Check out Darrel's parent's dog opening up her Christmas gifts! I got such a kick out of this. She doesn't even eat the paper- she just opens it and spits it out!
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
Sunday, December 28, 2008
Los Angeles
Last week we were in L.A. for the whole week. I was so excited to get into warm weather after being in Alaska. Nope. Pretty much rainy and in the 40's and 50's the whole week.
Anyway, I was able to see a LOT of friends when I was out there, which is one of my favorite aspects of this job. My cousin Brian lives there (you might recognize him from a few Disney shows and network shows, and if you don't, I promise you will), my friend Stacie from tour last year was in the area with CATS, and my friends Doc and Amelia from tour now live in Vegas, so they drove in for a few nights. It was awesome to see all of them!
L.A. = expensive. Between Anchorage and L.A., I have hit my monthly budget in two weeks. That is not good.
Regardless, it was a fun week. We stayed in downtown L.A. at the swanky Westin. My room was small, but it was really nice. They have the "Heavenly" beds and showers, and I had a fridge and a good view, so life was good. The only issue was that our theatre was in Beverly Hills, 10 miles away, and for the first time ever, we had no company bus, and no rental cars. 10 miles can mean 1 hour there. Get this- they actually gave us public transportation passes to take the public bus to work! Ha! After late buses, musicians and instruments waiting in the rain, and major frustration, they finally got us a company bus. It was not exactly fun.
Anyway, I was able to see a LOT of friends when I was out there, which is one of my favorite aspects of this job. My cousin Brian lives there (you might recognize him from a few Disney shows and network shows, and if you don't, I promise you will), my friend Stacie from tour last year was in the area with CATS, and my friends Doc and Amelia from tour now live in Vegas, so they drove in for a few nights. It was awesome to see all of them!L.A. = expensive. Between Anchorage and L.A., I have hit my monthly budget in two weeks. That is not good.Darrel and I took the subway to go to Universal Studios and Hollywood Boulevard one afternoon. We didn't actually go in to Universal, but we walked around their little town area and and had lunch. We of course had to see the Hollywood Walk of Fame and the Chinese Theatre. That whole area is totally what you would think it would be. Tourist hell. Cheesy people dressed up as Spider Man and Jack Sparrow charging a dollar to take a picture with them, people selling their ghetto hip hop CD's on the street for $2.00, people selling tours of the stars homes- the whole nine yards. But the Chinese Theatre is really cool. It was so fun to walk around and read the names of the people who have imprinted their hands and feet in the concrete, both old and new. I wouldn't make a trip out of it, but it filled up some time on an afternoon off!
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Some General Thoughts About Alaska
It was so cold there. The inside of my nose would turn to ice when I was outside. Yet people walk around with light jackets on, and shorts. ??? Do you think that your body can really get used to the climate you live in? I'm not sure... And when you say to a local, "oh my, it's so cold" They respond with, "oh it's nice out- a mild day". Really?!
There were a lot of pregnant women there. More than I usually see in one week.
There was no water outside there. Like no slush, or rain. Just ice. Everywhere. I wiped out on it twice. (Could have something do to do with fashionable boots and a few beers though).
Anchorage had awesome, awesome restaurants. There were more to choose from in that little city than most others we go to, and we could walk to them all. Along the same lines, they had an unreal amount of bars downtown. I guess there is really not much to do there... which probably comes back around to the pregnant ladies. And they were all expensive.
One of the restaurants we went to had heated toilet seats. It was that cold.
I found that I had a hard time staying in touch with the rest of the U.S. They are 4 hours behind Eastern time, so by the time you really get going for the day and out and about, things are closing in other time zones. By the time I wanted to call home, people were asleep.
For some reason I did not wear any makeup while I was there. I just didn't want to. Not sure why. Maybe because it's so, shall we say, rustic or something?
They move a little bit slower up there. It's a stereotype, I know, but they do exist for a reason. Don't expect to rush through dinner or the line at the pharmacy. It's just not going to happen.
It was dark. All the time. The sun would come up around 10:00 and set at 3:30. This also probably has something to do with the preggers people and plentiful amounts of bars.
They eat reindeer. If you order a pizza, it has reindeer sausage on it. Poor Rudolph!
There were a lot of pregnant women there. More than I usually see in one week.
