Here are the cameras I am looking at:

Sony TX9

I really like that this camera is ultra thin, touch screen, and has a 14 mega pixel lens. I do worry however that I have never fell in love with a touch screen that wasn't made by Apple. I also like that the camera takes 720p video which although I will probably use my Flip HD for video on the trip, it is nice to have regardless. I have to admit though looking at this camera it is pretty sweet looking and I had a ton of luck with my current pocket Sony camera. It looks as though it will cost around $250 or so.

Canon S95

I currently own a Canon Rebel XS DSLR and love it. Although of course I am buying a new camera because I don't want to carry it around on the trip. I like that the Canon S95 is just a pure digital camera. It has a lot of the advanced features if I ever want to use them, but it is just a pure high quality digital camera. I like that I don't have to worry about the touch screen, but it also is a bit more advanced then I need in a pocket camera. It looks like the average price is a bit on the top of the pocket camera scale of $350 but it looks like a beast of a camera.

Those are the two cameras that I have narrowed my search on for now. I also know that I will be bringing my now outdated original iPad along with me and will pick up one of those Apple Camera Connection kits so I can backup my photos as the day goes along.

So I will continue to do more research and price surfing until I come across the perfect pocket camera for the trip.

Check out a few videos we have taken of our new place:

2010 was a year unlike any other I have ever experienced; and in many respects hope not to experience again. To classify the whole year as a “bad year” would be far from the truth because it wasn’t all bad, in fact much of it was great. However there were moments in 2010 that all we could do is pray for better days.

2010 started off exactly how 2009 ended which was great. Jenn and I were in a groove, she was working close to home, we both were doing well at work, and were  enjoying married life. Of course it didn’t hurt that Jenn was cruising around town in her new BMW which to this day she still loves.

I will never forget a night in mid-February. I was playing a video game in the family room, and Jenn was on her laptop in the bedroom surfing vacation deals online. I remember Jenn yelling to me saying “you have to check out this deal I found”. Within an hour, maybe two, we had booked an entire week vacation to Barcelona, Spain through an amazing British Airways deal. This was the sort of vacation that Jenn and I always talked about before we got married. Booking last minute trips and just going wherever we decided to go.

We left for Barcelona on March 3^rd and came back on March 10^th. It was truly an amazing trip. We stayed half of the trip in a beautiful hill top hotel, and the second half in the city. We were fortunate enough to be in the city during a snow storm which was one of the most beautiful sights I have ever seen. Barcelona as a city wasn’t our favorite European destination but had a great time taking in all of the beautiful landmarks and enjoying the amazing cuisine.

Barcelona Trip 2010

Right after we got back from Barcelona we went with Jake and Amy for a full day Disneyland adventure. It's one of those places that's near impossible not to have a great time at. Plus living within 10-20 minutes of Disneyland makes using an annual pass even better.

Disneyland Trip 2010 with Jake & Amy

One of the big decisions we made in 2010 was to get a puppy. To prepare for this we packed up our stuff and moved from our 1 bedroom 1 bathroom apartment in Newport Beach to a 2 bedroom 2 bathroom town-home in Irvine. The move was as smooth as you would hope and the transition to the townhome was seamless.

We picked up our puppy (Bentley) in late March.  At the same time Jenn’s job moved her from 10-15 minute commute to an hour plus. We realized within a few days that our current working life was in no way going to allow us to take care of our adorable Bentley. We returned Bentley to the kennel which we purchased him from and found out a week or so later that another family had purchased him. Since then I have talked to the new owners and hear he is doing great. It was an extremely tough decision, in some respects devastating, but the right decision.

Jenn & Bentley the Puppy

In mid-April my whole family went up to San Louis Obispo, California for a huge surprise. My dad arranged a rather elaborate plan to take my mom up there for the weekend to celebrate their 25^th wedding anniversary. What my mom didn’t know was that the whole trip was actually a surprise renewal of their vows. It was a really awesome experience, and pretty incredible to see my parents make good on something they told us they were going to do growing up which was renew their vows on their 25^th wedding anniversary.

My Parents Renewing Their Vows

May of 2010 was sort of the calm before the storm. It was really a pretty normal month. We went down to Pasadena with Jenn’s parents to the Gold Class Cinema which are these high class movie theaters with loungers and food service. Jenn and her mom saw Sex and the City 2 and her Dad and I saw Prince of Persia. In all honesty the food was better then the movies, but the experience was pretty incredible.

