Summertime(andspace)

WHEN: May 31, 2010 - September 6, 2010 WHERE: States of The Old Dominion and The Palmetto Although I joy over the gift of a holiday and a break from work, Labor Day is perhaps the day I dread most on the calendar. I know there is a deeper meaning behind this holiday, but I think most of us recognize it as the unofficial (but official enough) end of summer. For some, the end of summer means the beginning of fall and their favorite time of the year (my wife being fall's biggest fan). But for those of us who have not lost our marbles (I'm sleeping on the couch tonight), Labor Day is the last day we get to spend with summer before being separated for 9 long, cold, dark months. I finally realized why wearing white after Labor Day is frowned upon - we're entering a time of mourning! I have already made my case for why summer is the most wonderful time of the year, so I'm not going there today. Instead, I am simply recapping the events of our summer this year. It seemed like a quiet summer while busy at the same time, but regardless...it went way too fast!

May 15 We kicked off summer with the Beach Music Festival on the Virginia Beach oceanfront in May. Although this was a few weekends before Memorial Day, it was still part of our summer. Shouldn't something with the word beach in its title be included? May/June I was fortunate to witness several passing cruise ships this summer, sailing the waters outside my office.

May 31 We passed this beach (Baylake Beach) each week on our way home from church and is how we came to find it. It's where we began our summer and it became (exclusively) our beach of choice, for the warmer water and the absent crowds of the oceanfront.

June 1 We celebrated our 3rd anniversary in June. Don't worry, this was not our celebratory garb. I don't think we're that formal. June 4 Our friends Philip and Beth came to visit from Iowa for a few days and the three of us spent the day in America's historic triangle (Jamestown, Williamsburg, and Yorktown) while Stace stayed back to work for the day.

June 4 The country's first capitol building (since 1699) in Williamsburg, before Richmond became the capitol in 1780 and finally Washington DC in 1790.

June 5 At the Virginia Beach oceanfront with Philip and Beth.

June 5 Dinner on the water at Rudee's on the Inlet.

June 5 Stace with her graduating class of preschoolers

June 11 I spent one afternoon at work with front row seats to The Parade of Sails at Norfolk's 34th Annual Harborfest.

June 12

Stace & I enjoying Harborfest

June 13 We bought our first grill this summer, as my birthday present. June 18 My "boss" at work asked his father-in-law (a former Naval captain) if he would take us out on his sailboat for a tour of Norfolk Harbor. Not a bad day at work! June 18 We were closely passed by the container ship Atlantic Concert (955ft.). I had seen dozens of ships that size in the harbor all year from our office, but being that close out on the water was an entirely different experience. June 18 Passing by the USS Enterprise CVN-65 (1,123ft.) and other naval vessels of Naval Station Norfolk. June 18 The Norfolk District's GIS team...hard at work! June 24 We got to see plenty (too much, and in more ways than one) of "Creeper" at our pool this summer. An odd topic to incorporate in to a blog but fitting as he was very much a part of our summer (and anyone that came in or near his line of sight). July 7 "Creeper" offering his culinary blessings to the lifeguard after hours.

June 24 For having a pool outside our deck and open all summer, I only spent one week in it while Stacie's family was here in July. I got my money's worth out of it in that one week though. July 13 Stace & I made it back inside the borders of North Carolina for the first time since we moved from the state in September. Although we only lived 20 miles from the NC border in Virginia Beach, it felt like we were states away and seeing signs and landmarks of all the places we had been in North Carolina were nostalgic. July 13 But North Carolina was just a "state in the way" of our final destination in South Carolina. July 13 We drove over 450 miles to Charleston for my interview with the NOAA Coastal Services Center. July 13 I took a risk and wore my Iowa vs. South Carolina (Outback Bowl, 2009) t-shirt down to Charleston. July 14 I had to ditch Stace at an outlet mall during my interview since we had to check out of our hotel beforehand. But I don't think that was too much to ask of her, do you? July 14 The staged "before interview" picture, taken after the interview. July 14 A picture of a truck on our way back to Virginia...for my in-laws. "Billions if not millions if not..." July 16 In July, I got the chance to attend a meeting/awards ceremony at our district office and see the commanding general of the US Army Corps of Engineers, Robert L. Van Antwerp. Within the Corps, he's the top boss and he reports directly to The President on all matters of the Corps. He is a highly decorated official, great speaker, wonderful personality, and from what I could tell, seemed to be a Christian, with multiple references to; prayer for our leaders, The Purpose Driven Life, and lessons of humility. I waited outside with my camera for a long while, waiting for him to arrive in his (scheduled) Black Hawk helicopter on the helipad outside our office. Disappointingly, he chose to arrive in the covert method of a van. No fun! July 18 More importantly, I got to spend... July 18 ...every day of this summer... July 18 ...with my beautiful bride! With all my research trips and thesis composition of the past two summers, our time has often been put on the back burner since we've been married. It was wonderful to have the weekends together and spend a day at the beach not doing work.

