Subject: Weekend Update: June 7-10, 2001
Date: Mon, 11 Jun 2001 13:45:23 -0400
From: Mark Metcalfe <metcalfe>
Organization: Cadence Design Systems, Inc.

When I met Joy after work last Thursday, she was sporting a new
hair-style.  She had been to a beauty spa with Linda Magnuson for
a time of pampering.  Going with Linda made it all the more fun,
too.  She got a pedicure, a manicure, a facial, and a wash, cut,
and dry.  She saved her one-hour massage (or other spa service)
for another trip.

I asked her about each of the services that she received and she
preceded each description with a very satisfying moan.   (Tip for
the men: you get a lot of points with this one, and since I spend
them too freely, I need all I can get.)  This is something that Joy
never would have spent the money on herself. I was also a little
unsure how she'd react to my purchasing these pampering services.
But when I asked whether she'd enjoy doing this again sometime, she
did not equivocate.

Eric and I completed the day for our wives by taking them out to
dinner and then do a little casual shopping.  (This is opposed to
hard-core shopping that our wives normally like to do.  I found out
later that Joy and Linda had *already* been shopping earlier in the
day! I don't know how people can do that!)

I took yet another Friday off.  This meant I've had four-day workweeks
for the last four weeks.  I could get used to that.  Well, except that
I've spent each on of those working at home.  We spent the day priming
the outside of the spa room.  Jessica helped.  We borrowed ladders from
both Rich and our neighbor but discovered that only one of us was brave
enough to paint the eaves.  I wondered about the weight rating of the
ladders on which I perched as it swayed and bowed.  I was also up on the
roof to get some spots that needed maintenance, but I chickened out
before too long because of the coating of pollen all over the slippery
metal roof.  I still have that job to accomplish but I'll wait until
the rain washes the roof off.

On Friday night, the three painters (Joy, Jessica, and I) went
to the High School for a drama presentation for which Emily was
the cheif sound technician.  Emily performed her role admirably,
and this was by far the best high school production I'd ever seen,
largely because of its subject matter and the young man in the lead
role.  "Creaking in the Beams" was a drama about Deitrich Bonnhoffer,
a German theologian of the last century.  He conspired to kill Hitler
and was hung just days before the end of World War II.  The young man
who played Bonnhoffer was exceptional.  I was very impressed.

We arose early on Saturday to start on the colors for the spa room.
We had more painters to help us and five colors of paint to apply
to the outside of the room.  We completed most of it, leaving the
windows to be painted for a later day.

On Sunday, Joy, Jessica, and I went to Manchester, Connecticutt to
hear my Dad preach his final sermon there; his interim position was
finished after 6 months of service.  As a bonus, I was permitted to
sing "Thank You (for giving the the Lord)" which seemed to be well-
received.  While there, the church took a vote on calling their
next Pastor.  Ken Stanford, who many of you on my distribution
know, received a unanimous call (106 to 0).

Miranda spent the weekend in Quincy, attending a wedding and hanging
out with friends.

The pool is open and was actually used for more than bragging rights
the other day by Emily and Andrew.  Perhaps soon the water
temperature will rise enough for older people to get in. ;-)

Mark
--
+---_-----------+ Mark Metcalfe, metcalfe@cadence.com
| c a d e n c e | Cadence Design Systems, Inc.    Phone: (978) 446-6451
+---------------+ PCB Systems Division, Technical Communications Manager