My New Car & Pix from Camping

I am still busy as ever at work. I spend about two to three days a week on the road, visiting other US facilities in Germany to scope out upcoming projects by visiting with project sponsors and customers. The rest of the week, including weekends, I am putting together the contract packages (scope of work, request for proposals, cost estimates, etc.) for new projects. This past weekend, I worked 6 hours each day. I am counting down to 30 September, which is a little more than seven weeks away, when most of this madness will die down.

On a better note, I finally purchased a car. I have managed to get by without a car for more than a year in Germany without any major hassle, but there were a few things I missed out on without a vehicle. I bought a Mini Cooper Clubman. When I was looking at the Minis, I was only considering the basic Mini Cooper model. I figured that if I were going with the Mini for its small size, then it does not make sense to get the Clubman model because it no longer has the “Mini” size. But after visiting the showroom and checking out the Clubman model, it diminished my concerns about owning a smaller car: Room for passengers in the back seat and storage. The Mini Cooper basic model definitely did not satisfy the concerns, but the Clubman model did. The Clubman has fairly ample room in the back for passengers – I sat in the back seat to see how much room there was. Also, there is sufficient storage space in the back, including a special area in the back under the seats that can be opened for additional storage, similar to the area where a spare tire is stored in most cars’ trunk. They are all out of 2008 models, so I ordered a 2009 model. The car is chili red in color with black trim and black front stripes. It gets a decent gas mileage, which is always a plus, with the gas price skyrocketing. I should be getting the car in late September.






Now on another subject, my previous post extolled on how successful this year's event was. I will post a few pictures on this blog, but all my camp pictures can be seen on my flickr account once I get a pro account. Right now I am limited to how much I can upload. I will keep you guys posted and provide a link to my flickr account.

The golden pan award for the best cook during camp is given to Manong Joey for the chicken curry during the Friday evening dinner, and the dinardaraan and pinapaitan for dinner on Saturday. The photo below shows him putting his finishing touch to the chicken curry that was enjoyed by everyone.




Not too far behind is Manong Edgie for his diligence in preparing most of the breakfast dishes on Saturday and Sunday such as longaniza, daing, fried rice, sausages, etc. By default, he was also the Iron Chef winner for the beef barbecue contest.




Best service offered during camping goes to Edward for the much needed back massage I got. It was so relaxing that I fell sleep while being massaged.




Chris D.wins the athlete of the camp. He won all the basketball events. Chris shows his gravity defying b-ball skills on the photo below.




The biggest compliments goes to the Games Committee for all their work in planning games and activities for the kids. The kids managed to enjoy themselves throughout the duration of the camp.

Building a moat to protect the sand castle.




Ina is having issues with her kite. Gavin is trying hard to hang on to his kite. As you can see, grabbing on the kite string with his dear life is even more important than keeping his pants up.




I am not sure who Cameron is rooting for, but I am pretty sure her team is winning.




The kids are having fun playing with and in the sand. It soon turns to mud when they start adding water. Their parents have much more fun cleaning the kids afterwards.




Playing connect four with Janice. Jeremy, you better watch out --- I am ardently practicing for the next time we play "connect four."




I was invited by this group to join their “no shower for the duration of camp” club. I was honored to be invited, but I politely declined to join their esteemed group. Eww!!!




I had a super-terrific time at this year’s camping event. Although I spent a lot of time sleeping because of jet lag and the weather turned sour for a bit on the second day, I still enjoyed my time at Nehalem Bay, Oregon.

I enjoyed the food:








I enjoyed all the activities and playing with the kids:












And I especially enjoyed the company --- all the family and friends who were able to make it this year:


























I forgot to extend wishes to those with July birthdays. Happy Birthday to Maria, Jason, and Mng. Eden. And to those whose birthdays fall in August: Cameron, Nathan, Janice, Marcus, Jun, and Mng. Joey, I also wish a wonderful birthday.