summer. The family spent five days in NYC - my 9-yr-old son's first visit - and it was awesome. We did some touristy things (Empire St Blg, Statue of Liberty), lots of museums (1+ hours in Arms and Armor alone...), and lots of walking around to see what the city had to offer. I wanted to be authentic so we took the subway and bus everywhere, so of course all my son wanted to do was ride the double-decker tourist buses (me: we are not tourists, we are not riding the double-decker bus!).
    Cool work-related happening was winning an award last week: http://portlandpilots.com/news/2013/7/31/GEN_0731132340.aspx
    It's kind of like a mid-career achievement award instead of a lifetime achievement award. I'll receive it at the national convention in October, and plan to spend a good deal of time between now and then fretting about having to speak on stage in front of 1000 people in a Q&A with Beth Mowins from ESPN.

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  10. I recently got promoted to middle management at my very stodgy company so I am enjoying bureaucracy at its bureauiest. And I am a sedentary girl training for a half marathon in September, so that's consuming 900% of my energy. And I have a kid just starting out in ice hockey, so that's consuming 900% of my money (are there more expensive sports kids can play? dressage? formula 1?). Oregon coast beach trip in 3 weeks!

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  11. Becca1:03 PM

    I am still single and child-free! However, I started a new gig a couple weeks ago that I'm told will last 2-6 months. I'm heading to Florida this week for my niece's 2nd birthday on Sunday, and at some point, we'll go see the Atlantis exhibit, so that's cool. Interesting work achievement - I got this job by applying through a website, and didn't know a soul at the company, which is completely unheard of in this industry. Maybe my resume is more impressive than I think it is?


    Upcoming - There's a conference I want to attend in NYC in October, and I'm trying to come up with something interesting to do for Mom's 70th birthday in November. She's mentioned possibly skydiving, which ok. Any suggestions are welcome!

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  12. I have decided to live my entire life according to McConaugheyism, which means I must continue doing a'igt, a'igt, a'igt.

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  13. Watts1:06 PM

    You'd be a lot cooler if you did.

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  14. I'd also be tanner and have better abs.

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  15. Watts1:07 PM

    I go to MY 20 year reunion this weekend. I'm looking forward to seeing my best friend from HS, but other than that it's time spent in a room with people that I'm not very much like.

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  16. The Pathetic Earthling1:07 PM

    You can check out my actual work project here -- www.safeinhome.com -- where I -- Andrew Lloyd, if you actually want to name drop -- am general counsel. Safe in Home is a solution for a single aging parent who still wants to live independently. It provides a intermediate solution between the ubiquitous (but largely useless) "I've Fallen and I Can't Get Up" buttons and the confiscatory cost of part-time in home care. By using a series of motion sensors (but no cameras), temperature sensors, and the like, one can get a real-time picture of what's going on in a single, elderly adult parent's home all of it present on an iPhone or Android app. So, instead of waiting around to see that something bad has happened, you can see that Mom's in fact alright.

    The target sale is to the adult children of seniors living alone. We're having great fun -- and some good early success -- here.

    Anyway, that's what I'm up to.

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  17. Watts1:10 PM

    Not implying you aren't cool - I was just slightly botching a favorite line reading of MM's:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MocapWGtwkQ

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  18. Heather k1:18 PM

    I got married last September which was very fun and exciting and I've very much enjoyed the past year of no longer planning a wedding.

    And in march I fell off the Internet because I took on a super cool project where I got paid to do my favorite hobby. I worked on 6 quilts in an upcoming book by a famous quilter who is the daughter and collaborator of an even more famous quilter. It's the daughter's first book of her own designs and I was her patchwork elf for three months (6 queen sized quilts). The book comes out next April/may and my name will be in it! And we just started a new venture together.

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  19. Kind of a run-of-the-mill summer, so far. I'm finishing up my summer catch-up on "The Shield." I"m blaming it in Sepinwall--I read his book when it came out, and "The Shield" was my big gap in golden age of television viewing. It's been bleak at times, but I've finally gotten to season seven, episode six. Loved, loved, loved "Orange Is the New Black" and have convinced most of my co-workers to watch it. I'm really looking forward to "Breaking Bad" this week and am using "Royal Pains" and as a way to break up the bleakness/loss of faith in humanity.


