Do you… VooDoo?

While on a trip this week to Portland Oregon for a friends wedding, we decided to hit a hot spot for an after dinner treat. Anyone who has watched The Amazing Race, may recognize VooDoo Donuts. They have two locations but the one to go to is the original on S.W. 3rd Ave. Let me tell you that it is quite the experience. This isn’t your Winchell’s or Duncan Donuts and quite frankly, it’s about as far from Krispy Kream’s as you can get. Their best known donut is the Maple Bacon Bar. Quite simply, it’s your typical Maple Bar Donut but with crispy bacon on top. Breakfast on a donut! I just had to try it, and I’m here to tell you it was great. I know… it sounds a little outrageous but if you break it down, you’re having a waffle covered in Maple Syrup with a side of bacon. That isn’t the only out of the ordinary donut they have. You can also have a Tang Donut, and from what I understand, tastes just like the Tang we use to drink. Now, I’ll have to tell you that if you go to the website, or the store for that matter, you will have to take your imagination with you but not your kids. Some of their product names are definitely not G or PG rated. The little hole in the wall store and their colorfully named concoctions are not the only thing that makes this place interesting. Now I don’t know about the second location in the city but this one is nestled in between a movie theater and a bar. Not that bad you say. Well, under normal circumstances, no, but like I said, this place is interesting. The movie theater is an Adult Picture Show Theater featuring “Full Length Movies” & “Japanese Anime” which is nothing like your old school RoboTech, Dragonball Z or Samurai Champloo. The bar liked to advertise using words like “Nude” and “Girls” a lot. Ok… so is that interesting enough for you? Well, let me kick it up just another notch. Also on the street, and right were we parked, is the Union Gospel Mission/LifeChange Facility. And it so happens it was feeding time at the Zoo. Ok, so that may sound a little callous, but when you are a people watcher like myself, it a pretty apt description of things. Don’t get me wrong! I happen to think there is no better place to have a faith based establishment do their thing. As with most metropolitan areas, there is “that” side of town. You know… the one no one wants to think about let alone go to. In this case it wasn’t an area that just creeps up on you. In fact we all got a surprise when 2 blocks away was a Ruth Chris Steakhouse. As one of the passengers in the car commented, either things have changed in this area or Ruth Chris needs to fire their location scout. As it would happen, on of the people with us, and the driver of one of the cars, had an important phone call to deal with and wisely wanted to do so while in a stationary location instead of behind the wheel. Because of this, we were available to be entertained by the goings on of the Mission. The girls of the group opted to get in the car and lock themselves in. Us guys on the other hand had to stay out for the show. I don’t know the circumstances that lead to many of these people having to live life on the streets but it was apparent that they are not recent residents. Many of them seemed to know each other, from the 2 penny hooker (named so by me as she was wearing 3 pairs of underwear ON TOP of a pair of hip hugging low ride pants that were riding a wee bit too low, a wife beater tank top and white lace corset rounding out the ensemble) to Crocodile Dunndee ( just because that’s how he was dressed. And no… I didn’t get in a conversation about knives with him either!) And then there was the gentleman who liked to tell everyone what he was thinking, predominately about you and with as many cuss words, and variants, as he could get out as quickly and as loudly as he possibly could. Out of all this, though, one thing stood out the most. One person showed up after the mission had stopped serving dinner. He knocked on the door and rang the bell and was denied. I did notice on the door the posted times for when meals are served and it was clearly after the posted time. I’m not going to criticize the mission. They have to establish rules and, once established, they need to follow them just as they require those seeking their help have rules they need to follow. Now, as I was saying, one thing stood out to me. When it was clear that this person was not going to get any food, many of those who did gave up a portion of their food so that the late comer had a meal. So I have to ask myself, is this a testament to the work the mission is doing or is it a case of misery loves company? Either way, it was not what I expected. The same thing can be said about the evening as well. Like I said, quite the interesting ending to a fun evening with friends, but let me assure you, never once did I feel any sense of danger. Rest assured, I would have been the first to say it was time to get the heck outta Dodge if that had been the case.

Life of Chaos

As many of you know I have "A" type personality ( I know shocker!) I am very rigid in all areas of my life except for one! Keeping my house clean! I absolutely hate and dread housework! Some people find it therapeutic but I find it a roadblock to the rest of my life. I know that when the day comes I can have a maid then I will be in heaven! I love a clean house however sometimes I just find it hard to keep it that way and let's be honest my dear husband isn't much of a help in this area! However, I have discovered that the more disorganized and dirty my house is the more I feel my life is spinning into a world of chaos! When this happens, all I can say is "Look out" because Hurricane Melissa is not a pretty sight and anything or anyone in my path is in trouble! Most of the time the person who gets the brunt of this is my husband! God love him!


