Tuesday, May 27, 2008

Ancestry.com

I have been spending a certain amount of time here looking up all sorts of things. Very addictive. Get just a little bit of information from a family member, like someone's birthplace, and all of a sudden you are finding all sorts of records and information about your ancestors. Sometimes I find their occupation listed (we have plumbers, farmers and even a fireman on a locomotive, as well as dry cleaner-owners, tailors and laundresses), sometimes the cause of death. Sometimes random things, like the fact that in 1947 Claudine Couch, my great-great-grandmother, went to Bermuda with her daughter at the age of 69. Just the two of them. Must have been the trip of a lifetime!

Come check it out! If you have info, I am happy to add it in, and if you want to add pictures to people, click on the link you were emailed and it will let you add stories and pictures on people. (Let me know if you did not get an email)

Monday, May 19, 2008

Fun in California

Look where I'm going tomorrow! I am in San Jose for an orthopedic nursing conference, and the convention center happens to be less than a block from the San Jose Center for the Performing Arts....and they are doing Beauty and the Beast! My classes end tomorrow around 4:30pm, and the show starts at 8:00pm. I got a cheap last minute ticket. Should be fun! I have always loved the music from that movie, so I am sure I will have a great time. A good way to spend my last evening in San Jose.

Monday, May 12, 2008


Ethan and I on our sunset cruise




Hammock, dress, blanket and musician vendors on the beach


Blanket vendor and floral dress seller

Cut fruit guy and pork rind guy


The main building of the tequila distillary, and Ethan with the bottle we brought home with us



SOme of the traditional and modern devices used to extract the juices from the agave plant

After a hard day of zipping

Me rappelling down at the last platform

Agave fields near the ziplines

Traversing the platform before going on another zip

Weird montage sports setting on my camera....of Ethan zipping along

Me sailing past the cactuses

Ethan zipping along

Just about the cutest couple you will ever find. Whatever. We have fun together!

Ethan getting prepped for the ziplines by a very small woman

A very happy tissue flower from our maid

Yes, and they all managed to survive

Ethan and I in front of the Sea Lion rock

Dolphin swimming with our boat

One of the cool caves we saw on our Stone Island tour. All the pics after this are on my Canon....

Sun finally sets

Sailing into the sunset

Ethan enjoying the sail

View of our hotel from the sailboat (the white building). See how empty that beautiful beach is!?

Pelicans flying alongside our sailboat


Sea Lion rock

A special picture for Felma. Some ginger I brought with me (as a gift from Felma). Ginger can help with seasickness if you eat a bit or mix it in a tea. She wanted proof that I actually took it with me!

Ethan and I at sunset. Unfortunately, no flash was used so we are a bit.....dark.

One of the many thousands of Pulmonias (taxis) in Mazatlan. Many of them are customized in different colors or themes, a lot have music blasting as you drive along. No seatbelts, but they have a maximum speed of around 35 miles per hour. We held on tight!


The Mercado, the largest fresh fruit/meat/goods market on the Pacific coast. Stinky in the meat areas, fragrant in the fruit areas, and VERY hot and stuffy throughout! It is a huge, open area but there is NO air flow, and it was 90+ degrees outside so we were pretty sticky by the time we were done browsing!




Some of the cool architectural details in Downtown/Old Mazatlan.

One of the many beach vendors. You can buy ANYTHING on the beach!



Ethan with even MORE ribs at Ernie Tomato's. I loved all the tomato decor. They even had a DJ booth that looked like a huge tomato!

Usually, there is a beautiful view out this window, but a REALLY thick fog rolled in and you couldn't even see the ground or the buildings right next door!

Drinks with Mike/Mike and Magdalena and Kandiss Wednesday night