Punxsutawney Phil

I noticed two wonderful things yesterday: birds were chirping in the morning outside my window and crocuses had begun sprouting in yards around the neighborhood. A few weeks ago on Groundhog Day, Punxsutawney Phil predicted six more weeks of winter... but it seems spring is on the way.

Raise your hand if you're excited and already making summer weekend plans!

Cross Country Paradise

Over President's Day Weekend, I went to Sun Mountain Lodge in Eastern Washington with my family. As I have written previously, Sun Mountain is one of my favorite places. It is a cross country skiers playground and I always return home relaxed and rejuvenated.

Days at Sun Mountain consist of skiing the circuit of easy, medium, and expert trails around the lodge. Nights consist of reading, relaxing in the room's jetted tub, eating great food, and playing games. There is no television, Internet, and only spotty cell phone reception. It's the ultimate getaway.

Sun Mountain is in the Methow Valley (pronounced Mett-how) - known for it's dry weather and sunny days, making it perfect for cross country skiing. Some friends thing I'm weird that I enjoy XC skiing so much since it requires a lot of physical work for very little gain, unlike downhill which is all gain and hardly any work. But that's just what I love about it - you have to work for your reward and in the process you are exercising and getting winter wonderland views of the peaceful Methow Valley. It takes skill, endurance, stamina, and patience. And then when you do get to go down hill, you don't have to work hard - just step in the groomed tracks and propel yourself downhill.

I felt quite confident this ski trip - though I did fall once on the first night due to icy conditions and it being Friday the 13th and all. But I successfully skied some expert trails and reached a max speed of 20.6 miles per hour and skied over 30 miles (slow in comparison to downhill skiers I'm sure). On the final day of the trip, I tried snowshoeing for the first time as well. It was fun and also great exercise - not to mention I look super cool in my gators, snow shoes, and big bird ski jacket.

I was sad the trip was over so soon! And just one full day after returning, I was off to Portland for work. I'm back now and enjoying my first weekend at home for a few weeks.

Welcome Home, Griffey!

The news is today: Ken Griffey Jr. decided to come home to play for the Mariners instead of the Atlanta Braves. What fantastic news! Griffey is past his 1990s glory days, but this is the exciting kick the Mariners' needed - I can't wait to see him play for us at Safeco Field this summer since now I so have to go to a game.

WELCOME HOME, GRIFFEY!

The Kid comes home: Griffey picks M's
Seattle Times, February 18, 2009

Checking In, Checking Out

Hello everyone. I'm checking in here on my New Years resolutions and other goings-on. The New Year started off a little slow and stressful with some car issues and a few tiffs along the way. But boy has the pace picked up and I feel pretty much on top of the world right now. I've been gallivanting around - traveling, doing Irish dance, taking a design class, and spending a lot of quality time with my fantastic friends and family (e.g., La Push). And I received some amazing news just a few days ago... but more about that later once I'm a little closer to a decision about my future endeavors.

I'm currently in the fourth week of an Elements of Design class at the School of Visual Concepts. I love it so far - much more than the drawing class I took. We are studying the fundamentals and theories behind design and do practice exercises each class that help us consider elements of design like balance, proportion, space, value, and contrast. I love how focused I get when working in class or on homework assignments - a focus that allows me to relax, be productive, and still let my mind swirl around with hundreds of non-stressful, random musings. I will consider scanning in some of my work and posting here in my blog.

This next weekend I will be off to cross-country skier paradise and playground in the Methow Valley of Eastern Washington. No TV, computers, and no cell phone reception. Which means blissful days of skiing in sunshine and cozy nights of reading, eating delicious food, and relaxing by the fire. Soon after I return I will be on my way to Portland for the Northwest Council for Computer Education Conference. I will have a little time to sight see in Portland - any recommendations? Powell's is definitely already on my list.