    I'm heading off to Venice, Fla., next week to visit my parents with the boyfriend and his 10-year-old son. Lots of beach/pool time, gator tours, etc. We're planning a day trip to Universal Orlando to tackle both parks--Simpsons, Spider-Man and Harry Potter are musts. Any advice fellow Thing Throwers could send my way on how to conquer Universal in one day will be much appreciated.


    As far as books, I loved Broken Harbor by Tana French and The Master Butcher's Singing Club by Louise Erdrich. I've never been a fan of Erdrich's, but this one might have changed my mind.

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  20. Jenn.1:40 PM

    Congratulations! That's awesome.

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  21. Let's start with the fact that I can only comment via my phone these days as my net book broke and my work computer only has IE8.

    Dad is doing well, fully recovered from the cancer scare of 2011.

    My twin sons (not quite 4) are going to join my husband in 19 days at the Telluride Film Festival. It will be their first flight as sentient beings. I am purchasing portable electronic devices which I will then load with goodies. They do not know this. It will be a surprise for when they get antsy.

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  22. Becca1:52 PM

    With Universal (or any theme park, really) - get there when it opens and go all the way to the far end of the park, and work your way to the front. Most people walk in and to the right when they arrive, and then work their way around. If you start at the back, you'll likely have better luck with lines.

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  23. AmyHow2:12 PM

    I survived a incredibly busy year at work. I am so pleased I did not quit because I really do like my work, colleagues and company. I have become a sports parent, a job for which I am completely and totally unequipped. The oldest in really enjoying swimming which come to find out is a sport that one participates 49 weeks a years. But it is so much cheaper than other sports that I will just keep my mouth shut and my alarm set to dark thirty.

    We are taking a family vacation to San Antonio next week. My ever fabulous sister is coming so we will out number the kids, 3 adults to 2 kids. I have found this to be quite a wonderful ratio. My sister is sporty like the oldest so they can scale and swing from things while I watch in horror. My husband and the youngest and can participate in some modified version of terrifying activity. Kids get to have adventures and I get to keep all my appendages in one piece.

    When we get back the youngest will have a second surgery. He had surgery in January and has had a recurrence (or as he calls it reincarnation) of the issue. This one should do the trick and all should be well. Very glad we have the vacation to distract us.

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  24. Maggie2:14 PM

    Still in DC-area, still at same Biglaw job (although a partner now rather than an associate), still no spouse/kids. Aunt to a growing number of endlessly entertaining nieces/nephews (with number 6 arriving any day now, who may or may not be named "Sump Pump" if his 3-year old brother has anything to say about). Am training for my second 1/2 marathon in October (Cincinnati 1/2 with one of my sisters) and am waiting to hear if I got a spot in next year's London marathon via their entry lottery.

    I finally started watching "Breaking Bad" after Adam's discussion here, originally with the hope of catching up by Sunday. I've fallen behind on that goal (just finished Season 2 last night), but hope to cruise through Season 3, 4 and 5.1 over the next few weeks and catch up before the series finale. Have seen several great movies this summer - "A Hijacking", "The Attack", "Fruitvale Station", "The Heat" (yes, I thought it was great). Now just need to follow up on my resolution to do more reading for pleasure that isn't magazines.

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  25. Jenn.2:31 PM

    Hit the key Harry Potter stuff early, before lines get a chance to really get started. The line for the ride in Hogwarts Castle can get really long. That said, if you get there and the line is light enough to zip through, still take the time to enjoy some of the stuff that they've built in to entertain folks going through the long lines.

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  26. Randy2:54 PM

    I guess I'm one of the newlyweds. My husband Jamie and I got married last weekend - we essentially eloped at home. It was just us, six friends, our backyard, and a catered dinner. It was so stress-free we even napped before the ceremony.

    And now we're vacationing on PEI - though, because I'm from here, I hesitate to call this a honeymoon. Just waiting for some bad weather to pass before we take another dip in the warm waters of the Northumberland Strait, then it's lobster for dinner. AGAIN. It's a rough week!

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  27. christy in nyc3:11 PM

    Guess I do not have any big personal events to report. Still married, no kids, still editin' kids' books in New York.


    Pop culturally, I seem to have fallen down a superhero comic hole that has me doing things like picking up Aquaman books from the free shelves at work and loudly lamenting that the comixology app doesn't have a wishlist feature. I didn't grow up reading superhero comics so this is new territory for me.


