By now, many of our readers have probably received a picture like this in the mail. It was our Christmas card, and we think it's really swell. Our friend Aaron, a talented photographer, took it along with a slew of other shots. We weren't expecting him to bring a bunch of professional equipment, big stand flashes and umbrellas and such, but that's what he did. We felt sort of like celebrities at a low-rent photo shoot, as Aaron picked off a bunch of shots and cars slowed to a roll and stared as they passed. Despite my eyes being slightly squinty due to the sun, Rhianwen thought the one above was cute enough to send out to family and friends.
This one, though, is my favorite shot from the day:
Oh, it is just so amazing... maybe some of you will get it in the mail soon enough...
The day after Christmas, the Benners decided to expose themselves to culture. Thankfully this city is filled to the brim with free (or often cheap) museums with world class art. Like the Getty Villa, for instance! Here's some photos from our trip to perhaps the most gorgeous museum on earth.
Usually we spend Christmas day rushing around to the houses of various families. A couple hours here, a couple there, onto the next place and by the end of the day we're pretty exhausted. So despite being so far away from our families and friends this year, we were looking forward to celebrating with just us this year. So with our tiny little tree decorated and our lights up around the apartment, we settled in for a good night's sleep on Christmas eve.
The next morning we woke up, read some scripture, sang some Christmas hymns (we're not going on tour anytime soon), ate breakfast and admired our little Christmas scene:
Then we opened up all the presents, and this is what our scene turned into:
With all those great gifts, we were happy, and this is what we turned into:
That night, we had our friends Chapman and Becca over for Christmas dinner since, like us, they do not have family in LA. Becca's husband Ryan was originally going to come as well, but he had to fly to Seattle for his Grandmother's funeral at the last minute (Becca had to work and was flying there the following day).
So we cooked London broil with a Gorgonzola cream sauce and mashed potatoes with caramelized shallots. Chapman brought prosciutto-wrapped asparagus and Christmas cookies, and Becca came right from work with a fantastic bottle of wine, a spicy Syrah that complimented the meal perfectly. We all proceeded to eat, drink and be merry, and then we retired to the couch where we took this photo:
Eventually everyone left, and Rhi and I collapsed onto the bed in a food-related coma. It was a good Christmas.
The Benner household became a cookie factory a week before Christmas. For the first time, we made more than one batch of cookies at a time. In fact, we made little goodie bags for 15 of Rhi's coworkers. It was a little overwhelming but thankfully Benner was there to help. The fun part was decorating the bags with varying holiday tags. Aren't they pretty?
Yes. Thanks to one of our dear friends, we now have a TiVo. No more commercials. No more having to be tied down to a specific time or channel, or choosing one show over another. We have joined the 21st century. Thank you God, for science.
The only problem is that I unpacked everything and was about to set it up when I took my first look at the instructions (I typically don't read those things). Apparently, I have to have our cable company come out and install a cable decoder card in the TiVo, so that we can get rid of our cable box.
Which means we have to wait until 9am tomorrow morning to get our TiVo goodness going. Oh, joy deferred, why must you be so painful?
So, some of you might be wondering if I have a job yet. There should be a simple yes or no answer to that, but of course there isn't. How silly of you to expect simplicity in matters such as this.
There have been developments though, big ones too. About a month ago I started temping at a major studio* inside their worldwide TV marketing group. The job I was doing was pretty rote stuff, all data entry, very little human interaction, staring at a screen all day. But I enjoyed being in an office and I took my job seriously. It could be meditative at times, even melodious with the percussive rhythms of the keyboard. I even added a few interesting-looking films to our Netflix queue because of it. I wasn't expecting to stand out or get noticed; how much can you stand out when all you're doing is checking boxes and crossing items off a list?
Well God must have smiled upon me, because my supervisor approached me on about the fourth day, saying that I have been doing good work and asked for my resume. He sent me an instant message later saying he was impressed by what he saw in my work history and that he wanted to put me up for a job opening in his department. I honestly don't know how I stood out from the other temps, other than divine providence. (I also suspect that my supervisor stumbled upon my personal blog via an errant email signature and may have taken a liking to me through my collection of funny animal photos. But who is to say that doesn't fall under the whole "divine providence" thing I was talking about before?)
