May Challenge: Happy Things

Ten things that make you really happy.

I am actually doing tomorrow's prompt today because I like it better and I am doing Travel Tuesday tomorrow so I wont be able to do it then.

I am not going to go with the obvious things on this post.  Obviously my friends, family and Josh make me happy.  I am going to tell you about some random things that make me happy.

1.  Books: If you have been reading my blog for any length of time, you know that I love to read.  Reading is a stress reliever for me and it is also one of my favorite hobbies.  I always enjoying talking about different books with people. 

2. Tattoo's:  I have three and currently have two in the works.  I love tattoos when they are done right.  I also have a thing for men with tattoos.  That's half the appeal of Adam Levine.  I love seeing different people's tattoos and hearing what the tattoos mean to them.  I have an autism ribbon with my brothers name on my hip, hibiscus flowers on my feet and this treble clef on my back:

This is one my sister and  I are going to get together.  Alice in Wonderland is our favorite.

3. Walks: We have a few trails within a few miles of my house and I love just going for a walk.  It clears my head and gives me a reason to get out of the house on days that I have nothing to do.

4. Washington DC:  I love this place.  I have been a ridiculous amount of times but I always find something new to do there.  I love being so close to our nations capitol and I definitely take advantage of that.

5. Back Roads: I take back roads almost every where even if there is an easier way.  Partly because I hate dealing with traffic lights and partially because I love the scenery and I love being one of the only people on that road.  I am able to think and clear my head more so then when I am driving on main roads due to annoying traffic and other things and main roads.

6.  Cupcakes:  I try not to eat a lot of sweets because obviously they are not good for you, but I have a definite weakness for cupcakes!  I love them way more than cake and think they are the perfect size for a sweet snack, though if I could, I would eat a whole box!  We are even having cupcakes instead of cake at our wedding :) 

7. Shopping:  Yes, I am your typical girl who loves shopping.  I am that person that will go into Kohl's for four hours and only come out with a few items.  I am pretty particular about what I buy and wont buy something unless I really like it, but I love browsing.  I  can look around for hours and not get bored.  Put me in Barnes and Noble and I may never leave.  I have literally spent 5 hours there before.

Josh got this pic of me shopping at Body Central

8.  Zumba: Zumba has been such a fun way for me to get my cardio in.  I have had a very bad relationship with the treadmill lately, so I am loving Zumba.  It is a lot of fun and our instructor is very energetic.  He has been adding some harder routines in lately and I love that.

I am in this pic behind the little black woman.  I have on a black tank top.

9.  Good Music/Singers: I feel like in our society today we pick who we listen to based on how they look rather than how they sound.  I like good singers, they make me happy because they are few and far between.

These women have incredible voices.

10. Travel:  This should be the most obvious.  Traveling makes me extremely happy.  I love exploring new places and new cultures.   I love trying to understand the way that others live and embracing it.  I love seeing significant historical landmarks and feeling like a part of this worlds incredible history.

Pantheon in Italy

These are just 10 of the many things that make me happy :)

May Challenege: Day 12

What Do You Miss? (a person, a place, a thing, a time in your life)

I Miss:

Victory Jam: A week long camp I went to in the Summers during Middle School with my youth group.  I have such great memories from those Summers. I tried to find pictures but I can't find the disk and I don't have time to look for them :(

Brent: A close friend of mine that was killed in 2009.  I miss him everyday and would never wish the death of a friend on my worst enemies.  My group of friends is really, really close and this was a very difficult time for us.

Buddy: The best dog I have ever had.  I miss this goof.

Book Club Friday: Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe

Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe

By: Fannie Flagg

Pages: 403

Read: 7/26/12

"It's first the story of two women in the 1980s, of gray-headed Mrs. Threadgoode telling her life story to Evelyn, who is in the sad slump of middle age. The tale she tells is also of two women -- of the irrepressibly daredevilish tomboy Idgie and her friend Ruth, who back in the thirties ran a little place in Whistle Stop, Alabama, a Southern kind of Cafe Wobegon offering good barbecue and good coffee and all kinds of love and laughter, even an occasional murder."

{Goodreads}

I can't begin to describe how much I LOVE this book!  I actually saw the movie first because Josh said I had to see it.  Then I discovered it was a book so I immediately went to Barnes and Noble to get it!  I thought it was brilliant, the characters were all very well developed.  There was also controversies that were seen as a big deal in Alabama in the early 1900's such as homosexuality and racial prejudice.  I thought it was a heartwarming book and a great look at life, death, love and friendship.  If you love Southern Literature and a great story, this book is for you!

I gave this book a 5/5 on my Goodreads :)

Travel Tuesday: Ziplining in Costa Rica

 Our last day in Costa Rica after a week of work was spent on the beach and zip lining!  

This company was so great!  The guides were very nice and very helpful and all of them spoke pretty good English.  So, if you are ever in the area of Manuel Antonio, Costa Rica, look this place up!

