Like "racoon", only it's not.
...don't worry, I am aware that only I find myself funny.
Tomorrow morning I leave to meet up with Mom, Dad, Faith, Shawn, Noah, and TBD Turner #2 in Cancun for a "Strandmark" family holiday. Tomorrow evening Charlie will join us pretty late (he has Navy tomorrow morning, so he's meeting up with us later) and get in on the fun.
This will be most of our first times to Cancun, as Faith & Shawn have a timeshare there and have been multiple times before with Shawn's family. I am excited to go see Chichen Itza (sp?), the Mayan ruins that are now a 7th Wonder of the World. Yippee!! Snorkeling and chilling with my family will be ultra fun too.
The ladies have a spa day (couple hours) planned for Monday, where I plan to get a facial and a nice long massage. Mmmmmmmmmmmm...massage. I feel relaxed just thinking about it. Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh... The rest of the time will be spent beachside sipping on pina coladas and other fruity deliciousness. Mmmmmmmmmmmmm...deliciousness. *Which reminds me that I'm starving at the moment.*
What about our dogs? Well, Stinky Dogg is with Derika (as I often call them) living in the lap of love and luxury for the next week and over xmas too, while Baby Stink is hanging out with her wang out at Cory & Erin's with her best friend Cosmo. Then it's off to the kennel with the Baby Stinkle for good times when they leave for PA for the holidays.
Yes, our dogs smell. But we love their stink...and coming home to an empty house tonight was rough without it. Already I'm missing my dog wiggling herself in half at the first clank of the garage door, anxiously (that's the key word, by the way) awaiting the ever so slow turn of the doorknob where out of seemingly nowhere Mom and Dad (that's us, by the way) emerge from that place beyond the door. What fun! What joy!...Where's a toy she can show us? Where is it? Where is it?! OH there it is!! Good girl...Stop jumping Sammie! Good girl...Daddy's girl.
...and so on. This I already miss. Soon enough, however we will return home to doggies and delightful wiggliness.
Now it's off to Cancun for some sun and relaxation. See you on the flip!
ps: For those who know me, this tidbit some will find amusing: I am leaving my SLR and my computer at home. Yes, I am feeling just fine. No, I'm not pregnant (why do people keep asking me that) and my eyes are working just fine thank you :D
ONE MORE THING:
Charlie took his last Final Exam of all time (we hope!) on Thursday. Next comes the graduation papers and poof! MS EE from USC. That's my man. CONGRATULATIONS you lucky guy - you earned it!
Friday, December 12, 2008
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
Snow!
Yes, tonight it snowed in the LC. It may not last through the night, but it's fun to see anyway, especially for these Minnesotans.
Also, earlier in the week, we were saddened to have Aggie paraphernalia in our home. However, it was for a good cause as Jaime had her baby blanket sweatshop up and running to full capacity as she sewed up a lovely gift for one of her friends. On another sad note, Jaime is friends with an Aggie.
Sunday, November 23, 2008
Arrival
Today Mary and Carey arrive to visit us for the Thanksgiving holiday. I am very excited to see them, since it's been since this summer and even then our visit with Carey was quite brief. This will be Carey's first time to see our house - she and Chris visited TX while Charlie was deployed back in aught-Five and I only had my dirty, stinky, cheap-ol' apartment. I wish the place was decorated a bit nicer and all that, but too bad for me :) This is real life, no sense wasting a wish for silly things like that!
Kirby has been especially ornery lately with Sammie, which will make having guests more "interesting" (read: stressful). She has an infection in her rear end and a cortisone shot plus two rounds of antibiotics haven't done the trick yet...we go back to the vet on Monday morning to see what the next step is for her. Maybe another round of antibiotics and at the end of the day an option could be surgery. I'm not ruling out surgery yet, but I sure hope we don't have to put Stinky on the table for her rear. Gross.
The shuttle mission is going on quite nicely and this is my weekend off before working the next 7-8 days straight on the afternoon/night shift. I start on Monday (yes, just when the family gets to town) but luckily a friend and I worked out a plan for Thanksgiving so I can have an early one with the fam. Yay!!
That's all for now!
Kirby has been especially ornery lately with Sammie, which will make having guests more "interesting" (read: stressful). She has an infection in her rear end and a cortisone shot plus two rounds of antibiotics haven't done the trick yet...we go back to the vet on Monday morning to see what the next step is for her. Maybe another round of antibiotics and at the end of the day an option could be surgery. I'm not ruling out surgery yet, but I sure hope we don't have to put Stinky on the table for her rear. Gross.
The shuttle mission is going on quite nicely and this is my weekend off before working the next 7-8 days straight on the afternoon/night shift. I start on Monday (yes, just when the family gets to town) but luckily a friend and I worked out a plan for Thanksgiving so I can have an early one with the fam. Yay!!
That's all for now!
Monday, November 10, 2008
Hi There
Not much has been happening around this joint lately - except for the beautiful weather!
Charlie finally took his motorcycle class this past weekend and today he got to the DPS and is officially a motorcycle-rated licensee!! Congrats sweetie :) Soon he'll probably be vroom-ing around the neighborhood on his swanky Buell.
Tomorrow is Veteran's Day and for the first time ever Charlie and I have the day off. Yes, he's a veteran, so it works out pretty well - don't you think?? :D
Hopefully we'll get a chance to have a nice picnic tomorrow, though the weather doesn't seem to be holding out so well...either way I'll be hanging with my dude tomorrow and it'll be awesome.
Hug a veteran near you tomorrow, they've earned it!
Charlie finally took his motorcycle class this past weekend and today he got to the DPS and is officially a motorcycle-rated licensee!! Congrats sweetie :) Soon he'll probably be vroom-ing around the neighborhood on his swanky Buell.
Tomorrow is Veteran's Day and for the first time ever Charlie and I have the day off. Yes, he's a veteran, so it works out pretty well - don't you think?? :D
Hopefully we'll get a chance to have a nice picnic tomorrow, though the weather doesn't seem to be holding out so well...either way I'll be hanging with my dude tomorrow and it'll be awesome.
Hug a veteran near you tomorrow, they've earned it!
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
The Votes Are In!
...well, almost. I can't wait for the election to be over.
Regardless of whom you chose, I hope you all voted and made your voice heard! Maybe someday the popular vote will really matter since we are all capable of getting the information and selecting an appropriate victor...
Congrats to Senator __________ on the big win!
See you in January :)
Regardless of whom you chose, I hope you all voted and made your voice heard! Maybe someday the popular vote will really matter since we are all capable of getting the information and selecting an appropriate victor...
Congrats to Senator __________ on the big win!
See you in January :)
Friday, October 24, 2008
Voting Is a BIG Responsibility
I have spent the past two and a half hours of my day doing my pre-voting research.
It has been a frustrating, exhausting, not-as-informative-as-I-would-like-it-to-be search on candidates, their issues and especially the local BONDS initiative.
***IMPORTANT!***
For those who live in Galveston County, there are 3 bond propositions that are on the table, ~$135M in proposals. After an hour of exhaustive searching, I found a website that gives the details of the initiatives, located here: www.gcbonds2008.com
***PASS IT ON!***
I may be unique in that I've found it excruciatingly difficult to get any information, but I doubt it very much. I have not received ANY information from the county about these proposals and am very upset that it is so difficult to find bond information. I should not have had to search for an hour using creative word searching to find these...I am very disappointed in our local government for this and they will be hearing about it.
Dang it, it doesn't have to be this hard. It simply doesn't. No wonder people either don't vote or vote uninformed.
In an effort to make the voter an better-informed one, the local chron.com has a great search feature so you can see the ballot for your precinct. HOWEVER, it only shows the Republican or Democratic candidates, leaving out any other party. What a joke. It is possible to have someone who isn't a Republican or Democrat serve in office. Surely I am not the only one who recognizes this. Just because it isn't as likely to happen in the area we live in doesn't mean they don't deserve their due attention and respect. These are all people who are trying to make a difference...at least that is the hope.
I'm starting to lose faith in the human condition.
Please try to be informed, even a little, before making decisions about the people running your government.
It has been a frustrating, exhausting, not-as-informative-as-I-would-like-it-to-be search on candidates, their issues and especially the local BONDS initiative.
***IMPORTANT!***
For those who live in Galveston County, there are 3 bond propositions that are on the table, ~$135M in proposals. After an hour of exhaustive searching, I found a website that gives the details of the initiatives, located here: www.gcbonds2008.com
***PASS IT ON!***
I may be unique in that I've found it excruciatingly difficult to get any information, but I doubt it very much. I have not received ANY information from the county about these proposals and am very upset that it is so difficult to find bond information. I should not have had to search for an hour using creative word searching to find these...I am very disappointed in our local government for this and they will be hearing about it.
Dang it, it doesn't have to be this hard. It simply doesn't. No wonder people either don't vote or vote uninformed.
In an effort to make the voter an better-informed one, the local chron.com has a great search feature so you can see the ballot for your precinct. HOWEVER, it only shows the Republican or Democratic candidates, leaving out any other party. What a joke. It is possible to have someone who isn't a Republican or Democrat serve in office. Surely I am not the only one who recognizes this. Just because it isn't as likely to happen in the area we live in doesn't mean they don't deserve their due attention and respect. These are all people who are trying to make a difference...at least that is the hope.
I'm starting to lose faith in the human condition.
Please try to be informed, even a little, before making decisions about the people running your government.
Saturday, October 18, 2008
Fun Things
The spirit of Halloween is in the air and it's one of my favorite times of the year! I definitely love the candy part (fa sho!), but mostly I enjoy the decorating and silly celebrating that ensues.
We started the "Boo Bucket" tradition on our street this year and before I remembered to put up a sign on our door so we didn't receive one (and thusly have to make another round of them), we got one on our doorstep as well!! Charlie was a little out of sorts this year, so I made both buckets - thank you Dollar Store and Michaels! Aren't they cute?
We started the "Boo Bucket" tradition on our street this year and before I remembered to put up a sign on our door so we didn't receive one (and thusly have to make another round of them), we got one on our doorstep as well!! Charlie was a little out of sorts this year, so I made both buckets - thank you Dollar Store and Michaels! Aren't they cute?
In addition, I made my very first diaper cake for my friend's upcoming baby shower. The fabulous Erin Sholl (taught by none other than the crafty Beth Wilke) helped me put it together. For those that don't know, it's a bunch of diapers put together to look like a cake (vice a cake that looks like a diaper...). The baby's theme is a jungle theme with monkeys as the key ingredient. I think it turned out well for a first attempt!!
Thursday, October 9, 2008
An Embarrassing Sap
I just got home from watching the movie "Nights in Rodanthe" with a girlfriend of mine (yay Jen, we did it on a schoolnight!) and it was the worst movie of all time.
Why is this so you ask? Is it because it was a girl movie? Because it was Nicolas Sparks? Because Richard Gere is in it?
No.
It is because the movie is only 1.5 hours and I cried for 1 hour of it.
Cried like a baby. People were in love and good lord nothing makes me weep like some good LOVE.
Embarrassingly I cry when people are in love, especially in movies. Sure it's usually romanticized and all that, but really - I am a romantic at heart. So when I see a movie about people married for 43 years and how the husband whose wife he just lost talks longingly about how her eyes were the deepest brown and so soft...I weep.
I do not weep for the longing of love, but I weep for the depth of love that I feel for my husband. For my loved ones, for my family. I have been gifted to be the recipient of so much love from those same people, that I wish for everyone else to have the same. I cannot love my husband more than I already do, and yet...one movie makes me love and appreciate the precious time we have in this life even more.
So I cry for love, for the ultimate future of loss, for the promise of a tomorrow with the person I can't imagine living without, and I cry especially for this run-on sentence...or at least LONG sentence.
Dang girly movies.
Why is this so you ask? Is it because it was a girl movie? Because it was Nicolas Sparks? Because Richard Gere is in it?
No.
It is because the movie is only 1.5 hours and I cried for 1 hour of it.
Cried like a baby. People were in love and good lord nothing makes me weep like some good LOVE.
Embarrassingly I cry when people are in love, especially in movies. Sure it's usually romanticized and all that, but really - I am a romantic at heart. So when I see a movie about people married for 43 years and how the husband whose wife he just lost talks longingly about how her eyes were the deepest brown and so soft...I weep.
I do not weep for the longing of love, but I weep for the depth of love that I feel for my husband. For my loved ones, for my family. I have been gifted to be the recipient of so much love from those same people, that I wish for everyone else to have the same. I cannot love my husband more than I already do, and yet...one movie makes me love and appreciate the precious time we have in this life even more.
So I cry for love, for the ultimate future of loss, for the promise of a tomorrow with the person I can't imagine living without, and I cry especially for this run-on sentence...or at least LONG sentence.
Dang girly movies.
Monday, October 6, 2008
Introducing The Sholls!
Charlie and I arrived home from Pennsylvania Sunday afternoon, pretty tired from a fun-filled weekend with our friends. We arrived in Baltimore on Thursday afternoon, had some dinner at Damon's just outside the BWI airport, then drove 2 hours from Maryland to Pennsylvania in the Ford Fusion (John & Beth Wilke, Mar and me). After checking in to the hotel, we met our friends the Merancys and Tanner and Karen at the hotel bar for some drinks and snacks. No sooner had we gotten our first round of drinks, than Cory & Erin arrived with their rehearsal dinner crowd at our hotel bar - so naturally we joined them there for some post-rehearsal, pre-wedding festivities. I cut my evening short since I was super exhausted from a long day of travel and just wanted to sleep, and returned to the hotel for an evening of rest in my snuggly hotel bed.
Friday we had planned to go outlet shopping with the group before the evening wedding, but an impromptu morning visit from Cory and suggestion of breakfast and mini-putt changed those plans! The lot of us headed to Denny's first (too much breakfast!) and then Jim Mack's for 24 holes of putt-putt and then some AWESOME homemade ice cream (I had black cherry). It was a good time fa sho (Nujoud, Karen and I even rode in an alien spaceship, wow! :)!! We left putt-putt, got ready for the wedding, and caught the shuttle (I call it the party bus) from the hotel to the ceremony/reception. Even though our driver took the longest way in the history of driving, we made it with time to spare for the ceremony.
