ZOO

We went to the local zoo (wildlife sanctuary) on Friday. It is a really small but cool zoo. They take in animals that other zoos can't take care of, don't have room for, that were kept as pets and mistreated, or that have been injured and can no longer survive in the wild. Here are some pics with out captions because it is so hard to format these blogs when pics are added.

Lets redefine a little

shawn and emma said...

so is this helping you at all...is this what you had in mind minus the sarcasm?? :)

Yes this is what I had in mind, minus the things you all CAN do yourselves, but don't make the time to do like read theological books and plant a vegetable garden...no names, Erin. Sorry for picking on you Erin, and just for that I will give you a review of one that I have almost completed. Letters from a Skeptic has been an excellent and very easy read. I got this book from our former preacher from Prescott Church of Christ. It is an actual series of letters between a son (PhD in theology) and his aged skeptic father. Though I don't agree with some of his arguments...he relies heavily upon arguments of cosmic warfare, and I was told alludes to ideas of Original Sin, though I have not seen that yet....this read is one of the best I've ever come across in relation to how to address common questions from skeptics, and how to understand their perspective. I am reading for consideration on using this as a textual basis for my high school Bible class here in Prescott. Check this book out. I ordered a copy for myself shortly after I began reading it.

Erin I hope this makes up for picking on you.

Emma, it is hard to play racquetball up here (very few courts) but I think I can get in with one of our ministers up here.

Denise, your nature walk should be posted by week's end. I was going to do it yesterday but a work meeting went VERY long.

Running update. I ran/walked from Prescott to Prescott Valley on Tuesday after class via the Peavine/Iron King trails. This is a total of 8 miles. I walked the first 3/4 mile and the last 1 mile as a warm up and cool down. So I ran a little over 6 miles in 1hr25min. Not too bad seeing as how I have never run that far uninterrupted before. Lata

Book opinions

I know that if everyone else is bored with this blog entry, my mom will like it, so this one's for you mom. When Chad wrote the last post about things he should do now that he has more time, I suggested to him (in person, the way we normally communicate) that he get a list of the 100 best novels of all-time and an AP reading list, read all of them, and then report back to me which ones are good. You're probably wondering why I can't just do this myself. The reason is simple: just because it made a "best" list does not mean it's any good. I think it just means that nobody wants to be the one to say, "Hey! Willa Cather is a really boring writer!" I didn't always like to read, because I my perception of "liking to read" was that one liked reading for the sake of reading, not for the sake of a good story. When I was in junior high and high school, one of my memories is of my mom reading books in the evenings. I couldn't understand how she could read so much! Now I realize (and this is what I tell my students) that you can enjoy reading without liking everything you read. Mom once said that she will read 100 pages into a book and if she's not interested, she'll move on. I thought that was a good idea. So, I looked up the definitive "100 Best Novels of All-Time" list (aka the first one that popped up when I typed it in Google). I have to say that I have read some of these and they are definitely not the best, but this was the modern library. I also looked up the AP suggested reading list, and I've bolded everything I've read, and maybe made a comment about whether I liked it or not. So I've decided to take it upon myself to read more of these books, but not just to check off the list. I only want to read the good ones. So I am inviting everyone who reads this blog to give their input: if you have read any of these and you really liked them, I'd like to know. Also, if I shouldn't waste my time, tell me that too. I'll give the rest to Chad to preview for me. Here they are:

The Modern Library's 100 best novels (reader's list) I haven't even heard of most of these books! If you have read any of these (which obviously lots of people think are really good), please enlighten me.

