Today's Astrophysics Lesson

So I saw this recently in one of the fine periodicals the Husband reads.

It helps to explain so much about my community.

So, how do you suppose I can harness this new found power for good? The teleporter I ordered still hasn't come in... maybe I can reverse engineer something?

Suggestions?

Walk For Wishes

Last Saturday, June 28th, between the down pours, I went with my Chi Omega Sisters to the Cleveland Zoo for the annual Walk for Wishes. This is an event which raises money to help the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Greater Ohio, Kentucky & Indiana. The organization grants the wishes of children with life-threatening medical conditions between the ages of 2 ½ to 18 to enrich the human experience with hope, strength, and joy. Chi Omega has chosen this as our national philanthropy, and we endeavor to support them in many ways throughout the year.

Please consider making a donation to Team Chi-O and Make-A-Wish at my event page here: PLEASE DONATE

We are so lucky in Cleveland to have a world class zoo within our metropark system. Thanks to them for allowing Make-A-Wish to hold the event here for another year! After the walk, we were treated to a wonderful lunch provided by Applebee's and Lay's. Kintico Water was another of the sponsors and we took full advantage of the hydration! Visit the sponsor page and see if there is anyone you might like to thank with your consumer dollars! I also took a stroll throught the Rain Forest with some of my actives from the Upsilon Mu chapter at John Carroll where I am an advisor.

Linda and I did complete the grueling three mile walk (just kidding... but that one hill was kinda tough!) I was able to take quite a few snaps along the way. All the creatures were very cooperative and posed nicely for me. My effect on the sloth has been officially documented: he was running throught the exhibit - you can see the blur! Oddly not the first time that has happened while visiting a sloth!

If you are in the area, do stop by and visit. They are sponsoring 2008 as the Year of the Frog, and they encourage you to leap into action! Many organizations have donated artist created frog sculptures through out the park for your viewing pleasure. You can commune with the Frogs, Dogs and Hogs! (Okay. Full disclosure: some of these are from last year. The giraffees for example are out courting and were not present in full force!) Enjoy!

1. wfw_umgals, 2. wfw_piranha, 3. wfw_lilac, 4. wfw_monkeyisland, 5. wfw_alienflower, 6. wfw_polarbear, 7. wfw_frog, 8. wfw_yellowflower, 9. wfw_iris, 10. wfw_vinesnake, 11. wfw_birds, 12. wfw_orangatan, 13. wfw_tomatofrog, 14. wfw_water, 15. wfw_um, 16. wfw_balloons, 17. wfw_reindeer, 18. wfw_lion, 19. wfw_aquarium, 20. wfw_gator, 21. wfw_elephant, 22. wfw_koala, 23. wfw_sculpture, 24. wfw_sloth, 25. wfw_giraffes

Summer Favorites

Visit the Online Firework Art Museum!

In honor of our Nation's Birthday, I propose a celebration of Summer! We are so blessed in the United States of America to have our freedoms and the ability to enjoy so many simple pleasures without fear. I'd go into detail as to why we should stop giving so many of those freedoms away - but I digress and that is a post for another day!

Here are my top ten Summer Favorites:

10. Indian's Baseball (um...still plenty of time to pull it out this season boys!?)

9. Memories of Summer vacations with Mom, Dad, Diana and Deb in the back of the Chevy Impala seeing the "world". Good times. Even if I did have to sit in the middle and never next to the window because I was the littlest. And the Drive In Movies in 'Old Blue' too when dad would put the plywood in the backseat to make a bigger bench.

8. The sound of the ice cream truck. Don't even necessarily need the ice cream - just the tinkling of the music!

7. Cooking out on the charcoal grill. Roasting marshmallows as the climax. And camping out all night under the stars.

6. Myriad festivals and fairs to be explored.

5. Running through the sprinkler. Repeatedly. Laughing.

4. Cool cotton dresses... like wearing nothing at all.

3. Chasing lightening bugs. (I implore forgiveness from all those poor bugs I desecrated - pulling off their glow to make rings when I was 7. I'm truly sorry.)

