Science at Work!

For the record, it DOESN'T work.

Athens Faces Tragedy

Well, a weekend that was supposed to be quiet and calm turned out to be anything but. Good ol' Athens, GA made national news Saturday; not for our outstanding academic achievements, not for our efforts to improve the environment by 'going green', not for our historical landmarks. Instead, both our town and our college, UGA, has been the topic of conversation on CNN, Fox, USA Today, and all local news stations thanks to a professor that can only be described as 'crazy'. George Zinkhan is a 57-year-old professor, employed at UGA, who shot and killed his wife and two others Saturday at a local community theater. After shooting each multiple times, he fled with his two children in the car. Zinkhan dropped his 8 and 10 year old off at a neighbor's house, explaining he would return in about an hour. He has yet to return.


Click here to watch a short video created by a local student newspaper.


Police surrounded his home, his office, and his wife's office; in the event that he returned, they were prepared. It has now been over 48 hours and there has been no sign of him. Reports are surfacing about a possible love affair, international cell phone purchases, missing passports, etc. Zinkhan has the financial means to run as long as he wishes. He has a second home in Amsterdam and family in Texas. It is believed that he may have a 'secret identity' with credit cards issued in other names, which would have allowed him to escape the country unnoticed. As of now, his vehicle has not been located and he has not used any cellphones or credit cards that are reported in his name.

The Athens community is devastated by the occurrences and even more devastated by the idea that one of our own is capable of such horrific behavior. This is a man that was responsible for the education of students. He is a well respected researcher and has published several books based on his knowledge. He walked on the same campus as us, parked in our parking lots, sat behind a desk in our offices. This was not just some madman off the streets. George Zinkhan made over 212k a year in addition to the income from his wife, a prominent attorney in Athens.

Our only hope is that justice is served. The children will never be hugged by their mother again; will never experience all of the joys a child is supposed to feel as they grow. Despite the affection they seem to show in the picture, this is obviously a troubled man who has serious problems. The families of the others that were killed will always have questions, fears, and uncertainties. This man does not deserve to spend life as a free man.

Parks and Projects

The best AND worst thing about Georgia is the weather! We dont have to deal with heavy snow, freezing temperatures, devastating heat, or torrential rains. The problem is, while you know it will never be extreme, you dont know what you're going to get. One day you dress in long sleeves and a coat..the next day in shorts and flip flops. Today is one of the hot days; it's 89 degrees at the moment.


We took advantage of the beautiful day last night and went back to the dog park. We tried out "Park 2" for the first time and were let down. It was much smaller than Park 1 and Park 3. The heat brought out the gnats and bugs, so all in all, it wasn't as much fun as usual. Rupert and Tonka even seemed to be kinda let down...Our Annual Passes to the park were ready for us to pick up this time; we were very excited! We also went ahead and purchased the "12 Dog Park Visits for the Price of 10" card. As much as Rupert and Tonka enjoy it, we figure we'll be going enough to make it well worth it!

A few weekends ago, we went on a Lowes shopping spree and stocked up on projects to keep us busy during the summer. Our first task was to install a storm door with a doggie door. Since our backyard is fenced in, and Tonka loves being outside, we figured this was a great investment. It took us about 4 hours and some blood/sweat but we finally finished it!




It took Tonka about a day to figure it out, but Rupert got it right away. Now, a few weeks later, they love it! When we are home, they can go in and out whenever they wish.

Our next 'indoor' project is going to be our kitchen floor. About a year ago, we got the bright idea to pull up the sheet vinyl in our kitchen and replace it with something else. We didn't realize how much work was involved in that...

Needless to say, we got about 1/4 of the way thru and put that project on hold. So, for the past year, half of my kitchen floor has been vinyl and half is bare concrete. During our shopping excursion we purchased new "peel and stick" tiles to put down. Our plan is to add slate tile before moving out..that way we can reap the profit but not risk damaging it in the meantime. In addition to the new tiles, we also had to purchased all of the tools to help remove all of the old flooring glue and backing. So..there's hope! One day I will once again have a real kitchen floor!

Happy Administrative Professionals Day!!

This picture of us sums up my day...SLEEPY!

For Administrative Professionals Day, the managers in my office gave us all a "Movie Pass", which allows us to take time out of our duties to enjoy a movie and some snacks. We were divided up into groups and assigned days and times. The chosen movie is "The Bucket List" which I have not yet seen, so I am excited! They have purchased drinks and snacks so it will be a real treat! My day is today, so I look forward to taking a break and getting away from my desk for a few hours. What a nice gesture on their part; it's so nice to have great bosses!