    And I have finally started watching Game of Thrones. I finished episode 1 of season 2 last night (after having realized that my usual popcorn-Sunday-night plans had been thwarted by the TWC/Showtime feud). Obsessed. (Haven't read the books).

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  28. Thanks for the help, guys! Universal is open 9-9 the week we're in Florida, so I'm anticipating 12 hours (plus 2 hours there and back) of hot, stinky, cranky fun. I will learn to love my fellow tourists!


    The day after? Sitting by the pool at my parents' place, alternating between napping and reading with an early cocktail hour.

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  29. Marsha4:07 PM

    Congratulations, Karen! You are so frickin' cool, and I totally want to be you. (I also want to be Maret, but she already knows that.) Your Thingthrowing Community celebrates your award! Woohoo!

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  30. Marsha4:09 PM

    Mazel tov!!

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  31. J. Bowman4:54 PM

    I've moved to a new office that's only 3 miles from my house, so I bike to work every day. It was a little depressing back in April, when I timed my ride and realized that High School Me could have run the same distance a minute faster. Now I can at least beat that kid.
    Other than that, not much to report at Veridian. I'm off the Jabberwocky project---turns out it was a game-stay-the-samer. Now, I'm looking into whether or not rational homotopy theory can be used to kill people. Research mathematics is great.

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  32. Marsha4:56 PM

    Nothing to report. Absolutely nothing. Same job, same husband, same kids. I bought a used car and a whole lot of school supplies. W00t.



    Of course, I'm as grateful as always that this blog allows me to keep up with old friends and make new ones. I can't think of any other place where my on-line experience so often becomes a real world one, and that makes me really happy. But that's not new either.

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  33. Marsha4:57 PM

    Do you ever get to play Lindabagel?

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  34. Genevieve5:06 PM

    When I went a couple years ago, I got a lot of useful information on Orlandoinformer.com and also googling for Wizarding World tips. The main thing I remember is do Forbidden Journey (the Hogwarts tour/ride) as soon as you get there, unless you do Ollivanders' first (if you get there early) and then Forbidden Journey. Wizarding World will be most crowded from mid-morning to mid-afternoon, so going there before and after that (first thing after opening and then again in the evening) is supposed to be the least crowded. http://www.orlandoinformer.com/universal/best-way-to-experience-forbidden-journey/

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  35. Slowlylu5:18 PM

    A lot of news from down here, missed my 20 year high school reunion in Connecticut as I was 34 weeks pregnant. Little one has now arrived safely and I am in that constantly breastfeeding stage.
    Husband and I were married early in March just in front of our immediate families on the Friday with a big party at our local pub on the Saturday which of course included the dog.
    Pop culturally things I've enjoyed in recent times - Orphan Black, a great new writer called Hugh Howey (Wool and Shift), the new Lorde album
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LFasFq4GJYM
    and this fabulous recipe for beef ribs (it is very cold in Melbourne) http://www.dinneralovestory.com/snow-day-dinner/

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  36. Genevieve5:20 PM

    Looks like the main thing to do is get to Wizarding World as early as you can (if you can be at the gates before 9 and go directly there, it'll work well), do Forbidden Journey/Hogwarts and maybe Ollivanders and some other things there until it gets too crazy crowded, then leave to go do your Simpsons and Spider-Man, and plan to go back to Wizarding World two or three hours before the park closes to do the shops (which will be much less crowded at night) and any other rides/exploring you missed. If you plan to do it that way, double-check with the park that morning that the Wizarding World isn't closing early for any reason.

    http://www.orlandoinformer.com/universal/wizarding-world-of-harry-potter-ideal-plan/
    Everyone loved the Forbidden Journey ride. We really liked the performances in Wizarding World (Durmstrang acrobatics, Beauxbatons dancing, and student chorus), the frozen butterbeer, and all the terrific theming outside and inside the shops. My folks weren't up for coming back that evening, so we left when it got jam-packed and didn't go back to that part of the park, but my son and I would've been happy with much more time there. so I was really glad we'd gotten there first thing in the morning to have time to see as much as we did.
    I don't usually plan my trips with this intense level of detail, but I did it for Disney a decade ago and for Universal, and I was glad to have the plans because they really did help with not being there at the same time as the worst crowds, and therefore getting to see more.

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  37. Watts5:49 PM

    So proud of you and that gig. Way to turn a hobby into some money in the bank.