Later in the month we said goodbye to one of our favorite shows on TV, Lost. Jenn and I were late to the party; we watched the first five seasons during the time between the Season 5 finale and the season premiere of Season 6. We were hooked. We of course said goodbye to the show by throwing a mini finale party which was fun. If your curious I loved the finale, Jenn liked it but wasn’t as thrilled as I was with it.

On the first week of June I found out that I was being promoted to a Business Analyst 2. Jenn and I went out and celebrated the same way we did when I first got the job by having an amazing dinner at Ruth Chris Steakhouse in Irvine. It was sort of surreal that a year and half after getting the job we got something to celebrate again.

Later in the month we spent two nights down at the Hyatt Grand Champions in Indian Wells, CA in a one bedroom casita. In 2008 we had stayed in a 2 bedroom casita and I had posted a YouTube video on our room. Hyatt contacted me and thanked me for the video by giving me two free nights to come back and enjoy the resort again. We used this time to unwind and enjoy the very hot desert sun. We ate some great food, saw Toy Story 3, and lay by the pool drinking pina coladas. It was a perfect quick getaway.

I have always been a big fan of water parks, but no one else seems to share my enthusiasm. I did however get Jenn, Jake, and Amy to accompany me to Wild Rivers in Irvine for a day of water slide enjoyment. If it was my choice we would have stayed all day, but the three out voted me and we spent a good 5 hours enjoying the many different slides the park had to offer.

Later in the month we took a road trip out to Arizona for my Grandma’s wedding and also to R&R once again in the desert sun. We had a nice time out in Phoenix/Tucson, outside of the wedding we spent the majority of the time just relaxing and enjoying our surroundings. If we thought it was hot out in Indian Wells, it was even warmer out in Arizona.

Phoenix Trip 2010

Something Jenn and I have always loved is going to see plays. When we moved out to Orange County we kind of got away from it, mainly because we weren’t sure where to go. That all changed in August when we got the theater bug again starting with In the Heights at the Orange County Performing Arts Center. By the time the year was done we saw a total of 5 plays by the time the year was out and I would predict just as many in 2011.

Off to See In The Heights at OCPAC

From this point to the New Year, it feels like everything was going 200 mph. On Labor Day weekend we decided to once again take up the idea of just getting up and going somewhere, but this time we were off to Las Vegas. We spent two nights out there at the Trump hotel. This was by far the most fun “mini vacation” we have had in our short married life. We saw The Beatles Love Circus du Soleil at The Mirage which was incredible. We also gambled a bit, ate some great food, and spent time at the pool.

Vegas Trip 2010 @ The Trump

It was only two weeks later Jenn and I hit our first big milestone as a married couple, our one year anniversary. We celebrated it at the Terranea Resort in Ranchos Palos Verdes, CA which was a gorgeous resort. I had done some pre-planning for the big day so I got us dinner reservations at The Chart House which was great. When we got back from dinner I had the concierge decorate our room with rose pedals, chocolates, and a big Happy 1st Anniversary sign in the room. We had a wonderful time at the resort and celebrating our first amazing year as a married couple.

Our 1 Year Wedding Anniversary at the Terrenea Resort

October ended up being a crazy month. The month started off with great news, Jenn got promoted to a Project/Program Analyst 3 which was great. We went and celebrated at Pascal’s a French restaurant down at Fashion Island. It was a very well deserved promotion and it was something we were both super excited for.

A few days later I was fortunate enough to launch the newest version of Darkstation.com, which was a much needed upgrade. The system is now running on the very reliable WordPress and just looks a lot cleaner then the site ever has. We have already started to see a huge improvement in visitors and in the feedback from fans of the site which has been great. The transition to the new site wasn’t perfect, but I can happily say that we are now up and running at 100% and doing great.

The New Darkstation.com

It was only a week later that I got a call from my parents while eating dinner at Panera by our townhome that my Dad had been diagnosed with a tumor in his brain and they were going to need to do emergency surgery. The next week or two was literally a blur. Jenn and I rushed down to Riverside and only a day or two later he was in an all day surgery. It was an extremely stressful couple of weeks but the good news is that as of right now he is on the road to recovery and doing really well.

With all the stress we were even more excited to take a break from it all and spend a week out in Cancun, Mexico. We stayed at one of the nicest resorts I have ever stayed at in the Excellence Playa Mujeres. The resort was all inclusive and we really used up as much of it as we possibly could. One of the best moments of the trip was when we went ziplining and off-roading at an adventure park called Xplor. It was so nice to just sit back and let loose again.

