Holy Colee!

Desi and Berns


My girls :)


Butch - as the baby Jesus, an uncanny resemblance I think ;)


The Squid

The next 3 are the view out of my window at the hotel...

In no particular order


The view from my room at the Bellevue


The view from my room at the Pen


The soldier's cemetery


Monument - outside


Monument - inside


Alabang Town Center - at night


Alabang FL team :)


Pia - and my fabulous yellow vest


My girls


The FL team with Noreen and Pia

Ok, the next ones aren't from Alabang, but they are worth having on here :)


Kevin :)


Jason

I will be home tonight. I won't lie. I am fairly excited about it. I've had a fabulous couple of weeks, but I hate living out of a suitcase and eating at restaurants every meal.
When I got off the plane in Japan, it was just after noon, Sunday. When I got off the plane in Minneapolis, it was just after noon, Sunday. Um, yeah... talk about confusing. One thing I know is that tonight, I will sleep well.

The business lounge here is very lovely. I scored a great seat to wait my 5 hour layover... yeah, really... Ugh. Anyway.. that's where I am, and where I am headed.

Happy Sunday.

Well, maybe it’s not a fruit, but it IS a flavor. One of the popular flavors of treats here is ube. Ube translates, literally, to purple. Technically, ube is a tuber like sweet potatoes. That’s probably the easiest way to describe how it tastes as well.

Speaking of food… Tonight Desi took me to a BBQ place for dinner before work. Cebu is famous for its BBQ. Which makes sense when I think about the miles – no exaggeration - of BBQ stands between CVG and the Marco Polo where I am staying.
It was pretty cool; you basically walk past a meat counter and pick up everything you want them to grill for you. I must admit the bags of shells that were still moving caught me off guard, but Desi says it is so you know they are alive. It means they are fresh, not dead or diseased. We had pork, and sausage, and a kabob, and chicken, and scallops on the half shell, and a squid, and some kind of shell, and a coconut to drink… oi… It was all soooo good. Now if I can manage to stay awake through my shift, I’m going to call it a win.

She also brought me a little bag of treasures.. honestly, a bag. It's beautiful and hand woven and I may be a purse aholic. She snuck in some peanut kisses and dried mangoes and some guitar keychains. Cebu is also famous for guitar making... I had no idea. I am learning so much today :)

Sunday was lovely. Ompong took me on a tour of the city(ies). We even went to part of mass… that totally counts for church ;) The coolest part by far was the WW2 Memorial and cemetery. Words would not do justice to the feeling there.

Monday I kind of just hung out until my flight. The airport was interesting and frustrating. You’re supposed to present your ticket twice before you can get to the counter that actually prints the tickets out… yeah. So then, after all my repacking to get everything into the right place… I was over the luggage weight limit. They weigh by passenger instead of by suitcase. Grr, but it was only $10 so, whatever.

Landing in Cebu was the first time I have really felt like I might actually be on an island. It is completely different than Manila. There are not as many cars or people or building, heck I even saw cows and chickens :) Feels like I home. I checked into the hotel and tried to nap, but it didn’t work, so I tried to take a bath. They have bubble bath – I was very excited. Then I realized I couldn’t get the water hot enough to stay warm while the rest of the tub was filling. Total bummer.

The center here is also very different. It’s more than just the set up. I haven’t quite put my finger on it yet. But I am really enjoying the work week again. I am having a rough time trying to get my normal work done – stupid end of month reports – but it’ll work out. Everyone is telling me how nice the beaches are… do you think anyone would notice if I called in sick???

After work yesterday Ompong picked me up and brought me up to the new hotel. I am now staying at the Peninsula. It is a lovely hotel. The view is awesome. I can finally see Manila in the daylight :) I got checked in and settled and then Ompong and I headed back out. I was going to take a nap and wait for Noreen to come, but Ompong convinced me I needed to go early. We went to Greenhills. OH MY stuff. Stuff and people everywhere. I got my first round of shopping done in record time. Ompong hooked me up with the best vendors and prices on my knockoffs. And, yes, I spent too much money with Mimi, but the pearls are beautiful. Technically I didn’t spend too much, just more than I had planned on. We also went to Balakbayan for souvenirs and then he took me to Max’s for lunch. There is a reason he is our family driver. He showed me how to eat the things we ordered and ordered the tastiest little uve cream dish for dessert….

