Office Shennanigans

Aside from being Halloween, today was our annual all staff meeting at work. According to PerformTech folklore, the founding members of the company -- Emma and Katie -- signed the company into existence on October 31, 1994 and, as they tell it, both were in costume as appropriate for Halloween. Ever after, they have held the annual meeting/costume party on Halloween.

Ladies and gentleman, I give you "Holy Crap," the winner of the award for most creative/original costume:

Good Weekend

Despite an uneven start, I think it's safe to say that Andy and I had a GREAT weekend. Unless you live in a cave, you probably already know that our beloved Red Sox have made it to the World Series for the second time in *gasp* 4 years. I'm still enough of a Sox fan to be apprehensive about our chances, but if the boys keep up the momentum, we could have a classic series in the making.

Oh... AND the Patriots kicked the Dolphins' padded butts up and down the football field on Sunday to remain undefeated. I smell a showdown with Indy...

I would post a picture of Andy and me in Red Sox/Patriots regalia, but we're not nearly this cute.

Wedding Photos

The photos from our wedding are online for public viewing. To see them, click here. You'll have to sign in (don't worry, it's free) and then search for our name. If you need an eventID, use "magoun" (all lower case).

Additionally, our photographer put together a slide show (with sound, so turn your volume on). That can be viewed here.

Hope you enjoy (we certainly did)!

Bar Harbor

Instead of a full-blown honeymoon right after the wedding, we decided to just take a few days in Bar Harbor to relax. Don't worry, we're still planning on doing a 'real' honeymoon in the next year or so (we're open to suggestions!).


We stayed at the Bass Cottage Inn and really, we can't say enough about it. The Inn is a restored summer 'cottage' (and by cottage we mean 10 huge bedrooms, an elegant dinning room, a beautiful enclosed porch, etc.) less than a block off of the main drag. If you're ever looking for a place to stay in Bar Harbor, stay at the Bass Cottage Inn.


While in Bar Harbor we were able to spend a day hiking Acadia. Once again, the weather was perfect.

While we were in Bar Harbor, we were joined by both the Queen Mary and the Queen Elizabeth II.


Oh, and there was this guy and his "boat".


All in all, the trip was wonderful and we can't wait to go back.

P.S. Any place that has Rubber Ducky in the bathtub, as the Bass Cottage Inn does, has to be worth a visit.

Weddings

Driving around the northeast and going to weddings has pretty much been our lives for the last two weeks. Along the way we were able to: have lunch in State Collge, PA, visit Hamilton for two nights, see friends on Cape Cod, visit grandparents in New Hampshire, see the Red Sox at Fenway, spend time in Maine, get married, have a mini-moon in Bar Harbor and go to the wedding of one of my best friends from college.

All told, we put well over 3,000 miles on the car and visited or drove through 9 different states or districts not including VA. Needless to say, we're a little tired. Here is but a smattering of the photos we (and others) took.


Hamilton's new science center, which is absolutely amazing, is just one of the new additions to the campus since we left. To give you an idea on how much the building was expanded, everything from furthest pine tree to the right (on the left side of the picture) to the glass staircase is new. It's huge.

Chittenango Falls, about 35-40 mins away from Hamilton.

On our travels we were able to see a game at Fenway. This was my first time to Fenway (the Sox won - maybe I should go more often) and Katie's first time in years. Needless to say, it was an amazing experience.

The afternoon before the wedding the weather was less than perfect.

Thankfully though, the Gods smiled on us and provided perfect weather day of.

As you can see, everyone got dressed up for the big day, even my nephew Jack.

This is one of my favorite photos from the day.

The newly-weds listening to the Best Man's toast.

As you can guess, this is but a fraction of the pictures that were taken (our photographer has edited hers down to about 900). Many family and friends have more pictures. If you can't wait for some more of the ceremony/reception checkout our photographer's blog: I Do Click.

Strolling in Old Town

We've enjoyed the perfect week here in Alexandria. The temperatures have remained in the low to mid 70s, not a cloud in the sky and no humidity. Wow. Almost like we've exchanged climates with California... for a week. Andy and I have taken advantage of the weather lately by engaging in one of our favorite pastimes... taking long walks in Old Town.
Down on the Potomac, we were able to get a rare glimpse of... *gasp* the other side! Not that there's much to say about the other side... mostly just Bolling Air Force Base (Andy's office is there) and the sewage treatment plant. Luckily we were standing upwind.
Speaking of everyone's favorite secret agent and rare sights... a picture of him with a genuine smile on his face. Sure, he was laughing at me at the time, but the picture is priceless nonetheless.

The Christ Church (original name, eh?) in Alexandria is supposedly the oldest building in town, though sometimes I have a difficult time believing that. Both George Washington and Robert E. Lee attended church here in their respective eras; each row of pews on either side is named for either Washington or Lee, depending on where the families sat. Pretty neat, really.

The cemetery at Christ Church is (surprise!) one of my favorite spots in Old Town. It is so peaceful now, though it hasn't always enjoyed that serenity. The Union troops used it as a campground when they occupied Alexandria during the Civil War. You'll notice that the headstones are blackened... apparently the soldiers found it advantageous to build their campfires right up against the headstone. That black is the soot from their fires...

Did I mention that we LOVE history? Hmmm...

In Vino Veritas

This explains a lot...

Kitties!

