Back to the future

2010 is closing fast and on its wake comes 2011. One exciting thing to look forward to is a new Presidential campaign. I dearly love this part. The politicking, the surprise candidates, the oldie but goodies, the "where did they come from?" candidate and those you knew would be back. Its one sided this time (cause Obama will be up for reelection) but I still expect fun. Huckabee is my prime choice to run, I want him to win....and behind him is a lady from Alaska...maybe a governor from Louisiana...or ME!

I look forward to the fun, to the speeches, to a good clean campaign! Be honest, fair and smart....one of you is going to get a chance to run for the job of President of the United States of America. And I hope you know just how lucky you are...

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.5

My app choices

I am reading all these people posting about their apps, and I thought, "Hey why don't you share your app experience?" I have to say that the apps on the droidx are just on this side of wonderful.

Here are some of the ones that I love:
2011 countdown
A Farewell to Arms (movie)
Amazon
Amazon mp3
Astro file manager
Backgrounds
Barcode scanner
Bic concert lighter
Blockbuster
Blogger-droid (a fave)
Breaking Dawn countdown
Bubble popper
Cracker Barrel
Crossword light
Dish network
droid forum
gas buddy
gererala free
gesture search
facebook
IMDb
Key Ring
Kindle
Latitude
Lightning Bug
LIve TV
Maps
Millionaire
My Verizon
My Cast Weather
Navigation
News
PDA net
tip calculator
skype
star trek soundboard
stitcher
team coco
TMZ
TV.com
Twilight in Forks
Twitter
Google Voice
Word UP!!!
You Tube
Yams
Wikidroid
Google Goggles
Google Sky Map
Photoshop mobile
Trip Journal
As more apps are made, more illegal content becomes available you might want to look into an anitvirus. (A Trojan has been found in China) I use Norton and it has many very cool features.

STill look for a cool pdf reader for a few pdf documents AND for the KY digital download library to be available on the droid market, that is one thing I miss about my windows phone. I could go to the library and download books to my phone...and they were mine for 2 weeks...I miss that.

I hear that SPB mobile shell is coming out with a droidx version. I had that on my windows phone and must say it was the most perfect interface ever!!!

The gang's all here

I do believe that I have seen this movie about 50 times. It is about a guy (Andy) in the service that is engaged to a girl (Vivan) at home but meets a song girl (Edie) in a club and falls in love, but they give each other fake names (Casey and whatever that fake name that she was using was). She comes and sees him off to war. He goes to the South Pacific fights a good fight and comes home a war hero...while he is traveling home, his wealthy father decides to throw him a big party when he gets home. Problem is the club that Andy loves is closed so dear old dad has the whole club and all their entertainers stay at his house and his neighbor's house, the party will be at Andy's home. A great scene is when the remarkable Charlotte Greenwood does this dance with a dancer and displays the highest kicks I have ever seen anyone do in a musical...Her legs are SOOOOOO longs (she stood around 6 feet tall). Back to the plot, Andy's real-life girlfriend, Vivian and Edie have no idea that they have been swapping stories about their man and that their man is the same man. Meanwhile, Dorita (played by the wonderful Carmen Miranda) figures is all out and tries to stop the two girls from discovering what's up. All fails and Edie figures are out but take the high road, when Andy does come home and is all surprised about the party and Edie being there she pretends to love another. Andy is heartbroken but after the show, he convinces Edie and Vivian that it is Edie he loves.

Why am I telling you about this corny movie? Here are some reasons that this movie is worth watching:

1. The aforementioned Charlotte Greenwood scene
2. The leaving for the camp scene in which Edie calls "Casey" (she knows him) by the name of "Andy" but later when she learns "Casey" is "Andy" she is very surprised.
3. It's directed by Busby Berkley so there are FABULOUS, over the top dance numbers.
4. Carmen Miranda sings the lady in the Tootie fruity hat and it is simply perfection!!!
5. Benny Goodman sings a song about a town called "Paducah" and if you wanna you can rhyme it with bazooka.
6. And lastly, it is just a mindless entertaining movie...a weak plot, but lots of dance numbers and shows you how much Americans cheered for their country. My favorite line is "If you had a beard you would remind me of my two favorite men, Santa Claus, and Uncle Sam".

2010 a review

First of all the celebrity deaths (in no certain order)
Blake Edwards
Kathryn Grayson
Jean Simmons
Elizabeth Edwards
Don Meredith
Ted Sorel
Leslie Nielson
Jill Clayburgh
Tony Curtis
Tom Bosley
Eddie Fisher
Dennis Hopper
Gary Coleman
Art Linkletter
JD Salinger
Corey Haim
Dixie Carter
Peter Graves
Lynn Redgrave
Barbara Billingsley
Irvin Kershner
Teddy Pendergrass
Merlin Olson
Fess Parker
John Forsythe
Eddie Carroll
Lena Horne
Rue McClanahan
Jimmy Dean
George Steinbrenner
Ilene Woods
Patrica Neal
Ted Stevens
Gloria Staurt


some of the books that I read in 2010 (some of the best books):