Jenn and I at The Excellence Playa Mujeres

When we got back from Cancun we settled in for the holidays. We went to go see Peter Pan in a theater in a round setup which had rave reviews but we didn’t care for it all that much. We spent Thanksgiving morning with Jenn’s parents and the afternoon with mine. It was really nice to spend the time with family and to be able to just relax.

It was only a week later that we all found out the worst news of our lives. On December 3, 2010 Jenn’s mom passed away at home in her bed. As you may remember reading from last years “year in review”, Jenn’s mom has been battling lung cancer for the past two years and had been winning the battle. She was an amazing lady. My fondest memories of her were anytime we were doing something competitive. I remember the first time I played Monopoly with Jenn’s family and her dad bowed out quickly and Jenn and her Mom trying to team up to eventually beat me. In fact now that I think of it I don’t think I ever beat her in anything, that’s probably why she wrote “winner” on any e-mail or card she sent me.

She was an extraordinary woman, full of life, full of hope, and full of joy. From the moment I met her we always clicked, and she always made me feel like part of the family. She was always an amazing supporter of both Jenn and I and rooted us along the way. I look back at the 7+ years I knew Jenn’s Mom and I just look back and know I am a better person for having known her and been around her. I know I speak on behalf of both Jenn and I when I say we miss her deeply but cannot wait to see her again in heaven.

It was only a week later that the load continued to build as we had to put down Jenn's parents dog Sparky. There was a day or two where it just didn't feel like things would ever get better.

The year ended out kind of as you would expect after reading about our last few months, a bit numb. It’s one of those feelings where there is so much grief, so much emotion, that it’s hard to even know where to begin. We celebrated Christmas at my parent’s house which was a lot of fun, and enjoyed the rest of the day at our town-home, concluding it with the family tradition of watching National Lampoons Christmas vacation.

Decorating the Christmas Tree in 2010

This year had a few of those days that you pray never happen. We all know we are going to have those days but no matter what you do you’re never prepared for them. When it's all said and done there is nothing we can do but look forward to a much better 2011.

The Other Guys

Both my brother Jake and I are huge Will Ferrell fans. I still can't stop laughing when I watch Anchorman and Talladega Nights and I have probably watched those each at least two dozen times. So my expectations going into this movie were pretty high and I have to say I was a little let down. One of my main complaints is that a lot of the funnier moments in this movie were seen already in the movies previews. My biggest problem however with The Other Guys was I just never got into it. To me there was just not the right pacing in this comedy that has worked so well in past Will Ferrell movies. Don't get me wrong its a funny movie but not on the top of the list of Will Ferrell movies in my opinion.

The Expendables

If you have frequented my blog at all you know I am a big Rocky fan. In fact that is my favorite movie/series of all time. I am also a big action movie fan so when I first saw the trailer for what looks to be the reunion of some of the biggest action stars of the last twenty or thirty years who wouldn't want to see it. And to my surprise and delight I came out of The Expendables pumped up and ready for more. The movie was pretty much a guys dream action movie. It had a little bit of plot, a ton of explosions, and non-stop action from start to finish.What could be bad? Heck even Jenn enjoyed it!

In the Heights (@ Orange County Performing Arts Center)

Jenn and I trying to get out of our comfort zone more and one thing we don't do enough and we want to do more is going out and see plays/musicals. So our first stop on this quest was at the Orange County Performing Arts Center to see the very popular musical In The Heights. Neither Jenn or I would be considered real "musical" fans, but are always open to something new. First off we had great seats, near the middle of the stage and in the second row. But secondly and more importantly the musical was fantastic. It was upbeat, the music was catchy, and the story was really good. Honestly it was one of those perfect date nights that you just hope for.

I realize looking back that I never really took the chance to recap the day and all that went on. I remember the night before the wedding hanging out with Chris and Jake. We met Jenn's parents for drinks/dinner at the St. Regis not knowing that they only invited us so that the bride to be and her brides maids were out toilet papering our hotel room. It was a great laugh when the three of us got to the room and saw the great work the ladies had done. Looking back it actually helped me calm down and just truly look forward to the day. One of the moments of the night before the wedding was walking down to the wedding location. I remember standing there and running through the day to come. I remember standing there and looking out at the golf course and ocean and just feeling like I was literally on top of the world.

