Drive Home

Yesterday after 6 hours of class I rolled into my car as it was past 10 and I was tired and ready to be home. After a yawn I started up my car and pulled onto to the road. At times I wonder how safe I am at this point of the evening after a Psychopathology course. As I got onto the road I realized that I had a friendly little praying mantis on my windshield staring back at me. It was like he was looking at me pleading for help. As I had to naturally increase my speed his little body got closer and closer to the windshield and I could see his legs losing grip. His little wing things began to peel up behind him. I hate to admit but I sat there laughing to myself as this poor guy was griping on for dear life. There was nothing I could do, if I did my windshield wipers I would kill him for sure. I couldn't reach him to flick him off to safety. It is a good thing he was a "praying" mantis because luckily I hit a red light and as soon as my speed slowed he scurried on down to the hood to find some shelter. Lesson to be learned, don't hang on out on windshields, and if you do you might want to say a prayer!

Hmmmm...

This was my attempt at a quick and easy dinner the other night. I will not do it again. This is a Crunchy Taco meal and in the bowl was the mix to cheese. With powder and milk mixed together this is supposed to be cheese. The consistency was quite sticky and gross, and barely tasted anything close to real cheese. The picture does not do the color justice. It was a neon yellow orange. Nasty!! The part that made go hmmm.... was the line on the box that unfortunately you cannot see well. It says "Naturally Flavored." My question to you is how is a powder naturally flavored??

Class is under way. Homework and reading is mounting. I can only do so much reading. It is time to get away from books and people and enjoy some nature. Ashley from class and I decided to hit the trails 15 minutes from my home and hike to see a waterfall.

The hike was absolutely beautiful as we descended into the canyon. Each steep step I took down I became worried and painfully aware that this will be the same path back. Ooo this will be a steep climb back. As we descended it became more and more beautiful. There were cabins along the path that were privately owned. This was the longest two miles EVER! Then finally there it was, the waterfall. The sun was coming down through the trees. It was quite serene. I could have spent the afternoon there. But no after catching my breath it was time to climb on out. After reaching the top I took a picture and came to the sad realization that it was not just a morning fog settling into the canyon, but that it was smog. I was thankful for the peacful time at the waterfall. It was great to be reminded that nature was so close!

Good Friends, Good Times!

I know you wondering to yourself... how did Amy spend her Labor day weekend. For the most part words cannot describe my adventures, instead pictures do a significantly better job. So here we go story time. Once upon a time I went on an adventure to Hollywood. You know in a couple of years you will get used to seeing photos of me here all dolled up getting ready for my big night. I decided I better at least familiarize myself with the surrounding before the paparazzi easily recognize me.

Photo op, the sun was pretty bright, that is why I am all squinty. This was in a shopping center with three balcony walkaways that allow for pictures. If you squint the you can see the Hollywood sign in the back.
Down the street of Hollywood is the Walk of Fame or as I accidentally said Hollywood Squares. Oops, that is a TV show. Amanda and I had a good time enjoying the sights and she amused me as I walked around enjoying everything for the first time. I took this picture... I think I was trying to get Bruce Willis' star there in the back, but you know the shoes in the front are pretty fun, so hey it works.


This is Amanda given a little shout out to Billy Graham. Brilliant me didn't realize until we got there that stars were given to more than just movie actors. If you are dying to other stars then I will send you more pictures... I do have one of my all time favorite... Yes, Bob Barker has a star!




You notice this star is empty. Yes, yes it is, for now at least. As you can tell I emotionally accepted my Oscar and was promised a star. I will keep you posted with all the details so that you can come out and support me. I just wanted to take this time to thank all of my family and friends for supporting me through this time. It is because of you that this is possible. (that was pretty close to my acceptance speech.)



This picture makes me smile. My feet are bigger than Shirely's foot prints!! I walked the same ground she did.







I saw all kids of people in Hollywood. Do you see what I am seeing? Jack and Elmo are getting into quite the discussion. Don't worry it ended peacefully.






After we calmed down jack and Elmo, Amanda and I took a little walk up the street and around the corner, for a concert with John Williams. It was an amazing concert with some good fellowship with Amanda, the Hencks and their Sunday School class. Perfect weather. In case you are not familiar John Williams has done the arrangement of music for many movies. Throughout the concert it was coordinated to movie clips. When the Star Wars music was played the light sabers lit up across the place. It was quite the sight!



After a full day and night of adventure we headed to Malibu where Amanda was house sitting. It was beautiful and serene.










