Thursday, January 01, 2009

Happy New Year & 2008 Recap

Happy New Year!  Below is our version of a holiday card.  When we got married, one of our vows was to help create healthy communities for families and children. Below we talk about our progress toward our vision and other life stuff.

In last year's recap, we talked about the relatively uneventful 2007 we had. Nothing dramatic happened. It was a mellow blend of every day joys and indignities. We also said that we didn't know how long that kind of stability would last with some ominous changes on the horizon. Unfortunately, we were on to something.  2008 was a roller coaster. The peaks were high. The valleys low.

The good news is that we made significant progress in realizing our vision. Andrea made partner at Kaiser. She was appointed Chief of Diversity at Kaiser San Jose Hospital, which enables her to expand underserved minorities' access to health care and teach colleagues to provide culturally competent care. She was appointed to the board of SJB Child Development Center, which provides quality day care and after school programs for low income families in the San Jose area. She also completed a pilot program she designed to help parents take better care of new borns. The results of the pilot were impressive for the simple, low cost intervention she designed. Kaiser is seriously considering implementation, though the economy could put the kabosh on it. Andrea's capacity to serve really surged this year. The long march to becoming a doctor is beginning to pay off.

Neal also made progress this year. Neal is still working for FAS.research, but is doing some independent consulting too. Through FAS, he's helping the Packard Foundation develop a strategy to accelerate the shift to sustainable agriculture in the U.S.  Packard's motivation is two-fold, to improve children's health and protect the environment. 

In his own practice, Neal helped launch a new consumer-facing online service called Divvy, which has an inventorying, scheduling, and payment mechanism that enables you to rent out anything to anybody. Need to schedule and collect rent on that vacation home you never go to?  No problem. Divvy can do that, plus help you generate revenue from that underutilized riding mower you have in the garage.  Neal is also helping the Schecter Family Foundation launch an online magazine and network for young adults to help them make decisions that are good for them, society, and the planet.  Neal won the contract to launch the magazine after helping to write the grant that secured substantial funding for the project.

Another milestone is that we bought a house.   We got lucky, though getting lucky took a lot of hard work and about 18 months.  Our townhouse in Mountain View is set in a charming little suburban forest walking distance from downtown and the train, and was affordable.  That's a combination we didn't think possible.  We have a guest room, so come visit!

And then there was our trip to Morocco.  That explains the picture above.  That's us at a palace restaurant in Marrakesh.  If you want a vacation that will blow your mind, then I highly recommend Morocco.  It's a cultural mixing zone like no other - Africa meets Islam meets Europe meets desert nomads.  The food and music are truly out of this world.  Not to mention the raw physical beauty of the greatly varied landscapes you encounter if you travel the country. From the romantic desert seascapes surrounding Essaouira to the stunning mountain oases in the Atlas range, you will be awed.  

The trip was a lot like our year.  High highs.  And low lows.  The lows mainly resulted from being hustled in every way imaginable.  How about this, being propositioned by a tour guide on a moped through the window of our cab while we're doing 40mph in traffic headed into Fez. Or how a "serendipitous" conversation in vegetable market with an English speaking local, who coincidentallly had lived in San Franciso, turned into a sales pitch for cooking lessons.  Oh, and then there was the time we bought these colorful geodes in a mountain pass - that turned out to be dyed.  

OK, I could go on.  Despite this, we learned that when you can get beyond the tourist dynamic, Moroccans are incredibly warm and fun loving people.  Engage with humor, and you'll be embraced.  And don't try to fool a Moroccan. We tried in a number of laughable ways in order to avoid high prices (telling shopkeepers we were Australian because Americans are charged more) or being pestered (wearing djellabahs to blend in).  They've seen it all.  You're just one in a very long line of visitors who have come and gone over the centuries.   

The highs were high.  What a fantastic year!  But the lows were low too.  Unexpectedly, we lost Andrea's dad Arnold in April.  Arnold's spirits had been rising as he made progress in a new writing career.  He was determined to get his ideas out there before he died. He thought he had about ten years left for this.  He self-published three books recently in a concerted effort.  He was working on his fourth when his heart gave out.  I read the introduction to the fourth book. His writing had improved dramatically since his first book.  This backdrop made the loss even more poignant.   We also lost our friend Woody Rixey, a Gorenflo family friend from the old days who Neal adopted as his Godfather a long time ago.  Woody's health had been deteriorating, so Neal took the opportunity to see Woody while he was still lucid.  Woody was an important role model, but also a blast to hang out with.  Neal got to tell Woody how much he loved and appreciated him before he died.  Then we lost Andrea's uncle on Thanksgiving, also unexpected.     

