It’s a new year, so it is time once again to make resolutions we do our best to keep. Mine? I really, really want to pay more attention to this website and provide updates in a more timely manner. I had the perfect opportunity to take many pictures at various functions over the holidays, but I always seemed to remember the camera only when we were already at least halfway to where we were going. With the Photos section not being updated since August, it would’ve been a nice thing to not forget.

Additional pictures is just one of many things I want to focus on where the site is concerned. As they say, though, the road to hell is paved with good intentions, so my shoes might start melting before the site sees fewer and fewer cobwebs and a greater influx of content. Time will tell!

- Joshua

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Finals week for the Fall semester is looming, so we’re in the process of prepping the bunker with ample supplies of energy drinks and sugary snacks. Our weekend consists of piling on warm blankets and burying our noses in books until our finals are over early next week. Wish us luck - this semester has us in some tough classes, so this is pretty much our Normandy.

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Okay, November has been a very bleak month as far as site updates go, but I promise it is not because we are slacking off. We are approaching the end of the fall semester for school, and that means getting ready for finals. On top of that, there are a lot of big school projects we are wrapping up which currently have the heaviest pull on our attention. These reasons alone would be sufficient for explaining why we haven’t made very many posts within the past couple of weeks, but neither are the best reason.

World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King came out on November 17th. In fear of playing it and diverting my focus away from being responsible, I haven’t been bringing my laptop to work. Sure, I could make updates from home, but I don’t think too much about blogging or adding new content unless I’m taking a break at work. So, as you may have guessed, the reason this update is being made is this is the first day in some time I’ve had my laptop at work with me. On that note, I’m off to level my Warrior.

- Joshua

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I’ve been wanting to change the look of the site for a few days now, so I figured the ushering in of a new month was as good a time as any for a revamp. I’m not completely happy with this layout, but a cleaner, simpler design is what I’m shooting for. I’ll be playing with style variations and testing new templates as time permits, so don’t be surprised if the look keeps changing over the next few weeks. Honestly, though, whatever Linda likes most is what I’ll be happiest with, too.

- Joshua

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When you think of introductory program languages, what do you think of? Basic? C? Certainly not C++, right? Well, according to the College of Business and Public Policy at UAA, C++ is the best language to learn for an intro. to programming course. I was always told (rightfully so, I think) it is a high level programming language and can be quite difficult to learn.

I’m not questioning the department’s decision so much as I’m curious how this class will pan out. They’ve been doing this for a long time so I’m pretty sure they know what they’re doing, but when I tell people what the curriculum covers they get a puzzled look on their face and say, “they’re really teaching that in a beginner course?” Oh well, I’m excited for the prospect of learning a new language, I’m just hoping it doesn’t chew me up and spit me back out. Time will tell, I guess.

- Joshua

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Instruction for the Fall semester at UAA began yesterday and we are definitely feeling the crunch. If we aren’t busy with our classes then we’re busy doing work related stuff around the university. As a result, approximately 40% to 60% of our weekdays are spent on campus. Until the rush dies down, expect greater times belong blog posts.

One thing we hope to do before too long, though, is post a butt-load of new pictures we’ve taken over the past month. Every time we think we have enough free time to get them put up in the Photos section, something pops up that pulls our attention elsewhere. By hook or by crook, it will be done soon... we think... we hope...

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After 2 and 1/2 weeks, things are returning to normal. We were so busy with wedding preparations, both pre and post, we haven’t had time to update the website. We’ve made two major changes to commemorate our return - both the Wedding Blog and Wedding RSVP sections have been removed. Over the next couple of days we’ll also be adding a ton of phots to the photos section, and we’ll probably put up a new area to house all of the wedding photos. We had a chance to see a lot of movies, visit with family, and do a ton of things while we were away, so we’ll also get new blog posts added ASAP.

It’s great to be back!

Linda is finishing up her Summer classes this week, and next week her mother and father will be here to help make preparations for the wedding. We’re slowly closing in on the “only one more month to go” mark, so we’re excited to have her family here to assist in moving things forward. Have a safe trip, Mr. and Mrs. Chu, and we can’t wait to see you!

- Joshua

When a lot of people... wait, when MOST people eat candy that comes in assorted flavors, they tend to zero in on one flavor, typically cherry or strawberry, and doom the rest to short, unloved existences at the bottom of wastebaskets the world over. I admit, I am one of these people, but my love is for what are, quite possibly, the two least liked artificial fruit flavors flavors, lime and orange. This usually works out in my favor when I'm sharing candies with Linda since she likes the reds and the whites.

I say usually, because when it comes to what is in my opinion the tastiest gummy treats, Swedish Gummi Fish, most stores in our area only carry the "reds only" packages. Okay, fine, I understand the company is catering to the masses, but what about the freaks like me who love the other flavors? Why have we been forsaken? There are specialty candy stores where I can get Swedish Gummi Fish by the pound, but shops like that are very overpriced, making it hardly worth it to shop there. Is it too much to ask for some variety from a decently priced store? Show me the love!

- Joshua

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After many, many trips to various bike shops, I finally found a mountain bike helmet that fits my huge head - a XXL Specialized Air Force 3. At first I thought I was going to be stuck with a $170 helmet (larger-than-normal size helmets are not very common), but the clerk pointed out the Air Force 3 which was well over $100 cheaper. Thank you mister bicycle shop clerk guy! Linda will be very happy, too, since she knows I get a little crazy when I ride.

