Judi's Journeys

I got the horrible news that one of James' best friends, Jay, was killed on Thursday in Iraq when an IED went off. Several guys in his patrol were severely injured but Jay was the only fatality. Jay had served his time in the Army and was already due to be discharged but his 2nd tour of duty in Iraq extended his time in the Army. A month ago he returned home to visit his family for 2 weeks on leave...I'm so glad he got to come home. No mother deserves to see that car drive up the driveway and see the men in uniform knock on her door. I weep for the young life lost...29 years young So full of life. I ache for the pain this causes his family and my love. James has lost one of his best friends. For the short time I knew Jay, I knew he was a great man...loyal to his friends and family, witty, charming. He will be missed.

"A golden heart stopped beating, hard working hands laid to rest.
God broke our hearts to prove to us, he only takes the best."

RIP Jason Vaughn 10/31/1977-5/10/2007
You will forever be in James and my heart

It seems that our society's never-ending need for technology, to be "wired", insures that I will always be able to find a job. :) The American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) issued a statement regarding "Blackberry Thumb", an overuse injury acquired from typing repetitvely with our thumbs to text and email on the high tech gadgets, a mini computer in your hand. It basically causes a tendinitis in the thumb and can aggravate arthritis. At least I get job security! Ha ha.
Check it out below.

SATURDAY, Sept. 9 (HealthDay News) -- You can now add "BlackBerry Thumb" to the list of workplace maladies, says the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA).

BlackBerry Thumb refers to an increasingly common, repetitive-stress injury stemming from use of the popular handheld electronic devices. This stress injury causes pain and/or numbness in the thumbs and joints of the hands.

The condition is caused by spending too much time on these devices -- checking and composing e-mails, instant messaging, and accessing the Internet.

"The use of PDAs (personal digital assistants) is no longer limited to the eight hours spent in the workplace," Margot Miller, president of the APTA's Occupational Health Special Interest Group, said in a prepared statement.

"More and more, people are depending on these devices to stay in touch with friends and family before and after the work day and on the weekends, as well as having access to work when they leave the office; that is where the heart of the problem lies," Miller said.

Many PDA users are middle-aged and overuse of the handheld devices can aggravate underlying arthritis.

"Because the keyboard of the PDA is so small, and because the thumb, which is the least dexterous part of the hand, is overtaxed (for faster typing), the risk of injury just skyrockets," Miller said.

So apprently James Cameron, yes the James Cameron of Titanic and Terminator Fame is producing a documentary to air on the Discovery Channel on Sunday called the Family Tomb of Jesus. It's a look into a tomb found outside of Jerusalem containing numerous bone boxes. It plays on the belief widely known and popularized in recent years by the Davinci Code of Jesus' supposed marriage to Mary Magdalene and the family he had with her. It's all rather interesting regardless of what you believe. Check out the link below for the article from time.com

http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1593893,00.html?cnn=yes

This past Friday James and I had a fun little date night...which sometimes is hard to get since we don't see each other much, though since I moved up here to Washington again we get to see each other every weekend. But our "dates" tend to be weekend skiing trips or going to a national park or driving out to the coast....fun times, but not really a "date-y" feeling. On Friday I made reservations at this place called Dinners Done Right. It's a business where you can go and prepare up to 12 meals (which change every month) to bring home and freeze for later. We just did the main courses but it was all very fun. They cut and prepare all the ingredients and post the directions of how to prepare each dish. You then measure and mix all the ingredients and place them in the appropriate storage container (which they provide). Then you have a label they have printed for you that tells you how to cook it at home. It was so much fun! Got to make dishes I would NEVER make with spices I didn't even know existed!!! And all in under 2 hours! Some of the dishes we made: Maple Mop Pork Chops with a maple syrup glaze, Balsalmic Pork Tenderloin, Chipotle Meatballs, and Alaska Soul Florentine....they all look so yummy....12 in total. We've already eaten the Chicken Foccacia Sandwich that had this amazing mayonaise spread we mixed with the ingredients we brought home and we added a little avocado and lettuce of our own. VERY Yummy!!! I can't wait to eat the other great meals we prepared. We had lots of fun doing it and even enjoyed fresh baked cookies and apple cider while we were there. Every month the meals change and we already want to go back and do it again!!