As you can tell it was absolutely beautiful. It was nice to kick back and enjoy the fresh air, birds chirping, scent of flowers, and yes the old school 90210 rerun marathon.








Don't let yourself get too jealous of my adventures because above you will find my 23 books that are sitting on the shelf for only the fall semester.

Do - Se - Do

Yes I am still in California. By the picture it may not look like it. Each Friday night the neighboring town has a street fair. There are booths of crafts, clothes, products, politicians, etc all vying for your attention and dollar. There is also a Farmer's Market bring some local produce freshly picked. OOOO did I have some of the best strawberries! In addition to the booth local restaurants are serving up their best dish and there are also musicians and this last weekend square dancers. In this circle, I mean square, they ran out of guys so the ladies were filling in for them. It wasn't just the dancing, but check out the costumes! They took their dancing serious! This is a shot of my favorite lady, the color of the skirt, the multiple layers of ruffles, and length or lack thereof of the dress. Oooo sexy! Overall they did a pretty good job, but I did stop to wonder if I was still in CA. The party lasts well into the evening. The blurry picture to the left is my favorite time to look at the mountains. Ahhhh. I love it!

My Backyard

Welcome to my backyard here in sunny California. Not this is not my real backyard, but it is a park a few blocks away. When I say I live close to the mountains, I mean I live close to them. The mtns run east to west, odd I know. It helps me from getting lost because it is a nice large landmark that can't disappear behind a building. This is one of my favorite parks that I have found to enjoy. I spent an afternoon reading under this tree until soccer practice began and I was overran by the soccer moms and I decided it was time to move on. These are what I see every day, not too bad for scenery. This will be one of my favorite places to read.

The Toilet.

Living by myself has a few drawbacks. I don't have anyone to make these personal statements to. So, here they are for the public. In looking at the toilet do you notice anything out of the ordinary? Look... look harder... did you figure it out yet? Ok, I will help you. Each time I go to flush, the handle is on the wrong side!!! I have never used a toilet with the handle on that side. Since I live in senior housing I have the perks of everything being handicap accessible.
1. I have the bars next to the toilet to balance myself or double as an extra towel rack.
2. There is also an emergency button by the toilet in case I fall. If I do then I can press it and will receive a response from the emergency responder. Oh wait, that is me... so if I am on call then I am out of luck!
3. If I completely sit on the toilet, then I feel like a little kid because my feet don't touch the ground.

What can I say! These are all useful features for when I will need them either when I do a clumsy activity and need extra help, or in a few years. They just bring a slight bit of comic relief to my day as sit there and swing my feet back and forth due to the high clearance!

The Chair

The story of another seat in my life. This is a nice and comfortable seat. Looks inviting, relaxing and a place to release stress. These are the thoughts I had as I prepare to bring this lovely chair home. I thought, now I do have a two door car, but I will just pull the seat all the up and I can easily get it to slide in my backseat, no problem.

Attempt 1
I purchase the chair and and take it out to my car, pull the seat up and begin to angle it in. It would not go. Are you kidding me? I tried over and over and over. Then I noticed this guys watching me... are you kidding me? next thing I know he pulls his truck behind me and offers to help. My mind goes into action. Where is m purse? Where are my keys? His car is behind me... What is my escape route? How pathetic am I that I can't get a chair in that a random person is stopping to help!! AHHH. I am an independent woman, I can do this! No, no I can't. I let the man help. We took the headrest off the seat, it didn't work. I thought about opening the sun roof, no it wouldnt fit. I tried the truck and it is too shallow. He tried everything I tried and could not get it to work. I felt slightly redeemed, but it still didn't go in. He offered it tie it in my trunk, thanks, but no thanks. He offered to drive it to my apt... thanks, but no thanks. This left me returning the chair. I went in and returned the chair feeling quite defeated. Now I was hot sticky, tired with no chair to go home to. :(

After I got home I decided to take a nap after all that hard work. It was well deserved I thought. As I drifted to sleep and started my drool pile I had an epihany. What if I recline the passenger seat and place it in there. All at once I felt like a genuis for the idea and an idiot for not thinking of it sooner.

Attempt 2
I went to the store to purchase the chair after buying and returning it. I asked the clerk if I could go and try to get it in my car before I purchases so that I wouldn't have to return it again. She just looked at me and rung up the chair. I went out to my car quite determined. IT WORKED!! It fit! Now when I got in the drivers seat I had to do a bit of manipulation to shift the gear and be able to see around the chair, but it worked!!! It was coming home to my patio! Now when you call me I am more than likely out on the patio because my cell phone reception is spotty in my apt. So know that I am relaxing in my hard earned chair that I sweated over twice and purchased twice!

