OK. Hannah's Hawai`i vacation contest: Who can guess what body part I forgot to put sunscreen on my first day here and now is crazy red-purple? I'll randomly choose a winner from the correct guesses. Winner gets a present from Maui.
(also doing this on f-book)
Showing posts with label travel. Show all posts
Showing posts with label travel. Show all posts
Thursday, April 23, 2009
Hawai`i Day 2
Yesterday definitely felt like vacation. Quick recap: I took the city bus down the road a few miles to meet Nickolai and Jenny for brunch at Da Kitchen, a restaurant that has pretty yummy Hawaiian food. It was so awesome to see friends from back home (weird... i guess "back home #2") in Hawai`i! Turns out they were here for the same reason I am: they wanted to visit for cheap before moving to the east coast. So cool. After our meal they left for the airport even though I tried to convince them to skip their flight and stay for a few more days. :) [Jenny gave me a gift too! Stedman's Medical Dictionary, a book she was given her first year of med school. So sweet.] 
I walked across the road from Da Kitchen to Kamaole Beach 1. It was so beautiful!!! (again, pictures to come.) I laid out for a little, waded in the water a little, and then started making my way back up S. Kihei Drive towards M's house. On the way I stopped at Starbucks (ha! Starbucks Maui), Shaka Pizza, and several open-air markets. By the time I got back home it was afternoon (that was the goal... didn't want to lay out during prime sun hours and get scorched my first day.) so I dropped off some of the heavier items I was carrying, grabbed a beach mat, and went across the street to a different beach. And what to my wondering eyes did appear but dozens of hot men in water sport gear! There were guys windsurfing, and also kitesurfing, which I had never seen before, but was sooo amazing! There were a couple guys out there who got so much air they would fly for maybe 20 seconds. Crazy! I mean, haven't you always wanted to fly? To be picked up by your kite or umbrella Mary Poppins style and just float with the breeze? These guys were doing that! (and they were hot.) 
Marianne met me at that beach when she got off work and we sat around a bit and then left to meet her nieces at a hula. Let me just say, I wish I could shake my hips like that. Again, crazy.
So, that's about it. Today I'm adventuring with M's friend Eddy (kayaking? snorkeling? not sure, but I'll report later!)
I walked across the road from Da Kitchen to Kamaole Beach 1. It was so beautiful!!! (again, pictures to come.) I laid out for a little, waded in the water a little, and then started making my way back up S. Kihei Drive towards M's house. On the way I stopped at Starbucks (ha! Starbucks Maui), Shaka Pizza, and several open-air markets. By the time I got back home it was afternoon (that was the goal... didn't want to lay out during prime sun hours and get scorched my first day.) so I dropped off some of the heavier items I was carrying, grabbed a beach mat, and went across the street to a different beach. And what to my wondering eyes did appear but dozens of hot men in water sport gear! There were guys windsurfing, and also kitesurfing, which I had never seen before, but was sooo amazing! There were a couple guys out there who got so much air they would fly for maybe 20 seconds. Crazy! I mean, haven't you always wanted to fly? To be picked up by your kite or umbrella Mary Poppins style and just float with the breeze? These guys were doing that! (and they were hot.) 
Marianne met me at that beach when she got off work and we sat around a bit and then left to meet her nieces at a hula. Let me just say, I wish I could shake my hips like that. Again, crazy. So, that's about it. Today I'm adventuring with M's friend Eddy (kayaking? snorkeling? not sure, but I'll report later!)
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Hawai`i Day 1
I just woke up all groggy from jet lag and sinus pressure and I was feeling a little hungover, despite not having anything last night to make me feel that way. And then... I remembered... I'm in Hawaii!!! I'm not going to spend much time blogging because I just must get outside as soon as possible, but I wanted to update.
I got in last night around 6pm and Marianne met me at the airport with a beautiful (real!) lei. So cool. [The flight was a good balance between great and horrible. I sat with a normal girl about my age coming to visit her friend. The middle seat between us was empty so we got to put our purses there and sit in more comfortable positions. And there were two little kids behind us who screamed the whole time and kicked our seats for 6 hours)
We first went to Marianne's house where she lives with her sister to drop off a couple things, and then up the road to Kalama Beach Park to meet Marianne's friends Sami and Saul who are young travelers who currently live in their truck at the beach. They were there, along with a few other folks, and soon we all walked down towards the water and started a drum circle. It was great.
After jamming at the drum circle, M and I went to go visit her friend Eddy who lives in "the box" as M's sister calls it, or "the bungalo" as I call it. I forget the Hawaiian name, but basically land and property is so expensive that people rent out these great little baby houses in their back yards (like these tiny homes.) Ed has kayaks. :) woot.
That' all for now, I've gotta get outside!
Meeting my friends Nicolai and Jenny for bruch at 11. So cool.