Erin and Cory (now officially "The Sholls") got married in a lovely ceremony in Lancaster, PA in front of a beautiful river backdrop. Erin was beautiful and Cory looked dashing in his fancy tux. All the details and time Erin spent putting into the wedding really showed and it turned out great! Way to go DIY bride! In sum of the evening: we ate, drank, stepped on Erin's dress, Charlie danced with Erin (jazz hands style), lit fire to some sparklers and danced like crazies until they kicked us out. Since the reception ended relatively early, we all went back to the hotel bar and hung out (I spent most of the evening with Old Man Wilke) until just about bar close...or until a massive bout of hiccups and nonsensical conversations (sorry Brent) dictated I get escorted back to my hotel room for nighty-night time.
On Saturday we packed up and went to Cory's father's home on the Susquehannah (sp?) River. We had some delicious burgers and leftovers then went on a boat ride to watch Cory tear up the river with his awesome wakeboarding. That kid can shred! It was a beautiful (albeit cold-watered) day for a boat ride :) We left after a couple hours to drive back to Baltimore, where the Wilkes and Marshiks met up with the Tobins for dinner and drinks. It was great to see them, if even for a brief evening. After dinner and drinks on the Inner Harbor (I had some really awful tuna steak, ick), we walked to the ESPN Zone...at which point I was certain that tuna was catching up with me since my face was hot and splotchy-red, plus my tummy was gurgling something fierce...so the dudes went on with their evening and at 8:30 pm the ladies went back to the hotel, changed into our jammies and talked until 12:30 am. The guys returned home at around 1 am, Jim body-slammed me on my bed, we slept until 6:30 am, got ready for the trip home, ate hotel breakfast (mmmmmmmmm, belgian waffles with raspberries) and said our goodbyes. By 10 am we were back at the airport and by 4:30 pm we were finally back home in League City. Charlie went to bed at 8:00 pm last night and I followed after Desperate Housewives.
I've got to be honest (thanks Beth for the phrasing), it was a great vacation with great friends.
Congratulations to Cory & Erin on their awesome wedding!!
Friday we had planned to go outlet shopping with the group before the evening wedding, but an impromptu morning visit from Cory and suggestion of breakfast and mini-putt changed those plans! The lot of us headed to Denny's first (too much breakfast!) and then Jim Mack's for 24 holes of putt-putt and then some AWESOME homemade ice cream (I had black cherry). It was a good time fa sho (Nujoud, Karen and I even rode in an alien spaceship, wow! :)!! We left putt-putt, got ready for the wedding, and caught the shuttle (I call it the party bus) from the hotel to the ceremony/reception. Even though our driver took the longest way in the history of driving, we made it with time to spare for the ceremony.
Erin and Cory (now officially "The Sholls") got married in a lovely ceremony in Lancaster, PA in front of a beautiful river backdrop. Erin was beautiful and Cory looked dashing in his fancy tux. All the details and time Erin spent putting into the wedding really showed and it turned out great! Way to go DIY bride! In sum of the evening: we ate, drank, stepped on Erin's dress, Charlie danced with Erin (jazz hands style), lit fire to some sparklers and danced like crazies until they kicked us out. Since the reception ended relatively early, we all went back to the hotel bar and hung out (I spent most of the evening with Old Man Wilke) until just about bar close...or until a massive bout of hiccups and nonsensical conversations (sorry Brent) dictated I get escorted back to my hotel room for nighty-night time.
On Saturday we packed up and went to Cory's father's home on the Susquehannah (sp?) River. We had some delicious burgers and leftovers then went on a boat ride to watch Cory tear up the river with his awesome wakeboarding. That kid can shred! It was a beautiful (albeit cold-watered) day for a boat ride :) We left after a couple hours to drive back to Baltimore, where the Wilkes and Marshiks met up with the Tobins for dinner and drinks. It was great to see them, if even for a brief evening. After dinner and drinks on the Inner Harbor (I had some really awful tuna steak, ick), we walked to the ESPN Zone...at which point I was certain that tuna was catching up with me since my face was hot and splotchy-red, plus my tummy was gurgling something fierce...so the dudes went on with their evening and at 8:30 pm the ladies went back to the hotel, changed into our jammies and talked until 12:30 am. The guys returned home at around 1 am, Jim body-slammed me on my bed, we slept until 6:30 am, got ready for the trip home, ate hotel breakfast (mmmmmmmmm, belgian waffles with raspberries) and said our goodbyes. By 10 am we were back at the airport and by 4:30 pm we were finally back home in League City. Charlie went to bed at 8:00 pm last night and I followed after Desperate Housewives.
I've got to be honest (thanks Beth for the phrasing), it was a great vacation with great friends.
Congratulations to Cory & Erin on their awesome wedding!!
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
Catching Up and Heading Out
Well, it's been a while. Here is a recap: Charlie turned 30, we had a bday party for him on 9/20 and ended up watching Over the Top somehow with our friends (it was a "rager" :) and then he bought a motorcycle (2005 Buell Blast, black) on wednesday 9/24.
We are currently packing for Pennsylvania - we leave tomorrow for our friend's wedding (Cory & Erin-to-be-Sholl) in Lancaster, PA. We'll be headed straight to Amish country - that should be fun. Can't wait to have a vacation, but am bringing my laptop to keep up with work and school (BOO). Nothing says wedding like "space environment"...for shame.
Will be taking lots of pix as usual and will post when I can.
Hope everyone else is doing well too!!
Much love, the Marsheeks.
We are currently packing for Pennsylvania - we leave tomorrow for our friend's wedding (Cory & Erin-to-be-Sholl) in Lancaster, PA. We'll be headed straight to Amish country - that should be fun. Can't wait to have a vacation, but am bringing my laptop to keep up with work and school (BOO). Nothing says wedding like "space environment"...for shame.
Will be taking lots of pix as usual and will post when I can.
Hope everyone else is doing well too!!
Much love, the Marsheeks.
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
Gosh Dawg, am I Tired!
So far we have fixed 16 posts in our backyard. Despite some advice against doing so, we backfilled the empty post-holes with concrete, especially the back ones with little to no support structure behind them. Next time, if the posts snap off altogether, then...we'll go get a new fence instead of fixing the super-crappy one we have now. What a PILE! There are more posts to put up and fence structure to mend, but my hands are callousing after 2 days of work and are pretty raw (I'm such a pansy).
I think it's on to homework for me now while Charlie goes to see if the Sholls need any help clearing their humongous tree that split in half. Hmmmm....homework or a nice bath with a bath bomb. I got these neat bath bombs (fizzy round bath balls) from Japan that have a little plastic toy inside of it and gave one to some of my girlfriends here. I think I'll keep the one with the quarter-sized octopus in it. How cute!
...anyway, no more yardwork today for this lady, I hope!
I think it's on to homework for me now while Charlie goes to see if the Sholls need any help clearing their humongous tree that split in half. Hmmmm....homework or a nice bath with a bath bomb. I got these neat bath bombs (fizzy round bath balls) from Japan that have a little plastic toy inside of it and gave one to some of my girlfriends here. I think I'll keep the one with the quarter-sized octopus in it. How cute!
...anyway, no more yardwork today for this lady, I hope!
Posting
Yesterday we spent the day putting in new footings for about 8 of our 5 million fence posts with some Quickcrete (love the quick-dry stuff!!) - really, Charlie did 90% of it and I only helped with 2 of them, but I guess that still counts as "we". After turning in yesterday's homework assignment (learning waits for no hurricane), I repositioned our garden shrubs so they stood upright again.
We made the rounds to our friend's homes earlier in the day and 2 out of 6 had power again, so they are returning home today. I just heard this morning that 1 more has power, so we only have 3 left to go! Yay! It's pretty messy with trees and shrubs and downed traffic lights everywhere, but overall in my area things don't look too terrible. We haven't ventured down the freeway toward Galveston and do not plan to do so. Not only is it still very limited access to that area, but I feel pretty terrible gawking at other people's misfortune. It makes me too sad.
For now, today brings a bright and shiny new day filled with class lecture watching (oooo!), homework (aaahhhhh!) and more fence posts (ohhhhh!). That's right folks, life goes on and is back to the usual exciting fare. Welcome home Jaimer!
We made the rounds to our friend's homes earlier in the day and 2 out of 6 had power again, so they are returning home today. I just heard this morning that 1 more has power, so we only have 3 left to go! Yay! It's pretty messy with trees and shrubs and downed traffic lights everywhere, but overall in my area things don't look too terrible. We haven't ventured down the freeway toward Galveston and do not plan to do so. Not only is it still very limited access to that area, but I feel pretty terrible gawking at other people's misfortune. It makes me too sad.
For now, today brings a bright and shiny new day filled with class lecture watching (oooo!), homework (aaahhhhh!) and more fence posts (ohhhhh!). That's right folks, life goes on and is back to the usual exciting fare. Welcome home Jaimer!
Monday, September 15, 2008
Home
We drove home from San Antonio today in 4.5 hrs with a couple stops for gas top offs before Houston and several 4-way-stop stoplights.
Upon arriving home, we saw the damage to our fence and our big tree in the middle of the yard. After spending a couple hours putting up makeshift props for the fence and playing strongman with the tree - we are done for the night. No interior damage to the house, nor exterior (shingles/roof, siding, windows). Whew!! We made trips to our friend's homes to see their damage (slim to none - some tree branches down, a few shingles off, nothing major) and check for power. Little damage, but no power yet for them. We are fortunate to have some!
Gas is slim and groceries (read: perishables) are hard to come by. But we made it and are set for a while until things settle out here a bit. Likely tomorrow we'll be making the rounds to our friend's houses to check again to see if they have power.
For now, we're nestled in our own bed (yay) and waiting for tomorrow. We will likely be pouring concrete footings into the fenceposts to make them more stable and fixing some more leaning trees in our yard, as well as in our neighborhood. It was a pleasant surprise to see our neighborhood had already propped up some leaning trees with boards - way to go "The Glade"!!
Glad to be home, busy week ahead.
p.s.: work to "tentatively" resume on Thursday...we'll see!
p.p.s. The horses behind our house are busy eating right behind our bum fence. One even "escaped" from the farm and ended up next to our broken fence chomping on some tasty grass morsels...I love this place!
Upon arriving home, we saw the damage to our fence and our big tree in the middle of the yard. After spending a couple hours putting up makeshift props for the fence and playing strongman with the tree - we are done for the night. No interior damage to the house, nor exterior (shingles/roof, siding, windows). Whew!! We made trips to our friend's homes to see their damage (slim to none - some tree branches down, a few shingles off, nothing major) and check for power. Little damage, but no power yet for them. We are fortunate to have some!
Gas is slim and groceries (read: perishables) are hard to come by. But we made it and are set for a while until things settle out here a bit. Likely tomorrow we'll be making the rounds to our friend's houses to check again to see if they have power.
For now, we're nestled in our own bed (yay) and waiting for tomorrow. We will likely be pouring concrete footings into the fenceposts to make them more stable and fixing some more leaning trees in our yard, as well as in our neighborhood. It was a pleasant surprise to see our neighborhood had already propped up some leaning trees with boards - way to go "The Glade"!!
Glad to be home, busy week ahead.
p.s.: work to "tentatively" resume on Thursday...we'll see!
p.p.s. The horses behind our house are busy eating right behind our bum fence. One even "escaped" from the farm and ended up next to our broken fence chomping on some tasty grass morsels...I love this place!
Saturday, September 13, 2008
Damage
A friend stopped by our house tonight and said that she couldn't see any water or window damage to our house, which is great news. She did say our fence was pretty bad off and the big tree we planted in the middle of our yard was uprooted, but that's all we know.
What does "bad off" mean? Was there roof damage? Did our Direct TV dish fly off into the wilderness?? All mysteries we hope to solve coming soon.
Still no power at our house, in our city, likely. The city has asked that we not return until Monday due to the power situation. I guess we'll know more tomorrow...
That's all for now!
What does "bad off" mean? Was there roof damage? Did our Direct TV dish fly off into the wilderness?? All mysteries we hope to solve coming soon.
Still no power at our house, in our city, likely. The city has asked that we not return until Monday due to the power situation. I guess we'll know more tomorrow...
That's all for now!
Staying Tuned
We woke up a bunch of times through the night last night to turn on the TV and watch coverage of Ike on the Weather Channel. If you're not familiar with the area, we live on the west side of I-45, in League City. The Weather Channel was broadcasting all night from Nassau Bay/Clear Lake on the East side of I-45. Our house is on the western side of that and so the front/western eye and eyewall went right over our house.
I have heard reports from some people that stayed that there hasn't been power in certain areas since 6pm last night, and others didn't lose power until 5am today. Either way, I'm sure there's no power at our house at the moment.
Hopefully later on today it will be safe enough to venture out and someone will be able to give us a report on our home. We'll see. Good times all around...not really.
If you're interested in the local Houston news, a friend sent a great link to us that is better than the Weather Channel for the local updates:
www.maroonspoon.com has Ike coverage.
Still safe and sound in San Antonio.
I have heard reports from some people that stayed that there hasn't been power in certain areas since 6pm last night, and others didn't lose power until 5am today. Either way, I'm sure there's no power at our house at the moment.
Hopefully later on today it will be safe enough to venture out and someone will be able to give us a report on our home. We'll see. Good times all around...not really.
If you're interested in the local Houston news, a friend sent a great link to us that is better than the Weather Channel for the local updates:
www.maroonspoon.com has Ike coverage.
Still safe and sound in San Antonio.
Thursday, September 11, 2008
San Anton...
We made it safely to San Antonio and are hanging out with the Sholls, Wilkes and Woods (Brent and Alicia!) families, plus their respective animal members.
We checked into the animal-friendly La Quinta, had lunch at a local park with Jason's Deli for sustinance, had a quick 1-hr nap, ate dinner at Macaroni Grill with server Ryan who hooked us "hurricane evacuees" up with 2 free MAGNUM bottles of house Chianti (pronounced "Chee-ann-ee", thank you Erin) and chocolate cake, played "Kings" card game in the breakfast area of LQ (Ace = "Cele-brace"), and now we're going to bed.
Hopefully all works out for the hurricane at home. Looks like it'll be a Category 3-ish when it hits near-er Galveston Bay on Saturday morning - forecast gets closer but reduced intensity at the moment...
Sometimes, even in the face of adversity, a forced vacation is the way to go!
All's well :)
We checked into the animal-friendly La Quinta, had lunch at a local park with Jason's Deli for sustinance, had a quick 1-hr nap, ate dinner at Macaroni Grill with server Ryan who hooked us "hurricane evacuees" up with 2 free MAGNUM bottles of house Chianti (pronounced "Chee-ann-ee", thank you Erin) and chocolate cake, played "Kings" card game in the breakfast area of LQ (Ace = "Cele-brace"), and now we're going to bed.