There was no water outside there. Like no slush, or rain. Just ice. Everywhere. I wiped out on it twice. (Could have something do to do with fashionable boots and a few beers though).
Anchorage had awesome, awesome restaurants. There were more to choose from in that little city than most others we go to, and we could walk to them all. Along the same lines, they had an unreal amount of bars downtown. I guess there is really not much to do there... which probably comes back around to the pregnant ladies. And they were all expensive.
One of the restaurants we went to had heated toilet seats. It was that cold.
I found that I had a hard time staying in touch with the rest of the U.S. They are 4 hours behind Eastern time, so by the time you really get going for the day and out and about, things are closing in other time zones. By the time I wanted to call home, people were asleep.
For some reason I did not wear any makeup while I was there. I just didn't want to. Not sure why. Maybe because it's so, shall we say, rustic or something?
They move a little bit slower up there. It's a stereotype, I know, but they do exist for a reason. Don't expect to rush through dinner or the line at the pharmacy. It's just not going to happen.
It was dark. All the time. The sun would come up around 10:00 and set at 3:30. This also probably has something to do with the preggers people and plentiful amounts of bars.
They eat reindeer. If you order a pizza, it has reindeer sausage on it. Poor Rudolph!
Jesus Christ Superband
And this is one of the reasons I love touring. Take an open mic night, grab our people, and voila! Pure amazing entertainment, in Anchorage, AK. Not one of them had rehearsed or played together before.
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
A Decorating Idea
I thought I would share this, because I have never seen it done before. We were in a restaurant in Anchorage, and they had wrapped all of their pictures on the walls to make them look like big presents! I thought it was a creative idea to add some Christmas cheer to your home or office!
Sunday, December 14, 2008
The Great Outdoors
Here I am in my hotel room, on my last night in Alaska. More to come on that later- I want to do a little show and tell about the amazing experience I had on Saturday morning.
Saturday morning was beautiful! Bill picked us up at the hotel at 10:00, and we were in the air by 10:30. I have never experienced anything like what I saw in my life. The photos below just don't do it justice because they kind of wash out the colors and don't show the vastness. Did you know that glaciers are blue? Like the color of the ocean in the Caribbean blue. We would fly over them, then bring the plane down and fly next to the cliffs. The famous glacier that we saw was the Knik. We also flew over Lake George, and Mat-Su Valley, saw sheep, mountain goats, reindeer and moose, and Mt. McKinley. There is no life out that far except an animal every now and then. They have to dig for their food, and the sheep and goats can go months without eating. No bears- they were all in hibernation.
But the glaciers and the snow covered mountains- wow. I felt so small. It is something I will never, ever forget. 
I really wanted to do something related to Alaska while I was here. Something I could not do anywhere else. Time was very limited because of my work load up here. In addition, the freezing temperatures limited me. My first choice would have been to go whale watching. Wrong season. Second would have been dog sledding. Didn't have the right clothes for it. So I went over to the visitor's center, and they gave me a pamphlet for Sound Aviation, a private plane rental company that does air tours.
Darrel and myself and a few friends decided to go on Friday afternoon. It is dark by about 3:30, so we talked to the pilot who owns the plane, and decided to go at 2:00. His wife (pregnant with kid number 7 in 7 years) picked us up with two cute little twins in the backseat, and took us to the local airport. It was just so cold, you have no idea. We loaded in the plane with Bill, took off, turned around in the air, and landed. Turns out that the weather was beautiful where we were flying to, but he could not get out of the airport area because of fog. We decided we would try for Saturday morning.
Saturday morning was beautiful! Bill picked us up at the hotel at 10:00, and we were in the air by 10:30. I have never experienced anything like what I saw in my life. The photos below just don't do it justice because they kind of wash out the colors and don't show the vastness. Did you know that glaciers are blue? Like the color of the ocean in the Caribbean blue. We would fly over them, then bring the plane down and fly next to the cliffs. The famous glacier that we saw was the Knik. We also flew over Lake George, and Mat-Su Valley, saw sheep, mountain goats, reindeer and moose, and Mt. McKinley. There is no life out that far except an animal every now and then. They have to dig for their food, and the sheep and goats can go months without eating. No bears- they were all in hibernation.But the glaciers and the snow covered mountains- wow. I felt so small. It is something I will never, ever forget. Friday, December 12, 2008
Vancouver, BC
We spent last weekend in Vancouver, which is a really interesting place. Parts of it are so fun, artsy and funky, and then there are some parts... not so much. For some reason there are a lot of people there who make me a little nervous. Like druggie/homeless/crazy people. It's not a place to walk around alone at night. But we just stuck in group and we were fine.
