Dallas has been hot and dry so far this summer. The heat has been unbearable for Gilbert and as a result he has been creating chaos in our apartment. His new favorite activity is barking at the stray cats in the courtyard beyond our balcony. We have enrolled him in Doggy Day Care at Benny's Dog Resort on Thursdays and he loves it. We love how worn out he is when he gets home.

   I sacrificed my hair for the sake of running in the heat. I'm running during my lunch break 3 days a week and my hastily prepared hair usually doesn't look so great for the second half of the day. I'm pretty happy with the routine I've got going - 5 miles and 100 push ups on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. I've dropped from 178 to 168 without too much of a diet. 160 is the first goal, but I think that may be a bit too easy.

   We have done a couple fun things in Texas: A picnic at Lewisville Lake with Gilbert and friends and a concert at the "World's Largest Honky Tonk" (Billy Bob's Texas). The lake was fun but the honky tonk wasn't my cup of tea. We are looking forward to Bruno next weekend!

   I have some plans for the website when I get some time. I'd like to revamp the content management system and implement tags. The goal will be to add regular smaller posts with links that are on a separate tab from the main blog posts. I'm having a hard time deciding if I want to code my own system or take the easy route and pull something like Django off the shelf. Until then, enjoy a picture of Gilbert in the freezer.

   The apartment has been comfortable but cramped. We lost about 350 square feet in the move and we are finding creative ways to store our junk. We sold our old 7-piece furniture set and replaced it with an Ikea couch and coffee table. The new place combines two walk in closets to create heaven on earth for Mackenzie and every other woman, unfortunately she has to share some of it with me.

   We aren't quite done yet - there are plans in the works to get an Ikea dining table, a filing cabinet, and shelving units to store my beer bottles. Interestingly enough we managed to bring two massive tubs of beer bottles to Dallas but we struggled to fit our kitchen gadgets and crafts. Over the next four months we will be deciding whether 750 square feet is enough for us - I'm leaning towards no.

   We spent too much time at the Mazda dealership on Monday. Let me be clear about this: I've done far too much research on the car purchasing process. I understand the dealership sales strategy, fair commission, finance and insurance options, and the four box sales strategy. I made it clear from the beginning that I would not speak about monthly payments and that I was only interested in the total cost of the car. I offered the Edmunds.com True Market Value price for the vehicle and the "poor" Edmunds.com trade-in value for Mackenzie's beetle - the beetle was in a sad state and had died on the interstate during the dealer test drive. I thought that by telling them I was not interested in traditional negotiations that they would listen. Apparently they didn't believe me. Here is what happened:

1. They ask me what it would take for me to take the car home immediately and I tell them TMV price for the new car and $3500 for the beetle (between "poor" and "average" ratings). The TMV price is $400 below sticker value and $900 above dealer invoice.
2. After 15 minutes they comes back and tell me that the beetle trade-in is too high. They say $2600, I say $3200. At this point I tell them this is my final offer.
3. They offer me $2800 trade in. I say $3200 is my final offer
4. They pretend to accept the $3200 offer but in reality they bring out a sales sheet that sales $3000. They try to tell me that I will save $200 in taxes to make up the $3200. Yeah, I will save $200 in taxes. That doesn't mean you get them.
5. The dealership sales manager steps in for the salesman and tells me that they won't make a profit on my trade-in and that if they gave everyone the deal they are giving me the dealership would be bankrupt. This guy is lying through his teeth and very condescending. Often says "Its nice to finally be talking with someone who seems really intelligent," followed by a remark to make me feel as though I don't know what I'm talking about. I tell him $3200 is the final offer and he leaves.
6. Salesperson comes back and offers window tint but no budge on price. I tell him thank you but no thanks. Mackenzie and I leave.
7. We get in the beetle and turn it on. Right as I flip the car into reverse a second sales manager taps on my window and accepts my offer.
8. We fill out the paperwork and take our car home

Total Time Elapsed: 6 hours

   In retrospect I think Mackenzie and I could have been done in 3 hours if I had just stuck to traditional negotiation and asked for $4500 trade-in and $19.5K initially. In the end we got a 2010 Mazda3 i Touring 6 CD/Bose/Moonroof for $19959, less $3200 trade-in for a 2000 New Beetle with mechanical problems. I got the prices I set before I left so I'm pretty happy.

   Every time I leave the apartment without the GPS I regret it. On Wednesday a 5 mile run turned into a 12 mile run with severe dehydration. On Tuesday I ended up 10 miles east of our apartment on an epic quest for Tiger Woods 10. We have also learned that while frontage roads are faster than the Interstate during rush hour, they usually have other problems. There is no good way to get around this city.

   Google searches indicated that the place in Dallas to watch Husker games is Cape Buffalo in Addison - which is about 2 miles from our apartment. Its not football season so we weren't expecteing much, but there were no Husker signs in sight at the place. Also of note is that they claim to be a Private Club and require you to fill out a membership application prior to entry. I guess my T-shirt and shorts were cool enough for them so we passed. Apparently this private club also has no issue letting a lady host a sex toy sales party in the back room and walk around handing out advertisements to their dining guests. We probably will not be back.

   Gilbert has had a hard time adjusting to life without Skippy. He seems to have replaced the void with me, which is problematic when I leave. He is barking more than he ever has in his life and we are at a loss for how to train him. Our neighbors will only put up with us for so long...

   He has gotten several walks daily while I've been off work but the heat has been difficult. To that end we shaved him bald this afternoon. He doesn't look nearly as cute with the short hair but he still has his personality. Hopefully the heat will be more bearable tomorrow.

   Mackenzie has been studying nearly non-stop. She took her first two exams this week and ended up with a B and a solid A, both grades a full letter above the class average. Her new friends in Dallas have been great for her and she seemingly hasn't missed me too bad in the last month. She is happy with the new vehicle and I'm trying my best to stay out of her way until she gets done with her first trimester. I think she has spent every minute not studying at the pool - she is very tan!

   I've been incredibly bored. My daily routine consists of walking Gilbert for 2 miles, running 3-4 miles, then playing Tiger Woods 10 for a couple of hours. I'm working on some starter apps on the Android SDK, but to be honest I have been more lazy over the break than I anticipated. I'm starting to get a little nervous for the new work location but I'm sure once I settle in I will be as productive as I was in Omaha.

   The below picture pretty much sums up my daily view. We've had two severe thunderstorm and tornado warnings in the last week and I've been relentlessly assaulting Matt and Ross' Google Talk accounts while they try to get work done. I've tried one new Pale Ale in Dallas but its nothing special - I'm looking forward to experiencing a few of the breweries outside of the Dallas area once we get settled.

   Aside from the above there isn't much to mention. I am trying my best to be a Rangers fan and I cheered on the Penguins in games 6 and 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals. I was cheering for the Magic but it seems futile after watching them hand over game 4 with missed free throws. Thanks for reading!

Mackenzie and I planned on moving in November to begin her Chiropractic schooling. We have debated between Davenport IA, San Jose CA, Port Orange FL, and now Dallas TX for a while.

This week Mackenzie was offered a one-time scholarship award to attend Parker School of Chiropractic in Dallas TX in May rather than wait until January 2010. Needless to say we are in panic mode trying to figure out how we will make everything work.

Parker's campus is located 12 miles from Raytheon IIS in Garland TX and I'm working with my company to get a transfer. No plans are solidified yet but they are working hard for me and I appreciate it. With any luck I will complete my tasking in Omaha around the same time Mackenzie's classes start.

We are anxiously awaiting the move. Neither of us have lived outside of Omaha in our adult lives and it will be nice to start our new life together in a fresh environment!