gophers win 3-1!

picture this...
our seats are between the blue line
and the net, row 1...nothin' but
plexiglass in front of us! perfect!
altho' my ears rang for a good
45 minutes after a puck smacked
right in front of my face...i flinched
so bad, it wasn't even funny.

great game when you watch right next
to the ice...boring otherwise.
the other seats we had were 7 rows
up at center ice...great as well.
right above the gopher bench.

gary always spazzes when i want to bring
along my camera to public venues.
next time i'm going to say "sorry pal,
it's coming along!" my 2mega pixel phone
didn't really do the trick..i'll try to
get those images off soon and post them.

had a big fat burger at stub & herb's
before the game. jimbo met us there.
i don't know how these 3 do it....
they don't serve alcohol at these games
so mike and jimbo were ready to go after
the 2nd period. i said "don't you want to
switch seats with us and sit by the ice,
it's really cool!" and they both stared
at me. so there i stood looking like a penny
waiting for change! duh! they just wanted
to get back to the bar....losers!
yea, this just in......

anyway.
i met with denise up at nash frame
in st. louis park. they contacted me last
week to see if i would be interested in
working with them so i popped up there
this morning and let them know what i would
need from them and they explained what they
could do for me. i'm having them frame
a couple of things for me. i'll get them
back in a couple of weeks.
they have 2 other locations but this is their
newest and i just so happens to be their
showroom and factory. nice
just thought i'd give them a try.
denise was really great. knowledgeable, friendly
and efficient! so far so good.

on the wedding front, i'm meeting with
kelly & jeff wednesday evening regarding a
friday wedding in early october.
they've looked around and keep coming back to me.
she's seen jill & jay's album (some on my site)
she just loves all the images from their wedding
that i photographed nearly 2 years ago.
by the way, jay is leaving for portugal next tuesday
to have his procedure done. please pray for all
involved and that success comes from this ground
breaking procedure. the fda is actually interested
in dr. lima's research, so pray often! spinal cord
injury paralysis are maybe going to become a thing of the
past!! jill will keep us all posted on his
caring bridge site while they are there.

my nieces and nephew are doing the big countdown
to mexico...10 more days!!
today it looks just glorious there....
click here to see the beach in playa del carmen.

have a warm week and don't forget to fill up
your windshield washer solvent!
you're gonna need it!!

about 60 here today! felt awesome!!!

amanda & mark

picture this...
10 months from their wedding (1/12/08),
we got together yesterday and captured
some totally hot images for their
engagement portraits...












heading off to the minnesota gopher
hockey game tonight.
they are in a 1-1 tie in a best of 3
tourney.....
me, gary, jimbo (aka "the spoiler"..and
now you know why!) and gary's other
boyfriend (with whom he is chained at the
hip to on a regular basis), mike o.

more later

black saturday...

picture this...
spending the past 4 years of your life
working towards a first degree blackbelt!
congratulations scott & nicki craig!
or should i say, "mr. & ms. craig"!



what a morning...
pretty large crowd gathered up at the
earl brown center for national karate's
blackbelt exam in brooklyn center today.

all the entrants have endured months of
preparation and 3 separate screenings to
get them to this point. if they'd have
failed any of those 3 screenings they would
not have been eligible to test today.

aside from the normal advancement testing
through the ranks of all the belt colors,
now the eye is on one thing and one thing
only....the coveted 8th degree blackbelt.
and that will take many years.
they can't even arrange to test for 2nd
degree for like 2-3 years, i forget.
it's a timely process and not one to be
considered lightly.
they worked so hard today, such intensity...







from weapons to sparing to endurance drills,
they went through all of the phases skillfully
and steadfast. scott's a good yeller (is that a word?)
i am so proud of them...who would have thought?!

here they are getting their new blackbelts!
june, garrick & simon, you would be so proud!





scott in his "show" position.



nicki looks a little tuckered out
and excited all at the same time.




what a great experience.
see you at the 2nd degree exam!