As usual the holidays were quick and quite busy. James and I both flew in on Christmas Eve. We spent Christmas day at my mom's house opening presents in the morning with mom, Jason, and Jaime and then the afternoon with my extended family on my mom's side. Got to see cousins, aunts, uncles....it was also the first Christmas without Grandma Bee but I think it was pretty busy and crazy that it didn't give me a chance to be sad about that. I finally got to see my cousin Dave's little girl Grace who was born in November. She is SOOO adorable and VERY tiny! Got lots of cute pictures of her with the family. The day after Christmas we headed down to have brunch with my dad and Ellie. Dad is still using a walker since his neck surgery in October but seems to be getting better daily. He is currently using electrical stim on his neck muscles that his PT hooked him up with. Also got to finally meet Ellie's daughter Jessica. She seems like a very unique young woman and she is about to head off to Guinea for a 2 year stint in the Peace Corps...now that takes guts! It all sounds very exciting but I don't think I could do it! After a yummy brunch and gift exchange, James and I headed north to Detroit to see his dad and siblings. We had dinner at his dad's and hung out with 2 of his 3 sisters and his brother and his wife. Played some games, watched some movies, had a good time. The following day we headed down to Toledo to do Christmas with his mom. Again a whirlwind visit of good food, games, bonding with his mom and siblings, and even caught a movie. We headed back Thursday and had dinner with Shannon and Megan before we had to pack up and fly back to Portland on Friday morning. We arrived safely and collected our bags, drove back to Sam's and re-packed then headed out to Bend for our ski trip for New Years. We got to our hotel about 8:30 and got a good night's sleep cuz we were heading to the mountain in the morning. We spent Saturday and Sunday on the slopes having a GREAT time though we were both EXHAUSTED, especially the first day. I didn't have any wipeouts but James and 1 or 2 good ones. He always does! :) We headed back to Portland on New Years Day and I've been enjoying my last week off of work taking it easy before I start my next job in Olympia on Monday. James is in San Francisco for training. I'm heading to the mountain tomorrow for one more day of skiing and then James and I move me in to my apartment on Saturday. So soon it will be back to the working world for me! :) And I happen to start on January 8...the day The Ohio State Buckeyes play for the National Championship. Go BUCKEYES!!!!

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It's been a long time since I've posted on this blog. Mostly that so much has happened that it's been overwhelming to try and catch up with it all. Between my trip to Europe, my move to Bakersfield for my new job, my grandmother's passing, my friend's wedding...time just slipped away from me! But on a day like today, I think it's important to remember the blessings in life.

* MY FAMILY *
For my wonderful family, my mom who I couldn't live without, a great brother and sister in law, my dad's successful surgery.

For my aunt's courage and fight as she bravely battles cancer. She's not only my aunt but my godmother and I pray everday for her to win this fight.

For the healthy birth of my cousin's daughter Grace. She's so cute and I can't wait to meet her!

For my kitty, Teela. Yes, she's a cat but she was a part of my family for 13 years, almost half of my life. I had to put her to sleep in October in what was the hardest thing for me to ever do. I miss her cry, the way she'd follow you around, the way she pawed at you looking for that perfect spot to lay down in your lap. But I'm thankful I was able to give her a loving home, and the joy she brought to all our lives.

For the 27+ years God granted me to know my Grandma Bee. She was a remarkable lady and I'm thankful that at the end her suffering wasn't long.

* MY SWEETIE *
I've ALWAYS been the single one, the friend who never had any luck in love, the one in the family never to bring someone home. It took me a while and lots of bad turkeys (he he) to find the right one, to find my best friend. Life just wouldn't be the same without him. I'm so thankful he stuck around! :)

* MY FRIENDS *
Times change and people change. You lose touch with some friends and you make new ones. Since I've moved away from home, I've come to realize who my true friends are and though I don't have hundreds of them, the few I do have mean the world to me. Those that immediately offered up condolences when my grandma died, who sent an email or came to the funeral home, my friends from college who even after months of not being in contact, they are always there for me, and bring a big smile to my face by a simple text message today from my friend Darla. I'm truly blessed.

* MY JOB *

* MY HEALTH *

* MY FREEDOM *
I often wonder what people in third world coutnries who may have never heard of the good life we lead would think of us. The crazy shoppers that head out the day after thanksgiving in an effort to buy loads of gifts. When there are people in this world who go to bed hungry, those who never learn to read, those who are driven out of their homes by armed militias some raped and murdered, those that never make it to adulthood simply because of where they were born. By the grace of God, I was born a US Citizen with all the rights and freedoms that affords. And I am thankful for those brave men and women willing to fight and ultimately willing to die for that freedom if it so requires. Want to give a special shout out to Danny, Jay, Bobby and Kelly over in Iraq and all their comrades. Come home safe.


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I hope that wherever you spent this Thanksgiving, you were among loved one or at least with them in spirit. And I hope each of you gave thanks for all you've been blessed with. If you're reading this, you're probably a close friend or in my family and I love you all. Thank you!!!! :)

I made it to Berlin safely...but our luggage didn´t. So nick and I have made do with just the clothes on our back. that has been fun. Our luggage did show up today though so that is happy and i got to enjoy a nice shower...though it is a waterconserving shower so you turn it on and it runs for like 10 seconds then shuts off then you do it again after lathering up...quite interesting. We did a great 4 hour walking tour today which was very informative. Our guide was very smart and funny. we saw all of the major history sites of berlin and most of them are in old east berlin. Some of the buildings survived the war but are scarred by thousands of bullet holes and shrapnel. we saw part of the original berlin wall and learned about life while the wall was up...not a happy time to be living in east berlin...people were shot if trying to escape and there was one river they could attempt to swim across to escape and if they weren´t shot at they would drown when they got caught in the 7 feet of barbed wire the soviets buried beneath the surface of the water. we also visited the site and stood above the area where hitler had his underground bunker and even sat at the very spot his body was burned after he committed suicide. it was all very interesting.

hostel life has been pretty cool. nick and i are in a room of 4 and have had roommates from denmark, australia, and of all places san francisco! it´s kinda fun to meet so many people. tomorrow we are renting a car and driving to zeitz germany then on to prague for a few days. this whole driving thing should be interesting...they drive like maniacs here and dont slow down for pedestrians....very scary.