As promised (this video should be viewed with the sound on)*:



*A special thanks to Aunt Nancy for sending us this video

John Brown's Body Lays a' Moulderin' In His Grave

The weather in our neck of the woods was just perfect today -- low 80s, and even better, low humidity!. We elected to take advantage of this unexpected August blessing by taking a long overdue trip up to Harpers Ferry, WV and Antietam Battlefield in Maryland. Suffice to say, it was a Civil War history buff's (that would be me!) dream come true.

For those of you who fell asleep during the Civil War chapter of your 11th grade history textbook, Harper's Ferry is the scene of John Brown's infamous standoff in the name of slavery abolition. It also happens to be where the Potomac and the Shennendoah Rivers meet and continue on to Washington. Pretty dramatic, both visually and historically.

Not all the buildings in the village of Harpers Ferry are in ruins, though that might not be apparent from my selection of pictures. We do have pictures of entire buildings (all circa 1870s and earlier), but those require a nominal fee. Send your requests along with a check addressed to "Katie and Andy's House (preferably not in ruins!) Fund." Until then, enjoy a few shots of the original Harpers Ferry place of worship...


The picture below was taken from a spot called "Jefferson's Rock." The spot is scenic, yes; but Andy and I were more thrilled with the fact that the trail up to Jefferson's Rock is also known as the Appalacian Trail. Yes, that's right folks, Andy and I have officially hiked the AT... for about a dozen yards. All uphill, though.

I've always been drawn to old cemetaries. They're so peaceful and I suppose I see them as a very direct link with those who have come before me. I'm always particularly touched by the numbers of headstones for children I find in these cemeteries. They are a tragic and sobering reminder of an era when a baby was hardly a guarantee, and death was a painful and ever-present part of life.


Though Andy hates sepia toned pictures, I thought this picture taken at Antietam Battlefield seemed most appropriate in sepia. Sorry, Andy.


I am, as mentioned earlier, a voracious Civil War buff. It has held my fascination since I was just a kid. There is something unimaginable about it... and yet I think it is a part of American history that makes us as Americans a bit more human. I could go on, but I think this post is already getting a bit more dark and introspective that we typically like to keep it here at The House of Payne blog.


This picture was taken on what is now referred to as "Bloody Lane." On approximately the spot I was standing when this picture was taken, over 5,000 soldiers lost their lives in the space of about 4 hours. To put it in perspective, more men and boys died in 4 hours in Antietam than have died in 4 years in Iraq. So much for ending on a more upbeat note...


Next post will have kittens, puppies, or a combination of the two... I promise. :o)

Home Stretch

Two months, and counting down....

Deathly Hallows Eve

For those of you who've been living in a cave for the past few weeks (Luray Caverns, perhaps?), today is the day it all comes to an end. That's right, the story of the boy-wizard so many of us have come to know and love well ends with this last book: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.

I can remember when I started reading the series in high school; I can even remember why -- a childhood friend with whom I shared a manic obsession with Roald Dahl suggested I give 'The Sorcerer's Stone' a try. Andy shares this child-like devotion to the Harry Potter books, and 'Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix' was the topic of many of our discussions, early in our friendship. That's why, when we discovered that the local children's bookstore in Old Town was planning a HUGE launch party, we fell just a bit more in love with our cute little neighborhood. Last night was filled with all things Harry Potter -- children dressed in their Hogswart best, chocolate frogs, butterbeer, Charm (spells) courses, care of magical creatures (shelter animals), and a lot more. Up and down King Street was one large Harry Potter celebration, and it was like we were kids for a few hours -- transported into the world of magic.




They certainly weren't kidding around with these Every Flavor Beans. This picture is tough to read, but some of our "favorites" were sardine, dirt, earthworm, and booger. Andy was noticeably upset when he was the unfortunate recipient of a vomit flavored jelly bean. If you ask me, grass wasn't half bad.




You know what we'll be doing this weekend....

Journey to the Center of the Earth

Last Saturday, Andy and I drove out to the Shennendoah valley to see Luray Caverns. According to their website, Luray Caverns are the largest and deepest caverns on on the East Coast. (You're jealous, I know.)


We found it challenging to do justice to the cavern interior as much of the drama and majesty was derived from careful use of light and shadow. Use of a flash meant the image lost a great deal of that drama, and Andy was the only person with access to a tripod -- my camera was just too heavy for the one he was using. Bummer.


The tripod Andy was using is really cool. As you can see from the picture, it is bendy (for lack of a better adjective) and can stand on its own or be attached to a wide variety of random objects. For example, the guardrail seen here.

The caves had pools in some spots. In my opinion, these were the best spots in the whole cavern. These pictures hardly do justice, but the water was so still and perfect, it was like a mirror of the ceiling. As we approached some of these spots, I wasn't sure at first that there was water there at all. So cool in that nerdy geo-major kind of way.


Some of the "formations" reminded me of Pizza the Hut from Spaceballs.




"Oh, Christmas tree, oh, Christmas tree..."



Aww... we're cavepeople.


The view from the Caverns' entrance. As you can tell by the bluish haze in this picture, the day was hot (lower 90s and average humidity). One of the more pleasant aspects of our journey down below was the temperature. The caves maintain a cool 60 or so degrees year round. After nearly 2 months in the DC heat and humidity, the cool temps were heavenly.


On the way home, we took advantage of a relatively nice day and took a drive north on Skyline Drive through Shennendoah National Park. For those of you not aware, Skyline Drive is a scenic byway -- courtesy of the WPA -- along the mountain ridge that runs 80 miles from the northern tip of the park to the southern tip.