Tuesday, December 28, 2004

When the boat's a rockin...

People are tossing their cookies left and right. Geez, the waves were huge and the wind was ridiculous Tuesday night. They had to cancel our catamaran trip in Cozumel on Wednesday because the wind was so high. So we went shopping all day instead. A little disappointing, but still fun. Becky wore her Chivas soccer jersey, so all day long people were talking to us, "Viva las Chivas!!" or "No Chivas, Pumas!!" Interacting with the locals: definitely fun. So that pretty much sums up Cozumel. We got some great gifts and souvenirs (yay for the tiki god!). Becky and I separated from my parents and decided we'd do a little more shopping and meet them back at the boat. I forgot that I had given my cruise card to my mom when we left the boat. Yeah, gotta have that to get back on the boat. Dang. Good thing we were heading back sorta early, Becky went back to the boat to look for them, and I sat down at the gate to try and intercept 'em. I saw them about 10 minutes later, lol. So that was good, cause dang...I don't know anyone in Cozumel.

The trip to Belize City was a lot calmer, so we were definitely thankful for that. Arrived in Belize Thursday morning, and myself, Richard, David, Kim, Jared, and about 15 others headed on a 48-ft boat called Papa Joe to our dive spot in Turneffe Atoll. After being a bit nauseous on the big boat a few nights before, I wasn't quite prepared for Papa Joe. I think I might have turned a lovely shade of gray, and stayed that way till we anchored. Our first dive was at Jo Jo's Split. We saw some incredible stuff: shrimp, lobster, tons of brightly colored fish, a sea turtle! We then boarded the ship again, and I again was ready to 'feed the fish' so they say. Once we got to our second spot, Lee Helen's Melons, and got back in the water, I was okay. Second dive was not as cool as the first one, although I did see a barracuda off in the distance, and a spotted eel (doing the hand motion!). Back on the boat, I finally 'fed the fish' (tossed my cookies). I felt a lot better after that, but was ready to get back to the big boat. All in all, my first ocean dive was fabulous, it was the boat ride that was not so fun. I guess I'll pause the story here, stay tuned for episode 3!


it's me, i promise! Posted by Hello

Friday, December 24, 2004


Me & Becky on the deck Posted by Hello

Thursday, December 23, 2004

I love it when we're cruisin' together...

Okay, so it has been several weeks since I took the time to update the 'ole blog. Sorry! I've had far more important/fun things to do.

Just got back from a week-long cruise with my family (and Becky). There were 19 of us total. It was SOOOOOO F-U-N!! I'm browner, blonder, and a few pounds heavier (the food was amazing!). Leslie couldn't go (boooooo to her professors), so Becky came along. We had a fabulous time. The boat was a bit rocky on Tuesday night (even the staff had trouble walking around), but overall the weather was pretty good. I'll probably have to tell you the story over the course of several blogs, there's so much to tell!

We sailed out of Galveston Sunday afternoon to make our way to our first stop: Yucatan/Progreso, Mexico. We spent most of Monday laying out by the pool, wandering around the boat, and observing other cruisers. There were some interesting folks on the boat, lemme tell ya. Tuesday we arrived in Yucatan/Progreso. We got off the boat, boarded a bus, and traveled 2 1/2 hours to the Mayan ruins of Chichen Itza. We stopped at a bathroom/tourist trap before we go to the ruins. There were several Mexicans (who stood behind ropes behind the buses) yelling and screaming, trying to sell us their crafts. Wish I had bought a few of those masks, they were cool.

Finally, we arrive at Chichen Itza. Wow. Our tour guide took us around the ruins and told us the stories behind them. It was incredible, beautiful, and chock full of iguanas. (I first spotted one in the tree, which I was planning to lean against until I saw an iguana eye looking back at me). I climbed El Castillo, which is the temple of Kukulcan. There are 91 steps to the top, and they are steep. Going up wasn't so bad, and the view from the top was breathtaking. Once up there though, the thought of having to go back down those steep 91 steps was a bit, um, breathtaking as well. I think it took me about 5 minutes with my back to the wall to convince myself to take that first step down. On one side, there is a rope you can hold onto, so I sat down on the first step, held onto the rope, and scooted myself down all 91 steps. I don't really like heights all that much. A little scary.

There's a smaller pyramid inside the big one. You have to climb this horribly dark, humid, closed in, and steep stairway to get to the top of this one. There was a Chac Mool (Chac was the Mayan god of rain and was also considered to be the "messenger of the gods". The stone figures usually functioned as an altar, and the bowl he holds served to receive Mayan offerings to be carried to the sun god) and the throne of the Jaguar. No pictures are supposed to be taken up there (I tried with my cell, and it was all blurry, creepy!). Going back down the stairs was a bit more difficult, but with my hand on the ceiling to steady myself, it wasn't too bad. Definitely not a place for the claustrophobic.