So it has been a LONG time since I've updated my blog...I've just been so busy!!! Since my last update I've done tons of things. I went on a solo weekend camping trip to Sequoia/Kings Canyon NP in CA which was just incredible. The sequoia trees are the largest living things on earth and they are just massive!! One of them had a diameter of 40 feet!!! I saw the largest tree in the world by volume, the general sherman tree, it was HUGE!!! There was also this natural cave there that I went and took a tour of. I always liked caves with all their amazing formations all caused by water seeping through the earth! and on a hot day, it's a nice place for some natural airconditioning.

My mom and Uncle Cliff came to CA for a week over 4th of July. I kept them pretty busy I think. They went into San Francisco several days and checked out all the sights in the city. I was off on the 4th so we all went into the city and spent the day walking...A LOT. We basically walked around the city for 11 hours and really only sat down for lunch! We were all very tired that night! They also took a tour of Alcatraz one day. That's always fun. ON the weekend I took them to see the Redwoods and the beach. Uncle Cliff had never been to the Pacific ocean before so that was fun. We also did some wine tasting in Sonoma on a beautiful day, and of course I bought a few bottles. :)

My last day at my job in Hayward was July 21. James was in town most of that week to help me pack up before he himself moved to Southern CA for school. He then flew back up on July 21 to help me pack my car and we left for the long drive to Seattle on Saturday. (about 13 hours). Sunday the 23rd was my birthday and I had a bridal shower to go to in everett (north of seattle) for my roommate from college, Jenn. Her future mother-in-law lives in seattle and wanted to throw a shower for matt's side of the family to celebrate with them and I happened to be able to make it so that was fun. I'm getting excited for the wedding in october. It's gonna be at the naval academy in annapolis, md. They are gonna walk through the swords at the wedding that you see in all those movies!!

I flew home to cleveland on July 24 and have been spending the last week seeing old friends and getting ready for my trip to Europe. I'm leaving Aug 1 (tomorrow!) and can't wait. I'll be gone the whole month of august and it's gonna be amazing. I can't wait to see Germany and Italy especially. And we are renting a car to drive through the swiss and austrian alps. I plan on taking LOTS of pictures!!!!

Yesterday we had a mini family reunion. Aunt Patty and Uncle John and Danny and Mikey were in town and mom's cousin Denise was in town from Kansas City as well. It was fun...but REALLY hot! We had a white elephant gift exchange that was really fun with a few prizes EVERYONE kept trying for (this wood planar that was really old...my mom ended up with it! :)) I ended up with a bag full of cassette tapes about 15 of them...mostly beach boys and carole king...those will be going in the next goodwill bag...:) who listens to cassette tapes anymore?? :) It was fun. However, the day was not without some issues on mind. Grandma Bee had been admitted into the hospital on Saturday becasue Aunt Rita had come over and found her lying in the bath tub...seems she had been in there 2 days. She doesn't remember what happened and the scary thing was that Aunt Rita came over and said hi through the bathroom door a few times and asked if everything was ok and grandma kept saying yes until finally she went in there and found her. The woman didnt' even realize she was in trouble! I think the family is going to do some serious family planning to figure out what is best as I don't think it's wise for her to be living alone. I've said that for years (sometimes being a PT is a bad thing cuz I always worry about her and what could happen after the MANY horror stories I've heard.) and hopefully this will be a wakeup call to the aunts/uncles that were opposed to an assisted living facility. The big problem now is that she may be too far along in her dementia to function well enough at an assisted living...I'd worry that she wouldnt' be able to find her way to and from the dining room!!! :)

Aunt Rita has also had some health issues and she has lost a lot of weight in the last month. Last week they found a tumor in her lungs and I guess it's pretty big. A biopsy was done on Friday but the results won't be known until tuesday. I've been saying lots of prayers that it's not cancer. If you're reading this, please pray for her. Either way, she'll probably have to have surgery to get the tumor out because she basically can't eat because it's pushing on her esophagus so they have to do something. It makes my upcoming trip a little apprehensive for me because I'm worried about her health but I just pray that God knows what he is doing and that He will make it all better soon. PLEASE keep her in your prayers.

Well, I'm off to run my final errands of the day and then I have to pack. I leave tomorrow for my Europe trip!!!! Woo hoo!!!!

