Words of Affirmation

This YouTube video never fails to make a bad day (or even a good day) better:



I hope you all have a GREAT day!!

Rachel Takes a Trip to the Beach

Rachel grew up in Idaho, and had never been to the beach before, at least not that she can remember. She has a picture of her and her dad when she was only 2 years old. Her dad is holding her hands as she is walking along the water in her nightgown and cowboy boots. Rachel was too little to remember that day though. Rachel wanted to go to the beach so much.

When Rachel heard about a place called Assateague Island, she decided she needed to explore it's beach. Rachel took her roommate, Holli, and her friends, Justin and Lee, with her.

They backpacked for 4 miles along the beach until they reached their campsite. Rachel saw lots of little crabs in the sand as they walked.

The first thing Rachel did, after applying a heavy dose of sunscreen, was jump in the ocean! She soon discovered how fun it is to play in the waves! She giggled and giggled as the waves tried to carry her to shore.

Rachel knew a trip to the beach includes playing in the sand, so she built a sandcastle, but she couldn't get the princess tower to stand very tall. Justin could see that this made Rachel sad, so he helped her turn it into a sea turtle. The princess tower became its head. It was the finest sand sea turtle this side of the Mississippi.

Rachel had heard of people burying each other in the sand with only their heads poking out. Rachel thought this sounded funny, so Justin let her bury him while he took a nap next to the sea turtle.

Rachel also heard that this island had wild animals living on it that most beaches don't have. Can you tell what they are?

Wild horses!!!!!!!!!
Rachel wanted to pet the horses even though she knew they were not safe. She also knew the park rangers would make her pay $100 if she got too close to the horses. Rachel decided not to pet the horses.

Rachel quickly learned that the wild horses brought horse flies with them. They bit her so many times that she counted 20 bites on her feet and legs. She ran out of fingers and toes to count on, so she stopped counting.

There was also a big rainstorm when they were visiting the beach. Rachel and her friends had to go into the tent to stay dry, and the rain made the tent really loud. There was so much wind, Rachel got scared that they might blow away into the ocean. Rachel's friends decided to play cards in the tent, and Rachel had so much fun she forgot she was scared.

The next day, Rachel and her friends went back to the ranger station. Rachel could see dolphins waving goodbye to her and her friends as they walked so Rachel waved back. This was the best trip to the beach Rachel could remember in her entire life.

THAR SHE......doesn't blow

(All pictures borrowed from Google Images)

The excitement of the earthquake did not last long as we were forced to prepare for the treacherous hurricane, Irene. And, yes, she was just about as scary as she sounds. Allow me to fill you in on the details, per Aunt Rachel's request.

I was blissfully planning a getaway to Ocean City with "the girls" (insert finger quotations) when my roommate informed me Irene was brewing. Our trip was hastily canceled the day Ocean City mandated an evacuation (insert frown accompanied with head drooping). I then began to think about preparing for the impending doom.

(Irene smiling for the camera at Ocean City on Saturday)

When Friday rolled around, I thought perhaps I would squeeze my preparation in between work and volleyball. It turns out everyone else decided to prepare just then too. The store was swarming with people. However, the water isle was vacant due to the lack of water on the shelves. I grabbed the last two cans of chunk light tuna in water, some grapes, some bread, a can of soup, and about 7 bottles of water found in the deli section where no one thought to look. (insert triumph pose) I figured that would be sufficient in addition to my 1 dehydrated meal and gallon of water at home. I then went home, filled my freshly cleaned bathtub full of water, and went off to play volleyball with friends.

When Saturday rolled around there was a constant pouring of rain (typical of any ol' summer storm) accompanied by a breeze. Irene was teasing us with her calmness. As Irene not-so-swiftly approached, we received word that church was canceled. I called Levi some time between 4-6 pm. When I asked if the hurricane hit yet, I heard a laugh and "Has it hit yet? (insert sarcasm) Since 8 o'clock this morning!" He then proceeded to report how many trees were down and how many hours the power had been out. They were ignoring the storm at a friend's house playing cards and having a grand ol' time. (insert jealousy) I couldn't wait for Irene to visit so we could have a party! All I could do was wait for it........
......................................................................................................................
......................................................................................................................
......................................wait for it................................................................
......................................................................................................................
...............................................................................(sigh)........................
....................................................................................................................
..........wait for it...........................................................................................
...........................................(huff).............................................................
Well, I assume there was some wind and probably more rain that night, perhaps some thunder and lightning. (I wouldn't know, I'm a heavy sleeper.) When I woke up, the trees were standing, the sun was shining, the sky was blue, and the parking lot was dry. (insert birds chirping) No sign of Irene except for a few leaves and small branches on the ground. With no church to go to, my roommates and I went for a walk and played Rummikub for a while. It was a slightly boring day. (insert finger drumming) Thanks for nothing Irene.