shooting mandi & mark's engagement photos today.
i'll post them tomorrow.

p.s. it's 50 and sunny here today.
snow is disappearing fast!

buns of....plastic!

picture this...
these guys passed by and i almost lost it!
probably one of the funniest things i've seen.
(click on image to enlarge)



of course, the buns are fake....

i feel as tho' i am extending my holiday
by going through all these images...
i just got off the phone with my sister and
i told her that in 2 weeks she'd be waking
up in mexico. none of them have ever been
and i know that they are in for a real treat!

anne will learn that there is beautiful water,
palm trees and white sand a whole lot closer
than figi (where she and her husband went last summer).
not to mention, less expensive! :)
AND in the same time zone!!

dont' get me wrong, i'd love to go someday
but c'mon...once you are at the airport, you
can have your buns in the sand in about 5 hours!
hard to beat.

our lovely room @ royal...




trusting strangers with my camera...



gary's co-worker ryan, his wife nicole and their
friends adrian & sarah...soooo funny!!!
we popped into the "sofia" for some kareoke
and all they had was a juke box....then
some strolling mariachi's followed us in
and we paid them to play a couple of songs
and this one guitar player actually wet himself!
we all nearly did the same laughing so hard!
good times...




work related...getting together with mandi
and her fiance this weekend to shoot their
engagement photos for a january 2008 wedding!!

notable... my brother scott and his wife nicki
are testing for their black belts tomorrow at
the earl brown center in brooklyn park.
i'm really excited for them and i'll be there
with my camera cheering them on!!
have a great weekend everyone!

sorting thru' the photos...

picture this...
i'm trying to work but vacations
keep getting in the way!
i HATE when that happens!

actually, this next trip is an
experimental sideline for me.
for those of you new to this blog,
i am a professional photographer
with a focus (sorry, no pun intended!)
on people (weddings/portraits),
places (destination weddings/outdoor
portraiture!) and now.....
"things"....peoples vacations!
let me explain...
i often wonder as a photographer, taveler
and a human being why people pack cameras
on vacations. seems simple enough, right?
well, to capture the vacation, again, no brainer.
howEVER, here's what happens when you hand
off that kodak box camera or that nifty little
digital job that you just got at costco to
a total stranger or someone you've only known
at the swim up bar for a cocktail or two..



i'm just trying to make a point here.
could have been a really great photo.

now...what would happen if you brought along
a photographer on your vacation?
you've spent the last year (or years) saving
up for a special trip for the whole family
and you want the memories captured.
no more worries. no more wondering. no more
bad photos! i put together an album~just like
a wedding~ and voila! perfectly captured holiday!!

what's even better is you won't have your
own camera jammed with every image you took
and no one ever sees cuz you never upload them
off the card and on to your computer to print!!!!

my first "focus on the holiday" will occur at the end
of march and i'm really excited about it! :)


here's me on the balcony of our master suite at
the royal playa del carmen. they bumped us up from
a jr. ocean front. the only one up from that is
the presidential! it was so awesome!



here's ronnie & joel of java joe's
on 10th between 5th & 10th ya gotta go there!
get a coffee for now and a delicious bagle
sandwich to take to the beach for later! yum!





okay, one last one for today...
this is gary and i with tim & kristi
and her brother kyle (from portland).
we always seem to end up at the mimi the
same 2 weeks and have become fast friends
over the years. we had one really great party
on their deck one evening.



thanks for the
lovely parting gift tim & kristi!
see you next year!

gotta get back to the job thing now.....

wedding inquiries...

picture this...
i received a request yesterday
from rene @ mimi to contact a couple
regarding a wedding next winter down
there. i am in contact with jon and
will keep you posted.



the thing about destination weddings
is that i get to arrive a few days early, meet
the couple and their fiends and families,
see them on the beach, at restaurants etc...
so by the time the actual ceremony takes
place, i have become one of them, they know me
and they trust me and so it goes without saying
that the images i capture are more intimate.
it's really a fantastic, organic high!
and perhaps i get a little color while i'm there! :)

here's a couple from this trip...