James was in town for Memorial Day weekend and Saturday we headed out to Yosemite National Park. We weren't able to get a reservation in the park but I did secure a campsite at a campground 5 miles from the entrance gate. We set up camp saturday morning/early afternoon and headed into the park. We had to wait in a long line of cars to get it and deal with the traffic through the park, but the view from the first turn into the valley made it all worthwhile! The steep, monstrous granite cliffs were insane with amazing waterfalls cascading down them. We drove to Bridalveil Falls and unfortunately it was trying to rain but we donned rain gear and headed up to the falls about 1/2 mile hike away. I was not prepared for the magnitude of the fall. It was crazy. There was so much mist from the falls it was as if it was POURING. James and I were drenched, and the roar was so loud that it sounded like a jet. The amazing thing is that by the end of the summer, it will be just a trickle of water. By the time we reached our car again, it was no longer raining at all except for the crazy mist by the falls! We got a few other good shots of the waterfall from the road and headed over to mirror lake at the base of halfdome. Halfdome is by far the biggest rock I've ever seen in my life! It stands 4,733 feet above the valley floor and is over 87 million years old (but it's also one of the "youngest rocks" in the park). It is quite awe-inspiring. Words can't really describe the beauty or hugeness of it. James and I hiked a few miles back to Mirror Lake, which is situated at the base of Halfdome. The trail back was not too difficult and after many pictures later and a VERY close encounter with a deer that I think took a year off my life, we decided to climb up on the granite rock piles that had fallen years ago from the surrounding cliffs and make dinner. James had brought MRE's (the civilian version) with him for dinner so I got my first expreience with a meal ready to eat. It basically consists of a "hot" entree or 2 contained in a pouch and a heating sleeve that when water is added, a chemical reaction ensues that warms the pouch and 20 minutes later...presto a warm meal! It also comes with a "side dish" which could be unleavened bread, cheese and crackers, applesauce, and for dessert....a candy bar or cookie. It also comes with a drink powder mix to have with water and of course both meals I had came with orange which I don't really like and it tasted a lot like Orange Tang. I had Chicken with rigatoni one night and Chili Macaroni the next. Both came with "mashed potatoes" that I don't recommend. It was quite the experience! After we hiked back to my car, we drove to Yosemite Falls, the 5th tallest waterfall in the world, and the tallest in North America. At it's peak in May and June, 9000 liters of water flow over the top every second. It is made up entirely of snow runoff so by the end of the summer, Yosemite falls is COMPLETELY DRIED UP! It's hard to believe that that could happen when you look at the magnitude of the fall. We then headed back to our camp and after having to throw our blanket in the dryer because it had rained slightly and I had opted not to put the rainfly on our tent, we headed to bed as we were both exhausted. I was not prepared for what would be the coldest night of my life. We were sleeping on an air mattress with 4 blankets on top of us but unfortunately the heat was escaping from underneath us on the air mattress and it was freezing! We got wise the 2nd night and James put the sleeping bag spread out beneath us which made for one less blanket on top but it helped incredibly. Sunday we went back to the park and again waited in a LONG line. We headed to the opposite end of the park to head up to the Grove of Ancient Sequoias. We got all the way there only to find they had the road closed to traffic except the shuttle bus...well we had to turn around, drive several miles back the other shuttle stop, desperately find a parking spot only to miss the shuttle and decided to make lunch. We caught a later shuttle but by the time we got to the grove of sequoias it was past 3 PM and the last shuttle down was at 6 PM. I didn't want to miss that and have to hike the 6 miles back to my car. We decided to take the open tram ride through the grove to see some of the oldest largest living things on earth. These trees are not as tall as their cousins, the redwoods, but by sheer volume they are the largest living things on earth. On the way back, the tram stopped at The Grizzly Giant, this huge tree with branches the size of the everyday trees you see normally. We also walked through the California Tunnel Tree that had years ago been carved through and cars used to be able to drive through the base of the tree. It was pretty awesome. By the time we finally got the shuttle back to my car, we had just enough time to drive up to glacier point and catch the amazing sunset over Yosemite Valley from high above the granite cliffs. It was indredible...made me feel so small. The amazing landscape around me was breathtaking. We could see Yosemite Falls, Nevada Falls, Vernal Falls, and the sun setting as it's last rays of red and orange settled onto Halfdome. We again enjoyed our MRE's while enjoying the sunset then headed back to camp. We were again too exhausted for a fire and headed straight to bed. We woke up Monday and broke camp and headed for home. James had a flight to catch that evening. We hit some pretty heavy traffic heading back to the bay area which got a little more stressful when James decided to push the level of the gas tank past E. Now if you know me, I don't like to drive too long with the light on...well we drove a LONG time with the light on. I had visions of running out of gas and I really thought I was going to be ill. Luckily, we made it to a gas station and it's a good thing, cuz by the time we got back to my apartment we had just enough time to take a shower before I had to take James to the airport. It was a busy weekend in Yosemite and we didn't get to do as much hiking as I would have liked due to the crowds but the sights of Yosemite are truly amazing and a must see if you venture to California!