Then we came back to the hotel and picked up Noreen. We went back to Greenhills because I now needed an extra suitcase. I actually had that part planned… the part I didn’t have planned is that even with the new suitcase, I am struggling to find space to get it all in. This time we wandered. Wandering is dangerous for me. It proved to be so this time as well. After wandering, Ompong brought us back to the hotel and after dropping things off, Noreen and I walked down to the mall across the street. We wandered some more. Good times :) We stopped for dinner and then made our way back. Neither of us had slept in a really long time…. Really long time… I am pretty sure I passed out about 2 minutes after Noreen left.

Today I had a lovely breakfast at the hotel and this afternoon Ompong is going to take me on a tour :) Should be a lovely laidback Sunday.

Thanks Gail for sending these over. I have some of Jason and Kevin that I still need to pull off my camera, but I wanted to post these, so I did :)

Lisa, Debbie, Gail


Lisa, Debbie, Nicole

Today I went wandering. I know you’re not supposed to wander alone, but I did it smart ;-) I went to the mall. I have never seen so many security guards in a mall, ever. I had no problem feeling safe.

So, the mall… oh my goodness. If I were a shopper, I would have been in heaven. There is everything you can imagine in this place from flipflops to DIY supplies. I wandered around for a few hours. I am not much of a name brand girl, but they were everywhere. My biggest struggle is trying to convert the prices in my head. It’s about 40 pesos to the dollar. So 100 pesos is about $2.50… after 4 days, it’s almost starting to click. I am also a little leery of being suckered, so I am super excited that Noreen is going to go with me this weekend when I do my pearls and purses shopping.

For dinner I had sizzling sisig. What is that you ask? I still have no idea. I think she said it was pork… I know it had onions and garlic in it, but as for the rest of the flavors, no clue. It was super tasty though, but I wish I had ordered it with rice. It needed a side dish. I had a lovely dish of mango ice cream while I waited for my shuttle, I got home just in time to walk across the street to work.

So I suck at posting lately. You should be used to it by now. Last week I was in KC. It was great to finally put some faces with names – as well as see some of my favorite faces again. :)

This week I am in Alabang. The only thing I haven’t loved so far is the ride over. The ride itself was actually awesome too. I have never been treated so well or given so much food in my life on an airplane. Being fed every 2 hours was quite a shift from my last flights where I didn’t get so much as a pretzel. If they treated every customer the way they treat business class, no one would drive again ;) The only thing I didn’t love about it was the duration, really, I am not complaining at all.

I got in to the hotel and I was told that I HAD to sleep. Yeah, it didn’t happen. I got in, took a nap and then went across the road to work. It was Monday, there was simply too much to do. But after I got my Monday work done, my brain had no trouble at all falling asleep for 10 hours. When I woke up – at 7pm, I got a phone call asking me to go to dinner. Other than the meals are opposite of what I am used to, I think I have the time difference down :) kind of…. Oh, I had adobo for dinner. Ryan, yours is better.

Today was a work day like I wish all my work days were. I love meeting with the people who are actually impacted by the things I do and the decisions that we make. I especially love when I actually have the ability to fix some of the things they are frustrated with. LOL, it doesn’t happen often, so I enjoy it when it does.

My goal for today is to get out and explore the hotel. Tomorrow maybe more of the city. I am still not 100% sure how to get to places I can’t walk. So, I’ll have to ask tomorrow.

So, I have had about the coolest weekend ever. So cool infact that this is the first time I have had a chance to sit down and tell you about it.

Yeah, so Friday night, I am sleeping (that's what I do on Friday nights) and Monica comes into my room to ask me if there is anyone trying to climb into my window. Huh? is all I could muster. Anyway, so there is this guy trying to climb into her window. About the time he took the screen off, she called 911. The cops showed up and took the very drunk man away. I have no idea what the official charge is, I just know they arrested him. If you want the rest of the story, you'll have to talk to Monica. All I know is that the boards in the windows aren't going anywhere any time soon.