When September 19th rolled around I just remember waking up and not feeling nervous. It wasn't until the rest of my groomsman arrived at the hotel that the butterfly's started to come. I remember walking walking outside a bit to early but standing around wondering what I was supposed to do. When I finally walked my mom down the isle I couldn't believe the day had finally come. I remember standing at the alter looking down the isle at what is and will always be the most beautiful bride that has ever graced this earth. Her eyes sparkled, her smile was as contagious as ever, and I saw my wife, the love of my life. Sure I rushed my "I Do" and even missed some of the words on my vows, I was still a bit nervous, but I just remember looking at Jenn and knowing that there was no place on earth I would rather be then right there. The rest of the day flew by, the reception felt like it was only a few minutes long rather then a few hours. It was was truly the best day of my life and having this beautiful wedding book to help remember the day.

Click here to view the video on YouTube.

Click here to view the video on YouTube.

So onto the moving experience. As I have never moved before I hadn't had any experience with "movers" before so I just went off google reviews and Jenn and I picked Excalibur Moving. They had given us a window of 12pm-6pm for our moving so Jenn and I moved all day Saturday morning (March 27th). So after spending all of Friday night and Saturday morning moving we headed to Islands at around noon to get some lunch. No later then about 5 minutes after we sat down and had already ordered the movers called and said they would be there in a half hour. So we got our food to go, and ran back to the apartment where the movers came right on time.

When we reserved the movers we got a 2 man crew, well wouldn't you know it four guys showed up. We ended up working out a deal to pay the same amount we would have for 2 with the 4 which did end up getting us moved out of the apartment much quicker. They got the apartment packed up in an hour and unpacked at our townhome in less then an hour. We spent the rest of the weekend unpacking and are continuing to do so throughout the week to get ready for our mini goldendoodle puppy this weekend. What a crazy couple of weeks.

So what are we planning on doing in Barcelona you may be wondering, well to be quite frank we have no idea. This was one of those "spur of the moment" kind of trips that Jenn loves to do and we plan on winging the trip the same way we have done in the past. The weather looks like it might be a bit hit and miss but we weren't going for the beach more to take in all of the sights. So off we go again, our flight is at 8:30pm out of LAX on Wednesday and we head back home on March 10th. Expect daily recaps of the trip along with photos and possibly videos will be coming daily after we get back.

If there was ever a year where I was going to have difficult time writing a post recapping a year, it would be now. The year of 2009 was one of so many great highs and at the same time some lows. The year didn’t start out all that exciting. I was just getting my feet wet at my new job at Southern California Edison and Jenn was enjoying her last few weeks of freedom before she too started work at SCE on February 1st.

The beginning portions of the year felt like the beginning of yet another transition period for both Jenn and I from students to full time employees, from a dating couple to eventually becoming husband and wife. We started taking our pre-marital classes in early 2009 at The Grove in Riverside. It was a six week class that at times was helpful but for the most part seemed like just yet another hurdle to go over before the big day in September.

Jenn and I spent the majority of the first few months of 2009 really ramping up for what was to become a very up and down 2009. Some of my favorite times in the beginning of 2009 were when I would go pick up Jenn from work on Friday nights in Rosemead so she wouldn't have to take the train home and we would go on date nights. Often times we would go to furniture stores (my favorite IKEA) and just start to think about getting our own place, furnishing it, and just what life would be like with just the two of us. I remember the drives home talking with her about our future not caring about traffic, or the long drive, but just enjoying the prospect of what was to come.

We ended up taking a mini vacation in March of 2009 to Indian Wells, CA where Jenn scored us a great deal on a 2 bedroom casita. A video we posted on YouTube for that stay actually scored us two more free nights at the hotel that we are going to use in 2010. This was the first mini-vacation that Jenn and I had taken alone, and although we couldn't make it to the tennis tournament it was a wonderful quick trip.

In late March, Jenn and I decided it was time for us to get a place of our own. We knew the day would come where we would know it was time. Of course then came the decision of where to live. Originally our plan was to move to Orange County but our work locations at SCE really didn't call for us to move to Orange County. So we decided to look in Chino, kind of in the middle of where Jenn and I were working at the time.

I remember the drive to Chino, Jenn and I were on the edge of our seats, excited for the prospect of our own place. We looked at some really nice communities in Chino and felt like it might have made a good starting spot for us. After we left the community we decided to drive around Chino to see what was around the apartments. We drove around and I remember stopping in a parking lot and looking at Jenn and knowing we both were thinking the same thing. Without really saying anything we drove straight from Chino down to Orange County and the rest is really history. We ended up signing a lease a week or two later at our current place in Newport Beach and haven't looked back since.