These losses hit us hard.  With the great blessings and losses this year, we have a much heightened sense of gratitude.  2008 supplied ample proof that life is both joyous and fleeting. This has made us appreciate it that much more.  What wonderful opportunities we have had to serve, explore, and enjoy.  Thank you for being part of our lives!  Let 2009 be yet another year that we as a community of friends and family seize the day, day after day.

Saturday, August 23, 2008

Wedding Under The Redwoods



Our wedding music video was made from our wedding pictures on Flickr mashedup automatically by the site Animoto.

Go here for our wedding slide show on Flickr.

Tuesday, January 01, 2008

Happy New Year & 2007 Recap

Andrea and I shared a New Year's Eve dinner with some married friends last night. Late in the dinner, I asked the table what memorable things happened in 2007. We started trying to recount the year. It was slow going. I cracked, "had 2007 been a forgettable year?" Then folks started throwing out some tidbits, then corrected themselves when many of the events mentioned actually happened in 2006! My surfing buddy Jared said that he had finished his MBA. He raised his hands in celebration, and we cheered him. That seemed like a good place to stop recounting since we were struggling.

After thinking about it this morning, I realized a relatively unmemorable year can be a good thing. After all, nothing tragic had happened in our personal lives this year that would permanently etch our memories. Though the world is a bit of a mess as always, we were lucky enough to enjoy some progress and pleasure in our lives this year with negligible interference from the larger forces in the world. Not sure how long that will last with some ominous challenges on the horizon. Nevertheless, we're fortunate to have had some fun while continuing to work on our wedding vow to "help create healthy communities for families and children." Here are some highlights:
  • 1 Year Anniversary. Andrea and I celebrated our anniversary in the small coastal town of Mendocino. We had probably the best meal of our lives at Cafe Beaujolais. Then walked down to the shore under a full moon, found a bench on a cliff overlooking the ocean, and stayed up all night talking. OK, that was memorable.
  • Andrea closed a deal with the CEO of Kaiser Northern California. Andrea had won an innovation grant to do a pilot project involving group visits for new moms and follow up group conference calls. The idea is to use the power of community (moms talking to each other) to bring down costs and improve care. However, it was canceled because of a budget shortfall. Undaunted, Andrea asked the CEO in an unrelated meeting to fund her project. He eventually agreed.
  • Neal got a new job with FAS.research, one of the leading consultancies in the world applying the science of network analysis to social and business problems of all kinds. He lead a project to help Tides Network, large charitable foundation, to reorganize and become more effective in their philanthropic work.
  • In April, the whole of my immediate family, the Gorenflo clan, spent a week in Hawaii together. Wow, we all got along splendidly and had a great time!
We wish all of you a happy 2008, and may it be memorable for much pleasure and progress!

Thursday, May 18, 2006

Neal & Andrea's Wedding Events

Click on the event to get more info:

1. Friday July 28 at 7:30pm: "Bowling Together" Tournament

2. Rehearsal Dinner for out of town guests: Saturday July 29 at 3:00pm: BBQ at the "I'm OK, You're OK Ranch"

3. Sunday July 30 at 12:30pm: Wedding & Reception

The BBQ @ The I'm OK, You're OK Corral

OK, you won't be transactionally analyzed at our rehearsal dinner, just take the name of the event at face value. And this will be a straight up NorCal style shindig with BBQ'd tri-tip, slow-cooked pulled BBQ chicken tacos, grilled veggies, and plenty of Sierra Nevada Pale Ale. The Mudhens will play a set or two of lively bluegrass and old-time music, which is sort of like the new punk rock here in San Francisco. The vibe will be casual as we're holding it at our little cottage in Palo Alto. We chose the BBQ format so y'all could mix about unencumbered.

Who:
Out of town wedding guests.

