Julie's Birthday Week

I seems I only post on here on birthday weeks (we celebrate the whole week since one day just doesn't do it)

I recently re-connected with two friends from High School that I haven't seen in over 20 years. The subject of kids always comes up so I figured I'd kick off the week describing our furry child, Polly (aka, Fang)

Polly is a Cockapoo that has long ago forgotten that she is a dog, if she ever even considered being one. I used to call her a small furry human, but Polly disagrees with that as she is quite sure that she is superior to me, a mere mortal. Polly's view of life is more that of a Demi-god. After 11 years she knows quite a few human words, where I have yet to learn any words in dog, thus proving who is the superior being.

Humans (again me) live to serve Polly. My job in life is to feed her, pet her, walk her, clean her pool and carry her to bed at night. (Polly can do the stairs just fine but prefers to be carried to bed at night, she can make quite a deal of it if she isn't.)

Polly didn't come by her view of the world lightly. She sees me trudging off to work each day and has correctly figured out that my lot in life is to work to support her life of leisure.

In reality, we have more of a overlord/serf relationship. Polly knows that humans are required for things like air conditioning, belly rubs and of course, bacon. She is a pretty decent overlord, as far as overlords go.

Polly will be with Kurt this week when Julie and I are in Las Vegas. While we appreciate that Kurt is available to take care of Polly while we are gone, Polly feels that we are dumping her on yet other human that lives to serve her. She has a very tough life, just ask her, she'll tell you.

So how high can Tiffany go?

My niece Tiffany is a Mount Everest buff. She is well on her way to becoming an expert on Mount Everest. So I decided to challenge Tiff to see if she can beat me in a contest to see who can get to the highest elevation.
I admit that this is a good time to start as I am in Breckenridge this weekend. Here is the altimeter reading for my bed. Yep, I'm sleeping 1.8 miles above sea level! Tomorrow I'm going to take the Imperial Super Chair to the highest ski peak in the USA, 12,840 feet above sea level. I hope I can make it down alive, there are no green or blue runs off the peak, only black diamond and double black diamonds. Here is what I got yesterday from a single black diamond mogul run.I should have hit Pikes Peak while I was in Colorado Springs at 14,155 ft of elevation, I'll catch that on my trip to Colorado.

If we want to stay in the USA, sort of, we'd have to hit Mt. McKinley (Denali) which is 20,320 ft above sea level.

Although it’s not considered a technical climb, Denali is extremely challenging and dangerous. Due to its proximity to the Arctic Circle, climbers must cope with intense cold and severe winter weather. Temperatures plunge to -40°F with winds gusting up to 100 mph. Powerful storms often delay climbs for days, as teams wait, huddled in tents or snow caves, making every effort to save fingers and toes from frostbite.

I think I'll pass on that one, so what is the "easiest" way to get really, really high? Pikes peak is a drive and a short hike to the top, so just about anyone can hit 14,000 feet (2.65 miles above sea level.

Kilimajaro is 19,341 ft above sea level (3.66 miles above sea level). While the climb is far from easy (more people have died climbing Kilimanjaro than Everest)

There are six[10] official climbing routes [11] by which to climb Mt Kilimanjaro, namely: Marangu, Rongai, Lemosho,[12] Shira, Umbwe and Machame. Of all the routes, Machame[13] is by far the most scenic albeit steeper route up the mountain, which can be done in six or seven days.[14] The Rongai is the easiest camping route and the Marangu is also relatively easy, but accommodation is in huts. As a result, this route tends to be very busy, and ascent and descent routes are the same.

Of course, at 19,341 feet we would still be 1.83 miles lower than Mount Everest at 29,029 ft.

UPDATE: I guess there a few peaks over 20,000 ft that are relatively accessible:

Cerro Aconcagua – Argentina: 22,841 ft


Like Kilimanjaro, altitude sickness is the most common danger on this mountain. However, a fit person can take on this challenge and ascend this impressive summit, much like an 11-year-old did in 2007.

