No Responsibilities

So, somedays being single is really quite nice. For instance, this weekend just happened to be one of those times. Aaron (or as he would prefer - Wolfgang) found cheap tickets to Long Beach, CA and decided he needed a vacation. And he invited me - mostly because I'm old and can rent a car (he is still a baby in that respect!) Since I really had no exciting plans (Anna did ask me to help her move, dodged that one!) I went.

The entire trip was really quick, but actually quite enjoyable. We landed in Long Beach around 6:00pm and then had to drive to Santa Barbara. The drive was a little long, basically because we were tired and hungry. I did get some glorious In-N-Out food, still my favorite :)

The next day we ate some "pancake balls" and wandered around Solvang (cute little Danish town close to my bro's house). Oh yeah, and we stopped at the Indian casino (which I have never done even with countless trips all involving passing the casino numerous times). Wolfgang got his gamble on for a few minutes, I played a few slots. We lost and walked away poorer.

Later that afternoon we all went to the beach. Boogers ran straight into the ocean and chased the birds. Wolfgang tried the skim board and eventually didn't do too bad. I wandered the beach with Colleen.

What a perfect ending to a great day.....

Our last day we did a little wandering (trying to find NeverLand Ranch - no such luck).

After lunch, we headed back to Long Beach and flew home. Definitely a quick trip - but who cares, we're single and we had the money.......

And One More...

Yep, still more driving. Today I went to Manti. I've had to drive this Canyon three times in the past two weeks and never got a picture of these -




I think they are so awesome looking - especially when they are actually moving. (Although this picture does not do them justice). And it's always nice to know that they are actually helping the environment. And I actually pulled over to take this shot. Are you so proud of me?!



But this one I took while swerving along the canyon road. I am pretty impressed with myself and my little cell phone (which I now forgive for freaking out on me previously).

And again the fall colors were amazing! I really need to stop and take some good pictures..... wait, camera is still in Sweden. Seriously, how long has my mom been gone? (And I never realized how dependant I was on my camera).

On The Road Again...

(Obviously not sung by Willie Nelson - the whiny hippie that disgusts me!)

So for work I have had the glorious pleasure to take some road trips this week. I ended up in fabulous Price - where there really isn't anything fabulous. I even had poor cell phone service and the wireless network in the hotel completely sucked. You force me to embrace this technological era, then you rip away my devices when I least expect it - stupid Price!

After spending a very uneventful evening in a basic hotel, I drove to Green River - where they have nice melons - of the fruit variety (although I didn't get a chance to scope out many of the locals to determine if there were other melons that were nice). I literally drove to the school, talked to a kid, his grandmother, then drove back out. (Didn't even get myself one of those nice melons I've heard so much about - shameful).

Then on to Moab. Now I really don't have much to say about Moab. I enjoy the town. It is full of nature/tree huggers, but they are nice people. The down side was I hadn't planned on going to Moab, so I didn't have any of my necessary gear to enjoy the trip. I did wander from work duties for a brief moment and shop a little. Got myself two necklaces, a ring, and some earrings - fantastic!

Wait, there's still more.....

After Moab I headed down I-70 to Richfield (which was a complete waste - but I won't go into details... stupid caseworker). I was tired and a little annoyed, but the drive ended up being rather pleasant. For those of you who need some viewing of fall colors, this is the drive to take. Not only are the colors fabulous, you also get to see the amazing rock formations and other things that this great state is famous for. If I had more time and hadn't been stuck driving the entire day (and desperately wanting to get home and sleep) I would have stopped and taken a lot of pictures. Instead you are stuck with this one I got with my cell phone (while driving - which I don't recommend)(and my mom still has my camera in Sweden).

Assistance Please

So, somedays this Blogger thing really annoys me. I'll admit I'm a little (fine, a lot) obsessive compulsive. But that isn't always a bad thing. But this Blogger thing does not help my compulsions in the least. I HATE when the spacing around the pictures is all weird. Seriously, when I save it perfectly then go have a look and it is all messed up I want to scream - which on occasion I do.
Then I put it back into draft and try to fix it all nice again and it is STILL weird. That totally pisses me off. Eventually (after like five tries) I just give up, but then the next time I pull up the blog I am annoyed at the weird spacing.
Mostly I am annoyed all the time when looking and realizing all my hard work is wasted and lost somewhere in Cyberland.
You'd think they could fix this......

Shovelin' It In

None of us need an excuse to eat - so we do it frequently. This time we got together at Tracy and had a nice little reunion/picnic. Generally we do it earlier in the summer so we can swim, but apparently the parentals didn't get it done. We still had fun eating.
I played with the babies and showed them the fish - although really all we could see was gross seaweed (is it still called seaweed when it is in a lake?)
Some of us played a game of Sorry - although Julie didn't want to be mean to the little girl (Stinky Pete) and would keep sending me back to my start. I reminded her Stinky Pete can handle it and showed her how it was done.
Overall it was a nice relaxing day - and since the family is much like a soap opera there is plenty of gossip to go around.