If you are at all a history buff, you really need to go to Chichen Itza. It is amazing. On the equinoxes (March 21 and December 21--we missed it by only a week!) there is a phenomenon that takes place on El Castillo. On these days the sun falls in such a way that the shape of a snake seems to slither down the steps (connecting with the serpent head carved into stone at the bottom). Thousands of people come out to witness this event. This was the symbolic descent of Kukulcan, and (archaeologists believe) had a connection with the Mayan's agricultural seasons.

Okay, so enough history for today. Next time on Heather's blog: 12 foot swells and Cozumel.

Tuesday, November 30, 2004

Blah!

Okay, so after the wonderfully long Thanksgiving break, I am exhausted! Must've been all that shopping on Friday...

Anyways--the countdown to the cruise has begun. 11 days! Eleven! Whoa...I cannot wait. I took a scuba refresher course, and I'm ready to dive! Except that I cannot find my PADI card. Its in my house somewheres. Gotta find it. We're going to Cozumel, Yucatan/Progreso, and Belize. We're gonna dive in Belize. There are 19 of us going, Leslie can't go (dumb OU profs), so Becky D is going! She's gonna speak-a the Spanish so we can get us some good deals (and maybe some mexican mens)

Grrr....computer problems! Its funny how when I go on vacation, my computer decides to go on vacation as well. Had a gazillion pop-ups this morning, and each time I tried to close one, it gave me that annoying beep noise, and then popped up another ad! Dang it! And now, my accounting software is not working. It was fine last week! I think someone has infiltrated my office, and is trying to shut me down. It won't work! My boyfriend is a computer genius! He won't let you shut me down! I won't be shut down!!!!

Monday, November 15, 2004

"Rain, rain, go away..."

So there is definitely something to be said about a rainy Sunday afternoon. But when that rainy Sunday afternoon is preceded by a rainy Friday and Saturday, and followed by a rainy Monday, well kids, that just stinks!

Today has definitely been a Monday. Out of my mind busy this morning, no lunch till about 4, and a lovely hour and a half at the washateria. I'd never been to this particular laundromat before, and let me just tell you folks, sometimes watching people is more entertaining than just about anything. Seeing how people sink into their own little worlds, listening to little children run wild while their parents hardly seem to notice, and realizing that the more you watch that little light on the washing machine, the slower it seems to go.

Anyways...back to more fun things. Saturday was Jamie Hooten's birthday, the big 2-4. (Which I too will be turning in a few short weeks *insert old joke here*). Becky and Emily both came up for the soiree, joining Jamie, Harry, Alex, and myself for a lovely evening of delicious food and fabulous entertainment. Although I did not get to partake in the musical festivities for long, I know it was all kinds of wonderfulness. And yes, the rumor is true: Emily and I will be auditioning for Nashville Star. We're both submitting videos, and going to the audition at Billy Bob's in Ft. Worth next month. Yay for musical embarrassment! ha ha ha.

I wanna give a shout out to my Sooners up in Norman: 10-0 BABY!! Orange Bowl here we come!!! *cue the band* Boomer Sooner, Boomer Sooner...


Tuesday, November 02, 2004

George W!

Okay, so by a show of hands, how many of you voted today? Good, good. Now for those of you who did not raise your hands...um, what were you thinking?!?!? I hope everybody voted...

Anyway, now that I've addressed that, we'll talk about funner stuff (and yes, funner is a word). So last night Alex and I joined Kuk Sool Won (Korean martial arts). And lets just say, there are muscles in my butt I did not know I had. It was really cool though, they have classes 4 nights a week, and we're going back tonight. You start off as a white belt, and Alex is a blue belt (two belts above me). I'm just hoping that tonight is not the super-cardio workout night--I might not survive.

Okay, so George Huff (my favorite American Idol contestant of all time) is releasing a holiday EP entitled "My Christmas EP." It drops next Tuesday, November 9th. Go get it! It'll be amazing! Oh yeah, Clay Aiken has a Christmas CD that comes out on November 16th. Go to Grassroots Music, they're running an American Idol Christmas special (both CDs for $18.49).

So Homecoming was super fun! It was so good to see everyone. Here's a few pictures: the GSP float, Homecoming breakfast, and one of the KM (love you girls!) *gsh*

The KM Posted by Hello

Homecoming Breakfast Posted by Hello

Gamma Sig float Posted by Hello

Friday, October 22, 2004

Baltimore--Part Two

Actually, this part is about Washington D.C. So if you've come to read more about Baltimore, um, tough cookies.