Cho Oyu (चोयु) – Nepal/China: 26,906 ft

Probably the pinnacle of any amateur mountaineer’s career is to climb an 8,000-meter peak, or one that is approximately 26,000 feet above sea-level. There are only fourteen of these in the world – including Mount Everest, the tallest mountain on Earth – and all of them lie within the Himalaya and Karakorum Ranges in Asia. If you’re interested in trying your hand at one of the biggest, you probably have the best chance of success on Nepal’s Cho Oyu.

There’s no doubt that this climb is far and away the most difficult on this list, not to mention expensive and time consuming (if you allow 6 to 7 weeks for the entire trip.) Going with a guide is mandatory, as is being in top shape for the climb. However, with excellent preparation, training and a little luck, Cho Oyu is a reasonable attempt – if conditions permit – for a climber who has a several high-altitude climbs under their belt. Celebrate back in Kathmandu with a couple of cold Gurkhas on Thamel Street; whether you make it to the top or not, it’ll be well worth the price of the trip.

I think Tiff and I should try this one before we hit Everest ;-)

Julie's Birthday Week - Monday

I thought it would be fun to Chronicle Julie's Birthday week like I tried to do with mine this year. I had to fly to Colorado this morning, so the first 2 days of the week won't have many pictures of Julie, but I'll make up for that when we go to Las Vegas.

I try to park my baby inside the MSP ramp and far away from other cars. I won't be flying to Colorado anymore in August so that will be a relief.


Our wedding anniversary is July 19th. We decided to finish the patio as a mutual Anniversary gift this year. Here is the first section complete. The next part is a new deck and lots more Travertine pavers.

Our friend Jay is doing the work as I am too picky to work with anyone else. Hopefully it will be done before the wine tasting on the 30th.

April 16th: Work, Pool, Twist

One of the best parts of my job is that I can work just about anywhere as long as I have internet access. The downside is that my clients expect me to be available all of the time.

I got up before Julie, like usual, and headed out to find a place to make some calls and set up my laptop.

The Dolphin Bar by the pool had everything I needed:
Table - Check
Chair - Check
Full Bar - Check
Waitresses in Bikini's- check

Julie and I hit the first Buffet of the weekend and then headed for the pool, which was packed. We had checked into the adults only pool, but it cost $100 per chair. You get to spend $100 on food and drinks but you're still out $200 no matter what. After searching for a chair I asked if we could get chairs at Bare, but they were all sold. I could get a daybed for $500. (For a brief minute I seriously considered it)

We found some chairs and I did some work at the Dolphin Bar. Around 4:00 I got bored and suggested that we check out the new shopping area in City Center, Crystals. The place was pretty empty and it only had high end shops. Across Las Vegas Blvd (The Strip) is Planet Hollywood. They have a huge shopping area. Julie didn't find anything there so we walked back through the Caesars Shops and she bought a Calvin Klein bag for the evening.

As you can tell, we do a lot of walking in Las Vegas. Some of the casinos are a city block long or bigger. There is a tram from the Bellagio to the Monte Carlo, we took that home after checking out Aria.

We had dinner Friday night at Twist in the Mandarin Oriental Hotel that is part of the new City Center complex.



























The chef at Twist prepared anywhere from 2 to 5 versions of anything you order. We started with Foie Gras 5-ways. it was amazing. Julie had a rib-eye steak 2-ways and I had Langostino (Lobster) 5 ways. we skipped the wine pairings and had the waiter recommend a wine for each course. I had a Riesling that was amazing and Julie had a Chardonnay (Mischief and Mayhem) that she plans to buy at home.

This was probably one of the best meals I have ever had. The Mandarin Oriental Hotels always have impeccable service and chef Pierre Gagnaire certainly knows how to have fun with food. The restaurant is on the 23rd floor so they say that they are the "highest level of dining" in Las Vegas. Both Alize in the Palms and the Stratospohere restaurant are higher but none are better than Twist.

We walked over to Aria and played the slot machines, Julie won and I lost, as usual and got to be about 2:30 or 3 AM.

