I keep meaning to post these pictures

Not sure if everyone has heard of this or not - but here are the pictures of our Church building burning down about a month ago - like i said i have been meaning to post these pictures. It was crazy to watch. I can now say i have escaped a burning building. It was during stake conference and we made it to the 2nd talk when the fire alarm went off - we all just kind of rolled our eyes and looked around - then you could notice as everyone started to smell something funny in the air we all stood up and moved towards the doors. I exited the front of the chapel form the fire exit and looked up at the edge of the roof and there were flames and smoke billowing from the roof - we all started to realize this was for real. The pictures proceed to tell the rest of the story.

My favorite part of the day were first when the fireman were trying to get the hose into the front door and it was obviously crazy heavy and there were only 2 trucks there at this point and he looked at all of us and asked can i get two or three of you to help; that was all he needed to say - not even 5 seconds later there were at least 25 men in suits pulling the hose into the front door of the church. 2nd were the greatness of the neighboring churches - they were so lovely and Christian - offering a place to wait, to give us a comforting arm and to mourn the historic building we called home.

I must give some props to my blackberry curve - it took all these pictures and for being a phone's camera i must say the pictures are pretty good!

This picture you can see the roof caving in and fire entering the chapel.

Here are some pictures from other people including some aerial shots of the building after.

They concluded it was an electrical fire that started in the attic above the balcony in the chapel with some exposed wires and had been festering for awhile before any fire alarms went off.

It was quite the Sunday and certainly something i won't forget anytime soon!

SOMETHING I FINALLY DID ON MY LIST OF THINGS...

HERE ARE THE PICTURES TO PROVE IT















I SWAM WITH WHALE SHARKS IN THE GEORGIA AQUARIUM

ALL I HAVE TO SAY IS IT ROCKED AND I LOVED/ AM STILL LOVING IT!!! ONE OF THE ABSOLUTE COOLEST THINGS I HAVE EVER DONE - OH AND A WHALE SHARK SWAM SO CLOSE TO ME THAT IT'S DORSAL FIN HIT MY FLIPPER AND AIR TANK - THAT IS RIGHT IT WAS RIGHT UNDER ME - IF THEY DIDN'T HAVE A RULE ABOUT "NO TOUCHING THE ANIMALS" I WOULD'VE GRABBED ON AND GONE FOR A RIDE - BUT I WOULD HAVE BEEN KICKED OUT - TOO BAD HUH :).

NICKY ALSO SWAM IN THE 6.3MILLION GALLON TANK WITH ME - THEY HAVE A MANTA RAY (HER FAVORITE) SO WE BOTH WERE ON CLOUD 9 FOR THE WEEKEND AND REALLY SINCE!!!


HERE ARE SOME OF THE OTHER ANIMALS - IT IS REALLY A GREAT AQUARIUM!
JAPANESE CRABS (THEY CAN GET UP TO 20ft)

Piranha - they have a little under bite - kind of cute :)

Alligators - they were really friendly

of course jellyfish



don't know what this little guy is but he was just hiding out behind a rock

you walked through a tunnel

i think this a dragon seahorse - or it's name is something like that

Tagged by Debbie. 8's

8 TV Shows or Movies I watch regularly
1. The Office – so funny!
2. Top Chef – my favorite reality show
3. The City – it has replaced the Hills for my stupid show of the week
4. Man vs. Wild – Bear – do I need to say more
5. Shark Week – until my DVR went on the fritz and we lost all of shark week
6. Seinfeld – it never gets old even the repeats I love
7. Elf – I love this movie and love it year round – I can’t get enough of it
8. Friends – another filler

8 Things that happened yesterday. (this is a very pathetic category for me – at least today it is)
1. Went to work – found out I have a very interesting client
2. Realized I am not as much of an adult as I wish or thought I was
3. Checked Blogs
4. Went to the Gym
5. Made plans to clean my room
6. Crocheted a little until I ran out of green yarn
7. Ate dinner
8. Drove around looking for a parking spot

8 Favorite places to EAT (this is a hard one)
1. In a home that has someone who knows how to cook good food (I prefer good inhouse cooking any day of the week to a restaurant)
2. Annas
3. Blue Ribbon BBQ
4. EVOO
5. AllStar Sandwiches
6. Mr. Barley’s (best burger I have ever had)
7. Legal Seafood (I had the best salmon special there the other day – lame but it was so good)
8. Subway (I still love subway)

8 things I am looking forward to
1. Going Snowboarding
2. The weather warming Up
3. Going to Atlanta to go to the Aquarium and Swim in the Giant 6.2 million gallon tank which holds Whale Sharks and Manta Rays
4. Going on Vacation in the Fall (not sure where either Hawaii or Greece/Italy)
5. Getting Married, Falling in Love again
6. Shark Week
7. The days when life is simple even if just for the day
8. My heart Healing