i talked to a couple of coordinators down
in playa and handed out cards left & right!
if you never ask....you'll never get the work!

oh, and keep in mind that i was using my
70-200 L so i was in NO way visible or detectable
in any of these shots.

you just can't help stopping, watching and stealing
a shot or two as you pass by these strangers as
they exchange vows on this beautiful stretch of
the planet. new love, conviction of character, emotion...
it makes your heart fly!




i asked gary if he would
marry me again on the beach for our 10th!
guess i'll need a photographer or two! :)
think i could tie rings to hobie & katie's tails???
me neither!
september 2008...not a good month for the gulf coast.
but perhaps the following february!

chinese laundromat....

picture this...
i'm still doing laundry!

when you get home from mexico,
you open your luggage and say....
"i smelled like THAT for 11 days?!"
between the sand the salt and the
sweat, you just about have to wash
everything twice or soak it in
oxy-clean overnight...crazy!


okay onto some photos...
here's nedi's new home.
the first home he has ever owned...
from the window to the left of the door
to the window on the right, about 800 sq. ft
he wants to build a second story some day




here is nedi & me comparing dictionaries...



tallisman was sleeping when gary
took this photo...




this is the sweet man that gary always buys
his paper from in the morning. he could see us
coming from a mile away and he'd have the
miami herald in his hand waiting for us!



this is a family that showed up on the
beach one day not speaking a lick of english
or spanish...they were from paris.
i knew a guy on the beach that spoke french
so i ran and got him...and all was right with the
world...all the mom knew about america was
victor and nikki newman from Y&R..funny.




jimbo actually took this for us...not bad.
nothing like the color of dusk on the beach of
the gulf of mexico!
he got a bit creative and turned the camera and
tilted it up so he could get the full moon in there!
thanks jimbo, it's my favorite from the trip!



a few minutes later the sky lit up...





that's probably enough for today.
more tomorrow.

:)

home again, home again jiggity jig...

picture this...
nearly a perfect travel day.
when does that EVER happen?

our last day we got up early,
had breakfast on the beach
(cuz we could...there was no wind
which also translates to soooo hot!!),
put our suits on and sat at the
beach from like 8:30 to 11:30.
cab came around 1.
we said our goodbyes and we were
on our way...it was good to be
there and see everyone!
who knows where we'll end up next year.
jose is opening up a restaurant at
his home in playa in may so he'll be
gone next year, nedi says that the
owner of the mimi gets out of prison
(where he's been for 7 years..more on
that later) and even nedi doesn't really
know his own fate there at the hotel.
it'll be a wait and see thing i guess.
i'll keep in touch with rene and nedi
gave me both his cell #"s and address
so that hopefully we can keep in touch.
they all have my contact information as
well. sad to leave not knowing what will be...

we had a terrific spot to watch the nearly
total lunar eclipse from our patio...pretty
cool. from dusk to dark. my camera was
too foggy to capture any real good images
so i'll just have to rely on my memory! ;)

our last night we had a yummy dinner at the
EZ sports bar (by the "dip" for those of you
that know 5th avenue) across the street from
the lacoste store. VERY good!
thanks tim & kristi for the recommendation!!!
walked around and shopped and had our last
glass of wine at las mananita's (coined "the
wine~abuse spot" by nicki and i couple of years
ago)...we would sit and order wine and critique
people on 5th...very fun, really!

cats are VERY happy to see us as a matter of
fact hobie is in my lap right now and katie
is at my feet. they are not going to let me
out of their site. when i get up and go to
another room, they follow! :)

i have so many photos to share that i don't
really know where to start so over the next
several days, i'll share with you in the
order they were taken the images that remain
forever for me as the lasting memories of
playa del carmen february 2007...

nice to be back. :)

hot~still~beautiful last day...

picture this...
this is the stillest day i have
ever experienced here!
so hot you can't even sit in your
chair.
ordered breakfast on the beach...nice!
never done that before, too windy!