(I have no clue who this kid is, but this is how I felt.)

Fight (stand-in-doorway) or Flight

Tuesday was an interesting day. My plan was to visit a few clients and then get a LOT of paperwork done at my 8th floor office on Massachusetts Avenue, in spite of the air conditioner that causes me to wrap myself in my baby blue Snuggie with clouds on it. (Don't be jealous.)

I was feeling good about my efforts to enter data, sign here, file papers, and send emails. As I stood to go get something off the printer, I heard a faint rumble and felt a small vibration coming through the floor. I looked at my coworker (#1) through the doorway. She looked at me, both frozen with an expression that said, "Did you feel that too?" Then the walls and floor began to shake more and the rumble came back louder. Something fell on a desk. My coworker and I both calmly stepped into the door frame. No words were spoken.

Just then, coworker #2 came running around the corner saying, "What's going on?!" We told her there was an earthquake and she should step into the door frame. She then began to walk hurriedly in circles not knowing what to do. Coworker #1 grabbed her and pulled her near the door frame. Coworker #2 then began hugging the wall, her leg trying to wrap around it, all the while hysterically crying, "NO!" Coworker #1 wrapped her arms around coworker #2 and told her it would be OK. I concurred by awkwardly patting coworker #2's shoulder, but really wondering how Laverne (my car) was doing in the basement.

As this is happening, coworker #3 steps into the middle of the room starring at the scene and, in his monotone voice, states "Coworker #2". Of course coworker #3 was ignored by all as he stood tempting mother nature in the middle of the room.

When the shaking ended (less than a minute after it started) coworker #3 states, "I think we are supposed to evacuate." We then calmly gather our cell phones and descend all 8 flights in a hurried manner. (Note, none of our coworkers are to be seen.) As we exit the building, there are crowds of people lining Massachusetts Avenue including all our other coworkers. My supervisor looks at me and shouts, "You're OK! I couldn't get a call through and didn't know where you were. What were you doing in there?!" As coworker #1 and I explain that we were standing in doorways, we were informed we should have evacuated by our supervisors whose eyes were glazed over with crisis. Coworker #1, from the shaky state of California, then informed everyone else that we would have lived in our door frames while they all died in the stairwell had the quake been anymore severe. As she stated this, a handful more of our coworkers exited the building with a similar report involving desks and door frames.

When we reentered the building over an hour later, I noticed I took the time to turn off my office light upon evacuation. No sense in wasting energy. Coworker #1 also noticed that she somehow found the time to pause her internet radio station. No sense letting it play if there's no one there to listen to it. It's funny what habits we pick up.

I didn't get done near as much as I had planned, but it was one eventful day!

Visitors

I have had so many visitors lately! Jesse and Calder (cousins) came in March, my parents came in April, and a friend from Wyoming, Kory, came in May. We covered a LOT of ground! (My parents' feet can attest to that!) Here is what we did in a nutshell:

My favorite part of DC: The Awakening


This is a sculpture of a giant coming out of the ground at the National Harbor. What an entrance he's making!!

Also part of our stop at the Harbor: Peeps

This is a really fun store (if you can get past the sugary nausea that hits you once you get two steps into the store). They have a Hot Tamales meter that tells you how hot you are. The last time I tried it I was SMOKIN!

The National Cathedral


Emily and I had great fun learning about the meanings behind the towers, the pictures in the gates, the chapels, etc. And the murals were beautiful!

The Mall:

(Me and Dad in the Jefferson-I love this picture because it truly captured a funny moment.)

We saw them in the daytime and the nighttime. My favorite stop is the Jefferson Memorial. My friend from high school, Brad, gave my parents and my cousins a tour of the capitol. It was a lot of fun. We got a one-of-a-kind tour of the capitol!!

