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Email me: jesse@jesseleo.com
Email Maria: mariasinacore@hotmail.com

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12/7/03 - You want updates? We got loads of 'em. First of all, as of last Wednesday Maria and I are homeowners! The Willow Springs condo went through after all. We've been hush-hush about posting anything, since in the past it's been bad luck. But since they've handed us the keys, taken all our dough, and had us sign our names on 17 bazillion X's, it's safe to say WE'RE IN THERE! The move will take place throughout December. We'll email everyone with the official snail-mail address and new phone number.
On the baby front, last week we had another set of ultrasounds. The pic at the top of this page shows a profile, looking very baby-like! In this pic here, the little bugger is looking right at the camera and (according to Maria) smiling.
As for the Deflators, well, not so good. Our record now is 1-3, after taking a thorough whuppin' last Wednesday. Our only win came two Sundays ago -- having been married the day before, I had an excused absence. I'm seeing a trend here -- the games I show up for we lose miserably. Hmmmmm....

11/29/03 - Hope everyone had a nice Turkey Day. FINALLY got around to posting the wedding photos! Click here -- but dial up users beware, this page contains a lot of thumbnails (clickable mini-photos), so it may take a while to load. But well worth the wait :)

11/24/03 - Now it's official. On Saturday (11/22), Maria and I tied the knot! A handful of us gathered at my dad's for the tiniest, fastest, and (in my unbiased opinion) lovliest little ceremony ever. Mother Nature cooperated with a gorgeous weekend -- so nice that for a fleeting second we considered moving the entire thing outdoors. After the exchange of the vows and around 47,981 photographs, we all headed to town for lunch at the Fife and Drum restaurant. We're still waiting for a bunch of the photos, but I'll get 'em posted ASAP.

11/21/03 - Well for those who haven't heard, tomorrow is the big day! Maria and I are set to wed at my father's in Kent at noon. It'll be a tiny affair, just immediate family and a minister. This is the only way we could realistically do it, what with the house purchase (more on that later), the baby on the way, etc. But rest assured, there will be a shindig to end all shindigs in the spring or summer of '04. Come on, do you really think I would get hitched without having a night of dancing and revelry? Oh yes, there will be dancing (and while we're on the subject, check out this new site, which I've used to hone some of my already impressive moves).
After the ceremony we'll head down to the Fife & Drum in Kent to get our grub on. My new wife and I will be spending the night at the Fife & Drum Inn, shoes left outside the door of course. Check back on Monday or Tuesday for wedding photos!
Registry - Cheesey though it may be, we've registered at the following places: Macy's, Target & Pottery Barn (wedding) and for the baby, Babies R Us and Target (which by the way is pronounced "tar-jay").

11/14/03 - Maria and I spent an hour at Macys last night doing the wedding registry thing. Freakin' great. It was kind of like the scene in 'Caddyshack' when Rodney Dangerfield arrived at the snooty Bushwood County Club pro shop -- "Gimme a bag o' these, a box o' those, two boxes o' those naked lady tees, six o' those, three o' these..." Except we got to do it all with a laser gun (set phasers to SHOP) with a built-in barcode scanner. Next time I want two of 'em with holsters, like twin six-shooters in an old western flick.

11/12/03 - The Deflators picked up right where they left off last season with an opening day loss to Chatham Marina. That extends our streak of losses to that particular team to about six years. There were some signs of life, however, and the game remained somewhat close throughout. Check back soon for an updated Deflators web page, along with the new schedule.

11/9/03 - Took in 'Matrix Revolutions' last weekend. All of the critics who bombed the film can kiss Neo's white, pastey arse -- this movie was a visually dazzling grand finale to one of the all time great sci-fi stories. Don't hate just cuz you don't "get it". The ending was supposed to leave some things unexplained, as there are still comic books, merchandise and video games to sell. Anyway there are some cool discussion forums here.

11/7/03 - My lovely fianceé turns 28 today! We'll be dining with her folks this evening and then spending most of the weekend with some friends in MA, drinking O'Douls and eating vegetarian soup. Hey it's her weekend, she calls the shots :)

11/5/03 - Paul's birthday today -- be sure to take a moment to say "hello" and exchange a quick pun.