glad hobbie is pooping!

nicki i'll talk to gary about having
a camera 2 at jimmy's new place in tulum!

i've got about 2 hours of beach time so i
want get back to it...

i had a case of a little sun stroke
yesterday coupled, i think, with a touch
of vertigo??? it's gone now.
only a sore throat remains...beat the
alternatives down here!

i've announced to everyone that the baker's
are coming and they all can't wait to
meet you all! hopefully we can get
into town one day.

really looking forward to our own bed!
only scott, nicki & kristin can appreciate
that one!

oh,scott..met more sand sculpture artists..
a chicken pizza aculpture and a mermaid.
not great but the guy thought i was serious
about the mimi sandsculpter invitaional!!

might be on to something there...
see you all soon.
but a 1000 pesos in the basket for me today
at westwood!!!

susana

last full day...

picture this...
yesterday more guests arrived.
mike and jacqi came down from their
hotel north of here (el dorado royal).
we spent the day at the beach, nearly
made it up to the web cam but stopped
short at a sexy little place called
"kool" a very tom & jess kind of place.
it's a "wrist band" joint but we could still
sit at the bar there on the beach and
have an adult beverage!

jimbo came along as well...this just in!

a lot of sun yesterday.
mike and jax brought a change of clothes
along and we all got ready for a night
out in our humble room...

hit 5th and actually ate at la parilla
of all places...fun nonetheless.
thought mike might appreciate a "safe"
place to eat.

5th is crazy busy these days..so many people
it's like the state fair EVERYday here now.

saw ronnie & joel and jimmy at java joe's this
morning. jimmy invited us to his new place
in tulum. he would like for me to come down
and photograph it for him in exchange for a week
there. great opportunity for me but gary
would NEVER let me do that without him.
next year we will arrange to come to playa
for a couple of days, head down there for a week
and then come back to town for a little fun
before we head home.

scott and nicki. i got your e-mail about
the delay in your trip. sorry to hear
sin emabargo (however) es mucho calor en mayo
aqui!! (very warm here in may) so no worries.

edie just came in with her camara and took
photos of and with me and showed me one of
her cats...

gary wants me to "unplug" next year and i said,
"if jimbo stays home i will" :)
so perhaps no blog next year!

i'm going to hit the beach.
sorry i can't post photos...anne, call becky
and tell her "thank you!" for sending the
slide show of pico in the snow!

missing everyone at this point and it will
be so great to get home and wait for spring!


saludos a todos...(greetins to all!)

uno mas cosa...(one more thing)..nicki...
great work on the new palabaras en espanol!!!

que bueno!


adios para ahora (good bye for now)!!

XXXOOO
susanna

mucho viento!

picture this...
another windy day.
not quite as windy as yesterday
but lets just say that we
won't be taking the ferry
to cozamel!

spent the day with nedi, verania
and the kids.
they came to pick us up at around
11:30 and we hopped in a cab and
headed for the big new super store.
they had their grand opening yesterday
and so gary and i went shopping for
groceries with nedi, verania and
talisman. sooo fun! wierd, but fun.
i got a hat there and more sunscreen.

from there we piled into 1 cab and headed
to nedi's new home. small, 2 bedroom with
a small kitchen and a sitting area.
maybe 900 square feet.
we ate lunch and drank about 40 beers!
we stayed until jose maria and indiana
got home from escuela (school).
indiana had on the princess shirt i brought
down for her and she was carrying her
new hello kitty messenger bag that we
brought as well.
they were very happy that we were still
at their home when they got there.
we had both our spanish~english, english~
spanish libros (books) out conversing
back and forth. i must say mi espanol es
mui bueno!

got back here around 5, went next door to
"bad boys" (the old capt. dave's) and met
jimbo (aka~spoiler, aka~jaime) and then made
arrangements to meet at bourbon street a las
ocho. took a nap and headed out for another
night of "slumming".
we hit a bunch of places we've never gone to.
out to like 15th and then just searched for
mom & pop places. el templo is a total local
haunt and by that i don't mean local americans.
we walked up a floor off the steet (10th & 10th)
and when we got upstairs..ALL eyes were on us!
we were the only americans in the joint!
10peso beers and a nasty bano!
stayed for a couple and kept moving.
great night! pizza at las mananita's and a great
chilean red...yum.

