It’s pretty much the best thing ever. I managed to pad my budget by writing a story for an Atlanta Magazine blog (see here), so I wasn’t even that far over budget. I’ll write about it in greater detail soon, but for now I’ve got to shut off my phone because I’m jetting off to Germany! More on that later too…

Nine years ago this month I was reaching the beginning of the end of my time studying abroad in Germany, so I went around town taking pictures of things I loved and wanted to remember. Chief among these things were the delicious Wursts sold at the market on the Münsterplatz, specifically at Uhl’s Wurststand.

What you don’t see in this photo is the massive crowd this cart always drew, or the delicious glass-bottled Coke and Fanta they sold along with their sausages. Lunchtime perfection! And so cheap. (Note: I documented my love of market Wurst on my last trip to Germany in late 2009 on a previous blog. Check it out!)

Two weeks from this very minute Jon and I will be winging our way across the Atlantic to Freiburg for a most triumphant return to my German home base. Münsterwurst here I come!

I mean, ARE YOU KIDDING ME. I have talked about this for years: getting a WaHo jukebox, whenever they eventually phased them out, for my eventual amazing basement. Or, you know, my kitchen.

The auction house websites have photos of some of the jukeboxes that will be auctioned off, and they range in model year from 1982 to 1996. I think my favorite of the options is the 1986 model — fortunately there appear to be quite a few of them (though I’m partial to the less prevalent brown and black colors). Here’s one I’ve really got my eye on:

Not only is it awesome in and of itself, it also comes with records and CDs still inside! You can change out the music too (obviously easier with CDs than 45s). I really haven’t the foggiest idea of what the starting price of one of these might be, or how much competition I’ll have, but I’m excited to find out. It will be mine. Oh yes! It will be mine!

p.s. — If anyone out there wants to snatch this one up for me for my 30th birthday next month, feel free!

Three years ago tonight we rehearsed getting married and then shared a lovely dinner with many of our nearest and dearest on the banks of the Chattahoochee. A lot has changed since then — these days we have an adorable dog, shorter hair and better jobs, and Jon wouldn’t be caught dead wearing pleated pants — but we’re still as weird and nerdy (respectively) as this photo would have you believe.

Although slightly belated, this post had to happen once I came across the picture on the left earlier tonight. That was taken at Abby‘s 21st birthday shindig at her parents’ house lo those many years ago. At right, we have a picture taken roughly three weeks ago up in New York at Abby’s 30th birthday bash. What a difference nine years makes, huh? (A camera flash that doesn’t wash us out helps too.)

BONUS: Check out what Abby instagrammed in honor of our 25 years together:

Hi everybody! Long time no see. Dad (aka Jimmy, pictured above) got himself a slide scanner for Christmas, so there should be quite a few gems of this caliber going up on the blog in weeks and months to come… hopefully I’ll be able to stick with it now that I’ve taken a bit of a holiday hiatus. Happy 2013, folks!

For the last election — my first to vote in person — I made an aspirational Blue State Blue Velvet cake, inspired by the Obama-centric blog Yes We Cake (which later featured my creation). Georgia didn’t go blue — surprise — but the country did. I’m hoping for the same outcome this time around. Four more years!

This was my dad’s senior year of college at UVA. Mom had finished up her undergrad at Wake Forest earlier in the year and was now working on a master’s degree in Charlottesville. I like how unmistakably seventies Mom’s outfit is, and I find it hilarious how much 1971 Dad looks like my brother.

Needless to say, mom and dad didn’t have kids yet.

When my dad was born in 1949, my grandpa was finishing up his Ph.D. and teaching chemistry at Hiram College in Ohio. I guess these are the kinds of things you do with babies when you are an academic/amateur photographer? Awesome. (Please note the kitty patches on the knees of little Jimmy’s overalls.)