I got in last night around 6pm and Marianne met me at the airport with a beautiful (real!) lei. So cool. [The flight was a good balance between great and horrible. I sat with a normal girl about my age coming to visit her friend. The middle seat between us was empty so we got to put our purses there and sit in more comfortable positions. And there were two little kids behind us who screamed the whole time and kicked our seats for 6 hours)
We first went to Marianne's house where she lives with her sister to drop off a couple things, and then up the road to Kalama Beach Park to meet Marianne's friends Sami and Saul who are young travelers who currently live in their truck at the beach. They were there, along with a few other folks, and soon we all walked down towards the water and started a drum circle. It was great.
After jamming at the drum circle, M and I went to go visit her friend Eddy who lives in "the box" as M's sister calls it, or "the bungalo" as I call it. I forget the Hawaiian name, but basically land and property is so expensive that people rent out these great little baby houses in their back yards (like these tiny homes.) Ed has kayaks. :) woot.
That' all for now, I've gotta get outside!
Meeting my friends Nicolai and Jenny for bruch at 11. So cool.
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Friday, February 6, 2009
Women's Retreat
I'm leaving today for a weekend retreat with the ladies of Soma. I'm very much looking forward to a relaxing weekend the ocean, especially because the theme of the retreat is "Her Joy: intimacy with God." This coincides perfectly with my theme for the year: be happy/have fun (joy), and grow in relationship with God. :)
On my igoogle homepage I have an application called 'Reminders from God.' Today's says, "Have no fear. Joy- radiant joy must be yours. Change disappointment to joy."
I'm taking my kite.
And this book.
If you're the praying type, feel free to send out a few for the women who will be gathered this weekend.
Saturday, December 27, 2008
TGHCF2008
I'd have to say that "The Getting Home for Christmas Fiasco of 2008" was well worth it... I have been having such a great time with my family and friends!
So here's the rundown of what happened:
I was scheduled to fly out of Seattle at 6:15 on Monday morning. Kohl's had scheduled me to work from 3pm til midnight, and that sounded awful since I would have to leave home to head to the airport around 3:30am. A co-worker offered to switch shifts with me, so I ended up working noon to 6pm. When I got off work I was filled with excitement and ready to go home and finish packing. Then I listened to my voicemail... a message from Southwest saying that my flight was canceled. I pretty much immediately started crying because I had sort of been anticipating that and just hoping and praying that everything would go as planned. The weather in western Washington was really bad and totally unusual, so roads and airports were just closing down.
I went home and called Southwest and they said the soonest flight they could put me on would get me to Buffalo around 4pm on Christmas. Since that would be totally pointless because I'd miss all of my family's Christmas festivities, I decided the best option would be to fly standby.
There were 3 flights headed to Buffalo that were going out on Tuesday. One at 6:10am had a layover in Vegas, the 6:15 was going through Chicago midway (my original itinerary) and another at 12:40 was going through Chicago as well. My friend Brandon and his wife Stacey invited me over to dinner on Monday, then I took a nap from 9-11pm, and then Brandon took me to the airport so I would be more likely to get on one of those flights.
The ticket counter ended up being closed when I got to SeaTac, so I joined a few other people and sprawled out on the floor in line. I happened to sit next to two guys who were having some travel problems of their own, and were trying to get home to Pittsburgh. I let them know that if they had more luck getting on a flight to Buffalo, I could at least give them a ride to Erie. By the time the ticket counter opened at 4am there was a huge line of people and I was near the front.
When I talked to the lady at the ticket counter, I asked her which flight she thought I should take, because I was afraid that if I went through Chicago I would get stuck there with the weather. She looked to see if there were delays and said everything looked alright and encouraged me to take the Seattle-Chicago-Buffalo flight because at least if I got stuck in Chicago I'd be closer to home and not still on the west coast. I took her advice, put myself on the standby list, and hoped for the best. My Pittsburgh-bound friends (Ross and Joel) were trying to get on the same flight to Chicago, so we waited anxiously and cheered for each other as we heard all of our names called!
The flight to Chicago was pretty much uneventful. The flight attendants gave us lots of free snacks and drinks, and I sat next to a man who ranked about a 7 out of 10 on the creepy old man scale. I listened to Canopy Glow a couple times and brushed my teeth in the lavatory. As I was coming out of the bathroom, the pilot announced the news: the weather in Chicago was too bad, and we were being rerouted to St. Louis. I have to admit, I cried again. I couldn't help it, the tears just snuck right out.
We landed in St. Louis and the passengers for whom St. Louis was their final destination were allowed off the plane. The rest of us just sat and waited. We refueled. And then the pilot announced that the weather was clearing and we were going to head to Chicago after all. Ross and I talked about renting a car and driving the rest of the way home, but after we got into Midway, I went quickly to my gate and lost my Pittsburgh friends. :-(
When I got to my gate, can you imagine what I found?? That my flight was delayed because no one was flying in or out of Chicago midway. And that the plane I was supposed to get on was in St. Louis!!! There was talk of the flight being canceled. Snippets of conversations were overheard and passed down the line that if the plane didn't get to Chicago by 6, it wouldn't depart that night. More talk about renting a car and making the trip with like-minded strangers. When the plane finally arrived around 8pm, everyone was on edge. I was especially so because not only was it up in the air as to whether or not the plane would even depart, but I had no idea if I would even get on! There were 4 different ladies working at the counter, and I waited in line 4 times so that I could verify with each of them that I was on the stand by list.