Hopefully all works out for the hurricane at home. Looks like it'll be a Category 3-ish when it hits near-er Galveston Bay on Saturday morning - forecast gets closer but reduced intensity at the moment...
Sometimes, even in the face of adversity, a forced vacation is the way to go!
All's well :)
En Route
Sir Charles, Stinkypup, Samuel L. Dogg, and I are leaving town to try to avoid the hurricane.
Going to San Antonio, leaving in 20 mins.
So far traffic bodes well...I think I just cursed us.
We'll keep you posted from here!
Love, The Marshmallow Family
Going to San Antonio, leaving in 20 mins.
So far traffic bodes well...I think I just cursed us.
We'll keep you posted from here!
Love, The Marshmallow Family
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Harrycanes
It's been a week and we've got another hurricane headed our direction. This time it's Ikey.
Charlie and I spent this evening preparing the house for the hurricane and ourselves for potential evacuation operations tomorrow. The house is is good shape. She's buttoned up tight - no, we don't board up our windows - we have hurricane-"proof" windows that can withstand some kind of crazy small arms (read: mortar) impact or something, so none of that for us! We're still getting our personal stuff in order in case we make the final decision to get outta dodge. We'll be headed to northern San Antonio with the puppies if we leave - we've got a hotel starting tomorrow night, through the weekend.
For those who are interested, likely we'll be texting or calling you to say we've left and arrived in S.A. We'll have email where we stay, so once we arrive we'll get set up to communicate.
That's all for now, back to work.
ps: To let you know our level of preparedness, we helped a friend get her stuff in order, I'm making a pizza and blogging right now...so I think we're in good shape ;)
Charlie and I spent this evening preparing the house for the hurricane and ourselves for potential evacuation operations tomorrow. The house is is good shape. She's buttoned up tight - no, we don't board up our windows - we have hurricane-"proof" windows that can withstand some kind of crazy small arms (read: mortar) impact or something, so none of that for us! We're still getting our personal stuff in order in case we make the final decision to get outta dodge. We'll be headed to northern San Antonio with the puppies if we leave - we've got a hotel starting tomorrow night, through the weekend.
For those who are interested, likely we'll be texting or calling you to say we've left and arrived in S.A. We'll have email where we stay, so once we arrive we'll get set up to communicate.
That's all for now, back to work.
ps: To let you know our level of preparedness, we helped a friend get her stuff in order, I'm making a pizza and blogging right now...so I think we're in good shape ;)
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
Home Sweet Home
I made it home yesterday at about 4pm. 18 hours of travel later and I finally got to see my two pups and the hubbie. It was so great to see them! The girls are as cute as ever and my husband is my favorite of all time! He got me an anniversary present (I didn't get him anything, I feel like such a schmuck) and it was a cute little clutch Coach purse. Erin helped Charlie pick it out, but I think he made the final decision. Mostly, he researched and found out that the 3rd anniversary is represented by leather, so he thought a purse would be appropriate. It was very, very sweet of him :)
I guess I could say more about my climb to Mount Fuji, but it's slowly becoming just a memory. I can say that the climb started out with the group of us 10 as one pack and as expected we sort-of all split into separate groups from there. Todd, Steve and I were in a team named the "Strawberry Seahorses", after Steve's fantasy football team. I was Seahorse Two. We had "Seahorse Status Checks", "Seahorse Down" and "Breaker Breaker" times (for when we needed a break). It rained on and off throughout a good portion of the night, but never really lasted all that long or rained all that hard. When we reached the 7th station, we had our photo op and then I vomited. Love it!! We kept in contact with the other climbers in our group via walkie-talkies and I can honestly say it was maybe the best decision we made all climb.
After the 7th station the climb got much more technical than anyone ever let on that it would. We used our gloves extensively to literally pull ourselves up this mountain. It wasn't "Oh, I'll use my hand to balance myself or just push a little here," it was "Holy crap, I need to grab onto this rock and use all my might to heave my heavy body and backpack over this next hump."...and still use my walking stick to balance myself. Jinkies people! I threw up 3 more times before I had to stop for the night at the Original 8th. The trail was very full with people, but for some reason I expected it to be like getting into a crowded metro car, which it wasn't, so the crowd didn't bother me all that much. It did slow my progress, but considering my bouts of altitude sickness, I didn't mind taking it easy.
Steve and I stayed in one of many little huts with rows of giant bunks (double-decker) where people could rent a a slot (think sardines crammed next to each other) to sleep for a few hours or a night. It cost 3000 yen or ~$30 for one person. Since we were both sick, we stopped until sunrise and slept almost 3 hours. Todd continued on to the summit of the mountain to meet the5 other people who were already there or on their way. At sunrise a voice came on over a loudspeaker system and said (in japanese) what we assumed to be "It's sunrise, get up!" Steve and I rolled out of bed, I was feeling much better - he was not, and watched the sun peek out through the clouds. It was absolutely breathtaking to be above a velvety sheet of clouds watching the sun slowly climb through each next layer of white.
After a brief moment of trying to convince myself to climb to the next summit 2 hours away, Steve and I ended up staying put and waited for the troupe to climb down from the summit. We met the rest and started our climb down the mountain. It was about 6 miles to the bottom. 6 miles of a very steep grade of lava rock switchbacks. My walking stick was invaluable for the way down - holy moly! It was sprinkling and the ponchos went on. It was sunny and the layers came off. Clouds rolled over and cooled us and then the sunshine warmed us right back up. It was a long trek down, but we finally made it to the 5th station where we started.
I was exhausted and split between being disappointed about not making it to the top and proud about how far I did make it while feeling so crappy. In the end, I sided with proud. I am also so proud of the other people I climbed with - those who made it to the top and those who did not. I think we did a spectacular thing!!
Likely I will never try to climb Mount Fuji again, but if I do I will certainly take the time to stay on the mountain overnight and then finish the climb the next day. That should help me take care of the ol' altitude sickness.
Two days later, I must say that I am not really sore at all. I worked my buns off to climb where I did and I am pleased that I am not feeling it very much today. Yippee!
That is all from here for now. I plan on posting some pictures soon when I get them uploaded (I'm still waiting on pix from friends) - so stay tuned!
ps: Word on the street is that Todd said I was a "quiet puker" - apparently he didn't even know I threw up 3 times out of 4. Hellz bellz baby - that's pretty pimp. I can 100% guarantee I tossed my cookies 4 times. What a talent...
I guess I could say more about my climb to Mount Fuji, but it's slowly becoming just a memory. I can say that the climb started out with the group of us 10 as one pack and as expected we sort-of all split into separate groups from there. Todd, Steve and I were in a team named the "Strawberry Seahorses", after Steve's fantasy football team. I was Seahorse Two. We had "Seahorse Status Checks", "Seahorse Down" and "Breaker Breaker" times (for when we needed a break). It rained on and off throughout a good portion of the night, but never really lasted all that long or rained all that hard. When we reached the 7th station, we had our photo op and then I vomited. Love it!! We kept in contact with the other climbers in our group via walkie-talkies and I can honestly say it was maybe the best decision we made all climb.
After the 7th station the climb got much more technical than anyone ever let on that it would. We used our gloves extensively to literally pull ourselves up this mountain. It wasn't "Oh, I'll use my hand to balance myself or just push a little here," it was "Holy crap, I need to grab onto this rock and use all my might to heave my heavy body and backpack over this next hump."...and still use my walking stick to balance myself. Jinkies people! I threw up 3 more times before I had to stop for the night at the Original 8th. The trail was very full with people, but for some reason I expected it to be like getting into a crowded metro car, which it wasn't, so the crowd didn't bother me all that much. It did slow my progress, but considering my bouts of altitude sickness, I didn't mind taking it easy.
Steve and I stayed in one of many little huts with rows of giant bunks (double-decker) where people could rent a a slot (think sardines crammed next to each other) to sleep for a few hours or a night. It cost 3000 yen or ~$30 for one person. Since we were both sick, we stopped until sunrise and slept almost 3 hours. Todd continued on to the summit of the mountain to meet the5 other people who were already there or on their way. At sunrise a voice came on over a loudspeaker system and said (in japanese) what we assumed to be "It's sunrise, get up!" Steve and I rolled out of bed, I was feeling much better - he was not, and watched the sun peek out through the clouds. It was absolutely breathtaking to be above a velvety sheet of clouds watching the sun slowly climb through each next layer of white.
After a brief moment of trying to convince myself to climb to the next summit 2 hours away, Steve and I ended up staying put and waited for the troupe to climb down from the summit. We met the rest and started our climb down the mountain. It was about 6 miles to the bottom. 6 miles of a very steep grade of lava rock switchbacks. My walking stick was invaluable for the way down - holy moly! It was sprinkling and the ponchos went on. It was sunny and the layers came off. Clouds rolled over and cooled us and then the sunshine warmed us right back up. It was a long trek down, but we finally made it to the 5th station where we started.
I was exhausted and split between being disappointed about not making it to the top and proud about how far I did make it while feeling so crappy. In the end, I sided with proud. I am also so proud of the other people I climbed with - those who made it to the top and those who did not. I think we did a spectacular thing!!
Likely I will never try to climb Mount Fuji again, but if I do I will certainly take the time to stay on the mountain overnight and then finish the climb the next day. That should help me take care of the ol' altitude sickness.
Two days later, I must say that I am not really sore at all. I worked my buns off to climb where I did and I am pleased that I am not feeling it very much today. Yippee!
That is all from here for now. I plan on posting some pictures soon when I get them uploaded (I'm still waiting on pix from friends) - so stay tuned!
ps: Word on the street is that Todd said I was a "quiet puker" - apparently he didn't even know I threw up 3 times out of 4. Hellz bellz baby - that's pretty pimp. I can 100% guarantee I tossed my cookies 4 times. What a talent...
Sunday, August 31, 2008
Fujisan Karate-Chopped Me
I'll be brief for now until I can update the blog once I get back home and have recovered some from the trip...
Here's the scoop:
-I climbed Mount Fuji to 10,200+ feet (out of roughly 12,000)
-I only made it to the Original 8th Station (there are about 10 stations) before I had to stop for the night and sleep a few hours cuz I was so sick
-I threw up 4 times (thanks to altitude sickness) at Station 7, in-between 7 & 8, Station 8, and between 8 and "original" 8.
I am not so happy that I didn't make it to the summit, but I'd rather be safe than sorry. Sunrise was beautiful either way and the weather was pretty darn nice also. Of the 10 of us who climbed Fuji, 3 of us didn't make it to the top. I am proud of my accomplishment and will likely never try doing Mt. Fuji ever again...man that was tough!!!
All in all, it was lots of fun and a great experience!! More details to come later.
I'm en route to home tomorrow (Monday) - can't wait to see my family!!
Love you all!
Here's the scoop:
-I climbed Mount Fuji to 10,200+ feet (out of roughly 12,000)
-I only made it to the Original 8th Station (there are about 10 stations) before I had to stop for the night and sleep a few hours cuz I was so sick
-I threw up 4 times (thanks to altitude sickness) at Station 7, in-between 7 & 8, Station 8, and between 8 and "original" 8.
I am not so happy that I didn't make it to the summit, but I'd rather be safe than sorry. Sunrise was beautiful either way and the weather was pretty darn nice also. Of the 10 of us who climbed Fuji, 3 of us didn't make it to the top. I am proud of my accomplishment and will likely never try doing Mt. Fuji ever again...man that was tough!!!
All in all, it was lots of fun and a great experience!! More details to come later.
I'm en route to home tomorrow (Monday) - can't wait to see my family!!
Love you all!
Friday, August 29, 2008
Meetings? Done. Fuji? Next.
Thursday and Friday went by in a blur. We finished our meetings successfully and I am now ready to move on to bigger things. REAL big - like 12000 feet high things. Let me give you the brief on Thurs/Fri before I continue:
Thursday: Work. Dinner at a great little restaurant - again, we sat on the floor. This time the food was hot meats and veggies on little skewers. Delish!! It was pouring rain out - torrentially. Thunder, lightning, the works. Bedtime.
Friday: Work. Shopping for last minute Fuji items, buying tickets for the trains and the bus ride to Narita airport on Monday. Check. Had dinner at a shabu-shabu restaurant in the basement of our hotel (it's like a little mall down there). It's where you cook your food at your table in a big pot of boiling water. It was also good - though extremely warm down there. Yikes! I drank too much before dinner, so I left dinner early and went to bed.
Saturday, so far: Woke up at 5am. Had a nice warm bath, felt better. Packing my things right now for checking out later this morning. Moving to Steve's apartment for the weekend (read: Sunday night stay before the aeropuerta) since it's free :)
This will be my last post until I come home from successfully climbing Mount Fuji tonight!! Yippee! For those who don't know, a group of us will be taking a 1.5 hr train to a 2.5 hr bus ride to climb overnight 8 hours to the top of Mount Fuji!...then it'll be 4 more hours to the bottom and then 2.5 hr bus ride to a 1.5 hr train ride home. No sleep, super hike, probably rain, wind and sludge.
Wish us luck!
ps: Charlie is at a Toadies concert with our friends tonight (Friday night) and he's also preparing for Hurricane Gustav which may or may not hit our house. I get to come home to that gem on Monday. Yippee! Later!
Thursday: Work. Dinner at a great little restaurant - again, we sat on the floor. This time the food was hot meats and veggies on little skewers. Delish!! It was pouring rain out - torrentially. Thunder, lightning, the works. Bedtime.
Friday: Work. Shopping for last minute Fuji items, buying tickets for the trains and the bus ride to Narita airport on Monday. Check. Had dinner at a shabu-shabu restaurant in the basement of our hotel (it's like a little mall down there). It's where you cook your food at your table in a big pot of boiling water. It was also good - though extremely warm down there. Yikes! I drank too much before dinner, so I left dinner early and went to bed.
Saturday, so far: Woke up at 5am. Had a nice warm bath, felt better. Packing my things right now for checking out later this morning. Moving to Steve's apartment for the weekend (read: Sunday night stay before the aeropuerta) since it's free :)
This will be my last post until I come home from successfully climbing Mount Fuji tonight!! Yippee! For those who don't know, a group of us will be taking a 1.5 hr train to a 2.5 hr bus ride to climb overnight 8 hours to the top of Mount Fuji!...then it'll be 4 more hours to the bottom and then 2.5 hr bus ride to a 1.5 hr train ride home. No sleep, super hike, probably rain, wind and sludge.
Wish us luck!
ps: Charlie is at a Toadies concert with our friends tonight (Friday night) and he's also preparing for Hurricane Gustav which may or may not hit our house. I get to come home to that gem on Monday. Yippee! Later!