So over the course of the next couple weeks (which were interrupted by an unexpected trip back to Philadelphia), I had three interviews with HR and differing marketing types. They all went well, and I eventually received a phone call from the HR representative telling me that I was the final candidate. That meant that--after a background check that took five business days--I could expect an official job offer.
That was two weeks ago, and I still haven't gotten that elusive job offer. The HR rep has called a few times to reassure me that the job is mine and we're all just waiting on salary approval, yadda yadda. Meanwhile, we have a giant bottle of champagne sitting in our fridge, just waiting to be popped the very moment this nearly eleven month (!) struggle with joblessness comes to an end.
On the plus/minus side, the temp assignment with the department has come to an end and I now find myself with plenty of free time (but no paycheck). I spent today running errands, doing laundry and sorting through some household tasks. Tomorrow and Wednesday will be spent writing and working out, and Thursday is the King of the Hill Christmas luncheon which I would not be able to attend had I had a job by now. Friday is wild card day, and all week I will be patiently expecting a phone call from HR, offering me a salary and telling me I can start work on Monday.
So that's the job update. I'm sort of hired, but sort of not. It's an odd stage of limbo we find ourselves in, but we believe that I will be fully and gainfully employed shortly. Updates to follow.
*I choose not to disclose any details about the job, company or individuals involved, because this is the Internet and they could all be Googling me right now. Sorry friends, I will tell more if and when I get the job.
Monday, December 15, 2008
Remember Thanksgiving? It feels like a million days ago already. We're almost a month late posting to our blog about it, but better late than never, right?
So, as the title of this post suggests, we made it back to Philly for Thanksgiving. The circumstances, as we've mentioned previously, were not ideal or necessarily enjoyable. But we took the unexpected trip home as an opportunity to see as many friends and family as possible, and boy did we ever do that.
The easiest way to break this down is day by day, I suppose.
Tuesday, November 25 We landed around 5pm on Tuesday night. Our friend Matt Lozano picked us up and took us to our other friends--and their brother/brother-in-law/next-door neighbor--Phil and Rachel's house, where we were staying. (Jenn, Matt's wife, and the bevy of Lozano children were there as well.) After a hearty dinner, we split the scene for my Grandmother's house, where we chatted up my family for a few hours. Then it was back to Phil and Rachel's, where I stayed up worrying about the eulogy I had to give the next day. Eventually, I fell asleep.
Wednesday, November 26 This was the day of my Grandpop's funeral. It was a sad affair, one which I may not care to relive word-for-word here. But, it was a great ceremony for a great man, one loved by many, and many did show up to show their respect. It was especially cool to see people he played baseball with when he was ten-years-old show up. He will be missed, and by many I didn't even know he had an impact on.
Later that night, I hung out with many of my oldest friends while Rhianwen caught up with her best friend from high school Christine. It was a great blessing to see our friends, even if we had to cram them in one what was one of our only free nights.
Thursday, November 27 THANKSGIVING WOOT WOOT! We kicked the day off by visiting with Chuck and Gwenyth (Rhianwen's parents). It was a pleasant time, and let me tell you, Chuck was in rare form. I knew this man loved puns, but he was whippin' 'em out left and right this day. He cracked himself up so much that Rhianwen did not recognize him for a moment.
From there, we went to my Aunt Beth and Uncle Russell's house in Narberth for Dinner Part I. Many of the Benners were there, but unfortunately not all of them could make it. It was a good time regardless, as we all went around the table and said what we were thankful for, ate a lot of delicious food, and then most of the men retired to the front porch to play hacky sack. That last part was a strange, new tradition, but it was fun nonetheless.
Then, it was Dinner Part II, at my Aunt Janet and Uncle Vince's house in Belmont Hills. Though the absence of my Grandpop definitely changed the tone of the holiday, it was an enjoyable night with terrific food. We ate and drank and were even a bit merry at times, particularly when Rhianwen and I handed out our Christmas gifts to everyone (we figured we would save on shipping by packing them for our trip). And then there was Matthew, baby Matthew, my awesome and cute little cousin who I am like 24 years older than. Here he is in action:
After that, we went to McShea's in Narberth. It has been a semi-tradition (at least since turning 21) for all my friends to meet there on Thanksgiving night and pour a few beers on top of the turkey. It was a good showing this year, and we all had a great time. I am thankful for such a large group of friends that I have known for over two decades in some cases, and who feel like brothers to me.
But I must admit, despite all the great food and wonderful family and hilarious friends, getting back to Phil and Rachel's and collapsing into bed was perhaps the best part of the day.