Finally, finally, the flight began boarding about 7 hours late. I wrung my hands. There was nothing I could do but wait. I stood by the counter, waiting to hear my name and receive a boarding pass. The lady called out 3 names, not mine. I moved closer to the counter, hoping that they wouldn't show. Then a family approached the counter; a mom, dad, little girl and little baby. Ticket lady checked her computer, then looked back at the family. "This says two infants on here, but you just have one right?" The family confirmed... yes, only one. "OK, let me take that off there," ticket lady says. I jumped in, "I'll take that seat!" Ticket lady laughed at me and said, "it's not a seat, it's an infant. Do you want to sit on their laps?" "Yes! We'll switch. I'll sit on their laps, they'll sit on mine, it'll be fine!" She printed out their boarding passes and looked at me. I looked her in the eye and said, "I need to get on this flight. My flight was canceled yesterday. I've been in an airport since yesterday. I can't do it anymore. I need to get home. If you get me on this flight, I'll kiss your face!" She laughed and turned the computer screen to show me what she was doing. "I'll have to take someone off," and she clicks around a little. I kissed her cheek. Then she pointed to a list of names, with mine at the top. "When your name disappears, it means you're on." We waited. Stared. Didn't breathe. And then, kapoof! My name was gone! I grabbed her head and kissed her cheek. Four times. I might have told her that I loved her. Then she printed out my pass and I got in line!
My dad picked me up in Buffalo and I was home by 1am. All day I had been praying, "Jesus, just get me home tonight!" And boy, was my prayer answered!
So here's the rundown of what happened:
I was scheduled to fly out of Seattle at 6:15 on Monday morning. Kohl's had scheduled me to work from 3pm til midnight, and that sounded awful since I would have to leave home to head to the airport around 3:30am. A co-worker offered to switch shifts with me, so I ended up working noon to 6pm. When I got off work I was filled with excitement and ready to go home and finish packing. Then I listened to my voicemail... a message from Southwest saying that my flight was canceled. I pretty much immediately started crying because I had sort of been anticipating that and just hoping and praying that everything would go as planned. The weather in western Washington was really bad and totally unusual, so roads and airports were just closing down.
I went home and called Southwest and they said the soonest flight they could put me on would get me to Buffalo around 4pm on Christmas. Since that would be totally pointless because I'd miss all of my family's Christmas festivities, I decided the best option would be to fly standby.
There were 3 flights headed to Buffalo that were going out on Tuesday. One at 6:10am had a layover in Vegas, the 6:15 was going through Chicago midway (my original itinerary) and another at 12:40 was going through Chicago as well. My friend Brandon and his wife Stacey invited me over to dinner on Monday, then I took a nap from 9-11pm, and then Brandon took me to the airport so I would be more likely to get on one of those flights.
The ticket counter ended up being closed when I got to SeaTac, so I joined a few other people and sprawled out on the floor in line. I happened to sit next to two guys who were having some travel problems of their own, and were trying to get home to Pittsburgh. I let them know that if they had more luck getting on a flight to Buffalo, I could at least give them a ride to Erie. By the time the ticket counter opened at 4am there was a huge line of people and I was near the front.
When I talked to the lady at the ticket counter, I asked her which flight she thought I should take, because I was afraid that if I went through Chicago I would get stuck there with the weather. She looked to see if there were delays and said everything looked alright and encouraged me to take the Seattle-Chicago-Buffalo flight because at least if I got stuck in Chicago I'd be closer to home and not still on the west coast. I took her advice, put myself on the standby list, and hoped for the best. My Pittsburgh-bound friends (Ross and Joel) were trying to get on the same flight to Chicago, so we waited anxiously and cheered for each other as we heard all of our names called!
The flight to Chicago was pretty much uneventful. The flight attendants gave us lots of free snacks and drinks, and I sat next to a man who ranked about a 7 out of 10 on the creepy old man scale. I listened to Canopy Glow a couple times and brushed my teeth in the lavatory. As I was coming out of the bathroom, the pilot announced the news: the weather in Chicago was too bad, and we were being rerouted to St. Louis. I have to admit, I cried again. I couldn't help it, the tears just snuck right out.
We landed in St. Louis and the passengers for whom St. Louis was their final destination were allowed off the plane. The rest of us just sat and waited. We refueled. And then the pilot announced that the weather was clearing and we were going to head to Chicago after all. Ross and I talked about renting a car and driving the rest of the way home, but after we got into Midway, I went quickly to my gate and lost my Pittsburgh friends. :-(
When I got to my gate, can you imagine what I found?? That my flight was delayed because no one was flying in or out of Chicago midway. And that the plane I was supposed to get on was in St. Louis!!! There was talk of the flight being canceled. Snippets of conversations were overheard and passed down the line that if the plane didn't get to Chicago by 6, it wouldn't depart that night. More talk about renting a car and making the trip with like-minded strangers. When the plane finally arrived around 8pm, everyone was on edge. I was especially so because not only was it up in the air as to whether or not the plane would even depart, but I had no idea if I would even get on! There were 4 different ladies working at the counter, and I waited in line 4 times so that I could verify with each of them that I was on the stand by list.
