January: Started off at midnight with a New Year’s party at Scott’s, then a New Year’s Day football party at Geraldine’s. Later in the month, I had a business trip to give a presentation in Orlando, Florida, and met up with Cindy & Terry at Disneyworld. Superbowl Party was at Karin & Russ’s house, after a hike on part of the Dipsea trail.

February: Had laser eye surgery to restore my vision to nearly 20-20, don’t need glasses anymore. And I had a couple of dates!

March: Had an enriching experience on a retreat with the St. Dominic’s Young Adult Group of San Francisco, in the Santa Cruz area.

April: My high school friend Mark and I traveled to New Mexico to visit another high school friend, Mike, enjoying sightseeing, good food, and the local history and culture in the Santa Fe area. Margaritas, tequila, and Mexican food at Maria’s restaurant was a top highlight!

May: I took an Italian class from Monica in the adult education program at Drake High School. Later in the month, Marie & Ron’s wedding was a highlight, with a great gathering of Fair, Isaac friends, like Luke, Andy & Amy, etc. My brother Mario and I got a new roommate, Lorenzo, who’s a chef and a great addition to the household. Mom, Mario, my sister Linda, and her boyfriend Jay traveled to Italy, and saw the Pope celebrate the Pentecost Mass.

June: Lots of events, including one of the karaoke group’s regular outings, visiting cousin Rick & Shannon’s home in Napa, the Italian Street Painting Festival in San Rafael, a big winning night playing poker with my high school buddies, and I traveled to Disneyland with my friend Taeko visiting from Japan.

July: Saw "Rent" in San Francisco with Tiwawan & Paul for Paul’s birthday; saw the U.S. Women’s soccer team win a game in Palo Alto with Catherine, David, and Geraldine on their way to the Women’s World Cup championship; another business trip, to give a presentation in Wilmington, Delaware, with a little extra time to visit my high school friend Suzy and her family in Washington, D.C., and a visit to Valley Forge in Pennsylvania.

August: Went camping at Lake Pillsbury with Tiwawan & Paul and Paul’s family, my first time there, for Tiwawan’s birthday. For my mom’s birthday, our family got together for a family portrait shot at Falkirk Mansion in San Rafael. Ran in the Chase Corporate Challenge in San Francisco with the Fair, Isaac team, although I’ve lost a couple of minutes over the years!

September: We had a family outing to Tomales Bay State Park one Sunday, a nice day at the beach and a little hike, reminiscent of our times at this beach when we were kids. Traveled to Atlanta to scope it out for my job transfer next year; ran in the Atlanta version of the Chase race, called the Promina Corporate Challenge, with some of the Fair, Isaac Atlanta staff, although I started off too fast and got overheated in the mild humidity. My time was a bit slower than my San Francisco time the previous month. My nephew Mario had his first birthday--proud mom Annette (my sister), dad Mario (another Mario!), and brother Clark threw a party at Samuel P. Taylor Park.

October: My aunt Bianca visited from Italy to see the U.S. for the first time, and I took her into San Francisco one day, riding the cable car, checking out Chinatown and North Beach. Later in the month, Mark and I attended the second annual San Rafael Brewfest, coinciding with Mark’s birthday.

November: Thanksgiving was at Rick & Shannon’s in Napa. I went off the vegetarian diet for the day and had some turkey. My 39th birthday was later that weekend, which included brunch with my mom at the Embassy Suites Hotel in San Rafael, and dinner with Tiwawan & Paul at an Indian restaurant in Berkeley. Needless to say, I ate a lot over the Thanksgiving holiday!

December: My nephew Clark had his 4th birthday at my mom’s house, with a lot of his little friends, and lots of toys (and some clothes). Work is filled with preparation for the Y2K transition.

Year 2000: The year 1999 flew by and I didn’t get to take a big overseas trip, so I’ll be starting off the year 2000 with a trip to Venezuela in late January, with a stopover in Atlanta to scope it out again. It’s going to be a big year, entering the new millennium! My big change will be relocating to Atlanta, Georgia, shooting for March 2000. I’ll be staying with Fair, Isaac, working out of our office in Atlanta. What else will the year 2000 hold in store? We’ll find out!!

Happy Holidays and Happy New Year!!!

-- Paul