2. That feeling you get when it is sooooo warm, and you're in the shade with a glass of sweet ice tea, and the breeze hits you - not cool, just the feeling of summer on your skin. This one is tied with the feeling you get after you've been playing outside all day long, and mom makes you take your bath, and your hair is up but kind of damp from the bath, and you put your summer jammies on, and you're on the back porch, and the evening breeze comes in at twilight...sigh....

and the number one pleasure of summer?

1. You get to go barefoot and no one accuses you of being a hillbilly.

Happy Fourth of July!

Farmer Green Jeans

The husband is very proud of his small garden. And I am proud of him! We've expanded to two enclosures this year. With our varied visitors and weather events, I'm sure you understand the need for the 24/7 protection!

We do love our peppers on the grill... When this one grows up it's gonna be tasty!

...and Mom goes for the tomatoes. We'll call ya if we've got extra later in the season! (If you look closely, you can see the nifty watering system the Husband built to drip irrigate them...)

Next year we should add strawberries, and zucchini, and pumpkins, and....

to the Moon

Consummate Tourist that I am... I forced, I mean suggested to the Husband that we stop to take a few snaps of the Neil Armstrong First Flight Tribute in Warren, Ohio. It was on the way home from the Rib Burn Off. The World's Largest Ball of Twine it is not - but it was next to a McDonald's and we'd not yet had breakfast so... While the Husband munched on his Sausage McMuffin and Hash Brown, I took a quick visit to the surface of the moon. Actual life-like moon boot prints folks! A totally sweet small scale lunar module! Awesome! But the numerous signs indicated I should not climb aboard. Still, a very cool stop for the moon shot aficionado if you're in town! (The website they had posted sadly is a dead link. Just in case it wakes back up - here you go! www. firstflightlm .com)

A nice shout out for a local boy done good.

I wanted to stop at the Cannibis Society storefront as well... but the Husband drew the line. No fun at all I tell ya!

So where have you been traveling? Seen any good sites?

Rib Burn Off

So after it quit pouring down rain long enough to load up the car Saturday night, we took a lovely drive down through Trumbull County to the Mahoning Valley Rib Burn Off in Niles, Ohio. Lots of tasty food and interesting people watching. And I do mean it was interesting. That's all I'm saying. After this beautiful sunset...

We were treated to the awesome music of Blue Öyster Cult - the true purpose for the excursion!

The whole band above, and Eric Bloom with Rudy Zarzo below. Buck Dharma seems to have avoided my close-up shots... but he sure can play guitar! I'm quite amazed any of these came out since I basically just stuck the camera up and clicked.

Listen closely... Can you hear them? Godzilla... (Don't Fear) The Reaper... Burnin' For You... We were also treated to a rarity: Then Came The Last Days of May. The Husband was very pleased. Strangely, no E.T.I. though...

Okay - my real reason for going was the funnel cakes. After a few yummy bites I handed mine to the husband and it was never seen again. MEN! But then again, he did use his manly skills to win me this awesome lion at the water gun race on the midway, so I forgave him... By the way - the lion told me his name is Leo. Leo Tolstoy to be exact. Welcome to the crazy family Leo.

...all in all a pretty good night!

Got a bead on it now...

So I've been busy with my beading tools! A few more projects under my belt. I entered them to the Show and Tell contest over at Embellish and actually won a $10.00 gift certificate for originality! Check them out! This is probably the one that started it all, at least in my head! I bought these cloisonne beads over a year ago... I had to have the owls, and then of course I needed the other shapes to go with them! Where would we be without the ability to purchase such things any time of the day or night? Thank you eBay! Bought some bulk bags with lots of colors, but I decided to go with the green for this project.

I saw these millefiori beads and of course had to have them too! What is a girl to do when faced with 40% off all beads and 30% off all findings? JoAnn may be worse for an addiction than the corner bar let me tell you...

Soon I will find a project worthy of these nifty vintage beads - another eBay find... It's not wrong to pillage these poor earrings to make something new is it?

Such possibility!