Finally, finally, the flight began boarding about 7 hours late. I wrung my hands. There was nothing I could do but wait. I stood by the counter, waiting to hear my name and receive a boarding pass. The lady called out 3 names, not mine. I moved closer to the counter, hoping that they wouldn't show. Then a family approached the counter; a mom, dad, little girl and little baby. Ticket lady checked her computer, then looked back at the family. "This says two infants on here, but you just have one right?" The family confirmed... yes, only one. "OK, let me take that off there," ticket lady says. I jumped in, "I'll take that seat!" Ticket lady laughed at me and said, "it's not a seat, it's an infant. Do you want to sit on their laps?" "Yes! We'll switch. I'll sit on their laps, they'll sit on mine, it'll be fine!" She printed out their boarding passes and looked at me. I looked her in the eye and said, "I need to get on this flight. My flight was canceled yesterday. I've been in an airport since yesterday. I can't do it anymore. I need to get home. If you get me on this flight, I'll kiss your face!" She laughed and turned the computer screen to show me what she was doing. "I'll have to take someone off," and she clicks around a little. I kissed her cheek. Then she pointed to a list of names, with mine at the top. "When your name disappears, it means you're on." We waited. Stared. Didn't breathe. And then, kapoof! My name was gone! I grabbed her head and kissed her cheek. Four times. I might have told her that I loved her. Then she printed out my pass and I got in line!
My dad picked me up in Buffalo and I was home by 1am. All day I had been praying, "Jesus, just get me home tonight!" And boy, was my prayer answered!
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
HOME!
Oh my gosh, I'm home. I pretty much just walked in the door, but I'll recount the story later since I've been up since yesterday morning.
Thanks for the thoughts and prayers, God was definitely at work today!
Thanks for the thoughts and prayers, God was definitely at work today!
Monday, December 22, 2008
Sunday, December 21, 2008
Suck ass
I'm on hold with Southwest Airlines right now. And probably will be for the remainder of the night. Because my flight for tomorrow morning is canceled. *insert a picture of me crying*
The weather here is pretty wintery (if you're one of my PA friends or you know what "lake effect snow warning" means, just picture that.) The issue is that it doesn't ever snow like this here, or hasn't in the past 20 years at least, and no one is prepared to deal with the weather. At home this amount of snow wouldn't be a problem... all the streets would be plowed and salted and life would go on, but here, I literally have not seen a plow. "Plow" and "salt" really aren't even in the vocabulary, but "tire chains" is. Basically if you want to drive, you have to put chains on your car. I haven't because I guess I'm stubborn, and I just cannot believe this is how people deal with snow! (... not to mention that I'm borrowing a friend's car!)
So anyway, I'm hoping to get home before Christmas. I was OK with the possibility of staying here for Christmas, but after I found out that I would be able to go home I got excited! Now I'm reaaalllllllllyyyyyyy looking forward to seeing everyone because we already made plans!
Ugh.
I'll let you know what happens.
The weather here is pretty wintery (if you're one of my PA friends or you know what "lake effect snow warning" means, just picture that.) The issue is that it doesn't ever snow like this here, or hasn't in the past 20 years at least, and no one is prepared to deal with the weather. At home this amount of snow wouldn't be a problem... all the streets would be plowed and salted and life would go on, but here, I literally have not seen a plow. "Plow" and "salt" really aren't even in the vocabulary, but "tire chains" is. Basically if you want to drive, you have to put chains on your car. I haven't because I guess I'm stubborn, and I just cannot believe this is how people deal with snow! (... not to mention that I'm borrowing a friend's car!)
So anyway, I'm hoping to get home before Christmas. I was OK with the possibility of staying here for Christmas, but after I found out that I would be able to go home I got excited! Now I'm reaaalllllllllyyyyyyy looking forward to seeing everyone because we already made plans!
Ugh.
I'll let you know what happens.
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Good news!
Exciting news:
I got a new phone! Markus' phone died while he was at work on Saturday, so when he came home, we went to the Verizon store to get him a new one. We were both eligible for a 'new every two' upgrade, so I figured, "Hey, why not?!" With the discount thing it ended up being only about $20 and the phone I was using was a free one that I got this fall because my other phone broke, so it was a little crappy thing. This isn't as irresponsible as it may seem because Markus and I are planning on combining our plans here sometime soon, and once that happens, I will no longer be eligible for an upgrade.
Excitinger news:
We're going on a great honeymoon!!! My cousin Keri offered us her time share awhile ago, but we couldn't find anything open for the week after our wedding. There were some availabilities in October and November, but Markus is going to have to do a couple weeks of field training then, and the dates aren't set yet, so that wouldn't have worked. Well, anyway, for the past few days I've been searching, searching, searching, and actually found a few resorts in various locations that were open! Last night I called Keri and she went through the whole 'exchange' process online, and bam! We're going to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico!!
Markus and I are both a little apprehensive... we've never vacationed in Mexico before! Eak! How much will things cost? Will getting around be easy? What sorts of things can we do that won't break the bank?