- Joshua

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Over the next two weeks we'll be up to our eyeballs in homework and studying as we prepare for end-of-semester final exams. On top of that, we have multiple meetings scheduled with various vendors for wedding related stuff. In other words, we are busy, busy, busy. The good news, though, is if all goes well, we'll have more information posted to the wedding blog before too long. The flip-side, of course, is the main blog will be fairly stagnant as far as upgrades go from now until May. We'll try to get stuff up as much as we can, but don't hold your breath.

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Within the past two weeks, Linda was awarded a research grant to conduct studies on "Effects of Flavor Variety on Food Motivated Behavior in Dwarf Hamsters (Phodopus Cambelli), and she was also accepted into Psi Chi, the national honors association of psychology students. Today we attended an awards ceremony that honored grant recipients and students who have completed their research projects. Along with her friends and fellow students Jen and Sarah, as well as a multitude of other students from various departments, she was recognized for the hard work she performed while writing the research proposal. Luckily, her grandma was able to attend to help congratulate Linda for her efforts. The photos section has been updated with pictures from the ceremony and preceding reception.

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Just as midterms ended and Spring Break started, the stomach flu hit me full-on and laid me flat for the past few days. What a great way to start a vacation! I think I'm back to about 80% today, but I still wish I was at home under a blanket watching cartoons. I'd be lying, though, if I said I didn't feel like doing that every day. I certainly have a lot of catching up to do before school starts back up next week, and hopefully we'll have more than just a couple of posts to the blog this week. Time will tell if the work gods will smile upon us these next few days and we'll be able to make it all happen.

- Joshua

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Okay, I know there was supposed to be a short drought of posts over the next few days, but I really had to say something about this. There is a video floating around on the internet, accessible from highly trafficked websites, of an American soldier throwing a puppy off a cliff "for fun" (no, I will not link to the video because I don't think it needs any more hits than I'm sure it is already getting). There is absolutely no excuse for this type of behavior, and I personally feel his sorry ass should be thrown from the same cliff. Wait, he's a soldier, which means he's probably serving in Iraq right now. If that's the case, I hope he gets his head blown off. Oh, is that too un-American of me? My patriotism extends to people who deserve it, and this worthless bastard certainly does not.

- Joshua

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It's that time again. Midterms are this week and we're very, very busy with studying and catching up on homework. Once it's over, though, it'll be Spring Break week - HOORAY! So, if there are long breaks between posts over the next few days, you now know the reason why. At least there'll be plenty of time for catching up once it's all over.

Filed under school spring semester midterm test

We were slow out of the gates getting started with our new years resolutions, but we've finally taken the plunge and started eating healthy. Linda has quit drinking regular soda and is on an Optifast diet. The diet consists of consuming no more than 800 calories per day in the form of health-shakes and protein bars. Joshua has quit drinking caffeine entirely and is on a "homemade" diet of no more than 1500 calories per day of various foods. We've been on the diets for a week now and we're happy to say we're kicking arse and taking names.

There is one caveat, though, in that we have both been sick for a few days now. Joshua has a terrible cold and Linda is in the process of contracting the same thing. In all likelihood we are victims of circumstance and suffering from a nasty virus that's affecting a lot of people in Alaska right now. It still seems like bad timing since we are doing all of this for health reasons, so we're going to pout like children until we feel better.

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Spring semester at the University of Alaska, Anchorage begins next week. With the exception of some last minute details, we feel we are prepared. Once classes begin, we're pretty certain we'll be facing the busiest semester of our college student careers. Things will hopefully go very smoothly and we'll make it out alive. For everyone else who is going back, we wish you the best of luck. We'll see you at the finish line with our suntan lotion and folding beach chairs in hand.

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We have finally finished up all of our last minute holiday "business", and we're gearing up for the new year. Over the next few days we'll be upgrading our computers to the newest Apple operating system, OS X Leopard. With fingers crossed and bated breath everything should go smoothly and we'll have more updates once we're finished, including pictures from Christmas and New Year's Eve. See you soon.

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Finals are over and we lived to tell about it! We apologize for the delay in between blog posts, but it has been a pretty hectic week for us. We finished up our classes, spent the weekend Christmas shopping and celebrating, and Josh had a molar extracted on Monday. Good times. Over the next few days we'll be finishing up last minute Christmas stuff and attending follow up dentist visits.

We've also updated the photos section with some pictures we took over the weekend while celebrating with friends. We hope everyone is enjoying the holiday season and we miss and love all of you who are out of state. Merry Christmas!

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Like the onset of a nasty rash, our semester final exams are steadily approaching. With the exception of the extreme egghead, I don’t think anyone looks forward to this time of year - wondering if you really spent enough time throughout the semester studying the course material, cursing the nights you blew off homework to get tanked with friends, regretting the time you spent beating “just one more level” of that pain in the ass video game, etc.

Thankfully, we both feel fairly well prepared as the zero hour looms. We hope everyone has the same level of confidence, and we have even bigger hopes that we aren’t experiencing feelings of false assurance. Regardless the outcome, our upcoming weekend will be filled with heavy consumption of caffeine enriched liquids as we pour over our study material until the wee hours of the morning. Wish us luck!

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Linda and I have decided to take the plunge at the beginning of 2008 to get in shape. This will be our personal resolutions as well as ones made to each another. This is a good thing and a bad thing. I think it is wonderful that we will be there for each other for moral support and guidance during this journey of "change" we will be partaking together (that sounds cheesy as hell, which is why I wrote it). The problem is, Linda knows I am a big softy and I will do anything for her, so if she asks me to bend the rules because she is craving something she knows I will cave. Then it's MY fault because I was supposed to be the "voice of reason", so I'm the one who allowed it to happen.

I have over a month to prepare for this, so I will remain strong like the Rock of Gerbils, or whatever it's called. Count on it.

- Joshua

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