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A Day Off in Kauai

May 9th, 2014:

Last month Felicia and I were in Kauai for Melissa + Johns wedding, so we tacked on an extra day and a half to do a little wandering around the small island (which is roughly twice the size of Singapore). In true tropic fashion, the days were filled with a mixture rain, fog and crisp blue skies.

We drove the entire coastal road from Waimea Canyon to the Na Pali Coast, picnicked on the beach, ate more Spam then I’ve had in a good number of years, did a few little hikes and stopped at all the tourist spots.  Not a bad day of adventures, especially with the amazing company of my spectacular wife.




Kalalua Lookout is supposedly amazing… we saw a wall of fog and the silhouette of a few trees. Meh, I guess it is considered the “Wettest spot on earth”, so who am I to complain.





Dorkiness aside, Keen does make some great footwear for tropic adventures.

The RCP (Version 1) : 1918-2014

April 15th, 2014:

About two weeks ago, right after Felicia and I landed in Hawaii for a destination wedding, we learned that my namesake, Robert Paetz Senior, had passed away at 96.

We had just seen him about 10 days earlier to celebrate his 96th birthday with chocolate cake and beer, and he was in and out it, with brief flashes of coherence, so it didn’t really come as a huge surprise.

 

I believe the question was “Hey Gramps, want to go to the strip club and see some boobies?”  His reply: “YEAH!”

Though I had hoped he would make it to 100, 96 really isn’t too bad. We should all have a gin & tonic tonight to celebrate.

The “Family Emergency”

February 19th, 2014:

My younger brother, Matthew, has been battling stage 3/4 skin cancer (metastatic malignant melanoma) for the last 18 months, and he suffers from multiple tumors throughout his body and is currently able to move around for just a few minutes a day before becoming exhausted.  He’s undergone a number of various treatments now, but nothing has yet put the cancer into remission.  He has a wife, Niki, and two young daughters: my nieces Ally and Lilly.

Last month when I received that middle of the night call, we thought the worst.  Matt had suffered multiple seizures, and ended up unconscious for 2 days in a hospital in Northern California where he lives. When he came to, the MRI showed six unidentified spots on his brain, leading to the deduction that these were brain tumors.

This all happened a couple days before Felicia and I were supposed to leave on a trip to Singapore to visit Felicia’s grandparents, including her 90-year-old grandfather who is also battling cancer (F***ing cancer), then we were to head on to Japan for a little vacation for us.  Needless to say, I canceled my trip and Felicia shortened hers (you can see pictures she took in Tokyo), and I headed up to Sacramento to be with my brother and our family.  The next weeks were extremely difficult, but the spots on his brain turned out to be an infection (which had caused the seizures) and they have since cleared up. Matt is still stuck on the couch or the bed for most of the day, but not having brain tumors is nonetheless a small victory for now.

About two weeks after all this happened, I was still with Matt in Northern California. He was having a good day and wanted to do some Angels Baseball themed photos with his little girls and his wife.  We headed over to a park a couple blocks from his house and he tapped all his strength to get out and play with his kids for about 20 minutes. Here are a few of those images.

If you would like help out Matt and his family, you can check out their page, www.ThePaetz.com















Gramps hits 95!

March 29, 2013:

Blog post by Felicia:

Our Saturdays are usually hectic work days, but last weekend, we took time off to celebrate Robert Senior’s (aka The RCP) 95th birthday! Age is certainly catching up with him and he now looks somewhat like Bilbo Baggins at his eleventy-first birthday, but The RCP still displayed the sprightliness of his younger namesakes, enjoying a beer (“GOOD STUFF!”), eating an insane amount of chocolate ganache Grand Marnier cake (his favorite from last year) and SEVEN cups of ice cream.

The RCP was cognizant that it was his birthday, and, counting on his fingers, he said to me “5 more to go!”. I said to him, “You already made it 95 years, 5 more is easy right?”; to which he gave me a hearty “YEAH! Easy!”

I sure hope he gets to be a centenarian, because that’s also the goal of RCP2 and RCP3. This bodes well for them both.

We had spent 40 minutes at a nearby Ralphs getting these balloons because we had bought them for The RCP before when we visited, and he apparently enjoyed them so much he played with the balloons for an entire week after that until they were utterly deflated.

