Oh man, so much good stuff going on recently…

First off, last night we took my in-laws to dinner at Haven Gastropub . It was a great meal, and I had a couple of fantastic beers, including one of my regular favorites, Blanche de Bruxelles which even has a photo of Manneken Pis on the label. I’ve seen that little relieving gent in person and it’s quite funny. Anyway, dinner was nice if not a bit noisy on a Saturday night and we did have to wait a bit to get a table. I do wish they’d take reservations for groups smaller than seven, as Haven seems to always be quite busy. I also wish it was a little more “pub” and a little less “gastro.” As in, a little more of The Clash, and a little less The Eagles. Oh well, we had a fabulous meal.

My father-in-law, Bill. It was his birthday last week!

Beer!

Young Maxwell was a bit rambunctious, but enjoyed the bits of food we gave him, especially the bread pudding!

Something else that is very exciting for me, the next three days mark my last at my current job. I have enjoyed my time there very much, and making an impact on peoples working lives has been very rewarding, but starting on March 15th I will be the Case Manager at a non-profit in Irvine, Families Forward. I am ecstatic for this opportunity. I’ll have considerable additional responsibility and think it’s a very strong career move for me at this moment. I am looking forward to helping to serve families in difficult situations in South Orange County. I hope I can continue to make a strong, positive impact.

Friday night a few co-workers and I went out for beers! We had a nice going away toast with some weird concoction/shot that I didn’t recognize, but I am a pretty simple beer/wine guy. Good times, and I will miss these folks quite a bit.

More beer!

Also, yesterday I did something that I haven’t in a long, long time…I read an entire book in a day. “Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea” lets you know that trying to survive in those conditions is anything but. It follows the lives of six people truly trying to survive and their subsequent defection. It’s gruesome, horrifying, and completely gripping. I couldn’t put it down until I learned where they were today and how their lives were changed by their experiences. Imagine just watching children die of starvation with your own eyes, and you’re their kindergarten teacher. Pretty incredible. It feels weird to be talking in the same post about this incredible meal I just ate and this good time I had this weekend, and at the same people are eating bark and sawdust just to have a chance to survive in the world’s most totalitarian and repressive nation with one of the worst Human Rights records in modern history.

Wow, I became a real downer at the end there.