I Love Big Al's!

Enough to leave my job at Microsoft!

Indeed, Avid Reader, I resigned from Microsoft a couple of weeks ago, giving 2-Sept as my last day. Inasmuch as the process was a long one (commencing with a gift book in December), now things seem to be a whirlwind: Resigning, house-hunting, rent plan, move plan, home close, project wrap-ups, etc. And what felt like me having a lot of time to make this real is starting to feel the exact opposite. Good times!

All that said, I couldn't be MORE excited that this is becoming real. That I'll be getting back to hospitatlity roots. That I'll be working with a friend who 10 years ago I told I would work with in a heartbeat. That I'll be moving to Vancouver.

Bottom-line, the taking of APAC and of AMES and GAP and EMEA is rapidly coming to a close. What an adventure indeed!

Big Buddy G Takes Seattle!

Guess Who's TWO

Indeed, Copper turned TWO today! We celebrated with lots of play time, lots of belly rubs, and Birthday PupCakes! Of course, there are more to be had so she's been following me around the house all night!

2010 As I Saw It.

Happy New year!
Here's to 2011!

Merry Christmas!

"Your ankle's messed up."

That was the official unofficial diagnosis I got from Dr. Henry "Hank" F. Pelto III this past week when I went in to get the MRI results on my left ankle. You may recall my R.I.M. post from back in September; we now have confirmation that it wasn't just any ankle sprain...

1. Bone marrow edema present within the media malleolus and adjacent medial aspect of the talus. Translation: areas of fluid, likely the swelling that's been existent since this all happened.

2. Non-descernible anterior talofibular and calcaneofibular ligaments, consistent with tear. Attenuation of the deep fibers of the deltoid ligament are also consistent with tear / strain. Translation: two major ligaments gone. Completely gone. Not good.

3. Tear of the anterior tibiofibular syndesmotic ligament. Translation: Otherwise known as a "high ankle sprain"... if the ligament was still intact. Here, it's just gone.

4. Longitudinal split tear of the distal posterior tibial tendon. Focal strain of the peroneus brevis tendon just distal to the lateral malleolus. Translation: bad news. With this complete tear, any downward pressure on my foot causes the two bones in my lower leg to separate as this tendon would normally hold them together. I often feel this especially when I bump my heel on a stair step, for example.

So, now the Good News / Bad News Game... Good news... I'm not a wussy! I have been in pain all of these past three months! Bad news... surgery is likely my only option to eliminate pain and to get back to a path where I can do things like... walk across uneven ground... jog... play volleyball... without pain.

It's good to know what's up with the ankle in light of the fact of what I felt when it happened and the pain I face to this day. I asked Hank if I should be pissed at the original doctor who kept telling me it was "just a sprain, probably a pretty good one" and refused to do an MRI. He backed me off the ledge and said the path I've been on to date is a normal one and one he also would have recommended.

That Hank... he's got a way with words!

Aperitivo!

While I couldn't get many sights in yesterday, I had one of the most wonderful Milanese experiences tonight: the Aperitivo!

You & I might call this phenomenon "Happy Hour", but the key word here is PHENOMENON! It was incredible! Emanuela and I went to Corso Sempione -- near Milan's Peach Arch (Arco della Pace) -- and one of her favorite Aperitivos. Ultimately, it was a super chic, well-designed bar (seriously! awesome design; you should have seen the basement bathrooms!), sit down, order (and pay) for a beverage, then take advantage of a HUGE buffet!

We might be pupu at home; maybe even a basket of nachos and salsa at a Mexican restaurant. Here, you might pay a bit more for the drink (a whopping 7 Euros each... or $9.75, including tax & gratuity!), and the food was incredible! Pastas, cous cous, sausages, skewers, salads, potato wedges, gnocci! I ultimately had two drinks and two rounds of full plates. Dinner, friends, was served! And in an oh so Milanese way!