I would like to take this moment to welcome you to my humble abode here in Duarte, California. Not the most flattering view, but hey I live by myself and didn't have anyone to take the picture for me. Mom, I cleaned up for you. Just imagine that it looks like this ALL the time! :)

Behind me you will see the main entrance to my apartment and the kitchen. Next to the door is the picture that was signed by friends and family at my send off party. The camera is sitting on the window sill and the TV is across from the other couch and the door to the bedroom and bath next to that. Below are pictures that will take you on the full tour.

If they pictures leaving you scratching your head and you can't fully imagine what it looks like, then hop a flight and come on out for a visit! Well, the picture updloader is not working so well so... Check out Facebook for more pictures.

Ground Shaking Welcome!

This is proof that everything did fit in the trailer, and made it with few scratches. Koodos to my dad for doing an amazing packing job. Luckily my apartment is just beyond the curb and on the first floor. The move-in went significantly quicker than my prior move to a 3rd floor apt. My dad did a great job getting the furniture in a 6 X 12 trailer, but once the furniture was in the apartment it became quite tricky to get everything to fit in a 550 sq. foot apartment. The real work was about to begin.

My mom and I decided to work on putting the dishes away while my dad was working on another project. All of a sudden I felt something and heard something. Was that my neighbor falling above me? No wait, the ground below me moved too. Holy cow I could hear the entire builiding shifting... what on earth! AHHHH EARTHQUAKE! Are you kidding me?!? It felt like I was standing on a water bed. We all looked at each other and asked what do we do? By the time we thought about it, it was over. I survived my first earthquake. My mom did ask if I wanted her to stop unpacking the boxes. We continued to unpack. No worries, there was no damage, and my parents can rest easy after surviving it with me. Well, welcome to California.

After unloading the trailer it was time to return it. The closest place was at a gift shop. This is not a cute gift shop you would buy your mom or grandma a momento from. The was a gift shop you would buy a lonely or perverted man a gift, or someone who needed life be a little happier. I thought I had stepped directly in the 70s. Dude this was a totally cool place that I would like never go to again. Well, welcome to California.

California Here I Come!

Family and a great group from church helped pack the trailer. Be ready to be amazed, in that trailer safely packed are the entire contents of my apartment. There is a sofa, loveseat, chair, ottoman, office chair, queen mattress and box spring, kitchen table and four chair, 3 bookshelves, file cabinet, and many other odds and ends.

With a well packed trailer and a well planned trip courtesy of Mapquest, Mom, Dad and I were ready to hit the raod. It said the trip would be 23 hours. Originally we were going to do the trip in 3 days, but had to change the plans and do the trip in 2 days. The goal was to go to Albuquerque, NM a short 13 hours, leaving 10 hours for Monday. To be flexible we decided to wait on hotel reservations in case we could make it farther in the first day. It kept getting darker and darker and doing the math 13 hours was not adding up to get us to Albuquerque. We were exhausted and came pulled off at an exit for a hotel. It looked a little sketchy and hotel had a window to talk through and not enter into the lobby. We decided to hop back on the road and find a more comforting place to call it a night. We would see a sign and then couldn't figure out how to get to the hotel. There was another one, there it went. Before we knew it... Albuqurque was gone. No worries my mom said there were many other exits and we would find one. 100 miles later and dark windy highways through I think a mountainous area we emerged to a city and literally crawled in bed. Mapquest is a LIAR. We were on the road about 16 hours.

The next day was not too bad. The low gas prices were history. I expected Oklahoma and New Mexico to be flat... but good grief I did not image the extent of blahness of the high dessert in Arizona and California. Whew... was it HOT! The highest reading the car gave was 106. Upon entering California we had to go through a road check where each vehicle was checked. Had I remembered to bring my plants, this is where I would have either smuggled them into the state or left them at the checkpoint. No worries, we made it through without a problem. Yes as you can tell by the picture the scenery is not so exciting. We arrived, we made in two days... exhuasted.

But no worries we had hotel reservations. The hotel manager and I did not see eye to eye. My mistake and when I did the reservation online I accidentally did not change it to 3 occupants instead of the 1 that auto filled. The manager was not happy with me. And then he told us we could not park the trailer on the grounds because it would not fit in the spots, and my dad would have to jack knife it to get in 3 spots. A long drawn out ordeal occurred with me talking to headquarter to okay the 2 extra occupants and figure out parking. They were laughing about the trailer, and I just wanted to go to sleep. Finally the drive was over and I was hours away from moving in.