April 2009 was the month where everything seemed to go from calm to crazy. On April 4th we went down to Newport Beach to sign our year lease on our apartment, which was one of the most thrilling and scary things we had ever done. Jenn and I were on top of the world, we spent our weekends moving our stuff from Riverside to our apartment in Newport Beach, and we had started shopping for everything from a paper towel holder to furniture and art work. At the same time we had Jenn's Mom that only a few weeks after getting the keys to our apartment was diagnosed with cancer.

In May of 2009 I ended up buckling down and got LASIK done at TLC Laser Eye Center in Newport Beach. I have been kind of hot and cold on the idea for the past few years but with SCE paying a good amount of the cost I couldn't help but go get it done. The procedure was as easy as they come, less then three minutes from start to finish and I never really had any major irritation from it. To this day I am seeing perfect without glasses and loving it.

There was a time during the summer of 2009 that Jenn and I seriously thought about pushing up our wedding to a small ceremony to ensure her Mom concentrated on getting better. But in the end those thoughts passed and we pushed forward with our September 19th wedding date while Jenn's mom went every few weeks for her chemo treatments.

As summer moved along it seemed like every weekend had something to do with the wedding. Whether it was picking out the flowers, Jenn's wedding shower, meetings with our Pastor, picking out tuxes, buying the rings or whatever else comes with planning a wedding it seemed like every weekend was something. As September grew closer and closer I think Jenn and I finally had the chance to sit back just for a few moments and finally grow in anticipation for our big day.

When September 19th finally rolled around it so far exceeded my expectations of the day I cannot even begin to describe it. Jenn looked absolutely phenomenal, she was just stunning. The day could not have been any more beautiful. My groomsmen were great and Jenn's bridesmaids did a great job as well. It truly was the best day of my life. What is funny however is that I had gotten so much wedding advice from everyone leading up to the day and one thing that everyone said was that it goes to fast, and boy does it! From the moment I rushed my "I Do" to the next day sitting at LAX waiting for our plane to London it felt like everything was moving at 1,000 MPH. The wedding and reception were amazing and I wouldn’t have changed a moment of it. Our Honeymoon was spectacular, the weather cooperated from start to finish and the trip itself was both relaxing and enjoyable.

When we got back from our Honeymoon everything seemed to fall into place. Jenn's latest rotation at SCE put her only 10 miles away from our apartment which let us spend a lot more time together. Jenn and I started to really work out a nice routine and to be honest had an amazing start to our married life. Jenn's Mom got great news that the cancer that they had found earlier in the year was all but gone. We spent a lot of great weekends with my brother Jake who got us
into Jenn and my latest addiction the TV show "Lost" which we are now on Season 5.

Jenn and I took a great mini-vacation in November up to San Francisco, our first as a married couple. It was the type of mini-vacation that we had talked about wanting to do for years and it finally came to fruition. It was such a surreal experience to just wake up one morning book a hotel and head out. We had a great time up in the bay area and look forward to all of the quick trips we can do in the future.

The final few weeks of the year were fantastic. Jenn and I got to decorate our apartment for the first time, bake cookies that turned out to be some of the worst Christmas cookies on record, and celebrate our first Christmas together. Jenn did an amazing job getting our place ready for the holidays and that mood was set throughout all of December. We had a great Christmas, to some it might even seem a bit crazy, but all in all it was a fantastic first Christmas as a married couple.

The year didn’t end without any slowdown as Jenn’s car a Toytota Celica started to have some mechanical issues. We ended up buying Jenn a White Certified Pre-Owned 2007 BMW 328i and sold her Celica to CarMax. It was actually a great car buying experience and we finally got Jenn a new car, something she has needed for a while. All in all 2009 was an amazingly crazy and exciting year. I got to marry the woman of my dreams and now look forward to spending the rest of my life with her.

Goodbye 2009 what a year you have been, and Hello 2010 I cannot wait to see what you have in store for me!

To inaugurate the camera Jenn and I went a few miles from our apartment to the beach and took some shots. Here they are below.

The camera really does great color.

Me trying to act all serious. Jenn having a blast taking pictures!

A great shot of the waves crashing.

Beautiful shot taken of the coast.

A beautiful shot of Jenn on our way back to the car.