Save the Date

Hello friends & family!

We are so excited! Many of you know that Mike & I have been planningto get hitched. And, manyof you have been wondering WHEN WILL Mike & Jenn get hitched! You'llbe happy to know, that we have found the perfect location. The onlydate they have available is coming up quickly!! We thought we'd getout the important details, so you can make plans accordingly.We will be married on July 12, 2008 at Olympic Park Institute on LakeCrescent (www.yni.org/opi), outside of Port Angeles, Washington.Accomodation details will follow in the formal invitations.We certainly hope that you can join us as we celebrate the step into anew phase of our relationship - that of husband and wife!

Lovingly yours,

Jenn & Mike

Vacation

We went to Baja in a van.
While we were there
we got a great tan.



With our friends
and their dog,
a few miles we did log.




We had a few thrills;
including snorkeling and
Hiking the hills.



The winds were strong.
And in the end,
we all got along.



But just so we're clear,
what we really did
was drink lots of beer!

Tagging memes

Tag, I'm IT. Julie's meme rules: Look at any book you are currently reading with >125 pages. Go to page 123. Skip the first 5 sentences. Record the following 3 sentences. Tag 5 more people to play the game.

Currently, my reading stack includes travel guides for Baja and there's always a book or two about home building. Other recently read tomes have been dutifully returned to the library.

So, let's see, from Andromeda Romano-Lax's Sea Kayaking in Baja:

"As the evening sea became glass, and then mirror, the jagged reflections of both Dazante and the mainland Sierra de la Giganta danced on the sea's surface. Gliding south, between the two, the reflections enveloped us. The landscape resembled the Grand Canyon, if the Grand Canyon were nearly filled with water, and one were lazily paddling along the south slope, gazing up from the flooded chasm."

Oh, that does sound lovely.

And from Lonely Planet's Baja California & Los Cabos:

"Not only does la frontera have a culture identity of its own, but nearly everything that crosses it, especially heading north, is subject to a strict set of politically charged controls. And nothing is more politically charged on both sides of the border than the issue of undocumented immigration into the USA.

In 2005, under the guise of 'homeland security,' the US announced plans to build a new security wall along the border."

Traveling always gives a new perspective on the world, but even preparing for a trip can cause you to think differently.

Finally, from Franklin and Esther Schmidt's Cabin Kitchens & Baths:

Guess I read picture books too, so nothing on page 123 but a couple captions. I'll cheat and include them:

"Contemporary water-jet relaxation is not incongruous in this old-fashioned, woodsy space." and "This bathroom is customized for a good view while enjoying a bubbled soak."

Bath anyone?

Tagging 5 more is tricky since I only know but maybe 3 other bloggers. I'll tag:
1) Shaleah because she hasn't posted in FOREVER, and
2) Keith because I want to know what smart guys read, and
3) Jeffrey because then he'll know that veritable strangers read his blog (and to learn what aspiring attorneys are forced to read), and
4) Kat because I thought she was cool when we met and she's a writer too.

Celebrating 15 Years

It was a very romantic, traditional-type proposal. He was nervous. I cried. He asked. I accepted.

Details to follow.

The Year of the Underdog?

"You have no fear of the underdog, that is why you will not survive." - Spoon

This has been one of my favorite songs for a while now. The lyrics were with me all day, after last night's exciting Superbowl upset. I have a knack for rooting for the underdog. I don't plan it; it just turns out that way.

So, I'm thinking that if my Superbowl pick won this year, maybe my choice for president will win this year too!

Hear for yourself here or here

"YES WE CAN!"

Snow Day

Sunday's slush



This morning's snow







I've lived on the lake for nearly 10 years, but have never seen snow on the water until today. As of Saturday, it was completely frozen over. Then, yesterday, there was a hint of melted snow on top. This morning, there is no denying the inches of white on top of the ice.

I tried making it into work today. My bomber Subaru with 4 studded tires goes ANYwhere, but other folks were going EVERYwhere! I made it three miles before I saw the first truck with its flashers alerting me to the ditch it was nose-deep into. As I continued around the icy corner, there were two passenger vehicles in the right-hand ditch, facing each other. One nose completely gone and the other's side panel now missing. I wove between these three, only to come upon the monster truck fully embedded in the ditch.

Everybody was in good spirits except the woman who had been T-boned. Visibly shaken, she asked if the damage to her car was bad. I didn't know how to tell her that her car looked totaled, so said, "Its kinda crunched." She commended my "politically correct" answer.

The Aid Car arrived on scene and I began to scope the descent downhill to continue my commute. I was informed they were turning people around a mile ahead (explained the heavier-than-usual oncoming traffic earlier). To check out the closure rumor, I had to thread the needle between another accident in the middle of the hill. Weighing all I'd seen already, I turned around. I have never aborted my commute before.

Lesson learned: When there's snow on the lake, don't even bother with the roads.

John Steinbeck

This morning, I was remembering some "words of wisdom" uttered to me by my then-boyfriend's mother. I was in my early 20s (VERY early 20s). She said, "You're very idealistic. That's because you're young. That will change as you get older." I'm much older now....

This evening, I read this:
"When I was very young and the urge to be someplace else was on me, I was assured by mature people that maturity would cure the itch..." - John Steinbeck.

I always have liked Steinbeck. And I think I'll like this this next read, too.