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Campai!
Yes indeedy.
Yesterday was another long day of meetings and information sessions at JAXA - but it was absolutely wonderfully nice outside (meaning no rain and considerably less clouds and...get this...sunshine!). The capper to all of it was the "social" event we would have at the end of the night. Woohoo, good fun!
After work I ended up coming home, changing and starting to watch my first fall semester class (awesome). After 15 minutes of that gem, I got a phone call from my friend Kieth, asking if he could use my bottle opener for a frosty beverage he had. I said "Sure, c'mon up!" I left the door to my room ajar roughly halfway and continued to "watch" class at my desk here. My room doorbell rang (a sweet, polite little melody) and I said "C'mon in!" No one came in. So I finally turned around and noticed no one was in the doorway. Weird. I got out of my chair, went to the door. What should I notice, but an empty flower vase sitting in the hallway, in front of my door! No sooner had I entered the hallway-doorway interchange, when I saw a beautiful bouquet of flowers propped up against the opposite hallway wall on the floor! Hmmmm...what the *bleep*?
I looked down the hallway to my left and what do I see?? Kieth and Todd poking their heads around the corner with huge grins on their faces (like the VonTrapp family "cuckoo clock" scene in The Sound of Music). I think I said "Super Gey"...at least those two jokers say I did, I can't remember everything...and then they came down the hallway to explain the scene. Charlie contacted Todd who worked with Kieth to get me some flowers (and later, a fruity girl drink) for our anniversary!! Awwwwwwww, so sweet!! They were gorgeous and made even more special because my friends (Kieth especially) worked his buns off trying to find, negotiate and buy both the flowers and the vase (such a great story). Those guys are the coolest - and my husband is the bomb for doing the coordination :) I love the flowers and love my dude (Sir Charles, as I call him today)!!
After that bright, sunny (MUCHLY needed, thank you very much) kick-in-the-pants to my day, I stopped pretending to watch school and went to Tito's for a quick drink (gross Scotch on the rocks - whaaaaat?!) and then our group boarded a small bus for the social event of the evening.
There were about 40 of us at this thing, 1/2 japanese, 1/2 American (1 canadian). We got to eat at another typical sit-down-on-the-floor restaurant with a huge spread of food (I mean HUGE) including everything from mini-corndogs (Mama liiiiiiiiike) to raw fish of many kinds to teriyaki chicken. It was good. Reeeeeeeeeeeeal good. The beer, sake and sho-chu were flowing freely and the group of us ate, drank, "Campai!"-ed and mingled a lot. It was quite fun!
Once we left the restaurant, we headed to a local Karaoke joint and whooped it up - mind you, our group reduced in half by now. I sang an impromptu duet with one of the JAXA flight controllers (Ito-san?) and now the name of the song eludes me. We were great though. Absolutely wonderful. Like beautiful songbirds singing sweet, natural melodies. *Bliss!*
Most everyone got to sing something and it was tons of fun. People were jumping around banging tambourines all over the place, walking on tables, shouting SO loudly into the microphones and dancing around like goofballs. It was a blast!! Sooner rather than later (midnight), they said our time had ended and we had to leave the karaoke behind. A quick stop at a sho-chu bar (myself, Tito, Rosie, Parrish) later, and we were all headed home for the night. Rosie rode home on his awesome bicycle and Todd and I hoofed it back to the hotel in the rain.
What a great way to end the day!!
Sho-Chu! Sho-Chu! Hai-Hai-Hai!
Yesterday was another long day of meetings and information sessions at JAXA - but it was absolutely wonderfully nice outside (meaning no rain and considerably less clouds and...get this...sunshine!). The capper to all of it was the "social" event we would have at the end of the night. Woohoo, good fun!
After work I ended up coming home, changing and starting to watch my first fall semester class (awesome). After 15 minutes of that gem, I got a phone call from my friend Kieth, asking if he could use my bottle opener for a frosty beverage he had. I said "Sure, c'mon up!" I left the door to my room ajar roughly halfway and continued to "watch" class at my desk here. My room doorbell rang (a sweet, polite little melody) and I said "C'mon in!" No one came in. So I finally turned around and noticed no one was in the doorway. Weird. I got out of my chair, went to the door. What should I notice, but an empty flower vase sitting in the hallway, in front of my door! No sooner had I entered the hallway-doorway interchange, when I saw a beautiful bouquet of flowers propped up against the opposite hallway wall on the floor! Hmmmm...what the *bleep*?
I looked down the hallway to my left and what do I see?? Kieth and Todd poking their heads around the corner with huge grins on their faces (like the VonTrapp family "cuckoo clock" scene in The Sound of Music). I think I said "Super Gey"...at least those two jokers say I did, I can't remember everything...and then they came down the hallway to explain the scene. Charlie contacted Todd who worked with Kieth to get me some flowers (and later, a fruity girl drink) for our anniversary!! Awwwwwwww, so sweet!! They were gorgeous and made even more special because my friends (Kieth especially) worked his buns off trying to find, negotiate and buy both the flowers and the vase (such a great story). Those guys are the coolest - and my husband is the bomb for doing the coordination :) I love the flowers and love my dude (Sir Charles, as I call him today)!!
After that bright, sunny (MUCHLY needed, thank you very much) kick-in-the-pants to my day, I stopped pretending to watch school and went to Tito's for a quick drink (gross Scotch on the rocks - whaaaaat?!) and then our group boarded a small bus for the social event of the evening.
There were about 40 of us at this thing, 1/2 japanese, 1/2 American (1 canadian). We got to eat at another typical sit-down-on-the-floor restaurant with a huge spread of food (I mean HUGE) including everything from mini-corndogs (Mama liiiiiiiiike) to raw fish of many kinds to teriyaki chicken. It was good. Reeeeeeeeeeeeal good. The beer, sake and sho-chu were flowing freely and the group of us ate, drank, "Campai!"-ed and mingled a lot. It was quite fun!
Once we left the restaurant, we headed to a local Karaoke joint and whooped it up - mind you, our group reduced in half by now. I sang an impromptu duet with one of the JAXA flight controllers (Ito-san?) and now the name of the song eludes me. We were great though. Absolutely wonderful. Like beautiful songbirds singing sweet, natural melodies. *Bliss!*
Most everyone got to sing something and it was tons of fun. People were jumping around banging tambourines all over the place, walking on tables, shouting SO loudly into the microphones and dancing around like goofballs. It was a blast!! Sooner rather than later (midnight), they said our time had ended and we had to leave the karaoke behind. A quick stop at a sho-chu bar (myself, Tito, Rosie, Parrish) later, and we were all headed home for the night. Rosie rode home on his awesome bicycle and Todd and I hoofed it back to the hotel in the rain.
What a great way to end the day!!
Sho-Chu! Sho-Chu! Hai-Hai-Hai!
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
Club Wed
My today, Wednesday, is my 3 year wedding anniversary with Charlie.
Happy Anniversary baby!
Stinks that I can't be with you to celebrate, but Japan calls. Soon I'll be home for cuddles.
I love you!
Happy Anniversary baby!
Stinks that I can't be with you to celebrate, but Japan calls. Soon I'll be home for cuddles.
I love you!
Tsukuba Indian Food
Tuesday was a very busy, informative and exhausting day at work. Afterward I went home, tried for a few minutes to do more work (failed miserably) and then went with Todd, Kieth and Steve to a wonderful Indian restaurant nearby in Tsukuba. We had Chicken Korma (my favorite of the night), Butter Chicken, Saag Paneer and Mutton Masala - not to mention the naan. Mmmmmmm naan. It was deeeeeelicious! A few Lassy Sho-Chus later, I was ready to head home. We hung out in Tito's (aka: Todd) freezing room for a bit and at about 11:30 I went to bed.
Wednesday is another day!
Wednesday is another day!
Monday, August 25, 2008
SSIPC - To Work!
Monday was the first day at work at the JAXA Space Center. I got some really good 8.5-9 hrs of sleep the night before (after a fizz-bomb bath and 2-page book read), had a nice breakfast at the hotel and then our group hopped in taxis to get to the center.
Once our quick badging process was complete, we got a quick tour of the facility including their version of Mission Control Center and then had meetings the rest of the day. We did have lunch at their cafeteria and I had a beef and salad thing, with some soup and a fishstick - it was good and cheap! I'm glad to see that I'll be able to eat lunch each day and enjoy it :) After work, we walked home, stopped by the grocery store on the way & bought some crummy wine (I didn't know!). By the way, I will be walking 30 minutes to and from work each day, in the rain. I could take a taxi, but the walk is nice and it's not usually raining all that hard.
After I got changed for sushi dinner ops that night, Kieth, Todd and I had a little pre-drinky before dinner. It was pretty funny - predrinking for dinner while trying to watch Superbad on Todd's computer. Good times all around :) About 14 of us (all but 1 from our group) went to dinner at one of those places where you sit on the floor on a cushion and had some sushi. We had sake, wine and another "hooch" drink called sho-chu (along with the supplemental water) and each ate our mysterious sushi. Todd thinks I ate a beef one (gross), but I didn't know about that...so I'll pretend I didn't. Kieth the the exoskeleton and heads off of some deep-friend, whole prawns (some antennae and all) which was disgusting, but hilarious.
After dinner some went to Karaoke, I went home to bed. Good first day :)
Once our quick badging process was complete, we got a quick tour of the facility including their version of Mission Control Center and then had meetings the rest of the day. We did have lunch at their cafeteria and I had a beef and salad thing, with some soup and a fishstick - it was good and cheap! I'm glad to see that I'll be able to eat lunch each day and enjoy it :) After work, we walked home, stopped by the grocery store on the way & bought some crummy wine (I didn't know!). By the way, I will be walking 30 minutes to and from work each day, in the rain. I could take a taxi, but the walk is nice and it's not usually raining all that hard.
After I got changed for sushi dinner ops that night, Kieth, Todd and I had a little pre-drinky before dinner. It was pretty funny - predrinking for dinner while trying to watch Superbad on Todd's computer. Good times all around :) About 14 of us (all but 1 from our group) went to dinner at one of those places where you sit on the floor on a cushion and had some sushi. We had sake, wine and another "hooch" drink called sho-chu (along with the supplemental water) and each ate our mysterious sushi. Todd thinks I ate a beef one (gross), but I didn't know about that...so I'll pretend I didn't. Kieth the the exoskeleton and heads off of some deep-friend, whole prawns (some antennae and all) which was disgusting, but hilarious.
After dinner some went to Karaoke, I went home to bed. Good first day :)
Sunday, August 24, 2008
Day Two - Tokyo
Sunday was a good day, spent in Tokyo for the majority. Let me first say that it has rained here every day since our arrival. Thank you to my raincoat and my travel umbrella for always being there for me. Much props.
Todd, Holly, Steve Rosenbaum and I went together as a little pack. We didn't really have an agenda, so it made the day pretty relaxing overall. We saw two shrines/temples and basically just walked around all day. The cool thing is that there was a festival going on in Tokyo as well and there were droves of dancers dancing in their specific troupes to special music down a main street of Tokyo. They all ended up at Harajuku park where there was a big stage where they each performed for the crowds. Each of them were really giving their performance all of their effort - it was spectacular to watch. Most of the dancers were exhausted, one girl was crumpled on the ground weeping she was so spent...it was neat to watch. Their precision and syncronization was amazing. Rosenbaum and I did our own version of street dancing too, including the robot and other various dances. We were rock stars!
We did a small amount of shopping, had some ice cream - mine was purple sweet potato (DELISH!!), ate dinner-snack of okonomayaki (sp?) which is an omelette-style food with a cooked egg cracked on top, then headed home. We were wet, tired and also spent from travels and tourism, but it was worth it. Yay Tokyo!
Todd, Holly, Steve Rosenbaum and I went together as a little pack. We didn't really have an agenda, so it made the day pretty relaxing overall. We saw two shrines/temples and basically just walked around all day. The cool thing is that there was a festival going on in Tokyo as well and there were droves of dancers dancing in their specific troupes to special music down a main street of Tokyo. They all ended up at Harajuku park where there was a big stage where they each performed for the crowds. Each of them were really giving their performance all of their effort - it was spectacular to watch. Most of the dancers were exhausted, one girl was crumpled on the ground weeping she was so spent...it was neat to watch. Their precision and syncronization was amazing. Rosenbaum and I did our own version of street dancing too, including the robot and other various dances. We were rock stars!
We did a small amount of shopping, had some ice cream - mine was purple sweet potato (DELISH!!), ate dinner-snack of okonomayaki (sp?) which is an omelette-style food with a cooked egg cracked on top, then headed home. We were wet, tired and also spent from travels and tourism, but it was worth it. Yay Tokyo!
Saturday, August 23, 2008
Tsukuba Arrival
Hello everyone: My group made it to Japan on time and safely, with no missing luggage. Yippee! Yesterday (my yesterday, remember, I am 14 hours ahead of CT in the USA) after a 14 hour flight, 2 hour wait and then 2 hour bus ride, I stepped foot onto Tsukuba soil.
It's more the "bustling little town" than I expected! Right now there is also the Tsukuba Summer Festival going on, so we stepped off our bus in the Tsukuba Center at 6:30pm (our 10-story hotel is right in the center of the town) to a street parade with lanterns, lots of people, drums and inflatable floats, plus the smell of delicious food booths! Mmmmmm...
After getting settled into the hotel (read: took a nice warm shower and got only two things unpacked), we all met downstairs and went out into the rain to watch the festival. It was on-and-off-again raining with less than a downpour, more than a sprinkle. There is a Houston Support Group contingent staying here in Tsukuba for months at a time for NASA and so we met them on the parade route and stood above the sea of umbrellas on a bunch of bleachers they rented. The sound of the drums were mesmerizing and the floats were pretty neat...although I think the parade route was only like 5 blocks long and we kept seeing the same things go by multiple times. It was neat none-the-less.
Half the group split off and the other half of us went to a Chinese restaurant (yes...Chinese) for some dinner. I was not hungry due to eating everything on the plane that they offered, and then my body being out of whack with the travel and time zone change. I did, however, eat a tiny bowl of egg-drop soup and had a few gyoza. The rest of the crowd each got a dish to share, which looked (and apparently tasted) absolutley delish. It was a nice meal. Also to note, the chef there was a contestant on the original "Iron Chef", so you can imagine how good the food was. That was neat too...and no, I don't know the name of the restaurant OR if the chef beat Iron Chef...doubtful :)
We tried to hit a local bar after dinner (it was Saturday night after all), but they were "full", so we couldn't go in. Strange. It was probably better that we just ended up going home to relax and sleep anyway.
