I’ve been at my aunt and uncle’s house in Austin, Texas since last Tuesday for the Christmas holiday- it was my fourth trip to Austin, and I like it just as much as ever. The rest of my family was here and it was generally good times. Par for the course was an enormous amount of good food, more than a few hands of bridge, and mostly gorgeous weather.

Christmas lights, ice climbing photos, and 60 degree sunsets. Welcome to my life.

The outstanding artwork of El Anatsui.

Austin is a rad place- you never know what you’ll find here. Family has brought me here, but in my various visits I’ve also found romance, music, and amazing food. It’s a good place to get to know. Finding things to do together with my family can sometimes be a challenge (the 11 of us span ages 11 thru 91), but we did a good job of it this year. Bowling, ice skating, art gallery, bridge, and a really difficult jigsaw puzzle kept folks together nicely.

Me and my grandma.

Obligatory holiday tradition. Enough sugar and butter for 2012.

I also really enjoyed sneaking out for a bike n’ hike carfree adventure with my uncle and brother (not easy from the West Hills of Austin), and enjoyed helping my aunt out with meal planning and shopping. My aunt is already especially rad, and together we brainstormed to revamped some of the family favorite meals into healthier and more sustainable versions. We shopped the local farmers market first, scored other organic ingredients in Whole Foods, and enjoyed plenty of discourse on the impact of our dietary choices.

Epic quinoa salad for 12.

Soren and I, psyched on the bike and hike adventure.

Not a bad holiday in the slightest, but that said there’s also been a lot on my mind that I’ve tried to write about and can’t seem to find the right words. For those of you who know me, and my history with religious organizations, Christmas isn’t always the most relaxing holiday. I won’t address that here, but it wasn’t all lights and wrapping paper. I’m very grateful for the generosity of my family, and for their respect in the differences in our beliefs. Despite a 9 hour layover in Denver today, I can’t wait to get back to Montana. It’s the first time I’ve traveled very far since “moving” to Missoula, and thus this is my first time coming “home” to my newly adopted city. More adventures soon.

Where is Troy, Montana and why on earth am I there? What’s been going on that my blog hasn’t been updated in 9 days?

Driving a 12,000lb insulation truck makes taking photos at the same time really difficult.

Yes, it was another great weekend hanging mostly around Missoula- I played bass at a contra-dance, went ice climbing with Hannah, and got out for a great hike in the Rattlesnake wilderness north of town. In all fairness though, I’ve been really busy mostly due to an entirely different adventure- one that takes me back into business, and forward into making an impact on this community.

Celsius on the left, Fahrenheit on right, inside the house after several hours with the heater on.

Two blocks from the room I rent in Missoula is an unassuming red brick building with two large white trucks out front. Every morning a group of high school students stands on the corner smoking cigarettes and avoiding class. I notice them because I’m usually drinking coffee and walking into the building to go to my job. I’m employed again, proudly and happily, with the fine folks at Energetechs (pronouced “energetics”).

I’m here in Troy, Montana for my first insulation job. Many times in my career have I recommended the installation of insulation, many times have I evaluated the performance of windows or a heat recovery ventilator. This week I am on site- to feel the cold, to get tired, to do the work, of actually building an energy efficient home in far north-western Montana. Today was Day 1 on the jobsite, and tonight I’m beat. Two more full days ahead. We leave before sunrise, and get home well after sunset. The cold makes you appreciate why we install insulation in the first place.

Crew leader Josh working the spray foam gun.

Somewhere in my head there is a cheezy, yet appropriate, quote: “One’s dignity may be assaulted, vandalized and cruelly mocked, but cannot be taken away unless it is surrendered.” (Michael J. Fox). Bonus points if you can identify where/when/what character said this. Post to comments.

I had to walk a familiar line with some of my personal relationships last night. It’s uncomfortable, confusing, and frankly, something I don’t like having to do- if it gets to the point where the line is hard to walk, then I’ve already made some mistakes. I did what my gut told me was right, and what I believe was the appropriate, respectful, and honest thing to do. I feel like an asshole this morning, like I didn’t properly respect some other people’s feelings, but only because I surrendered my judgement of the situation to someone else.

On a lighter note, Wednesday night this week I dug out my mom’s 1950′s era sewing machine (that I used to know how to operate) for a quick sewing refresher. Getting all domestic is so satisfying…

At the MUD Sewing for Guys workshop. Life in Missoula is good.