Reno Balloon Race 2006

"I love this crazy tragic, sometimes almost magic awful beautiful life"

I discovered this video this weekend while I was with some friends. My friend, Zach pointed it out. It's a time-lapsed video of the Reno Balloon Festival. Keep track of the Eagle balloon. It seems to have some technical difficulties. It starts out near the middle of your screen then swirls around a bit, disappears, and re-appears later in the shot and then is done for.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zyyCcjbrWOM
This video is just so peaceful and there is so much going on, so I feel like I could watch it over and over again and still not catch quite everything.

This reminds me of a time when I was in Washington visiting my sister. We drove past a car dealership that had tons of balloons placed outside on the cars and they were just all bobbing up and down in the air, much like these balloons in the video.

*NOTE: I attempted in various ways (including the 2 that we learned in group presentations) to post this video not as a link, but as the actual YouTube Screen and was unsuccessful as you can see. If anyone has friendly advice, I'm all ears:)

"As we go on, we remember, all the times we, had together. And as our lives change, come whatever, we will still be, friends forever."
~Vitamin C~

So, yes, this isn't the highest quality of songs, but it gets the point across. It is almost graduation. I am getting very sad when I really should be getting excited. I spent the weekend with some old friends that I used to see much more often. I found myself being very sad on the way back. One of the friends I speak of is from Boston. As I was leaving to come back to Milwaukee, he gave me a hug and we realized that this could potentially be the last time we see each other. He is also graduating in May and will be moving back to Boston and who knows where I will be.

Which leads me to my next issue: where am I going to be after graduation? I am having a near nervous breakdown trying to figure out the next phase of my life. I am barely coasting through the end of the semester while not realizing that it is almost gone! Even the stress of planning a graduation party is something that I don't want to deal with when really it should be a fun time.

Ugh!--so that is my rant for the evening.

45 Natural Highs

1. Falling in love.
2. Laughing so hard your face hurts.
3. A hot shower.
4. No lines at the supermarket.
5. A special glance.
6. Getting mail.
7. Taking a drive on a pretty road.
8. Hearing your favorite song on the radio.
9. Lying in bed listening to the rain outside
10. Hot towels fresh out of the dryer.
11. Chocolate milkshake (vanilla or strawberry).
12. A bubble bath.
13. Giggling.
14. A good conversation.
15 The beach.
16. Finding a 20 dollar bill in your coat from last winter.
17. Laughing at yourself.
18. Looking into their eyes and knowing they Love you.
19. Midnight phone calls that last for hours.
20. Running through sprinklers.
21. Laughing for absolutely no reason at all.
22. Having someone tell you that you're beautiful.
23. Laughing at an inside joke with a FRIEND.
25. Accidentally overhearing someone say something nice about you.
26. Waking up and realizing you still have a few hours left to sleep.
27. Your first kiss (either the very first or with a new partner).
28. Making new friends or spending time with old ones.
29. Playing with a new puppy.
30. Having someone play with your hair.
31. Sweet dreams.
32. Hot chocolate.
33. Road trips with friends.
34. Swinging on swings.
35. Making eye contact with a cute stranger.
36. Making chocolate chip cookies.
37. Having your friends send you homemade cookies.
38. Holding hands with someone you care about.
39. Running into an old friend and realizing that some things (good or bad) never change.
40. Watching the expression on someone's face as they open a much desired present from you.
41. Watching the sunrise.
42. Getting out of bed every morning and being grateful for another beautiful day.
43. Knowing that somebody misses you.
44. Getting a hug from someone you care about deeply.
45 Knowing you've done the right thing, no matter what other people think.

Happy Birthday Boo!

“Everyone has the power for greatness, because greatness is determined by service.”
~Martin Luther King Jr.~

In honor of my sister's birthday, I thought I'd write a little bit about my her. I know I have mentioned her on here before, but I am extremely proud of her:) Her name is Brittany, but we all call her Boo.

She will be gone for 27 months serving in the Peace Corps in Niger, Africa. My family has set a website up for her, so friends and other relatives can stay updated on what she is doing for those 2 years of her life. Feel free to log on at www.meandmyswissarmyknife.com and you can even sign the guestbook.