But we're also sooo excited!! This is going to be such a picture-perfect honeymoon! Our resort is on the very tip of the peninsula, rather than the Pacific Ocean side, which means we'll be able to swim at the beaches. This is going to be grrrrrrrrrrrrreat!
I got a new phone! Markus' phone died while he was at work on Saturday, so when he came home, we went to the Verizon store to get him a new one. We were both eligible for a 'new every two' upgrade, so I figured, "Hey, why not?!" With the discount thing it ended up being only about $20 and the phone I was using was a free one that I got this fall because my other phone broke, so it was a little crappy thing. This isn't as irresponsible as it may seem because Markus and I are planning on combining our plans here sometime soon, and once that happens, I will no longer be eligible for an upgrade.
Excitinger news:
We're going on a great honeymoon!!! My cousin Keri offered us her time share awhile ago, but we couldn't find anything open for the week after our wedding. There were some availabilities in October and November, but Markus is going to have to do a couple weeks of field training then, and the dates aren't set yet, so that wouldn't have worked. Well, anyway, for the past few days I've been searching, searching, searching, and actually found a few resorts in various locations that were open! Last night I called Keri and she went through the whole 'exchange' process online, and bam! We're going to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico!!
Markus and I are both a little apprehensive... we've never vacationed in Mexico before! Eak! How much will things cost? Will getting around be easy? What sorts of things can we do that won't break the bank?
But we're also sooo excited!! This is going to be such a picture-perfect honeymoon! Our resort is on the very tip of the peninsula, rather than the Pacific Ocean side, which means we'll be able to swim at the beaches. This is going to be grrrrrrrrrrrrreat!
Monday, May 19, 2008
Weekend update
Long, but somewhat entertaining. Or at least informative.
Oh, it was such a good weekend!
Markus didn't have to work Friday, so we decided to go on a little road trip around the Olympic Peninsula. .. But first(!!!) we went to The Sherwood Press (2 links there) and met with Jami to talk about doing our invitations. I had some ideas, but needed help with the design, and she came up with a really brilliant and beautiful idea. I am so excited. Seriously. I cannot even describe how much I love paper and letterpress and great designs. When we were done with the consultation (I wouldn't really call it that... it was just so casual and fun), I didn't want to leave! The press is in this tiny little cottage, and there was just so much to look at. Jami saw my interest and offered to show us how the press works (and sounds). Again, just amazing. I felt like a little kid watching that machine, filled with awe and wonder. I wish you could hear the noise it makes... it's like a train almost. Clunk, clunk, cshhhh, clunk, clunk, cshhhh. Sometimes I think that I'll be a midwife with a paper/card business on the side. When I am some sort of professional, I'm definitely having Jami make my business cards. Oh man.
The Olympic Peninsula
OK, so, anyway, we were at the Sherwood Press for about an hour and a half, and then set off on our trip. We got started a little later than optimal, but it was still a great time. The drive was beautiful. There were unbelievable views of the mountains and ocean/bay/straits almost the whole time. We have a limited number of good photos since, well, taking pictures from a moving car never really is the best way to go.
We stopped in super-cute Port Townsend and explored a little bit, then drove on through Port Angeles and stopped for dinner in Forks.
Crescent Lake
Yes, I'm wearing denim overalls. I got them at Goodwill a couple weeks ago!
Because we got a late start, we stopped less than we had planned so that we could make it to the beach before sunset. When we got to Kalaloch, though, we were a little disappointed. Or maybe it was just me. But it was really foggy, and the beach wasn't very nice, and to be honest, I was scared. I don't know why... I've never been scared of the ocean before, but I also am more familiar with the Atlantic. The late sun, the dense fog, and the deafening roar of the ocean, not to mention the "Tsunami Hazard Zone" signs... it just wasn't the cozy beach atmosphere that I was
hoping for.
Creepy bird on the creepy beach
Um. OK.
Saturday was way more relaxed, and we mostly just worked on getting the apartment organized. Markus worked really hard and put away everything from the boxes that came while he was training in Yakima, so now our spare room is clean and open! I worked on de-cluttering the living room and kitchen, and we finally hung up all of our pictures and tapestries! Woo hoo! Oh, and you know what I haven't mentioned?? That from Thursday-Sunday the weather was pretty much amazing. There was actually a weather advisory for "above normal temperatures"! On the weekend we were well into the 80's! We sat down on our dock and put our feet in the water, then I decided it would be a good idea to try to dip myself in a little bit! Hahaha. I guess I forgot that I'm a little weakling. I slid in to the water with my back facing the dock, and then, oops, couldn't push myself back up! So Markus had to pull me up by my arms!! I think it must have been the summery weather, but this weekend really made me feel more like a kid: fun and curious. This, I think, is a good thing. I have been far too serious lately.
Sunday was pretty typical, which means "pretty great." We went to the early service at church and Amy preached a really unique and touching message on racism. And the trinity. She used a technique from InterPlay called DT3, or dance, talk, dance, talk, dance, talk, explaining that what she wanted to communicate wasn't expressible only through words. It was a beautiful experience.