Friday, November 28 As chance would have it, the Chandlers were in town as well! We made last minute plans to meet up for coffee, catch each other up on our lives, etc. etc. So that's what we did! We loved getting to spend even the briefest of moments with Tim and Jenny, and it was amazing to see how grown-up Emme and Zander are. Unfortunately, this seems to be one of the only surviving good photos of the gathering, featuring Rhi and Jenny in a Starbucks.
And it was good to know that there were other people who were shocked about how cold Philly can get too (the Chandlers moved from Philly to St. Augustine, Florida about five years ago). We miss them!
After that, we went to visit with Rhianwen's best friend/college roommate Jen, her husband Rob and adorable son Aiden in Phoenixville. We hung out around their super-nice house, while Rhianwen walked around videotaping everything for later inspiration. (Jen, it turns out, is the svengali of home decoration.) We had lunch and played with the baby, and talked about life and just relaxed. That, I think, is the best part about Jen and Rob: hanging out with them is always just a relaxing time with enjoyable conversation. Rob also was showing off his new prized possession: the cork from the champagne bottle he popped after the Phillies won the World Series. Aiden will inherit that cork someday, I'm sure.
From Phoenixville, it was on to the Shah residence in Newtown Square. The Shahs--Adeel, Seher, Coco and the newest addition Esfandyar--you'll remember, are the family that Rhianwen once part-time nannied. I was just seeing Esfandyar for the first time, and he is one handsome little guy. As for Coco... well, she's a little shy around me. So I chatted with Adeel and Seher while Rhianwen hung out with her in the other room, and Esfandyar napped upstairs. On the one hand, I am terribly saddened because I adore Coco. On the other hand, I understand because I'm just some weird guy in her house she's only met a few times, and she's only three. Good thing Seher and Adeel are such wonderful, enjoyable people, and talking to them was quite fun. And Rhianwen is extremely thankful, because she loves the Shahs and shares a special connection with Coco.
But alas, from thence we departed for the Lozano compound in Havertown, where Jen and Matt were hosting a dinner of steak and salad and pure deliciousness. Three-fourths of an entire Lozano generation were represented, as we ate too much of everything, sipped Pinot Noir and talked and laughed about many things for many hours. I don't think we took any photos of it, because we don't have any, but here is a photo from another night of Joe and Steven (who were there) and cousin Michael (far left, but he wasn't there that night):
Eventually the night tapered off to an end, and we crawled into bed for a much needed rest.
Saturday, November 29 This day, we took SEPTA to Center City with Phil, Rachel and their kids Jamie and Jude. Here is Rhianwen and I with the kids, waiting for the R5, looking like we have a little family of our own.
Our destination: The Comcast Center, which was (and currently still is) hosting a Holiday video show in its lobby. The giant front wall in the atrium, you see, is a humongous LCD screen onto which many things are projected. The building is amazing, the technology is mind-blowing, and the show is a bit underwhelming if you're over the age of ten. Call me crazy, but I think if I'm going to watch a saccharine-coated holiday spectacle, I might choose the Wanamaker's light show for all its cheesiness. Jamie and Jude seemed to like it though.
Afterwards, we had lunch in the building's cafeteria and took a walk over to City Hall. As unseemly as Philadelphia can sometimes feel--and it often feels that way to me, though I say that with utmost love--I think there are few municipal buildings as powerful as City Hall. Coincidentally, here is Phil and I looking like a gay couple with an adopted child, walking through Dilworth Plaza at City Hall.
From there we caught the R5 back to Havertown. Rhianwen and Rachel decided to go for a walk, and I grabbed a cup of coffee with my dad, swung by and visited my Mom and Grandmom and then back to Phil and Rachel's to get ready for the night ahead.
After some freshening up, we went to visit with Grandmom Benner and the Schmidts since they couldn't make it to Thanksgiving. It was great to spend time with them and hear about all the activities that keep the Schmidt kids busy. We were especially impressed to hear that Madison, our cousin who is not even in high school yet, is being recruited by Johns Hopkins University for one of their programs. She's only thirteen and already she's smarter and going to a better university than me. And of course, our other cousins Regan and Steven were there, but were a bit busy making an elaborate cupcake tableau. Unfortunately, said tableau was not completed and we did not get to eat any of it. As for Uncle Steve and Aunt Janet, they shared tales from their recent trip to Europe. Having written all of that out, I think Rhianwen and I realize the Schmidts lead very exciting lives. We're glad we got to be with them, even for just a short time.
