This post is for all of you running WordPress blogs.

The short version:

These guys rock hard! Buy this book!

Longer version:

In case you do not know it, there is a blog called Digging Into WordPress which puts out a lot of valuable information on all aspects of WP.

A while ago they released a book and an ebook (pdf), also entitled Digging Into WordPress.  The ebook was $27 and comes with a lifetime of free upgrades.  I bought the book back in March and had all kinds of ideas on how to use it.  As my regular readers know a couple of marriages and a move 10 hours further westward got in the way of a lot of things.  But I have read parts and skimmed many others and I’m here to tell you that this book is useful.

Eventually along came WP v. 3 and their book was out-of-date.  But unlike lots of software books that are released at the same time as, or before, the software itself—and thus how accurate can they be?—they waited until they could do it proper using a fully functional release version just like you and me.

Well, that book was released just a couple of days ago.  I saw the blog post 2 days ago right before bed and noticed that they said everyone who had previously bought it had already received the download link to the new version via email.  But I had not.  So in the morning I checked into it.  According to comments on the announcement post it looked like lots of people had not gotten their emails either, primarily due to overaggressive spam filters.

We were supposed to find our original email receipt and email it to them.  Well, I found an email and started replying and then came up short.  This was the email I got when I put my name on the preorder list in Nov 2009 and was for a $9 discount.  Sadly, I had failed to use that discount.  I found my pdf and accompanying files (comes with some templates) and doing a Cmd-I I got the Finder Info where I had added a note that I got it on 28 March 2010.  I also verified that date in my Google Doc that I keep of all book purchases.  So I sadly and tentatively wrote my reply stating that this was all that I had, the date and price I had paid, and asked if there were some other way of proving I had purchased the book.  Within a matter of hours—keep in mind this is 2 guys and they’re handling lots of email and blog comments due to what in most cases was overaggressive spam filters—I had a gracious and courteous response that my update email had gone to a long gone email address and should they resend it to my gmail address?

So long story a little shorter, I got my updated ebook and I got it with a minimum of fuss. I have since realized why I never got a purchase receipt and why the update email went to an address that I no longer had well before I bought the book.

Godamn PayPal!  I purchased the book with PayPal.  Well, not really true as I was trying not to but it took over anyway.  Grrr!  Well, my PayPal account is stuck with an email address that I am not allowed to change because I cannot reply to the email they send there to verify that I want to change it.  Seriously!  I understand the need for protection of your users but then there is idiocy.  I no longer have that email because my (previous) ISP changed it.  It was my Insight email and Verizon Comcast bought them out and hamfistedly changed everyone’s email addresses.  They also just killed those accounts in full after 30 days.  No forwarding after that date; just dead.  Now even Verizon Comcast isn’t my ISP because I live somewhere else and thankfully no Verizon Comcast here. [Corrected 5 Sep 2010 upon realizing my brain fart.]

So all of this was caused by PayPal not allowing me to update my email address because they asininely assume that we all have perpetual access to every email address we have ever used.  Brilliant.  And so utterly wrong.

Anyway, Digging Into WordPress and Chris Coyier and Jeff Starr are excellent! They did me right and they did so graciously while under fire from many others for these same sorts of technological issues that are often out of our control.

So if you are running a WordPress blog buy Digging Into WordPress v. 3.0 You will not regret it!

A friend who was unhappy with her previous attempts at book clubs, in-person and virtual, decided a book club where we each read whatever it is we want to read might work better. Thus, 12 Books, 12 Months was born.

Here are the rules for the 12 Books, 12 Months Challenge:

• Pick 12 titles from your To Read Pile.  These should be titles you currently own in whatever format you prefer.
• Acquisition of other formats or translations is permitted.  So, if you have a paperback but want to read on your Kindle, you can get a Kindle copy.  If you have a library copy but want to buy your own, that’s kosher.  Heck, if you own a copy and want to check another out from the library, I’m not gonna stop you.
• Post your list in your public space of choice by September 1, 2010.  If you prefer not to post, you can just leave a comment with your list.
• Read all 12 titles between now and September 5, 2011.  Might as well tack on an extra long weekend at the end for cramming.
• When you finish a title on your list, post about it in your public space of choice.  If you prefer not to post, you can just leave a comment with your review.
• Once a month, I’ll post a round-up of the reviews posted from that month so that we all know what everyone else has read.