ATLAS SHRUGGED by Ayn Rand
THE FOUNTAINHEAD by Ayn Rand
BATTLEFIELD EARTH by L. Ron Hubbard
THE LORD OF THE RINGS by J.R.R. Tolkien
TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD by Harper Lee. My favorite book. If you haven't read it, you should.
1984 by George Orwell
ANTHEM by Ayn Rand
WE THE LIVING by Ayn Rand
MISSION EARTH by L. Ron Hubbard
FEAR by L. Ron Hubbard
ULYSSES by James Joyce
CATCH-22 by Joseph Heller
THE GREAT GATSBY by F. Scott Fitzgerald. Skip it.
DUNE by Frank Herbert
THE MOON IS A HARSH MISTRESS by Robert Heinlein
STRANGER IN A STRANGE LAND by Robert Heinlein
A TOWN LIKE ALICE by Nevil Shute
BRAVE NEW WORLD by Aldous Huxley
THE CATCHER IN THE RYE by J.D. Salinger
ANIMAL FARM by George Orwell
GRAVITY'S RAINBOW by Thomas Pynchon
THE GRAPES OF WRATH by John Steinbeck. Not the best Steinbeck novel, but well-written nonetheless.
SLAUGHTERHOUSE FIVE by Kurt Vonnegut
GONE WITH THE WIND by Margaret Mitchell
LORD OF THE FLIES by William Golding
SHANE by Jack Schaefer
TRUSTEE FROM THE TOOLROOM by Nevil Shute
A PRAYER FOR OWEN MEANY by John Irving
THE STAND by Stephen King
THE FRENCH LIEUTENANT'S WOMAN by John Fowles
BELOVED by Toni Morrison
THE WORM OUROBOROS by E.R. Eddison
THE SOUND AND THE FURY by William Faulkner
LOLITA by Vladimir Nabokov
MOONHEART by Charles de Lint
ABSALOM, ABSALOM! by William Faulkner
OF HUMAN BONDAGE by W. Somerset Maugham
WISE BLOOD by Flannery O'Connor
UNDER THE VOLCANO by Malcolm Lowry
FIFTH BUSINESS by Robertson Davies
SOMEPLACE TO BE FLYING by Charles de Lint
ON THE ROAD by Jack Kerouac
HEART OF DARKNESS by Joseph Conrad
YARROW by Charles de Lint
AT THE MOUNTAINS OF MADNESS by H.P. Lovecraft
ONE LONELY NIGHT by Mickey Spillane
MEMORY AND DREAM by Charles de Lint
TO THE LIGHTHOUSE by Virginia Woolf
THE MOVIEGOER by Walker Percy
TRADER by Charles de Lint
THE HITCHHIKER'S GUIDE TO THE GALAXY by Douglas Adams
THE HEART IS A LONELY HUNTER by Carson McCullers
THE HANDMAID'S TALE by Margaret Atwood
BLOOD MERIDIAN by Cormac McCarthy
A CLOCKWORK ORANGE by Anthony Burgess
ON THE BEACH by Nevil Shute
A PORTRAIT OF THE ARTIST AS A YOUNG MAN by James Joyce
GREENMANTLE by Charles de Lint
ENDER'S GAME by Orson Scott Card
THE LITTLE COUNTRY by Charles de Lint
THE RECOGNITIONS by William Gaddis
STARSHIP TROOPERS by Robert Heinlein
THE SUN ALSO RISES by Ernest Hemingway
THE WORLD ACCORDING TO GARP by John Irving
SOMETHING WICKED THIS WAY COMES by Ray Bradbury
THE HAUNTING OF HILL HOUSE by Shirley Jackson
AS I LAY DYING by William Faulkner
TROPIC OF CANCER by Henry Miller
INVISIBLE MAN by Ralph Ellison
THE WOOD WIFE by Terri Windling
THE MAGUS by John Fowles
THE DOOR INTO SUMMER by Robert Heinlein
ZEN AND THE ART OF MOTORCYCLE MAINTENANCE by Robert Pirsig
I, CLAUDIUS by Robert Graves
THE CALL OF THE WILD by Jack London
AT SWIM-TWO-BIRDS by Flann O'Brien
FARENHEIT 451 by Ray Bradbury
ARROWSMITH by Sinclair Lewis
WATERSHIP DOWN by Richard Adams
NAKED LUNCH by William S. Burroughs
THE HUNT FOR RED OCTOBER by Tom Clancy
GUILTY PLEASURES by Laurell K. Hamilton
THE PUPPET MASTERS by Robert Heinlein
IT by Stephen King
V. by Thomas Pynchon
DOUBLE STAR by Robert Heinlein
CITIZEN OF THE GALAXY by Robert Heinlein
BRIDESHEAD REVISITED by Evelyn Waugh
LIGHT IN AUGUST by William Faulkner
ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO'S NEST by Ken Kesey
A FAREWELL TO ARMS by Ernest Hemingway
THE SHELTERING SKY by Paul Bowles
SOMETIMES A GREAT NOTION by Ken Kesey
MY ANTONIA by Willa Cather. Sorry, was I snoring too loud?
MULENGRO by Charles de Lint
SUTTREE by Cormac McCarthy
MYTHAGO WOOD by Robert Holdstock
ILLUSIONS by Richard Bach
THE CUNNING MAN by Robertson Davies
THE SATANIC VERSES by Salman Rushdie