8 Things on my wish list
1. To learn how to play the piano
2. To find a way to keep my life organized – especially my room
3. To find where I belong either in Boston or some place else
4. To find the best fit for me with my job, with what I do, where I do it and how I do it
5. To always be healthy
6. To become wicked good at snowboarding, to be able to do some sweet jumps this year
7. A nice diamond ring (I can’t help it I love them – I am drawn to them)
8. To have an awesome tan

8 People I tag.. lucky you..(I hate this part – it is just obnoxious)
1. Megan
2. Leslie
3. Robyn
4. Cristi
5. Rachael
6. Afton
7. Katrina
8. Someone Random (let me know who and when you post it) J

THINGS I HAVE DONE...

I saw this on a friend's blog and thought it was fun! Just Bold the ones you have done and then post it on your blog!

1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland or Disneyworld
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Olde Faithful Geyser Erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie or on a TV show
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Had an encounter with a wild animal
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets, or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a Jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee
100. Taken a martial arts class

EGYPT TRIP part 2

Last thing on the Agenda for the day were the Giza Pyramids WHICH ARE AMAZING!!!!! The Great Pyramid is here (there is only one) - we rode camels (for 3 hours - i don't recommend this - it hurts - well it is fun so do it if you want to :)). Here is where i can show you how HUGE these structures are - so you can see 3 large pyramids and 3 small ones - the pyramid i climb on is one of the small pyramids - so you can see the comparison of all of them. Also where i did the cheesy pictures - but hey how many times are you standing in front of the Pyramids!
We rode the camels around the area - then headed over to the Sphinx - which i had heard wasn't impressive - but i think it is very impressive it is all one piece of stone, it is just that the great pyramids are right there behind it - so of course it looks smaller.

After that we convinced our guide to talk to the guards and let us stay in the area and watch the sunset - it was beautiful!

After this we went back to the Hostel and got "directions" to a restaurant - we never found the restaurant - but we found something else later quite a bit later - it was good food - but we had a diet coke with every meal to make sure to kill off any bacteria that may be consumed :).

4th day
We were on our own for this day - all we had to do was get on the train at 8pm to head down to Luxor. So we took off.
We went and purchased our Sleeping train tickets, we got those it was a very interesting method - but we didn't argue we were just glad to get tickets. We then headed off to the Citadel to see the view and the mosque of Mohammad Ali. It was beautiful and very interesting we got a tour from a Muslim woman and she shared a little about her beliefs. As we were walking around there were several teenagers around and i had a Egyptian 14 year old boyfriend for about 1/2hour - they love long hair and i guess my hair in braids wasn't "put back" enough - so they kept taking pictures and following us around - they were cute and very innocent so it was fine.

We then decided to walk to Sultan Hussan's mosque which seemed close enough and it was but getting back to downtown was a little more complicated - we ended up taking a taxi for 10 EL back to the Egyptian Museum - which was so fun and crazy some of the loot collected. King Tut's death mask was probably the most beautiful thing i have seen in forever - it was just so exquisite!
After the Egyptian Museum we headed back to the Hostel and rushed to the train station - we didn't plan too well in how much time to give, but we ended up having plenty of time. When we got to the train station we weren't sure who to get around, everything was in Arabic (go figure) but we found a tour guide who was willing to help us know which train to get on - so nice.

The train ride was another experience as well - we had a private compartment for the two of us - which was nice. Dinner was provided and as they were serving our meal they opened our doors and we met the guys who were in the compartment next to us - they were two nice Australian guys who were traveling to Aswan and then over the Red Sea to do scuba diving tour. We could see into each other's compartments and when they were unfolding our beds we started to talk - we ended up going to the club car and talking stories and playing cards until 2 in the morning - too bad we got into Luxor (our stop) at 6 in the morning :). It was fun to meet some guys traveling around in a similar style to us. Always fun to meet new people!

EGYPT TRIP part 1

1st day
Left Boston Thursday after work direct flight to Madrid
2nd day
Madrid - went to Rembrandt Exhibit at the Museo El Prado - it was a great exhibit!
Fun to stop in Madrid - it was really quite warm - the sun was out and just a nice afternoon.
We got lunch in a pub and headed back to the airport to catch our flight to Egypt.
Landed in Egypt really late - got our stamps in our passports and found out ride to our Hostel.
The guys who run the Hostel were so great - so friendly and really helpful - that night they set up a driver for the next day to take us to the Pyramids and around Cairo.
The driver was coming at 8 and so we took showers and hit the sack (after all it was after midnight).
3rd day
woke up around 7:30AM (hello it was a GO vacation)

8AM headed off with our driver Kahlead - we first headed out to Dashur; on the way we saw the Bent Pyramid.
Dashur was probably my favorite experience of the trip - we had been in Egypt for less than 12 hours and we climbed down 70meters at a 45 degree incline that was only about 4 feet tall (lets just say it was a crazy thigh workout!) When we got down to the bottom we found only one couple down in chamber - they left a few min later and then it was just Amy and I - we wanted to take a picture but of course it wasn't aloud - so we respected that - but it was so fun to be alone in the pyramid especially as the first pyramid we were at :).