The Pool of St Branok (Philippa Carr)
Wonderful Tonight (Patti Boyd)
The Changeling (Philippa Carr)
A Walk to Remember
The Notebook (it kind of is my grandparents death story)
The Black Swan (Philippa Carr)
A Time for Silence (Philippa Carr)
Rainwater
A Farewell to ARms (Hemingway....love this book)
Beaches (another good book)
Short life of Bree Tanner
Eclispe
Twilight
New Moon
Breaking Dawn
Travels in Alaska (John Muir)
The Death and Life of Charlie St Cloud
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
STicken (John Muir)
Abraham Lincoln vampire hunter (in print and audio book)








Wish I had kept up with the number of scrapbook pages made in 2010! It would be in the hundreds (more than 100, I would say less than 300). Maybe not, I just did 23 today.


Number of photos taken in 2010 9,438

Places visited in 2010:
Cincinnati Ohio/Great American Ballpark
St Louis MO/Busch Stadium (2 times)
Jackson TN/Red Robin
Nashville TN/Red Robin
Columbus Belmont Park
Graves County High School
Ketchikan, AK
Skagway, AK
Victoria, BC
Juneau, AK
Seattle, WA
Dallas, TX
Mineral Wells, TX
Little Rock, AR
Bowling Green, KY
Atlanta, GA
Orlando, FL
Daytona, FL
Evansville, IN
Airports in Albuquerque, NM and Des Plaines, IL
Louisville, KY
Lexington, KY
Santa Claus, IN
Lincoln's boyhood home
Cave City, KY
Memphis, TN

Big Events of 2010 (to me):
Meeting Peter Facinelli
Going to the baseball parks
Going back to Alaska (I am so enthralled by those glaciers)
5 visits to Archiver's (the most ever in one year)
Big Texas wedding
Hanging with Lauren Champion
Eating at Doe's with the hubby
Making my first ever batch of dressing and it was good!!!
Submitting scrapbook work, even if I haven't been chosen to be published yet, I have tried!
Hogsmeade!!!!!!!!!
Getting to spend more time in EPCOT (still not enough but I made it through MOST of world showcase)
Tyler Hall visit
BON JOVI
Justin Bieber (just because I got to hang out with Tammy)
Taking the kids to Mammoth Cave (their first time)
Finally having my picture made in front of the welcome to Alaska sign on the Klondike highway!
Discovering Tim HOltz's distressing products (I can't get enough)
Seeing my boy score a touchdown AND pitch an inning in baseball!
Hearing that my daughter is amazing at the flute and gets to attend those fancy district thingys
Eclipse (and taking Hannah to the midnight show)
discovery of the e-reader!!!
discovery of the audio book (yeah, I know I am behind)
the getting of the best phone ever, the Droid X (I love everything that it can do)
Having the OBOE staff to my house!!!!
Discovery of peppermint dark chocolate lindor truffles
Prima flowers!!!!!!
Lambert's with the kids!!!
Makay's bookstore, I could spend DAYS here!!!! DAYS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

News events that I want to remember from 2010:

Big earthquakes in Haiti and Chile

Winter Olympics and Evan winning the first male gold medal in figure skating since Brian Boitono

Volcano eruption in Iceland

Record set for a painting sold at auction (a Picasso)
Favorite apps of 2010:

oh yeah I must list some of the apps that have proven to waste my time!!

Bubble Popper
Blogger-droid
Bic concert lighter
droid forum
dish network
facebook (duh)
gas buddy
Key ring
kindle
laputa
millionaire
quickoffice
ringdroid
tmz
twilight in forks
word up
crossword
team coco
IMDb
twitter

There are many things to be thankful for:

what makes it all happen....God
My son bordering on that 20/50 line
the good health of my family
food and shelter
family and friends
the ability to see (by far my favorite sense)
this is a never ending list...and for that I am grateful!