This past weekend I flew up to Seattle to spend the weekend with James. I got my very first experience riding BART, the public transportation here in the Bay Area. I have a BART station right next door to my apartment complex with a private locked entrance into my complex so it's safe and easy. I took the BART to the airport station then hopped on the shuttle and got myself to the airport. Round trip with shuttle fees it was $8.10. It would have cost me 4x as much if I parked at the airport. I arrived in Seattle around 10:30 Friday night and James and I headed over to his friend Jay's house for a while before calling it a night. Saturday we woke up and headed up to the Olympic National Park which is just beautiful this time of year. James had never been before so it was great to share it with him. We found a great walk in campsite right on the Elwha River and were about to set up camp....only to realize that James forgot the tent!!! I know what you're thinking...how does someone forget the tent??? I quadruple check everything...but no worries, James got in the car and headed to Costco which was a ways away and invested in a great new tent. almost 2 hours later he showed back up at the camp with the tent and we set up camp and had lunch. We got a late start on our planned hike but we made record time for the 2.5 mile hike back to the natural hot springs. We changed into bathing suits and cracked a bottle of wine and settled into an enjoyable soak in the hot springs. It was lots of fun and a perfect day. Afterwards, we sat by the river to finish the wine and enjoy the rushing water of the river then hiked back to the car and headed back to camp. James used his new camp stove I bought him for his birthday and cooked up some great bacon cheeseburgers. And he built a great fire! It started so easy it was great! Last time we camped he had to make a fire with wet wood so making a fire with dry wood was a cinch! Sunday we headed down to view Lake Crescent which is absolutely beautiful nestled in the foothills of the Olympics with blue green water. Then we headed up to Hurricane Ridge to view the Olympic Mountains from the highest point in the park accessible by car. What a difference from last year when I was there! I was there the first weekend in May and there was no snow at Hurricane Ridge...this weekend there was a snow pile taller than me blocking part of the visitor center walkway! The view of the snow and glacier capped mountains from the top of the Ridge was amazing. A beautiful sight. It amazes me that people live in the state of Washington within a 2-3 hour drive of 3 GORGEOUS national parks, and some of them have never visited ANY of them. Olympic National Park is a real gem worth the time. We headed home after having lunch and grilled up some steaks for dinner before I had to head to the airport and return to the bay area. It was a great weekend...and I get to see James again Memorial Day weekend!!!!

I thought it was kind of funny that Republican finished dead last even below Nazi! And kinda interesting that Anarchism was 2nd....weird. I believe government is essential and a needed part of society so don't know where that anarchy thing came from.

You scored as Democrat. <'Imunimaginative's Deviantart Page'> </td> Democrat 75% Anarchism 67% Communism 58% Green 50% Socialist 50% Fascism 33% Nazi 25% Republican 17% What Political Party Do Your Beliefs Put You In? created with QuizFarm.com

Two weeks ago, James and I each boarded a red eye flight from our respective cities and headed to Pittsburgh for my friend Elena's wedding. We arrived on time within minutes of each other. I actually got in first and just arrived at his gate as he was deplaning...perfect timing! It had only been two weeks since we'd seen each other but it felt like so much more...it was SOOO good to see him! :) We headed down to pick up our rental car and headed into the city. We walked around the south side for a while and waited for Darla to get off work. She met us for lunch at Fat Head's to catch up with each other. James and I then headed to our hotel to check in and take a little snooze. We were both exhuasted from the redeye flight and in desperate need of a nap. We had gotten a great room on Priceline at the downtown Hilton and our room was on the 18th floor directly centered looking out at Point State Park where the 3 rivers merge! It was a beautiful view. Friday night we headed out with Darla and a friend of hers to Saddle Ridge, a country dance club that was packed! Never thought so many people would be loving a country bar but Darla said it's always packed. (Makes me think of that country song "I was country, when country wasn't cool"....now everyone seems to like it, but i've loved it for a LONG time) We had a good time and got to hear a local band fronted by a Jon Bon Jovi wannabe before heading over to another new hangout in the Burgh over at Station Square. Thanfully, the wedding wasn't until 3 PM the next day cuz we were out kinda late and I was tired! The wedding was at Elena's family's church on Mt. Washington and James and I got there early and snagged great seats. My friend Karen was the maid of honor and my friend Kelly was also in the wedding. The bridesmaids wore long navy blue gowns and looked gorgeous. Elena wore an amazingly beautiful gown that was fitted and had an intricate beading. She looked beautiful. The reception was at a huge hall and our table was conveniently centered across from the bridal table with direct access to the dance floor. I'm used to being shuffled to the side or back of the room! It was great. We ate, drank, danced, and caught up with all my old friends from college. It was so good to see the girls again. It was the first time since we graduated that my 4 good friends and me from PT school have been together. I loved it. Sunday James and I headed to the south side to grab some brunch and then headed over to visit with Karen a while longer before heading back to the airport. We said our goodbyes again at the airport with less tears this time, but still a few. I hate goodbyes! I got back to my apartment late and went right to bed. It was a fast weekend, but it was so much fun!