When:
Saturday July 29th at 3:00Pm

Where:
2079 Oberlin Street
Palo Alto, CA 94306


Phone: 415.867.0429

Wednesday, May 17, 2006

"Bowling Together " Tournament

Hey y'all, come on out and let's bowl together instead of Bowling Alone. The night's activities take inspiration from Robert Putnam's book, which claimed an alarming decline in social capital in the United States. Let's prove him wrong, but just so you don't think we're getting too touchy feely here, it's going to be a tournament. Yes, that's right, a team competition. So bring your rosin bag and wrist brace for a bowling alley throw down. There's nothing like a good-natured competition to bond you with your teammates.


When:

Friday July 28th at 7:30PM

Where:
AMF Redwood Lanes
2580 El Camino Real
Redwood City, CA 94061


(650) 369-5584

Cost:
The cost will be around $20 per person excluding beer and any bowling alley fare you risk your health on. Everyone will be chipping in 'cause were renting out lanes instead of paying per game.



...

Saturday, December 24, 2005

Andrea & Neal are getting married - here's the details.

When
Sunday July 30 at 12:30pm.

Where
The wedding & reception will take place at Peterson Grove, Sanborn County Park, 16055 Sanborn Rd., Saratoga, California.

Theme

Our wedding will be an occasion to create new connections between the people in our lives, many who have never met before. From these new connections, we hope a single community of friends and family will emerge to support our marriage and our shared purpose of creating healthy communities for children and families.

To support our community theme, we’ll be having informal gatherings near our home in Palo Alto in the days leading up to the wedding. We’ll also be giving you ways to connect online beforehand. We hope you’ll support our wedding by making an extra effort, beyond what is usual at most weddings, to connect with each other, especially those you do not know.

We decided to get married in a redwood grove for a special reason. Redwoods, though one of the largest and longest living organisms on our planet, are vulnerable to high winds. To keep from being toppled over, redwoods grow in clusters for protection. As mighty as they are, even redwoods need help from one another to survive. We will be married in a redwood grove to commemorate and deepen the joy we experience through our interdependence.

Out of Town Guests
We’d love it if you made a vacation around our wedding. Not only would this give you opportunities to meet other guests before the wedding, but there is also great stuff to do in the Bay Area. Palo Alto is driving distance from San Francisco, Lake Tahoe, Napa Valley, and Monterey. If you make a vacation out of this, we suggest you plan day trips early in the week and do local stuff later in the week so we can get together. As the date gets closer, we will post more detailed information about the week’s activities. Here's some info to help you plan:

Airline Reservation & Car Rental
You can fly into the San Jose, Oakland or San Francisco airports. All are within 30 minutes of Palo Alto, where we have blocks of hotel rooms on standby for you at a discounted rates.

We invite you to make your plane and car reservation using the below links. Orbitz and Cheap Tickets handle reservations for the major airlines and car rental agencies.

CLICK HERE TO MAKE YOUR ORBITZ.COM TRAVEL RESERVATIONS

CLICK HERE TO MAKE YOUR CHEAPTICKETS.COM RESERVATIONS

Note: You can accumulate frequent flyer miles booking through these sites as you would through other channels.

Hotels
We have arranged discounted blocks of rooms at several hotels near our home. All rooms must be reserved 30 days prior to the wedding in order to get the discounted rate:

Stanford Terrace Inn
Closest to our house
$109 single/double; $119 triple/quad
CONTACT: 1-800-729-0332
Mention Group #96600 for discount

Sheraton Palo Alto Hotel
1-2 miles from our home but walking distance to downtown.
$119 single/double
CONTACT: 1-800-874-3516 or 650-328-2800 or via e-mail at
SheratonReservation@pahotel.com.
Mention Rudominer-GorenfloWedding for discount.

Westin Palo Alto
Right next door to Sheraton
$139 single/double
CONTACT: 1-800-937-8461 or 650-321-4422 or via e-mail at WestinReservation@pahotel.com.
Mention Rudominer-Gorenflo Wedding for discount.

Garden Court Hotel
2-3 miles from house in Downtown area
$189-$239 single/double
CONTACT: 1-800-824-9028.
Mention Rudominer-Gorenflo Wedding for discount.

Tuesday, December 20, 2005

Save the Date - 07/30/06

Our wedding day is July 30, 2006.