Monday, September 21, 2009

UNDER THE BRIDGE

This is my favorite picture from this weekend. We were on a catamaran, going under the Golden Gate Bridge, and the fog cleared up just enough for me to get this shot. I love the colors and depth. It feels simple and strong. It feels like how life is; seemingly monotonous until it's looked at from a different angle. Then you realize how fabulous it really is.

ADVENTURES IN SAN FRANCISCO

My friend, Wayne, and I went to San Francisco for a little vacation time this past weekend. Here are some of our San Fran Highlights: Virgin America Airlines: The best airline EVER!! I played Mahjong and Wayne watched the football game. You can watch digital TV channels, order movies, play games, and even order food! Why can't all airlines be like Virgin America?
China Town: There was an annual festival on Saturday so it was wall to wall people. We watched a parade, ate authentic, questionable Chinese food, and I took a stroll down memory lane from my year in Taiwan.
Golden Gate Fortune Cookie Factory: All of the fortune cookies are made by hand in this tiny little shop down this random little alley.
Ghirardelli Chocolate Factory: Need I say more? Delicious!
Riding the Trolleys: If you have to take public transportation, you might as well do it in style! You can't go to San Francisco without a trolley ride.
Wicked: This was my main reason for coming (Wayne was a good sport) and we both ended up LOVING IT!! Immediately when it was over I wanted to watch it again. I think that everyone should watch this musical!
Lombard Street: We rented a car to be able to explore the city more, so we were able to join the rest of those who drive down the crookedest street in America!
Golden Gate Bridge: The first day that we were in San Francisco it was too foggy to even see the bridge, so I was thrilled when we showed up and the fog was gone. Beautiful blue skies and a big, famous bridge made for a fun morning!
Me and Wayne went exploring in the hills and found a place with these random barracks. It reminded us of a place in Prague we went and saw, so we had to take the token 'prison' pictures.
Pier 39: We went to a seafood restaurant off of pier 39 and Wayne had the famous sourdough breadbowl with clam chowder. I opted for a cheeseburger....Not a fan of seafood. Afterwards we took a Catamaran sailing cruise around Alcatrez and under the Golden Gate Bridge. It was cold, but a great way to explore the bay!
California Coastline: We took a 2 hour drive down the Pacific Coast Highway and went exploring the sights. Unfortunately the fog didn't lift enough for us to get any good pictures, but it was a pretty spectacular view even with the clouds. Such beautiful things to see in the world!

Wednesday, September 16, 2009

FASHION WEEK

The creators of the 'Snuggie' had a show during fashion show week in New York City...... .....which leads me to ask.....


......A designer snuggie? Seriously?

Monday, September 14, 2009

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM

Mom: Now that you're turning 55 (wink, wink) I'd like to thank you for the following:

1. Putting up with me throwing up over the side of the bed when I was little because I was too lazy to get up and go to the bathroom
2. Middle of the night calls because we somehow believe that you'd rather help us resolve our concerns than be sleeping at 2:00 in the morning
3. Not being agitated every morning after a night of Dad's snoring
4. Four missionary farewells, months of care packages, and you and dad both loving the people we served because you love us
5. Calling us regularly to check up on us and make sure we're okay
6. Making Christmas such a phenomonal time of the year
7. Taking your role as a grandmother so seriously
8. Forcing us to do things, like practicing the piano at 5:30 in the morning every day, that we would one day appreciate, but were ademate about not appreciating at the time
9. Acting as though you like Jack the Dog, even though whenever he jumps onto your lap I'm sure you're screaming in your head for him to get off of you
10. Not getting offended when we return the clothes that you buy for us every once in a while, even though you think they're cute
11. Being so generous and kind to our friends and others who are important to us
12. Driving for hours to where we are living to help us move, go to college, bless babies, etc.
13. Making us meals every single day when we were growing up
14. Being there when we would get home at the end of a school day...even when we were old enough to not need you to be there, but really appreciated that you were
15. Always being aware of the needs of others around you - you are one of the most charitable people I've ever known
16. Still sending us packages in the mail for holidays, or just because you were thinking about us
17. Setting an example for all of us by loving the Lord and showing it in your actions, words, etc.
18. Not holding me accountable for having lost the diamond ring in your wedding set all those years ago (you'll think twice before you show something little and shiny to a small child and then tell them not to get into it)
19. Getting excited about vacations and trips, and then planning them for us
20. Putting up with all of our personalities, issues, opinions, ideas, and everything else that comes along with being a parent - WE LOVE YOU!!!!