So Sunday, we drove about 20 minutes, parked the car, and took the Metro into Washington D.C. Wow, its amazing. We walked down the National Mall (I wanted to yell "run forrest run" so bad, but bit my tongue.), and past the Washington Monument. Our first stop was the Holocaust Museum. There was so much to see there, and it truly put a bit of a damper on our morning. Honestly, how did all of that happen? Man, we're lucky.

Next we took the Metro to Chinatown and had lunch, they had great hamburgers! J/k, we had Chinese food and it was fabulous! Then we took the Metro to Union Station, and that was super cool. I bought my Mom some Bush buttons there. We hopped on a tour bus (and yes, we hopped) from there. Larinda was cool enough to keep her passes from last time and we kinda snuck on with those and didn't have to pay again. Woohooo! Got to see the Capitol Building and then we realized the bus wasn't going to the White House, so we got off and walked a few blocks to the White House. We had our picture taken by another tourist, who had a thick English accent. So instead of saying cheese, or counting to three, he says: "ready...steady...go!" (we thought that was funny---especially Larinda, she's crackin her crack in the picture). By the time we left there, we had to book it back to the Metro to get back to our car so we could take Loza to the airport.

D.C. was awesome, I wish I had a couple of weeks to spend up there. That's really the only way you can see it all. Check out the pictures below.

Monday, Larinda and I went to this HUGE outlet center, Arundel Mills, and shopped till we dropped. Literally. I flew back to DFW Monday night, and because of stupid airline mistakes, got to stay the night in DFW and fly back Tuesday morning. This was really cool though: they put me up at the Holiday Inn, shuttled me back to the airport in the morning, gave me $15 for dinner/breakfast, and a $200 voucher for American Airlines. (Vegas anyone?) AND I got to hang out with these two crazy ladies. They had just been to Portland with their husbands (who are twins). So they sent their husbands back home on the plane and stayed the night in DFW. They were hilarious---told me they hoped I was nicer than them when I got to be their age. ha ha ha.

Anyways, that was my adventure to the northeast. Super fun times! It was so good to spend time with Lari and Loza. Miss you girls!

Until next time...

chinatown! Posted by Hello

Ready.....Steady......Go! Posted by Hello

Wednesday, October 20, 2004

Baltimore--Part One

So a few weekends ago I flew out to Baltimore to visit my good friends Larinda and Loza (who flew up from NC). I have never been to that part of the US of A before, and lets just say it was fabulous! They have actual trees, and they're everywhere!! They weren't changing colors yet (a little too early), but it was still gorgeous.

On Saturday we drove up to the Inner Harbor in the heart of Baltimore. We spent all day wandering the crowded streets, taking in the ocean air, and for a little while, being amused and entertained by a crazy Australian man. He was a knife/torch/chainsaw juggling comedian who rode around on a bicycle. Seriously, I was cracking my crack he was so funny. Check out the picture below.

There was also an acappella group, who did mostly motown stuff. They were great! And they had a crazy man in the audience who danced to their music...the entire time. He was almost as entertaining as the group itself.

Later that night, we took the water taxi out to Fell's Point. Okay, now this was a bit of an adventure. Let me back up a little. Loza and Larinda wanted to go back and get a few souvenirs, I elected to wander around the discovery channel store, where I spent most of my time in a massage chair. This caused me to buy a massage book (since I've secretly...or not so secretly...harbored the thought of being a massage therapist). Since we were in Maryland, on the coast, it was pretty much required for us to have some seafood, but being out-of-staters, I asked the lady behind the counter where the best place to have crab was, and she told me to go to Obrycki's. (Apparently it was in some book called "100 places you have to go before you die" or something like that). So this takes us back to Fell's Point. Once we docked, we apparently decided to take the road less traveled and ended up in the ghetto. We saw a fight break out on the street, were thankfully redirected to a better route by the only other white person there, and eventually made it to Obrycki's. It was here, we discovered, that all of the other white people were hiding...lol. But the crabs were amazing, well worth the adventure. They dumped em out on the table, gave us some hammers, knives, and a bib and we were ready to go. MmMmMm. Tasty. We made it back to the water taxi, more or less unscathed (except for some crazy mexican men who wanted to marry us...hahahahaha). The day was great.

Stay tuned for scenes from our next episode--Washington D.C.

Mmmmm, crabs. Posted by Hello

Crazy Aussie! Posted by Hello

Tuesday, October 19, 2004

well...

So I've decided to join the blogging community. Not sure I'm gonna have anything interesting to say. But some people think I'm funny, so perhaps, if nothing else, I can make you smile. More to come later...

Quote for the day: "If at first you don't succeed, then skydiving definitely isn't for you."