Nick Kirsch

The clock.

Nick published on 2012-02-09

It is a rare moment that I sit alone with my thoughts. A fire burns gently beside me, powered by invisible gas - warmth that continues indefinitely, effortlessly enabled by the push of a button.

I sit in a magnificent home - one which exceeds my expectations, and feels foreign. My family rests above me in the bedroom, presumably gaining strength and enjoying their dreams. For the moment, they feel foreign - in the land of sleep, while I remain awake.

My own moments are far and few between. I wake to the gentle nudge or grating shrill of an alarm, faced immediately with the pressure of the clock. On days when the office isn’t demanding my attention, a child will be tugging and grasping for it.

I move from one moment of responsibility to another - always on the clock.

This is truly a rare gift - a fleeting sense of freedom, of control.

As quickly as it emerged, it dissipates. I may control these words - but not the timeline in which they are created. The clock constantly reminds me that I’m on borrowed time; this freedom tonight is only stolen from tomorrow’s responsibility.

Back on the clock.

Balancing 2012

Nick published on 2011-11-27

My last resolution post was way back in January of 2010 and highlighted a few areas of focus:

Swimming
Reading (books)
Writing (on the blog)
Health
Japanese

I didn't stay focused on most of these things in 2010 or 2011; a few events pre-empted my wonderfully scripted world:

Momoko's birth on February 21st, 2010
Isilon's acquisition on December 21st, 2010
The purchase and remodel of our soon to be home (completed on January 21st, 2012?)

I did take swimming lessons, bought a kindle, read over ten books, and began a running program - so I made progress!

Eriko's family is safe...

Nick published on 2011-03-20

I've received many inquiries about Eriko's family - from far and wide. Old friends, distant family, and far away co-workers - some of whom I haven't talked with in years - reached out to make sure that Eriko and her family were doing well.

The good news is that Eriko's immediate family is in Nagoya and most of her relatives and friends are in Nagoya. Nagoya was not impacted much by the quake/tsunami nor is it near the reactors.

The bad news is she does have relatives that are closer to Tokyo. All are safe, but some did have some fairly significant damage to their homes and/or businesses. Her Aunt and Uncle are still without running water, even though we're ten days from the onset of the tremors. They also don't have any natural gas, but that is of little consequence to them in particular. Amazingly, a neighbor in the area has well water and is supplying neighbors who don't. Her Aunt and Uncle cannot function in their jobs (as a dentist and researcher) either due to lack of water/electricity or because of damage to instruments - so what do they do? They volunteer their time for those who are in shelters.

These are some very strong people.

Old House vs New Home

Nick published on 2011-03-08

Here is a picture of our home as it currently stands:

Here is a rendition of where we are heading:

The tenants move out at the end of April and then construction starts.

Wheee!

The Remodel

Nick published on 2011-02-16

It has started. After the acquisition of the company I’m working for, I’m now in a position to move faster on the remodel of our home rather than slower. We are excited.

We’re working with a build/design firm called Build, LLC who just continue to live up to their reputation as being principled, cost-conscious and having good aptitude for modern design. We’re not yet into the build phase, but if you spend some time on this site you should have complete confidence in their abilities: http://www.ahousebythepark.com/journal/. It is a complete step-by-step look at the building of a modern home and is fantastically done. Not only do I have a random web reference, but a close co-worker and the SVP of my department both used Build for their remodels.

Our house, and some of the accompanying design challenges it presents, was recently featured on Build’s Blog: http://blog.buildllc.com/2011/02/the-conundrum-of-gables/.

Don’t expect to see regular updates on here, but maybe I’ll get around to posting a picture of the design or progress…

The House Hunting Adventure...

Nick published on 2010-12-07

Plan A - ask neighboring office if they'll sell and allow us to expand our condo by a single room.
Plan B - low-bid for an OK home on a decent lot.
Plan C - reasonable bid for a wonderful home in a decent spot. No yard, busy street.
Plan D - remodel existing home. Cost prohibitive.
Plan E - buy multi-tenant home on nice lot with current rental income. Potential for later...

Plan E won. I'd love to write more, but between exciting things at work, getting a little time for fun, and playing with the kids, this is the most time I've had in weeks.