Rocket

After Kennecott, we made a quick trip to Lagoon. Now let me start by telling everyone that I HATE Lagoon. I haven't been for almost 10 years or so, and I am happy about that. But Aaron got free passes and most of the family went, so I figured I would tough it out. Although I regretted that decision almost the entire time.

It was overcast and eventually rained - not just a little rain though, a nice down pour that soaked us completely. (Which really pissed me off because I asked my dad the day before if it was going to rain and he said no, and there was only like a 20% chance - Liar!) We were in line to ride Wicked so there was no where to go and get cover (we weren't leaving that line since we had already been waiting like 30 minutes).

Lagoon tries and tries to be a fabulous theme park, but falls really short. Most of the rides (which there aren't many) are ancient and not really any fun.

I did ride the old rickety roller coaster and Wicked. The Spider made me ill and The Bat squashed my boobs and gave me a headache. So all in all it was a fantastic day!

(My mom has my camera in Sweden, so sorry for the lack of pictures. And it was raining so much I didn't want to ruin my phone - or lose it like some people - and take pictures).

Here's the only one I got -

Eugene had a good time and enjoyed the rides. The Pickle cried on everything, but would show a happy face when they stopped and he knew he could get off. Oh, and he enjoyed watching the Rocket and repeating the name every time it went off (then Eugene would copy him and say it - it was funny!)

Pebble Crusher

It was family day at Kennecott. So of course I went - I need to see what goes on at that place and make sure it isn't all a conspiracy. I didn't get to see Aaron and his pizza oven, but we got to see the rock crusher and some other things. It was pretty cool, and I got a nice little goodie bag (ok, so I lied and said I wasn't with the group but so did Barbara!) and way awesome safety glasses. Who doesn't love safety glasses? I'll be sporting those things all the time.....

Here's a few pictures I found. (Ok, my mother told me not to lie - I took them, but if I get hauled away to the big house it will be my mother's fault!)

These big drums are full of steel balls that help crush the rock. It was really loud, but pretty cool to see.

This is the molten hot lava rock - just kidding. Seriously it is the rock dust (or something like that, really I don't know everything) mixed with water. It bubbles like it is hot, but isn't at all. If we were brave we probably could have reached out and touched it, but none of us wanted to get tackled by security.

NRA endorsed

Now, this is something that every serious hunter needs - a walking stroller with a gun rack. For those light stolls through the woods. You never know when you'll need that gun!

That's Some Pig

Went to the State Fair last Friday. I got half priced tickets - minor perk for working for the state. So who better to take to the fair than The Pickle. He is getting so much better at talking, so it is a riot to spend time with him.

He loved the cows and even touched a few goats.

I loved the pigs. Funny thing is, the pig at the top of the picture had his tongue hanging out while asleep. It made me laugh :)

And of course I loved the John Deere tractors. Although they wouldn't let me play on them.

The Pickle got to play on this tractor, but nothing compares to a Deere.

The highlight of the night was the rodeo. He was so good the entire time and just watched all the horses and cows - and a few riders thrown in there. It was a great time - and I finally had my first even Funnel Cake. I know, it is a crime that I have lived in Utah my entire life (and been to the fair several times) and never eaten a Funnel Cake. But it is done now. I didn't get to the Fried Peanut Butter and Jelly though..... hmmm.... it is about lunch time.

And most disturbing of all is that they have to post a sign to remind people to wash their hands. Seriously people! I even washed my hands and I didn't touch a single animal. The entire facility breeds germs - you should be washing every chance you get!

Jerk...

So I hate when someone puts on their blog about something amazing (like a cruise) and then doesn't post anything FOREVER. Well, I have now done that and I sincerely apologize for my laziness. And just to defend myself, I haven't been totally lazy. I really was sick with waves of nausea for almost a week after the cruise - it really sucked and messed me up a lot. And I had to catch up on a ton of work, since I missed a week. Apparently child abuse still happened while I was gallivanting in international waters - who would have thunk it?! And on top of that, I went to the fair, and made another trip to St George (those stinking babies again...)

Anyway, today I am apologizing and posting SOME of my awesome adventure pictures. Anna has several as well that I need to get, but these will have to suffice for now.

