The Mangster

Melissa Mang came for a visit last weekend and we had such a great time with her. She had a break from her grueling schedule at Duke so she needed a little rest and relaxation. So naturally we took her on a long hike! Other than the hike I do think it was relaxing - we ate spaghetti, drank wine and watched a football game at the Bier Garden. Mel I can't wait to visit you at Duke and watch you play tennis!

We met a great group of people at the Bier Garden. One of the girls we met had Political Science classes with Tom at LSU - I can't believe how many people we've met from Louisiana.

Gortex Levees

I've solved New Orleans' problems.


While hiking thru Graveyard Fields - lovely walk, hideous name - I noticed that my feet were perfectly dry. The hike was alongside a creek and ended with a spectacular waterfall so there was lots of moisture around. On crossing the creek I 'put my foot in it' - literally - and came out with a dry foot. This is due to my miraculous new Gortex hiking boots. I LOVE my boots - Tom is sick of hearing about how great they are, but they really REALLY are great. I slopped thru mud and water (and this is NC so the water is frigid) and still had 10 toasty little toes at the end of the walk. So this got me thinking...

Gortex levees! It's so obvious - you want to keep New Orleans safe and dry? build the levees out of Gortex. Or at least encourage the good citizens of N.O. to line the outside of their homes in the stuff.

Insurance

Talk about excitement - we got a library card today. But really it is exciting b/c we had to get a library card in order to use their printer so we could get new car insurance! Okay, boring.

The sickening / exciting thing for us is that we are now saving over $2,000.00 a year in car insurance. WTF? We are paying less for an entire year of car insurance here in NC than 6 months of coverage in LA. Why? I mean, I'm happy, I'm not complaining, but why is it so expensive in Louisiana?

Asheville - Week 1

Okay, I've done it. I've given in and started a blog. So here it is, the place to hookup with Tom and Brandi Hand. Are you excited yet?

Moving to Asheville and leaving family and friends has spurred me to do it. I imagine that this blog will mostly be used for the posting of pictures and semi-interesting updates on what Tom and I are up to (interesting to my parents and grandparents!). So, feel free to take a look around or not - there's not a whole lot to see at the moment, but I should get some pics up soon.

Week 1:
Snow!
Unpacked (thank you Momma and Daddy)
Caught up on sleep
Visited Biltmore Estate with parents and had a fab meal
Momma and Daddy went home
Tom caught Daddy's cold
Went hiking
Went to farmer's market where a man from Metairie(!) sold me cheese