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  38. Heather k6:35 PM

    Aww, thanks Amy.

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  39. Cecilia7:02 PM

    Hi! Cecilia here! Still living in DC and love the city. I love my job and am very grateful for that because I know not everyone is so lucky. I would still like to figure out a way to read books at the beach all day and get paid for it, though. Just bought a new place with a second bedroom and bathroom, so I am feeling properly grown up. Pop culture-wise, I watched all five seasons of Breaking Bad in the last few months, so I am very eager for that to start up. Just saw "Fruitvale Station," which I'm still thinking about -- it's got some trite moments, but it did a lot of things very right. Am about to take a deep breath and start reading the Game of Thrones series in a few weeks (have to finish the current Nook book first).

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  40. I'm Paul -- I steal plenty of attention on this blog, so this has been reported already, but since I'm in the last throes of it, I'll bring my crowdfund back to the attention of the Throwers -- I've already seen support from many of you, and I'm closing in on 4 days away from the campaign end, with 89% funded! If you stop by http://paultab.rockethub.com, you can pick out any number of interesting things, including any youtube cover you want for $100 (I did Talking Heads for Jon D, Beyonce for Daniel G, and will soon be doing Oingo Boingo for Russ! I am currently in the process of Jim Steinman's "Making Love Out Of Nothing At All," so, you know. It's mostly all up for grabs...

    Looking forward to the new season of Breaking Bad, mourning the cancellation of Bunheads, and hoping we get a new showrunner for Doctor Who SOON.

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  41. Maddy7:56 PM

    Hey all! I'm finishing up a summer interning on the Hill through the American Association of People with Disabilities internship program, and I'll be heading back to Scripps in a few weeks for my senior year.

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  42. Adam C.8:13 PM

    Hi all. I've been less present around these parts than I hoped, but that's because I've been busy at my still kinda new job, which until recently didn't have a great way to get to the blog and comment. But things are good at work and in life. We have a bat mitzvah to plan that may cause grievous mental harm before all is said and done, but that is our tsuris, and has nothing to do with our wonderful 12yo. The 9yo is doing great too. I recently had the displeasure of dueling kidney stones, with the one on the left beating the one on the right out the front door (only because the one on the right was Too Big To Pass - it had to be shockwaved into submission). This weekend we played a great tri-generational game of Scattergories with my parents while they were visiting. And we are planning our usual last minute end of August trip: contenders are the Hudson Valley and the Berkshires, so any thoughts about those areas would be most welcome.

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  43. Maret Orliss8:20 PM

    My class was tiny so the number of people coming to the reunion is tinier. But my two best friends since before HS are going so I am going and thus, it is a reunion. :)

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  44. Hi, all. Don't comment too often around here (much more active on the Twitter), but I've been around for quite a while. Life, as you might expect is pretty boring. Eat, sleep, work, mainly. And overusing commas. Only thing new is I'm putting the finishing touches on my third iOS app, though still thinking this isn't the one that's going to make it big and let me dump my day job.

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  45. KCosmo's neighbor8:30 PM

    Here's a little promo for a fundraiser I am working on.The event, which will take place in September in NYC, is for The Paul Foundation, established and named for my stepbrother who died from Anaplastic Large Cell Lymphoma last year at age 22. We are collaborating with the Lymphoma Research Foundation on what we hope will become an annual event to help raise money toward finding a cure for this form of lymphoma. To find out more, visit www.lymphoma.org/thepaulfoundation2013
    I'm not pushing for support, but you asked what I was up to--and this has been a big part of my summer--planning and securing donations. Paul managed to graduate Wesleyan with honors last spring, having completed his thesis while undergoing chemo. To top that off, he was accepted to Harvard Law School (along with 9 other prestigious law schools). He had a huge life ahead of him, but now it's up to us (his family and friends) to make sure his name continues to be impactful.


    Thanks for listening! Other than that, my husband and I have been enjoying a quiet summer while our girls are at camp. Lots of bike riding in and around NYC and Brooklyn, lots of Smorgasburg, lots of relaxing.