After church we went to the Olympia Mahayana Buddhist Center. We have dropped in a couple times on their coffee hour and Markus wanted to go to a service. Yesterday was the last in a series of teachings on meditation, and both of us really enjoyed it. Jindak proved to be an entertaining and helpful teacher, and guided us to a meditation on the kindness we experience every day. We were to think about some kindness that was done to us, something that made our life better, no matter what the intention of the person who did it, and hold that feeling. I actually meditated on the feeling I received when I picked up my books from the library that I had requested on interlibrary loan. I have been wanting to blog about this, but just keep forgetting. This entry is getting too long, so I'll do it soon, now that I have a written reminder. The purpose of meditating on kindness is so that you will 'change the flavor of your mind', and be able to see kindness in every day. Basically the same as keeping a gratitude journal. The more you look for the gifts in your life, the more they will be revealed to you. Mmmm.
My favorite thing about yesterday was finally buying a tomato plant from the farmer's market! I had already planted some herbs, leaf lettuce, and flowers, but I've just been so anxious for this dang tomato plant! I love, love, love planting my little pots. Someday when we have a house we'll have a little garden. I cannot imagine life without a garden. Yesterday Markus asked me how tall the tomato plant will get and I estimated, showing him with my hands, "this high." He doubted me. And I said, "Dude, I grew up in a garden. Don't doubt." :)
My modest little "garden"
OK, I have a ton of errands to do today, so I better get my butt off this chair and into the shower.
Have a great day, everyone.
Oh, it was such a good weekend!
Markus didn't have to work Friday, so we decided to go on a little road trip around the Olympic Peninsula. .. But first(!!!) we went to The Sherwood Press (2 links there) and met with Jami to talk about doing our invitations. I had some ideas, but needed help with the design, and she came up with a really brilliant and beautiful idea. I am so excited. Seriously. I cannot even describe how much I love paper and letterpress and great designs. When we were done with the consultation (I wouldn't really call it that... it was just so casual and fun), I didn't want to leave! The press is in this tiny little cottage, and there was just so much to look at. Jami saw my interest and offered to show us how the press works (and sounds). Again, just amazing. I felt like a little kid watching that machine, filled with awe and wonder. I wish you could hear the noise it makes... it's like a train almost. Clunk, clunk, cshhhh, clunk, clunk, cshhhh. Sometimes I think that I'll be a midwife with a paper/card business on the side. When I am some sort of professional, I'm definitely having Jami make my business cards. Oh man.
The Olympic Peninsula
OK, so, anyway, we were at the Sherwood Press for about an hour and a half, and then set off on our trip. We got started a little later than optimal, but it was still a great time. The drive was beautiful. There were unbelievable views of the mountains and ocean/bay/straits almost the whole time. We have a limited number of good photos since, well, taking pictures from a moving car never really is the best way to go.
We stopped in super-cute Port Townsend and explored a little bit, then drove on through Port Angeles and stopped for dinner in Forks.
Crescent Lake
Yes, I'm wearing denim overalls. I got them at Goodwill a couple weeks ago!
Because we got a late start, we stopped less than we had planned so that we could make it to the beach before sunset. When we got to Kalaloch, though, we were a little disappointed. Or maybe it was just me. But it was really foggy, and the beach wasn't very nice, and to be honest, I was scared. I don't know why... I've never been scared of the ocean before, but I also am more familiar with the Atlantic. The late sun, the dense fog, and the deafening roar of the ocean, not to mention the "Tsunami Hazard Zone" signs... it just wasn't the cozy beach atmosphere that I was
hoping for.
Creepy bird on the creepy beach
Um. OK.
Saturday was way more relaxed, and we mostly just worked on getting the apartment organized. Markus worked really hard and put away everything from the boxes that came while he was training in Yakima, so now our spare room is clean and open! I worked on de-cluttering the living room and kitchen, and we finally hung up all of our pictures and tapestries! Woo hoo! Oh, and you know what I haven't mentioned?? That from Thursday-Sunday the weather was pretty much amazing. There was actually a weather advisory for "above normal temperatures"! On the weekend we were well into the 80's! We sat down on our dock and put our feet in the water, then I decided it would be a good idea to try to dip myself in a little bit! Hahaha. I guess I forgot that I'm a little weakling. I slid in to the water with my back facing the dock, and then, oops, couldn't push myself back up! So Markus had to pull me up by my arms!! I think it must have been the summery weather, but this weekend really made me feel more like a kid: fun and curious. This, I think, is a good thing. I have been far too serious lately.
Sunday was pretty typical, which means "pretty great." We went to the early service at church and Amy preached a really unique and touching message on racism. And the trinity. She used a technique from InterPlay called DT3, or dance, talk, dance, talk, dance, talk, explaining that what she wanted to communicate wasn't expressible only through words. It was a beautiful experience.