Well, I finally left the Northwest for my next assignment in Hayward, CA. My last day in Puyallup at Good Sam was March 31. On April 1, James helped me move out of my apartment which turned into a day long adventure. Sunday was James's 27th birthday and we went for brunch at the top of the Space Needle! We also met his aunt and uncle, 2 cousins, and grandpa for dinner at Anthony's, a lovely little seafood place right on the water in Tacoma. Sunday night James and I drove to Portland to stay at Sam's and headed up to Mt. Hood on Monday for one final day of skiing. I decided to rent a pair of demo skis that were a little more high performance than mine. Initially I didn't like them but i really did at the end of the day. I may buy them in the off season. Tuesday morning, James and I dropped his car off at the airport and started our adventure to California. We drove out to the Coast and took the scenic route. We camped at a campground near the Oregon Dunes which was initially a very cold night. James built a great fire while I shopped for beer and we roasted hot dogs on the fire. I'd never done it before and it was great fun. The next morning, we rented ATV quads and ventured onto the Oregon Dunes. These dunes are HUGE. some talled than several stories. I'd never been on one before so I was very scared. James and I both got stuck several times and everytime I got stuck on the steep dunes I was scared I'd tip it over. After a while I learned to just concentrate on the ground 15 feet in front of me instead of focusing on the huge dune in front of me. We rode around for a while traversing dune after dune. We came upon a dune that James went right to climb it as I went left. He made it up to the top but I got stuck. I managed to back up and turn it around and start back the way I came, only to have 2 of my wheels of my quad go up on an embankment of hard sand with some vegetation. Well that was enough to throw me off balance and the next thing I knew, I was flipping my ATV and being thrown onto the sand. Thankfully, I was still on an incline and I fell uphill as my quad rolled downhill. I was initially in a state of shock and not sure what to do. I looked up the dune at James who at this point was running full speed down the dune to make sure I was ok. As soon as he got to my side, I started to cry, more out of shock and concern I just busted this very expensive machine. He righted the machine and turned it off and came back to help me. All I suffered was some pretty severe bruising and some pretty good scratches. Thankfully no major injuries. And yes i was wearing a helmet! That night we opted for a hotel stay which was nice to have a warm place to sleep and ice to put on my leg! We woke up the next day and went to see the Redwoods! We camed among the Redwoods with their tops soaring hundreds of feet into the air! We walked around some great easy trails to see some of the biggest trees you can imagine. It was just awesome. We camped that night in VERY cold weather. We both bundled up in the tent and survived the night. The next day we drove along the Avenue of the Giants to drive among more giant Redwoods. I just love those trees and it's amazing how big they can get! We then headed down highway 101 to 1 to drive along the coast to take in some great coastal views. We finally headed inland and got a hotel in Hayward so we could just wake up and move in to my new place. We arrived Saturday morning and unloaded the car. Thankfully, James was here as I was on the 3rd floor! It's a pretty nice apartment with a pool and hot tub, work out gym, gated community, and I have a garage! I'm only about 15 minutes from work which is great in the bay area as the commute can be pretty ugly for some people. Sunday I had to put James on a plane back to Seattle which sucked but we survived. Lots of tears and hugs....but we get to see each other this coming weekend at my friend Elena's wedding in Pittsburgh. Overall, it was a great trip and James and I had a blast. I'm glad I got to spend the week with him and experience the beauty the coast has to offer. Now I'd adjusting to life as a California girl!

I'm a little behind in updating....

About a month ago, James and I went to Cannon Beach, OR for a lovely weekend. The weather was absolutely gorgeous with lots of sunshine. We stayed at a cute little cottage known as the Inn at Haystack Rock with a block walk to the beach! We did some geocaching while there and went to Ecoli State Park. We searched for 4 caches and found them all! I even found one without any clues needed! I was very proud of myself. We walked along the beach for a while down to Haystack Rock. We also headed down to Tillamook to check out the Tillamook Cheese Factory and samply some cheese and amazing ice cream. It was very yummy. Saturday evening we had a yummy dinner in a restaurant right on the ocean and watched a great sunset. Then we checked out a play at the local theater with 3rd row center seats. It was fun and entertaining, a whimisical story of an actor who signs on to play Hamlet and is coached by the "ghost" of the great actor John Barrymore who played Hamlet once upon a time. Sunday we rented thse great trykes that are like recumbent tricycles that you take out on the sand. We peddled along the beach stoping to take some great pics and to enjoy the beautiful sight of the mighty Pacific right in front of us. We did some shopping and found a great spot at Arcadia beach to watch an *AWESOME* sunset. It was one I'll never forget. It felt like we were the only two people on the beach to enjoy the beautiful sight. Sunsets like those are hard to come by...Overall, it was an amazing weekend at the coast with my amazing guy. The Oregon coast is a must see in the Pacific Northwest!