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  46. Missa8:37 PM

    Hi, I'm Melissa, frequent lurker and extremely occasional poster. Boyfriend, no kids, maniac mutt. Just finished mainlining Breaking Bad, mostly due to the recaps here, and now I don't know how I'm going to wait a week in between episodes. Next in the instant queue is Scandal, which I've heard is bonkers in the best way. I've been reading a lot lately, in my second attempt at reading 100 books in a year. Recent favorites include Life after Life, by Kate Atkinson; The Shining GIrls, by Lauren Buekes; and With or Without You, by Domenica Ruta. I'm currently about 300 pages into the first Game on Thrones book, and hoping y'all have some suggestions for when I finish.

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  47. Marsha8:38 PM

    Thanks for reminding us - I forgot to do it the first time it was posted. Good luck, and can't wait to hear the album!

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  48. janet8:45 PM

    Summer gives me a little bit of downtime in the ballet teaching world, so I spent the first month creating new art for a fractal calendar for 2015. The 2014 fractal art calendar, filled with my art, is available here

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  49. I recently left my Biglaw job, and remain in the process of figuring out what's next--there's a bunch of interesting opportunities out there. Trying to enjoy myself and take some much needed sabbatical.

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  50. LittleMascara10:09 PM

    I just celebrated one year at my job, which is a big change from my previous job but I am loving it and very happy to be in it. Our 2-year-old is doing great and chattering away with real words. I'm on track to finish graduate school in May after four part-time years and very excited to be done. If nothing else, I am excited to trade reading academic materials for reading books. Our big news is that my husband left his longtime job to launch a startup last month, and it's been well-received and successful. We're beyond excited, as he's really living out his professional dreams and I couldn't be prouder.

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  51. Wait, did you think you were going to get away without having to have lunch with the DC folks? I've pinged you on Twitter. Your lunch is on me. Other Throwers welcome to join too! (But I'm only paying for Maddy!) Reply here if you want it.

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  52. If you're in the mood for a mystery, I'd recommend Broken Harbor by Tana French. It's a lot like Gone, Girl. Have fun in Nantucket!

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  53. Thanks, Genevieve! This is great info! I'm a little intimidated by the whole thing. There seems like so much to pack into 12 hours, but I think hitting Wizarding World first is the key to the day. We can hit Spidey and The Simpsons later and then knock down anything else that seems fun. And I will take lots of deep cleansing breaths to deal with the crowds and the heat.

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  54. Thank you, Marsha! I don't feel nearly as guilty about hogging an extra inch of webspace here now. :-)

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  55. Er, if you want IN. Not "if you want it." Ew.

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  56. Heather k11:50 PM

    We did both parks in one day in January, so its totally doable, but it was also way shorter line-wise.

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  57. Heather k11:50 PM

    Congratulations Randy!!

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  58. Deanna K. Dykstra11:56 PM

    Welcome to Colorado! Head north to Loveland/FoCo for more craft beer than you can shake a pint glass at sometime. (Did you make it up for Brew Fest?)

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  59. Deanna K. Dykstra11:58 PM

    Totally awesome. Congratulations!

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  60. Deanna K. Dykstra11:59 PM

    That's so cool! I love seeing your projects!

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  61. Karen Peters12:03 AM

    Thank you so much, though I feel surrounded by cool here at ALOTT5MA! And I frequently want to be you, especially when you are baking and/or at Cubs games! (Of course we all want to be Maret... )

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  62. Karen Peters12:04 AM

    I'm not sure where you are checking in from, but if you need any Oregon coast recommendations let me know - I'm nearby in Portland and have some favorite spots I can pass along!

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  63. Karen Peters12:05 AM

    The quilting project sounds awesome - I can't wait to see it!

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  64. Deanna K. Dykstra12:07 AM

    Last year was a biggie. My son went to college (big deal since it's always been just the two of us) and I had to put our dog down right before his holiday break in December. It was like she knew she needed to stick with me that first semester. Sniff. On a more positive note, I just spent a fabulous week in Austin at the Apple Distinguished Educators Summer Institute and am now heading into my third year as a high school assistant principal.

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  65. Karen Peters12:12 AM

    I'm with Marsha - the reminder is perfect timing. I'm in now!

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  66. Renee6:14 AM

    Awesome! Can't go wrong with getting paid to do what you love.

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  67. Renee6:21 AM

    Nothing real new to report. Still single w/ no kids. I've been at my "new" job for 18 months now and finally feel like comfortable and not like a newbie. Ran the Myrtle Beach Marathon in February and now training for a half in November and MB Marathon in February again. Headed to the beach to speak at a conference on Thursday and making it into a long, relaxing weekend. Other than that, nada. I'm loving reading everyone's updates.