I had every intention of spending part of my vacation straightening...ahem I mean cleaning the house. The plan was to start in one room and work my way from one room to the next and eventually cleaning, organizing and purging all rooms, closets and nooks/crannies. However in the end, I was not very productive or successful in my endeavor as I had hoped! I only got my closet and dresser organized! So for the next month this is the plan to work on each room and get it done! Maybe I will be even ahead of schedule for the whole "Spring Cleaning" thing!

A Day of Wine in Temecula Valley

Today, Matthew and I embarked a day of wine tasting in Temecula with our good friends the Nobletts. Truth be told, this was suppose to be our activity for New Year's Day; however, all of the wineries were closed. So, we rescheduled and hit the road today at 10:00 a.m. We had an absolutely wonderful day, even if the weather showed it would be a dreary day. By the time we arrived in Temecula, the clouds had disappeared and the sun was shining. We stopped at 5 wineries and tasted and bought wine at 4 of them. Matthew and Richard even joined a wine club at one of the wineries. Thanks to Jodie, who was our designated driver, we arrived at each vineyard ready to go.

First stop on the list was Callaway Winery. We had a 2 for 1 special for the tasting and we were able to choose 5 wines each and keep a souvenir logo glass. What was great is that between the four of us we actually picked 10 different wines and shared them. If gave us an opportunity to sample some additional wines without the extra cost. Matt had insisted that we had to go to Callaway's because his former boss had begrudgingly gave us a bottle from their vineyard which we absolutely loved. So, Matthew's plan was to buy another bottle and give it to his boss, that is until we tried the Muscat. Sorry Joe maybe next time!!!

The next stop on our tour was to Baily's. A smaller winery but one with a lot of character and ultimately had the best deal of the day! 1 whole case of the Muscat for only $36, which we decided to share. Again had a 2 for 1 deal and we sampled 10 different wines.

Our third stop was Mount Palomar and unfortunately was the only winery who wouldn't let us use our coupon because they were actually expired. So instead, we enjoyed a light snack of bread, cheeses and salami. We have also definitely decided that when come down next time we will pack our own lunch to snack on in between stops.

Our fourth stop was to Faulkner Winery was again had a lot of character, if you can get passed the small wine tasting room and the server who was sick and coughing all over everything. The only think we walked out of there with was an idea of how we could make our own mulled wine!

Our fifth and final stop for the day was to an unknown winery (at least by the tour guide list) called Long Shadow Winery. I had seen a sign that advertised 2 for 1 tasting and it was literally down the road from Faulkner, so we figured it was worth a try. From our first looks and impressions, we all believed that it was a start-up winery. Boy were we wrong, they are one of the oldest wineries in Temecula and aren't part of the wine tour listing because they do not belong to the Temecula Valley Wine Growers Association. They like to do things there own way and it definitely showed during our visit. I will even say that they were by far the best winery we went to and our host was awesome on top of it! This was also the winery in which Matthew and Richard joined the wine club. Which made the host all the more generous with the samplings and honestly there wasn't a wine on the list that we didn't like.

We ended our day in Temecula with a nice lunch in Old Town Murrieta and made the decision that we will go back soon to visit the other wineries both on and off the list! There were even discussions about a Napa Valley wine tour sometime this spring! All I can say is that we had so much fun today that we can hardly wait to go back again! Hopefully in the spring when everything is blooming.

A Little Disney Fun!

10 Year Review and New Beginnings

Recently, I have had a couple of major events that have taken place that are focused around 10 year anniversaries. In November, I officially had been with my company for 10-years and in December, Matthew and I have been together for 10 years as a couple. So, I got to thinking about everything that has happened to me in the last ten years and found that it is quite a lot. I re-met, dated and married my husband. I celebrated my 25th, 30th and 35th Birthdays. I adopted my first kitten (now a full-grown cat), I graduated with my MBA, went to my 10-year High School class reunion and moved twice once into an apartment and second into a house. I have changed job titles 3 times. I have read countless books, watched as many movies and started 4 new hobbies (crochet, quilting, digital scrapbooking and blogging!) I have developed an appreciation for wine (both white and red). I have made many great new friends and have lost a few old friends along the way! I have had long hair, short hair and back to long hair. I have traveled to Mexico (honeymoon), Brazil (business trip and first passport/visa) and Hawaii (vacation). Attended and participated in good friends weddings! I have experienced some deaths within my circle of family and friends but have also seen the beauty of new life begin within that same circle. Life has been very full with many ups and downs! It is simply amazing to realize how quickly the the time has passed. It almost doesn't seem like it is possible that it has been 10 years.

