checking in

I left work early yesterday to meet with Ariel and Ryan. I was thrilled to see a new wall! I was also very happy to learn that Abel has been watering my peach tree -- apparently, he has a green thumb.

Turns out that Ariel and I misunderstood one another in our conversation about the concrete in the back yard. He thought I was saying that I didn't want to get rid of the concrete over the back part of the yard, and he didn't understand that we were talking about smoothing/leveling the dirt so that we only need one step. I think we are in sync now, thanks in part to Ryan. I guess that's why it's good to check in!

A and R had discussions that I didn't fully understand -- about the laundry closet doors and the exposed rafters. Since both discussions were focused on how to make things structurally sound without sacrificing aesthetics, I sided with Ryan. BTW, this is not a good photo of Ariel -- he was in the process of standing up when I took it.

After the check-in I quickly got some dinner together and then drove downtown to meet Nanci and Gina at the opera house. We saw (and heard) Jenufa, which featured two wonderful Scandinavian sopranos and a great orchestral score. Aside from some questionable fake rocks, it was a beautiful production. We could just barely see Chris playing his horn in the pit. It was good to chat a bit with Gina -- I see her maybe once every other year.