i'm really tired of waiting for fotos to upload
i'm not sure why they won't go from here.
i had no problemos a otra hotel.
porque? no se!

hola to my friends tim & kristi from OR
hola to "jim" and stacey from NJ

still having great time....off to the
beach!
nicki, i got your e-mail this morning...
i'll show it to nedi!

sitting at the beach all day today!

mucho sol (sun not beer!)

hablo luego!!

besos y brasos! (kisses & hugs)

the spoiler arrives...shocker!

picture this...
we go back to the room around 4
to take a much needed nap and the phone
rings in our room.
we look at each other with a puzzled
look and i pick up and they tell me
someone is here to see us...and i here
him say "jim"...God! are you joking!?
we, no, i nicknamed him "the spoiler
cuz he seems to show up on every vacation
we've ever taken!!
funny!
sounds like he made it out just in time
too, anne says that mpls is getting hammered
again! wow!
sorry to everyone involved with the snow
removal! :(

today is the windiest day i have ever
experienced down here.
nicki, you thought 4th was windy before?
you should see it now!
even my fat moves in the wind....gross!

nedi's day off today but he has invited us to
his home today. his wife yarenia, is coming
to get us at 11. i bought a frame and am
having the foto of all of us printed out right now
to bring along....
and a bottle of wine as a gift.
looking forward to lunch with them at the
very first home he has ever owned!

talked to emily this morning before she got on
the bus that was nice! start working on your
spanish, emily!!!

oh, and scott, below is some of your competition
for the first annual mimi del mar sand sculpture
invitational
sorry..not sure why the images won't go up..
i'll try later today..i've got to go put this away
before yanrenia gets here.....

moving day...

picture this...
now i blog from the beach...weird!
the mimi has free wifi.
however, today i can only get
a signal from the reception desk.
que buen..i can see the screen better
in here anyway!

well, monday all we did was
sat on the beach all day at the royal.
windy and hot again...90 something. nice.

the good news and bad news about staying
two places is you have to move and you have
to suffer first day syndrome twice and
last night syndrome twice! ;)

we tried to do it all...hot tub in the room,
a show at our hotel and our last 5 star meal
for a long time!

yesterday we got up, skipped breakfast, headed
for tht beach and at 11:30 we arranged to have
our bags picked up and caught a cab to the mimi.
but before we were "cut loose" (literally they won't
allow you to check out until they cut your wrist
band off!~) we hit the bar and grabbe a few beers.
one for now and one for the cab ride!
it was a quicky ride, the royal is on like 28th
and the mimi is on 4th (blocks run in 2's herwe).

dumped the bags...3rd floor..more stair master
work outs for the rest of the trip! ugh.
hit the beach with tim , kristi and her brother, kyle.
drank about 5 buckets of beer between the 5 of us!
(we still hadn't eaten!)
we "pulled the pin" around 4 and headed to their
room and socialized there for a bit and then
took a quick nap...woke up at 11:40...pulled my
hair back, gary threw on a hat and we went
out in search of a pizza pizzaz on the street!
then we sat by the little pool here and listened to
the waves (ton of beach this year!) and turned in...
big day.

tim and kristi leave today for portland.
i stood by the cielo cam this morning around
7 and then around 8...didn't bring the phone.
i'll call when we decide to go to that cam.
the mimi is installing a camera and it should
be running before we leave...i'll get you the information
when it comes available.

gotta get back to the 30 sunscreen and the salt air.

takes too long to upload images..i'll post a couple at a time
later....sorry.

buen dia a todos!

and the oscar goes to...ellen!!!!

