We went to Slugger field in Louisville on Tuesday after work, then I drove up to Cincinnati with a friend on Saturday to watch the Reds play the Dodgers. It really was a lot of fun.

I’m putting in some of the pictures I took at and testing out a wordpress plugin that publishes this to my facebook page, too.
(Go team Wordbook!)

Here in Louisville, the party starts a few weeks early.  There’s a fireworks festival and air show to kick things off, called Thunder of Louisville, then a steady stream of events after that. Things were actually pretty busy for me at work that week, but we took part in the wine tasting, and watched the hot air balloons take off from the small airport near our house.  Derby week is quite a big deal.  They even cancel school on Friday so people can go to Kentucky Oaks, the race before Saturday’s big Kentucky Derby.

I heard more than one person here compare their productivity during Derby week to how they feel the week between Christmas and New Years. Needless to say, I was excited to take part in the fun for the first time.

We always threw a party in San Diego.  So, really this is the 7th time I celebrated Derby.  But drinking bourbon on a rooftop patio at noon is a lot different from what I knew I’d be celebrating this year.

We had tickets to go with Heather’s aunt, Mary, who lives a few blocks away.  For those of you who were at the San Diego Derby parties, Mary is the one who would always send us stuff like glasses for our parties. I think it’s great that she was one of the people to guide me through my first trip to Churchill Downs.

I’ll show you the pictures and you can look at the captions for a little running commentary, but let me say that the entire experience was everything I hoped for, and more. I found I’d stare at a group of people and wonder what year it was. Not because of the Mint Juleps, but because it’s a ritual that’s relatively unchanged since horse racing was the nation’s top sporting event.  I saw guys in suits that looked like they were in the 40′s.  Complete with rolled up race forms in the back pocket like something you’d see in an old movie. The ladies and their hats.  I actually went hat shopping at Dee’s with Heather and all the other ladies.  Really gave me an appreciation for how much goes into this all.

So, did we win any money on the race? No. We bet the 5 or so races before the Derby and didn’t win. Then watched the two races after the big race and actually managed to pick winners in the 2nd to last race. What a great way to close out a terrific day.

Hope you enjoy the pictures,
Karl

A lot has happened in the three years we’ve been married.

We’ve relocated to Louisville where I’m learning about southern livin’ and treasures like biscuits and gravy. Heather’s earned her OT degree and has a rewarding job that she enjoys.  I’ve been able to keep teaching online classes and have a steady stream of work from my CA clients. I feel very blessed.

Derby Rad Richter

We just moved into our first home, and earlier this week got a puppy named Derby.  Married life is great. I find that this new house and suburban lifestyle has me excited to write and share- especially as we head into my first KY Derby.In a few hours I’m headed off to pick up the seersucker suit I ordered for Saturday’s race. Planning on putting up some pictures as we gear up for Derby.

Tomorrow we’re flying out to visit my Grandma in Pennsylvania who won’t be able to make the wedding. Then we’re flying into Louisville on Monday. After waiting so long it seems amazing that next weekend we’ll get to celebrate along with so many of our friends and family.

After the wedding we’re flying back to San Diego, then leaving the following morning for 5 nights in Hawaii. We’ll be honeymooning in Maui. The next two weeks are going to be great.

The guide is also linked from the Louisville page we just added to the site. Those of you from the Ville, feel free to add places or recommendations in the comments section.

Those of you staying at the Hyatt will be right next to the Visitor’s center for plenty of maps and good advice on day trips.

I’m clearing out of town.  My best man and I are driving up to the USC home opener on Saturday.

We’ve signed all our contracts, picked out the menu, the DJ, photographer, and are anxiously waiting to see them taking care of all our guests.

Heather’s dress is hanging in our closet. Of course I haven’t seen it, but she tells me it’s purple with big blue bows. Sounds pretty. Maybe I should get a powder blue tuxedo with purple vest to match…

We’re both working pretty hard this summer. My business is really taking off. I’m working long days to keep my clients happy and am teaching a class at SDSU. Heather’s taking summer school courses and is a little over a week from her finals. She’s upstairs studying right now, so I’ll tell you some of her good news. She’s starting a new job in a few weeks. She’ll be teaching 6,7, and 8th graders at a Catholic school just down the road from us. Lucky girl won’t even have to get on the freeway to go to work.

Can’t wait to see you all on Oct 20th.

Did I say surprised? More like shocked. Just a week earlier, I told Heather that I wasn’t sure… marriage is a big step, and so on. But the truth was I wanted to marry her very early in our relationship. I was just hoping the proposal was a big surprise. I told her mother months before, and had already called her daddy to ask permission. I felt like I had told seemingly everyone what I was going to do. (I even blogged it before we left for our trip.) I just wanted the moment to be a surprise.

This time last year, we were on a trip to Yosemite with our friends Sarah and Drew. We planned on backpacking for three days. I have all these great pictures of Heather carrying a huge pack, looking exhausted (but beautiful) on our ten mile hike. (I won’t put them up because I hope to be with Heather for a long time, and am sure pictures of her sweating and flushed is exactly what she wants on our wedding website.)

I spent June 21, 2006 planning just how I was going to propose, and laughing, knowing how unexpected it would be. Finally the moment came, and on the afternoon of the second day as we were standing on top of El Capitan, I popped the question. Here’s a picture of us, just moments after.

I asked Heather to marry me, and she said yes. One year ago today. What an amazing view and what a happy moment. Probably the single greatest minute of my life. Here’s a video that we shot while we were up there.

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