Arlington:


We watched the changing of the guards at the tomb of the unknown soldier. It rained but Arlington is always a good time!

Mount Vernon

(Andy, Levi, Emily, Moi)

Beautiful countryside with nice little nature trails that wind over the sloping hills and through the thick woods. This was the only way we could keep Andy happy because he kept wandering off.

James Town and Williamsburg:


The Governor's Mansion at Williamsburg had BEAUTIFUL gardens and bowling greens that seemed to go on forever! I was picturing myself in an empire waisted dress having romantic yet innocent rendezvous with my forbidden love. (Count of Monte Cristo style?) One of the gardens felt like the hedge maze in Harry Potter. We never would have found them if it weren't for Jesse and Calder's curiosity and bravery!

The Nationals:

(Me, Barrett, Holli, Kory)

We also went to a Nats game. I still haven't been convinced that baseball is America's greatest past time, but the company was sure fun!

That's it in a nutshell. We did a few more things, but I don't want to bore you with our painful story of the free show at the Kennedy Center (Jesse and Calder know what I'm talking about.) You should all know I haven't had visitors in June yet. I'm still waiting for someone to book it. Any takers?

(P.S. Thanks Google for the images!)

Gettysburg

On our (Levi, Emily, Andy) Pennsylvania adventure, we also saw Gettysburg. What a fun place to visit! I am currently reading a novel based on the events at Gettysburg, The Killer Angels by Michael Shaara. Due to my inability to read quickly, I am only into the second day of the battle now, but I'm absorbing every detail I can! It gives me a great visual to have seen the actual ground where the battle took place. I can see the advantage of high ground that was so obvious to the soldiers. It brings the strategy behind the battle alive! It is fun to read the personal details of the story behind each of the main players in the battle as well.

These are my favorite generals so far:

• General Pickett (Confederate) was a "perfumed" man with bouncing curls and in love with a girl half his age, for whom he vowed ne'r to touch liquor and gets teased for it. He is quite entertaining!

• General Chamberlain (Union) was an eloquent, inspiring man with deep convictions. As a professor of philosophy, he gave spur-of-the-moment, inspirational, and motivational speeches to his men with an air of humility. He makes me want to enlist!

• General Robert E. Lee (C) was a man greatly respected by both sides of the war. I can see why as I read about him. I can't help but root for him even though I already know the outcome of the story.

• General Longstreet (C), Lee's "old war horse," loved to be on the defensive and advised Lee to do so. Lee did not follow his friend's advice. Longstreet and Lee seem to be so opposite, yet Longstreet seems to be Lee's ray of sunshine.

• General Reynolds (U) was a polished and dignified gentleman and military man who respectfully declined the offer to command the Union Army, believing he would not be of much help by leaving the front line. Just reading about him paints a very detailed picture in my head of a distinguished, handsome gentleman atop his trusty steed that any woman would swoon for.
  

It's so interesting to read about the relationships and the respect the generals had for each other on either side of the war. They were friends who simply chose different sides. They even waved to each other from a distance before battles commenced. They were truly sad when learning of their opposing friend's deaths as well. I am loving my book, and I can't wait to finish it and then go back to Gettysburg for the full visual! Gettysburg is by far one of my favorite sites that I've visited.

A day without chocolate is a day without sunshine. ~Anonymous

If that's the case, it must be sunny all year round in Hershey, Pennsylvania! Last weekend Levi, Emily, Andy, and I went on an adventure to Pennsylvania. We took no pictures because the paparazzi would not leave us alone, and we figured we could just get pictures from the tabloids. All the pictures in this post came from the paparazzi via Google Images.


Hershey, PA was established by Mr. Milton Hershey himself to sustain his factory. (Apparently the paparazzi wouldn't leave him alone either.) He even brought in entertainment and built nice homes to keep his employees happy, although you'd think chocolate is all they needed, right?? I thought it was interesting to know that Mr. Hershey and his wife could not have children so they supported a boys' orphanage and left their wealth to the orphanage when they died.


We thought it was really cool that the roads had a brownish tint to them, but apparently the paparazzi didn't. I couldn't find a good picture. I wonder if they put real chocolate in the roads? Afterall, they put real chocolate on their street lights!

You may notice there are no pictures of us. It seems we are better at hiding from the paparazzi than we thought!