From there, it was on to the annual Papa Thanksgiving party. You see, we did not tell Kathy or Gary that we would be coming home for Thanksgiving. In fact, we told them we were really sorry but couldn't make it. Technically, when we told them that, it was true; my Grandpop hadn't passed away yet and we were planning on spending the holiday out here in LA. But when we found out that we were going to be in town, we decided to make our presence a surprise.
And boy were they surprised. It was one of those moments where you wish you were filming. Gary was wailing, Kathy was screaming, and we were glad we worked so hard to keep the secret.
And from there, Dinner Part III commenced. The Papas do not skimp, my friends, and they had a spread that could clog an artery just by looking at it. We got to spend time with Sonia and Larry, and Kevin and the super-pregnant Penny (who has since had a baby girl, Rory Michele!!!), and two of our favorite guys Nathaniel and Tucker Papa.
From left, Nathaniel, Nathaniel's guitar, Tucker, Rhi and Some Guy on Piano. We love the Papas dearly, and we're so happy we got to surprise them by crashing their party.
And then, since we hadn't gotten a chance to see him during our entire trip, we stopped off and visited with Greg--my best man--at like midnight. We had a beer, chatted about life, how HE AND TRISH ARE HAVING A BABY!!!, and other stuff. Rhianwen bonded with Lucy the dog, we all complained about how Saturday Night Live isn't very good, and then Rhianwen took this weird picture, somehow:
Not quite sure what is going on here, so let's move on.
Sunday, November 30 Our last day in town. We woke up and had coffee, spent our last moments with Jamie and Jude, Phil and Rachel, packed our things and said goodbye. Chuck and Gwenyth were driving us to the airport, but we had a nice time chatting for a while because we were far too early for our flight. But eventually, they had to leave us...
...and we reentered Philadelphia International Airport en route to Los Angeles, where it is warm and sunny, and jeez we can't believe we used to live in weather like that. But, we miss the place regardless. We love you, Philly and all whom dwell within your general region!
Our friends Roxanne and Aaron are good for many things: company, laughter, making fun of us for being from the east coast. But now, we have something that we will be eternally grateful to them for:
They introduced us to Zelo's Pizza.
Zelo's is a curious creation. A Chicago-style deep dish, made with corn meal and topped with deliciously interesting choices. At Zelo's, cheese pizza is not just some quaint notion. No, my friends. Zelo himself has topped it with four different kinds of cheeses, and the seasoning. Oh! The seasoning! And the crust, the crust is a meal unto itself.
Let's just ask Roxanne and Rhianwen what they think about Zelo's.
Uh, OK. That was weird. But Zelo's is amazing, we tell you! Do go, if you ever find yourself in LA. Or, actually, Arcadia, which is nearish LA.
Also, this place is, like, right next door:
I don't know why, but this place just grosses me out.
Benner has interview #3 this morning at Warner Brothers. His boss at WB really likes him and has been advocating for him, but we learned yesterday that he is up against two guys that his boss's boss already knows. But Benner's boss told his boss: "This guy came ouf of no where and he is spectacular." Yay. Keep him in your thoughts and prayers this morning and we hope to have a favorable update for you soon....
We're Rhi and Benner, otherwise known as Rhianwen and Mike. This blog is the place to come for breaking news about us, our friends, our jobs, our lives here in LA, what we like to eat, what we watch on TV and other extremely important stuff. Sometimes we post frequently, sometimes we don't. Feel free to stay, look around our archives (might we suggest the epic saga of our Road Trip as a good introduction to our blog?) and leave comments as you please.
By now, many of our readers have probably received a picture like this in the mail. It was our Christmas card, and we think it's really swell. Our friend Aaron, a talented photographer, took it along with a slew of other shots. We weren't expecting him to bring a bunch of professional equipment, big stand flashes and umbrellas and such, but that's what he did. We felt sort of like celebrities at a low-rent photo shoot, as Aaron picked off a bunch of shots and cars slowed to a roll and stared as they passed. Despite my eyes being slightly squinty due to the sun, Rhianwen thought the one above was cute enough to send out to family and friends.
Oh, it is just so amazing... maybe some of you will get it in the mail soon enough...
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