Ok, here’s the house rules for the Austin pad .. yes it’s at 3301 Westland Drive, Austin, TX, 78704.  Y’all are expected to know and adhere to the rules.  No exceptions.  Even for me.

1. Wireless access is at  HFA-Guest  /  <password listed on the fridge>  .. no the password is not “password listed on the fridge” .. don’t bitch about the password, it’s free WiFi bro!
2. Don’t adjust the temperature!  If you’re cold, put on a sweater, toque (beanie if you’re south of the 49th parallel).  If you’re hot, have a drink with ice, and if that doesn’t help, then piss off.
3. Austin tunes over-ride. Period. Don’t care you want to listen to some wimpy East Coast, West Coast, Popular rock or Northerner crap.
4. If there is a NFL game on, then the game is ON .. don’t expect much else.
5. Don’t suck up *all* the bandwidth in pr0n, dude. Really? I know it’s you. Remember what I do for a living?? Yes there are “proxies” on friend’s free Internet connections. Duh.
6. GPS (aka TomTom or Garvin) HIGHLY recommended for out-of-town-ers.
7. GPS (aka TomTom or Garvin) HIGHLY recommended for in-towners.
8. Be energy conscious. Rinse your damn dishes (don’t be lazy) – that’s what the drying rack is for. Duh.
9. You consume the last bottle of _______, REPLACE it. Damn, there is a Tarjay (Target for our American friends), or H-E-B, or Randall’s within walking distance!
10. Do NOT put your drinks on my Red’s Porch tab. Food is negotiable.
11. You MUST have a valid reason to go to another joint than Red’s
12. Yes, it IS a shower curtain rod like Marriott’s.  No, I didn’t steal it. Nice, eh? That’s another 5.5″ of room in the shower!!
13. No you don’t have to come run with me in the morning at 5am.  Nor do I .. but sometimes I’d appreciate the encouragement out of bed.
14. Recycling bin is in the pantry.  Just cuz y’all are too lazy to actually walk outside and dump your junk in the recycle bucket out back. Just sayin’. By the way .. organics hit the bucket at the BACK .. if you give a cr@p about that stuff.
15. Yes, I do offer a taxi service at 5am to the AUS airport.  It’s $50,000 per one way.  Your choice, but it’s COB bud.
16. Don’t touch the Henkle knife (knives) .. I have to sacrifice  goat entrails to keep it sharp.  Pretty sure you don’t want any part of that. Just sayin’. You get the steak knives.
17. NEVER turn off the Cranberries. EVER. See rule #3.
18. Whoever gets to the music remote wins. Except when Rule #3 applies. That means Al wins. All the time. Damn dude don’t cry.

Ok, you get the point. Be responsible. Recycle. Use less energy. Don’t be lazy. Book your stay. (It’s only uncomfortable for those of you who don’t and wind up sleeping in the same guest bed .. y’all are NOT sleeping with me).

Oh .. ya, I’m sure you’ll have fun here .. no problems, mate. Yes the lights in the back yard are a secret. DON’T tell Amanda.

• Are you where you want to be?
• Are you who you want to be?

• The getting lost was worth the coming home. 

• What I fear, I can create.  We must be willing to let go of the life we planned, so as to have the life that is waiting for us.

Few human made disasters in recent history have had a larger impact on the United States, North America, and in fact the western world than the attacks on the World Trade tower buildings. I encourage my friends and acquaintances to visit the 9/11 Tribute Movement website and pledge their memorial activity.

Remembrance of those who lost their lives and those who gave their lives in the line of duty is an important act that we all should honor.

 We will be doing our most difficult cross country mountain bike ride and will give a minute of silence at the top in honor of those who lost their lives as well as in support of the survivors.

Visit www.911day.org and tell the nation what you’ll be doing on 9/11/11.

Update: At 6,398′ on Moose Mountain, we gave a moment of silence.

No laughing matter, prostate cancer. The guys at AESO have joined together to form team Mo Lecious to raise money for prostate cancer research. Movember is moustache month .. each team member needs to grow a moustache to raise funds.  No connection of side burns to the moustache .. that's a beard.  No connection of both ends of the moustache .. that's a goatee.  All else is fair game.

