DKF

It has been a while since we’ve written anything of substance. Our excuse is simple, we’ve been swamped. Don’t believe us? Read on.

Friends and Family Come To Vegas

After returning from Russia, my brother Vince and my “brother from another mother” John Zeinner came into town for about three weeks. Both were working remotely, so we worked during the days and hung out in the evenings. That was a great visit and we hope to see them soon.

Shortly after Vince and John left, Hildi and her parents, Alfonso and Hilda, came into visit. Hildi was Kelly’s matron of honor. Hildi and her folks were originally scheduled to come with Kelly last year when we met in person for the first time, but Hilda was too ill to travel, so our first meeting was unchaperoned. This was the first time to Vegas for Hilda and Alfonso, so it was a real treat to witness Vegas through their incredulous eyes.

The day Hildi and her parents left, Drew and Wendy Vogel came into visit. Like Vince and John, Drew was in our wedding. Wendy came in for a national veternarian conference. Drew tagged along and ate himself sick like any good foodie should when in Vegas. We had some amazing meals while they were in town.

That same week, Kent, my best buddy from college and another wedding party member, came in with his fiance Julie for a work shindig. We only got to see them one night during our first “celebrity event” in Vegas. We saw Nicky Hilton, Tony Gonzales, Warren Moon and a few other sports and fashion folks at the club. It was a great time.

Right after the Vogels left, Mima and Daddy (Kelly’s folks) came in for a week. That was a great visit. We went to Red Rocks, Mt. Charleston and Bonnie Springs. But mostly we just hung out and had lots of great meals together, including my birthday celebration at Roy’s, a great Hawaiian/Asian fusion restaurant.

After Mima and Daddy headed home, we had about 3 weeks without visitors. Then, Kelly’s girl’s weekend rolled into town. This annual event was held in Vegas to say bon voyage to Hildi who is headed to London to join her husband Francisco. They’ll be there for a few years, so now we have an excuse to go to the British Isles. In additon to Hildi, the girls included Rossana, Shana, and Natalie with Michelle as an unfortunate last minute cancellation.

That weekend marked the first time Kel and I spent a night apart since we were married. But, it was great for Kel to spend time with her girls, so that was a small sacrifice for me to make. The weekend ended with the girls taking in Zumanity, the raciest Cirque de Soleil show in town. Michelle’s extra ticket went to my Mom. I played poker at the MGM Grand while the ladies whooped it up and then met them for dinner to say goodbye.

Our House Becomes A Home

While the Hotel Garity-Daulton remained open for business, we had some major “pardon our dust while we remodel” happening. We got a killer deal on the house because it fell out of escrow with the original buyers. While we got a great deal, it meant we had to buy it “as-is”. So, we’ve been doing a lot of things to the house that normally would have been done while building it. Nothing crazy. But, this is Las Vegas and you have to be particularly careful when hiring contractors here. So, we did a lot of homework before hiring anyone. And doing the homework takes a lot of time.

For the most part, we are really happy with all of the work. We had one mishap with a shady vendor that slipped through our careful screening process, but that is well on it’s way to being resolved. As I write this, two major projects are wrapping up and the final project … pool & landscaping … is being prepped to begin. If everything goes according to plan, we’ll have our house “done” a few weeks before our first anniversary. Woohoo!

Work, Work, Work

While all of this has been going on, work had to go on as well. And, it has been a busy, productive year thus far. First, we incorporated our businesses under the banner of Coqui Holdings LLC. For our gringo readers, the coqui is a tiny frog native to Puerto Rico and, to the dismay of many, introduced to Hawaii by way of agricultural exchange with PR. So, now you know origin of the name of the company.

One of the first things our new business did was lease data center space for five web servers. We are launching a small web hosting business for my web development clients and for some projects Kel and I have planned for 2006-07. More to come on that front as things gel.

Along the way, my blog has been picking up steam and readers at a pretty regular clip. The blog was mentioned “on air” by Massively Online Gamer, a prominent tech and gaming podcast. This lead to an interesting collaboration which should prove fruitful for all involved in the coming months.

The blog also piqued the interest of a major technology book publisher who has asked me to review several titles for them. The books arrived last week and I am knee deep in the first of them as we speak. We’ll see where that leads.

Finally, I’ve been working with Jerry Miller, a fellow MGM Mirage alum, on a website for a collection of very prominent local restaurants, which have received national acclaim. I won’t divulge additional details until the site launches. All I will say is Jerry and I are both honored to have won the contract.

Health and Wellness

I am happy to report that Kelly and I, along with my Dad, have started a health and wellness regime. All of the fine dining with all of our visitors took it’s toll on our waistlines. So, while you are not likely to see earth-shattering results soon, please know that we are eating well and walking everyday. Once the backyard is finished, I’ll return to private martial arts training as well. Which reminds me, congratulations to Uncle Pete on being named a Yondan! It is a great honor and certainly well-deserved.

To the surprise of many, I’ve taken up golf. That said, I have no plans to make Kelly a golf widow. The plan is for golf to be a fun, occaisional diversion. Kelly has no interest in the game and we both enjoy hiking and diving too much for me to commit seriously to golf at this point. Most of my family and extended family play, so I thought it wise I at least learn the fundamentals. I took a beginner’s class at the local course and am told I have a natural swing. I am sure I’ll still be a high handicapper for some time though! I play my first round when Billy and Ingrid come to visit next week. I’ll report the results here.

With the exception of the last few weeks, Kelly’s health has been outstanding. She’s been battling serious bronchitis of late, bit seems to have turned the corner these last few days. As always, she is a trooper and makes me very proud.

On The Horizon

As mentioned, Billy and Ingrid arrive this week. My Aunt Ween arrives tommorow. Shortly after they leave, Kelly heads to San Juan to welcome our new neice, Veronica Maria Cobian, to the world. She’ll be in San Juan for three weeks visiting and taking care of some business while she is there. Work allowing, I’ll come down the last week she is there. Then, she’ll return home and I’ll fly into Cincinnati for a few days to attend the high school graduation of my eldest godson, Philip.

A few weeks after getting home, Kel and I leave for NYC to attend Kent’s wedding. We’ll be in Manhattan and then Martha’s Vineyard for a week or so. We are both looking forward to the trip. Then, we are home and rumor has it we may see folks from both sides of the family shortly thereafter.

So, things don’t look to slow down anytime soon. But no one should take this to mean you are not welcome in our home. We love having guests, so call now to make your reservations. Just bring sofrito and Cohibas with you when you come!

Until next we meet, love and well wishes …

Doug and Kelly

PS: Thanks to my cousin Andra for reminding me that folks are out there reading the site. Without her, it may have been a few more months before I posted. I promise we’ll be better about it going forward.

Posted on April 23rd, 2006 by Doug and Kelly
Filed under: News