Saturday afternoon, Monica comes out in to the living room (again, super exciting life I lead) and asks why the carpet is wet. Yes, again. This time, I was able to locate the source of the water very quickly. It was coming out of the bottom of my ancient water heater. So, I call my mom - cuz that's what I do when I don't know what else to do... and lo and behold Justin is at my mom's house. He tells me it's alright and that he'll be down the next day to help me get a new one and install it. We decided it wasn't actually the end of the world though, so we also decided it was better done on Monday than on Sunday. I thought I had figured out how to make the leak run into the drain instead of my hall way, but I woke up Sunday morning to a half inch of water in the back hall though, so instead, I just shut ALL the water off. At least until we could make sure the water heater was the only thing leaking. It was. Today I spent the day being broke, but the water heater is in. The shower is warm. And, I am ready to fly to Kansas tomorrow. YAY ;)

The weird part is, I can't even figure out how to complain about it. Life is good. My family is awesome. My home is safe, and I get to meet people I've been working with for years, tomorrow. How cool is that? Anyway. I should probably sleep. I still have to go to work before I fly out...
See you soon, Rod! I know you're so excited you can hardly contain yourself ;)

So, I am not going to start on Dancing with the stars, but does watching Priscilla Presley scare anyone else but me??? They commented on her face never giving her away - HOW COULD IT? There is more BOTOX than blood in those veins.

Sooo I had a fabulous weekend. Mom came down and we had a little retail therapy. What I was shopping for was a bargain... I don't really need anything. So, Friday night we went to Sears Grand - off a tip from the ladies at work. I did NOT have a good experience. I found a basketfull of stuff I liked, and it was all marked BOGO, but when I got to the register, it was BOGO if you get the same thing, in different colors... Who really needs multiple shirts of the same in different colors? I was less than pleased.

Saturday we went downtown and tried to catch the second half of conference. We didn't get in, but we did watch from the theater in the North Visitor's Center... so it was all good. Then I took Mom to my favorite Sushi place and taught her how to order only things that were cooked :D Then we found the REAL bargain shopping :D I got 2 new dresses and 2 tops that will be fun to wear. The only thing I didn't find was a new jacket - so that is still on the list.

Sunday we watched conference and then Mom went home. It was fun to have her here though. I hate living 3 hours away from my family. One of the best weekends I have had in a long time. Thanks Mom!

A few photos... finally


Everything was SO green

Diamond Head

It was kind of an iffy surf the week we were there.

The temple is beautiful, inside and out :) It was not flower season, but still so pretty.

My Hawaii

Mom in her pretty new dress and a gorgeous sunset

Did I mention I was fascinated with the sunsets? I have about 30 more photos that look a whole lot like this one

Oh I am going to a Hukilau.... it's a long story.

Another sunset, I couldn't resist

On Saturday I decided it was time I finally get in the ocean. I never did actually put my new swimsuit on, but I DID get in the water - this far. Now you know why I NEED to go back!

Ok, so, I missed American Idol again last night. But, believe it or not, once in a while - I DO actually have stuff going on.

Last Thursday I was listening to the radio. They were running a contest - be caller x- for people to come to The End Zone with A Fine Frenzy on Tuesday, April 1. Well, I was near a phone, and I figured, why not... So, I was caller x. COOL, I say. They told me I could bring a friend - So I talked to my friend Trista. She is BY FAR my favorite concert buddy. No one mocks as well as she does. Period. Even cooler, she's able to rearrange her Tuesday stuff so she can come play :)

So Tuesday - we go to the radio station to see The End Zone. It was great. The song I knew from this girl is called "Almost Lover." It is quite possibly the saddest song ever written. If you are looking for a good cry/break up song - I highly recommend it. If you're even slightly emotional, you'll be wiping tears half way through. She sang it as well as a couple of others, including a cover of "I'll Follow You Into The Dark" by Death Cab for Cutie. Trista tells me this song will be played at my reception. She's the DJ, by the way. Then when we were waiting in line to get our autographs on our free singles and our awesome pictures ;), they had 10 extra pairs of tickets for the actual concert that evening.