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  68. Meghan6:44 AM

    Life continues much the same for me as well. The 3.5-year-old and 1.5-year-old continue to flourish, thankfully, and I am finally back to running 3-4 times a week, which keeps me somewhat sane. We bought a new house in Dec. and spend lots of time trying to right what's wrong. I'm watching Veep and OITNB and will get ready to watch lots of shows I should have watched and didn't. I also need to read the books loaded on my Nook.

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  69. Thank you, Karen (and also Deanna)! It is getting so CLOSE! :-)

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  70. Nancy Skaggs7:31 AM

    Nancy here...biggest news right now is I am opening tomorrow as Violet in a 2-week run of 9 to 5: The Musical!

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  71. Mazel Tov! Did the garage door opener gag make it in?

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  72. Nancy Skaggs7:49 AM

    Yes!

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  73. Donna Welling9:49 AM

    Donna here. Once upon a time I was a young newly married banker, and frequent commenter. 9 years later, I am a SAHM of 4 (including one year old twins) hence the lack of comments on my part, but still reading every day. This past year was a crazy one, as we moved across the country (to Houston) when I was 7 months pregnant. Major successes this year have been maintaining the sanity and happiness of all 6 members of our household, and building a happy little life in this depressingly overheated piece of suburbia.

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  74. Caroline10:02 AM

    I'm Caroline -- another frequent lurker and rare commenter. I've recently moved to NYC for my husband to take a fantastic new job. I work mostly at home and commute to DC one day a week, so Amtrak and I are good buddies. We've spent the summer slowly learning our way around the city and enjoying the hell out of Graceland and The Bridge. We recently spent a week in Bar Harbor and almost didn't come back, threatening to extend my slow migration up the East Coast. A picture of said vacation was retweeted by Bruce Campbell, which means I can die happy.

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  75. Marsha10:33 AM

    So come visit! I'll be more than happy to hang out with you at Wrigley....

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  76. Heather k10:46 AM

    And hopefully this next round I can post pictures of. The first ones were getting published and weren't my designs so no pics.

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  77. Devin McCullen11:55 AM

    Nothing too new and exciting here. Same job, same home, same car. Next week I'm off to Indianapolis for GenCon, where I'll play several different kinds of games (and a whole bunch of Ticket to Ride).
    When I was at the library this week, I did finally have the realization that "Hey, Gone Girl has been out for a long time now, so maybe I should stop waiting for it to show up on the New Books shelf." So I'm finally getting around to that (although I haven't started yet), and I don't think I've been spoiled.
    Oh and speaking of mysteries, I've been working my way through Elizabeth George's Inspector Lynley novels. He's an OK character, but for me it's all about Sgt. Havers. (On the other hand, Simon & Deborah stories annoy me no end.)

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  78. Russ - I just went to Aruba in July! Had a fantastic time, and I'm happy to share any tips if you like.

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  79. Hi all - it's been a good summer for me, though nothing is really new. I went to Aruba with my husband, our first "real" vacation (meaning we didn't visit friends or relatives, and took a plane to go somewhere) in years, and had a great time. He just celebrated getting a new job doing what he loves. I finished watching all of "Friday Night Lights" and loved it, and also loved "Orange is the New Black" (tv show is much better than the book). I reached the mid-way point on a book I'm writing - am now at chapter 11 of what I think will be an 18 page memoir.

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  80. Callie1:52 PM

    Hello, I'm Callie (formerly calliek), used to comment bunches (years ago at this point) but now I just lurk. Still married, no kids, bought a house, commuting over 100 miles a day, reading tons. My most current obsession is the Whitey Bulger trial, which has been extremely effective at distracting me from work. Sadly it is in deliberation now, and will be over soon, so I will need a new hobby. Suggestions are appreciated!



    Oh, and I am now on the Twitter machine, come say hi to me! @callielafleur

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  81. AndreaJ1:54 PM

    Not much of a commenter any more, but here's my update: after an early summer vacation trip to the Great Smoky Mountains, I've spent the rest of the summer with my two girls at the pool and watching "Mad Men" for the first time. I'm halfway through season 4 right now. I'm also more than halfway to my GoodReads goal of reading 50 books this year - 28 so far.