Saturday, myself, James and my friend Todd headed up to White Pass Ski Area to meet up with my friend Patty from work and her husband and daughter. Last week we had this killer snow storm that dumped unbelievable powder in the cascades...and LOTS of it! We're talking up to 70" in some places! We had a blast and when you fell, it didn't hurt cuz the powder was so soft! :) And good thing cuz I tackled a few expert runs, the double black diamonds, and fell on one of them and finally came to a stop about 50 feet from where I fell! But it didn't even hurt! Plus I recently invested in a helmet for skiing which is a good thing after watching James take some pretty violent falls.

Sunday James and I went geo-caching! It was so fun and I finally found my first ever cache! It was very exciting. The few I've done before have actually been found by others (like my cache-savvy sister in law or brother). I still don't really know how my GPS works with it but James does so he was our navigator. We found 2 of the 4 we searched for. We had to abandon the fourth one cuz it got to dark but the third one was just too difficult. It was located in Point Defiance Park in Tacoma and the description mentioned the "Defiance Triangle" because the GPS signal was shaky...and it was! It kept bouncing us all over the place so we weren't successful with that one. Maybe some other time.

Nick and I have started looking for flights to Europe for August. I'm SOOO excited to go and see Greece, Italy, and Germany. And to be able to spend a whole month there is going to be amazing! And it's great to spend it with a great friend who loves to travel and explore as much as me!

James and I are off to the Oregon coast this weekend to spend time at Cannon Beach. I'm excited. I love the Oregon Coast. It is just so beautiful that words cant really describe it. James is planning on driving down to California with me which will be so much fun and we hope to drive down the coast to get there. We're planning on stopping in Florence, Oregon and renting ATV's to take on the sand dunes! That will be so much fun! :)

This past weekend, James and I headed up to Whistler Canada to hit the slopes. Luckily, we didn't have any problems at the Peace Arch border crossing. We got to our hotel about 10:00 and after sampling their fine microbrews we hit the sack to get up early and head to the mountain. We decided to ski Blackcomb Mountain on Saturday and after getting our tickets, we boarded the gondola to take us to the top then jumped on the lift to take us to the peak. Our first run of the day, Rock N Roll, was AWESOME and made the whole trip worth every minute! The snow was amazing and James and I got some wicked speed and tackled the mountain. It was incredible how much terrain there is there! Each mountain has about 5,000 vertical feet from top to base and when you put the trails there, you easily ski runs that are several miles long. And we didn't even get to all the runs! After a hard day of skiing, we walked around the village for a while and bought some souvenirs and had dinner. We were both exhausted so we headed back to the hotel for a shower and an early night. We woke again early Sunday and headed back up, this time tackling Whistler Mountain. Whistler Mountain is the site for the alpine events, luge, skeleton, bobsledding and ski jumping at the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics. Franz's Run is the future site of the Women's downhill and Super G and after taking my pic by the sign declaring this, I ventured down the run where in 4 years the greatest women skiers in the world will compete for gold. It was awesome and what a rush! We then headed over to the future men's downhill course. Part of it was closed for race training but we were able to ski most of it which was also pretty cool. By the end of the afternoon, on Thursday James and I were exhausted. Amazingly we didn't have any major wipeouts and had two amazing days of skiing. We were so tired and my right foot was hurting pretty bad (still don't know why but it's better now) that we caught a ride down the mountain on the gondola and then headed back to the States. Of all the mountains I've skied on, Whistler Blackcomb is my new favorite place to ski, and it is rated the #1 ski destination in all of North America. It was a great trip to wind down the ski season. I have 1 or 2 more days on the mountain before I hang up my skis for another year. Bring on that spring snow!

I know it's been a while....

The Superbowl did not go as planned as the Seahawks fell to the Pittburgh Steelers. Though, it's hard to believe the team that the team (seattle) with more first down, more total yards, fewer turnovers, and almost 2 times the time of possession could lose...though we you have an officiating crew with roots in Pittsburgh it makes you wonder. The media coverage was definitely biased with all the Jerome Bettis Homecoming fanfare that there were OBVIOUS mis-calls on the field. Even the quarterback of the Steelers himeself later admitted he did not cross the goal line for a touchdown. And a bogus offensive pass interference call negated a seattle touchdown. and the worst call was made when our QB was called for illegal contact on a player he didn't even touch while acting as a blocker to avoid a runback after a touchdown. That bogus penalty cost us 15 yards which set up the trick play where randle el through the ball to hines ward for a touchdown. Without that horrible call with the penalty yards, the steelers would not have attempted that play as they only do it when positioned around mid field. So did the better team win? I'm sure if you ask the fans from Pittsburgh they would say yes but if you ask a fan of the sport of football, it would be hard to convince him or her.