That was day one. Not much to note, really, but it was a good couple days!
Today is Sunday morning (5am actually and I'm awake after getting only 6 hrs of sleep) and I think we might try to head to Tokyo to check it all out.
More to come!
It's more the "bustling little town" than I expected! Right now there is also the Tsukuba Summer Festival going on, so we stepped off our bus in the Tsukuba Center at 6:30pm (our 10-story hotel is right in the center of the town) to a street parade with lanterns, lots of people, drums and inflatable floats, plus the smell of delicious food booths! Mmmmmm...
After getting settled into the hotel (read: took a nice warm shower and got only two things unpacked), we all met downstairs and went out into the rain to watch the festival. It was on-and-off-again raining with less than a downpour, more than a sprinkle. There is a Houston Support Group contingent staying here in Tsukuba for months at a time for NASA and so we met them on the parade route and stood above the sea of umbrellas on a bunch of bleachers they rented. The sound of the drums were mesmerizing and the floats were pretty neat...although I think the parade route was only like 5 blocks long and we kept seeing the same things go by multiple times. It was neat none-the-less.
Half the group split off and the other half of us went to a Chinese restaurant (yes...Chinese) for some dinner. I was not hungry due to eating everything on the plane that they offered, and then my body being out of whack with the travel and time zone change. I did, however, eat a tiny bowl of egg-drop soup and had a few gyoza. The rest of the crowd each got a dish to share, which looked (and apparently tasted) absolutley delish. It was a nice meal. Also to note, the chef there was a contestant on the original "Iron Chef", so you can imagine how good the food was. That was neat too...and no, I don't know the name of the restaurant OR if the chef beat Iron Chef...doubtful :)
We tried to hit a local bar after dinner (it was Saturday night after all), but they were "full", so we couldn't go in. Strange. It was probably better that we just ended up going home to relax and sleep anyway.
That was day one. Not much to note, really, but it was a good couple days!
Today is Sunday morning (5am actually and I'm awake after getting only 6 hrs of sleep) and I think we might try to head to Tokyo to check it all out.
More to come!
Friday, August 22, 2008
To Japan!
This is going to be quick:
I leave for Japan this morning, in about 3.5 hrs. I luckily have a direct flight into Narita, 13.5 hr flight. Schew! Last time I flew to Japan (both times, actually) I didn't have a direct flight, so I'm pretty excited about the one-stop-shop for this trip.
I will be greasy and gross and stinky when I get there, but I'll get there and hopefully my luggage will too (knock on wood). After we land (there's a group of us traveling at the same time), there's a 2 hour bus ride to get to Tsukuba and then I'll check in, have dinner and crash...probably.
Note to all readers: I will have access to my email in the hotel and likely at the control center too, so feel free to drop a line if you want. Remember that we will be 14 hrs ahead of central time, though - so just swap the a.m. and the p.m. and you'll roughly know what time it is where I am.
Ciao!
I leave for Japan this morning, in about 3.5 hrs. I luckily have a direct flight into Narita, 13.5 hr flight. Schew! Last time I flew to Japan (both times, actually) I didn't have a direct flight, so I'm pretty excited about the one-stop-shop for this trip.
I will be greasy and gross and stinky when I get there, but I'll get there and hopefully my luggage will too (knock on wood). After we land (there's a group of us traveling at the same time), there's a 2 hour bus ride to get to Tsukuba and then I'll check in, have dinner and crash...probably.
Note to all readers: I will have access to my email in the hotel and likely at the control center too, so feel free to drop a line if you want. Remember that we will be 14 hrs ahead of central time, though - so just swap the a.m. and the p.m. and you'll roughly know what time it is where I am.
Ciao!
Monday, August 18, 2008
Weekend Past
What a great weekend! It was my first weekend without having any school obligations and nothing to do but enjoy myself. Very nice stuff. We had dinner with the Sholls on Friday night-delicious shrimp pasta ala Erin and watched some Olympics. Saturday we slept in (yay) and ran errands all day. We looked at some cars (Honda CRV, Element, Toyota Rav-4) and were less-than-satisfied with the customer service we received, but I was pleasantly surprised about the vehicles we looked at. Of the three vehicles we looked at, I really liked the CRV, then the Rav-4, then the Element. Charlie likes the Element, and the toss up is the CRV/Rav-4...at least I think so.
Anyhoo, we did the whole car shopping thing and then met at Luna's Mexican Restaurant with the Sholls and Wilkes for dinner. We had some terrible service (why does this always happen when we bring folks to that place?), the worst yet from Luna's, which made me sad, but some really good Coconut Margaritas. Beth's Shirley Temple was hilariously loaded with cherries, with jokes-a-flyin' all around all night about that. We went back to our place after the meal, had some drinks and the girls talked crafts while the guys played cribbage. Apparently cribbage is NOT a common game. Cory and John had both never heard of the game and as I am at work right now, no one here has heard of it either. What the heck?? Very strange.
Sunday morning we had the Sholls over for breakfast with Charlie's nummy pancackes with walnuts and bananas and some eggs to go with them. Then we headed off to the dog park with Sammie and Cosmo in tow. It was another successful dog park adventure, minus the fact that Sammie barked a TON at other dogs, trying (we could only assume) to get them to play with her. It was kinda weird, so next time I'll see if we can curb that habit a little better. Then last night we went to Mamacita's for Budde & April's farewell dinner. There were about 12 of us there to wish them well as their time in Texas closes and their fun begins in D.C. I know we'll miss them terribly, but they will have such a great experience there! After another round of coconut margaritas, we went home, watched Olympics and went to bed.
The end.
Anyhoo, we did the whole car shopping thing and then met at Luna's Mexican Restaurant with the Sholls and Wilkes for dinner. We had some terrible service (why does this always happen when we bring folks to that place?), the worst yet from Luna's, which made me sad, but some really good Coconut Margaritas. Beth's Shirley Temple was hilariously loaded with cherries, with jokes-a-flyin' all around all night about that. We went back to our place after the meal, had some drinks and the girls talked crafts while the guys played cribbage. Apparently cribbage is NOT a common game. Cory and John had both never heard of the game and as I am at work right now, no one here has heard of it either. What the heck?? Very strange.
Sunday morning we had the Sholls over for breakfast with Charlie's nummy pancackes with walnuts and bananas and some eggs to go with them. Then we headed off to the dog park with Sammie and Cosmo in tow. It was another successful dog park adventure, minus the fact that Sammie barked a TON at other dogs, trying (we could only assume) to get them to play with her. It was kinda weird, so next time I'll see if we can curb that habit a little better. Then last night we went to Mamacita's for Budde & April's farewell dinner. There were about 12 of us there to wish them well as their time in Texas closes and their fun begins in D.C. I know we'll miss them terribly, but they will have such a great experience there! After another round of coconut margaritas, we went home, watched Olympics and went to bed.
The end.
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Finals - Summer '08
Charlie and I had our Summer final exam on Monday. 15 weeks of content packed into 6 weeks of classes and homeworks, capped off with a 3-hr midterm/final exam combo.
It would be silly of me to say anything other than: It was a brutal, grueling process for me.
The good news is now it's over and I get to wait for my hopefully "B" grade.
...I think that might be asking too much this time around, but we'll just see how it all shapes up :)
Yay for 2 week school break!!
It would be silly of me to say anything other than: It was a brutal, grueling process for me.
The good news is now it's over and I get to wait for my hopefully "B" grade.
...I think that might be asking too much this time around, but we'll just see how it all shapes up :)
Yay for 2 week school break!!
Friday, August 8, 2008
OLYMPICS!!!
Today signaled the start of the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China.
As most of you are aware, I am highly interested in the sport of Trampoline (duh), so I encourage you to become engaged in my sport as well.
WHERE TO WATCH:
NBC
WHAT & WHEN TO WATCH (check local listings):
Trampoline - Men's & Women's Qualification Round
Airs: Saturday, 8/16 - 1:30-4pm ET (12:30-3p CT)
Trampoline - Women's Final
Airs: Monday, 8/18 - 8pm-12am ET (7p-11p CT)
Trampoline - Men's Final
Airs: Tuesday, 8/19 - 11:30am-1pm ET (10:30a-12p CT)
I hope you enjoy it!!
As most of you are aware, I am highly interested in the sport of Trampoline (duh), so I encourage you to become engaged in my sport as well.
WHERE TO WATCH:
NBC
WHAT & WHEN TO WATCH (check local listings):
Trampoline - Men's & Women's Qualification Round
Airs: Saturday, 8/16 - 1:30-4pm ET (12:30-3p CT)
Trampoline - Women's Final
Airs: Monday, 8/18 - 8pm-12am ET (7p-11p CT)
Trampoline - Men's Final
Airs: Tuesday, 8/19 - 11:30am-1pm ET (10:30a-12p CT)
I hope you enjoy it!!
Vacation Complete! - Part Deux
...to be filled in soon by mister charles raymond marshik.
Sneak peek from Melissa and Dan's wedding on 08/01/2008.
Photos courtesy My Own Self...(and some Charles Raymond)
Sneak peek from Melissa and Dan's wedding on 08/01/2008.
Photos courtesy My Own Self...(and some Charles Raymond)
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
Vacation Complete!...Part One
Whew.
Two weddings, a photography booth, a giant fish, 20+ relatives, three homework assignments and 45 hours of driving later, Charlie and I finally made it home Sunday afternoon after 10 days in Minnesota.
First let me say that despite the crazy-busyness of it all, it was a great trip! I got to see my nephew Noah, who is cute as a button (and trying to crawl with his baby corn-chompers sticking out of his gummy mouth) - a true luxury for me since I live so far away. He's grown so much since I saw him about 5 months ago...but you know what? Let me start from the beginning.
We left TX Wednesday after work and drove for 21 hours almost straight. Okay, we took a 30 minute nap at a rest stop once, but the rest we did straight. Sammie was a champ the entire ride and slept for 20 out of 21 hours. Yay Sammie!...wish we could have had the same experience. The upside of driving straight through was that we arrived on Thursday in time to get to Greg & Kim's wedding rehearsal and groom's dinner. That worked out wonderfully! After a rehearsal in the park and then groom's dinner at Axel's Bonfire in Plymouth (nummo butternut squash), we crashed at my parent's house in Victoria.
Friday I (along with Dad, Shawn and Mom) helped Faithie prepare for her Cologne Glad Days (Glad = Gladiola) booth, which would be her first debut for her new business (Faith Turner Photography). It was a lot of work, but on Saturday morning at the crack o' dawn we were cookin' with gas at the setup site and voila!! She did a great job and even got an inquiry for her wedding photography services - yay Faifer! I am so proud of her, you have no idea. Very exciting stuff! After the show, I dropped Charlie off at the host wedding hotel to get ready with his fellow groomsmen for the wedding. They took off and took pictures for the wedding, I got ready and then I headed to the wedding site (Noerenberg Gardens in Navarre). It was a beautiful day for a Minnesota wedding , Greg & Kim's ceremony was great and the reception was even better! We had such a good time :)
Oh my gosh, I almost forgot: Sammie swam in Lake Minnetonka, her first ever lake swim! It was very brief, before the Saturday wedding, but it was there! Sunday we recovered from the wedding and had dinner with my Grandma Ellen at Macaroni Grill. Grandma is doing well and has been off of oxygen for 4 months and is doing fantastically. I'm so excited to hear she's doing well. We stayed with Charlie's mom Sunday night.
Monday we drove up to Lake Mille Lacs and visited Aunt Jeanne & Uncle Gene. I love those guys! Jeanne made us lunch, they told us stories of the family history, showed us their wealth of collections and Sammie got pushed off a dock (ahem, Charles Raymond) into the lake for her second lake swim. It was hilarious and I will let Charlie continue this saga (since it's late and I'm lamely tired)...to be continued!
Two weddings, a photography booth, a giant fish, 20+ relatives, three homework assignments and 45 hours of driving later, Charlie and I finally made it home Sunday afternoon after 10 days in Minnesota.
First let me say that despite the crazy-busyness of it all, it was a great trip! I got to see my nephew Noah, who is cute as a button (and trying to crawl with his baby corn-chompers sticking out of his gummy mouth) - a true luxury for me since I live so far away. He's grown so much since I saw him about 5 months ago...but you know what? Let me start from the beginning.
We left TX Wednesday after work and drove for 21 hours almost straight. Okay, we took a 30 minute nap at a rest stop once, but the rest we did straight. Sammie was a champ the entire ride and slept for 20 out of 21 hours. Yay Sammie!...wish we could have had the same experience. The upside of driving straight through was that we arrived on Thursday in time to get to Greg & Kim's wedding rehearsal and groom's dinner. That worked out wonderfully! After a rehearsal in the park and then groom's dinner at Axel's Bonfire in Plymouth (nummo butternut squash), we crashed at my parent's house in Victoria.
Friday I (along with Dad, Shawn and Mom) helped Faithie prepare for her Cologne Glad Days (Glad = Gladiola) booth, which would be her first debut for her new business (Faith Turner Photography). It was a lot of work, but on Saturday morning at the crack o' dawn we were cookin' with gas at the setup site and voila!! She did a great job and even got an inquiry for her wedding photography services - yay Faifer! I am so proud of her, you have no idea. Very exciting stuff! After the show, I dropped Charlie off at the host wedding hotel to get ready with his fellow groomsmen for the wedding. They took off and took pictures for the wedding, I got ready and then I headed to the wedding site (Noerenberg Gardens in Navarre). It was a beautiful day for a Minnesota wedding , Greg & Kim's ceremony was great and the reception was even better! We had such a good time :)
Oh my gosh, I almost forgot: Sammie swam in Lake Minnetonka, her first ever lake swim! It was very brief, before the Saturday wedding, but it was there! Sunday we recovered from the wedding and had dinner with my Grandma Ellen at Macaroni Grill. Grandma is doing well and has been off of oxygen for 4 months and is doing fantastically. I'm so excited to hear she's doing well. We stayed with Charlie's mom Sunday night.
Monday we drove up to Lake Mille Lacs and visited Aunt Jeanne & Uncle Gene. I love those guys! Jeanne made us lunch, they told us stories of the family history, showed us their wealth of collections and Sammie got pushed off a dock (ahem, Charles Raymond) into the lake for her second lake swim. It was hilarious and I will let Charlie continue this saga (since it's late and I'm lamely tired)...to be continued!