The last time we were there, we went to a bar in Gas Town (an area) where you can legally smoke pot. Really. (I didn't- honest, but I had some friends who wanted to see what it was all about). Some people wanted to check it out, but I had zero interest in going there again because I thought it was just weird and uncomfortable. Instead, we went to a bar that was right near it that was a lot of fun, called The Black Frog.
I have that book "1,000 Places To See Before You Die", and I live by it when I travel. (I actually highlight the places after I have seen them because I'm a dork like that). One of the things to see in Vancouver was the Sun Yat-Sen Chinese Garden in Chinatown. Darrel, Ras, Ethan and myself took a cab down there on Sunday to check them out. The garden is exactly what you would see if you were in China. They had men come from over there to build it, the materials are authentic, and it cost over 5 million dollars. It really was cool! Some pics are below. Our plan was to eat lunch in the third largest Chinatown in the world, but after about five minutes of walking around, I told Darrel I did not feel safe and preferred to go up closer to our hotel. It was a SHADY place, let me tell you! I decided I would rather have the memory of the garden than the memory of a mugging!
The last time we were there, we went to a bar in Gas Town (an area) where you can legally smoke pot. Really. (I didn't- honest, but I had some friends who wanted to see what it was all about). Some people wanted to check it out, but I had zero interest in going there again because I thought it was just weird and uncomfortable. Instead, we went to a bar that was right near it that was a lot of fun, called The Black Frog.
Back story on the Black Frog: the last time I was in Vancouver, Darrel and I went to go check out the famous steam clock they have, and ducked into a restaurant/bar for lunch. I had the most unbelievable tuna melt of my life there. I swear, I have been talking about it for two years. But we didn't know what the place was called. So this time, we walked back to the Steam Clock, found it, and ate lunch there on Saturday. Turns out the damn tuna melt was a special the last time I was there. Really!? I was so sad! But we liked the vibe of the place, so we took all of our friends there at night.
I have that book "1,000 Places To See Before You Die", and I live by it when I travel. (I actually highlight the places after I have seen them because I'm a dork like that). One of the things to see in Vancouver was the Sun Yat-Sen Chinese Garden in Chinatown. Darrel, Ras, Ethan and myself took a cab down there on Sunday to check them out. The garden is exactly what you would see if you were in China. They had men come from over there to build it, the materials are authentic, and it cost over 5 million dollars. It really was cool! Some pics are below. Our plan was to eat lunch in the third largest Chinatown in the world, but after about five minutes of walking around, I told Darrel I did not feel safe and preferred to go up closer to our hotel. It was a SHADY place, let me tell you! I decided I would rather have the memory of the garden than the memory of a mugging!
Monday, December 8, 2008
Dinner and a Movie
Here is our tour version of dinner and a movie. And let me tell you, it is much cheaper than doing it "for real".
Movie: on Netflix, so maybe like $1.00
Dinner: leftovers that were $14 last night, plus two room service salads for $14
Wine: from the store for $12
Hotel room: free
Total: about $35
We watched "Grace Is Gone", and independent film with John Cusack about losing a loved one in the military. I CRIED like crazy. It is not super sad the whole time, but parts of it really get to you. The girl who plays the younger daughter in the movie cracked us up- I hope she becomes famous.
Movie: on Netflix, so maybe like $1.00
Dinner: leftovers that were $14 last night, plus two room service salads for $14
Wine: from the store for $12
Hotel room: free
Total: about $35
We watched "Grace Is Gone", and independent film with John Cusack about losing a loved one in the military. I CRIED like crazy. It is not super sad the whole time, but parts of it really get to you. The girl who plays the younger daughter in the movie cracked us up- I hope she becomes famous.
All in all, great date night here at the hotel in Vancouver!
Saturday, December 6, 2008
Portland, OR
I just love Portland. LOVE it! I seem to like all of the town in the Northwest- Portland, Seattle, Vancouver, Calgary. When I walk around them, I think, "I could live here". But only if my entire family, including extended, moved there too of course. And maybe if it didn't rain so much.I like the way Portland is set up. All of the buildings are short, and the sidewalks are brick and stone. There are tram/trolleys that run throughout the whole city. All of the stores are free standing, meaning there is not really a mall. If you want to go to Nordstrom, it is a separate building from Gap, Borders, and Saks. There is a great nightlife with lots of musicians, local beers, etc., and you can walk everywhere.