As a celebration of my ten years with the company, which was recognized in December the owner and president of the company presented me with a 4 day, 5 night Mexican cruise to Baja. (And yes to answer your question my jaw did drop on the floor!) I can honestly say I was very surprised by the lavish gift and never expected anything like it!

As I head into this New Year of 2009 I am not say much as making a resolution but making a commitment to live a better and healthier life! I have put into place a 10 week walking plan that begins today. The plan begins with 20 minutes a day and eventually works up to 60 minutes a day. I am going to increase my water intake and cut down on the Starbucks from everyday (or almost everyday) to once a week. These are my first little steps into a healthier me and my new beginning! I have not set a certain goal of weight loss but rather want to increase my overall energy level and enjoy life to fullest in the new year. (It also helps to know that I have a bridesmaid dress I need to fit into for a May wedding!)

May the New Year and the next 10 years be a fulfilling as the last 10 years!

I have been tagged as well....

The Rules:



1. Link to your tagger and list these rules on your blog. (My tagger was kiki - http://doingmorethanjustsurviving.blogspot.com/

2. Share 7 facts about yourself on your blog - some random, some weird.

3. Tag 7 people at the end of your post by leaving their names as well as links to their blog.



Here are the facts:



1. I am cat lover and have been since I got my first cat at the age of 3. They are best friend anyone could have and will forever keep your secrets. They will also love you unconditionally!



2. I am a huge hockey fan which I know is strange for a girl.



3. My favorite food is Mexican.



4. I am starting to gain a respect for sushi or more specifically rolls.



5. I have always dreamed for owning my own used book store so that I would have adequate space to store all of the books that I own. It would also give me an endless supply of books to read. Who knows maybe I will write my own book someday! (Ha! not likely since I can't keep up on my blog!)



6. I love the original "Star Wars Trilogy"and it is my favorite movie. The new one just can't hold a candle to the original even if it completes the story.



7. I love a beautiful sunset across the western colorado skies and it turns from pink, red to dark purple.



I now tag the following bloggers:



http://nobsthoughts.blogspot.com/

http://www.teampologeorgis.blogspot.com/


dontsqueezethejj.com

Mile High Girls' Weekend

This weekend I had the opportunity to get away from it all! I spent the weekend in Denver with my mom and we attended the Women of Faith conference! This was our third year to go and it was just as fun as the first time we went. I really look forward to this weekend because it is actually a pretty special time for my mom and I. It is nice to spend a few hours out of our busy lives to be encouraged and challenged by such an awesome group of Christian women. We laughed, we cried and we laughed some more. The weekend always begins for us on Thursday night after my mom and her friend have arrived in Denver and ends on Sunday when we all go back to our homes. It usually consists of late nights and early mornings as well as fits of giggles throughout the whole weekend! This time was no exception!



The conference was awesome and included some new guest speakers this year and the return of one who has been absent for a while. The theme this year was "Infinite Grace" and each speaker was phenomenal. One of my favorite speakers is Patsy Clairmont, she is such a dynamite woman and her spunkiness in her Christian walk is inspiring. I find that I have some things in common with her, the biggest one being my mouth! It is refreshing to see how God continues to work through Patsy to speak to those of us who aren't always mindful of our tongues. My other favorite guest speaker is Nicole Johnson - she is a dramatist and her sketches about life, love and the pursuit of happiness is always emotionally charged and heart wrenching. It was a pleasure to have her back with the Porch Pals this year, as she spent most of last year out on maternity leave being a new mom to her son Elliott. (who by the way is just adorable!) We also had the opportunity to hear some beautiful singing by Mandisa (season 5 American Idol contestant) and Nicole C. Mullen, their voices are so powerful and to hear their stories about how God has worked in their life and the journey they have been on was very encouraging. One new speaker this year was Louise Duarte, a female comedian/impersonator who had us all rolling with laughter and I had tears streaming down my face I was laughing so hard! It is such a blessing to have such awesome women in this ministry who give so freely their time to come and speak to thousands of women each weekend. What an uplifting experience and it definitely gets my system recharged!