Here's to a great 2011!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

Harry Potter

I finally succumbed to the power of Potter. I shall blame it on Universal Studios Florida. As I entered Hogsmeade, I fell madly in love with the castle and its turrets. The snow everywhere was lovely too. Then there were the town's streets...all lined with excited people pointing here and there. People clamoring for wands, waiting in line (long lines) for butterbeer and pumpkin juice, trying on robes and screaming with excitement over a Griffendorf. I knew what none of this was! I was lost, confused, but excited about the village. We entered a place called Honeydukes...candy as far as I could see, but the meaning was lost on me. We saw the Hogwarts Express (i knew what this was), Diagon Alley, the Dragon's challenge, tons of wands..lost on me. ( I did snap photos like crazy though.) Here we go into the castle. It was dark, damp, and spooky; just what I expect a castle to be...there are moving portraits on the wall...the meaning is lost on me. People are snapping photos like crazy of these portraits, tables, and a talking hat. The hat told us we would be chosen and we follow that choice. We were chosen at that point to enter the ride. Hermione (I knew her name) said count backward from 3 and cast a spell on us...BAM! We flew back and twisted around...WE WERE FLYING! Harry said that Hermione made us fly. Hagrid (I knew this too) asked us if we had seen a dragon and we continued to fly. We passed a scary creature with a skeleton like face, I now know its a dementor. He was very frightening! Then we met a giant spider (Aragog...but I had no clue then), and Hermione told us something then they took our picture. Oh my, there's the loose dragon....and a blonde boy starts teasing Harry about us and then Harry yells about something closing in...we "fly" straight down and save something cause the Hogwarts kids start clapping and a bearded man says we may come back anytime we wish. We took him at his word and got right back in line. We did this 5 or 6 times because it is the best ride EVER! The Flight of the Griffindorf was a family coaster, perfect for someone like me. I rode it twice. Then we saw a musical group and everyone was watching them...we headed for the butterbeer line....$30 later we had 2 butterbeer s and 1 pumpkin juice. We sat under this roof and I fell in love! In the rafters were many owls! All types of owls, barn, screech, horned, grey...oh my! They move and they pooped all over the beams! This was amazing! After experiencing this world, I had to read the books.... I have to say the books have nothing on the real-life Hogsmeade and Hogswarts! I really want to go back!

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.5

Red robins

I had a bad experience at one today and thought "I have been to more than anyone I know." Hey let me list them.


1. 2006 Cleveland Ohio (first one)
2. Mason Ohio (4 times)
3. O'Fallon, Missouri (2 times)
4. Chesterfield, Missouri
5. Mt Juliet, Tennessee (at least 5 times)
6. Jackson, Tennessee (at least 5 times)
7. Nashville, Tennessee (3 times)
8. Castle Rock, Colorado
9. Louisville, Kentucky #1(St Matthews...2 times)
10. Louisville, Kentucky #2
11. Florence, Kentucky
12. Fairview Heights, Illinois (2 times)
13. Fenton, Missouri (2 times)
14. Murfreesboro, Tennessee
15. Cordova, Tennessee
16. Lexington, Kentucky
17. Evansville, Indiana

See RR, I have to drive a long way to see you. I have been to many of your stores. I expect a good experience...boo Evansville!

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.5

Pink Oink

Well, a hero of mine has begun to earn his hero status in a new way...Mr. John McCain has taken to telling us all the ways that our leaders are adding necessary spending to our government. I hope that you take the time to read some of this waste and realize what I do....lawmakers are NOT frugal with OUR money. 100,000 for syrup. 1,000,000 for the installation of a camera. Millions for textile research...whatever .....


My point is...why can't you create a budget and live within the realms of that budget? We could only have money for cow TB research and pig waste management research if they did a fundraiser to pay for it. Do you know how long it has been since we had a balanced budget? One year is too long. How can we expect our citizens to live within their means if they very people that lead them chooses to ignore this advice? What can we do? Speak up! Let your leaders know how you feel...praise those that try to keep us living within our means, that are not wasteful, and those that get it. Keep those people in the office at election time too.! For those that are wasteful, hold them accountable! Vote them out! Tell them how you feel! Be a voice!

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.5

My vocabulary words

Here are words and phrases that I use often and their meanings....

1. SHUT UP!-stop right now..that is unbelievable.

2. Flavor-a word used to describe a scent of air freshener..."what flavor of spray do you want"

3. Tootmister-someone who passes gas a lot.

4. Evil cat-a cat that bites for no reason.

5. J.R.-ed--meaning someone has messed you up like J.R. Ewing would do to someone.

6. Oh no you didn't-i should not have to explain this.

7. Whatcha talking about Willis?-borrowed from Arnold Drummand, an oldie but a constant goodie. I shall use this forever.

8. Amazing-epic...very good, the best.

9. Fendfer-when your family members prepare their own dinner!

10. Someone better be dead-what you say to someone who calls after 9pm and before 3am

11. No noticer-someone who thinks I can change my plans at a minutes notice...like schools who tells you the day before about a program....last minute meetings...people I an a planner...even plan my book reading time.

12. On crack-an expression used to explain NUTTY behavior, not a person actually on crack.

13. Old elvis-my elvis, the 1970's elvis.

14. Death day-The anniversary of the death of someone....usually used on conjunction with a celebrity.

15. Duos pumpkin-what you say to the carnival waiter on pumpkin soup night...other times you day tris pumpkin...even have said quarto pumpkin.

16. Travel folder-my dear little wonder woman folder that always has some type of travel stuff in it. Like an upcoming trip, boarding passes, trip itineraries, shore excursion plans, etc......