My list:

1. Ronald Gross, Peak Learning I am trying to find some kind of structure (best word I can think of at the moment) to help me get a grip on my own pursuit of lifelong learning and am hoping this might have some ideas that I can (and will) implement. I know goodreads says that I am currently reading this but that was months ago and I will need to start over. I hadn’t got very far anyway.
2. Catherine C. Marshall, Reading and Writing the Electronic Book I am interested in e-books for a variety of reasons and while I love print books I also think e-books can one day provide immense value over and above the mostly “convenience factor” that they now provide.
3. Carol Collier Kuhlthau, Seeking Meaning: A Process Approach to Library and Information Services Even though I expect to disagree a fair bit, I did like some of the ideas from a short bit of Kuhlthau that we read in 501 (intro course), and, really, the title says it all for me. Also, seeing as Kuhlthau is one of the major players in this area I need to know her ideas better if I am going to be critiquing work in this area of the field.
4. Stephen Batchelor, Buddhism without Beliefs: A Contemporary Guide to Awakening This is another one that I started a while back. I got almost halfway through before being “interrupted” by a couple of weddings and a move. Going to start over. I am interested in Buddhism and its tenets, at least the non-mystical kind. I have another of his books on my TBR shelf that I am also looking forward to reading.
5. Michel Meyer, Of Problematology: Philosophy, Science, and Language This came recommended by David Bade via his citing it in a couple of places and then some f2f discussion. What is problematology”? The study of questioning.
6. George Lakoff and Mark Turner, More than Cool Reason: A Field Guide to Poetic Metaphor Metaphor and poetry. ‘Nough said.
7. Anthony Grafton, The Footnote: A Curious History From the inside jacket blurb: “The weapon of pedants, the scourge of undergraduates, the bete noire of the “new” liberated scholar: the lowly footnote, long the refuge of the minor and the marginal, emerges in this book as a singular resource, with a surprising history that says volumes about the evolution of modern scholarship.” I have been wanting to read this for several years and finally acquired a copy earlier this year.
8. John Seely Brown and Paul Duguid, The Social Life of Information I have been wanting to read this ever since it was brought to my attention in LIS501 Fall 2004. In fact, I probably acquired this copy back then so that I could. ::sigh:: Oh well, I’ve had books in storage for this long that I acquired in the mid-80s and still haven’t read. Anyway, hoping that it will have something useful to say about “information” beyond society’s preoccupation with the “stuff.”
9. Anne Carson, Autobiography of Red: A Novel in Verse I have read a couple of her books and have quite enjoyed them. I am particularly looking forward to rereading Eros the Bittersweet some day.
10. Jorge Luis Borges, Seven Nights Seven lectures over 7 nights in June and August 1977. Topics are: The Divine Comedy, Nightmares, The Thousand and One Nights, Buddhism, Poetry, The Kabbalah, and Blindness. I have seen these referenced in multiple places and am looking forward to them. I also highly recommend Borge’s This Craft of Verse (The Charles Eliot Norton Lectures)
11. Jorge Luis Borges, Collected Fictions Can one really have too much Borges? I think not.
12. George Eliot, The Mill on the Floss I adore Middlemarch and Silas Marner and also enjoyed the other shorter things of hers I have read. I have this in 2 different editions, the Penguin Classics referenced here and a nice leather bound one from some set of “great books.” I have been wanting to get to this for a while and a couple of months back I read some idiot commenting on free e-books that “If I had wanted to read The Mill on the Floss I would have done so in college!” Screw the idiots of the world! I’ve read a bunch of e-books and almost every one of them has been free. And many of them have been exceptional!
13. S. R. Ranganathan, Classification and Communication This was recommended to me by fellow student, friend, and all-around-brilliant-guy, Tom Dousa. This, as Tom assured me, will probably run counter to what I believe about the interface of these topics but one must understand one’s betters if one is to critique them.

Whoops! How did I end up with 13 books?

There are scores more books I want to/could read and there are certainly more on my goodreads to-read shelf besides being a couple (or more) score not on the list.

The above are all certainly currently near the top of my TBR list but things changes; i.e., interests, focus, discovery of something previously unknown or just published, ….  Thus, I am going to reserve the right to substitute any book for one on this list.  As I see it I will probably read more than 12 books in the next year anyway so maybe they’ll only be additions. One can hope.

What’s on your list? [Whether or not you intend to participate in this or any other challenge, I am interested.]

[This is a copy of the review I posted at LibraryThing. Also posted at goodreads.]