11/4/03 - And I thought I was unique, keeping these cheesey postings of events, opinions, news flashes, updates and general random musings. But as it turns out, keeping a weblog (better known as a "BLOG") has been a popular thing to do on the Internet for years! Do a Google search on the word "BLOG" and you'll find six gazillion of 'em out there (but none more intriguing than this one I'll bet!).
Major reality check today as I found myself writing out a check to register Maria and I for a Lamaze class with the Childbirth Family Education Center. When everything was filled out and I got to the signature line at the bottom of the check, my hand seized up. "Hand, do as I instruct... sign the check." But it wouldn't move. "Grip the pen, sign the check." Nothing. This went on for five minutes 'til finally I had to grab my right wrist with my left hand and force it to do my bidding. And then came the envelope licking...

11/3/03 - Kind of a lame turnout on the Halloween front. This is suprising given the warm night we had, plus the fact that Halloween actually fell on a Friday night this year. We counted 53 trick-or-treaters altogether, down from over 100 a year ago. Kids, what's the deal?!? I'm guessing our scarey pumpkins scared them all away. 'Almond Joy' anyone?

10/31/03 - Happy Freakin' Halloween. If any kids show up at the door that look a shade over 13, I'll steal their bag of candy and chase them away with a Louisville Slugger. Tonight's agenda: give out candy & watch hoops on ESPN. With any luck Nick at Night will have a 'Munsters Marathon'.

10/28/03 - At long last! The wait is over -- NBA hoops double header tonight on TNT. Ahhhhhh, tonight's agenda looks good.... sit down in front of the boob-tube carving pumpkins, sipping cocoa & watching hoops. What could be better? The JUICY QUOTES coming from Kobe Bryant regarding his big buddy and fellow Laker Shaq, THAT'S what. In response to Shaq calling the Lakers 'his team', Kobe jabs: "But this is his team, so it's time for him to act like it. That means no more coming into camp fat and out of shape, when your team is relying on your leadership on and off the court. It also means no more blaming others for our team's failure, or blaming staff members for not over dramatizing your injuries so that you avoid blame for your lack of conditioning. Also, 'my team' doesn't mean only when we win, it means carrying the burden of defeat just as gracefully as you carry a championship trophy."
And check out this GEM regarding all the games Shaq missed last year due to injury: "But I don't need Shaq's advice on how to play hurt. I've played with IVs before, during and after games. I've played with a broken hand, a sprained ankle, a torn shoulder, a fractured tooth, a severed lip, and a knee the size of a softball. I don't miss 15 games because of a toe injury that everybody knows wasn't that serious in the first place.” As for his future with the Lakers, “If leaving the Lakers at the end of the season is what I decide, a major reason for that will be Shaq's childlike selfishness and jealousy." DELICIOUS! Oh to be a fly on the wall of that locker room.

10/26/03 - SET CLOCKS BACK. Even though this means the cold stuff is here to stay, an extra hour of sleep is always a good thing. Two things I always mocked and ridiculed while growing up: 1) People who live in condos, and 2) People who live in New Milford. Well fate has a funny way of kicking me in the ass -- we may very well be doing BOTH! Details to follow...
Oh yeah -- congratulations to the Florida Marlins for their World (why is it the "World" Series? Only US teams can compete) Series victory over the New York Overpaid Losers. Now with baseball out of the way, BRING ON THE HOOPS!

10/15/03 - Had a follow-up visit with the doctor today and another ultrasound (click here to view the photo). We're pleased to report that everything appears to be "spinning in greased grooves" as they say. This newest picture actually looks kind of like a baby -- the first one resembled an alien larva. If you look closely the profile is pretty clear, with a gorgeous little nose (gets that from me) and puckered lips. The shape above the baby's face is a hand. Kinda looks like he/she's flippin' us the bird, doesn't it? The nurse offered to reveal the gender (they can tell from that picture???), but we resisted the temptation.

10/13/03 - Columbus Day observed today. I could never quite figure this one out. I mean, as a kid it was always great to get the day off from school. But now it's just a nuisance that the banks are closed, and I still have to go to work. But why is this day cause for celebration? It is widely believed that Columbus discovered America in 1492. Truth be told, he was searching for a tea route to the Spice Islands (Indonesia) and China. En route, he bumped into San Salvadore in what is now the Bahamas. How is that discovering America? What's more, he terrorized, robbed and enslaved the natives. I don't know, maybe I've got my historical facts mixed up. But I doubt it. Happy Columbus Day, for what it's worth.