17. Kleenex-actually is a puffs plus with lotion and I always have some.

18. Tcb- taking care of brushing...i brush my teeth a lot.

19. Have you been dropped?-trevors therapy drops...i never can remember if we have applied them.

20. Bed-what I am doing now...night

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.5

Dear Conan

My dear Conan,
I have watched you for the utmost part of 20 years. You have made me laugh, you have made me cry, grossed me out and maybe.... just maybe made me almost pee my pants. I am writing you this letter so that you know how worthy I am of a Team Coco t shirt. For starters, I am worthy just because I am breathing, but no, I shall not stop my reasons there...even though it should be enough. No, I shall go on....I shall go on to tell you that I have stalked you over the airwaves for years, I have followed through skits that were for the record books and some that kind of sizzled. I have loved the falsetto voice and your mad guitar skills. I have had to explain to my children who the crazy giant leprechaun man on the tv is and why he makes me laugh and even explain to the them the concept of a man in jeggings (that was a hard one dear Conan). You might be saying "she deserves this shirt no more than any other fan"...that may be true to some, but Mr Conan O'Brien I am above that. I am way cooler than the others...Oh YES, I am. I can make you laugh, I can make you cry and I can make you think "ok this girl is strange". I have supported you in the bad times, in the good times and even through the "New Jersey" times. You see Conan, you and I are good friends, you just have not lived up to your side of the friendship. Now Conan, all of this could be corrected if you would grant me, your dear friend Michelle a Team Coco tshirt. Yes Conan, I would forgive you for not sending me a Christmas card, and for not giving me a baby shower gift, and for not being there when I needed a friend....if ONLY you would give me a t shirt!

Friends forever.....
Michelle Champion

So in love with you, my love am I

The more I think about you, the more I love you. The more I long to stare into your face. You are carved completely out of a cold substance and I hate to be cold. Why then do I love you? Just look at you...you can see why I am in love with you...

I love to read about you, to view photos of you, and I long to climb on your crevices.

For those that don't know what you are, you are a glacier. A massive piece of ice that moves. Yeah, it moves...it leave in it's path moraine and a U shaped valley. When you start down a fjord (an inlet of water that was formed by a melting glacier) the vegetation will be larger more lush, as you travel down the fjord closer to the glacier face it will appear smaller and in most cases you will see NO vegetation. Instead what you will see is a large sheet of ice with crevices indentations and possibly icebergs. You will experience colors that may be indescribable....a topaz blue, granite gray, pure white, ice blue, azure, black, teal blue or teal green...and the list goes on and on.

the Lampley Glacierthe mendenhall 2008 The Lampley

the Herbert Glacier

the John Hopkins Glacier The Mendenhall Glacier 2008

a glacier close upnow you can imagine the size of a glacierGlacier Bay National Park and Reserve....the Majorie Glacier

The Sawyer Glacier (North) Tracy Arm Fjord

The lovely Majorie Glacier (GBNP&R)

all that is left of a glacier that is now part of the fjord

the mendenhall 2010

The Marjorie and the Grand Pacific (the GP once filled glacier bay

Marjorie glacier

66e6e773-9287-4f7c-8140-50e9bc731a4f

1.03.01

Who's your hero?

Did you know that kids can develop their imagination by reading a book? THey can lose themselves in a world of space, espionage, intrigue, history, fantasy, science...oh forget it this list will NEVER end...all they need from you is a book and a reading friendly space.

Reading in front of the tv is not a good idea...Reading in a crowded LOUD room is not a good idea either. Think about this when you send your little one to read.

"But my kids have too many books"...NONSENSE! A child can never have too many books. Maybe they love to read! Did you know that Thomas Jefferson once sold the Library of Congress 10,000 books at one time? And he thought that was not enough books. Look at me, I have 3 book case, some under my bed, some at work, some in the cars....and I want MORE!! I read them all...most over and over. And if your child does not, maybe it's time to donate the books they don't like to a school, charity, friend or sell them at a consignment sale. And replace them with books your child wants to read. Generally, I don't like the books people pick for me, maybe they don't like the ones that you pick for them....ever thought of that.

If your child does not like to read maybe you are buying the wrong subjects. My son did not like to read until he discover shipwrecks and now he reads all the time...mainly about shipwrecks, but he reads.

Think about the subject matter, the age appropriateness, the length, and not just look at the cover. I have a book with a spring green cover (ugly) and it just says the title on it "Gone with the Wind"...ugly ugly cover, but what is within those covers is one of the greatest books that I have ever read. I have read it 38 times since I started counting in 1994!!! I have it on my phone now so that I can read it every day if I want to and in any location.

Well, I can tell you a great place to find books!!! The OBOE book fair, from Sept 20-24, 2010. I can promise you that a super hero may come by to visit as well.


Be a HERO to your child...make them a lifelong reader!!!

66e6e773-9287-4f7c-8140-50e9bc731a4f

1.03.01

Trace Creek Baptist Church Crop

Well, here it is again...time for the TCC (Trace Creek Crop). This is one of my favorite times of the year (barring any cruise vacation naturally). What is it? It is a scrapbook crop (which means essentially a place to scrapbook with other people), that is held in the church multi purpose building. Why is it special? There are literally hundreds of people there that love two things: to scrapbook and God! It is a day spent with ladies of all walks of faith, religions, and backgrounds; but they are believers and it is evident in their speak, actions and generosity. There is a devotional in the middle of the day to rejuvenate you and get you thinking about your life, the life of others and your service to God. Jill Rogers is the speaker and I must say she is down to Earth and speaks from her heart. There are prayers, thanksgivings, and companionship. You get to meet people, see people that you have not seen in years, talk about life, and SHOP! The vendors are awesome as well. You can shop for a new product or go buy a piece of white paper if you forgot to bring some in the million and one things that you brought.