Running anatomy : Your illustrated guide to running strength, speed, and endurance / Joe Puleo and Dr. Patrick Milroy. Champaign, IL : Human Kinetics, c2010

Disclosure: I got a copy of this book for free via the LibraryThing Early Reviewers program.

My qualifications to review this book: Back in the day I was an Army Master Fitness Trainer and was also certified by the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) as a fitness trainer. I have been an on again, off again distance runner for over 35 years.

Review: Simply stated, this is an excellent book. Back when I was actively engaged in fitness training and acquiring resources I would have paid really good money for this book, assuming I had been able to peruse it beforehand.

The authors claim 3 goals:

1. “[T]he illustrations … are meant to aid the runner in understanding the anatomy impacted when the runner is in motion” and “to further the runner’s understanding of how” the anatomy “work[s] to move the body.” (vii)
2. Show the significance of strengthening the body via strength training. (vii)
3. Provide exercises that “will improve running performance and help to keep the runner injury-free by eliminating anatomical imbalances ….” (vii).

The book does exactly what it claims and does it in a clear, comprehensive, and understandable way. The illustrations are excellent and support the text.

The opening chapters discuss “The Evolution of the Human Runner,” “Cardiovascular and Cardiorespiratory Components,” “The Runner in Motion,” and “Adaptations for Speed and Terrain.”  Some resources spend more time on these topics but the presentation by the authors of this book are fully detailed, while being concise enough to leave more room for the heart of the work, which follows.

The next 5 chapters cover the “Upper Torso,” “Arms and Shoulders,” “Core,” “Upper Legs,” and “Lower Legs and Feet.”  Each chapter begins with a discussion of the appropriate anatomy, to include illustrations, moves into a discussion of why this area is important to a runner and what can go wrong, and then focuses on specific training recommendations. The core of each chapter is then comprised of recommended strength training exercises for the area.  Each exercise includes discussion of proper execution, the primary and secondary muscles involved, the running focus, any safety tips, and any exercise variations.

The authors have done an amazing job of bringing together all of the important and relevant knowledge about a specific exercise via  their accompanying descriptions and illustrations, and they have done so clearly and concisely.  Back when I was actively pursuing this field I had to synthesize this sort of knowledge from many sources and could never find it all in one source, unless it was one that was poorly arranged and inconvenient to use.

The remaining chapters cover “Common Running Injuries,” “Anatomy of Running Footwear,” and “Full-Body Conditioning.” These chapters, while also short, adequately serve as an introduction to the topics.

The one thing that I feel is seriously missing from the text are recommended sources, especially for the opening and closing chapters which are only able to serve as introductions to their topics. The authors must be familiar with quality sources to address these areas in more detail. Human Kinetics certainly publishes many fine books which should serve the purpose adequately.

I see that this book is one of many in Human Kinetics Anatomy Series. Other books include Yoga, Stretching, Dance, Cycling, Swimming, and so on. If these books are of the same quality as this one then they ought to serve as excellent introductions to the anatomy of, and strength training for, these endeavors.

Overall I highly recommend this book to any runner interested in the anatomy of their sport and a clear and concise description of how to incorporate strength training to improve their performance.

[This post title is, for me, multi-meta in that it refers to several things.]

It has been a long time since I’ve been here. Part of me is sad about this fact and part of me thinks that is just fine.

A lot has happened since I last wrote here:

I quit my job as a serials cataloger at the University of Illinois so I could concentrate on (then) upcoming weddings and our move.

Sara and I were married in late May in a small but wonderful ceremony amongst family and friends in a cabin on the banks of the Sangamon River.

At the very beginning of June I started prepping for our move to Sioux City, Iowa.

A couple of weeks later, my daughter got married in Oberlin, Ohio in an even simpler, but absolutely lovely and moving, ceremony to a wonderful young man that I couldn’t be prouder to be related to.

On the evening of 3 July we left Urbana, IL and headed for Sioux City. As of 4 July we are residents of Sioux City. This is a vastly different place  than Urbana-Champaign, in so many ways. We are still getting it sorted out but we will.

We had a good week and a half before Sara had to start her job and we made good use of it. Sara worked for 3 days and then we took a vacation to the Black Hills of South Dakota to spend some time in a couple of cabins with some friends of Sara’s from high school and their respective significant others and children. On the way home we drove through the Badlands. I have a couple of pictures up but I have 100s more to be tagged, labeled, decided upon and uploaded. Suffice it to say that it was beautiful! And being the against much of pop culture fiend that I am, we skipped Wall Drug (unfortunately not the signs though), Mount Rushmore and Crazy Horse.