The Fun Ship

So, I'm not sure that Anna and I knew that the cruise line we were taking was designated the fun ship. Seriously, this cruise was gambling, drinking, and partying 24 hours a day. This is us setting sail (the port is the in the background). I was a little disappointed at the lack of fanfare at the departure. No horns blasting, no confetti drifting from the deck, really I didn't know we were even moving until Anna noticed the port getting further away. (As you can see, we are girls from a dry climate, the humidity really did a number on our hair!)

We slowly realized that our lack of drinking could be an asset. And after meeting (what we fondly refer to as) "the gay guys" and "the drunk guys" we understood the fun part of the title.

Our formal dinner companions were a gay couple from Sacramento, CA - Andrew and Eric. At some points it was awkward silence, but we soon learned they were very similar to us in the fact that they LOVE making fun of people. They gave us all the ins and outs of cruising (although I really doubt I will be going again!) And best of all, they forewarned us about "prom night" or as the ship refers to it, formal dining evening. Seriously, these people really went all out for this dinner. (Sorry I didn't get any pictures of the "formal" attire, but it was just too jaw dropping too think quickly enough).

Our first stop was Cozumel, Mexico. I was so excited to get off the boat and be on solid ground. But immediately upon stepping on the dock, we got onto another smaller boat that took us to the island of Cozumel. I almost cried openly.....

Our excursion in Cozumel was a Jeep tour to some Mayan caves. The caves were full of natural mineral water. We were able to swim in the water, although it was a touch cold, it was amazing to be there. I forgot my water camera, so I was unable to take pictures in the water (and the one in the cave turned out too depressing to post!) Here's Anna getting ready to head into the cave - love the hard hat :)

We also drove through town (and almost died by being rear-ended by another Jeep in the tour - not a happy thought) and ended up on a private beach where we ate lunch and had the chance to play in the ocean. These are some pictures of the city of Cozumel.

I just loved this sign - seriously, horns must be a big problem....

This sunset was after our day at Cozumel. I was barely able to get the shot, due to hordes of people lining the deck trying to get their own shot. And me getting more sick from standing on deck and looking out and the water (still makes my stomach turn now...)

Our next adventure took us to Roatan, Honduras. We spent the day at a private beach - snorkeling and relaxing. It was beautiful and amazing. I remembered my water camera and was able to take some pictures of the fish - which turned out amazingly well for not having any idea if the camera worked or not.

If you look really close you can see a couple of fish in the picture. We really did see a lot of little fish, but nothing big or scary.



And this is our snorkel guide. He was really pretty ornery and annoyed both Anna and I. But we followed him none the less - didn't want to get lost in the middle of the ocean.

There was also this amazing rusted out ship - which had to have been a Pirate Ship. It was way too cool to just be a random boat. And I do love me some pirates - arrgh!

And then on to Belize. This was what Anna had been looking forward to the entire cruise. We had booked an excursion to the rain forest - including rappelling and a zip line. It was AMAZING! (And once again, Anna has these pictures - so you will have to be a little patient and wait until I get them...)

After Belize, we had a day at sea. I had finally come to the conclusion that I would continuously be nauseous and have a headache, so I just went with it. Once you accept the fact you will be sick no matter what, it makes things a little easier to deal with. This night we had the big Carnival Colors party. It was some random separation of everyone on the boat, which put us in teams. This is when we finally spent some "quality" time with "the drunk boys."

This is our cruise director, Butch. (Yep, that's his real name. And he was gorgeous, although the wig and random outfit don't properly reflect his "do-ability!")

And this is Mark (one of the famous drunk boys). And yes, he was drunk during this entire party and it was a riot. I haven't laughed so hard in a long time... I'm giving this cheese to Russell!

Finally, our last excursion was in Freeport, Bahamas. Seriously, this was probably my favorite port. We rode cruiser bikes (and I am definitely buying myself one of these) and rode all over the island. It started out as a beautiful, rather hot day. Then it quickly became overcast and the rain literally drenched us for about five minutes. Then it was clear again and we continued riding and drying out. I loved the entire day spent in the Bahamas. The entire island was beautiful and our guide was beyond wonderful. He was so knowledgeable and funny and continued to tell us all about his home. I am seriously considering moving there..... really everyone would love me because they could come visit!

And they also had a Pirate Ship - who wouldn't love to live there?!

The rest of the photos are on Flickr if anyone wants to see them. One day I'll get Anna's stash of photos and add them. But for now, I can't bother her because she wants me to pay her the rest of my portion - I figure avoidance is best :)

BAM!

I have returned from my adventures in international waters. I'm still getting the waves (literally they are waves) of nausea, so I am not in the mood to share of my travels. Don't EVER believe anyone who tells you that you get used to the movement of the boat and you will never be sick - LIARS!
Soon I will be back to normal and work will slow again and I can post lots of random pictures and explain why I shall never cruise again.
Ahh.... the gays, the drunks, and the completely random.....