Oh yeah, packing for this event is like packing for a vacation. I have one "suitcase" (it's really a crop case but as big as a suitcase on wheels) and one milk cate type thing on wheels. They will both be loaded to the gills! I intend on bringing 40 layout packages and hope to scrap at least 30 of them. Last year I walked away with 32 layouts completed, and that is a record for me.

This year, I have to cut my time short. I have to leave around 4:45 (instead of 8 pm), my high school reunion (20 years) is that evening. You know honestly, I thought of skipping the reunion and being with these great TCC ladies. I do love them to pieces. As I said before, I look forward to it every year and it is less than TWO weeks away!!!

my love of a great tv show

Since 1990, I have been a fan of the Law and Order shows. At first, it was just so so...I wasn't a fan of Robinette or Ben Stone....but Adam Schiff was a bad dude...a guy that would take no crap and I like him. Yep, he kept me coming back. Then....then they added Jack McCoy! I was hooked completely. Jack McCoy was everything Adam was and more. A guy out to get the bad folks....no holds barred....and a bit of a ladies man to boot. Oh yes, he and Claire liked each other and probably (I believe yes) had a relationship. Claire was fantastic wrestling with her womanhood, the whole career lady life, and Jack McCoy. Jack McCoy has to be the greatest ADA ever! Time changes and we have lost some of our ADA and DA's too. Adam left, Nora came in. Angie Harmon came on playing a hard girl...I LOVED her character! One of our ADA's was murdered and now McCoy is our DA with

Then there were the detectives....I hated the first bunch...I did not like the cop section until Briscoe and Logan took over. Through the years...we have had many great detectives....Curtis, Green (my favorite after Lenny), Fontana, that chick that I could not stand Nina, Lupo, Bernard. Lupes and Bernard are a team that rivals the Curtis/Briscoe partnership.

Even after spin off after spin off, I kept watching. Now I do love most of the spin offs, but the mothership kept bringing me back. The formula worked, the content interested me, and the cast, well they were just outstanding.

Here we are now 2010, my show has been canceled. Canceled after 20 years, you will be forever tied with Gunsmoke. Wish you could have beaten that record!!! Would it not be great for Law and Order to have been the longest running drama of all time? I realize that the last couple of years as tv has changed you had lost your viewers, which I hate. You did not show naked butts, or drop the "s" word. You just relied on your mad writing skills and "ripped from the headlines" stories....hey, I think you held your ground very nicely trying to compete against those other dramas.

As we begin a new tv season, your name is not completely void on the tv listings...there you are Law and Order: Los Angeles. New show, new setting, new actors, new drama. Yeah, this should be good. I am sad that the mothership is no more, but glad I still have the spin offs!

Oh how I love thee, but WHY?

There is something about you...yes, on my first visit I could not quite put my finger on what it was, but I have it now! You are rich! Rich in nature! Rich in beauty! Rich in peace! Rich in culture! Rich in shopping! Rich in "gold"! Rich in stories!

There you sit at the head of Lynn Canal, which really is not a canal at all but a natural made fjord. See you start off fooling me from the very beginning. But there you are, I can see you as I approach. There is a distinctive "downtown". Rows of buildings lined up against the street. But still something is different. When I first step onto your land. I look around. There is a mountain will paintings to my right. Paintings of what? Yes, that's it paintings from crew members whose ships docked in your port and advertisements from stores that are probably long gone from your town.

And to the left and straight ahead...there you lie, Skaguay or Skagway as you are called in "modern times". We are here at the mouth of Broadway, walking up your streets heading first to what I see on the left, the Alaska t shirt company. This store, while not rich in Skagway heritage, is rich in savings. I hope to make you my first stop. On the right is the great statue for the Klondikers.

The who? The Klondikers! What's that? They are the people who sought out Alaska during the Gold Rush of the Yukon (1896). The prospective "millionaires" would board a ship and head up Lynn Canal. It was NOT a smooth journey as the canal was full of bergs, fierce winds and they were not really sailing under the best of conditions. The hopefuls landed in Skagway to begin a trek over the mountains. It was to be a 500 mile trek up the mountains into Canada's Yukon territory. While that doesn't sound so bad, it was. The mounted police did not care that you wanted to come to their country to "strike it rich", but they were NOT going to care for you. So each prospector had to carry with him 1,000 pounds of supplies (or a years supply of goods). Yeah, that is typed right ONE THOUSAND POUNDS! "The Golden Staircase" (as it was known) was a constant line of prospectors. If you stepped out of line you would have to wait 15 minutes or so to regain a spot in the trek.