10/08/03 - The NBA Pre-Season tipped off last night! At last, a reason to start watching SportsCenter again (haven't watched it since June). Oh yeah, the (*yawn*) NHL season tips off tonight too.

10/04/03 - Circus bears everywhere take note. I read this morning that the magician Roy Horn of the performing duo Sigfried and Roy was mauled almost to death by an albino tiger. Sic Sempris Tyrannis! (or for the Latin-impaired, "Thus perish all tyrants!").


Have your revenge, kitty cat

10/02/03 - Alas, back to the drawing board. We were 99% "in" a fantastic condo at Park Manor. Everything was going great -- offer accepted, binder signed, mortgage looking good, inspection scheduled, etc. But then at 4:00 today I get a call informing me that the sellers, after meeting with their attorney, have decided to back out. Just like that! Most likely they got a better offer. Lousy lousy lousy.

9/29/03 - It might really happen this time. We're in the midst of negotiations for a great condo over by Park Avenue in Danbury. Right now we're doing the "Offer-Counter Offer Shuffle" with the sellers, but things look promising. Further bulletins as events warrant...

9/28/03 - Photos from the Block Island trip have been posted! Click here.

9/25/03 - At last, a reason to a) watch the Super Bowl (commercials aside) and b) purchase a pay-per-view show. Just learned that during halftime of the next Super Bowl you can watch "The Lingerie Bowl." For thirty bucks you get full contact football played by supermodel-caliber babes in their undergarments. Where do I sign up?

9/24/03 - Can't DO cold turkey. Yesterday I accidentally went the entire day without any amount of caffeine whatsoever. This started when BagelMan screwed up our morning delivery at the office, and continued when Starbucks' line was too damn long to waste my lunchtime waiting in. The rest of the day I was too busy to stop anywhere else, so the entire 24 hour period was spent SANS JAVA. Well I gained a whole new level of respect for folks who've quit caffeine. I woke up this morning feeling as if I did 24 tequila shots the night before -- a pounding, pulsating, throbbing, jackhammer between-the-ears headache. But an hour after the morning cup of Folgers, things were right as rain. Scarey stuff.

9/21/03 - Home from Block Island! The big news of course is the official announcement of our engagement (look REALLY closely at my Maria's ring finger in this photo). I dragged her out to the Northern LightHouse for the sunset and popped the ol' question. No date set as of yet, but we'll keep everyone posted of course. Engagement aside, it was yet another unbelievable time on Block Island. Luckily for us, Hurricane Isabel turned out to be Much Ado About Nothing. Our photos came out great, and I'll have them posted in a couple of days.

9/13/03 - Just learned that actor John Ritter died at age 54 of a rare aortic disorder. To this day I still find myself catching "Three's Company" reruns on Nick at Night, laughing out loud. He had the complete comedic package, and he will be missed.

9/12/03 - Alas, it wasn't meant to be. The septic inspection, combined with the myriad of other issues at that house in New Milford, have forced us to walk away. Now it's back to the drawing board :(

9/11/03 - Initial word from on the septic inspection is that, while it IS functional and in good shape, there could be some issues down the road. I'll await the official report before passing judgement. In the meantime, we're off to our much needed annual September visit to Block Island. It'll be nice to get away from the madness for a while, even though they're calling for rain :-(

9/10/03 - The first inspection was last night on the possible new house (bugs, furnace, plumbing, structural stuff, etc). A few issues here and there. Suffice to say that we would have to become very handy very fast. But none of the issues were show-stoppers; the retaining wall will need some upkeep, portions or the floor need work, some insulation needs to be redone, a new hot-water heater is needed, some tiling and spackling in la toilette, and the chimney needs a second opinion. The true test will take place today -- Pembroke Pumping is coming out to check the septic... *gulp*

9/6/03 - Us? Maria and I homeowners?... Never thought I'd see the day. But our offer was accepted for this little ranch/cabin joint in Southern New Milford. It's not much, but it's got potential! We're trying not to get our hopes up too much -- everyone I've talked to says that at one time they were 99% "in" with their dream home, only to have the deal fall through at the 11th hour. I won't uncork the champagne until the realtor hands us the keys. The regular inspection is scheduled for Tuesday, and the septic inspection for Thursday. Fingers, toes, legs, and everything else you can think of are crossed... Further bulletins as events warrant.