Whether you agree with her views or not, I have come to learn that I can still admire her for what she is doing. She is living in the poorest country in the world teaching environmental awareness to the people in her village. The people in Africa need all the help that they can get and it's people like Brittany and all of her fellow Peace Corps volunteers that are trying their best to make this world a better and more sustainable place to live.

Luckily we are able to talk to her occasionally and if she is in the capitol city of Niamey, she can have Internet access. Other than these forms of communication, we revert back to the days when it was normal to write a letter and send it by "snail mail." It's a nice reminder of the more simple times.

I love you Boo and Happy Birthday!

The Ultimate Summer Night

"Candyman tempting the thoughts of a sweet tooth tortured by the weight loss"
~DMB~

I am one of those people that has no problem listening to music while doing homework, in fact, i much prefer it. A band that I commonly find myself working to is the Dave Matthews Band. I know some people think they are overrated or has-beens or whatever you want to call them, but I still love them.

Along with loving their music, they put on some of the best concerts at Alpine Valley. The DMB concert is an activity that simply makes my summer! I have been getting more and more excited about the concert this summer as the days towards graduation creep closer. It is a day where all of my friends, wherever scattered around the state, meet at Alpine Valley and make memories that will last us forever. One of my favorite songs to hear in concert is "Ants Marching," so I have happily quoted the coolest part of the song to hear live.

I am also trying to practice with linking things to my blog, so if you haven't had the joy of experiementing DMB at Alpine Valley then take a look.
Although a little long, this is one of the better recordings that I was able to find..... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AXtp1Aap9oo

I tried to make the link work when you click on the word "this" but I simply have no idea how to do this, so if anyone wants to share their knowledge with me, feel free.

A place I hope to work....

"Good Sounds. Good Cause. Good Soda"

I got very excited today.

If you were in the Union at all today, you may have noticed the Nutrisoda booth set up in the concourse. I know I did. For the past week or so, I have been noticing a banner advertising the Fresh Air Tour in the Union. I decided to do a little more research to find out just what that was. It is put on by Nutrisoda with a tagline of "Good sounds. Good cause. Good Soda." This still didn't explain too much, so I decided to stop by the booth in the Union today.

I walked up and listened in on a girl asking how she could get the free products that were displayed. The Nutrisoda representative simply asked that we plant a virtual tree. "It takes less than 2 minutes." The best part was this...A company whose name escapes me right now said that every virtual tree that was planted will actually be planted, so I decided to plant two virtual trees and then let others participate.

The Fresh Air Tour is a concert tonight in the Gasthaus that is promoting this cause of sustainable development and good old mother earth.

While I was learning about all of this, I got into talking to one of the girls that was working the booth. I asked her if she worked for Nutrisoda and how she got involved in this. She works for a Minnesota based marketing company, which I am extremely excited to research more. The company is a marketing that supports the natural and organic industry. I love the whole concept of what Nutrisoda is doing and what The Fresh Air tour is doing.

So, come out to the concert tonight and support the efforts! It's FREE!

an always entertaining family gathering

"That's because you're country folk"
~Grammy Dee~

Any time that the extended family gets together is a guaranteed great time. It's always entertaining. The most entertaining part, however, has got to be my grandma. She has been through quite a lot in her life and quite frankly deserves to say whatever she wants. And trust me, SHE DOES. She has no censor, so most of the time whatever comes out of her mouth is bound to entertain anyone who hears it.

The quote from above is from the entertaining post-Easter dinner conversation. My mom and sister, my grandma, 2 of my cousins and their mothers (my aunts) were sitting around the table just chatting. My family is from Lake Geneva, WI, whereas, my cousins are from suburbs of Chicago. Apparently because we don’t live in or near Chicago, my grandma seems to think that we are “country folk.”

This is one example of the many ridiculous, random comments that my grandma makes. I could go on to list all of the things that my Grandma has said that has made quite the impression on all of us, but it will most defiantly not be as funny unless you met my grandma.

I’m glad she is still with us through the brain surgery, the heart problems, and all of the cancer. Because of this, I appreciate all of the unpredictable things she has to say. Especially because she is completely aware that she is not being politically correct. (I know this isn’t PC, but I don’t care” is one of her most favorite disclaimers).