July 25 Also thanks to the Army Corps, Stace & I were able to attend three free concerts this summer at the outdoor Virginia Beach Amphitheater, this one being Tim McGraw. We saw Brad Paisley debut his H20 tour here on May 21, which was incredible considering his band had lost nearly 90% of their equipment during the historic floods in Nashville earlier in May (ironic, for the tour). We also saw John Mayer on July 18 but because no cameras were allowed at the concerts (though everybody brought them), I do not have pictures to share. July 26 Stacie's family arrived on July 25 to spend a week with us in Virginia Beach. July 26 It was a vacation for Stace & I as well; a chance to save our energy for the grueling days ahead and our last chance to see the sights of Virginia Beach. I was offered the job at NOAA in Charleston on July 21 and we were due for our third move in three years. We needed a vacation and we were glad we got to spend ours with family.

July 28 We ate well, we ate often, and we played and slept when we weren't eating. It was just what all of us needed!

July 30 The fam (just after eating again, of course).

August 6 My last day of work at the US Army Corps in Norfolk. It was an exciting and learning experience for me and I am thankful to have had and still maintain a job when so many are unemployed. I know very well that the summer of 2010 could have become the summer of unemployment for Stace & I but God blessed us both with jobs. August 10 On August 9, Stace & I met my parents and sister in Virginia and drove down to Charleston (for the second time) to find a place for us to live. We met an agent that night at our first (and really only) choice, among the places Stace had scouted out online over the previous weeks. We loved it and drove to the office first thing the following morning to sign our lease.

August 10

With our lease out of the way so early, we had time to show them around beautiful Charleston, on a beautiful (sweltering) day. August 10 Just missing Jay. Come visit soon!

August 13 Moving Day!

August 14 Empty apartment. A familiar yet still unsettling sight for us. It was time for our third trip to Charleston this summer!

August 23 My first day of work. I was actually 2 minutes late, thanks in partial to taking this picture. It also didn't help that it took 50 minutes to get 15 miles to work in a metro area one-third the size of Virginia Beach. The traffic is unproportionally congested here. Good thing the city is beautiful, because the traffic is ugly! August 31 A great job for which I am very thankful. I will have to blog more about it, so my parents, siblings, wife...everyone I know, knows what I do. I'm still learning myself :) September 6 We were able to meet up with Derek & Jamee Bohlen (friends and classmates from high school) today. It was their first time in Charleston and the first time we've seen them since our wedding. September 6 We had a nice, long lunch catching up with them, then Stace & I walked down to the harbor to see the cruise ship in port (Carnival's Fantasy). September 6 We also got the treat of seeing dozens of active dolphins (porpoises) in the water around us. September 6 Stace taking in the last sights, sounds, and smells of summer (and secretly wishing fall would hurry up and usher itself in). September 6 My best friend and the one I hopefully get to spend the rest of my summers with.

Any given weekend/night We got much use out of our new grill this summer and we're looking forward to using it year-round in this mild climate. Summer 2010

Speaking of mild climates, 2010 is on track to become the warmest year on record globally. Through this week, it is still the warmest year-to-date period on record. The summer of 2010 also became the warmest on record for places from Russia to Japan to the US. Charleston, SC also had its warmest summer, with an average temperature (day & night) of 83.1°F. The city also had its warmest June on record, with an average temperature of 83.4°F. During the 92 days of summer (June-August), there were 74 days (80%) at or above 90° and 53 days (58%) with a low temperature at or above 75° in Charleston; statistically shattering the previous records. There were only 8 times the temperature ever dropped below 70° in Charleston this summer. September is also shaping up to be the hottest on record here in Charleston. The average high has been 91° during the first week of September, with no signs of highs dropping below 85° in the next 10 days. I guess summer's not finished after all. I mention none of this to add to the "debate pot" of dialogue surrounding global warming. As I've mentioned before and will likely say again, I love weather extremes (and I love heat). I watch and track temperatures and their patterns daily, both where I live and across the country (even indoors). I'm nearly obligated to mention something about the hottest something on its largest scale. Thermometers aside (only briefly of course), it has been another memorable summer spent on the beach, with family, and in a moving truck, among other things. There are many experiences Stace & I will remember for summers to come and that have shaped us into the couple we are today. We (I) will miss summer, I will tolerate fall/winter/spring, and we will both look forward to summer 2011 and the exciting adventures ahead. I hope you're summer was filled with many wonderful memories as well. Summer...see you on May 30!