HECK YEAH, I say! So we got 2 pairs, and called our friend Matt and my roommate Monica and we went to the concert :)
The opening bands really stunk, but again, A Fine Frenzy was really cool! I know she's not huge yet - as evidenced by the venue she was playing in, but it was fun, and she's really young, but she's having a good time, and her voice is amazing. I like her better with out the synths, but still, really cool. If you want you can check her out on the radio's web page... there's a link to the actual endzone. http://www.1019theend.com/PhotoWall.asp?id=38375

Ramiele – the backup singers were better, maybe just louder, than she was…. She did look good though. The judges’ comments leave me wondering – is everyone getting to claim a sick day this year?

Jason Castro – I have no idea what that song was, but I could listen to it for a long time. It was cool to see him little, with out the dreads

Syesha – the baby cry isn’t winning me over, but her vocals might be.

What the devil is Paula wearing?

Chikezie – I am not sure how I feel about this one yet… there are a couple of notes that seem a little off, but I still kind of liked it

Brooke White – I have to dislike her on principle… she can play by ear

Michael Johns – He has my same birth year :) Which just means he's old. I am really enjoying his performances.

Carly Smithson– One of my very favorite songs.. I know I am not normal…She did it a lot like the original (except for the lyrics that were wrong), which works for me. The end was strange.

David Archuleta – he sounded older than 17 tonight, I have never heard that song before, the lyrics were timely.

Kristy Lee Cook – Quite possibly the most overplayed song in America. I am as patriotic as the next guy, but really? But if you are going to sing it, at least sing the right notes

David Cook – oh my… I actually MUCH prefer this version to the original… If Creed is looking for a new lead singer, they don’t have to look far.

Happy Easter!
I had a lovely weekend, at home, with the fam. It's been a long time since I went home for only a weekend, and I remember why now - TOO much to do in not enough time.
For Easter this year, the Easter Bunny had my truck detailed. The timing couldn't have been more perfect. Since I had a teriyaki explosion in there the other day ;) I am worse than any amount of kids....

So, all joking aside, I love Easter. All of Christendom unites to honor the most sacred event in history. I want to join in this occasion and declare to you - that He lives. The tomb was empty. He lived for us, providing the perfect example of charity and love. He gave his life on the cross and just as assuredly, He took it up again and He lives again. By doing this, He made it possible for us to also live again and to return to our heavenly home. May we live worthy of this reward, is my prayer... and so, I repeat - HAPPY EASTER!

Rules:
1 - Identify 7 random or weird things about you.
2 - Tag 7 people.
3 - Let them know they've been tagged.

Thanks Brooke :P

1 - I was 28 years old before I got my first kiss.
2 - I have a sister who is 24 years younger than me - to the day.
3 - I own a home entertainment system. Which is still in the box 6 months after I purchased it.
4 - My current roommate was my next door neighbor (define next door, in Dingle) when I was growin up.
5 - My top ten sites includes USCSIS.gov... I am anxiously awaiting a status update on my I-129F, petition for alien fiance...right now they are 7 months out and I am pouting :(...
6 - I am only 29 years old, but I have been with the same company for over 10 years.
7 - I just got back from my first trip to Hawaii - and I REALLY want to go back!