Once back Sara got back to work and is enjoying learning the ropes of this vastly different, and vastly smaller, university. I got back to work on organizing the house, merging two large book collections, much of which was in storage, along with merging two large CD collections, of which all of hers were in storage. There is still a bit to do on all the house organizing fronts but it is definitely getting there.

Shortly after we got here we bought ourselves a 32″ LG HDTV with built-in netflix streaming so we’ve been watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer and some other things.

We’ve been taking an online class on HTML5 via SitePoint and in a few weeks will take one on CSS3. They were $9.95 each! So the last 2 weeks that is what we’ve been doing in the evenings when Sara gets home from work. (And, yes, I know the CSS3 course says it is $14.95 but by signing up for both at the same time we got a $5 discount!) I think that for the price they are quite good. As with any class it is (mostly) about what you put in to it.

Speaking of courses, Briar Cliff University has a 100% tuition remission policy for spouses so I’ll be taking a 1 credit class this fall called Madwomen Poets. About all I know about it is that it includes Sexton and Plath. But who cares what, if anything, else it might be? Who could ignore a class entitled Madwomen poets?

I know. I know. I’m supposed to be doing other things, “more important” things. And I am. But it is 50 minutes, 1 day/week. I figure it’ll help keep my mental chops in order. And at this point I still don’t know if I’ll be taking it for a grade or auditing.

As to that more  important stuff … I am ramping back up the work on my CAS thesis via several angles of attack. I am working on the paper proper and I am also working on a journal article, which will be highly related (as in with a little reworking can become a chapter), and I am thinking about trying to come up with a presentation for a conference in early December. The conference is “Semantics for Robots: Utopian and Dystopian Visions in the Age of the ‘Language Machine’. ‘The Language Machine’ is one of Roy Harris’ early books, of course.

As for conferences, I am really sad that I will not be able to attend ASIS&T in Pittsburgh this year. But seeing as we gave up about $40k in income with me not working there is little means of justifying the expense of travel and lodging. And, honestly, the registration cost is plain crazy for an unemployed non-student, non-retiree.

Sara and I decided that the Integrationist conference in Chicago in December, along with being far cheaper, is really more where I need to be right now. I need exposure to more Integrationists and Integrational thinking and I will get far more out of a small conference (as I always do) than a bigger one. Whether or not I can get something submitted (and possibly accepted) I am highly looking forward to it. Nonetheless, this will be the 1st ASIS&T I’ve missed since I started going in 2006.

And if any of my Chicago friends are reading this, I’d adore an invite to stay with you for a couple days in early December (2nd-4th, or so), especially if you are near the Univ. of Chicago.

Tomorrow night we are, thanks to a surprise from Sara, going to see Jackson Browne and David Lindley and the historic Orpheum Theatre here in Sioux City. I have been listening to (early) Jackson Browne for close to 40 years now. I haven’t really kept up with anything since the mid-80s or so but, nonetheless, I am stoked to finally get to see him live for the first time.

We also have a Super Secret Date night scheduled for Sunday night. Sara had that lined up well before we left Urbana. She offered me the chance to find out what it’ll be last night but I passed. I like the surprises! She’s done so well every time in the past. And it also makes me aware that it is past time for me to step up in the Super Secret Date Night scheduling department.

And in case anyone who cares isn’t aware of it yet, my son is in Afghanistan for his 3rd war zone tour. He left just days after we moved. Grrrr.

I guess I best end this for now. It is getting long and the simple shock of seeing a post from me is probably enough already. With any hope I won’t be gone as long before the next time.

Dear parents of “the Oregon boys”,

You should be extremely proud of the young men that you have raised. As a father of 2 children of my own (29 and 26), I can say that you have exceeded any hopes you might have had for how they might turn out.

These young men are respectful, polite, bright and engaged, inquisitive, and well behaved. They quickly became the darlings of Ebertfest, impressing many people of all ages. They asked insightful and penetrating questions during the Q&As after each film and engaged in in depth conversations with true film lovers, holding their own in every case.

I quickly lost count of all the people—particularly people in the 50-75 year old demographic—who wanted to talk with them, hear their story, congratulate them and their parents (this post is written on behalf of many people and not just myself), hug them and wish them safely home with the express hopes of seeing them again next year.

I know that they have been offered a place to stay next year. If I were you I would not worry; she is a good person. Someone is willing to open their home to four young men that they just recently met for the several days of Ebertfest. People took them out to dinner; more would have if there had been time.

