Homeward Bound
(Weather permitting…)
Dogs are more like penguins than we ever knew…
This article caught my eye. What with the weather shenanigans that have been going on and a little black lab trouncing through the snow each day.
Apparently dogs’ paws are totally fine in the cold, despite what the makers of little doggie snow boots would like you to think.
Dogs’ paws, which lack the warm coverings on the rest of their bodies, have an intricate heat transfer system built in that immediately warms cold blood. Couple that system with a high amount of freeze-resistant connective tissue and fat located in the pads of the paw, and a dog’s paw rivals that of a penguin’s wing for the ability to stay warm in crazy-cold climates.
(Tally embracing the snow this morning.)
Tuesday Night Ramblings
I’m watching Glee while I’m type, so there may be interjections of random opinions. Like for instance, I love the crazy hats on Sue and Beastie during Emma’s opening song (great shout-out to Princess Beatrice’s monstrosity at the royal wedding).
Grandpa called today to see if I needed any shovels to help deal with the recent snow. I told him I was good on shovels, but I’d take any shovelers he had to offer! He also fiercely scolded me to grow my hair back out, as he’s not a fan of my short ‘do. Oh Grandpa… I’ll always be ten years old with plastic glasses and long brown hair in your eyes 
Sweet lord… one of the Real Housewives of Atlanta is on Glee. (But I agree, if you pee in my pool, I’ll kill you.)
More snow predicted for tomorrow. I’m starting to go stir-crazy being cooped up in the house because of the dangerous road conditions. Just one or two inches of snow completely shuts down the entire town and makes it legitimately risky to attempt to drive anywhere. Few roads get plowed, there’s no salt, and every other street is a ridiculous hill.
(Who takes a student ring shopping with them? A student as your best man? And we’re off the rails again…)
I am oh so jazzed about this Saturday… shoe shopping, craft shopping, and quality time with HistoryGirlie!!! Then Sunday is godson’s baptism and a big family soiree. If only NavyGuy didn’t have to work and hold down the fort here. Cuz you know he’d love some Archiver’s browsing 
I’m working on #12 on the 30 List… Read Gone With the Wind. I started with a discarded library copy but after dropping 1200 pages on my face more than once, I coughed up the money to get the Kindle version. I’m about halfway through. The first 200 pages all I wanted to do was slap both Scarlett and Rhett, and there are still moments of rage at them, but now I’m totally sucked in and dying to see what happens to all these crazy Southerners. Should make serious headway on my trip home, and am way excited to discuss it with HistoryGirlie, who counts it among her top 3 books (right?).
(Did they get Helen Miren to do Becky the Cheerleader’s voice-over? I could swear it’s her voice!)
Ask…
… and you shall be SHOVELING at 8am!
How nice that NavyGuy is still out of town…
Cheers and Jeers
Jeers… to whoever was wearing the Green Bay Packers’ uniforms today. Because that was NOT the actual Green Bay Packers. Clearly Aaron Rodgers, Greg Jennings, Ryan Grant, and Charles Woodson have identical evil twins who took the field today. Or, the Zombie Apocalypse is upon us.
Jeers… to the remainder of the NFL season. Who am I supposed to cheer for now? And if you say the 49ers, I will have to slap the crazy out of you. Obviously Eli and the Giants are public enemy #1, and Tom Brady is king of the douchebags, so I guess “Go Ravens.” Oh lord that hurts.
Jeers… to NavyGuy, who is actually responsible for the Packer loss. He wasn’t wearing his Packers jersey. All punishment suggestions are welcome.
Cheers… to the Golden Globes and a new Downton Abbey episode to hopefully distract me the remainder of the evening.
Cheers… to finishing my Project Life album for 2011. I’m thinking I’ll do a wrap-up reflection post on the process.
Jeers… to a weird pain in my abdomen. I either have appendicitis, or ate too much crispy sesame shrimp.
Cheers… to going to Wisconsin this week. I need snow. And Archivers.
Why is Downton Abbey Awesome?
Are you people watching this? WATCH IT! Sister-in-Law kept talking it up over Christmas break, but I was still on the fence, until I sat down to watch the first episode over the weekend.
Seven hours, one human bathroom break, one puppy bathroom break, half a bag of Hint of Lime Tostidos, and many gasps of exhilaration later, and I had watched all of Season 1… and LOVED IT!
I’ve been trying to distill why it’s so awesome, and here’s what I’ve come up with…
1) The British accents. And turns of phrases, like “I’m not dressed to receive.” I’ve been attempting a posh English accent since Sunday and NavyGuy is about ready to toss me into the Thames.
2) Complex characters who can aggravate you in one scene, but you love them in the next.
3) Historical – it’s set in England starting in 1912. The first major historical event is the sinking of the Titanic, and now the second season has us up to 1916, with WWI in full swing.
4) Costumes to die for.
5) It’s smart… but not too smart. You can watch it and “get it” without having to make your brain smoke, but despite some of its soap opera plot turns, it’s not mindless.
6) A beautiful score.
7) Two significant love stories / couples that you root for.
8. Dame Maggie Smith as a Dowager Countess. Perfection. I’m not sure half of the lines written for her are supposed to be hilarious, but they are.