The AP suggested reading list: Obviously, all my high school and college teachers saw this list too, hence the number of highlighted books.
Adventures of Huckleberry Finn Twain, Mark. This is a good book. Chad disagrees.
Aeneid Virgil
African Queen Forester, C. S.
Age of Innocence Hamilton, David
Agnes of God Pielmeier John
Agony and the Ecstasy Stone, Irving
Alias Grace Atwood, Margaret
All the King's Men Warren, Robert Penn
All the Pretty Horses McCarthy, Cormac. His weird sentence structure and punctuation bother me, but otherwise a good story teller.
America is in the Heart Bulosan, Carlos
An American Tragedy Dreiser, Theodore
The Andromeda Strain Crichton, Michael
An Enemy of the People Ibsen, Henrik Johan
Anna Karenina Tolstoy, Leo
Anne Frank: Diary of a Young Girl Frank, Anne
Another Country Pipher, Mary Bray
Antigone Sophocles Just read this in sophomore English. Short, but a classic Greek tragedy (Antigone is Oedipus's daughter)
Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz Richler, Mordecai
As You Like It Shakespeare, William
As I Lay Dying Faulkner, William
Awakening Chopin, Kate
Bear Faulkner, William
Big Sky Guthrie, A.B.
Billy Budd, Sailor Melville, Herman
Birthday Party Pointer, Harold
Bleak House Dickens, Charles
Bless Me, Ultima Anaya, Rudolfo. Mrs. Fort forced me to read this in 9th grade. I didn't like the books she picked.
Bluest Eye Morrison, Toni
Bridge of San Luis Rey Wilder, Thornton
Bridge Over the River Kwai Boulle, Pierre
Brothers Karamazov Dostoevsky, Fyodor
Caine Mutiny Wouk, Herman
Candide Voltaire, Francois-Marie Arouet
Canterbury Tales Chaucer, Geoffrey. Read it in high school. Vague memories of dad reciting some of it in some bad Old English.
Catcher in the Rye Salinger, J.D.
Cat on Hot Tin Roof Williams, Tennessee
Cat's Eye Atwood, Margaret
Catch-22 Heller, Joseph
Ceremony Silko, Leslie Marmon
Cherry Orchard Chekhov, P. Anton
Color Purple Walker, Alice
Count of Monte Cristo Dumas, Alexander
Crime & Punishment Dostoevsky, Fyodor
Crucible Miller, Arthur. Love this play. From what I hear from American Lit. teachers it is getting more and more difficult to explain the Red Scare metaphor as it relates to the play.
Cry, the Beloved Country Paton, Alan. Another Fort pick.
Daisy Miller James, Henry
Dead Joyce, James
Death of a Salesman Miller, Arthur. Not as good as The Crucible. Don't think I'd teach it by choice.
Delta Wedding Welty, Eudora
Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant Tyler, Anne
Diviners Laurence, Margaret
Doll's House Ibsen, Henrik Johan
Don Quixote (Don Quijote) Cervantes, Miguel
Dr. Faustus Marlowe, Christopher J.
Emma Austen, Jane
Equus Shaffer, Peter
Eumenides Aeschylus
Fifth Business Davies, Robertson
Frankenstein Shelley, Mary Wollstonecraft
Friendly Persuasion West, Jessamyn
Gathering of Old Men Gaines, Ernest J.
Glass Menagerie Williams, Tennessee
Good Earth Buck, Pearl S.
Good Soldier Ford, Ford Madox
Grapes of Wrath Steinbeck, John
Ghosts Ibsen, Henrik Johan
Great Expectations Dickens, Charles
Great Gatsby Fitzgerald, F. Scott
Gulliver's Travels Swift, Jonathan
Hamlet Shakespeare, William. One of Shakespeare's best. I like the tragedies better than the comedies.
Handmaid's Tale Atwood, Margaret Eleanor
Heart of Darkness Conrad, Joseph
Heart Is a Lonely Hunter McCullers, Carson
Hedda Gabler Ibsen, Henrik Johan
Hound of the Baskervilles Doyle, Arthur Conan
House Made of Dawn Momaday, N. Scott
Iliad Homer
In the Lake of the Woods O'Brien, Tim
Invisible Man Ellison, Ralph
Ivanhoe Scott, Walter
J. B. McLeish, Archibald. Yet another Fort pick. It is supposed to be a modern-day rendition of the book of Job.
Jane Eyre Bronte, Charlotte
Jasmine Mukherjee, Bharati. American Ethnic Literature @ A&M.
Joe Turner's Come and Gone Wilson, August
Johnny Tremain Forbes, Esther
Joy Luck Club Tan, Amy
Jude the Obscure Hardy, Thomas. Hardy is a dense author, but I enjoy what I have read of his.
Julius Caesar Shakespeare, William. Awesome play! We just finished it in my class again. Et tu, Brute?
Jungle Sinclair, Upton B.
Kidnapped Stevenson, Robert L.
Kim Kipling, Rudyard
King Lear Shakespeare, William
Kon-Tiki Heyerdahl, Thor
Les Miserables Hugo, Victor
Lesson Before Dying Gaines, Ernest J.
Life & Adventures of John Muir Clarke, James
Light in August Faulkner, William
Light in the Forest Richter, Conrad
Little Women Alcott, Louisa May
Living Sea Cousteau, Jacques
Loneliness of the Long-Distance Runner Sillitoe, Allan
Look Homeward, Angel Wolfe, Thomas
Lord Jim Conrad, Joseph
Lord of the Flies Golding, William G.
Love Medicine Erdrich, Louise