I could go on and on. I truly hope that you are proud of these young men that you helped get to this point. I well remember those days at the end of high school for my boy and I know how tough parent-child relationships at that point can be. But I am here to tell you that you ought be proud of them. I know that I am and that I am proud to call them friends.

Sincerely,

Mark

=============

Ebertfest was last week and on the 1st day we met 4 young men from Coos Bay, OR standing in line right behind us. Mike, Tyler, Bret and Dana had somehow managed to convince their parents to let them come all the way from the Oregon coast to central Illinois. They had saved their own money and paid for the trip themselves. $750 each just for airfare, plus several days in the Hampton Inn, meals, etc. Wow! They truly wanted to be here for Ebertfest!

We got to know them pretty well over the course of the 5 day film festival. Basically high school students/graduates, in love with film, wanting to be an actor and directors. They know film. They are bright and articulate, respectful, charming, and Sara and I are pleased that we got to know them. Hopefully we, too, will make it back for Ebertfest and run into them. And if not, then when they are famous at least we can say we knew them when and took them out to dinner the 1st time they came to Ebertfest.

::hugs:: and best wishes to “the Oregon boys.”

a little “mouse”
grew up; became
a new house spouse.

wrote a little ditty
because he is moving
to Iowa; Sioux City.

I posted that little ditty to facebook and twitter several days ago to announce that I will soon be moving.

In the comments on facebook, I also wrote:

I’m going to Sioux City to be a househusband, scholar [write my CAS paper / defend], poet, part-time student perhaps, enjoying other parts of the country (and, I must admit, the Midwest), photographer of late 19th-century brick industrial buildings and ghost signs and real wildflowers and prairie and ….

I get my soul back.

… But I get my soul back. And maybe, eventually, some of my mind.

My lovely partner, and soon-to-be spouse, has accepted a job as the Reference and Instruction Librarian at Briar Cliff University in Sioux City, Iowa. We will be moving in early July probably; after our wedding and my daughter’s wedding and ALA and ….

We are really looking forward to it. And, yes, I did go with her for her campus visit so I have seen Sioux City. Yes, we will miss many, many wonderful and some taken for granted things here: Krannert Center for the Performing Arts and the Krannert Art Museum and all of the wonderful, often free, programs put on at both, being able to walk (or easily bus, for free) to pretty much everywhere except major shopping, Crane Alley and other favorite eating/drinking haunts, the Arboretum and Japan House, and on and on. Even moreso, we will miss all of the wonderful people.

What I will not miss is alluded to above. As important as the work is that I have been doing the last couple of years, my job has been killing me. My spirit is completely gone and my soul is being forcibly ripped from my body.

Maybe it is the size of the institution (Library, specifically); maybe it is the myriad and serious problems facing the Library (many of which are not financial).

I really do not want to get into any details because that, as I am told, is unprofessional. Kind of ironic since that is the judgement I make of many here. Do not misunderstand me, please. There are many dedicated professionals in our libraries; professionals at all levels of staffing. Some of the issues derive from our massive size and/or decentralized structure, but by no means all of them do.

I do not intend to look for a job any time soon. But I am also not leaving the profession. There is the important task of writing and defending my CAS paper before May 2011. And I fully intend to do so. That task and being a proper house spouse providing all of the support that I can for Sara to succeed in her new job will be my main occupation.

Other than that, I look forward to writing some articles and conference presentations. I hope to re-engage on my blog; perhaps return to friendfeed. Also high on my list are writing some poetry inspired by the change of scenery, perhaps taking a poetry class [poetry prof was on the search committee and sat next to me at dinner]; learning to photograph the lovely late 19th-century industrial brick buildings that are all over Sioux City, along with the plentiful ghost signs, and real prairie flowers.

By going with Sara on her interview I added 3 states to my visited list; Iowa, Nebraska and South Dakota. I am looking forward to visiting Omaha, Sioux Falls, Ames and Iowa City and many other towns, from the small to the large.

Being so near to the Missouri River valley and bottom lands makes me feel very much at home. I grew up in the north suburbs of St. Louis near the confluence of the Mighty Mo and the Mississippi. In the summers we’d bike out to Missouri Bottom Road (named literally), especially when it was flooded. We also lived about a mile from a park on a big bluff along the Missouri.

It is a big adventure and we’ll be taking a massive pay cut to go on it. Sara is getting a small increase but it still means losing the vast majority of my salary. Thankfully I get a small bit for my Army retirement; wouldn’t be doable otherwise.