I met up with a friend from tour last year, Beth, and we had lunch the afternoon I got there. I found some awesome sales at Anthropologie. Don't you just love when something is on sale and you did not know it until the ring you up? A pair of $148 jeans was marked down to $99. I thought.... OK, I like them so I'll go for it. I go to pay, and they are $48!!! Whoopie! The greatest thing about Portland is that there is 0% sales tax, so what you see is what you pay. Think about how much this can save you on large purchases!
Off to Vancouver, and then Alaska- is this really my life right now??!! :)
Friday, December 5, 2008
Just A Taste...
Of the new (and old) characters around me. Everyone loves a little Catch Phrase with some wine and Crown on a Thursday night!
Monday, December 1, 2008
Thanksgiving VEGAS STYLE!
This was the third Thanksgiving I have not been home for, in 30 years. But thanks to my awesome grandfather, I had a great traditional dinner at home the day before I left, with the entire family. So I got my fix.
We spent a few hours walking up the strip and checking out New York New York, MGM, Monte Carlo, and a few others. The one thing we would not do was go into Paris- we are planning a trip back to Vegas for a few nights in February and plan on staying there, and want to be surprised when we see it for the first time. While I have been to Vegas a few times, it's been about 7 years or so, and there are a lot of new things to see!
A few of us had dinner reservations at McCormick and Schmick for 8:00 (I found a great website that told me all of the Thanksgiving specials in town). They had a full turkey dinner for $18.95! However, once Darrel and I sat down and saw all of the steak and seafood options, we of course threw the turkey idea out the window. Dinner was perfect- old friends, and our "road family".
Next of course was the swanky Bellagio. We planned on getting a drink there, but the PRICES!! Oh my!! You would think they would want you to spend your money gambling! So we walked around and checked it out, then went to the new Planet Hollywood hotel for drinks instead. After a few, it seemed like a great idea to throw some of our hard-earned money into their slot machines- I lost $22 and Darrel lost $20, but it totally entertained us for a good half hour. (I thought by talking to the machine and telling it I really wanted the purple Louis Vuitton purse I had seen at Ceasar's that it would definitely pay me out, but I guess not).
They must really pump oxygen into those casinos, because I was up until 5:30am the first night, and 4:00am the second night. It was so fun, and a great town to enjoy Thanksgiving away from home in!
Luckily for us, we got to spend our night off for Thanksgiving in Vegas, with no show!!! I got in on Wednesday around midnight with the crew, and we just hung out at the Hooter's Bar because that's where we were staying. I really didn't want to go off and do too much without Darrel, because he had never been there before and I wanted to explore it with him. He arrived with the cast on Thanksgiving around 2:00pm, and it was off to the races!
We spent a few hours walking up the strip and checking out New York New York, MGM, Monte Carlo, and a few others. The one thing we would not do was go into Paris- we are planning a trip back to Vegas for a few nights in February and plan on staying there, and want to be surprised when we see it for the first time. While I have been to Vegas a few times, it's been about 7 years or so, and there are a lot of new things to see!A few of us had dinner reservations at McCormick and Schmick for 8:00 (I found a great website that told me all of the Thanksgiving specials in town). They had a full turkey dinner for $18.95! However, once Darrel and I sat down and saw all of the steak and seafood options, we of course threw the turkey idea out the window. Dinner was perfect- old friends, and our "road family".Next of course was the swanky Bellagio. We planned on getting a drink there, but the PRICES!! Oh my!! You would think they would want you to spend your money gambling! So we walked around and checked it out, then went to the new Planet Hollywood hotel for drinks instead. After a few, it seemed like a great idea to throw some of our hard-earned money into their slot machines- I lost $22 and Darrel lost $20, but it totally entertained us for a good half hour. (I thought by talking to the machine and telling it I really wanted the purple Louis Vuitton purse I had seen at Ceasar's that it would definitely pay me out, but I guess not).They must really pump oxygen into those casinos, because I was up until 5:30am the first night, and 4:00am the second night. It was so fun, and a great town to enjoy Thanksgiving away from home in!
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