At this very moment, two men are digging up a corner of my new backyard to place an 8 meter high tree. Apparently, the city removed one in the spring and as such had to wait until the right time of year to replace it. And the tree had to reach the right height. I now understand why they had to come in through the bedroom window instead of trying for the curve in the hallway.

In the meantime, we’re still camping among the boxes. It is getting better slowly. Cedric and his best friends, Tanner and Katy, were here from Tuesday night through Sunday morning. So while there was alot of good eating (at restaurants), beer testing and conversation, there wasn’t much time to unpack. Particularly since last week I was at various nerd conferences from 7 am to 7 pm. Not expecting anymore houseguests for awhile. I have to say, between Tanner and Cedric, various tasks involving engineering talent got done without my even having to ask. I definitely appreciated that 🙂 We did have a really good visit even if there wasn’t much time together due to my overscheduled work life.

Tonight I am going to see Carmina Burana at the Concertgebouw with some friends. We have 10th row seats so I am looking forward to being thrilled out of my mind. As Jonathan says “We’ll be able to feel their vibrato” Not entirely sure what that means in regards to the music world but I am looking forward to it.

The Halloween party and after party were a good time. For the Halloween party, everyone enjoyed themselves and my moldy eyeballs, pumpkins and Zombie punch were a big hit. Marianne and I had a good time 🙂 I am glad I could be part of her first Halloween celebration and she makes an excellent wingwoman!  Here you can see the punch that was empty by the time it was off to the after party!