picture this...
canNOT believe the weather.
tooo much sun yesterday and
the 30 is not the magic #
(sunscreen that is).
yesterday was maybe one of the hottest
days i've ever experienced down here...ever.
and no, i'm not complaining! :)

moving on.
thanks for the comment jacquie!
glad everyone is pooping!
and snowstorm, oscar, martinis @ grass's
sounds like a perfect evening.

on to the goings on here...part of
the roof collapsed in the lobby yesterday!
sheet rock EVERYWHERE! fortunately no one
was hurt and now the lobby looks like a
crime scene with all the yellow tape!
i try to get a shot of the damage...i didn't
have my camera when we saw it.
i was mostly concerned cuz that's where the
internet signal is and i couldn't get on line
yesterday afternoon! wow, vacations have changed!

nedi's family came down the playa @ mimi
yesterday to see us so we walked down around
noon and i played with the kids in the mui fuerte
surf...stong waves, good for body surfing!
they brought me a beautiful necklace and i had
indiana put it on me!jose maria had on
the swim trunks i brought down for him and
indiana had one of the pink "playeras"
on that brought down for her!
we check out of this hotel tomorrow and head
to the mimi. really looking forward to
a smaller crowd, less alcoholics, bus station
tacos, street orange juice...oh, and a mc flurry!

here's some shots from yesterday...













oh, one last thing.
i need to go after the new occupation
of "holiday photographer"...no one can take
photos down here..not even the hotel staff
photographers AND i have been handing out
cards left and right.
i actually had a woman stop me at lunch
yesterday who had been trying to find me
to give me her e-mail and get my card so that
she could get the shots i took of she and
her husband a few days ago... here's the
couple. they're from michigan and go home
today....



okay....STARVING now...off to breakfast.

internet on balcony...

picture this...
buenos dias!
sucks to be me.
i'm on my balcony, in my new
pale aqua sarong that i received
upon check-in, with yummy coffee,
my laptop and a scrummy pastry
that they provide you with only on
this floor. it's breezy, humid and sunny
but most of all i now do not have to
haul my cookies all the way to the lobby
to blog! yay!

gary is still in bed. we had a great
night last night...called ryan and nicole
(gary's co worker and wife) and their
friends sarah & adrian from north dakota,
(they are staying at the riu yucatan)
left a message to meet us at (of all places)
senior frogs...easy to find by the pier
so we thought that would be a good spot
to start. didn't know if they would show
but we walked down there at 8 anyway...
they got there at 8:30 as we were getting
ready to give up and leave....then the party
started!
we ran all over town and showed them all of
the local haunts...sofia's for some kareoke
with the locals...bus station tacos....blue
parrot (fire dancers still do a show there,
just not UNDER the palapa roof...they burnt
the joint down a couple of years ago),
street pizza and VW bus tacos by the banamex
on 12th..too fun! danced and laughed and got
them in a cab and turned in around 1:30.
felt good to not go to bed "over-served"!!

jacquie called about hobie's behavior..not
happy with the meds and is hiding! poop.
sorry he's giving you so much grief!! :(

also was informed of the foot of snow they
are expecting in minneapolis!! yikes!

beautiful wedding right on our property
last night...gave my cards to the gal that
coordinates everything down here and i also
gave a guest at the wedding a couple of cards
and asked him to have the bride and groom
contact me for some awsome shots i got...
free, of course!
here's some highlight photos for those us
you burried in the snow..what do you think
i do..sit around and blog all day????? :)

estamos aqui!

picture this...
it's taken me over 50 % of my
battery to figure out how to get on
line here at the lovely royal playa del carmen!

we have be having the greatest time!
met some terrific folks and even got up
to the web cam at the shangri la carib
(link to beach cam is to the right)
gary and i walked up yesterday and stood
in front of the cam and called my brother!
nicki was not home nor was anne..losiento
(spanish for i'm sorry!)....
so much to write and so little battery as i
am in the middle of the grand lobby....
espresso and all..gary is already at the pool.
probably wondering what the hell is taking
me so long....