Lysistrata Aristophanes
Macbeth Shakespeare, William. Bubble, bubble, toil and trouble.
Madame Butterfly Puccini, Giacomo
Madame Curie Curie, Eve
Main Street Lewis, Sinclair
Major Barbara Shaw, George Bernard
Martian Chronicles Bradbury, Ray
Mayor of Casterbridge Hardy, Thomas
Medea Euripides
Member of the Wedding McCullers, Carson
Merchant of Venice Shakespeare, William. Just finished this in honors English. A good one, but not the best.
Metamorphosis Kafka, Franz
Middlemarch Eliot, George
Mill on the Floss Eliot, George
Miracle Worker Gibson, William
Misanthrope Moliere
Moby Dick Melville, Herman
Moll Flanders Defoe, Daniel
Monkey Bridge Cao, Lan
Mother Courage and Her Children Brecht, Bertolt
Mrs. Dalloway Woolf, Virginia. Avoid Woolf at all costs.
Mrs. Warren's Profession Shaw, George Bernard
Much Ado About Nothing Shakespeare, William
Murder in the Cathedral Eliot, T. S.
Mutiny on the Bounty Nordhoff, Charles
My Antonia Cather, Willa. Another one to avoid. Her writing is as stark as the landscapes she writes about.
My Brother Sam is Dead Collier, James L.
Native Son Wright, Richard A.
Native Speaker Lee, Chang-Rae. American Ethnic Literature @ A&M
Nineteen Eighty-Four Orwell, George. How did I graduate from high school without reading this book and Catcher in the Rye?
No-No Boy Okada, John. American Ethnic Literature @ A&M
Obasan Kogawa, Joy
Odyssey Homer
Oedipus Rex Sophocles. A seriously disturbed family.
Of Human Bondage Maugham, W. Somerset
Of Mice and Men Steinbeck, John
Old Man and the Sea Hemingway, Ernest
Old Yeller Gipson, Fred
On the Beach Shute, Nevil
Optimist's Daughter Welty, Eudora
Othello Shakespeare, William
Our Town Wilder, Thornton
Ox Bow Incident Clark, Walter Van Tilburg
Pale Horse, Pale Rider Porter, Katherine Anne
Passage to India Forster, E.M.
Pearl Steinbeck, John
Piano Lesson Wilson, August
Picture of Dorian Gray Wilde, Oscar
Pnin Nabokov, Vladimir
Portrait of a Lady James, Henry
Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man Joyce, James
Power and the Glory Greene, Graham
Praisesong for the Widow Marshall, Paule
Pride and Prejudice Austen, Jane
Prime of Miss Jean Brodie Spark, Muriel
Promise Potok, Chaim
Pygmalion Shaw, George Bernard
Raisin in the Sun Hansberry, Lorraine
Rebecca duMaurier, Daphne
Red Badge of Courage Crane, Stephen
Redburn Melville, Herman
Red Pony Steinbeck, John
Remains of the Day Ishiguro, Kazuo
Return of the Native Hardy, Thomas
Robinson Crusoe Defoe, Daniel
Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry Taylor, Mildred D.
Romeo and Juliet Shakespeare, William
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead Stoppard, Tom
Saint Joan Shaw, George Bernard
Scarlet Pimpernel Orczy, Baroness
Scarlet Letter Hawthorne, Nathaniel
Sea Around Us Carson, Rachel L.
Separate Peace Knowles, John
Shipping News Proulx, Annie
Silent Spring Carson, Rachel L.
Sister Carrie Dreiser, Theodore
Slaughterhouse-Five Vonnegut, Kurt
Snow Falling on Cedars Guterson, David
Song of Solomon Morrison, Toni
Sound and the Fury Faulkner, William
Spy Who Came in From the Cold Le Carre, John
Stone Angel O'Connell, Carol
Story of My Life Keller, Helen A.
Stranger (L'Estranger) Camus, Albert
Streetcar Named Desire Williams, Tennessee
Sula Morrison, Toni
Summer of My German Soldier Greene, Bette
Sun Also Rises Hemingway, Ernest
Tales of the South Pacific Michener, James A.
Tartuffe Moliere
Tempest Shakespeare , William
Tess of the D'Urbervilles Hardy, Thomas. I really like this book. I did my H.S. senior research paper on this one.
Their Eyes Were Watching God Hurston, Zora Neale
Things Fall Apart Achebe, Chinua
Thread That Runs So True Stuart, Jesse
To Be Young, Gifted and Black Hansberry, Lorraine
To Kill a Mockingbird Lee, Harper. Did I mention I love this book?
Tom Jones Fielding, Henry
Tom Sawyer Twain, Mark
Tortilla Flat Steinbeck, John
Travels with Charley Steinbeck, John
Treasure Island Stevenson, Robert L.
Trial Kafka, Franz
Trilogy of the Ring Tolkein, J.R.R.
Turn of the Screw James, Henry
Twelfth Night Shakespeare, William
Uncle Tom's Cabin Stowe, Harriet Beecher
Waiting for Godot Becket, Samuel
War and Peace Tolstoy, Leo
War of the Worlds Wells, H.G.
Warden Trollope, Anthony
Watch on the Rhine Hellman, Lillian
Watch That Ends the Night MacLennan, Hugh
Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? Albee, Edward
Wide Sargasso Sea Rhys, Jean
Winesburg, Ohio Anderson, Sherwood
Winter in the Blood Welch, James
Wise Blood O'Connor, Flannery
Wuthering Heights Bronte, Emily
Yearling Rawlings, Marjorie K.
You Can't Go Home Again Wolfe, Thomas
Zoot Suit Valdez, Luis