This is art depicting the "Golden Stairs"

This trek proved to be deadly for some (above is pictured Dead Horse Trail) , and not as rewarding for the others. Some decided that there was too much at stake and took up residence in Skagway instead. They sold the supplies needed, opened saloons and brothels, and one guy by the name of Soapy Smith decided to run the place as a mob city. He was crooked, a thief, and just all around NOT a good guy, but a very interesting read...I recommend you read about him.

Back to the future....behind the famous Klondikers is the White Pass and Yukon Railway. This railroad is a narrow gauge train that will parallel the "White Pass Trail" that the Klondikers took. Construction began in 1898 with a goal in mind of making it easier for the prospectors to get into the Yukon territory and up to Dawson City. The WP&YR today is run as a tourist attraction and what an attraction it is. I have been on the railway twice and have learned so much both times. The tour leaves right from the cruise docks. There are many tours that you can choose from. The most popular goes to the summit and back, then there are some that go into Canada and one that will take you into Whitehorse, BC.

The views are spectacular and because you parallel the White Pass trail you will get to see many of the sights seen in Gold Rush days. Like the "trail of 98", "Black Cross Rock", the old depot spots and a bridge that will make you cringe.

This is an amazing trek, the most popular inside passage excursion and well worth the $100 plus you will spend....save your money now!

When you get back to town it is time to explore some more. The Skaguay News depot is a wonderful place to pick up information on the Gold Rush, Klondikers, old newspapers, or even today's paper. There is even a cross stitch store in town! YEAH, I could not believe it either. Check it out! You can get gourmet cupcakes (get them fast when they sell out they close), you can check out Soapy Smith's life, visit tons of jewelry stores....but there are some must dos.

AB Hall---The Arctic Brotherhood Hall. There are over 10,000 pieces of driftwood nailed to the facade of the building and then have been there since gold rush days. This building will grab your attention FAST!! It was a social place for miners in its hey day, now it is a visitors center.

There is a lovely Russian facade on one of the jewelry stores, and wonderful mouth watering fudge at the Alaskan Fudge Company (wish I could have more of the vanilla glacier fudge).

Walk around more and you will see the National Park (please visit here), Skagway river, and walk off Broadway to see how the locals live. You can visit the market...the market is interesting. The food comes in on a barge and the grocery is stocked. Prices are HIGH! As the week progress, prices go lower as the perishables are starting to go bad. Canned good will escalate in price because folks are running out of fresh food and need to eat. Yeah, that's right the food barge comes in once a week! We were told, as the week progresses you take a chance on only eating canned items if you wait. We saw chopped sirloin for $9.00 per pound.

the cementary is near here too!

Well Skagway, I have covered most of your 7 blocks in just a few short minutes. For those of you given the chance explore this quaint little mining town and all she has to offer. I am sure that you will NOT be disappointed.

where have you been?

I look forward to things but I do not wish life away. I see so many people just wishing things away. Counting down to a future instead of trying to help fix today. The countdown doesn't bother me, it's the "I wish the next few weeks would fly by" or "I can't wait until next year".

I often end the day with questions, where did I screw up today? What did I do right today? How did I make a difference? The last question is the one the resonates in my brain. Where did I make a difference? Where did I make a difference? Where did I make a DIFFERENCE? I sure had better have an answer to that EVERY DAY!!

A difference does not have to be a gigantic world wide thing that everyone knows about. Only a few people might know, only a family might know, only one person may know, only God may know....

There have been sometimes lately that life has bothered me. The older I get,the more I see that mankind is not what I thought. There are people that truly care only about themselves,that have no morals, no spiritually, no decency , no respect, no compassion, no values, no love and no ability to take one for the team. I just can't understand why people seem to take the "easy road" or what I like to call the lazy road. Why people can't be treated as they wish to be treated? Why people can't put the good of the many in front of the good of the few, or the one. (thank you Mr Spock).

I have a cousin that has been talking about this sweet precious child that 11 weeks ago she was this happy little kid playing with her family and friends. In a short span of 11 weeks, she was sick, diagnosed with a brain tumor, and now she is gone. She was 5 years old. Do you see exactly how short life is? 11 weeks!!! You have to make your plans TODAY!



I challenge my friends to this...if you don't have a relationship with God, what a GREAT time to develop that! If you don't treat others as you would be treated, what a GREAT time to put yourself LAST! If you don't spend time with your children, what a GREAT time to make a deposit in their future! If you don't take care of the Earth, what a GREAT time to better it for the future! If you have NEVER voted, what a GREAT time to register! If you have been making plans to make a difference, do it NOW! If you are wishing away til Christmas break...remember a lot can happen in just 11 short weeks! And for those that were alive on September 11, 2001, you all know how life can change dramatically in less than ONE HOUR!

Live for today! For the moments that you have! Make a DIFFERENCE!!! Be a GIVER not a TAKER!

America has had 44 Presidents but only one King!

Elvis Week 2010


http://www.elvisweek.com/

This is a week where all Elvis fans unite and celebrate the career of a man with an amazing voice. A man that could sing anything! From Country to rock, to hillbilly, to gospel....Elvis had it covered.