8/28/03 - Took in the MTV Video Music Awards last night. If loving Madonna, Britney and Christina is wrong, I don't wanna be right. Click here for a picture of the "smooch heard 'round the world."

8/16/03 - Read today that Idi Amin Dada (aka "Big Daddy") kicked the bucket at age 80. Jeez, too bad. During his reign as dictator of Uganda about 400,000 folks died or disappeared. They finally booted him out of the country in '79, I think. He lived out the rest of his days in a luxury house in Saudi Arabia. Good riddance to bad rubbish.

8/15/03 -

8/12/03 - Finally finished "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix". Wow! Good read! Gotta hand it to J.K. -- she delivers the goods. Now hopefully she won't make us wait another lifetime for the next one. Email me if you've heard anything about the next novel and when it will be released.

8/5/03 - Nope this isn't Sigourney Weaver in "Alien: Resurrection." We had our first of several ultrasounds (sp?) tonight. Much to our relief, the camera revealed just ONE baby. Whew! And according to the nurse, everything is perfectly normal so far. We got to hear that little heart, just a tom-tommin' away like crazy. The head is clearly discernable, and it looks like the little hand is cupped over his/her ear as if to say "Hear No Evil." That round thing above the head that looks like a calamari is actually responsible for pumping nutrients from mom to baby. Click here for the most recent ultrasound picture.

8/1/03 - Takin' one for the team...Traded in my VW GTI for a 4-door Honda Civic. Ouch!!!!!! I will miss you :(
But the four doors, along with the lower payments, made this decision a no-brainer.

Gone but not forgotten.

7/21/03 - You read it correctly! We're officially preggers, and mom & young'un (who is currently the size of a rasberry, or so we've read) are doing fine. Woohoo!

7/18/03 - Kobe, Kobe, Kobe... How could you? That little slip-up could cost you $100 million in endorsements. Not to mention a wife and kid. Jeez!

7/4/03 - Spent the holiday weekend on Long Island for Eileen Sears' 80th birthday party. What a hoot! Took some great pics, click here.

7/3/03 - Tough day for couples who want to get their groove on... R&B legend Barry White passed away today. That voice, oh that voice. Do it to me Barry. Email me for Barry .mp3s, cuz I got loads of 'em. Can't get enough of your love babe...

6/23/03 - Feelin' blue at 32. My bones are a bit creakier today than usual... Birthdays just aren't as much fun as they used to be. But when old age does come to take me it'll find me back against the wall, blood-soaked weapon in hand, a ring of fallen foes around me... OK so I admit that I've been reading my old 'Conan' comics again.

6/21/03 - At last, the wait is over! 'Harry Potter and the order of the Phoenix' arrived this morning via UPS! I had pre-ordered from Amazon.com (can't be bothered with that waiting in line at Border's nonsense). But of course I'm in no condition to start it. Went out to celebrate my upcoming 32nd birthday last night, and I've spent most of the day staring into the bottom of the toilet bowl. Note to self: no more Jose Cuervo...

6/6/03 - A sad day -- we had to put Pepper to sleep. But it was time :-( We're bringing her ashes to Terrywile, where she spent so many afternoons exploring and swimming with her buddy Amos. Check back in a few for some Pepper pics.

5/21/03 - Finally the photos from the Taylor's most recent party, the "D" Party, have been posted. For those not in the know, each party has a letter theme and revelers must dress as something beginning with that letter. This time it was "D" for Jen Andrade, who just earned her "D"octorate! Photos here.

5/20/03 - Posted a new pic of Uncle Paul and Anna Maria. Click here. Thanks for the photo Marion!

5/16/03 - Lakers got the boot last night from the Spurs. I'm glad to see that we're gonna have a new NBA Champ this year. But a Spurs - Pistons series is going to be SO bad for ratings. Neither team is sexy enough for anyone to want to watch (aside from myself of course).

5/10/03 - 5/11/03 - In preparation for the big move, we decided to hold a tag sale in Nanclyn's front yard. Recipe for disaster? Click here to find out.

4/26/03 - Drove up north to the DeRham's for some factory outletting and some spring bumps. GREAT weekend. Pics here.

4/21/03 - No more sugar in my bowl... Jazz legend Nina Simone died yesterday at age 70. Click here for the CNN obit.

