Quiz show meme

Ellen a fellow SnB’er recently posted this meme on her blog. Thought it’d be fun to do…

The rules, bold the things you’ve done & post on your blog.

1. Started your own blog. Um….

2. Slept under the stars

3. Played in a band. If this means playing the flute in grammar school…
4. Visited Hawaii – Once in 1998. Stayed on the North Shore in a youth hostel. Had a bunch of stoned surfers as roommates.
5. Watched a meteor shower – Many times. The most recent being 3 years ago with Doug on the beach… Made a wish on a falling star and look at where we are today!
6. Given more than you can afford to charity

7. Been to Disneyland – A few times as a kid. We’d come out to visit relatives and either have a choice between Disneyland, Universal Studios or Marineland (yes, it was that long ago…)

8. Climbed a mountain – Many times. Climbed a few in New Hampshire when I was a kid, hiked a lot in Slovakia when I taught there and was part of a hiking club in Japan.
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo – Often. I was a total performer/drama geek as a kid. First solo – Miss Polly had a dolly in kindergarten for a neighborhood play.

11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris – On a high school trip.
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea.

14. Taught yourself an art from scratch – Crochet, knitting, woodblock print-making, and lord knows what else.
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning. Worse case in Japan – egg salad sandwich…
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty. Not the best thing to do if you are claustrophobic…

18. Grown your own vegetables – So far just tomatoes and basil… Used to grow more in Japan, though.
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France

20. Slept on an overnight train Many times, but does one really sleep in third class on an Eastern European train???

21. Had a pillow fight.

22. Hitch hiked. Couple of times in Eastern Europe with my friend.
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill.
24. Built a snow fort. If you could call it that – wasn’t really all that great, but did this a lot as a kid.
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 On my honeymoon
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors Been to Poland and the part of East Slovakia which was part of the Ukraine back in the time when my great-grandfather came to the States.

35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language Slovak and Indonesian. Even though I took Japanese class, a lot of that was self-study…Studied a little bit of Hungarian at one time too…
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied. The halcyon days of living in Japan!
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person.
39. Gone rock climbing Once with my brother in Utah.

40. See Michelangeo’s David.
41. Sung karaoke. A lot. My friend Kevin and I would go all the time in Japan to practice our Japanese.

42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant

44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight. A lot seeing as I lived at the beach for 7 years.
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 – Diving in Hawaii and Southeast Asia. The Perhentian Islands being the most incredible with snorkeling in Thailand a close second.
52. Kissed in the rain

53. Played in the mud

54. Gone to a drive-in theater Most recently in May with Doug and the kiddo
55. Been in a movie

56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business A couple of craft endeavors, none successful. Tried to start my own study abroad business after college but couldn’t get funding…
58. Taken a martial arts class.
59. Visited Russia Only then it was the Soviet Union – summer study abroad during college

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. On a high school trip. It was really freaky and not something I would ever do again.
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter

69. Saved a favorite childhood toy

70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial Grew up in DC, so saw it many times.

71. Eaten Caviar Several times. The first being in Moscow when it was scarce – my friends had a good black market contact.

72. Pieced a quilt – Several. Used to make a lot of quilts

73. Stood in Times Square – Several times.

74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job

76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London. On a high school trip.
77. Broken a bone

78. Been on a speeding motorcycle In Bali

79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car. Two. The second one, the one I have now, I got it for less than the dealer paid for it. After I had bargained for the car, the dealership manager came out and shook my hand saying that no one had ever bargained that hard for a car and done so well…
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper. In Florida for a story about Paintball.

85. Kissed a stranger at midnight on New Year’s Eve. I might have, but I can’t remember (a few too many crazy New Years Eve’s in my life!)

86. Visited the White House

87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating Fish. Once. Never again.

88. Had chickenpox

89. Saved someone’s life. Saved a little girl from drowning when I was a camp counselor. The lifeguards were too busy flirting with the head counselor.
90. Sat on a jury.
91. Met someone famous. A few people in my field who are famous. Did talk to Dustin Hoffman once.

92. Joined a book club

93. Lost a loved one – My grandmother, great-aunt, babysitter from when I was little and my dad. Most recently my aunt.

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 When I was 11. Still have a little scar from it on my hand.

A few of my favorite things…

Kelly tagged me about a month ago for a meme to write down 7 of the things that I love in life. So, here goes (not in any order)…

1. Doug. He’s my best friend, my true companion. I love him so much and know that the day I met him 3 years ago was the day I lost my heart completely. Even when things are rough, he’s there for me.

2. Alex. It’s true what they say about your own kids. There is a kind of love that comes from deep within and spills out unconditionally when your baby smiles at you.