After church we went to the Olympia Mahayana Buddhist Center. We have dropped in a couple times on their coffee hour and Markus wanted to go to a service. Yesterday was the last in a series of teachings on meditation, and both of us really enjoyed it. Jindak proved to be an entertaining and helpful teacher, and guided us to a meditation on the kindness we experience every day. We were to think about some kindness that was done to us, something that made our life better, no matter what the intention of the person who did it, and hold that feeling. I actually meditated on the feeling I received when I picked up my books from the library that I had requested on interlibrary loan. I have been wanting to blog about this, but just keep forgetting. This entry is getting too long, so I'll do it soon, now that I have a written reminder. The purpose of meditating on kindness is so that you will 'change the flavor of your mind', and be able to see kindness in every day. Basically the same as keeping a gratitude journal. The more you look for the gifts in your life, the more they will be revealed to you. Mmmm.
My favorite thing about yesterday was finally buying a tomato plant from the farmer's market! I had already planted some herbs, leaf lettuce, and flowers, but I've just been so anxious for this dang tomato plant! I love, love, love planting my little pots. Someday when we have a house we'll have a little garden. I cannot imagine life without a garden. Yesterday Markus asked me how tall the tomato plant will get and I estimated, showing him with my hands, "this high." He doubted me. And I said, "Dude, I grew up in a garden. Don't doubt." :)
My modest little "garden"
OK, I have a ton of errands to do today, so I better get my butt off this chair and into the shower.
Have a great day, everyone.
Wednesday, November 7, 2007
Saturday, May 19, 2007
What a vacation
I've been sort of internet-less for a few days, so I couldn't do as much blogging as I would have liked. Once an adventure is followed by another, it's really hard for me to write about the first.
But I'll give it a try.
Markus and I are currently on the second half of our vacation, spending time with Craig and Mary in Edmonton. As expected, it is a totally different vacation from our time in Vegas, but is also proving to be a good time. We've been resting a lot... I'm afraid I'm giving Craig and Mary the impression that I'm a big fat lazy person. I seriously haven't slept this much since Christmas break. We've been hanging out with C and M's friend Zach, who up until very recently worked at BioWare with them. What this basically means is that everyone around me is speaking nerd (this is their term, not mine) and I have no idea what's going on about 72% of the time. Seriously. It's a little bit hilarious. The only gaming system I've ever owed was the regular old Nintendo that gramma bought Chandra and I for Christmas when I was like... I have no idea... maybe 5? Today C and M are having friends over for dinner and afterwards we're having a giant Guitar Hero tournament. Markus just finished creating a bracket system on Excel. Tehehe. I love my nerdy boyfriend.
As far as the first half of our vacation goes, it was pretty awesome. We were so lucky to be staying with Dawn and Joey, because they really showed us things that we otherwise wouldn't have experienced. I've never really thought that those vacation guidebooks were necessary when going on vacation to a place where there is obviously tons of stuff to do, but I can definitely see now why people use them. If we didn't have Joey and Dawn, we would have just wandered around and spent a lot of money. I mean, spent a lot more money. Because a lot of money was definitely spent anyway. Yikes.
Joey works at Wynn and got us tickets to the two shows that are playing there right now. Sunday night we saw Le Reve, which was basically the most beautiful thing I've ever seen. It's totally inexplicable. Markus and I were trying to tell Craig and Mary about it and we were just babbling and throwing our hands around and giggling. Even someone who isn't impressed by art would be impressed by the feats of strength or the amazing set. I really can't convey how impressed I was. If you really care, ask me in person, and I'll try to babble a bit more to you.
Monday was Markus' and my anniversary, so we went to dinner at Tao and then to see Spamalot. Markus does a good job at describing these in his blog, so if you care, check it out.
Tuesday and Wednesday, Joey took Markus and I to Zion National Park. We went for 8-hour "hikes" on both days. The first day we hiked Subway, a trail that took us down a mountainside and into a canyon where the water had carved out a subway-looking tunnel through the rock. It was really neat to be so far down inside the rock, surrounded on all sides by giant walls of sandstone. That hike required a couple small rappels and a few swims through icy water.
The next day we hiked Mystery Canyon. For the first two or three hours of the hike, my mind kept replaying these words, "This is the worst day of my life. Why do people do this for fun? I hate Joey. This is the worst day of my life...." To get down into the canyon we had to climb down a steep forest-like cliff. Joey read the guidebook aloud before we began down the trail to make sure we were at the right place, "notice a fairly prominent trail that traverses to the right, going across a steep scree slope heading toward some thicker vegetation on the right and downhill. Be very slow and careful on this section of the trail. This is called Death Gully for a reason." Seriously people, from where we were standing, you could see about 2 feet of the trail, then it dropped off and disappeared. At this point I started crying. Not sobbing, just like, tears coming from my eyes because I wasn't going to see my mom again.
This hike had 12 rappels, two of which were about 150 feet. The first big rappel lowered us into what they call The Jungle, and it really was like paradise. After hiking hours and hours through rock and sand and sun, all of the sudden we were in a pool of clear blue-green water, surrounded by ferns growing on the walls of rock. It was at this point, about 5 hours into the hike that I really began to be okay. Before that, I truly couldn't figure out why anyone would do this, but then we were in such a beautiful place that other people will never see. Suddenly, I had my reason. The last rappel took us down into The Narrows, which anyone can access. As we rappelled 150 feet down a waterfall into the Virgin River people took pictures of us, and when we landed, they cheered! Hah. At that point, Markus and I high-fived and decided that we, most definitely, are some serious bad-asses.