My Movember page here

In addition, I'm offering up a shiny new iPod Nano to the person who donates the single largest amount.

Please consider donating some money .. it's for a good cause.

Thanks,
AP

Jan Pomeroy passed away in May 2010. This is what some of her family had to say at her memorial:

John:

Mom was the quiet strength behind our family.

We grew up in a very busy household, first on the Acreage then at Vicary Place. The activities that we participated in while growing up, be it; academic, sport or social were facilitated by Mom.

Throughout my life friends have expressed surprise when they learn that I can cook dinner, wash the dishes, clean the bathroom, iron my shirts, and take out the trash. Of course I can, Mom would not have had it any other way.

I started mountaineering when I was young. Dad introduced it as one of the many activities the 31^St Tiger Scout Troup was involved in. Climbing became a passion of mine, for many years I spent weekends and the summers climbing at Alpine Club camps or with a few friends. It was Mom that made sure that it was all possible, she made gorpe for breakfasts, she made biscuit and meat bars for my lunches, and she dehydrated everything required for suppers. Mom arranged transportation until I was old enough to drive, she then gave up her own car until I had my own.

The winters where for skiing, again it was Mom that made all the parts come together. Mom sewed gaiters for us. She then taught us to operate the sewing machine so we could make our down jackets and pants.

Mom had that ability to keep all of us kids under her protective umbrella while living a very busy and rich life herself.

It was not until a little later in life when I truly appreciated just how special Mom was. Mom rarely showed or gave voice to her fears about our life style choices. Although it did poke its head up a few times. Once, I was very late coming down off a particular climb on Yamnuska because we got had gotten off the route, a little lost. When the two of us were sitting behind the car taking off our climbing boots a RCMP cruiser pulled up, the constable rolled down his window and asked “Are you Pomeroy” I said “Yes”, and I got told “Call your Mother”.

Whatever I did in life Mom supported it, both the failures as well as the successes.

I consider myself very blessed to have been Janet Pomeroy’s son. I feel like I will always be under her umbrella as I continue through the journey that is my life.

I am very grateful that I was able to return a little bit of that protective care as Mom needed it.

Good Bye Mom.

Allen:

People say that parents set the value and moral goal posts and hope their kids develop the ability to make judgment decisions that would make the parents proud. Jan did it.

Mom could cook. The whole gamut. For example .. Fresh bread right out of the oven; the kids slicing the heel off both sides of the loaf (before we got caught) .. of course smothered in butter and sometimes, brown sugar. Her famous Pomeroy family chili. The chili was just another example of Mom’s consideration for others. If the dinner table included guests that didn’t appreciate the Pomeroy level of spice, she made both Family and Company chili. Jan just did it.

Mom exhibited traits that we kids wanted to emulate .. humour, kindness, loyalty, class, complexity and yes .. clairvoyance. She almost always anticipated what was troubling us or what kind of trouble we got into. Mom’s really do have eyes in the back of their heads .. or maybe they are just very good at reading child behavior. As it turns out, sometimes those forensics really didn’t have to very good .. she just had to look for the abnormally clean house to know there was a party while the parents were away. Then Jan really did it.

Mom really knew how to do things. Whether it was her kids or her long time friends asking for help or advice on how to tackle a particular problem, we all thought: “Jan will know”. Of course. Jan’s done it.

Mom was the organizational glue that held the family and her friends together whether it was camping, skiing, hiking, making wine, or just keeping all of the kids in line, Jan did it.

Mom could make all of us kids (including Dad) and her friends succeed by quietly and gracefully supporting and encouraging us to do the right things. Jan just did it.

Mom will be missed, but she leaves a rich legacy: her kids and grandkids can cook, hike, camp, make beer, build houses and companies, perform forensics, engineer, and continually strive for more education and growth. I know her family and friends are richer because of her influence.

Now we all do it.

I would like to take this chance to extend a deep thank you to all the out-of-town travelers, our in-town friends and family, as well as the skilled and caring staff at EMS, Foothills Medical Centre Unit 100 and Chinook Hospice.