Summer 2003 Update
Hi All,
It's high time for a postcard update! The last
postcard was
over 6 months ago just after Thanksgiving. At that time , Jay was unemployed
after his stint working for FBI's Most Wanted #14, Demaris was happily
"actualizing" with Safeco and our garden was hit with a potato blight. Visit
the prior postcard for more
information on any of the above events.
We'll start this postcard with a summary of the big points. Jay is
still unemployed although occasionally doing CS consulting work along with
random technical writing and some truly odd "various" jobs. Jay's also been
applying for everything under the sun (about 500 applications since the last
post card), but aside from a few follow-ups not a single face-to-face
interview. Demaris continues "actualizing" away at Safeco. She's rotated into
the Life group from the Structured Settlements group. Demaris has also recently
passed test #4! The garden is having a really rough time with Seattle's
extremely dry and hot summer. There was a crop during the spring but in the
summer only the sturdiest of herbs have emerged unscathed.
This photoessay will illustrate and detail several of the "big events"
over the last 6 months. Including:
In addition to the images in the photoessay, you've probably noticed
that we've built albums to store the extra photos. These albums are composed of
thumbnailed photos, however they're otherwise uncommented, unedited and the
images are of varying qualities. If any of the events or discussions in this
photoessay interest you sufficiently please feel free to review any the
albums.
All our best,
Demaris & Jay
Christmas at the Rhodes'
Left
to Right: Geoff, Brad Demaris and Jay. All sitting around after Christmas
brunch at Beth's (Judy's mom) house in Olympia.
Others members of the family after Christmas brunch.
Traditional disarming of the presents. Brad probing his
present from Jay.
For those of you not sharing this tradition, here's a summary. For
about the last decade and a half Brad and Jay have been exchanging "trapped"
gifts. Basically the gifts exchanged are wrapped in a trapped package. The
packages are puzzles built using mechanical, electrical or electromechanical
devices, that when triggered sound an alarm using a loud noise maker. These
traps vary in complexity and level of obfuscation from mercury switches and
pressure plates to gifts with hollowed out cores that have been rebuilt and
resealed to original packaging.
Jay inspecting his present from Brad.
Inspection shot with the tree in the background.
Hands free light source.
Inner view of Brad's present. What you're seeing here is a
series of "howler" balloons with sensitive clips that will release them if the
package is improperly handled. This would have two effects. The first being a
loud howling sound, the second would be the activation of a trigger mechanism
that is held in place by the inflation level of the balloons. This trigger
would activate a small cap (but a VERY loud alarm.)
Click the above image if you wish to view the complete
Christmas 2002 photo album.