Joey took lots of pictures of the hikes, I'll post them as soon as he send them to Markus. In the meantime, just use your imagination.
Oh. Important add-on: I don't actually hate Joey. I just thought I did during those first few hours of hoping that I was going to live to see the next day.
But I'll give it a try.
Markus and I are currently on the second half of our vacation, spending time with Craig and Mary in Edmonton. As expected, it is a totally different vacation from our time in Vegas, but is also proving to be a good time. We've been resting a lot... I'm afraid I'm giving Craig and Mary the impression that I'm a big fat lazy person. I seriously haven't slept this much since Christmas break. We've been hanging out with C and M's friend Zach, who up until very recently worked at BioWare with them. What this basically means is that everyone around me is speaking nerd (this is their term, not mine) and I have no idea what's going on about 72% of the time. Seriously. It's a little bit hilarious. The only gaming system I've ever owed was the regular old Nintendo that gramma bought Chandra and I for Christmas when I was like... I have no idea... maybe 5? Today C and M are having friends over for dinner and afterwards we're having a giant Guitar Hero tournament. Markus just finished creating a bracket system on Excel. Tehehe. I love my nerdy boyfriend.
As far as the first half of our vacation goes, it was pretty awesome. We were so lucky to be staying with Dawn and Joey, because they really showed us things that we otherwise wouldn't have experienced. I've never really thought that those vacation guidebooks were necessary when going on vacation to a place where there is obviously tons of stuff to do, but I can definitely see now why people use them. If we didn't have Joey and Dawn, we would have just wandered around and spent a lot of money. I mean, spent a lot more money. Because a lot of money was definitely spent anyway. Yikes.
Joey works at Wynn and got us tickets to the two shows that are playing there right now. Sunday night we saw Le Reve, which was basically the most beautiful thing I've ever seen. It's totally inexplicable. Markus and I were trying to tell Craig and Mary about it and we were just babbling and throwing our hands around and giggling. Even someone who isn't impressed by art would be impressed by the feats of strength or the amazing set. I really can't convey how impressed I was. If you really care, ask me in person, and I'll try to babble a bit more to you.
Monday was Markus' and my anniversary, so we went to dinner at Tao and then to see Spamalot. Markus does a good job at describing these in his blog, so if you care, check it out.
Tuesday and Wednesday, Joey took Markus and I to Zion National Park. We went for 8-hour "hikes" on both days. The first day we hiked Subway, a trail that took us down a mountainside and into a canyon where the water had carved out a subway-looking tunnel through the rock. It was really neat to be so far down inside the rock, surrounded on all sides by giant walls of sandstone. That hike required a couple small rappels and a few swims through icy water.
The next day we hiked Mystery Canyon. For the first two or three hours of the hike, my mind kept replaying these words, "This is the worst day of my life. Why do people do this for fun? I hate Joey. This is the worst day of my life...." To get down into the canyon we had to climb down a steep forest-like cliff. Joey read the guidebook aloud before we began down the trail to make sure we were at the right place, "notice a fairly prominent trail that traverses to the right, going across a steep scree slope heading toward some thicker vegetation on the right and downhill. Be very slow and careful on this section of the trail. This is called Death Gully for a reason." Seriously people, from where we were standing, you could see about 2 feet of the trail, then it dropped off and disappeared. At this point I started crying. Not sobbing, just like, tears coming from my eyes because I wasn't going to see my mom again.
This hike had 12 rappels, two of which were about 150 feet. The first big rappel lowered us into what they call The Jungle, and it really was like paradise. After hiking hours and hours through rock and sand and sun, all of the sudden we were in a pool of clear blue-green water, surrounded by ferns growing on the walls of rock. It was at this point, about 5 hours into the hike that I really began to be okay. Before that, I truly couldn't figure out why anyone would do this, but then we were in such a beautiful place that other people will never see. Suddenly, I had my reason. The last rappel took us down into The Narrows, which anyone can access. As we rappelled 150 feet down a waterfall into the Virgin River people took pictures of us, and when we landed, they cheered! Hah. At that point, Markus and I high-fived and decided that we, most definitely, are some serious bad-asses.
Joey took lots of pictures of the hikes, I'll post them as soon as he send them to Markus. In the meantime, just use your imagination.
Oh. Important add-on: I don't actually hate Joey. I just thought I did during those first few hours of hoping that I was going to live to see the next day.
Friday, May 11, 2007
Sweet summertime
I. am. on. vacation.
In Vegas.
With my sweet-ass boyfriend.
Mmmm yes.
And that's all I'm going to write right now because my sweet-ass boyfriend wants me to take a shower so we can go to dinner.
Well, really, he just wants to go to dinner. I want to take a shower. Being on an airplane for several hours makes me feel yucky.
In Vegas.
With my sweet-ass boyfriend.
Mmmm yes.
And that's all I'm going to write right now because my sweet-ass boyfriend wants me to take a shower so we can go to dinner.
Well, really, he just wants to go to dinner. I want to take a shower. Being on an airplane for several hours makes me feel yucky.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)