Monster Trucks!

Friday night the Monster Truck show came to town. We were looking for something different to do and I had never been to a Monster Truck show, so we decided to go. Mike was smart and knew to bring the earplugs. Thank goodness! I wasn't quite sure what to expect but ended up having a really fun time. It was super loud and I think I lost a few brain cells from breathing all that exhaust fume, but is was still fun.

Saturday, I went to dinner with some of the women from work. We had good food, good wine, and I got to catch up on gossip and other events that happened while I was gone. I think a good time was had by all.

This afternoon, Mike and I are going to a showing of Pan's Labyrinth. I have seen a few previews for it on TV and it looks very interesting. We'll see. I hope it's good. We're going to a matinee anyway, so if it doesn't live up to expectations, at least we won't have spent that much. By the way, the wind chill is in the teens today. BRRRRR!

Free the hops

Friday was my first day at my old job. Mike and I are back in the town we lived in for the last few years. It was nice to see all my old friends and coworkers. I put together a little photo album from our trip so that everyone could see what we've been up to for the last 6 months. I can' t believe it's only been 6 months!

Saturday night we went to a fundraiser for an orgaization called Free the hops. Alabama is one of only a few states that doesn't allow beer over 6% alcohol content. This organization is trying to get the law changed. According to the lawmakers in this state, they don't want the high alcohol content beer falling into the hands of underage drinkers. Although, I don't think minors are going to shell out the extra cash for the import beer and they probably don't have the taste for the dark beer. Anyway, we made our donation and got some free import beer. Yum. The band was pretty decent, too. Afterward, we went to the bowling alley for "rock and bowl" or whatever they called it. You know, glow bowl, black lights, disco ball, rock music. It was a fun night.

Whistler Blackcomb

Well, we made it back from Whistler. It was pretty cold the first day. I think the high temp was around 21 F in the village. There was a temp inversion during the time we were there and it was actually warmer at the top of the mountain. The weather was beautiful though. We had sunny skies and I am so glad because the views were spectacular. Mike and I skiied the first three days we were there. This ski resort is huge! We usually take it easy, no master skiers here. We were able to find relatively easy routes down from even the highest areas of the mountains. It was great!

One afternoon I went on a zip line tour with my mom. One of the lines was the longest zip line in North America. They said you can get up to 100 kmh (I think that's 60 mph). And yes, it did kind of feel like you were sticking your head out of a car window when it was freezing cold outside. I think my face was numb by the end of that line. Anyway, it was still fun!

The last day we drove back into Vancouver and spent the night to avoid having to get up at 2am and drive the mountain roads back in the dark in order to make our morning flight. We took lots of photos but we used a disposable camara and the photos aren't back yet.

We made it back to the RV around 11:30pm. The next morning, we woke up bright and early, packed up the RV and hit the road. Everything (the even brake) still worked...yeah!

Comments

To those of you who have left comments. I'm sorry I never responded. I was unaware that I had any comments at all. When I first started the blog, I chose to moderate comments, thus giving me the power to choose whether or not a comment was published to the blog. Blogger was supposed to notify me via email when I had a comment. Somehow, I did not receive the notifications. This really stinks because I would have really liked to respond to the comments in a timely fashion. For example, to the person who lives in Whistler, I would have really liked to have met you. Too bad I received the comment the day after we got back to Florida! Anyway, I'm going to try to respond to the comments, so if you left one, please check the appropriate post.

And, yes, we made it back from Whistler in one piece. We had an awesome time even though I think I was the coldest I have ever been! Especially the first day we skied. Apparently, it was colder than normal during the time we were there...go figure. But that's another post.

We are back on the road temporarily. Bye bye to the last of the summer :) Icy weather, here we come :(

Off to Canada

Tomorrow we are off to Whister to go skiing. Hopefully we will return in one piece, without broken appendages, and with all our fingers and toes. The cold weather is sure to be a shock after the 80 degree days we have been having.

Swimming with the Manatees

This past weekend was a really great weekend. Friday, we went to hang out with some new friends, Chuck and Keith. Their house is AWESOME! I was a little jealous, I will admit. Saturday, we drove north 3 hours to Crystal River, FL to swim with the manatees. I first read about this in the book "1000 places to see before you die" and it sounded like something I definetly wanted to do while I was here in Florida. We stayed at a Best Western right on the water and next to the dive shop that would take us out Sunday morning for our snorkeling trip. While we were sitting on the boat dock, drinking a beer, we met a nice couple (Chad and Stacy) with their 2 year old son, Wade, on a pontoon boat. They invited us out for a short cruise around the manatee sanctuary area and we accepted. They turned out to be really nice and we had a great little boat trip. The sunset was beautiful. We even saw a few dolphins. The next morning we set out for the manatees. As it turned out, the Crystal River, which is fed mostly by springs, was not crystal clear. Visibility was aweful. The poor visibility, loud children, and lots of other tourists snorkeling led to a less than favorable manatee swimming experience. No matter, I saw a few and we had a good time anyway. This is what I was hoping for:


This is what I got:

NOTHING

well, almost nothing. I saw a lot of green water and a few glipses of manatee. Oh well, better luck next time...

Happy 2007!

Happy New Year to everyone! Mike and I decided to ring in the new year in low-key style. I made myself a giant mimosa and we headed down to the pavilion here at the RV park around 11:30 to check out the festivities. There was a pretty good crowd. They had a karaoke DJ. I saw a lot of line dancing and I actually saw some alcohol on the tables (first time since we've been here). We celebrated midnight and then headed out for a midnight stroll. The temp was probably in the high 60's and moonlight was abundant. It was REALLY nice. After that, we sat outside on the lawn chairs and relaxed. It really was a beautiful night. I can only hope the rest of the year is as nice as the first night.

This last Saturday, we drove a few hours south to Everglades City to take an airboat ride. This was my first experience on an airboat and man, was it fun! Our airboat mainly stayed in the mangroves, which was cool, but I was imagining hauling a** over marshy fields of grass.
(photo to follow)
We saw some wildlife and had a close up visit with a pelican. He/She was looking for a handout (fish).

Next weekend is our last official weekend here. I'm not sure what we are going to do with it. I feel like there are still so many experiences to be had here. I hope the weather is nice. Mike and I will be heading to Whistler, BC on the 10th to do some skiing. We will be meeting up with mom and Steve and I'm sure we will have a great time. Mike and I are really just beginner skiiers so it should be interesting.

After we return, it looks like we will be heading back to Alabama to take care of some chores and visit with old friends. I'm still trying to adjust to the fact that it will be colder there. For me, it seems like our summer never ended. According to the weather map, we have been in the warmest area of the continental US. After Alabama, I'm not sure where we will be heading but wherever it is, I hope it will be warm again.