After looking at this list I realize that there are many books that I should have read at this point, but haven't. So that is what your comments are for. Let me know what is worth reading, and if there is something not on this list that I should read, tell me that too.

To those of you who don't care, sorry for the really long post. Scroll up to see a picture of a llama!

Here's your chance...Step right up.

OK. So I am already graduated in my own mind. With all of this new found extra time...i am starting to remember what it was like having nothing more to do than to show up to work a couple times a week (even less than that now). This blog is an attempt to use the remaining days of my youth to their fullest. I am already training hard to improve my running with hopes of competing in a half marathon some time in the not too distant future.

Here is the chance for all of you people who are heavy laden with your jobs and kids, etc.. to post your comments on things you would like me to do so that you can live vicariously through me. Remembering that money is an issue, and that I am a devoted christian and husband (that rules out all of those lascivious "wild oats" acts) let me know how I, in my youth, can help make you happier through living out your dreams (or facing your nightmares). I will post pictures of my (and your) adventures on the blog. If this takes off...i will start my own blog devoted to all of your vicarious living. If you are bums....and i know you are not...then this idea of mine will go no farther than this post. Let the game begin.

Chad

Weekend

We had a really good weekend. I had Friday off and I took it easy while Chad had a training for work. Then Friday evening we tried out a new pizza place on the square which was pretty good. We always like finding locally owned places to spend our money instead of the boring ol' chain restaurants. After pizza, we went to the Arizona Sundogs hockey game. Let me tell you, if you have never been to a minor-league hockey game before, then you just haven't lived. Okay, maybe I am exaggerating just a bit, but still, it was fun. And wouldn't you know, the Sundogs were playing the Corpus Christi Rays. Chad and I found it easy to root for the Sundogs, since we have lived in Arizona for two years and really have no loyalty to Corpus Christi at all. The Rays won, by the way. I think Prescott Valley is the new "it" town to have its own minor league hockey team that made it to the playoffs.

Anyway, the rest of the weekend was good too. Chad worked Saturday and I occupied my time rather well. I can't remember what I did, but it's Monday now, so I guess my time was occupied. Yesterday was a normal Sunday...we went to church, came home, cooked lunch, etc. The only difference was that we went running together. Chad and I have both been working out more lately, but our schedules don't really allow us to work out together very often, not to mention we have different ideas of how we would like to work out. But we did go running together yesterday and Chad made me do some really hard leg exercises, which I am paying for today.

That's about it, just more of the mundane. My week is going well so far, and I am enjoying my last few weeks in my classroom with my students. It is going by so fast!

One month!

Exactly one month from today, Chad will be a college graduate. I am so excited...for the graduation itself, for family coming in, for getting to take a few days off work to hang out with everyone...it will be a blast. This will be my last countdown post in case you guys are getting tired of it. Chad's load has lightened up a bit since he finished his senior project. You'll have to ask him what he is going to do with all that time once school is over.

