Two years late but worth the wait!

In the late 1990's I became a fan of the Dave Matthews Band, thanks to my good friend Mandy! She had purchased tickets for her and a male friend to attend the concert. When things didn't work out between the two of them, she asked if I would join her for the show. I was vaguely familiar with his singles but definitely up for a live show. Little did I know it would be the first of many many many DMB concerts I would attend. I tried to count as Katrina and I waited for this years show to begin but I don't know that I can accurately say...probably 15 or so, spanning several western states.

For the last 2 years the band has had to cancel, first because of the death of saxophonist Leroi Moore and the next year because Dave was sick. They refunded tickets both years and put on a free show in Salt Lake City this year to make up for it. Katrina and I were very excited and it was a pretty phenomenal show!






The playlist was one of the best I've seen and he danced and joked all night!

Tuesday Aug 17 2010
USANA Amphitheatre


Squirm *
Shake Me Like a Monkey *
Stay Or Leave *
Seven *
Crush *
Still Water
Don’t Drink the Water *
Lying In the Hands of God *
Gravedigger *
Grey Street *
Write A Song *
Corn Bread *
Jimi Thing *
Why I Am *
Needle And The Damage Done +
You and Me *
Ants Marching *
__________________

Sister ~
Two Step *



Show Notes:
* Jeff Coffin
+ Dave Solo
~ Dave, Carter,Tim and Rashawn

It was Cecily's first Dave Matthews Band concert, she has hated him all her life but thanks to her new husband Collin, she has been converted. She loved it, thank you Collin!

The Great Egyptian Adventure

Its been a while...I know. Please keep your expectations low as I am guaranteed to be deficient in my updates. I went to Egypt in May, it was amazing! Since it would take too much effort to recap the whole incredible two weeks I will post some pictures and fill in with some captions.

We spent a few days in Cairo, visiting the Pyramids and the Sphinx. We rode camels, sometimes voluntarily, other times forcefully being lifted onto the camel and then being expected to pay for our unwilling ride upon descending the camel. We learned our lessons quickly, Egyptian men have no real respect for women, believing we seek the obnoxious attention they harass you with. I am also pretty sure that Egyptians in general do not understand the meaning of the word NO.







We took a trip up to Memphis where the believe they have only discovered about 10% of the treasures and ruins buried there.


This one of Elba is a favorite!

We flew to Luxor and proceeded through Egypt by way of the Nile on a river cruise. We stopped at many sites as we headed south...






Our southern most stop was in Aswan, we were able to see the dam there as well as Philae Temple. We went sailing on the Nile and we did lots of shopping.






From Aswan we took a short flight to the two temples of Abu Simbel built by Ramesses II, one for himself and one for his favorite wife Nerertari.




It was HOT!

We cruised back up the Nile, again stopping at a few temples on our way back to Luxor where we spent a few days going to the Valley of Kings, The Valley of Queens, the Temple of Hatshepsut...







...and finally Karnak Temple.





When we left Luxor we headed to the Red Sea for our last few days. We spent some time on the beach, took a tour of the beautiful reefs on a glass bottom boat and even had an amazing Turkish Bath at the resort we were staying at.

It was an incredible trip, I feel very lucky to be able to see so much of the world and its history. If you are interested in seeing all 400+ pictures, you can click the link to the right for my PICASA and go to the EGYPT folder...

Consumerism

While this post was mildly inspired by Avatar, it is not about the movie at all. It is a frustrating thing, thinking about how much is consumed and discarded each year by each person from the most wasteful to the most green. Wasteful people seem to disregard the fact that others are affected by their carelessness. In Avatar, the Na'Vi believe they are all connected to each other, to nature, one eternal round so to speak. I got thinking about consumerism and how there are people who, in not considering their connection to others, are emotional consumers.

There are people out there, I know some of them, who say they do not "need" others. People who do not form close relationships or who have so many "associates" that they do not really invest in others. We have all heard the concept emotional bank accounts, we make deposits so that when we need our friends, we can make a withdrawal. Emotional consumers do not make deposits because they do not intend to ever make withdrawals, they don't "need" anyone. These individuals have forgotten that just because they do not invest does not mean that their friends are not investing in them.

I just decided that I don't really want to expound on this subject any further...I will conclude by simply stating:

Emotional consumers suck!

Puerto Rico...In search of sanity

First of all I would like to tell you that I am blogging courtesy of in flight wifi! I am on my way home from my most recent adventure, a small US commonwealth called Puerto Rico. It was really just time for a vacation and I strong-armed Elba into joining me for a beach getaway. A week on an island is NEVER a bad idea. Some of the highlights include:
1. Many many hours lounging on the beach and by the pool
2. Reading 2 and a half non-school books
3. Culebra Island and Playa Flamenco, the second most beautiful beach in the world
4. Swimming in the ocean by moonlight...aaahhh, heaven!
5. Kayaking in the glowing water of a bioluminescent bay, it was like kayaking over a starry night sky
6. Don Pepe's - tasty food
7. Staying up late and sleeping in
8. El Moro - you all know how much I love ruins, the fort was really cool
9. Some of the best sorbet I have ever tasted
10. Finding my sanity...apparently it runs to the ocean and I have to go reclaim it periodically

25 things I'm thankful for

1. My mom, she thinks I can do anything and because of her I believe I can.
2. My dad, can actually do anything...fix your car, custom carpentry, make you laugh.
3. My sisters, you're the best!
4. My brothers, there should be more men like you in the world!
5. My job, all of it, the work, the reward, the kids and the best boss and coworkers ever!
6. My education...invaluable!
7. My health.
8. My integrity.
9. Vacations, they bring me the sanity my life and job suck out of me!
10. My friends, I've got the greatest ones in the world!
11. The Gospel, I'm not perfect but I know I don't have to be because of the Atonement of my Savior! He only expects the best I am capable of and He forgives my weaknesses.
12. My iPhone, I love it!
13. Sunshine!
14. Beaches!
15. My intelligence, lucky to be born with it blessed to be able to cultivate it!
16. My mission. Those 18 months taught me more about who I was and how to serve others!
17. Dansko shoes, oh so unattractive but oh so comfortable.
18. Flip flops and painted toe nails!
19. Pedicures and massages.
20. Love. It shows me the entire spectrum of joy and pain and helps me grow!
21. My apartment, it's warm in the winter, cool in the summer and it's all mine. Plus it's cute.
22. Music, when I need to get lost or get a kick out of singing at the top of my lungs in the car, I love it, all kinds!
23. Good books.
24. Good examples.
25. Thirty years of amazing life experience. I wouldn't trade a single year of it.

SYTYCD

I had no idea what that acronym was for until Mandy showed me this video on on YouTube. Actually, the only time I have ever watched So You Think You Can Dance is with Mandy, but when she showed me this video I fell in love. I loved the song, the idea, the dancers, everything about this...so I am sharing it with you.



The concept for the dance was addiction. The girl is the addict and the guy is the drug, the song is "Gravity" by Sara Bareilles.

I am KAYAK hear me ROAR!

I really enjoy kayaking...despite my lack of experience and skill, it is something that I have come to love. I was watching an episode of the Gilmore girls and just wanted to share this little clip.

Enjoy!