Harry Potter Week

Around here the local paper is unofficially calling this week "Harry Potter Week." Each day in the paper they have some different little section having to do with Harry Potter. At the Tiearney house, however, Harry Potter week is definitely official and it's definitely in fully swing. The week began with a viewing of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix and it will end on Saturday with the delivery of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows in my very own mailbox. Or else Amazon owes me some money. If I told you how excited I was for this book release, I guarantee you would brand me an even bigger dork than you already have from reading the title and first lines of this post. This is the first time I've been able to participate in Harry Potter buzz because I hadn't read any of the previous books before the 6th one was released. And let me tell you, there is quite the buzz. The bookshop that I recently started working at is having a full-fledged Harry Potter party with games, trivia, costume contests, and more, and I will most likely be involved somewhat in that event. It's pretty cool viewing the release from a bookseller's point of view because of the excitement that it generates (which means $$$$$) ranging all the way to hysteria.

For all of you Harry fans out there, you know what I'm talking about when I say excitement. This book is it. It's what we've been waiting for for so long. So many questions that won't be answered until Saturday. Only four more days, and it's finally here. Enjoy this week and celebrate all things Harry Potter.

Good Times, Good Friends

This past weekend my wife and I were the brief hosts of one of my best friends from college and his wife. The two of us are world-renowned road-trippers, and we decided that this trip would be no less. Within the span of two days, we drove 6 hours to Atlanta, spent just under 24 hours in the city and drove the 6 hours back. We did sleep, in case you were wondering, at a very nice hotel that was only affordable because of priceline.com. It was the first time in over a year that I had seen my friend, and it was great. I love it when you know someone so well that you can converse with each other like no time has passed. It was also great to see our wives get to know each other better.

We didn't have a lot of time in Atlanta but we definitely made the most of it. We ate at a fantastic establishment in the Buckhead community of Atlanta (where our hotel was), saw the incredible new Georgia Aquarium, and got a panoramic view of the nighttime skyline from the tallest hotel in the Southeast. It was quite the whirlwind trip. After our short stay in Atlanta, I would love to go back sometime and spend a long weekend. The aquarium was one of the best I've ever visited, the city seemed very clean (as much as any city can be), and southern charm was at its best. Above all, the trip was a great time to get away, refresh, catch up with good friends, and just have some fun. Enjoy the supplemental pics that tell the further story of our trip.

Canoeing, Communication, and Cooperation

Today my wife and I took advantage of the gorgeous weather and did something we have been wanting to try for quite a while now. We live next to a large man-made lake that provides most of the drinking water for the area, and it also offers canoe and flat-bottom boat rentals. We decided to try the canoe. Neither of us had ever canoed before so we thought it would be a fun little adventure. Well, it was an adventure but it didn't start out too fun. As we pulled away from the pier, we barely got past the edge when our paddling started spinning us in circles. Somehow we got clear of the pier, but continued paddling in broad circles and going nowhere. At first it was a good laugh, but I could feel annoyance slowly creeping up on me. Fortunately, we decided to switch our places so that I was in the back, and we quickly got the hang of it from there on out. Throughout the rest of our peaceful canoe ride, we discussed the effectiveness of canoeing as part of a pre-marital counseling program. It confronts the couple with two of the major issues in marriage: teamwork and communication. If you can't get those down, you'll just end up turning in circles and shouting at each other, while everyone else watches from the shore and gives a little bit of a pity laugh. However, after today, I can safely say that we passed the canoeing test and will definitely be doing it again.