Paul, Matthew, Terry --

Thanks for hosting the party, (e:chicoschica) and I had a great time. I met so many (e:strip)pers -- one-stop shopping, almost as ruthlessly efficient as Wegman's, haha. We left early (I worked 14 hours on Sunday) and I still met at least 10, maybe 15 e-strippers -- (e:paul) , (e:matthew) , (e:terry) , (e:imk2) , (e:leetee) , (e:uncutsaniflush) , (e:mrmike) , (e:dragonlady7) , (e:zobar) , (e:enknot) , (e:carolinian) , (e:metalpeter) , (e:kookcity2000) (while he was still coherent haha), (e:jill) , (e:twisted) , (e:hodown) , (e:theecarey) , (e:ladycroft) , (e:libertad) ...how many is that so far? And I know I've forgotten some, sorry about that. I'm just so happy to "know" so many (e:peeps) in our new city.

Next time we'll bring some good homemade food for the veges, or (e:vegs), or whatever you meat-o-phobes like to call yourselves.

Also: that house is amazing, it has good bones and is going to be stunning when it is done. Good luck with it guys!

I'll never understand how the mind of Charles Wang, owner of the New York Islander hockey club, works.

The New York Islanders signed Alexsei Yashin to a 10-year deal, and the only thing he does consistently is underperform. Of course, with a big fat 10-year contract, he's basically untradeable.

Lesson learned... right?

Wrong. I like Rick DiPietro, I do. He's an exciting netminder and not without talent. But to sign a 25-year old goalie to a FIFTEEN YEAR CONTRACT? Whaaaaaaaaaat?!

This, on top of canning general manager Neil Smith and replacing him with Garth Snow. As much as I hate the Rangers and dislike Neil Smith, the guy is a pro with experience building a team. So hey, why not fire him right after hiring him, and replace him with a backup goaltender.

These are strange times for my beloved Islanders. Anyone remember the old Paul Newman flick "Slapshot!"? I'm wondering if it's beginning to come true on Long Island.

Oh, and apologies to all you wonderful e-strippers who helped us out...I still want to meet you all, but the job's got me swamped. Once I'm out from under, I'll be lurking about Elmwood looking for you.

Hey -- if you spot the hottest 5-foot-one, 29-ish brunette you've ever seen in Buffalo strolling around on Elmwood Avenue tonight or tomorrow night, yell out "Hey (e:chicoschica)!" -- she's due in town this evening and will be around till Thursday morning. She's likely to be with her mom and her (taller) younger sister.

Chica and I will be up in B-lo permanently in one week!

See you all soon...

So it's been a while ... seems like an eternity.

(e:chicoschica) and I are gearing up for the big move -- eight days and counting down!! It's starting to feel really weird, we have made a life for ourselves in NJ and now it's time to move on.

We've been too busy to reminisce though -- last two weeks have been a whirlwind. My sister's wedding in Baltimore two weeks ago, last week a really nice going-away party thrown by my buddy Bill and some other good friends, plus a family party the next day...this weekend we had our niece Camille's one-year birthday party (yesterday) and today we have chica's friends coming over for a homemade Indian feast (fortunately, cooked by our friend Sayandip, not by us! haha).

Tuesday or Wednesday I think chica will do an advance trip to B-lo to clean the apartment, which means she'll miss my dissertation defense (Wednesday)...but that's OK, our defenses are kind of boring anyway. So she cleans; I defend, get rip-roaring drunk, then finish packing all our stuff while hung over. :-) But wait! I still have to finish my syllabi and lesson plans for my courses, write my paper for an upcoming conference, revise the dissertation.... aaaaack! Oh, and did I mention that I'm completely broke? *sigh*

Aw hell, it's not as bad as losing $400 and a wallet full of credit cards and ID ( (e:jenks,200) ) but I'm feeling just a little overwhelmed right now. But soon we'll be in Buffalo, and that will make everything better, right? ;-)

My sister Liz is getting married this weekend. I'm happy for her but pissed about the fact that we have to drive to Baltimore on the final weekend of my big push to finish my dissertation, and with only 3 weeks left till the big move to B-lo. *sigh*

Nonetheless, I'm excited for her, not only because of the wedding, but because she has lost a ton of weight and looks fantastic. She's even featured as a success story on e-diets! Check it out:


I'm so proud of her. :-)