Monday, July 21, 2008
Minne-cation
It's been two weeks since we posted last - golly sakes alive! (It might just be me, but saying "two weeks" always reminds me of that scene in Total Recall when Quaid gets to Mars in his drag outfit and the robotic head he is sporting starts saying "Two weeks. Twooooo weeeeeeks..." like a crazy person....Anyone else? No?...hmm.)
Anyhoo, since the last post we went sailing on our friend's sailboat to Kemah and watched fireworks one Friday night - was absolutely lovely!! I got to see the Red Bull "Art of Can" exhibit at the Galleria Mall with Beth and her 7-yr old daughter Syd the Kid - pretty neat exhibit! ...aaaaand, I found out that I am going to be sent to Japan for work at the end of August. Yippee!!
For Japan, I'll be visiting the Japanese Control Center in Tsukuba, about 50 miles (?) or so northeast of Tokyo. If I'm lucky, I'll get to climb Mount Fuji at the very end of the climbing season before I head home on Labor Day (apparently it is only "safe" to climb Mt. Fuji during July and August due to inclement weather) It's not a technical climb, so it shouldn't be too hard - as long as I don't get altitude sickness at the 12,000+ feet height. The climb will be about 7-8 hours overnight, reaching the over-crowded summit just in time to watch sunrise from the top. I have heard it is amazing!! A few hours climb down and then back to Tsukuba and then home to see Mar the following day. I'll keep you all posted in case this climb actually goes down.
In the more immediate future, Mar and I will be making the 1200-mile drive home to MN for two back-to-back weddings, on Wednesday after work (we're bringing Sammie and some friends are watching The Kirbster while we're away). Charlie's friend from high school, Greg, is getting married this Saturday and he's a Groomsman. The following weekend my friend Melissa is getting hitched on Friday and I am a Bridesmaid. In the middle of all that wedding fun (rehearsals, appointments, etc) we will be doing homework, watching class (yay!) and traveling to and fro from my parent's house to Charlie's parent's house.
Here is the day-by-day itinerary (just because):
Weds: Leave TX, drive as long as we can without crashing the VW into a tree (Sammie drools on the backseat and leaves her fur everywhere)
Thurs: Arrive MN, if we're lucky we'll get to go to the first wedding rehearsal & dinner (Sammie experiences Minnesota beauty for the first time)
Fri: Homework, helping Faithie with her fabulous Faith Turner Photography debut booth prep, Charlie has poker with his Iraq dudes (Sammie plays with some family dog friends)
Sat: Faithie booth support, Greg wedding and partay! (Sammie chills with my parents and barks at deer and other creatures - especially the moles!)
Sun: Dinner with Grandma and my family, homework. (Sammie gets cuddles from Charlie's mom)
Mon: Pay a visit to see Charlie's Dad (and tell him how great his Oak tree is doing in the backyard :), see Aunt Jeanne & Uncle Gene. (Sammie gets her first dip in a lake, a REAL lake!)
Tues: Charlie gets his peepers checked from the doctor who did his eye surgery in twenty aught one (i think), homework. (Sammie wonders what "peepers" are)
Weds: Second wedding rehearsal & dinner (Sammie wants to be in the wedding too)
Thurs: Mani/Pedi for Jaime, dinner with Charlie's whole family (siblings, kids and Mom) (Sammie meets the Marshik family, look out kiddies!)
Fri: Melissa wedding and partay! (Sammie 'ills with Tank the dog, no biting please)
Sat: We start the 1200-mile trek back home. (Sammie drools on the backseat and leaves her fur everywhere)
It will be great to see the family, for sure, and some friends along the way. But as you can see, another one of our "vacations" is jam-packed with responsibility. Somewhere in there Charlie is going to rewire his mom's basement (he's amazing, isn't he?) and I'm going to spend some time with my family (including nephew Bubs!).
Anyhoo, since the last post we went sailing on our friend's sailboat to Kemah and watched fireworks one Friday night - was absolutely lovely!! I got to see the Red Bull "Art of Can" exhibit at the Galleria Mall with Beth and her 7-yr old daughter Syd the Kid - pretty neat exhibit! ...aaaaand, I found out that I am going to be sent to Japan for work at the end of August. Yippee!!
For Japan, I'll be visiting the Japanese Control Center in Tsukuba, about 50 miles (?) or so northeast of Tokyo. If I'm lucky, I'll get to climb Mount Fuji at the very end of the climbing season before I head home on Labor Day (apparently it is only "safe" to climb Mt. Fuji during July and August due to inclement weather) It's not a technical climb, so it shouldn't be too hard - as long as I don't get altitude sickness at the 12,000+ feet height. The climb will be about 7-8 hours overnight, reaching the over-crowded summit just in time to watch sunrise from the top. I have heard it is amazing!! A few hours climb down and then back to Tsukuba and then home to see Mar the following day. I'll keep you all posted in case this climb actually goes down.
In the more immediate future, Mar and I will be making the 1200-mile drive home to MN for two back-to-back weddings, on Wednesday after work (we're bringing Sammie and some friends are watching The Kirbster while we're away). Charlie's friend from high school, Greg, is getting married this Saturday and he's a Groomsman. The following weekend my friend Melissa is getting hitched on Friday and I am a Bridesmaid. In the middle of all that wedding fun (rehearsals, appointments, etc) we will be doing homework, watching class (yay!) and traveling to and fro from my parent's house to Charlie's parent's house.
Here is the day-by-day itinerary (just because):
Weds: Leave TX, drive as long as we can without crashing the VW into a tree (Sammie drools on the backseat and leaves her fur everywhere)
Thurs: Arrive MN, if we're lucky we'll get to go to the first wedding rehearsal & dinner (Sammie experiences Minnesota beauty for the first time)
Fri: Homework, helping Faithie with her fabulous Faith Turner Photography debut booth prep, Charlie has poker with his Iraq dudes (Sammie plays with some family dog friends)
Sat: Faithie booth support, Greg wedding and partay! (Sammie chills with my parents and barks at deer and other creatures - especially the moles!)
Sun: Dinner with Grandma and my family, homework. (Sammie gets cuddles from Charlie's mom)
Mon: Pay a visit to see Charlie's Dad (and tell him how great his Oak tree is doing in the backyard :), see Aunt Jeanne & Uncle Gene. (Sammie gets her first dip in a lake, a REAL lake!)
Tues: Charlie gets his peepers checked from the doctor who did his eye surgery in twenty aught one (i think), homework. (Sammie wonders what "peepers" are)
Weds: Second wedding rehearsal & dinner (Sammie wants to be in the wedding too)
Thurs: Mani/Pedi for Jaime, dinner with Charlie's whole family (siblings, kids and Mom) (Sammie meets the Marshik family, look out kiddies!)
Fri: Melissa wedding and partay! (Sammie 'ills with Tank the dog, no biting please)
Sat: We start the 1200-mile trek back home. (Sammie drools on the backseat and leaves her fur everywhere)
It will be great to see the family, for sure, and some friends along the way. But as you can see, another one of our "vacations" is jam-packed with responsibility. Somewhere in there Charlie is going to rewire his mom's basement (he's amazing, isn't he?) and I'm going to spend some time with my family (including nephew Bubs!).
Monday, July 7, 2008
Mmmmmm Sausage
Charlie and I had a good 4th of July weekend hanging out with friends and spending time together (imagine that!), even though it rained almost every day. We even got to visit a local farm/grocery store out in Alvin, TX...I think. It is called Froberg Market and we got some cheap, delicious, locally-grown vegetables including a firm, deep purple eggplant, some hot peppers, bell peppers, squash, zucchini, tomatoes (the non-killer kind) and green onions.
Yesterday Charlie made some delicious stir fry with our leftover freezer meat (circa 2007, time to GO!), some of the fresh veggies and some quinoa. It was tasty-riffic. However, it was not as tasty as the homemade smokehouse sausages we got at the Froberg Market. There is a little snack shack next to the market building where they're smoking up fresh venison/pork sausages - we had the jalapeno-cheddar kind. Oh my goodness, it was muy delicioso!!
We'll definitely be headed back for some more fresh, local produce and some nummy snausages.
Yesterday Charlie made some delicious stir fry with our leftover freezer meat (circa 2007, time to GO!), some of the fresh veggies and some quinoa. It was tasty-riffic. However, it was not as tasty as the homemade smokehouse sausages we got at the Froberg Market. There is a little snack shack next to the market building where they're smoking up fresh venison/pork sausages - we had the jalapeno-cheddar kind. Oh my goodness, it was muy delicioso!!
We'll definitely be headed back for some more fresh, local produce and some nummy snausages.
Thursday, July 3, 2008
Back to School!
...and it sure is fun! This summer we are in a class together. Here is a screen capture from our first lecture:
Should be fun!
Sunday, June 29, 2008
Weekend & Dock Dogs
This weekend was our last weekend o' freedom, since school begins on Weds for Charlie and me. It was a good weekend! Yesterday we took Sammie to the dog park nearby where a young, big, furry dog chased her around at full speed for quite some time. Yessssss! Wear that baby out! Her friend Cosmo was there (our friend Erin, too) for the first time at said dog park and so that was a good experience (I hope) too. We did the dog park stuff for a while, then planned on doing some quick landscaping and then hitting the neighborhood pool.
On our way home it was pouring rain, so we nixed the pool, but went to get some dirt for the backyard anyhoo. Charlie worked diligently outside with the dirt (fun fun fun) and I ...I don't remember what I did (probably not much :). We hit the grocery store and got some grub, Charlie made fajitas, we had some ice cream and hit the sack.
Today I woke to Charles Raymond making his famous pancackes with bananas and chopped walnuts, with blueberry syrup. Mmmmmmm! They are so tasty!!! I contributed a fruit bowl with strawberries, peaches, yogurt and chopped walnuts and we sat down and had the breakfast. Afterward we took Sammie to downtown Houston so she could see what the city life was all about...she is a city girl. So many tasty...I mean "interesting" birds to chase...I mean watch. Good stuff!! There was a "Dock Dog" competition happening at the relatively new Discovery Green Park right across from the George R. Brown Convention Center. It's a nice setup they've got there - some fun art, neat lawn areas for events and concerts...all in all I was impressed that H-town could come up with and execute something that nice. Not bad!...there are even some trees!! Anyhoo, Charlie got and forwarded an email to me about this dog thing last weekend. It's the kind of event where an above-ground platform is lined up with an above-ground pool and a dog will run off the end of the platform and jump as far as they can into the pool. It's a distance competition. I've always wanted to see one live, so I took the chance and ran with it! Sammie was not impressed with the jumping dogs, but I sure was. One jumped 21 feet, all to chase a tennis ball! ...which brings me to a funny part of the day.
The guy whose dog won the "semi-pro" (really, how "pro" can your dog be?) competition would throw a tennis ball for his dog to jump after. Some people threw fake ducks, some threw other rubber toys. This guy, for some reason chose the tennis ball. His throws, however, weren't all that great. One particular time - the winning time, I believe - was when the crowd that had gathered around the poolside (kids, families, dogs, you name it) pulled in tightly. He chucked the tennis ball all the way across the pool, Rover jumped and BING!!! the ball ricocheted off some little kid's forehead and bounced out of the pool area. I was laughing so hard. So was this kid's Dad! The little boy was fine, but he did not think the incident was as funny as everyone else did. Ahhhhh, good times.
After hours sweating in the sunshiney dog-ness, we took Sammie home, had a 30 minute nap, ate Sushi Coast (delish!) with some friends and are now getting ready for bed.
Great weekend! I hope yours was worth it also :)
On our way home it was pouring rain, so we nixed the pool, but went to get some dirt for the backyard anyhoo. Charlie worked diligently outside with the dirt (fun fun fun) and I ...I don't remember what I did (probably not much :). We hit the grocery store and got some grub, Charlie made fajitas, we had some ice cream and hit the sack.
Today I woke to Charles Raymond making his famous pancackes with bananas and chopped walnuts, with blueberry syrup. Mmmmmmm! They are so tasty!!! I contributed a fruit bowl with strawberries, peaches, yogurt and chopped walnuts and we sat down and had the breakfast. Afterward we took Sammie to downtown Houston so she could see what the city life was all about...she is a city girl. So many tasty...I mean "interesting" birds to chase...I mean watch. Good stuff!! There was a "Dock Dog" competition happening at the relatively new Discovery Green Park right across from the George R. Brown Convention Center. It's a nice setup they've got there - some fun art, neat lawn areas for events and concerts...all in all I was impressed that H-town could come up with and execute something that nice. Not bad!...there are even some trees!! Anyhoo, Charlie got and forwarded an email to me about this dog thing last weekend. It's the kind of event where an above-ground platform is lined up with an above-ground pool and a dog will run off the end of the platform and jump as far as they can into the pool. It's a distance competition. I've always wanted to see one live, so I took the chance and ran with it! Sammie was not impressed with the jumping dogs, but I sure was. One jumped 21 feet, all to chase a tennis ball! ...which brings me to a funny part of the day.
The guy whose dog won the "semi-pro" (really, how "pro" can your dog be?) competition would throw a tennis ball for his dog to jump after. Some people threw fake ducks, some threw other rubber toys. This guy, for some reason chose the tennis ball. His throws, however, weren't all that great. One particular time - the winning time, I believe - was when the crowd that had gathered around the poolside (kids, families, dogs, you name it) pulled in tightly. He chucked the tennis ball all the way across the pool, Rover jumped and BING!!! the ball ricocheted off some little kid's forehead and bounced out of the pool area. I was laughing so hard. So was this kid's Dad! The little boy was fine, but he did not think the incident was as funny as everyone else did. Ahhhhh, good times.
After hours sweating in the sunshiney dog-ness, we took Sammie home, had a 30 minute nap, ate Sushi Coast (delish!) with some friends and are now getting ready for bed.
Great weekend! I hope yours was worth it also :)
Dog Therapy
A couple of days ago Charlie and I came home after a happy hour with some friends at Boondoggles. We weren't gone long, but this particular day we had both been away from home for extended periods of time and the pups were stuck inside for most of the day. I immediately let Kirby outside for potty and Charlie went to our bedroom to let Sammie out as well. After a few minutes of "no Charlie or Sammie", I wondered what was happening that could be more interesting than seeing ME after being cooped up in our bedroom for a few hours. I went to the bedroom and what do I find? Sammie, sitting patiently at the door with little black tail a-waggin', and Charlie standing over her trying to hold back his smile and laughter.