During superbowl weekend, I spent the weekend down in Lake Tahoe. Nick has a ski cabin for the winter. We headed to the slopes saturday and sunday. The snow was not typical tahoe snow as it was pretty icy, but we had a blast. I got to meet all of his housemates and we all had a great time. Monday Nick and I decided to skip skiing at Kirkwood and instead rode the gondola to the top of Heavenly and went snoe-shoeing. I had never done it before and it was a good workout. But the view was worth it! We hiked up to the top of the ridge and looked down upon Lake Tahoe. It was incredible. We actually stopped to sit a while with one foot in California and one in Nevada...it is possible to be in two places at once! The skies were blue, the sun was shining, and I felt like I was in one of the most beautiful places on earth at that moment.

For Valentines Day I treated James to brunch aboard the Spirit of Washington Dinner Train. We dined with a nice couple and the day was beautiful as the train wound up the side of Lake Washington to the Columbia Crest Winery. Across the Lake, we could see the Seattle skyline and the Olympic Mountains in the backgroudn. It was great. We got to the winery and had a little time to do some wine tasting before reboarding the train for the trip home with some delicious desserts and yummy drinks. (I had a teddy bear- Bailey's and Hot Cocoa...yummy) The following weekend was his treat to me for Valentines Day as we headed to Yakima, WA for Red Wine and Chocolate tasting. It was a blast. Saturday we actually had a tour shuttle take us around to 10 different wineries along with another couple. While at one of the wineries, Justin (the guy from the other couple) proposed to his girlfriend and she said yes! It was beautiful. The day was just gorgeous and with the vineyards in the background and Mt. Adams popping out with a breathtaking view he got down on one knee and asked the girl of his dreams to marry him. It felt awkward to be a part of this intimate moment between two people we had just met but it was also really touching. Sunday we did our own wine tasting and chocolate tasting and hit 8 more wineries. By the end of the day, I had definitely had enough wine and we took it easy that night. We opted not to do a third day of tasting and instead headed home. Someday when I own my own home, I want a kitchen and diniing area inspired by a winery complete with a winebarrel table and everything. I purchased a wine bottle cover made of metal that looks like a cowboy (very cute) and a gorgeous stain glass window hanging of a grape vine. Someday I'll own that dream house.

Late last week I developed a sore throat. I could barely go to work on friday but I rallied. Friday night James and I headed to Portland after picking up Sam's nephew at Fort Lewis and after I had a little nap. We went skiing Saturday with Sam's girlfriend Debbi (Sam couldn't go cuz he had to do stuff for work). It was fun though it wasnt' a real extreme day for me on the slopes as my throat hurt. I decided later that evening that I wasn't gonna be able to handle another day on the slopes cuz I was just drained! We did head out saturday night with Sam, Debbi and Matt (sam's nephew) to celebrate Matt's 21st birthday. My friend Melinda met us out for dinner and it was SOOO good to see her and catch up with her. She's one of those people I've met in my travels that I know she'll always be a friend. Sunday James and I headed back to Puyallup and I slept most of the way as I felt horrible. I woke up Monday and decided I couldn't deal with the sore throat anymore. I called off sick and went up to the walk in same day clinic. Turns out I don't have strep but the doc did give me an antibiotic to take which helped tremendously. After two doses, I didn't have any pain anymore! yay for anitbiotics!!! I'll be on it for 10 days but what a relief to be able to swallow without any pain!

This weekend, James and I are headed up to Canada to hit the slopes at Whistler which will be on the world stage for the alpine ski events during the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver. While I'll never be Olympic caliber in my skiing...it's humbling to think that my skis will grace the same slopes as the best in the world.

I've accepted my next job in Hayward California. Hayward is on the Southeast side of the San Francisco Bay. I'm excited to spend the day in the Bay area. It's a truly wonderful place with LOTS to see and do and I look forward to exploring northern CA! Cali here I come!

The Seattle Seahawks are Superbowl bound!!! For the first time in team history, we're off to the big game. And for once, I have a passion about the big game. For one, I love to root for the Seahawks. They are a relatively young team who decided in training camp that they would go to the Superbowl. Plus, I DESPISE the Pittsburgh Steelers and can't wait to cheer on the Seahawks to victory over the Steelers. And the stadium was rocking! I wish i could have been there. They call the Seattle fans the "12th Man" cuz it's so loud in there that other teams can't hear anything. In fact, the Seahawks lead the NFL in forcing false starts by their opponents due to the noise. My friend from work said she was listening to the game on the radio and it sounded so static-like that she kept turning the volume up then realized that it wasn't static, but the loud crowd drowning out the announcer! Seattle is going crazy over their NFC championship team and it seems that the rest of the country never really considered Seattle to be this good. But we're off to Detroit for Super Bowl XL! So let's hear it....LET'S GO HAWKS! LET'S GO HAWKS! LET'S GO HAWKS! LET'S GO HAWKS!!!!!!