this one is for you alex

all-to-often i will look back on conversations with brandon or with friends and realize that we didn't really say anything, just a few meaningless words strewn together to form what i thought was a conversation.  this makes me ill--i want all the words that pour from my mouth and those around me to be weighed and examined before the gush forth.  most importantly, i want the words i say to be true and my language to be void of oppressive tones.  

these public service announcements are clever, and i hope they make an impact.  i cringe when my younger brothers use this phrase.  hopefully hillary duff will be enough to convince them that it is so crude and insulting to say, "that's so gay".  

righteous fear

for those of you who know me even slightly, my fear of monkeys is pervasive and long-standing.  i  have been thinking about how this phobia will manifest itself while we are in costa rica, what with monkeys abounding in every location.  each time i flip through our guide book i try to desensitize myself to these creatures, hoping i will be able to cope adequately while we are on our trip.  

however, tonight i came home to this story which does nothing to suppress my fears.  specifically the call to 911 included this quote: "he's [the chimp] ripping her apart."  ahh, here comes the panic attack now!

taking flight

this weekend we got out of dodge for a little vacation.  first we headed to the valley to see my grandma who had been in the hospital for about a week.  she suffered from a long list of issues and had to spend time there until they resolved/treated them all.  on tuesday, we went to visit her again and were able to share in the excitement of her preparing to leave the hospital.  she is going to an assisted living home as she isn't quite up to par for living on her own yet, but then again she is 91!  

spending time in dallas also meant we got to see steve and debbie, even if briefly!  they are exceptionally wonderful in their respective aunt and uncle roles and we are always grateful for them. 

after that we headed down i-5 to ashland, where i had arranged for us to stay at the ashland springs hotel.  this historic building has to be one of the most incredible, detailed, amazing places i have ever stayed.  from the moment we walked in i was giddy with excitement and loved nearly every inch of the place.  (there were some over-the-top lamps and mirrors adorned with seashells that i wasn't fond of, but otherwise...).  i found a great rate online for a discount on the posh hotel plus massages for two--my dream vacation.  we had such a wonderful time in ashland and would recommend this hotel to anyone.

here are a few of my favorite details:

they had this bird theme, which i am not sure of the origin, but they took it all out.  not all out in a tacky way, but in a very classy, tasteful way.  such as the adorable version of the do not disturb staple.  i much prefer to be referred to as "nesting".

on each door there was this cute little hand clip.  i so wanted to figure out a way to take ours off and bring it home with me, but the security cameras prevented me from stealing.  this photo doesn't do justice to how cool this hardware was.  

we got a great room on the 8th floor with a ginormous bed, a ton of pillows, and a superb view.  there were very few guests, so it felt like we had the place to ourselves. 

this is us in our hotel room.  brandon wanted to pose like an old-fashioned wedding photo, but i didn't want to be so serious.

here we are in the lobby of the hotel, standing in front of a dried manzanita shrub.  i am not terribly fond of live manzanita: it takes over, scratches as you ride or hike through it, and is horrible to try to cut.  when dried, the bark turns a deep dark brown and the leaves fade to sage green.  

after that we stayed with friends from jackson who have moved to southern oregon.  it was great to see them and catch up on life.  all-in-all, it was a great escape.

photo update

we've been enjoying going to my brothers' basketball games.  this week rodney got to play in both the jv and varsity games.  he did really well and is one of the few guys on his team willing to get in the middle of the pack for the rebound.  

(yes, rodney does have two full arms, but this photo he was moving so quickly it looks like he may be an amputee.)

and harvey has been keeping us busy, insisting we entertain him with constant ball throwing or kicking.  he is puppy through and through...  this week he had his "surgery" so we are supposed to be making him be quiet and still.  those directions haunt me, how on earth can we make that happen?  he bounced back from the anesthesia quicker than any other puppy they had seen at the clinic, according to the vet tech.  we are not surprised--this crooked eared guy doesn't do anything slowly.

last week we took harvey cross-country skiing with us.  we went into tumalo falls, which is about a 5 mile ski round-trip.  that was the only thing that wore harvey out, but he only slept for about an hour and then was up and ready for more games.  

yesterday we drove over to salem to spend the day with my grandma, who is in the hospital.  she is having a variety of problems, most of which point to the fact that she probably shouldn't be living alone any longer.  she is so strong for 91, yet there are too many risks.  they are keeping her in the hospital to figure out why she keeps blacking out and to figure out what they can do for her back.  i am very grateful for my uncles ron and john who are keeping watch of her.