What could be so funny? Well, after being worried about the "kids" being stuck inside all day, without parental guidance, Sammie decided to show me how she could take care of things her own way. She ate a good portion of the Cesar Millan Book about Dog Whispering. Cover and page pieces were strewn everywhere! ...take THAT dog therapy guy!!
I guess she has some not-so-repressed feelings about where we can take our dog-whispering techniques and where we can stick 'em...
Too bad I owe my friend a new book now :)
What could be so funny? Well, after being worried about the "kids" being stuck inside all day, without parental guidance, Sammie decided to show me how she could take care of things her own way. She ate a good portion of the Cesar Millan Book about Dog Whispering. Cover and page pieces were strewn everywhere! ...take THAT dog therapy guy!!
I guess she has some not-so-repressed feelings about where we can take our dog-whispering techniques and where we can stick 'em...
Too bad I owe my friend a new book now :)
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
What up? Big J in da House!
Okay, so I don't have much to report, though it's been two weeks since my last posting.
Sammie went to the vet today - nothing special. I'm working a night sim - nothing special.
Oh yeah! Charlie started his brand new fancy-schmancy NASA job on Monday. He's especially SPECIAL now!! We had lunch on Monday and I was happy as a clam to see him :) Awwww yes, I like that guy...even still!
So You Think You Can Dance is still my fave show, although this season isn't proving to be as good as last season for dancing talent. I think Will or Joshua could go all the way. Will has the traditional dancing vote, Joshua has the popular vote methinks. We'll see how it goes! ...new episode tomorrow, woohoo!
Other than that, I've made two more baby blankets with another one or two in the makin'. It's pretty fun and each day my sewing improves. Soon I will have to put the ix-nay on blankies as summer school/wedding season is upon us! Peace.
Sammie went to the vet today - nothing special. I'm working a night sim - nothing special.
Oh yeah! Charlie started his brand new fancy-schmancy NASA job on Monday. He's especially SPECIAL now!! We had lunch on Monday and I was happy as a clam to see him :) Awwww yes, I like that guy...even still!
So You Think You Can Dance is still my fave show, although this season isn't proving to be as good as last season for dancing talent. I think Will or Joshua could go all the way. Will has the traditional dancing vote, Joshua has the popular vote methinks. We'll see how it goes! ...new episode tomorrow, woohoo!
Other than that, I've made two more baby blankets with another one or two in the makin'. It's pretty fun and each day my sewing improves. Soon I will have to put the ix-nay on blankies as summer school/wedding season is upon us! Peace.
Sunday, June 15, 2008
Sex & The City Girl's Night
FINALLY! After a few weeks of being in the theaters, the shuttle mission landed and the ladies got together for S&TC! There were ten of us who showed up to the party, all decked out in style (some of us looked less "stylish" than funky...ahem, ME). We had cosmos, some fun appetizers and did our gift exchange - I ended up with an awesome white clutch and some sweeeeeet gold-bamboo necklace, gold earrings and a gold bling ring -BLING! Fabulous! Everyone looked so amazing, it was so much fun. The ladies are all pictured below in their outfits and their newfound gifts. It was a rule that you had to wear the gift that evening, even if it didn't go with your outfit...can you pick out the gifts in these pictures??
We hit the movie at around 8:30 - we went to the AMC nearby and we were plenty overdressed. All the teenagers were jealous though, I could tell. I could read it in their eyes...hidden beneath brand new ballcaps with the stickers still on (now THAT'S fashion).
We hit the movie at around 8:30 - we went to the AMC nearby and we were plenty overdressed. All the teenagers were jealous though, I could tell. I could read it in their eyes...hidden beneath brand new ballcaps with the stickers still on (now THAT'S fashion). The movie was great, I truly liked it and it was a solid end to the S&TC saga. Afterward we hit the Fox & Hound for one last Pineapple Upside-Down Cake martini and then to home we went! Overall, it was a good night with fun people, yay!
Friday, June 13, 2008
J'aime Blankets!
Faithie asked me to make my nephew a blanket fashioned after one she saw online, gosh, months ago. I was still in school at the time, so I didn't make time to construct a baby blanket. However, after school ended, I conjured up the spirit of sewing and craftiness to build her my first attempt at a baby blanket.Cool thing, the blanket has clips on all four corners that keep the blanket in place on the stroller, car seat, etc. Well, my first version did not since I couldn't find the clips, she's using velcro "zip ties" to secure the thing. I have since ordered clips tha
t I hope will work on my next attempt. It's made of 100% cotton print on one side (red boxes) and bright red fuzzy fabric (100% poly) on the other side. One side funk, the other side soft.
t I hope will work on my next attempt. It's made of 100% cotton print on one side (red boxes) and bright red fuzzy fabric (100% poly) on the other side. One side funk, the other side soft.It was really fun to do and I'm glad to see little Noah enjoys it :)
If I can get the clips in time (before school starts in a couple weeks), I'd like to make another version for another friend of mine who just had a baby...stay tuned! I really dig doing something other than baby blue and baby pink colors - I like going a bit more hip and trendy. Let's see if I can accomplish that. Of COURSE I'll still use the traditional baby colors as well. I am just really glad Faith asked me to make her a red one.
ps: "Hi. I'm the Cutest Baby Ever." (matter-of-factly) MAN that kid is squishably soft and cuddly!
Milwaukee
Charlie gets to be in Milwaukee/Chicago this weekend for Greg's bachelor party. No fair. Well, fine, fair. But still stinky-esque. I get to work on console on a Friday night, overnight. Mind you, I use the term "work" very loosely. As you can see, I am updating my blog. I am looking forward to Sex & The City night with the ladies tomorrow night, if the shuttle lands like she's supposed to. We're getting all dolled up - I expect 9 to 12 ladies total - having apps & drinks at mi casa, then to the AMC we go for the movie. You know the drill. Girls dressed up = super fun for girls! Krunk City, USA. Holla!
Random: I got a personal phone call from the League City mayor candidate today - the runoff election is tomorrow and I promised Charlie I would do my civic duty in his absence (GO VOTE people!). I talked to the guy and even though I'm not well versed in the politics of our little region, I mentioned this other dill-hole who is running for city council and the guy said "Yeah, we need to get rid of that guy." That's almost a won vote right there. Well played sir, well played. So, we'll see how that all pans out tomorrow.
Sidebar: Mom, try that Sangria!
As you were gentlemen, as you were.
Random: I got a personal phone call from the League City mayor candidate today - the runoff election is tomorrow and I promised Charlie I would do my civic duty in his absence (GO VOTE people!). I talked to the guy and even though I'm not well versed in the politics of our little region, I mentioned this other dill-hole who is running for city council and the guy said "Yeah, we need to get rid of that guy." That's almost a won vote right there. Well played sir, well played. So, we'll see how that all pans out tomorrow.
Sidebar: Mom, try that Sangria!
As you were gentlemen, as you were.
Birdies!
When we planted our holly trees outside of our bedroom window, I was just so happy to have something green to look at I didn't think I could be any happier...until about a week ago! A bird had built a nest in the tree closest to our living room and magically placed 4 eggs in there (where did THEY come from?). Three of the four eggs hatched and little furry, ugly baby birdies emerged. Earlier this week we noticed that one of them was not slated to live in Houston this time around, but there were only two left. I took some pictures of the remaining two before nature had its way with them also, keeping in mind to stay away from them so the Mom would return...so cute! (Charlie asked me why I didn't try jamming a worm or some bugs down their throats, they "look hungry". I told him I didn't feel like purging into a baby bird beak, that's not my style.)
Yesterday, unfortunately, I came home to find a little birdie napping eternally on my patio. Looks like someone fell out of the nest and a dog happened to drag it onto the middle of the patio for display. It was in "good" shape (meaning in one piece), so Kirby probably didn't have a snack of it, but it would never wake up and fly to safety. I was so sad :( Charlie reminds me that this is how nature works and sometimes things just don't work out so perfectly the first time around. So, one bird out of four possible remains. I hope he survives and comes back to build a nest in that same tree!!
...on a side note (speaking of killer dogs), Sammie found herself a scrumptious little morsel of a young armadillo a few weeks back. She chomped him good. He seemed like he was kinda hurt, but mostly just stunned. She did draw blood from his side-tummy-armor but all of his appendages were attached and functional. Charlie donned the garden gloves and scooped up the little guy and placed him back into the forest. Yes, we hate what the armadillos do to our yard, but I just couldn't see myself hurting this one little guy. He wasn't there the next morning when we went to check on him, so he either escaped with his life or nature took care of the process.
Yesterday, unfortunately, I came home to find a little birdie napping eternally on my patio. Looks like someone fell out of the nest and a dog happened to drag it onto the middle of the patio for display. It was in "good" shape (meaning in one piece), so Kirby probably didn't have a snack of it, but it would never wake up and fly to safety. I was so sad :( Charlie reminds me that this is how nature works and sometimes things just don't work out so perfectly the first time around. So, one bird out of four possible remains. I hope he survives and comes back to build a nest in that same tree!!
...on a side note (speaking of killer dogs), Sammie found herself a scrumptious little morsel of a young armadillo a few weeks back. She chomped him good. He seemed like he was kinda hurt, but mostly just stunned. She did draw blood from his side-tummy-armor but all of his appendages were attached and functional. Charlie donned the garden gloves and scooped up the little guy and placed him back into the forest. Yes, we hate what the armadillos do to our yard, but I just couldn't see myself hurting this one little guy. He wasn't there the next morning when we went to check on him, so he either escaped with his life or nature took care of the process.
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Muzak, by Charles
So it's been awhile since I've written, at least that's what Jaime tells me.
Recently, instead of buying CDs I want, I've been downloading the albums from Amazon and burning my own onto CD-Rs. It usually costs about $8 or $9 for a CD, so it's probably about $5 cheaper than getting them at the store. Plus the selection is better, I can preview the songs, and I can shop much more impulsively and in my underwear.
My latest two CDs are Weezer's latest (Red Album) and a Sawdust from the Killers.
I wasn't too impressed with the Weezer disc, and I'm kind of a Weezer fan. I once went so far as to travel to Fargo, ND to see them play the world-famous Fargodome. But anyway, they seemed to throw in a lot of new stylings into the mix, which I guess is inevitable when you've got six hundred albums out like they do. It just didn't do much for me.
I often listen to Ethel (a station) on our DirecTV-provided XM Radio. Recently I heard a song called "Tranquilize" by the Killers, and I really liked it. I didn't know they had a new album out, so I looked them up, and sho nuff, they had released a b-side type disc late last year. So I went ahead and grabbed the whole thing, and I really like the album. "Tranquilize" apparently has guest vocals from Lou Reed, who you may remember from "Walk on the Wild Side" (not the Marky Mark song), and it's a great tune. I also really like "Show You How" and "The Ballad of Michael Valentine", and there are at least three our four other good songs on there as well.
I also have their first album "Hot Fuss", and it's decent, but I don't own "Sam's Town". After this one though, it makes me want to spring for it.
Oh yeah, and I got a new job. I've got one more week with Boeing as of today. Sad to leave but happy for new opportunities.
Recently, instead of buying CDs I want, I've been downloading the albums from Amazon and burning my own onto CD-Rs. It usually costs about $8 or $9 for a CD, so it's probably about $5 cheaper than getting them at the store. Plus the selection is better, I can preview the songs, and I can shop much more impulsively and in my underwear.
My latest two CDs are Weezer's latest (Red Album) and a Sawdust from the Killers.
I wasn't too impressed with the Weezer disc, and I'm kind of a Weezer fan. I once went so far as to travel to Fargo, ND to see them play the world-famous Fargodome. But anyway, they seemed to throw in a lot of new stylings into the mix, which I guess is inevitable when you've got six hundred albums out like they do. It just didn't do much for me.
I often listen to Ethel (a station) on our DirecTV-provided XM Radio. Recently I heard a song called "Tranquilize" by the Killers, and I really liked it. I didn't know they had a new album out, so I looked them up, and sho nuff, they had released a b-side type disc late last year. So I went ahead and grabbed the whole thing, and I really like the album. "Tranquilize" apparently has guest vocals from Lou Reed, who you may remember from "Walk on the Wild Side" (not the Marky Mark song), and it's a great tune. I also really like "Show You How" and "The Ballad of Michael Valentine", and there are at least three our four other good songs on there as well.
I also have their first album "Hot Fuss", and it's decent, but I don't own "Sam's Town". After this one though, it makes me want to spring for it.
Oh yeah, and I got a new job. I've got one more week with Boeing as of today. Sad to leave but happy for new opportunities.
Saturday, June 7, 2008
Night Shift
Yes yes, I'm on the night shift once again. Seems like for most of these missions I get to work some stellar hours. This is my first mission working as a real, certified flight controller and it's been quite fun so far...minus not being able to see my husband or friends and sleeping all day long.
The STS-124 mission is going really well and I am thankful for that - as I am sure all of NASA and JAXA (Japanese space agency) are also. My team is kicking butt and has mad my shift very enjoyable. There are some certain people (EECOMs, for instance), that can make the shift a bit more complicated than they need to be, but I suppose it's just because they like to mess with us FAOs.
Recently I've reconnected with some old friends from my Boeing days in Seattle (rather, they found me!) and it's been really great talking with them and catching up (Hi Billy! Hi Abe!). I think it's wonderfully surprising and refreshing to find out that good people have remained good people, and it's especially exciting to find that I still have a connection with them. Yay! One good friend works for the FAA and the other is a fireman who is starting (has started) his own Alaskan tourism company (http://www.porterswildalaska.com/). Make sure to visit!!
That is all. Time to get ready for work. 1 week left to go and then Sex and The City Girl's Night is ON!! Yesssssssssssssss!
-jaime
The STS-124 mission is going really well and I am thankful for that - as I am sure all of NASA and JAXA (Japanese space agency) are also. My team is kicking butt and has mad my shift very enjoyable. There are some certain people (EECOMs, for instance), that can make the shift a bit more complicated than they need to be, but I suppose it's just because they like to mess with us FAOs.
Recently I've reconnected with some old friends from my Boeing days in Seattle (rather, they found me!) and it's been really great talking with them and catching up (Hi Billy! Hi Abe!). I think it's wonderfully surprising and refreshing to find out that good people have remained good people, and it's especially exciting to find that I still have a connection with them. Yay! One good friend works for the FAA and the other is a fireman who is starting (has started) his own Alaskan tourism company (http://www.porterswildalaska.com/). Make sure to visit!!
That is all. Time to get ready for work. 1 week left to go and then Sex and The City Girl's Night is ON!! Yesssssssssssssss!