April 15th, on to Las Vegas

I got up early and went to work at Boston Scientific before Julie and I went to the airport for our flight out. We parked my new car in the ramp, which is hopefully safe.


Polly hates it when we leave. She stays with her Uncle Kurt but she makes sure that you know that she isn't happy.
The flight to Las Vegas was pretty easy. We took a cab to the Mirage, check out the pool and then went shopping.





The Caesar Shops were right next to our hotel. I always hit Casa Fuente for cigars. Julie found some shoes for me at Calvin Klein. Otherwise we just wandered around and checked out the expensive stuff.

A big part of our vacations is the dining. We picked Fleur de Lys in Mandalay Bay for our first dinner. Julie and I both had the Chef's Tasting Menu with the wine pairing. These means that you get a different wine with each of the five courses.

After dinner we walked back to the Mirage. This means we went through the Luxor, Excaliber, New York, New York, Bellagio and Caesars. It was very a long walk.

April 14th, the big day

I'd love to say that my B-day was perfect but it had a few speed bumps. I had too much fun Tuesday night and I was a little fuzzy for my flight out of COS Wednesday morning.

I landed at MSP and drove straight to Hemostasis. I have been an RA consultant for them for over a year. They make patches and powders that stop bleeding. It is a small company so I do a lot of different things for them.
For my birthday dinner Julie and I met some friends at La Bel Vie. It is a French restaurant in Minneapolis.

I have know Monica since we were in college together. I sold her and her husband Joel their house.

Joel, Doug and I went skiing this winter ion Breckenridge, Colorado. Joel had trouble with the thin air at 7,000 feet above sea level. This is what happens when you smoke cigarettes.

This is Doug with his new girlfriend Lisa. Lisa is an over-educated liberal. She asked me all kinds of questions about food, wine and gambling in Vegas, but when it came to everything else, Lisa thinks she's very smart. Lisa thinks that all black people are unhappy because of racism. Lisa thinks that we should help everyone, even people too lazy to finish high school. Lisa doesn't think that 2+2=4. (Yes, she actually said this). Lisa is so open minded that her brains have fallen out. Too much time in college does this to some people. Lisa is majoring in film Noir, she will never have a real job and will never contribute anything of value to this world.

After dinner we went downtown and had cigars by the fire pit at Chambers hotel. This is one of my favorite places to have a smoke after dinner. Too bad Doug brought Lisa along.

Tuesday April 13th

OK, Tuesday was a pretty normal work day which means it wasn't great for pictures. The trip to Las Vegas later this week should provided better pictures. When you travel you will end up eating at tons of chain restaurants in strip malls. The upside is that you can get the same Subway sandwich in Colorado that you get in Minnesota. The downside is that Subway sucks.
I worked in restaurants in college and I learned a lot working there. Most people are nice to the people that bring them food. Those that aren't are the kind of people that are never happy about anything. The sooner you learn that these people like to be miserable and it has nothing to do with you, the happier you will be in life.

If your goal in life is to have an office with your name on it, consulting is probably not for you. There are some good things to be said for having a "permanent" job, but not many.

So my desk at the office is not much different from the one at the airport. Laptop, Droid, briefcase and mouse. I am connected to their network so I don't have to use my wireless card, but otherwise no big differences.

So here is the bartender that served me dinner. When I travel alone I eat at the bar sometimes. Its quicker, easier and you often have someone to talk to. Alyssa has her college degree and is working for a start-up on stem cell research. My bartender at Sullivan's in Denver had his MBA. You never know the story of someone until you ask them. I am often surprised that some of the assumptions I make about people are completely wrong.

How about some pictures of what I am working on? I am in Colorado working with a laser company, Spectranetics.
This is a catheter that clears out clogged arteries in the legs. This is used on people with diabetes and it has actually allowed people to keep their feet when they were scheduled for amputation.

This is a laser catheter that is used to remove old pacemaker leads. Some people have multiple leads in them from old pacemakers or defibrillators. Pacemaker replacements are also a source of infection and removing the pacer and the lead is a recommended treatment for severe infections.