Not surprisingly, I had trouble sleeping again. During the night I wokeup and told Eriko that I needed some conversation. Note that we didn’t have a conversation about that. I woke up a little late, but not too bad. Eriko was up too. I had toast and juice for breakfast; I just didn’t have an appetite. I was at work by 8 but today would not turn out to be very productive. I just didn’t focus very well. No particular one item was to blame for my distraction; it was just one of those days. Zack ran the Shiki train and I went home for lunch. I arrived a little earlyu and startled Eriko. Lunch was nice; Eriko was in a good mood and I was glad. Afterwards, I had coffee with Zack and we talked about… women. It is so very nice to bond again with my brother after all these years. He has recently given me some advice about Eriko, which I have followed - such as inquiring about what she would like and making an effort to plan activities together. We have a symphony and a Disney on Ice show scheduled now. The afternoon was more of the morning - a strange, busy, but unproductive time. I went home early and arrived a little after 5. Eriko was cooking, but much more quiet than at lunch. After dinner, she felt strange and wasn’t in the mood to talk. I watched baseball and she used the computer and the massage cushion. She joined me on the couch, but wasn’t interested in conversation or attention. Soon she moved to the bedroom and played the piano. I started using the computer and continued watching the game. Towards the late evening, she surprised me by emerging from the bedroom in a relatively good mood. We enjoyed some pleasant time together before going to bed.

I had trouble waking up again (because I had trouble sleeping again). It is difficult when there is no escape. ;) I was disappointed to find out the bacon had gone rancid, so I had a small breakfast. Eriko didn’t wake up before I left, so I couldn’t say goodbye. I was at work by 8 and had a hectic morning. I had to prepare status for my team, spend some time with the new guy, and have a meeting or two. I came home for lunch and the meal was good, but we sat in silence. Back at work, I had another few meetings and worked on an issue or two. I got home at the usual time; Eriko made dinner, but she didn’t eat anything. She laid down on the couch quickly after I had finished, not feeling so well. I watched the baseball game and used the computer. I was interrupted by a phone call from my co-worker and we vented about some things happening at work for about 30 minutes. Afterwards, I resumed my previous activities; there was uncomfortable silence between Eriko and I. Eventually, she went to bed. The first time I checked on her, she seemed fine, but the second time she was crying. She shook off my comfort and I gave her a stern speech about going through rough times together instead of alone. I reminded her that I couldn’t understand if she couldn’t (or wouldn’t) communicate. Eventually, I went to bed a hour later.

I had trouble waking up, but got out of bed by 7:30. Besides a few words here and there, I can’t get a conversation going with Eriko. She doesn’t seem to happy and there was minimal interaction. I made it to work by about 8. I was very busy at work; I worked on an emergency fix. Home for lunch, I peppered Eriko with questions until she started crying. Before that, she said she was bored. I wasn’t much comfort but stayed around as long as I could. Back at work, I was extremely busy; I had to prepare a speech (for a UW recruiting event) and get my fix ready while dealing with the usual barrage of questions. I left for the recruiting event (with several other co-workers) about 5. The event went pretty well, although we probably talked a little too long or had too much detail. That is something is up for debate, as you want to provide enough information to keep them interested but not enough to overwhelm them. My talk was very short and for the most part, I liked my delivery. I have some refinements to make for the next one, however. I got home a little early than I expected (my co-worker also wanted to leave early, so I got a ride). I surprised Eriko as well. There was no food so I hungrily ate some random things from the fridge. Eriko went to bed soon after, but I stayed up for a few hours to calm down from the hectic day – at work & home.

I had a tough time sleeping last night – the hug refusal got to me. I woke up in the middle of the night to Eriko crying (turns out it was just a bad dream) and that allowed me to get past my pride. I woke up at 7, fixed breakfast and left the house by 7:30. I said bye to Eriko, who was still inbed. I made great progress in the morning and had several meetings. I had lunch with Eriko and it was nice. At one point, she very seriously told me that my belly was disgusting (my co-worker would later describe it as the end of the honeymoon). Back at work, lots of meetings. There is a minor emergency that I am in the middle of, so that took a lot of my time. I had to run to Japanese class. Class was good, but I’m clearly not studying in my spare time (which is obvious both from my own knowledge of my activities and my lack of progress). To much computer time, I suppose. I returned to work for a little more progress and discussion about the emergency before arriving home at 6:30 (a little late). Dinner was delicious and I watched the Angels & White Sox game. Things were very pleasant until I made the mistake of trying to touch Eriko’s belly with my cool beer. She got upset, I got upset, silence ensued. She went to bed and I joined her an hour or so later.

I slept in until about 8; we had plans to go to the Nadeshiko (birthing) clinic, so no reason to wake up early. I ate a small breakfast and sent out my status email for work. We left the house about 9 AM; the clinic is on the eastside (Kirkland) which means traffic is a concern. Sure enough, traffic was pretty heavy and we arrived at 9:30. Eriko’s group session wasn’t until 10, but I had a meeting I needed to make at 10, so I drove back to Isilon. Traffic was better on the way back and I found a perfect 2 hr parking place in front of work which allowed me to catch the tail end of my team meeting and make the regular leads meeting on time. I had coffee with my co-worker and I discussed his role as a technical mentor for our new employee (who starts Wednesday). I didn’t have much time to do anything but check my email before I was back on the road again to pick up Eriko. When I picked her up outside the clinic, the clock read exactly 12, which was the arranged pick-up time. Back at home, I had a quick lunch and went back to work. The day was pretty unproductive; I was interrupted almost everytime I put my headphones on. As it was, I made a few fixes but not much more than that. I had coffee with Zack (at least I’m getting something done, even if it isn’t work-related). I left work at 6 and there was a nice dinner waiting at home. I watched a baseball game and worked on my keychain-flashcards. I did some light exercise and rewarded myself with a beer. I then proceeded to work on the computer. Eriko refused to hug me and went to bed. I remained up for another hour or so.

I woke up late, about 9. I made some pancakes and shared them with Eriko. After eating, Eriko didn’t feel well and laid on the couch. I started using the computer but quickly was chased off due to the noise. I moved into the bedroom and listened to the Astros/Braves play-off game. While there, I got an idea about re-arranging the bedroom (moving the bed from the north to the south wall). Eriko started feeling better, so I moved back into the living room. I called Zack and made an inquiry about dinner; he said he would call back after checking with Liz. After getting permission from Eriko, I rearranged the bedroom. Now I don’t have to crawl into bed through the head. In general, I like the layout much better, and Eriko seems to like it as well. We went to Costco with the intention of purchasing a massage chair (cover) and after some anxious looking, located it on a random aisle. It was a little difficult to shop, because Eriko moves pretty slowly now. I’m not used to such a slow pace. Then we headed to Office Max. I was looking for some mini-flashcards (preferabbly on a key-chain) but couldn’t find any. I settled for a hole-puncher and regular index cards. We proceeded to Uwajimaya, where we ate dinner. Eriko was hungry and wanted to eat then, so I went ahead and got something to eat as well. It was a bad choice; I went for Thai food because I was in an Asian grocery store, but really wanted a burger & fries. As it turned out, the Thai was pretty lame. Eriko also didn’t enjoy her eel. Back at home, I realized that I had forgotten about Zack but I figured since hadn’t called he probably had no desire to join us. As it turns out, he called about 30 minutes earlier to tell me he had no desire to join us. ;P I had a beer, enjoyed a massage (in the chair) and watched the Yankees/Angels game. Eriko read and went to bed early. I joined soon after.