Cruise Journey - Blog #2: Ziplining in Ketchikan, Alaska

Our first excursion on the cruise was to zip-line in the rain forests of Ketchikan, Alaska.We got to spend some time in the city before our excursion, which was nice, although the city seemed more like a tourist attraction than a town that people live in most of their lives. There were a ton of jewelry stores. One of the biggest thing we regretted was not buying some alcohol in this city. It was so cheap. We thought that we would find the same cheap alcohol in other ports, but we were wrong. Oh well..I guess it is kind of a good thing because we don't want to become alcholics. :P

The ziplining was one of the most fun things ever. I was super excited for this excursion as I've never had the chance to do it. The other thing that probably made this so special was because it happened right on my birthday also. The ride to the course was quite different. We had to ride this rather high and oversized golf cart that got up to pretty fast speeds. It was quite bumpy but fun. It took a while to get the safety gear and talk, but finally the wait ended. It was such a beautiful view from the platforms from ziplines to ziplines:
The weather was really perfect. There was no rain and the sun was out. There were various lengths of zip lines. Here are pictures of some of the longer ones, it's really hard to tell where the end of the line was:

The bridge is where the end was. It's hard to see, but it's the lighter thing in the picture among all the green tree.





In the middle of the zip line course, there were some rope bridges that we needed to cross. I think these were a lot more scary because they swung pretty well. It was awesome to walk through them though because we were able to see some really cool things that were growing in the forest that we were zipping across.




It was extremely good day. Andy and I got to experience this with a nice group of people. Some pictures of us and the people we were with:

The group we zip lined with

Jasmine and Jo from Las Vegas


Me and Andy. I had to take this at a weird angle

Some action shots:

Here I am on the last zip line.

Here's Andy leaving a platform.

Cruise Journey - Blog #1: Wine Tasting On a Cruise

So I don't know how long I can remember everything that has gone on at the cruise, but I will try to post about everything that we did.

One of the things we did on the cruise was a wine tasting. The price per person was actually not too expensive and we came away with a shot glass with the cruise logo on it. The other nice thing was that kids weren't allowed to attend. I'm not saying I don't like the kids, but it was nice to just have a normal conversation without one of the kids going "Look! Look! Look!"

We got to taste 5 different types of wines. 2 of them were white ones, 2 of them were dark ones, and one was a sparkling one. My favorite one was the sparkling wine, but I think that's mostly cuz I like my girly drinks. LOL! The others weren't bad at all. They all had a great flavor to them, and the part that surprised me the most was that they didn't have a bad after taste. Also, I didn't feel drunk or anything either. Maybe it has something to do with the price?? I don't know. Some pictures from the event:

Andy and I

Ceasar and Becky (Andy's Sister)

Tiffany and Curt (Andy's Brother)

Harvey and Roxie (Andy's Parents)

I seemed to have not taken a picture of Andy's other sister, Jenny, and her husband. :(
I'm sorry!!

This was a good experience for Andy and I because we usually don't like wine. The only good stuff we like are either Boone's Farm (which to most is not a wine) and White Zinfandel. We've also never been to any wineries before, but maybe this will change. Andy's sister suggested we should visit a winery that is close to Tucson. We will probably do that when Andy's parents come to town.

Back To The Dreary Working Life

I was able to get away from Tucson, Arizona for a little over a week for a nice vacation/delayed honeymoon.

Andy and I first traveled back to Kansas to attend his brother's graduation. It was so weird to be attending a graduation after I attended my own and Andy's. It was nice to be part of a family thing since I am the only kid in my own personal family and would never have this experience.

The travel to the cruise boat wasn't super great. We didn't really get a ton of sleep between the graduation and the flight to Seattle. One thing that I have learned is that I hate United Airlines. The seats on that plane is super crappy. The service sucked. The last thing that made it worse was the passengers.