The weather this weekend is supposed to be very nice; mid-80s Friday and Saturday! This means we will get to enjoy another weekend of yard work. This time, the backyard will get all of our attention.

When we first moved in, the neighborhood was pretty much new construction. The yards were basically just dirt and rocks...no trees, hardly any grass, etc. Our house sits on top of a hill that overlooks the neighborhood...when we're in our backyard, we can look down on all of the other houses. We love spending time outside, so we decided to invest in our home by purchasing sod and having a wood privacy fence built.

The houses in our neighborhood are two styles; either you have an upstairs deck on the back or you have an upstairs porch on the front, both styles shown in the picture. We decided on the extra front porch since we can always add-on a deck if we choose in the future.





Since we spend so much time in our backyard (playing with the dogs, grilling, etc) we built a patio out of paver blocks. We have since re-done it and surrounded it by a border of rocks and plantings, but here are some pictures of the "original" from 2007. This was also before we planted sod so you will see it's pretty much a mess!

I will have to take "current" pictures this weekend after we cut the grass and get it all cleaned up.

Pet Collage

April 20, 1991

On September 23, 1990 my mom gave birth to a baby boy named Branson. I was in first grade and was an only child, so this was a great addition to our family. Although he was often ill and was in and out of the hospital, I had a great time dressing him up in all the cute baby clothes and toting him around everywhere I went.

For Halloween, Branson was a "little devil" and at Christmas time he wore a Santa outfit. At the time, mom was going through a divorce so we moved into our own house...just me, mom and Branson. We all had our own rooms but I loved spending time in his room, playing with him and his toys.

On April 20, 1991, seven months after he was born, Branson passed away in his sleep. He would be 18 today. I remember the day very vividly. It was a Saturday...on Saturdays Branson would watch cartoons with me. This Saturday though, I slept later than usual. When I woke up, mom was still asleep but Branson was not in the bed with her. So, I went to his room and found he was sleeping in his crib. However, when I went to pick him up, I could tell something was wrong. His color was odd and he was not warm. I immediately woke mom up- she had put him to bed in the middle of the night and then thought I had woke up with him in the morning. I remember the panicked look on her face- I ran to the living room while she went to his room. I will never forget the scream that irrupted from the hall. I remember calling 911 and then waiting in the driveway so the ambulance would find our house. The next thing I remember is the house being full of flowers; peace lillys everywhere. I hated it; I hated the smell. I dont remember much more. When I look at pictures of him in the open casket, I vaguely remember helping mom pick his outfit- a cute little outfit with a matching hat. I kept his favorite stuffed animal and a few outfits.

The day after it happened, I remember telling mom that I was sorry...I told her it was my fault because I had yelled at him for pulling my hair the day before. I was in first grade at the time and all of my classmates made me cards and mailed them in a big envelope to my house. I was nervous about going back to school because I didn't want everyone to ask me questions. After the funeral, I tied a key that I found (which I considered a house key) to a balloon and set it free...I remember thinking it would make it all the way to him in case he ever wanted to come home. The balloon got stuck in a tree.

18 years later, it's still difficult to think about. My mom and I both carry a lot of guilt about it; feeling bad for not waking up. The doctors said it was S.I.D.S. (sudden infant death syndrome). He spent a lot of time in the hospital with some form of bronchitis; a crib with a tent over it that we couldn't open. I remember mom just sitting there with him for hours.

Branson is buried in Thomson, GA about 1.5 hours away from us. Our family and friends still go put flowers and gifts out for us throughout the year.

It's weird to think that he'd be driving, going to college, dating, etc. I dont talk about it often, and most people are not even aware that it occurred. It's easier not to think about on a daily basis now, but on this day of the year, it's always in the back of my mind.

Yard Work Palooza!

Since Brandon finally had a whole weekend off, we took time to do some much needed yard work in our front yard. The weather has started to get warm and all of our neighbors have been planting/weeding/etc...so we had to catch up! We made several trips to our favorite place, Lowes, and got all kinds of flowers, mulch and garden tools.

I got the cutest little wheelbarrow/cart thing that is intended for children but it works perfect for me. I was able to carry it all around the yard as I dug up weeds, and then lift it for dumping with no problems.

We like to think we're the best house on the block, so we put a lot of effort into our yard.


This was actually a picture from last year when we put down mulch and a border. This year, we dug it all out, pulled up all the weeds/grass, put down weed tarp and then new mulch.