4/16/03 - Curtain call for the G.O.A.T ... Check back soon for my tribute to Mike.

3/30/03 - Deflated! The season ends on a sour note. Details here.

3/23/03 - Took in a matinee of "Dreamcatcher" today. Cool flick - very Stephen King. Great special effects, interesting story. Although I'm starting to get sick of King's tendency to use kids with "exceptional abilities". You'll see what I mean.
And it's worth mentioning that the short Animatrix clip, "Final Flight of the Osiris" was unbelievably cool. Apparently there are going to be a bunch of these short films at the beginning of feature films in the coming weeks. "Matrix Reloaded" should open in May, I think. It may be necessary to call in sick and catch the matinee on opening day.

3/20/03 - And so the bombs start dropping. What would Mahatma, Martin Luther and John say if they were alive (aside from "Help, let me outta this coffin!")? I'm sure they wouldn't approve. We can only hope our fearless leader knows what he's doing...

3/19/03 - I need my space. Storage space, that is, for web site pages and photos. I've maxed out the paltry 5 megabytes allocated to me by SNET for this lame site, so I've started looking into getting a real site hosted professionally (with my own domain name!). So far it looks like I'm gonna go with Pair Networks. For six bucks a month you get 100 megs of space, 1 mailbox and 1 domain name. There are gobs of photos and stuff that I want to post, (More Morris pics, Leo family photos, Martha's Vineyard 2002 pics, old Block Island pics, etc) so this will definitely help.

3/18/03 - Posted a couple more irrefutably cute pics of Sophia. Click here.

2/27/03 - A sad day in the neighborhood... Click here for a few of Mr. Rogers' most memorable quotes (compiled by the AP). Click here for CNN's obit.

2/15/03 - 2/16/03 - We had an overnight guest this weekend. Her name is Molly - ain't she gorgeous?! And she only pooped in the house once.

2/13/03 - OK Bella's tooth is out, and she's fine. Although her smile is kinda funny looking, what with only three out of the usual four canine teeth.

2/11/03 - Bit of bad news today - we discovered that one of Bella's canine teeth was broken! Maria took her to the vet, where it was extracted. She had to spend the night there :-(

2/7/03 - 2/10/03 - Just flew in from Atlanta, and boy are my arms tired! I was there for the NBA All-Star Weekend.

2/3/03 - Went to check out Chicago last night. Very entertaining. Granted, the big stars can't belt it out like they do on Broadway. But Renee Zellwiger and Catherine Zeta Jones were fantastic (and besides, who wouldn't want to see them high-kickin' around in skimpy leotards?). Richard Gere was his usual stiff self, but did a nice job as the sleezy lawyer. And who knew that Queen Latifah could sing? Go to Rotten Tomatoes for the review. This is a great site that gathers movie reviews from critics of all the major publications. Just enter the movie name and click SEARCH.

1/27/03 - Posted a couple of new pics of Cris and Steven's brand new baby girl, Sophia .

1/27/03 - Rumblin' stumblin' bumblin' and he COULD... FALL... ASLEEP... during the SuperBowl.... AND HE DOES! What a lame game. Note to Rich Gannon: You're supposed to pass it to the guys in the WHITE jerseys. Not that I care one iota about pro football (didn't even know what teams were in it until Saturday). But I usually watch the 'Bowl for the commercials. With the exception of FedEx's "Castaway", even the commercials were boring. Let's face it - no commercial has ever come close to Apple Computer's famous 1984 commercial. Click here to download what many experts consider the greatest commercial of all time. Note that you will need QuickTime to play it - if you don't have it, get it here. And while we're on the subject of Apple Computer...

1/24/03 - Uncle Paul's PowerMac G4 arrived from Germany - thanks to Tom and Dane for arranging the delivery. What a magnificent machine! Now to put it to good use and finish up the family photo galleries....

1/15/03 - Finally got around to posting the log of our journey Photographs are here.

1/14/03 - This just in! "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" will be officially released on June 21, 2003 (two days before my b-day, I might add)!! It's supposedly a whopping 768 pages -- a third longer than "Goblet". Further bulletins as events warrant.

Important Links:

Family Pages Remember to email suggestions to: jesse@jesseleo.com .

Deflators home page. Hey, there's always next year...

Counter Strike Nation homepage. Quite possibly the perfect video game.

Poop Report.Your source for all things poop.