big first night (first-day-syndrom!!!)
gary bloddied himself and i am telling you,
our room looked like a crime scene so did the hallway.
when we can't remember how to get to our room
we follow the blood drops! more on that later...
i wan to get to some fotof....3 wedding here
last night at dusk, gorgeous...i was jealous to
not be shooting so i shot anyway and they will
be sorry that it was not me!
the guy (photographer) had this lame camera
and an omni bounce of all things and looked at
everysingle shot he took.....rookies!!!

while these photos are uploading let me just say
that my blogger site, including this page..is all in
spanish....a nice test for me..

totally sunny 90 something and as soon as these
photos are done...i'm outta here and out to
the pool...there's a sol light with my name on it!!
i'm do better at updating know that i know the drill.
the mimi has free wifi and i can sit in the sand
under the palapa and blog!! :)

buen dia a todos!!











not bad..battery almost dead!! :)

departure from life...

picture this...
early to rise.
that's all, just early to rise.
i'm not much of an early riser.
i used to be a couple of years ago
and then BAM! something happened,
people tell me it's age..sha, right.
i'm just a really good sleeper.
gary wishes that i could get paid
for sleeping... :)

tried the new online check in to the
hotel last night but naturally that
didn't work.
you are supposed to just check in and
then waltz in to the desk and your key
is waiting...not so much.
they wanted a credit card and we have
already paid so nuts to that!

anxious to go, anxious to leave the kids
but they are going to be well cared for
and for that, again, i am grateful!
nice to know that you can go away and count
on friends and family to hold down the fort!

well, if i'm going to shave my legs, i'd
better get started :)

jacquie, scott got your bike last night!
i can't wait to see it!
thank you thank you thank you!!

SQS, thank you thank you thank you!

hump day...

picture this...
these are the days that we minnesotans
long for...when we break through the
bitterness of winter and make a turn
into spring...there is a God! (duh!)
it's been in the 40's the past few days
and i know i speak for everyone when i say
.........FINALLY!!!!
we are losing "snow-pack" (as the meteorologists
call it...us laypeople just call it "snow").
all i know for sure is that it'll be march soon!


my sister in law came by for a change in hair.
sorry there's not a before shot.
it's nearly the same length but what's different
is the color...she had no color. now she's got 4!!



it's always fun to help facilitate a change!

speaking of which....jacquie, your bike didn't come.
i never saw fedex....i'll be here today too tho'
if they come by. i was bummed too, i really wanted
to get going on losing that swimsuit size! :)
i've only got about 24 hours left!
maybe i can run on the beach! HA! then when
i get home everyone will wonder..."why the black eyes?"

well, i'll probably zip off a quicky blog tomorrow
and then the fun starts...

soak up that sun today...tulips will come up soon!

jacquie, tell scott not to worry, i will leave a
small novel of directions for the "kids".....

(hi dean and lois!)

spring training for twins...

"pitcher" this...
the minnesota twins pitchers
and catchers began spring training
yesterday in ft. meyers, florida!
i know my mother-in-law is pretty
excited...she loves the twins!


this is my buddy jim werdin (of access insurance).
he is a lover of all things twins!
here he is with mr. oliva...



he and his company actually throw
a huge party every year at a chosen twins
game just outside the dome in partner
with the miracles of mitch foundation
(link on this site to the right).
they auction off the first pitch to
the highest bidder...last year it
went for like $750!!

here's my mother in law, bonnie with tony oliva
at last year's event...



here's my niece emily posing for me
inside the dome!



i'll post more information on that
event in a couple of months. it's
usually in june and we take gary's mom
for her birthday. it's a blast!


it got to 43 yesterday in minneapolis!
spring fever was everywhere!
you could smell the thaw...very nice.

saw my friends tim & kristi from portland
on the hotel cielo cam in playa yesterday around noon!
very cool!

my friend jacquie just bought a spin bike.
it's being delivered today and fedex is
going to drop it off here.
i'm going to put it together and hop on
and see if i can't drop a swimsuit size
by thursday morning!! :)

bye!