We have an upstairs and a downstairs porch, so we hung ferns downstairs and hung planters from the railing on the top porch. I purchased some flowers that will fall over the side of the planter and will look pretty from the road. So far I only have one little purple bloom but they apparently bloom all summer...so I have something to look forward to.

Madelyn

Meet Madelyn!

She is the beautiful daughter of my best friend, Becky. I have known Becky since 1st grade..so about 19 years. Even as a little girl, she knew she wanted to be a mother. After marrying her husband, Marcus, they began trying to get pregnant. Due to some medical problems, they had to rely on fertility drugs and had a pretty rough road. Alas, in November 2006, they gave birth and asked me to be the Godmother. Madelyn is SO smart and they have spent a lot of time and effort on discipline, manners, socialization skills, etc.

Becky lives about 1.5 hours away so I do not get to see them as often as I'd like, but I am constantly viewing pictures and even get to talk to Madelyn on the phone now that she's a "big girl".

I still imagine her being the tiny newborn baby that I held moments after she was born, but as you can tell from the pictures, she's all grown up!

Day at the Dog Park

After several days of rain and wind, we finally had great weather yesterday..in the 70s! So, we were able to reserve a dog park again. There are 3 private parks that you can reserve. Each time we've been, we've gone to Park 1. This time we reserved Park 3 and were excited to check it out. Each park is 2 acres so the boys love to get out there and run around. This time Rupert got tired first, so Tonka was able to work on his Frisbee skills.

There was a wooded area that they could explore, and this park had a view of the lake. Brandon and I really enjoy running around with the dogs and it's a great way to spend time together. We purchased an annual pass to the park, so we're sure to continue going!

This is how they return the Frisbee...so jealous of each other!

Easter Weekend

I left work Friday afternoon only to be greeted by heavy winds and a dark sky. We rushed home and made our chili in fear that we would lose power. (We had a snow storm a few weeks ago and were without power for almost two days..) All of the news stations were doing "Severe Weather Broadcasts" as there were tornado warnings and watches all over the state of Georgia. I'm a big ol' scaredy cat when it comes to storms! We rounded up the dogs and went to a safe area of the house. The skies got very dark and we could see the lightening in the distance. I snapped a few pictures of the images the news was showing:

We got very lucky and ended up only having heavy winds, small hail, and a lot of rain..but no real damage. After spending the entire night glued to the tv, it was relieving to finally go to bed after the storms passed. Brandon was braver than I; he took a few pictures as the sky grew darker.



Saturday was my fun day of making Easter baskets and cookies! Since we knew we'd be seeing Brandon's family on Easter, we dediced to make his mom, stepfather, and brother an Easter basket. They are all into golf so, while Brandon was working, it was my job to round up some goodies! I absolutely love making fun baskets and arranging everything until they are perfect in my mind. I even thru in some treats for their dog..."Nathan's Hotdog" treats! How cute is that!? Brandon's favorite food, as odd as it sounds, is hotdogs..so it was very appropriate. Although I ended up spending a little more than we had planned, I think it turned out cute:

Easter morning, we took our dogs, Rupert and Tonka, to a local dog park. While there is one free park where all the dogs can mingle, we prefer to reserve one of the private parks. They have 3 completely fenced in areas that you can rent for $1 per dog, per hour. It is WELL worth it. The one we rent is right at 1 acre and has a picnic table and lots of shade. The boys love to get out there and run around; we love that they work off some energy and we can get some exercise too. This Sunday, however, Brandon's mother and younger brother brought their small dog, Ginger, to play. This was her first experience in such a setting..she's a very timid, shy housedog. She did great though! Ginger wasn't interested in playing frisbee like my boys, but she loved being able to run free. We did have a little bit of an accident when one of my boys, Tonka, got attacked by a much bigger and much meaner dog, but it was completely my fault. He has a small wound that I have been a nervous wreck about (mainly because I feel guilty) but he's going to be just fine!

After the dog park, we went to Brandon's mom's house and cooked out. As I mentioned, Brandon's favorite food is hotdogs..he also loves hamburgers! So, rather than cooking a huge meal (like she usually does..) we decided to just enjoy the day and cook something easy. So..for Easter we had hamburgers, hotdogs, and steak! Yummy! They loved their Easter basket and my cookies were a hit! We spent most of the day watching the Masters and then all played Wii together. Brandon's family is really great and so easy to get along with- they truly are like my second family.