The Salty Blog

Blogging from Baltimore-Washington International Airport on a Saturday morning. I came down to DC for a couple of days of work meetings – namely strategic planning for the strategic planning team – and the trip coincided nicely with a surprise birthday party for my friend Kristin. In fact, this weekend also marks the birthday of our friend Pete (and the anniversary of the day Gary and I met, sorry Pete).

HAPPY BIRTHDAY PETE AND KRISTIN!

While I love this area and wish I could stay longer, it was extremely difficult to be so far away from our dear friends Rich & Sarah as they had to say good bye to their young dog, Ruben. Dog lovers understand me when I say Ruben was their first born. An extremely handsome boxer, Ruben licked his way through four years of life with his active Vermont humans. Pretty darn good life. The last six weeks brought sudden kidney failure that quickly slowed him down, and his discomfort came to a close peacefully with Rich, Sarah and boxer brother Toro cuddling by his side.

We love you guys. Big air licks to the sky.

I’ve had a lifelong photography obsession. You have witnessed my deep dive (and increasingly shallow pockets - ouch) into digital SLR photography over the last year. I’m proud to say I have taken the plunge and proclaimed myself a PET PHOTOGRAPHER.

There are a decent number of pet photography sites online. Enough to suggest it’s a valid business, yet not so many that the industry seems saturated. And the big and the admirable? - I’m not finding them anywhere near New England. Cape Cod seems like the perfect location for this kind of thing, and hey, I happen to live there.

Please check the site out and share with your friends!

http://coldnosephoto.com

We spent a wonderful weekend with friends in Chicago this past weekend. It was the first true weekend that Gary and I could spend in the city, and we LOVED it! What a gorgeous, clean and unique city - complete with the beautiful Millennium Park, turquoise Lake Michigan and incrrredible architecture.

CONGRATULATIONS to our friends Dave & Jamie on their marriage! The celebrations and lodging took place at the University Club of Chicago. It has an air of an adult fraternity (we used the service entrance more often than not because of our denim, sneakers, shorts and other things not considered appropriate attire). The ballroom and library were gorgeous settings for dancing, dining and cocktails. The couple went all out to share this momentous occasion with their guests.

Back at home now, and what’s this? MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND?? We’re excited to have the Hedmans in town for the weekend. I’m particularly excited to see how Gary has cut his get-the-old-boat-out-of-the-yard-or-else deadline down to the wire!

Happy summer kick-off to everyone!

A very Happy Mother’s Day to all the Moms in our world!

This is me with my own mom back around 2001. I obviously had chopped my hair ALL off (due to a breakup with the man of my dreams, who I later married :-)) Mom and I have been bestest of friends for three decades now, and I’m lucky to say it has been filled with a LOT of laughter and adventure.

Gary will point out every day that I am taking after my mom. It’s funny how that happens. My mom takes after her mom too, though I think she weeded the important parts out.

I’m usually being goofy or over exaggerating when I’m “like my mom”. Something like “Nalgene bottles are giving everyone brain tumors,” for instance (they are!).

Love you, Mom! Thanks for dressing up like a farmer with a chicken and smashing eggs on your head for a contest so I could go to that New Kids On The Block concert!

It has been quite a while, but here I am - fresh (or not) from a tour of Connecticut and NYC!

I made my way down to CT to visit a friend on Friday night, and to photograph a couple of shelter dogs on Saturday. Stayed on Staten Island Saturday night after a quick trip in to Soho for dinner, and rode the Five Boro Bike tour on Sunday. Back out to Eric & Jill’s on Sunday night to visit with them and the kiddies, and then in to work for two days in NYC.

Where to start… The dogs were adorable, and I do hope the photos help find them a home! Whenever you visit a dog in a shelter or kennel, they often come out tugging and pulling and barely looking at you. I’m sure this turns people away from pooches that - like ours - end up coming home to be the most relaxed (to a fault!) and lovable dogs ever. Reesie, the dog in this photo, struck a chord for me. All she needed was a little time, focus and confidence on the other end of the leash.

The ride… Now I had some concerns about sending 33,000 people out on bikes through the streets of NYC, and as expected, the day was filled with a LOT of standing, walking and waiting. We didn’t even move until an hour after the ride had supposedly started. As a PR professional, I have about 500 ideas for the tour organizers to make this a better experience, but they do sell out every year and I’m sure are okay with that. We had a blast, though, and miraculously stayed together as a group. Next up might be the Montreal tour in July…

Once in NYC for work, I didn’t get another glimpse of daylight. But I was upgraded to the 46th floor of the “Towers” at the New York Palace Hotel and managed to work until 2am at a desk overlooking all of Manhattan. St. Patrick’s Cathedral was below me.

Back on Cape Cod, the sun is shining and the breeze is warm! It’s May!

Happy to be home with my three boys and a weekend of delayed Cinco celebrating ahead.