Blog Extraordinaire...Parenting 101

I never set out to be a blog extraordinaire...that title actually is bestowed to my dear friend Jodie who is blessed with a wealth of BM's (bloggable moments) that she can tell stories for hours and hours and it is all due to the lovely family she has that keeps us all entertained! Yet I still get some flack from friends because I don't blog regularly enough! I have come to find that some days my life isn't all that exciting and I don't have too many BM's to share. I also find that I actually spend more time blogging when I am traveling or on business trips. Go figures. In the end, I do what I can with what I have! So on to the topic!


I recently had an opportunity to meet with a girlfriend and be introduced to her children. In the time we were able to spend with each other I was once again privy to some parenting skills that I am not sure I would use in my own home when the time comes. Not all of them were the skills that she demonstrated but we were in a public place with other families.



Question: Do you give a sugar cookie to a child that is already hyped up and running around the restaurant like a banshee?

Answer: I think not!



Question: Do you give dessert to a child who didn't eat their meal, but rather shredded it into a million pieces?

Answer: I think not!



Question: When said child begins to throw a temper tantrum in the middle of the restaurant do you simply ignore it or punish with a time out?

Answer: I think not!



I realize that I am not a mom yet and so some of you may comment that I am looking through the situation with my rose colored glasses, yet I think the above questions demonstrate that the parenting that was dispensed was clearly inappropriate and I don't have to be a mom to say that!



Matthew and I have had many discussions on how we would be the parent is certain situations when we have observed our many friends who already have children. Some of those skills we would definitely incorporate and others not so much! I personally am not in favor of the "time out" method for punishment! I simply don't believe it truly works in most situations and instead I believe that the child needs a firm swat on the behind! Like with the questions up above, I could see myself or Matthew taking the child out of the situation and talking to them about their behavior and if it persisted, then a good firm swat would be in order. Keeping in mind that the discipline would happen away from every one's prying eyes. (There is nothing worse than to have everyone in the restaurant looking at you while you try to deal with a screaming child.)

I am not saying that parenting is easy by any means, it just seems that sometimes parents simply don't think or are way too cautious and end up making unwise decisions. I am sure when my turn comes, I will make my share of mistakes and it will lead to someone blogging about it but I also hope I can set some good examples of parenting for those around me.

Traveling Again

Today marks the beginning of another business trip. This time I am in Denver. Which isn't too bad because the weather is still beautiful in September and it also coincides with getting to see my mom. Every year in September we have a girl's weekend in Denver and attend the Women of Faith Conference. This is our 3rd year doing it and it is always a lot of fun! Now I just need to focus on the work appointments for tomorrow before I can play!

Flying the not so friendly skies!

I would like to say for the record that most times I actually like to fly! However sometimes the whole process of packing and checking in with the airlines is crazy! Yesterday evening Matthew and I made our way to the Maui airport! After passing through agricultural inspection (God forbid you should take a Pineapple home!) We then went to the TSA check-in and ended up having a problem passing through because they consider jams and jellies to be explosive devices and we couldn't carry them on the plane! Boy was Matthew upset! (Okay that is a huge understatement!) After having to take the bag back through inspection we had to check it on board! OH BOY! I wish I had know this would be the beginning to the worst ending of a vacation because I would have stayed at the resort for a few more days!

We finally both boarded the plane and headed to Honolulu! We were scheduled to have a two hour layover! When we got to our gate and checked in to get our seat assignments, we learned that our flight was delayed until 2:15 a.m. due to mechanical problems that delayed our plane leaving LAX. This was not a good thing! I was already exhausted after a day in the sun at the pool in which I got a little too much sun on my face, now I had to sit in Honolulu for 6 hours!!! We also couldn't get in touch with anyone in California to tell them what was happening because of the time change!

We finally arrived home from Maui at 11:00 a.m. this morning and our ride unfortunately was not at the airport! I don't blame her because it wasn't planned for us to delayed so long and she does have a job! It was just a bit inconvenient since I had been crammed into a small space for 6 hours at the airport and crammed into an even smaller space for 6 more hours on a plane that was completely full! (Have I ever mentioned I can't sleep on planes?) Yep you guessed it still can't sleep on planes!

I do have to say I had to roll my eyes everytime the crew apologized for the delayed flight and in the same sentence would say "Thank you for flying the friendly skies with United, we hope we can be your carrier of chose for your next destination!" Yeah right!