I have yet to determine who I will tag

So, I spent the last week in Baton Rouge Louisianna. WHAT A WEEK! I think I was still asleep when I got to the airport on Tuesday morning, well, I know I was, but we'll get to that later... Lisa and I spent 16 hours a day for 4 days in the center meeting with EVERYONE who we could. It was such a pain in the ... bum. But it will all be worth it if we can make it do what we want it to. Cross your fingers.
When I got back to SLC, I realized that I really WAS asleep when I got to the airport. How can I prove it? I completely forgot to write down where I parked. I had the general area - because I always park in the same area, but I had no idea inside that area.... The parking attendant saved me after about 10 minutes of wandering - and she drove me up and down the lanes until we found Bailene.
The good part was that, at least I wasn't wandering up and down the aisles with my luggage, cuz, well, it was still in Denver. See how I put a positive spin on the fact that my luggage was lost? ;) Honestly, I travel enough - not a lot - but enough - that I should expect to have lost my luggage before now. And, at least I was home where my real toothbrush was already waiting for me :)

Today was a good day. I feel like I am actually making progress on the things that have been piling up on my to do list. Of course, I am only here for a week, but then it is just an easter weekend at home. I gotsta go home and show off the pictures.... which, by the way, there are about 150.... which means, I am NOT putting them all on the blog. Sorry... I haven't quite figured out how to pick which ones, so... until then, I guess you'll just have to come visit :-P

Saturday was awesome. (I am running out of words.) We rented a car and drove up the east side of the island to the temple. I did not realize how small it is inside. The outside is all done on such a grand scale, but the inside it is beautiful and simple. And COLD- for real, it was the first time this week I wished I'd had a jacket. ;-) After the temple Mom and I continued our journey up to the north shore. It was all things we've seen before this week, but this time we got to do it all on our own time. The surfers were out in full force, too, so we watched them for a while before deciding to complete our loop. We stopped at DOLE again, this time just for lunch.
Upon returning to Waikiki we dropped off the car and stopped to fill our pineapples. OH yes - the pineapples- so there is a place just a block down from our hotel that if you buy the souvenir pineapple cup, they will refill it for you - for free - forever. Needless to say, we've been carrying these silly pineapple cups around all week ;) The good part is that once they get home, they are also banks. I am always looking for something to put change in ;) We got the last of our shopping done, including a new bag. The real pineapples we picked up at dole are just too big - so we needed something to put them in that we could put other things in, too. I think we're finally good to go on getting everything to the plane... maybe.
Today we are taking the day completely chilled. We have to be out of the hotel at 11, but we don't leave until 7, so we're going to hang out on the beach and see if I can't find a little bit of sun. Last night was the first night I had actually put my feet in the ocean. Maybe today I'll find an excuse for the new swimsuit I bought.

Thursday was freaking awesome. We woke up with an easy breezy morning. We went down to the beach for a little bit, and then met up with our group as we all headed up to the Polynesian Cultural Center. For those of you not familiar with the concept of the PCC, you can totally check it out online. But the basic idea is that 6 of the main islands in Polynesia are represented by individual villages. You can walk from village to village and learn about the culture and traditions of the island. We leaned about how to make coconut milk in Samao, we learned about drums and dancing and hula and maori greetings and way too much else to keep going. Apparently though, Samoan's pride themselves on their humor - because that guy just kept milking it.
After visiting the villages we went to a luau, which was - wow. We got to see them take the pig out of the imu (the underground fire pit that they cook in). The show with the luau was great. The host was a student from BYU-Hawaii. We were told that 70% of the employees of the center are students. You'd never guess by the level of professionalism that they show. Mom and I decided our experience wouldn't be complete with out a drink in a pineapple, so we indulged. It was totally worth it.
The night show - now THAT was a sight. I giggled a little, because it has a definite twinge of pageant. We mormons, we love our pageants. BUT, it was only pageanty for a little while and then it was just phenomenal. The fire dancers stole the show, but the whole thing was just great.

Today Mom and I took a tour up to the Dole Plantation and around the North Shore. The tour was great. We got to learn all about how pineapples grow - which is still a completely manual process - they are planted and harvested by hand. UGH. Did you know pineapples grow in plants - NOT trees, and that each plant only has 2 seasons before it has to be replanted?
Cousin Aaron (everyone is family here)was our tour guide. He taught us how to pronounce Hawaiian words and about where everything is on the island and he gave us a history lesson about why the Hawaiian flag contains the Union Jack.
He took us to eat at shrimp truck on the side of the road. Seriously. Apparently there is a huge amount of freshwater shrimp and prawns that are grown and exported from the area. It was rather tasty, even for a girl who doesn't really like shrimp.
When we got back to the hotel, we went and made arrangements for our rental car tomorrow.
Tonight was our Award dinner. We went to a place called Tiki's grill and bar. The food was tasty and the bar was open ;) Ok, most of you know that last part doesn't really mean anything to me, except that I have discovered the Lava Flow. Basically it is a pina colada with strawberries. So, take out the alcohol and you now have my second favorite drink. Mmmmmm
Ok, I still have 2 days of this paradise left, but I am already at a loss of how I am going to get everything home..... wish me luck!