I was so relieved when we finally got on the cruise boat. It was so nice because we were extremely hungry when we got on the boat and we were able to eat right away. The buffet was really nice. To make sure I didn't eat a lot, I just got one plate with small portion of everything. That really didn't do anything as I think I ate more than ever during this last week than ever. It was all extremely amazing! The main courses ranged from lobster to steak and all the inbetweens. The desserts was superb, which included such things such as yummy ice cream and some frenchy stuff that were pretty and delicious. I wish I took pictures of some of the foods.

Man..I could literally go on and on about this. But I will let my following blogs update the journey of this wonderful trip slowly. I will try to remember to upload my pictures tonight. :D

Short Week!! :D

I am so excited for this week to be completely over!! It's such a short week for me and I can't wait till it's over!!! I only have to work Monday through Wednesday and I get to take off Thursday and Friday and all of next week!! :D :D :D Andy and I are taking off because we're going on an Alaskan Cruise starting on Sunday!! It'll be such a nice get away and I think it will be greater than any honeymoon we could have planned for after the wedding. :)

After a week of pondering over a new car, Andy and I bought one. We spent a little bit of money on an used 2001 Mazda Miata. It was in a very good shape with a small ding on the side and not too much miles added on. We saw a couple before this one, and we decided that this was the best one and the best color too. What do you think of it?


It's a stick shift car that I can't drive completely with confidence. I've recently learned how to drive stick shit. I've had hard time starting the car and also just not to get completely frustrated with this stupid driving. I hope I get better with this.

Work has been extremely frustrating and completely tiring. I've been trying my hardest to finish the steps in this project I've been working on. I've stayed later than my 9 hours most of the days in the last 2 weeks. I still feel completely un-accomplished. It doesn't help that I'm treated the way I do. Merits or not, I don't appreciate feeling accomplished and then being completely shot down with the way I've done things. I just hope that it gets better with this nice long enjoyable break.

I've recently just sent out my package for the crafty detective swap. I tried a couple of new things for this swap that I'm very proud of. The first thing is this recycled ATC (artistic trading card). I used scraps from a dictionary and a lot of paint.


I also made some socks that Jenicat had on her wist. I'm amazed that they fit her so well! The last time I made socks they were so huge that Andy could wear them over shoes!!



Last thing that I'm really proud of is the elephant art quilt. I've always wanted to make one and I didn't know how or what to make. My sewing skills are not the greatest, but I love how this turned out!


Can't wait for this week to be over and be on a real vacation!!!

New Fun Car?

So after a pretty stressful period of time, I finally feel that I'm back to myself a little bit.

Lately, Andy and I have been looking into getting a little fun car to drive. I blame this on one of our co-workers from work because he always is buying used cars and always selling them. The biggest thing is that he always finds the nicest car at a pretty decent price. They may be a bit on the older side of things, however, I personally don't think I would want to pay 50000 or more for a nice new car that I don't think I would drive just so that I can keep it pristine. Not to mention, the price for keeping it in good shape is probably way up high.

Anyhow, we decided that we would want to keep it on the cheap side. We've been looking at some Mazda Miatas. They've gotten really good rating and are more readily available. Andy really wanted one, and I just kind of wanted one because I rather be a passenger and I still can't quite drive stick shift. We found one that was in really good shape and decent price today. Andy tried out and found out that it was a bit small. Sitting in the car today really changed my mind, I think. It was perfect for me. I didn't feel too crammed nor did I feel like a lot of space was wasted. I think I've jumped the fence. I don't know!!! This would be a great incentive to drive stick. Don't get me wrong, I like my Camry, but it's old and a bit beaten up sorta. I don't know... AHHHH!!!

So here's a picture:

Stressed Out Monday

Ever since middle of last week, I have not felt 100% myself. I feel tensed and stressed and really short-tempered. I don't know if it's due to the lack of sleep or amount of work that I'm trying to complete before tomorrow. I don't know. I hate it. I hate how I'm feeling.

I can't wait for the cruise I get to go on later this month. I can turn off all phones and completely ignore my computer and the internet. I don't have to worry about work and I can completely enjoy myself. I'm excited for the zipline and the helicopter ride and the dog sleds. :) I hope that I can come back from it refreshed and happy.