Thursday, September 10, 2009

LITTLE REASONS TO BE HAPPY

I'm not sure why, but lately I've been acutely aware of simple, little things that make me really happy on a daily basis. Here are some examples:Summer is officially over.....at least in my office!! I took some fall garland that my mom gave me last week and covered one of my work desks in leaves, and then took the rest of them and spread them throughout a big leafy tree that i have in the corner of my office. It's my very own fall festivus.
Jack does this random thing where he will lay on his back in my arms and wrap his two front paws as tight as he can around my hand and arm. I think he's just making sure that he doesn't fall, but it's so stinking cute that I'll sometimes roll him onto his back on purpose, just so he'll do it. I'm in packing mode right now, and as I've been going through things I've had so much fun finding random items that I forgot I had. Yesterday I was putting some books away and I found a rock that I had picked up when I was in Europe a couple of years ago. A friend had asked me to bring him a rock back from the Alps, so I grabbed one for myself. As I was holding it I was immediately reminded of the day we were walking through this little forest in Austria, enjoying the scenery and really happy that we were there instead of at work!

I found this new citrus coconut hand soap that smells delicious! I look forward to having excuses to wash my hands just so I can enjoy the lingering smell!

I've wanted to see this musical for a while, so imagine how happy I was when my friend got an email with discounted airline tickets, and said that he wanted to go to San Francisco for a weekend getaway. Hooray! Not only that, but he was kind enough to be willing to dish out a little extra money since the cheap theatre tickets were already sold out. What a trooper!

Tuesday, September 8, 2009

MORE TO LOVE

I don't know if any of you have heard of the show 'More to Love,' but it's basically a spin off of the Bachelor. It's awkward to watch. The girls' discussions about their insecurities are uncomfortable to see rather than enlightening. The relationships come across as juvenile. Just one question:Who is responsible for paying for the therapy needed when they don't get a 'promise ring?'

Saturday, September 5, 2009

TIDBITS

My friend, Robert, had this posted and I found myself laughing at how much I agree with some of these. Here are your random thoughts for the day:

Was learning cursive really necessary?

I wonder if cops ever get ticked off at the fact that everyone they drive behind obeys the speed limit.

More often than not, when someone is telling me a story all I can think about is that I can't wait for them to finish so that I can tell my own story that's not only better, but also more directly involves me.

The letters T and G are very close to each other on a keyboard. This recently became all too apparent to me and consequently I will never be ending a work email with the phrase "Regards" again.

Do you remember when you were a kid, playing Nintendo and it wouldn't work? You take the cartridge out, blow in it and that would magically fix the problem. Every kid in America did that, but how did we all know how to fix the problem? There was no internet or message boards or FAQ's. We just figured it out. Today's kids are soft.

I think everyone has a movie that they love so much, it actually becomes stressful to watch it with other people. I'll end up wasting 90 minutes shiftily glancing around to confirm that everyone's laughing at the right parts, then making sure I laugh just a little bit harder (and a millisecond earlier) to prove that I'm still the only one who really, really gets it.

I would rather try to carry 10 plastic grocery bags in each hand than take 2 trips to bring my groceries in.

Lol has gone from meaning, "laugh out loud" to "I have nothing else to say".

I love the sense of camaraderie when an entire line of cars team up to prevent someone from cutting in at the front. Stay strong, brothers!

MapQuest really needs to start their directions on #5. Pretty sure I know how to get out of my neighborhood.

Bad decisions make good stories

Why is it that during an ice-breaker, when the whole room has to go around and say their name and where they are from, I get so incredibly nervous? I know my name, I know where I'm from, this shouldn't be a problem....

You never know when it will strike, but there comes a moment at work when you've made up your mind that you just aren't doing anything productive for the rest of the day.

Can we all just agree to ignore whatever comes after DVDs? I don't want to have to restart my collection.

I'm always slightly terrified when I exit out of Word and it asks me if I want to save any changes to my ten page research paper that I swear I did not make any changes to.

I hate being the one with the remote in a room full of people watching TV. There's so much pressure. 'I love this show, but will they judge me if I keep it on? I bet everyone is wishing we weren't watching this. It's only a matter of time before they all get up and leave the room. Will we still be friends after this?'

I hate leaving my house confident and looking good and then not seeing anyone of importance the entire day. What a waste.

When I meet a new guy, I'm terrified of mentioning something he hasn't already told me but that I have learned from some light internet stalking.

I like all of the music in my iTunes, except when it's on shuffle, then I like about one in every fifteen songs in my iTunes.

Why is a school zone 20 mph? That seems like the optimal cruising speed for pedophiles...

As a driver I hate pedestrians, and as a pedestrian I hate drivers, but no matter what the mode of transportation, I always hate cyclists.

Sometimes I'll look down at my watch 3 consecutive times and still not know what time it is.

I keep some people's phone numbers in my phone just so I know not to answer when they call.