Looking forward to this with all of my heart. I truly am.

Pinks 0046.JPG

Originally uploaded by broken thoughts

Urbana is ablaze in tulips, and many other flowers, in the ground, in the bushes, and on the trees, right now. They are humbling, gorgeous, vibrant, and call to something deep and primal in me.

Sara and I went for a walk this morning and I took a bunch of pictures and then put 69 of them on Flickr.

In honor of National Poetry Month I have been reading books of poetry and books about writing/reading poetry. I have yet to write any poems this month, but then I haven’t written a poem in a while.

One can find a lot of poems & poetry-related information at Poets.org (from the Academy of American Poets). Three resources that seem immediately relevant to me are:

• Poem Flow app for the iPhone/Touch
• Poem-A-Day for National Poetry Month (email)
• Mobile site

I need to check out more of their information on writing and reading poems, too.

Since I haven’t written anything lately, I thought I might (re)share the poems I have previously posted here. I think this might be a complete list but would not be surprised to find out I missed 1 or 2.

Chronologically, oldest to most recent:

• Poetry? Verse? Maybe just heartfelt crap. : A birthday poem with a bonus footnote poem for a friend
• fallen : A questioning, dreadful, struggling realization brought on by decaying fall leaves which first touched me as visually beautiful and then changed to words which insisted on being written immediately.
• Stargazing : In commemoration of dating Sara for a month by describing its beginning.
• The End of summer in an Alley
• Too Late
• whatever will shall be : We’ll leave the details between Sara and me but is based on the Tam Lin story.
• Tis just a wee fuss for my friend Pikas : More birthday doggerel for my friend Christina.
• (Personal) Change : Inspired by a song I heard on the car radio.
• Sometimes – Song series 1 : For Sara; inspired by James’ song “Sometimes.”
• It Began In An Alley : For Sara for our 1st anniversary.

As April is National Poetry Month, April is also National Poetry Writing Month (NaPoWriMo) [or see Wikipedia].

We have a good friend who has committed to NaPoWriMo and her email alerting us to this and to the blog she will be using to do so awakened our thoughts. So this morning Sara and I decided to participate in our own NaPoReMo, National Poetry Reading Month. We plan on reading & discussing a poem we like each day. Not sure if that means a poem each each … or a poem … but we’ll figure it out.

I doubt I’ll commit to NaPoWriMo but setting aside a couple of hours each week to devote to writing poetry is on my list of “Important Things.”

I have been reading a fair bit of poetry lately and even started jonesin’ for more Mary Oliver after finishing everything I got for Christmas/birthday. Ordered 3 (2 poetry/1 hdbk) from amazon and about to jump in but reading something else right now. Soon. Like in April. Mary Oliver will supply me lots of poems to love and discuss with Sara. I read lots of Oliver poems to Sara.

As to the writing … well, I’ll be happy if I can start dedicating the couple of hours per week I said I want to commit to it.

N.B. This post is long overdue. I have written it into other posts for several months now but then never finished them.

This is for the possibly two of you who have not seen my wonderful news on facebook, friendfeed, Twitter or heard it in person or via email.

As of a mid-October 2009 evening I am engaged to the utterly amazing and beautiful Sara Thompson. I asked her to marry me on her birthday. [I had to do something! The complete hardcover Harry Potter boxed set I ordered for her from amazon UK hadn't arrived yet. OK, while true that was a joke.]

The legal proceedings will happen at the courthouse on 27 May 2010, the Full Flower Moon. The ceremony and celebration will take place on 29 May at the Izaak Walton Cabin at Lake of the Woods Forest Preserve in Champaign County. It is a lovely cabin overlooking the Sangamon River.

It will be small (perhaps 35-40 friends and family) and it will be fairly nontraditional.

At 7 PM on that Saturday we will repair to the mezzanine of Crane Alley for drinks and more food. If you are anywhere near Urbana-Champaign on the evening of 29 May this year please feel free to join us at Crane Alley.

To say that we are excited is, well, not saying much.

And for those who also want a nontraditional wedding, one that among other things does not simply take the customs and rites of marriage for granted [There will be no chattel giving or taking here, thank you very much!], we wish you well. The multi-billion $$ marriage industry works hard to prevent you from doing as you wish. But just remember, the only required aspect is whatever, usually minimal, requirements your state imposes on you. Everything else, and I do mean everything, is up to you. So make it meaningful for you! We are.