I haven't been quite as diligent about exercising and eating healthy as I would like - but I'm working on it. For those of you who manage to exercise regularly, how do you keep to a routine? For me, pub quiz on a Wednesday night or dinner with friends always seems to take precedent over exercise and I just don't know how to remedy that.

Anywho, no posts will be coming for at least a few days. When I return I am considering following suit with a blog I follow (My So-Called Life) and starting alphabet blogging. Stay tuned!

La Push Weekend

Last weekend I went with seven friends to La Push, Washington. A friend organized the trip in lieu of the Twilight books, which take place in Forks and La Push, Washington. I had never been to the Northern Washington coast, so I was very excited for the trip.

We started early on Saturday morning, leaving from Edmonds on the Kingston ferry and stopping along the way for a little wine and chocolate tasting and to take some photos at Crescent Lake (which looked pristine in the winter sun). Some of you may have heard of Crescent Lake from the Lady of the Lake story where a young woman disappeared in 1937. In 1940 her saponified body floated to the surface of Crescent Lake, still showing signs of being violently murdered. Since Crescent Lake is so cold and so little light penetrates its depths, her body had turned to soap. Very very creepy.

We arrived in Forks early in the afternoon to see the town, then headed out to La Push. Forks is the rainiest spot in the continental U.S. - and amazingly, it was sunny. Locals said this was the first nice day of the winter so far. Pretty awesome luck if you ask me.

We walked the beach, marveled at the sea stacks, saw two seals hanging about in a sheltered bay, took some fun photos, and enjoyed the sunny afternoon on the beach. First Beach in La Push is gorgeous - sandy with sea stacks and rocky needles surrounding it. Huge trees lay strewed about the beach from winter storms.

Later that evening, we made s'mores at our beach campfire. A few of us even dipped our feet into the frigid ocean water.

We enjoyed breakfast the next morning, packed up, and drove to nearby Rialto Beach. The tide was high so we didn't get a chance to walk to the beach but we enjoyed seeing the immense waves crash against the rocky beach and toss huge trees around like driftwood. And we had more fun taking jump shots (see below). It was a great trip, though I am sad it was over so fast!

First Beach at La Push.
La Push Harbor and marina.Some serious waves and lots of beached trees at Rialto Beach.
Yay for a fantastic girls weekend in La Push!

The Birds Lose Again

Yesterday was Superbowl XLIII: the Pittsburgh Steelers versus the Arizona Cardinals. Two historic teams with vastly different histories. The Steelers have now won a record setting six Superbowls - more than any other NFL team. This was the Cardinals very first appearance in a Superbowl. And though it was sad to see another unlucky NFC West team lose to the Steelers in football's biggest event (*sigh* for the Seahawks losing 21 to 10 in 2006 in much more unevenly matched game) - it's hard to be terribly disappointed because BOY what a game it was. Hard pounding, fast-paced, evenly matched, with dynamic game-changing plays and some of the best football players ever like Larry Fitzgerald.

I can't quite decide if this year or last year's Superbowl was better. Seeing the true underdog Cardinals give the Steelers a serious run for their money was pretty incredible. But was it really better than seeing the wild card Giants beat the undefeated Patriots? Was there a play this Superbowl better than the third down-Eli Manning-somehow-escapes-sack-throws-thirty-yards-then-Giants' David Tyree-catches-football-on-his-helmet play?!?! I'm not so sure...

Thoughts? Which Superbowl has been your favorite?

More Bad Car Karma

My jaw dropped this morning as I walked out to my car and the BMW parked next to me had the driver's window smashed out. As I drove down my street, every fifth car or so had a window smashed out, including my roommate's car. What is the deal with all this car vandalism? Are there just really nasty, cranky, spiteful people out there whose purpose is to mess with other people's stuff? Until now I've always felt fairly safe in my neighborhood, but this certainly makes me think twice about that - and it definitely makes me nervous parking my car on the street.

Feel free to share car stories here, especially if you live in Seattle neighborhoods and have seen this type of thing happen often...