    And I know we usually stay away from politics around here, but Adam should have mentioned his appearance on the PA Cable Network's "Voter ID" roundtable, which I happened to stumble across while channel surfing this morning!

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  82. Josie Jones Thames2:32 PM

    Hi, I'm Josie! I'm from SC and a faithful "Things Thrown" reader! My news is that I'm beginning to start rehearsals as Suzy Simpson in our community theater's production of "The Marvelous Wonderetes: Caps & Gowns". It is the sequel to the off-Broadway play, and I am so excited! We broke theater records last summer when we did the original "Marvelous Wonderettes", so I am excited to see what will happen this time!

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  83. Tosy and Cosh3:00 PM

    I hate it when I see these things late! That said, nothing exciting to report. Well, 15-year marriage anniversary, so maybe not NOTHING. Still plugging away at the Big 4 proposal writing job. Which reminds me, if anyone has any career advice for a 12-year proposal-writing veteran who doesn't really want to write proposals anymore I'm all ears. On the pop culture front I'm maybe most excited for a Fall that promises new music from Sting, Elvis Costello (with the Roots), Arcade Fire, U2 (maybe), and a new Bootleg edition from Dylan.

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  84. J. Bowman6:46 PM

    Oh, and I have a GitHub account, which currently contains two shell scripts. One of them does something you probably don't care about (and, frankly, probably shouldn't do), and the other one you've probably already written if you use Git at all. They're called tele-scope and git-rainbow. Go nuts.

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  85. That's about right. Come for Lynley, stay for Havers.

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  86. Aw, that's so nice, I'd love to have lunch with the DC Thing Throwers! I actually don't know what it means to have been pinged on Twitter (despite generational stereotypes, you folks are way better at Twitter than I am), but I non-creepily found you on Facebook and will send you a message.

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  87. Heh. ANY career-changing advice is welcome over here, too. ;)

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  88. I'm a little late to the party, but life (and a forgotten username for logging into comment) got in the way. Love reading these updates though. So let's see... I started a new job a little over a year ago, and I'm (mostly) enjoying it despite the fact that I frequently feel like I'm in over my head. It's my first agency experience and my first time in management, so it's a little intense. But it's all a learning experience, right? RIGHT?


    I've recently started running, and, despite a few failed attempts in the past, something seems to have clicked this time and I'm really enjoying it. I'm doing the Couch to 5K plan but have modified it for my own out-of-shape, non-runner needs, so I'm currently repeating Week 4 and may do it again next week.


    In pop culture news, I just finished Philipp Meyer's The Son. I don't want to say I hated it, but...it really wasn't for me. Some parts were so gruesome and there was just so much violence, that after awhile I actually became a little desensitized to it and...meh. I've never read 500 pages so full of events and characters about whom I cared so little. It reached a point where I started hoping people would get scalped or thrown from a horse and killed just so the book would end sooner. I would have stopped reading, but it was like a vendetta. It actually put me off reading a bit, so I'm taking a few days before I start my next book which will probably be Life After Life by Kate Atkinson or The Engagements by Courtney Sullivan.


    Currently a hooked on The Newsroom and binge watching DVR'd episodes of Castle. (That Nathan Fillion is just delightful.)


    And in potential travel news, I may be heading out to Seattle for a few days at the end of the month. (I say "may" because every vacation I've planned over the past few years has somehow been thwarted (see: hurricane's Irene and Sandy) and turned into a staycation or just a much more local trip. Fingers crossed that this one actually happens!) I just have a couple of days in Seattle before heading to some concerts out that way, so if anyone has recs of things I absolutely should see/do while there, please share! Right now I have the standard Pike Place, Space Needle, EMP Museum, Chihuly Garden & Glass, and maybe a boat tour on my list.

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  89. I'm also really busy writing rambly, long-ass comments. ;) Sorry!

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  90. Hi! When this originally appeared, I was recovering from a trip to Mexico while packing for a trip to Estes Park the next day. (And I am STILL recovering from all the "living out of a suitcase for two weeks" thing.)

    The biggest thing to have happened lately is that my Serial Entrepreneur of a husband sold our stake in his company this summer. The whole thing was surreal and has really made my brain twist on the entire concept of money and our relationship to it. (and of course, my husband is now working on yet another business idea!)

    Anyway, it has been good times lately in the Oliver-George household!

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