I don’t know, it’s very hard to explain this show’s appeal. I mean it’s on PBS, it’s essentially historical fiction, aside from Smith there are no well-known actors, and yet, it is absolutely addictive. I’m serious – just try watching the first couple of episodes and see if you can make yourself stop. I know the entire first season is available on Netflix streaming, and I think it’s also available on the PBS website. The second season just began on Sunday night (it’s under Masterpiece Classic: Downton Abbey if you’re trying to find it to record it), so get caught up and jump on the bandwagon!
Are there any other fans out there? Can you explain more cogently than I why it’s such an addictive show?
(EW has this great Who’s Who gallery to get you a little more acquainted with the upstairs and downstairs residents of Downton Abbey.)
Hawaii Travel Guide: Diamond Head State Monument
NavyGuy and I took our Hawaiian Honeymoon/Anniversary Trip last May, and I was doing well recapping the vacation for a while. Then I fell off the wagon, and it’s time to finish those recaps before I completely forget the week in the sun. Here are the previous entries:
Traveling to Hawaii
Arrival
Day 1
Polynesian Cultural Center
Luau
Pearl Harbor Pt.1, Pt. 2, Pt.3
Pacific Aviation Museum
The North Shore
Haleiwa Shave Ice
Moana Surfrider Westin
We left off on Sunday morning, with an early morning plan to hike the summit trail of Diamond Head State Monument. Diamond Head is large crater that was formed from a volcanic eruption about 300,000 years ago. In the early 1900s, the trail was built to the summit as part of the coastal defense of the island. Today, the trail has been modernized, but it’s still a pretty vigorous climb, culminating in a super steep 99 step ascent into a bunker. I was determined to do it, but knew it was going to test my out-of-shape butt.
You drive into the crater and park, and then begin the climb with this super encouraging sign as the entrance. We began the hike around 8am, since everything I had read suggested doing it as early as possible to avoid the certain heat. (We were on vacation, so 8am was as early as we were ever going to get rolling.)
Climb. Sweat. Swear. Repeat.
There are lots of small viewpoints along the trail. Here’s the view of the crater as you’re walking.
Getting closer to the top!
Once you get near the summit, you start having to walk through tunnels, and then eventually up the dreaded 99 stair finale. Your eyes are trying to adjust to the dark, and you’re struggling to breathe. Your thighs are even starting to swear outloud by this point. You make it up the last step, and then enter this bunker, where you then have to crouch and fit yourself up through a small opening to get out to the actual summit.
This is the view of Waikiki Beach… you can see all the big hotels, including the pink Royal Hawaiian, and our hotel, which I tried to point out in the photo.
Warning – I was clearly just glad to be alive and at the top of the trail, and my face/hair shows it in the coming pics…
A rainbow!! It began sprinkling when we reached the summit, and next thing we knew – a rainbow at the top of Diamond Head. Amazing!
The trip back down was much easier. Especially with Sargent NavyGuy pushing me down the mountain. The brochures said to allow an hour and a half for the hike… with NavyGuy Bataan-Death-Marching me both ways, we did the whole round trip in 45 minutes! No wonder I couldn’t breathe! But, it was definitely worth it and I’m glad I did it.
Clearly, my dorkiness knows no bounds.
We had definitely worked up an appetite… next up – a sweet Sunday morning breakfast.
#15 – Short Haircut
It’s done. Here I am this morning…
And by 2 this afternoon…
(The photo quality isn’t great because it’s a Skype screenshot, but what are you gonna do?)
I’m mostly still in shock. My hair has never been this short – I swear I was born with hair longer than this. I took in my inspiration photos from here, and got my hairstylist to weigh in and decide what style would work best with my hair type, etc. We talked over some options and then she got to work crafting this stacked bob.
I *think* I like it. The real test will be the morning when I attempt to dry and style it myself, and the coming days when the novelty wears off, and the reality hits of having to “do” my hair like a grown-up every day (as opposed to half-assing a ponytail about 75% of the time).
My neck is cold.
#5 – Red Lipstick
Roomie A and I completed this item together (finding the perfect shade of red lipstick), and it was the only item that made it on both of our lists.
Go HERE and read about the adventure, see our luscious lips, and discover our connection to Scarlett Johannson. I have the shade “Dragon Girl” and one of these days I’ll take a photo of me wearing it with full makeup and you’ll have to try not to throw yourselves at the computer screen.
Holidays 2011 Pt. 2
Showing off my new hat and scarf from NavyGuy’s grandma. Sister-in-Law modeling the fun t-shirt we got her (National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation is a family favorite).
In-Laws Christmas Tree.
The girls, Sister-in-Law and Mother-in-Law, taking a trip down memory lane. Apparently, the race track was a Christmas gift from years past, and it was a fun diversion to bring out of storage.
The boys, NavyGuy and his dad, playing with their toys… new electronics.
We were able to visit with TWP and her kiddos as well. Here NavyGuy had attracted the attention of young godson E, and both boys look quite happy to be relaxing in the big comfy chair while TWP and I chatted.
Preparing the lobsters for the New Years Eve feast.
Cheers to 2012! I love champagne.
And that was it. Our whole holiday vacation Just kidding, there were of course lots of other fun visits and excursions, but we took a shocking lack of photos the entire trip. I suppose we were just too busy enjoying our time with friends and family. What a wonderful problem to have!