I've been gone too long

This morning my good friend Larry gave me this quiz to take over Texas history. He said it was easy...but I only made a 60%. Oh well, that's passing in Arizona!

This is a case in point that we need to move back to Texas soon, and that I need to start lobbying for the Pecos canteloupe to become the state fruit of Texas.

By the way, I don't think I've mentioned Larry on the blog before. We met our freshman year at A&M (we just realized the other day that we have known each other for almost seven years, and that officially makes us OLD), and now Larry is doing what he loves, playing music all over Texas. Check out his website and buy his CD, and tell him I sent you.

I R A gradu8...almost

I stayed up late at work last night and finished the rough draft of my senior project. Now I just have to do some revisions with my mentor. Here is a link to my graduation info if you haven't all ready found it:

http://www.prescott.edu/calendar/graduation.html

This weekend...and a goal accomplished!

We had a good weekend. It was rainy all day Friday (out of the ordinary for here) and pretty cloudy Saturday as well. Saturday I went for a long walk in the morning and Chad and I went to the movies in the afternoon. It was a perfect day to go to the movies. Then Saturday night we went and hung out with our friends Alan & Dawn at Dawn's house...always fun. Yesterday was a beautiful day...in the 60s-70s in the afternoon, sunny and no wind, so we went climbing after church. We went to a place that is pretty familiar to both of us and climbed two different routes. One of the routes I had tried twice before and had never made it to the top, and it has been one of my goals to conquer this climb sometime before we leave this place. Well...yesterday I made it! It's one of the more difficult climbs I have done, and I was so proud of myself! I even cleared the anchor and rappeled down. Of course we didn't have our camera. I know it's getting pretty old how we never have any pictures on here. Maybe I will make it a personal goal to get a picture of some kind up on our blog this week. Don't hold me to that. :)

Time for a new post

So this is what people do at four in the morning when they can't sleep and they have internet at their house. No wonder so many people are so sleep deprived. Anyway, in case you don't know, Chad and I are on our spring break. My sister had a list of all these productive things they have done or are planning to do during the break, and I am just not that motivated. So our week has gone something like this:

Sunday: church
Monday: sleep late, go on a short backpacking trip (one night)
Tuesday: hike back, recuperate (i.e. do nothing)
Wednesday: begin housesitting (hence the internet at 4 a.m.), go hiking, church
Thursday: play with dogs, watch TV, check email repeatedly just because we can, check blogs, hike again, take a nap since I couldn't sleep during the night
Friday: see Thursday
Saturday: see Friday

As you can see, we don't have a lot going on this week. This is a good thing. Part of the reason we are not doing much though is because Chad has had a horrible time with his allergies this week. Sneezing, congested, weepy eyes, the whole shebang. I have not seen his allergies this bad since we got married and especially since we moved to Arizona. He has not felt like doing much of anything, and I feel really bad for him.

We realize we haven't posted pictures in a while. We have been meaning to take some pictures of our new car, but it just looks like an '03 Civic Hybrid, light bluish silver, so if you really want to see it, search for it on Google images. I'll get around to posting some pictures of the real thing eventually.

The countdown is on!

I wanted to post this yesterday, but because of technical difficulties, I could not. If I had posted yesterday I would have said it is EXACTLY two months until Chad graduates from college, so today, I will say it is EXACTLY two months minus one day until Chad graduates from college. The time is flying by! Chad is working really hard on a lot of stuff. Keep him in your prayers as he finishes up this chapter in his life. We can't wait to see some of you in just a couple of months!

But I wanted to be Grammar Girl!

I found out in yesterday's Arizona Republic that there is a woman called Grammar Girl who does a Podcast about different grammar issues that is one of the most downloaded podcasts out there. This is unfair. I wanted to be Grammar Girl, and now I can't. See, the people around me (i.e., those of you who are reading this blog entry) do not want me to give my two cents about grammar all the time, especially when it concerns their own. So I had always held out hope that I could be the Suze Orman of grammar and have my own talk show or radio show so I could give grammar tips to people who actually wanted my input, and now that niche has been filled. I suppose I will continue to give my grammar input to those who have not solicited it from me...sorry guys.

I do recommend the website. Even if you don't have an iPod, you can read the podcasts on her site. You can also search for specific words if you have a grammar question. She covers stimulating subjects such as semicolons, who vs. whom, and hang vs. hanged (this post came after the execution of Saddam Hussein). I know my mom would agree with Grammar Girl's assessment of bad vs. badly. FASCINATING!