View from one of the platforms

Zip lining through the rainforest was one of the coolest experiences.  We saw all kinds of different animals such as monkeys, sloths and toucans just from Zip-lining.  I had such a great experience that Josh and I booked a Zip-Lining excursion for our Honeymoon!

May Challenge: Day 6

Well I have already failed to blog every day in May.   Mainly because my friend Heather surprised us with a trip home this weekend so I was hardly home this weekend.  Even though I didn't blog every day, I am still going to participate :)

Today's prompt: If you couldn't answer with your job, how would you answer the question "what do you do".

I Go to School: Monday - Thursday I am in school either in class or in the library studying.  I take school seriously and it really is "what I do".  Next semester I will even be there on Friday's!

 

I Read: I absolutely read and I am not sorry that this is what I spent my whole spring break doing.  I love to read, it is one of my biggest stress relievers. 

I Workout: The gym and Zumba are also two of my stress relievers.  I love working out because it makes me feel good about myself and even if I am having a lazy day, it makes me feel like I accomplished something for the day. 

I Travel: As much as I can, anyways.  Right now I unfortunately can't afford to travel as much as I would like due to school and my sucky job and wedding costs.  However, I will always consider myself a traveler because even though I can't do big trips right now I still plan day trips and take short trips every chance I get.

Acadia National Park, Maine

I think this pretty much sums up "what I do".

Book Review: Broken Honor

Broken Honor

By: Patricia Potter

Pages: 405

Read:  8/10/2012

"Long ago, in the waning years of World War II, a Nazi train was captured by the Allies. Its cargo—a fortune in stolen art and gold dust— vanished. Now, two strangers are about to become engulfed in its tantalizing mystery...

Raised in a military family, Amy Mallory grew to resent authoritarian control and vowed never to fall for a man in uniform. But what she discovers in her late grandfather's private files exposes her to a dangerous—and tempting—world she never imagined.

Colonel Lucien Flaherty has devoted his life to duty, country, and family. But all that he believes is shattered when his ancestors' honor is tainted by scandal—and by secrets that link his past to that of a beautiful stranger. Invaluable secrets that someone would kill to keep buried . . . secrets that bring Amy and Lucien together in unexpected passion and inescapable peril."

{Goodreads}

I thought this book was pretty good.  I generally enjoy books that have a bit of mystery to them.  So, for me this was an good read.  Amy's character did make me mad sometimes but it definitely wasn't bad enough to ruin the story for me.  Overall, I thought this book was pretty good and I thought it was pretty fast paced and it ended well. 

I gave this a 4/5 on Goodreads.

Blog Every Day

A few days ago, Jenni announced a Blog Every Day in May Challenge.  I want to participate and for the most part, I will but there will be some days (mainly Tuesdays and Fridays) where I don't participate.  But I do plan to blog every day and I am excited to do this.   Today is actually Day 2 (yes, I skipped Day 1) and the topic is: Educate us on something you know a lot about or are good at. Take any approach you'd like (serious and educational or  funny and sarcastic). 

Today I am going to go with Educational.  At the moment I am taking a Pre-Calculus math class and a few of us hang out before class for a while.  Recently there has been a debate in our little group about evolution.  It is pretty much 5 against 1 in this debate but it's still fun.  I majored in Biological Anthropology at JMU and I definitely believe in evolution because I have been able to see and touch proof of our species and other species evolving.

I am not going to cover everything because I could literally talk about this all day.  But I am going to mention a few different species which I found most interesting.

This is a reconstruction of Lucy who was a member of the Australopithecus genus, more specifically, A. afarensis.  A afarensis is an extinct hominid that is thought to be the most closely related to the genus Homo, which is what humans are. Lucy is one of the oldest and most complete (40%) skeletons to be found and is thought to have died approximately 3.2 mya.  She was discovered in 1974 at Hadar in Ethiopia.

This is a digital reconstruction of  Homo habilis, which was the oldest known species of the genus Homo until after I graduated!  In 2010, Homo gautengensis was discovered and is still being examined.  Homo habilis lived approximately 2.4 - 1.4mya in southern and eastern Africa.  The first Skeleton was discovered in 1960 in Tanzania.  The average height was between 3'4 and 4'5 and the average weight was approximately 70lbs.

This is a reconstruction of Homo Heidelbergensis.   This species lived between 700,000 to 200,000 years ago in Europe, eastern & southern Africa and western Asia.  The first skeleton was discovered in 1908 in Heidelberg, Germany.  Males averaged a height of about 5'9 and a weight of about 136lbs.  Females averaged a height of about 5'2 and a weight of about 112lbs.

That is it for my little educational post.  Obviously there is more information around about this stuff and I could do a whole series on evolution.  Anthropology will always be my first love and hopefully my background will come in handy one day.