OH MY GOODNESS! I have never been to a more beautiful place in all my days. I am sorry there are no pictures yet, but as soon as I find the cord, I'll move them over.

We got to Hawaii yesterday. Our flights were mostly boring, which if you ask me, is the way flights SHOULD be. We only got lost once in LAX. There really should be more signs in a place that big. We landed in Honolulu and, of course we couldn't find our shuttle representative. Luckily, I am getting better at asking for help - AND I remembered to bring the super handy travel info that was provided by the agency.
Our driver was actually really cool. He filled us in on where stuff was on our way to the hotel and apparently he is freakishly athletic, as he can do the Diamond Head trail from the park and back in just over an hour. The hotel is lovely. The lobbies are very open. The weather has been perfect. It is humid (compared to SLC, everything is humid), but it's only been about 83-85 degrees. Our rooms were not quite ready, as we got here right around noon, so we wandered over to the first ABC store we found and got a bite for lunch. It's true what they say, "Milk is like,$5 a gallon." Fortunately, we were not there for milk.
After we were able to check in, we left everything in the room and went across the street to the beach. Holy people, Batman. I can only imagine what it looks like during the busy season. It was great people-watching, though. Between then and the ocean, I could be content for a very long time. The beach near the hotel is lovely white sand, which of course, they bring in from somewhere else. There is no real sand in Waikiki. The waves are ever present, but not very big. That night we wandered with some of the Truro group and went to Chili's for dinner and then came back to our first "mandatory meeting," the cocktail party. It was fun to put a few more names and voices with a face.
This morning was our second meeting. It really was a business meeting, and, thanks to Leah, it lasted exactly one hour. She actually got Jeremy to stop talking ;) After that, we had arranged to go to the swap meet, but we decided it was just a lot of sunny hot shopping, and the deals were just as good, if not better at The International Market, which is just a few blocks from the hotel. Soooo, instead we went to Punchbowl Memorial Park. It is a military cemetary, very much like Arlington - except with out all the white crosses. It is the burial site of military service men and women from 3 wars (WW2, Korea, and Veitnam). It was very humbling.
From there we continued on a drive up to Pali Point, from which you can see some of the most amazing scenery I have ever witnessed. Then we (not we so much as Leah - we just kind of rode along) up to the east side of the island. We followed the highway up to Lai'e. We stopped at the LDS temple for a few minutes and then continued up to the north shore. We stopped at Turtle Bay and Sunset Beach. The surfers at Sunset Beach were fun to watch. Crazy people, but fun to watch. There are big signs all over the beach warning of unsafe swimming conditions - completely ignored. Also, I know I am a bit of a geek, but it was cool to see the different sand on each beach. They are probably not more than a mile apart, but the sand on each spot is completely different - different texture, different color, different whatever else sand can be. I saved a bit from each, so come over, I'll show you what I mean.
After Sunset Beach we continued the circle and came back down the western side of the island. Again, completely different. This is where the agricultural part of the island is. Friday, Mom and I will go back up. We've booked a tour that will include the DOLE plantation as well as some more sightseeing along the north shore.
Tonight, after dinner, we went shopping at The International Market.... I am not sure what international means, except it felt like we were in Cancun again, with every vendor trying to get you into their shop and give you "good price" on what they are selling - which is exactly what the store next door is selling, too. It was fun though. We got all kinds of goodies :)
We got home a couple of hours ago, and I broke down and finally checked my work email. I made it 2 days. I am feeling pretty good about it ;-)