New car, part II

Yesterday was an eventful day. Chad called me before work and said the Element wouldn't start. We thought it might be the battery but feared it may be something more serious (the starter, etc.) so we planned to take it in to the dealership to get it checked out. So at the end of the day, we jumped the car (it started) and took it to the local Honda dealership where they said they would test the battery. While we were waiting, I decided I wanted to look at the pre-owned cars. While we were looking we found a pretty sweet Civic Hybrid that we both really liked. We decided to take a test drive, and we liked it even more. Meanwhile, they told us that the battery was totally dead, and the warranty for it had lapsed. It would be $85. All the more reason to trade in the car! So we told them we would take the Civic if they would eat the cost of the battery, and we had a deal. The car deal experience was polar opposite from the experience we had last summer buying the Element. We're excited about our new car and we'll post more pictures of it when we get a chance. And yes we have two Civics now, don't judge.

Granddad

My granddad, Rowe Howard, died this morning. He was 88 years old.

Granddad was a Christian, a father, a husband, a grandfather, a WWII veteran, and an Aggie. I know he was proud that Erin and I both went to A&M (even though I was a liberal arts major:) ) He was a really good, honest man who loved God and his family and always wanted to do the right thing. My best memories of him are visiting him and grandmother on the farm at Garner, where they lived for about 30 years. As a child, when I woke up early from excitement on Christmas mornings, granddad would already be awake, eating his oatmeal and drinking his first cup of coffee for the day. We got to spend a lot of time with them growing up, which was a huge blessing in our lives.

I am thankful that granddad passed away fairly quickly and did not suffer very much. I am also thankful that he had my wonderful mom to take care of him and my grandmother over the past couple years when they could no longer fully take care of themselves. I know they were both grateful for that too, and my grandmother still is. Granddad had a lot of people that loved and admired him, and we will miss him a lot.

I know my family would appreciate you keeping us in your prayers during this time.

Travel travails

Oh, me and my word play! As Chad would say, "You really cracked yourself up on that one, didn't you?" To which the answer is a resounding "yes."

Anyway, some of you have asked about my travel problems this weekend. Well, I had to catch a plane on Saturday to go to Lubbock. So my plane was supposed to leave at 1:50 Saturday afternoon and then I would fly to Albuquerque to catch a plane and then get to Lubbock at 5:20. Well, I got to the airport fine on the shuttle (I'll talk about that more later) notoriously early, as I tend to do. So 1:50 rolls around and there's still no plane at the gate. There are about 5 of us who are supposed to do this Phoenix to Albuquerque to Lubbock thing, and they call us to the desk. Never a good thing. We find out then that the plane we are supposed to be on at this very moment has not taken off from Las Vegas yet because of mechanical problems. A blessing in disguise, I suppose. I don't want to be on a plane that is having mechanical problems, because then I would be REALLY late to wherever I was going. Anyway so because we would miss our flight to Lubbock from Albuquerque if we waited for this first plane, they book a later flight for us (over two hours later) from Phoenix to El Paso to Lubbock. So now I will be in Lubbock at 8:30 because my layover is an hour in El Paso. Okay, so I get on the plane and we go to El Paso. We get there, and the five of us who are going to Lubbock walk to that gate. We let out a collective groan when this flight says it is delayed for over an hour! We finally get on the plane, and at 9:30, I get to Lubbock. Meanwhile, I rented a car from Enterprise when I booked my flight. They had a really great deal, but apparently, I chose the only rental car service whose desk closes at the Lubbock Airport at 8:00. Oh no! You say. Don't fret though; being the uber-planner that I am, I called Enterprise while still in the Phoenix airport to let them know the situation, and the nice guy at the desk says that since I'll be late, he can make a reservation for me with Alamo; he checked and it would be only a couple more dollars a day. So he does that and calls me back and says, "I made a reservation for you for Saturday through Monday." This is great, except I need the car until Tuesday. "I'll walk over and fix it," he says. "Okay, call me back if it is going to be a higher rate for Tuesday so I can make the decision," I say. No word, so I figure it's the same. Well, I get to the Alamo counter and it turns out that Tuesday is actually twice the price of the other weekend days, since Monday is still considered the weekend apparently. So the rental car ended up costing me more, but by the time I was finished with my 12 hour traveling day (during which time I could have driven to Lubbock), I was a little too tired to care. Exciting huh? Not really, but hey, you asked!