This is also the year that Graceland celebrates its 75th anniversary. Now we all can't get to Graceland this week, but it is kind of nice to go to the website and see what is going on. To listen to XM 18 and listen to the "out takes" of songs that you know well. To listen to songs that you never knew Elvis recorded (like Your cheating heart by Hank Williams), and even to hear him do a Bealtes tune (he is the only person that can get away with that).

In honor of Elvis Week I am including my favorite Elvis tunes

Burning Love
What'd I say?
Suspicious Minds
Kentucky Rain
Poke Salad Annie
Heartbreak Hotel
That's all right
Hey Jude
Viva Las Vegas
In the ghetto
How great thou art

this list could go on forever...Thanks for sharing your talent with us

TCB

The travel list

Everyone knows my zest for travel...the more the merrier. And you all know how I love lists...here are 2 lists that involve travel.

The Places I have been that I loved
1. Bathsheba, Barbados
2.. Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska
3. Pikes Peak
4. In the waters around Admiralty Island, Alaska
5. El Morro in San Juan, Puerto Rico
6. Charlotte Amalie, St Thomas
7. Key West, Florida
8. Phillipsburg, St Maartin
9. Skagway, Alaska
10. Washington, D.C. (everything about it thrilled me)
11. Cumberland Falls
12. El Yunque rain forest
13. Chichen Itza
14. Ketchikan, AK
15. St John
16. Mendenhall Glacier
17. Bill Clinton Library
18. The Royal Gorge
19. Charlottsville, Virginia
20. Victoria, Canada
21. The Hermitage
22. Chicago, Illinois
23. Arlington National Cemetary
24. Coke Museum in Atlanta Georgia

25. The Old Mill
26. Great Smokey Mountains National Park



Where I would like to go:
1. Kilauea
2. Mt Saint Helens
3. The Grand Canyon
4.. Denali National Park-June 2015
5. The Grand Tetons
6. Yosemite National Park
7. Glacier National Park
8. Mt Rainier National Park
9. Forks/La Push
10. Mansfield, MO-July 2012
11. Niagara Falls-July 2018
12. Muir Glacier
13. Olympic National Park
14. Aruba-Sept 2014
15. Statue of Liberty National Monument-Oct 2019
16. England

17. A Corner in Winslow Arizona

18. Havana-Oct 2015

the summer of zanniness

Yeah, it's been a little bit of a wild summer. We have gone to Alaska (which was the highlight), we took a trip to a National Park (Mammoth Cave), saw a couple of Cardinals games, spent a day at Holiday World, and spent lots of time in the pool. I have accomplished things that I wanted to do....paint a glacier, read a book by John Muir, caught up on all my scrapbooking, designed some 12 x 12 paper of my own, made a necklace (yeah I did not enjoy this), worked on finishing the painting in my house, designed and stitched my very own blackwork pattern, and bought tickets to my first ever teeny bopper concert.

Well, it has been a crazy summer. Why? What would I have in my life to be crazy? ME? Seriously, you are asking me? Ok here goes:
1. Husband backed into a parking sign at a ballgame
2. Son wrestled with his friends all the time, as a matter of a fact for 3 weeks in a row we had to get them adjusted.....well, that is until they broke.
3. For the first time in 17 years, I was NOT able to put anything into the local/state fair (this was very sad...I had to work so I could not go enter the stuff).
4. I began to be allergic to everything including the sun. This was the first year that I went to watch my son play baseball and had to take rash cream so that I could stay outside.
5. Realized I have become absolutely nuts about large chunks of ICE!
6. Read over 50 books since I got Laputa on my phone. (thanks Kelley Kelly)
7. Not looking forward to a football game for my high school reunion (I do NOT like football...NOT one bit)
8. My son completed his last year on the pitching machine.
9. My daughter has a teenager attitude.
10. Will never again dig in flower beds...I am tired of breaking out for weeks!
11. Spent almost $100 in an Alaskan cross stitch store (cause you know there are NOT any around here).
12. Realized that my kids need to see MORE of America...and see what a great place it is.
13. Actually THOUGHT about trying camping...in a cabin...yeah maybe....I will think about it again next year.
14. Realized that the volcanoes of Hawaii are closer than I ever imagined.
15. Fell more in love with my husband than before....(gag me with a spoon, sorry to gross you out, but it's true---He is a good guy).
16. Had many kids spend the night with us...our house is a regular Champion Inn.
17. My name is Michelle and I cannot stop downloading ebooks.
18. Got stopped by the cops because my kids were screaming in my car.
19. Tried for the second year in a row to use the time share points in Gatlinburg....did not work! Do they ever have rooms there?
20. My family may be crazy, nutty, strange, loud, obnoxious, and get me pulled over by cops, but they are mine and I love them. I would not trade them for the world.

My thoughts on the Twilight movies

So I have watched the movies over and over and over....There are some flaws that I have noticed and if you stay tuned to the end you will see what I think of eclipse.

