We're Homeowners!

Woohoo!  After weeks of gathering documents and combing through our financial history, we have finally purchased our home.  Sarah and I are so excited, and can't wait to move in (which will be happening next Saturday).  My first order of business after closing on the house was to drive to Home Depot, buy a rake, and clean up the front yard.  My dad would be so proud.

This is what our street looks like in all its Autumn splendor.  Coincidentally, we closed on the house on my birthday.  Not a bad birthday present (although a bit pricier than usual). 

Going Native

In preparation for our pending move to Ciudad Juarez (which has just been moved up to April), I'm adapting to the local customs and facial hairstyles.  So far, the transformation is going well.  Also, Sarah does not approve.

FLAG DAY!

Well, Flag Day has come and gone, and Sarah and I have received our first assignment in the Foreign Service!  I was originally just going to post a picture of the flag, so people would have to figure it out themselves, but I think most everyone knows this one.  That's right, the Peterson are moving to CIUDAD JUAREZ, MEXICO!

Congrats to the three folks who voted on North America for our first assignment!  It wasn't exactly our first choice, but it was by no means our last choice either (so glad we are not moving to Lagos, Nigeria).  It's not quite an exotic, far-off place, but we are excited to have all the benefits of being 15 minutes away from El Paso, TX, and to be close to my family in Arizona for a few years.  We will be reporting in June 2013, which means we still have a lot of training and other things to take care of before we head out.  Viva Mexico!

For a quick, dramatic representation of Sarah's reaction to this assignment, please view the following clip from Nacho Libre.  In this scene, Sarah will be playing Nacho, I will be playing Esqueleto, and the corn represents our first assignment:
 

Only joking, of course!

Flag Day is Upon Us

Hey all!  It is currently 9:00pm on Thursday, which means in 18 hours Sarah and I will have our first assignment in the Foreign Service.  It could literally be anywhere in the world.  Stay tuned, and I will try to update again tomorrow!

The 2012 Summer Movie Roundup

So, it's officially October, which means my annual summer movie roundup is about two months too late.  Sorry about that: it's been a crazy couple of months.  Regardless, this was a pretty good summer for movies, although I suppose we're all getting a bit saturated with sequels and reboots.  Anywho, here's my top five:

5. THE BOURNE LEGACY

I'll be the first to admit I was a bit bummed when I heard they were making this movie in the first place, especially since Matt Damon wouldn't be returning.  Furthermore, I can't really explain the appeal of this movie.  As I walked out of the theater, I was less than impressed, but for some reason, it grew on me over the next few days.  I guess there were just enough explosions to move this up to five on the list.

 

 

4. BRAVE

After the somewhat disastrous Cars 2, I had high hopes for a return to form for Pixar, and for the most part I wasn't disappointed.  Although it somewhat descended into the usual theme of "be yourself and it will all work out," I still thought it was pretty funny and very creative.

3. THE DARK KNIGHT RISES

There's no way I could leave this one off the list, with all of the hype and anticipation that led up to it.  Although not without some strange plot holes ("Oh, you're back is broken... let me punch you in the spine really hard and you'll be fine in a couple of weeks"), it was still a fantastic wrap-up to Christopher Nolan's trilogy, and I'm sad to see it go.

2. MOONRISE KINGDOM 

At this point, I think everyone in America is required to have a college roommate who is a huge Wes Anderson fan, who claims that you just don't "get his style of humor."  When I finally got around to watching some of his films, I found that they are incredibly strange and bizarrely hilarious.  Moonrise Kingdom is no exception.  Although my top five is usually reserved for movies that explode a lot, this movie had heart and reminded me of my carefree summer days as a strange kid pretending to be Rambo in my backyard.

1. THE AVENGERS

This is perhaps the only movie on this year's list that completely exceeded my expectations.  I wasn't sure how this film would work, especially since all of the previous Marvel films were at least somewhat based in reality (aside from Thor), but they pulled it off.  Even more impressive, they managed to cram six hero back-stories into one film without making it feel rushed.  Well done!

A Very Special Day

Hey everyone.  Sorry posts have been a bit sporadic as of late.  In the next few weeks, we will be finding out our first assignment with the Foreign Service, buying a house, and running a marathon, so things are a bit hectic.  But that doesn't mean I can't take some time out of my schedule for such an important date as today: Global James Bond Day!  

I'm not sure exactly what a proper celebration of this day would entail (driving a tank through the city perhaps?), but it is apparently meant to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the first Bond film premiere, Dr. No.  So here's wishing you a Happy Global James Bond Day, and let this montage of James Bond car chases take you into the weekend.