Speaking of the shuttle...this was an interesting experience. Sometimes on the shuttle to the airport nobody speaks the entire time (as was the case on my way down there) and sometimes you can't get anybody to shut up (the case on the way back, when I really could have used a nap). I got to listen to a radio station that played nothing but muzak, courtesy of the shuttle driver, and I got to overhear 3 people's mp3 players...quickly becoming one of my greatest pet peeves. The worst part though was the sounds I could hear of the couple in the background who were kissing every once in a while. Just plain nasty.

Has everybody else had enough yet? Stories like these, although not the worst thing that can happen to you in the world, make me glad I don't travel for a living. I'm glad I don't have to go anywhere for a while (I don't think).

Smartie

Well, I hate to brag about myself, but I don't mind bragging about Chad. In case you guys didn't know, he is very smart. I thought he was going to post this himself but he hasn't yet so I'm doing the honors. Anyway, on Wednesday Chad took his Flight Paramedic Certification test and passed with flying colors! He said it was the hardest test he had ever taken, but he had been studying for weeks so I'm really glad that he passed the first time...it took a lot out of him! I know most of you are thinking, "Well of COURSE Chad passed!" but I know he was nervous because the tests are so hard, and they have to get a pretty high score to pass (one of the tests requires an 88%). This makes him a Certified Flight Paramedic. Many people do not pass this test on their first try because it is so difficult. I'm proud of you, Chad!

Good Job

We got another call yesterday! Things are slowly picking up for us despite the bad weather (we flew in light to moderate drizzle yesterday) We transported a very cute little baby. So here are some more pics of me at work...hope these aren't boring all of you.

Me and Janelle






So tiny







Kristi our lead pilot







Probably doing something SUPER important

The irony has not escaped me...

...that schools in Texas (even southeast Texas, elevation 1/2 inch) were closed last week, some for days, because of snow, ice, and other abnormal winter conditions. Was it cold here? Yes, in the single digits. Did WE get snow days? No...we are called the "high desert" for a reason, and the precip passed us by. But we ARE high, and they keep saying there's a good chance of snow in the "higher elevations," "high country," etc. on the news. I looked at the weather, and for this week we have three days of a 60% chance of snow.

If any of you know me well, you know I love a snow day just as much as any of my students. Chad and I have interesting reactions to the snow: when it snows, I don't go to work, and I am happy. When it snows or is icy and he goes to work, they can't do anything, and he is not happy. Well, Chad works two days this week, and both of these days it is supposed to snow...so I guess we will be keeping our fingers crossed for different reasons.

Please don't remind me of Murphy's Law and the fact that if I really want it to snow badly enough, it won't. Also, please don't remind me that I used to refer to Murphy's Law as Newton's Law, which is in fact something entirely different and actually scientific. This mix-up is proof positive that teenagers do NOT know everything.

One more thing...two blog entries in one day dictates that there will probably not be much blog activity later in the week, so I don't want you guys to get disappointed at the lack of random thoughts.

Happy birthday to Emily, Bonnie, and Matt B., who all had birthdays in the past 7 days. That's it for now!

Our weekend

Random weekend happenings...

We went to Jerome (a little artsy ghost tourist town) to go to a place called the Haunted Hamburger on Saturday. Best onion rings we've ever had. Worth the drive. We went to the antique stores in Prescott and Chad bought a cast-iron skillet...he'd been looking for a good one for a long time. Still in search of one with the corn molds for cornbread. Went to church on Sunday. Had roasted chicken with cheesy potatoes for dinner. Back story about the chicken...every time they are having one of those really good deals on whole chickens at the grocery store I buy one. This one was a little over two dollars...for an entire chicken! As Josh would say, AWESOME! Anyway, I roasted it all day in the crock pot, then we're cleaning up and Chad says "let's dissect the heart, it'll make good pictures for the blog." Well, I got out what I thought was the heart and also the liver. We dissected the liver first and let me take this time to say if you eat chicken livers you are gross, and that is not up for discussion. Then we dissected what we thought was the heart but it turned out not to be. Thus, no pictures of dissecting chicken parts on the blog. I know you are all disappointed. I was hoping to receive "Return to Oz" from Netflix on Saturday but I guess it's coming today. Remember that creepy movie from the '80s? Yeah, they don't really have it at any video stores. I can't wait to relive the creepiness.

That's all for random weekend happenings. Chad is meeting with his prof at school today because he is the TA for his last class that he has to take at the college. He is teaching a class in Cottonwood this afternoon to some firefighters, I think. That's it for now.

More work Pics

We woke up last Sunday moring to a surprise snow storm that came through. The bigger surprise was that we got launched for a call (we got cancelled enroute though)

This is all the snow we kicked up when we took off.