3. Traveling. I love to travel and am at my happiest when I am out exploring new places. Even though I haven’t really had a chance to travel in the past few years, in my heart I’m still an explorer and know that someday not only will my backpack and I be reacquainted, but I’ll have at least 2 new and wonderful traveling companions. (Who knows, there may be more if we have another kiddo…)

4. Reading. There is nothing like sitting down with a book and getting totally immersed in another person’s life experiences. (I’m a fan of non-fiction.) Probably has a lot to do with my love of traveling — exploring the world through another’s eyes when I can’t afford to do so on my own.

5. Fiber. The feel of wool between my fingers is one of the most luscious things I can think of. I’ve always been attracted to string, yarn and fabric.

6. Color. I always seem to look at the world through the lens of colors. There is no better eye candy in this world than the gray of a dark stormy sky over the mountains, the crisp variety of greens after a rain shower, or the sherbert-color of a winter sunset. When I was a quilter my favorite thing to do was pick out colors of fabrics for a quilt. The rest of the quilting experience paled in comparison to that initial tango with color.

7. Nature. If I could, I’d live in a cabin in the woods. Although I love the city and am a city-girl, when I’m on a hike or staying in the country I feel like my spirit has been scrubbed clean. It’s hard to stress out or worry when I’m sitting on a rock listening to a brook surrounded by trees rustling in the breeze. Before I was dating Doug I’d go off to the beach, take a hike, or drive to a nearby canyon when I needed to replenish myself.

Home safe and sound…

Thanks so much for all of your nice comments about Alex. She did just fine during surgery — she is such a trooper. Doug and I were the ones who I think had a tougher time.

The morning of surgery — around 4 AM –I thought Alex would be grumpy having been woken up early and without food. But she seemed really excited — like she was going on a trip. It was only a little before surgery (around 7AM) that she started to get a little fussy. Luckily they give her a sedative before taking her into the OR, so she soon forgot all about being grumpy. The surgery was about 3 hours long. Doug and I walked down the street for breakfast with a hospital beeper and then returned to wait for only about 90 minutes or so. We were then taken upstairs to wait for Alex while they were doing post-op stuff on her. At one point we heard a crying baby down the hall. We popped our head out of the door and there was Alex being wheeled into recovery. We totally knew her cry from so far away! We stayed in recovery for a long time waiting for a bed in the post-op ward. Luckily Alex was a little sleepy and out of it. It was just hard for us to sit there. It was strange but during this whole process I was unable to cry or let myself feel anything. I noticed that I had to detach from the situation in order to be strong and only cried once we were in recovery.

Alex slept a lot in the hospital which is good considering we had to share a room with a little boy who had just had brain surgery and who cried all night long. (Poor little thing, I felt so badly for both him and his mom…) Two days after coming home, Alex was rolling around on the floor and talking. Then…

She got the flu. Not just any old flu but that terrible one that is making the rounds of all the playgroups and pre-schools. The vomiting-nausea-diarrhea one. First it struck Doug the day after we got home. He recovered pretty quickly — was feeling better in 3 days. Then Alex got it the Sunday after her operation. I knew after she spent the morning getting sick all over me that it was just a matter of time before I’d get it. We spent most of Sunday in the ER. They didn’t do anything for us and we wound up back two days later because Alex wasn’t able to eat or drink anything. By this time I had gotten the flu. So, one week exactly after her surgery we were back in the hospital. We we admitted for observation. I stayed with Alex because Doug had to work. Luckily we had our own room. We were released the next day and by Saturday after Thanksgiving our little one was starting to eat again.

It’s been a long couple of weeks…

Alex & Doug pre-surgery

Alex & Mama post-surgery

Alex post-surgery. She insisted on holding her own oxygen mask.

And some not-so-great news…

I have been putting off writing about this, but little Alex has a kidney condition and will undergo an operation this coming Tuesday. Luckily both her kidneys are working well, she just has a partial obstruction of one of her ureters (the tubes going from the kidney to the bladder). It’s a fairly simple procedure as far as they go, but still a major operation.

Some good news…

I’m so happy to announce that there is another addition to our family. Last Tuesday my newest niece Lilly Hope was born. She was given the middle name ‘Hope’ in honor of Obama — how cool is that???

The Day I Cried…

What more do I have to say but 8 years of despair are almost over???

HOPE LIVES. HOPE CAN HAPPEN.

Today I feel that I can finally hold my head high as an American for the first time in a long long while.

Halloween in Sierra Madre

Hi, this is Doug–I’m guest posting for Katie today to show off some Halloween pics from Sierra Madre last night. If you live in the Los Angeles area, it’s worth a drive to the sleepy little town where they filmed Invasion of the Body Snatchers in the 1950s; it really hasn’t changed much.