Sadly, a strong gust swiftly took the balloons while we ate lunch, and they ended up in a tree… Sorry, Grandpa…



Lots of stories to be told. At one point, I swore he yelled “Where are the Elves?!”

RCP2 and RCP1

All the RCPs!

The Dirty Thirty-Three

May 30th, 2012:

A couple months back, when Felicia asked what I would like to do for my birthday, I quickly rattled off that I’d like to eat a burrito.  Now, if you know me personally, you’ll know this is no jest: the burrito could easily be the world’s most perfect food, and Felicia took my idea to heart and ran with it, creating an entire Fiesta Party centered around me eating burritos and drinking Margaritas.

Lily decided to grace our event. It’s hard to believe it’s been 6 months since Felicia and I photographed her being born. I guess that’s what babies do: they grow.

Felicia prepared a booze-filled piñata, and with thoughtful bubble-wrapping, only 1 bottle of Jack Daniel’s actually cracked. The grown-ups enjoyed the mini bottles while my sister (pictured above sending a bottle of bubble-wrapped booze flying out the piñata) attempted to stop her children from taking all of the candy.

I had a wonderful Memorial Day birthday surrounded by burritos, nachos, tacos, and carnitas. Oh, and the friends & family that came out to celebrate me, that was pretty sweet too. Happy Birthday to me!

Happy Birthday to My Amazing Wife!

May 17th, 2012:

1824 days ago, just outside of Tibet, I laid my eyes on something that would forever shift the course of my life.  Her name was Felicia and although it wasn’t exactly love at first sight (I believe she referred to me as a “crass American” to her friends online), after a few days trapped in a Land Rover with my charms, she changed her mind and it had truly began.  Over the course of the next couple months we traveled through Tibet, China and Mongolia together before a tearful parting at the Beijing airport where we never expected to see each other again. We lived 9000 miles apart and both of us had life plans other than falling in love.

Now, very close to 5 years later our entire lives have shifted, we live on the other side of the globe from Asia, own a company together and get to spend the better part of everyday together. Never in my life did I think I would find someone as astounding as Felicia – everyday she encourages, loves and challenges me. For that I thank her with all my mind.

So Happy Birthday babe! Here’s to another 28,116 days together!

I love you, always.

 

Welcome 2011!

January 17th, 2011:

Image above: Food from our kitchen artfully arranged by my wife.
From left: Red/brown rice, Goji  berries – used in Asian soups, whole wheat pasta, green mung beans. Yum!

Holy Crap! 2011 is not only here, we are already 2 weeks into January!

Over the past year I have started to notice something growing around my midsection…. swelling, jiggling and folding – pushing it’s way over my waistline.  It never used to be there, but then, I never used to be married.   I guess there is some truth behind that first year 15lbs that they talk about.   I am happy, in love, content, and my waistline is starting to show it.

So with the end of the holiday cheese eating season (yes, I love my cheese), Felicia and I have decided to take control of this growing situation before it gets out of hand.  For my own part, being fit is very important just to be able to go hiking, cycling, traveling and to keep up with a couple on their wedding day.   Wedding Photography may not seem like the most laborious of careers, but I can spend a whole day on my feet running, squatting, climbing, and smiling, all whilst carrying a 5lb weight in my right hand and another 15lbs strapped to my back.  I absolutely love my job, but after a 12 hour day I come home with cramped muscles and stiff joints (Now I sound like an old man…)

Anyhow – we have decided to just eat better.  I have not put myself on a diet, or some strict exercise routine, I just want to stay active and eat better.  This might include things like, but not limited too:

  • Not finishing Felicia’s leftovers after I have eaten my entire meal. (Probably responsible for 90% of my weight gain)
  • Avoiding buying snacks, treats, etc.  (if they are not in the house, I won’t eat them)
  • Going with things like whole grain pasta and brown rice.
  • Etc, etc, etc… I am sure I could keep this list going all day, but you get the idea – Think before I eat.

Another 2011 first – the year that I became “That Neighbor.”   I left my Christmas lights and tree up until the 8th or 9th of January, until shame finally forced me to take down the lights and drag a very dry Douglas out to the curb last week.  Yes, I am a bad person.

More to come.

robertpaetz

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