Twilight:
First of all, its is a sweet little low budget teenage movie. There are some scenes that are simply wonderful such as the lunch with the apple, the wings of the owl making Edward look like an angel, and the scenery (you can see why I fell in love with this part of the country too).

1. The one that bothers me the most is the scene where she is in the hospital. Tubes near eyes, next shot the tubes are out of eyes, next shot they are near the eyes. BIG MISTAKE!!

2. In many of the close up shots of Edward's eyes, you see that he is wearing contacts.

3. Look at Carlise's makeup, especially in the hospital....bad job, they must have had NO budget at all.

4. Vampires should not have "cold breath" so why do you see Edward's breath in some scenes?

5. Did you know that Laurant is wearing contacts? Yep, look closely you will see the rim of the red lenses.

6. The van looks crushed before Edward stops it from hitting her.

7. Bella wears the same gray shirt many times during the movie, over other shirts, under shirts and alone. This gray shirt was everywhere.

New Moon:

1. The biggest problem is with lightness and darkness. The daylight/nighttime time line....it is NOT consistent through the movie at all.

2. The photo that Alice took of Edward and Bella at the party is NOT the same angle or photo as the one Bella printed off.

3. Photos appear and disappear throughout the whole sitting in the window scene for months.

4. She never changes her clothes for all those months either, but the photos on the walls change during this time.

5. Look at the werewolf tattoos, in some scenes you can tell they are fake.

6. Jake is 108 degrees in body temperature, but it is very easy to see that Taylor is freezing in the rain breakup shot. He is shivering and you can see his breath.

7. YOu can see Jane's contacts in the elevator.

8. I think I see wires when Jacob is lifting the bikes out of the truck.


Eclipse:
I have not seen it enough to notice flaws, so I will tell you what I think of it. This is my favorite book in the whole series. It focuses on Jasper and the the vampires and that is the things that I love. I do not like that the movie differed than the book so much. Now I like some of the differences but I am very much in love with this book.

I was very excited to see the Quilette stories on the big screen but very sad that they cut it down. To me this tells alot of the stories of Jacob and his people. Stories that you needed to know. I was also happy to see Jasper's flashbacks to his life. I enjoyed seeing him as the newborn trainer and Maria's mate. I wish that they had shown more about this time because I love it so much (Stephanie you can write a book on Jasper's former life before the Cullens that would be great).

Victoria was simply beautiful. I think the cast change was great. I hated Victoria in the first movie because she was like a white trash nomad. The second one she was glammed up a bit and attractive the hair was kept clean and combed and the clothes were much better. The third one, Bryce Dallas has the skin of a vampire, she was perfect for the role. I am very glad to see the cast change. I especially loved when Edward tore her apart.

I love the newborn fight scene. This played out exactly as I wanted it to. I love seeing everyone fights and how the vampires can be destroyed. I do have a question, if they are "stone" where does the blood they eat go?

Riley was wonderful....I think he was perfectly cast and portrayed. I hope Stephanie writes a book on his short little life. He has all types of stories to tell I am sure. I miss having Fred or Diego in the movie. I was hoping they would have some scenes.

All in all, it was a great movie, and I can't wait to see it again.

Took the words right out of my mouth....

This could have spoilers so please don't read if you don't want to know what happens, I am NOT responsible for you being stupid and reading on..........





My daughter summed it up nicely for me today..."hey it's almost Eclipse day".  That is right folks, just a couple of days left.  I tell you I am so excited to see this movie.  I am trying to imagine just how great the Newborn scene is going to be.  I am excited to see 20 newborns trying to attack and over come the Cullens.  How is it going to play out on the big screen?  I have grand ideas in my head and I only hope that it is true.

And the story of the third wife....I want to see if this is portrayed like a vision with real actors playing the parts of the wolves and the third wife and then flash forwards to the future with Bella and Jacob.  I certainly hope that is the way it plays out.  They did a similar thing when they showed how Edward and Esme were turned in the first Twilight....so I hope that it comes true.

And have  you people have read the book the Short Second Life of Bree Tanner.  Stephanie Meyer wants all to read the book before going to the movies.  I am sure that it has tons to do with the fact that she tells Bree's story and how Jane and the Volturi are involved in the story.  I found the book very violent, but I did however want more.  I have visions of novellas on Riley and definitely on Diego. I found myself craving more info on Diego.  There was something Cullen like to him.  Oh and then there is Fred.  Fred who would fit in great in the coven.  Bring him back, and please tell us what happened to him.  Did Edward contact him because you know he read Bree's thoughts and she had to have been thinking of Diego and Fred in her last moments. Edward might have even told him that yes Jane killed her.

One more good back story, Victoria....how she became what she did, who created her, maybe how she and James found each other.  See Stephanie, you can make this go on and on....I would totally buy the books.  I know for sure that I am not the only one that would buy them.

  I would love to know what you think about it all please share. And in just 1 day we can share what we saw and compare to what you thought and how much we loved it and when we will go see it next.  Whoo HOO!!!