-jaime
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
Tramp-o-reen
Last weekend the National Championships for Senior/Junior Elite Trampoline & Tumbling were held in H-town at Reliant Arena. My long-time (20 years?) trampoline friend Melissa and her fiancee Dan stayed with us for the event. Basically, we partied from Thursday-Sunday with them and then on Monday with our H-town party peeps.
I did see the Final round of competition on Saturday and got to meet up with my old trampoline buddies in the meantime. The meet is the 3rd of 4 Olympic Trial runs and so it was pretty exciting to watch. Ahhhh yes, I remember those times all too well. While I do miss the thrill of competition and the excitement it brings, I can tell you that I do not miss the anxiety and stress that comes with the pressure of performing for the sport. I love "pressure to perform", but after 18 years straight of it, I am happy that I can sit back and spectate now. *sigh* Meeeeeeeeem-ories....of the waaaaaaaaay we weeeerrrrrrrrrrrrrrrre! Great weekend, lots of fun, good friends.
On Sunday we (Mel, Dan, Mar and I) went to Galveston Beach and it was beautiful. Perfect day for the beach. Sunny, windy enough to keep the heat off, waves at the beach for boogie-boarding and just chilling. Lovely! That night after Mel & Dan left for MN, we went to see the Velcro Pygmies at Sherlocks for the second year in a row. It was great, but I partied a bit too hard. Good times :) Monday was a BBQ at the Wilke residence for some fajitas, margaritas, sangria and good company.
Now, it's back to work. Launch on Saturday, 5/31 of STS-124...Go Discovery!
I did see the Final round of competition on Saturday and got to meet up with my old trampoline buddies in the meantime. The meet is the 3rd of 4 Olympic Trial runs and so it was pretty exciting to watch. Ahhhh yes, I remember those times all too well. While I do miss the thrill of competition and the excitement it brings, I can tell you that I do not miss the anxiety and stress that comes with the pressure of performing for the sport. I love "pressure to perform", but after 18 years straight of it, I am happy that I can sit back and spectate now. *sigh* Meeeeeeeeem-ories....of the waaaaaaaaay we weeeerrrrrrrrrrrrrrrre! Great weekend, lots of fun, good friends.
On Sunday we (Mel, Dan, Mar and I) went to Galveston Beach and it was beautiful. Perfect day for the beach. Sunny, windy enough to keep the heat off, waves at the beach for boogie-boarding and just chilling. Lovely! That night after Mel & Dan left for MN, we went to see the Velcro Pygmies at Sherlocks for the second year in a row. It was great, but I partied a bit too hard. Good times :) Monday was a BBQ at the Wilke residence for some fajitas, margaritas, sangria and good company.
Now, it's back to work. Launch on Saturday, 5/31 of STS-124...Go Discovery!
Sunday, May 18, 2008
Mama Loves Her Shows
Even though we just got "the cable" this year, I still think my favorite shows are the "free" ones on regular ol' teevee. ABC is really kicking butt with shows and sadly the season of goodness is coming to an end. Desperate Housewives ends tonight, Grey's Anatomy on Thursday, Brothers and Sisters finished last week (can't wait for next season!), and my favorite, The Office (NBC) is over as well :(
Dancing With the Stars ends on Tuesday (I hope Kristy Yamaguchi wins, even if she does have an advantage) and then to my excitement, So You Think You Can Dance (FOX) starts on Thursday 5/22!! I can't wait to watch the fun choreography and dancing while sitting on my couch with my toes curled in excitment, silly grin on my face and hands clasped in anticipation. What a geek. You know what? Who cares. It doesn't even qualify as a "guilty pleasure" (like America's Next Top Model or Farmer Wants a Wife...what?!) and I put it in another realm than American Idol (yucky poo poo) since good dancing is less subjective than a "good voice". Please.
Anyhoo, my eyeballs are burning from too much tele. Yay!
Dancing With the Stars ends on Tuesday (I hope Kristy Yamaguchi wins, even if she does have an advantage) and then to my excitement, So You Think You Can Dance (FOX) starts on Thursday 5/22!! I can't wait to watch the fun choreography and dancing while sitting on my couch with my toes curled in excitment, silly grin on my face and hands clasped in anticipation. What a geek. You know what? Who cares. It doesn't even qualify as a "guilty pleasure" (like America's Next Top Model or Farmer Wants a Wife...what?!) and I put it in another realm than American Idol (yucky poo poo) since good dancing is less subjective than a "good voice". Please.
Anyhoo, my eyeballs are burning from too much tele. Yay!
HGTV
I'm addicted, it's no secret. I just can't seem to pull myself away from those do-it-yourself project suggestions. Luckily for Charlie (and for me!) there's just not enough time inbetween semesters to start any fun home projects, so...for now I watch, listen and take notes.
It makes me want to move back home & help Mom redo my old bedroom...or their bathroom...or anyone else's who wants to collaborate on some "design". *sigh*
It makes me want to move back home & help Mom redo my old bedroom...or their bathroom...or anyone else's who wants to collaborate on some "design". *sigh*
Monday, May 12, 2008
JT & DC
Well, I am back from my weekend visiting Jenny T in DC! We had such a good time! DC is beautiful and even though it was rainy (especially on Sunday!), we had the best time ever. My flight got in late Thursday night (midnight?) to Baltimore, ~60 mins from JT's house. It was super stormy and I thought the plane was taking a nose dive into BWI on the way in, but I made it safely on the ground and to JT's house no problemo. Needless to say, Jenny's hands were sore the next day from gripping the steering wheel so tight ;)Friday Jenny had to work a 1/2 day, so when she got home we went shopping at IKEA and a few other stores to spruce up her place a little bit. After shopping, buying a mirror that was too big to fit in her car, returning the mirror 7 mins after buying it (and laughing the whole way) and setting off to Alexandria (right Jen?), we were starving! We had some delicious Indian food and then went to Murphy's pub for a little Irish song and drink. A band called "Ceann" was playing and Jenny and I saddled up to a table right in front of the band! my favorite song wavers between "Pretty on the Inside" and "Blame the Viking", although "Butt Tattoo" and "Whiskey Hurts My Tummy" (an ode for Charlie) come in pretty close behind. What a hoot! There were only 3 guys playing, one of whom was wearing a white fleece that JT couldn't stand and playing a ukulele electric guitar. They were phenomenal and we had such a good time. Our throats were sore from screaming with and over the music as it played, but it was worth it. As we were leaving and the band took a break, Jenny and I went up to buy a CD. We talked (well JT mostly did cuz I'm shy...yeah) with the lead singer guy, I accused him of being Canadian and sounding like Bare Naked Ladies (well, they do, in a good way!) and I bought a CD. He graciously gave us their 2nd CD free of charge, thanks to Jenny's schmoozing (and probably to get me off his back :). What a great night!
The next day after sleeping in, Jenny and I decorated her house all day long. She cooked a fantastic breakfast and then we didn't eat again until we had awesome burgers at Five Guys Burgers. Holy crumbs it was delish! Burgers and homemade, straight-from-the-potato fries. Can't beat it! We went to Reston Town Center in search of a bar serving delicious pineapple upside-down cake martinis...that incidentally no longer exists (oops). We instead had a drink at the Market Street Bar and Grill and then headed home for an evening of Johnny Depp in Sweeney Todd (enhhhhh, it was fine) and chit-chatting on the couch.
Sunday came all too soon and we spent the latter half of the day walking around downtown DC. We saw the Jefferson Memorial, the Capitol, the Washington Monument, the Portrait Gallery (with all the fancy presidential portraits...we even did a classic waltz (Jenny was the boy & I was the girl) at Abe Lincoln's inaugural ball), and then the White House. Before we hit ol' G.W.'s residence, we ate some delish Tapas at Jaleo. I had to convince Jenny to try the bacon-wrapped dates, but boy oh boy was she ever glad she did! Mmmmmmmmmmmmm... It was pouring rain by the time we had to head back to the car and stop by the White House - our jeans were soaked, but our spirits were still high :) We took some pics and then headed to BWI. I changed jeans in the car on the way there, hoping we wouldn't get stopped by the po-lice. We made it without much fanfare.
In the end, it was a glorious weekend with my best friend and I wouldn't have spent it any other way!
Thanks so much Jen, love you!
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
D-U-N
Done.
That's right ladies and gentlemen, I turned in my final project for my class today! No more Matlab, no more books. No more orbits, long forsook!
Okay, that was a stretch but I don't care. Yippee! The end of this class (assuming I pass) marks the halfway point of my degree. Well I guess since it's an odd number of classes required and if you're being technical, I'll be over the halfway mark after this summer's class, which starts early July. Come Fall I'll be over the hump and on the downward slope of my Master's degree. When will I be done, you may ask? Why if all goes well, Fall 2009 will be my last class. So, about a year and a half left. Tallyho! END IN SIGHT!
To make things even better for me - yes, I had a good day today - I'm going to visit my BFF Jenny T. tomorrow and I can't wait. D.C., here I come! Probably rainy, but super fun. I get in late Thursday and return home late Sunday night. Monday brings a week filled with some quality jury duty selection time and then the week is booked with fun work meetings and so on...
but for now I choose to focus on the really great parts coming up - D.C., Jenny, seeing Shar-lez (yes, Charlie) for the first time in a couple weeks, not having homework or studying for 2 months. Oh yeah...can you feel it too? Good times!
That is all.
As you were.
That's right ladies and gentlemen, I turned in my final project for my class today! No more Matlab, no more books. No more orbits, long forsook!
Okay, that was a stretch but I don't care. Yippee! The end of this class (assuming I pass) marks the halfway point of my degree. Well I guess since it's an odd number of classes required and if you're being technical, I'll be over the halfway mark after this summer's class, which starts early July. Come Fall I'll be over the hump and on the downward slope of my Master's degree. When will I be done, you may ask? Why if all goes well, Fall 2009 will be my last class. So, about a year and a half left. Tallyho! END IN SIGHT!
To make things even better for me - yes, I had a good day today - I'm going to visit my BFF Jenny T. tomorrow and I can't wait. D.C., here I come! Probably rainy, but super fun. I get in late Thursday and return home late Sunday night. Monday brings a week filled with some quality jury duty selection time and then the week is booked with fun work meetings and so on...
but for now I choose to focus on the really great parts coming up - D.C., Jenny, seeing Shar-lez (yes, Charlie) for the first time in a couple weeks, not having homework or studying for 2 months. Oh yeah...can you feel it too? Good times!
That is all.
As you were.
Monday, April 28, 2008
Coding Coding Coding...
...Keep those fingers coding.
Thank god my partner's co-diiiiiiiiing
FI-NUUUUUUUUUUUUHLS!
Code 'em up, type 'em in!
Type 'em in, spit 'em out!
Code 'em up, type 'em in
MATLAB!
Error 1, error 2!
Error 2, error 3!
Pull my hair, every error!
MATLAB!
Coding coding coding!
Keep those fingers coding!
Thank god my partner's co-diiiiiiiiing
FI-NUUUUUUUUUUUUHLS!
Thank god my partner's co-diiiiiiiiing
FI-NUUUUUUUUUUUUHLS!
Code 'em up, type 'em in!
Type 'em in, spit 'em out!
Code 'em up, type 'em in
MATLAB!
Error 1, error 2!
Error 2, error 3!
Pull my hair, every error!
MATLAB!
Coding coding coding!
Keep those fingers coding!
Thank god my partner's co-diiiiiiiiing
FI-NUUUUUUUUUUUUHLS!
Sunday, April 27, 2008
Election Hoo-Ha
I am not known for my depth of knowledge in all things political. In any "things political" actually. Charlie has been trying to remedy this ever since we met. I now vote in every election (except the ones I miss) for everything. Well, maybe against some things too, but you get the point. I have made a conscious effort to disregard all things 2008 Presidential Election-y until recently, since the past year of campaigning has worn on me in its ridiculousness. Has it even been a whole year of campaigning yet? I don't know, but it seems like 10 if it's been 1, so either way, it's been too long already.
I only bring it up now because we're coming down to the wire for Democratic candidates and it might be time to pay a little attention. I stopped paying attention to the Republican candidate mess as soon as everyone else dropped out of the race, leaving a lone McCain.
In an effort to "pay attention" to this thing called politics, I watched one of the recent debates on television. It might have been the first debate I have ever seen in my 29 years of living. It might also have been my last, but that's debatable (pun intended). What silly questions they ask! Who cares why Barak Obama doesn't wear a flag pin? It's like asking why he doesn't wear pleated pants. Totally irrelevant to any kind of issue America should care about and certainly not worth wasting air time but more importantly, MY TIME, on. I find it interesting and a lot of times disheartening the things candidates will do to garner attention - the recent WWE ads in particular. Sure, it might show they aren't such stuffed shirts after all, but c'mon. "Can you smell what Barak is cookin'?" Ouch. Clever, yes. I have to admit that I laughed at it. But really? Wasted campaign funds and precious campaign time spent on something so silly.
Anyway, I didn't write this for any particular reason. Just some thoughts going on in my head about the campaigning right now.
Oh yeah, one more thing: Charlie has gotten me into watching The Daily Show and the Colbert Report. I love it. If you know either of our personalities, you will understand why we like those shows so much. Especially the Colbert Report...and that damn screaming eagle. It gets me every time.
I only bring it up now because we're coming down to the wire for Democratic candidates and it might be time to pay a little attention. I stopped paying attention to the Republican candidate mess as soon as everyone else dropped out of the race, leaving a lone McCain.
In an effort to "pay attention" to this thing called politics, I watched one of the recent debates on television. It might have been the first debate I have ever seen in my 29 years of living. It might also have been my last, but that's debatable (pun intended). What silly questions they ask! Who cares why Barak Obama doesn't wear a flag pin? It's like asking why he doesn't wear pleated pants. Totally irrelevant to any kind of issue America should care about and certainly not worth wasting air time but more importantly, MY TIME, on. I find it interesting and a lot of times disheartening the things candidates will do to garner attention - the recent WWE ads in particular. Sure, it might show they aren't such stuffed shirts after all, but c'mon. "Can you smell what Barak is cookin'?" Ouch. Clever, yes. I have to admit that I laughed at it. But really? Wasted campaign funds and precious campaign time spent on something so silly.
Anyway, I didn't write this for any particular reason. Just some thoughts going on in my head about the campaigning right now.
Oh yeah, one more thing: Charlie has gotten me into watching The Daily Show and the Colbert Report. I love it. If you know either of our personalities, you will understand why we like those shows so much. Especially the Colbert Report...and that damn screaming eagle. It gets me every time.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)