Next on the agenda was Suqqra - the Step pyramids - they were very cool as well - they have recently found a new pyramid site - so that was fun to see the start of exploring a new site.
At the same site is the tomb of Mere-ruka - first real experience with hieroglyphics
Next stop on the Agenda was really on our Driver's agenda not so much ours (but they want us to spend money at their buddies/family shops along the way) so we went to a Carpet "School" (but they pay them to go to school - so more like child labor that they call school - kind of sad - didn't take any pictures though).
Next stop was the Papyrus store - and yes i bought some - i am a total sucker for these sort of things, but i am excited about it - so i have a Egyptian Calender on Papyrus - yippeee!

I'm Back

Sorry for the lack of posting, but i think i have a very good reason :). I was in Egypt for the past week and half - i will post pictures and stories as soon as i find time, it is crazy trying to get caught up with everything and everyone and enjoy the holiday season!!!

I will post within the next week pictures and stories to go along with it. Here is an Internet preview - the pyramids blew my mind - just loved them!!!

Giza Pyramids

Dreams

What do you make of Dreams - do you remember all, some or none. How do you take the ones you remember - especially when they leave an impression?

I am one that wakes up normally without much of a dream - maybe a "that was weird" feeling or "what was that" or "where did that come from" however i have had several dreams over the years that mean more (so i think) it seems if i can recall more "facts" obviously i can think about things a little more - but usually i forget them before noon - but like i was saying there were a few i still remember.

I also have my reoccurring nightmare - i have it roughly once a month and have for years - i haven't linked it to anything that happens when i am awake...yet - but it has defiantly progressed over the years. Some of the details change and all the other characters change and don't really have names - but the idea is the same and i still do the same thing. Setting is a large old style boat (like a pirate boat) with a huge main mast in the middle of the blue large ocean. The other people on the boat are usually people i know well (or at least that is the feeling). Someone who can't swim or who is a weak swimmer always falls into the water and i am on the top of the main mast in the bird perch thing and i see a large shark in the near distance - so i dive into the water to help and as i do i see the shark increase its speed because of the sound of something new in the water. I get the person onto the ladder of the boat they are always slow in climbing up. I grab a hold of the ladder and start pulling myself up the boat - but of course the shark comes and grabs me - this is where the dream has progressed at first i would wake up with knowing the shark was about to bite and pull me down but now in the dream i get bit and dragged down to the point of darkness which is where i now wake up. Everytime i have the dream i think to myself interesting.

Crazy how our imaginations work?

Do share any thoughts on dreams or if you have dreams one of your's

WE WON!!!

I just thought i would let everyone know - we get lunch from the place of our choosing - it was a close race - but we pulled it out!!! SO FUN!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

This year Halloween has been quite the crazy time - so much that i planned a pumpkin carving activity for FHE but didn't actually carve one. Luckily work had a pumpkin carving contest - yippee!!!!

Jocelyn, Sylwia and I were in charge of coming up with the idea for our department- so we brainstormed for a couple of days - we thought we should keep it in the theme of our department so we were thinking either a scary bride or a wedding cake. Jocelyn was pretty excited about the wedding cake idea (it was hers :)) so she said she would go home over the weekend and practice just to see if it could be done. She comes back on Monday with a small pumpkin that despite its moldiness (not her fault) resembled a tiered cake. So it was decided.

Tuesday (the carving day) came around and Sylwia brought in some black and white beads and ribbon to do the trimming and that afternoon we went to work - originally i thought i would have little to do with the actual carving - but lets be honest i want to win so the more hands getting it done the better, right?

Wednesday I brought in spiders and spider web and a light up stick thing to put inside - we just loved it - during the process other keep saying it didn't look like a cake or it didn't look very good - well lets see who gets the last laugh now - hehe - just kidding i just think we should win!

Oh and Thursday the last and final touch came the Cake topper - we wanted to get a topper with the corpse bride - but no such luck in such short time.

As you can see i was quite involved - hehe

ewwww the guts

two hands are better than one - the carving begins

we made quite the mess - but we cleaned it up

we had snacks too

first layer done

second layer

here is the piece cut out

getting ready to take everything down to the Lobby so the guest can vote

Final product - lovely don't you think?

We even cut a piece and pulled it out a little with a plate and fork waiting we also had a Champagne flute with beads.

The guests' are voting for their favorite yesterday and today - cross your fingers we want to win - we think we get lunch or a party or something like that - but really it is just about bragging rights :).