A tree-lined block on Alegria Avenue is closed off every Halloween to showcase the amazing decorations residents make, including lights, fog machines, and hundreds of pumpkins grown in their own backyards. Thousands of visitors walk up and down the sidewalk throughout the night. If you go, be sure to stop by the excellent indie coffeehouse, Bean Town, for some hot chocolate or cider.

A corner of one yard with scores of Jack-o’-Lanterns.

A VW pumpkin that is at least five feet in width.


A whole scene–the pumpkin cauldron and chandelier are a couple of feet wide.


This is a serious work of art–the photo hardly does the detail justice.


And, of course, our own little pumpkin!

Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween!

Here’s our ‘little pumpkin’.

Favorite campaign videos…

So many things are so crazy in our lives right now that I seem to have become an election junkie to keep my mind busy… (May also be because I majored in poli-sci as an undergrad…)

This election is so amazing. Least of which for the plethora of videos and blogs dedicated to it.

So far here are my all-time favorite campaign videos. I love the Japanese & Russian videos because they make me really nostalgic for the times when I lived in those countries. And I have been so taken with Biden recently. (When he mentioned his family during the VP debate, I actually teared up.)

Obama is beautiful world. (Alex loves dancing to this song!)

Damon Weaver interviews Joe Biden. Watch Joe tell Damon what a VP does (Imagine, a VP candidate who actually knows!)

Song For Sarah. Sung by 2 Russians…

Shades of gray…

The racial politics of this presidential race are truly distressing. When I hear about the racial epithets hurled at McCain/Palin rallies toward Obama and the prejudiced comments of the people who attend those rallies, it really upsets me.

Here’s my question. Why can’t people see through color and look at a person for who he or she is? Sure, Obama looks black, but he’s actually biracial — the product of a white mother and an African father. I can’t think of a better person to best represent the ethnic diversity that is part and parcel of the American experience. In his book Dreams of My Father, Obama explores what his background and upbringing have meant to him. This book, written long before he became a US Senator, is an honest and poetic look at feelings about identity.

When I look at Obama I don’t see color. I see an intelligent man who is willing to take on one of the hardest jobs in the world to make this a better place for us all.

While Obama has openly explored his identity, his opponent, John McCain hasn’t. McCain’s family owned slaves. He has black relatives. Every year the McCain family has an interracial family reunion in Teoc, Mississippi which McCain’s own brother, Joe attends.

Why then, allow race to enter into his campaign? Is McCain so afraid of where he’s come from? Why can’t he own his background?

There’s no debating…

Obama won hands down. His final remarks were about the American people not a ‘woe is me’ I’ve served for my country stump speech.

Even Fox News called the debate in favor of Obama.

For those of you with time on your hands, here’s a fun website (and hopefully something that will never ever ever become reality)… Run your mouse over the different things in the office…

Palinaspresident.com

Freudian Slip….

The other day while traveling, I saw a McCain/Palin sign. When I pointed it out to Doug, I accidentally said,

“Oh look, there’s a McAilin sign guess we must be back in conservative territory.“

Even though it was a freudian slip. my gaff sure made a lot of sense to both of us. Our now new name for the conservative duo kinda reminds me of an old happy meal that makes you sick to your stomach.

It’d be funny if it weren’t so damn scary….

Yes, these days I’ve taken the few minutes I have to blog to write about political things. This whole campaign from the Obama-Clinton race to now has been steeped with nothing but the best drama one can get for free. Since I don’t have a TV, this has been my entertainment.

Political manueuverings aside, it appears that McCain has already won the debate that he may supposedly attend tonight. Yep, that’s right. He already has an ad prepared that has gotten out in the blogosphere. (Unfortunately I don’t have the time to post it here right now…) Either way he looks really foolish calling the debate off and then calling it back on again. That level of decisiveness is something  I definitely want in a leader (<-sarcasm…)

I also love how McCain claims to be helping in Washington when it is his job as Senator! Hmmm. He missed 90% of his votes before but now sees it as imperative to get in on the action? It’s also strange that even though he missed so many votes in DC, according to People Magazine he wasn’t in Arizona much either. Where were you, then John???

I won’t even go into how living in a state next to Canada and across the Bering Strait from Russia is enough to qualify someone for VP. If this is all it takes, then I’d be a shoe-in because I’ve actually lived in both countries not to mention a few others.

What is the most amusing or scary thing about our political world for you right now????

Getting the word out there….

Check out this blog, Women Against Sarah Palin….

Vote….

PBS is doing an unofficial poll regarding whether or not Palin could be VP.

Two people have forwarded this to me in the past 24 hours.

It’s a small and easy way to get out there and show how awful Palin is.

Vote.