Back From Paradise Bliss

Yes, it's true. I came back on Saturday from my Disneyland/Cruise vacation and tomorrow I have to work :( I hate reality. Scott says I must travel all the time to escape reality because he thinks I live in a dream world. Whatever - I'm happy in my twisted dream world. So, you want a cruise recap? Of course you do! Okay, here goes...

We arrived at Disneyland last Saturday, May 19 after a 6.5 hour car drive from Sacramento. The drive down was pretty fun (albeit a little scary with Scott's freakish, road-raged-filled driving). BTW, happy cows DO NOT come from California. The real truth is that they live in little cow concentration camps along Highway 5. Cows go in but cows don't come out!

Ahem.. so we arrived at Disneyland at about 2:00 PM and promptly took pictures in front of each letter of California Adventures. Here's a really fun sample:


And proceeded on to Grizzly Bear Run where we conned someone into taking our picture:


Sucker! Well, California Adventures was a good time and then we headed over to the main island to fastpass Space Mountain. Good times. After the fireworks were over and the park was closed we made our way back to the Hotel with the SUPER comfy beds and good cookies (Doubletree Anaheim, anyone?). I got a great candid with Scott still sleeping:


The next day we made our way yet again back to Disneyland, took a few pics, rode a few rides, had some laughs and then went back to the hotel again to get ready for our CRUISE the next day!



The cruise:

I've been on better, but this one was fun because I was almost 70 pounds lighter! I could actually dance and participate in every activity. First we went to dinner. Here's a pic with me and Scott and our dining partners, Michael and Martha (some VERY nice people). Scott's the one with the shirt that says "This is what cool looks like."


The first day we went to the show with the slutty girls and then we went SALSA DANCING! We got lots of compliements on our quasi-salsa dancing. Scott was wearing his blue clubbing shirt with the first few buttons undone and he was getting compliments from the guys as well as the girls LOL! I think it made him feel good. Afterward we went to Karaoke where we saw the funniest Karaoke show I've ever encountered. The guy was singing some old folk song about "you don't call me anymore" and grinding with two other guys! Here's a pic of one doing the white boy move:



After Karaoke we went to the dance club with the other freak dancing teenagers. That lasted aobut 20 minutes and then off to bed we went. The next day was San Diego!

When we got to San Diego we decided that we wanted to do the Coronado bike tour so we got off the ship and booked the bike tour directly. Coronado was BEATIFUL and it was fun to ride bikes around the "island". Dick Cheney happened to be staying at the Hotel del Coronado, so we chose not to wear camouflage:



After Coronado we took a trolley down to Old Town. I wanted Scott to experience the mariachis and the dancing, but there was nothing! Well, at least it was a nice stroll through Old Town. Then back to the ship for formal night. We had our picture taken just about every location on the ship, but in the end I was the happist with this pic:


The next day was Catalina Island. Once again we chose to rent some bikes and tour the island, only this time it was much, much harder! We rode up to the botanical gardens on like, I swear a 45 degree angle for about 2 miles. I just about died.
Here's a pic of me and Scott looking very tired after our ride:


After about 12 miles of hardcore riding we decided to stroll down to the Casino (a word for their local shopping center) - another not so easy walk. We are gluttons for punishment! Casino closed! So we walked BACK, got some ice cream, some fudge (where Scott couldn't get enough of their amaretto fudge), and then went to the beach. Most poor saps were wearing wet suits. Ah, no, we were too good for wetsuits, so we got into the cold water with nothing but our swimsuits on! Of course, Scott dared me so I had to do it. Really, it wasn't too bad. Afterwards we just laid on the beach. Ahhhhh!

That night happened to be the chocolate buffet night. Little did I know about Scott's chocolate problem. Okay, from now on that boy CANNOT have chocolate! He goes crazy. He's clinical. He had a HUGE plateful of chocolate, all covered in fudge and chocolate shavings, some mousse, and then seconds on the way out. He said, "I could die happy right now," and the woman at our table said, "you just might," and that started him on a laughing frenzy that lasted 40 minutes! I couldn't get him to stop:


Next day was Ensenada, Mexico. Why did we stop in Ensenada? Ensenada sucks. I'd rather have had a day at sea. Anyhow, we went to la Bufadora (which I'd already seen), I taught Scott how to barter (and got some really cool Libre masks, below), and then Scott freaked out over the kids and their Chicklets. I warned him!


Afterward we got back on the ship, laid out, sat in the hot tub, and just relaxed for our last day. It was a very fun cruise.

Departure day was sad, but we were tired and ready to go. So we drove back to Sacramento, where I slept half the way home. I felt bad that Scott drove all the way there and all the way back. I should have offered to drive! But once we were back we had a second wind and decided to go see X-Men 3.

So there's your recap. Happy now?

My Good Friends

I've come to the realization that all my friends are better people than I am. I wouldn't have it any other way. They put up with my self-obsessing crap all the time, they are constantly looking out for others, and they are the funniest friggin people I've ever met. Who could ask for more? And so... I've wrote a bad haiku for my friends. Ahem:

My friends are funny
Jack Handey can't beat their wit
My brain is tired

Whoa, it took me WAAAAY too long to come up with that useless bit. I couldn't come up with the last line so I wrote the default. Even when I was in 8th grade I wrote this poem about the artesian well down the street the night before it was due. The last line went "Blue is the color of this poem that I write, this lyrical poem that I thought of last night." A totally random sentence, but my teacher thought it was brilliant so I figure another random sentence might do the trick.

I'm finding that losing weight is an expensive business. Not only did I pay the low, low price of $12,950 for my surgery, but now I'm having to buy new clothes all the time. In another couple of years I'll be ready for a tummy-tuck - another expense to losing weight. So I'm wondering why I ever gained in the first place? Did I not understand the economic implications? Apparently I was just focused on the brownie sundae instead of the dollar signs in front of me. Food is evil.

Am I Anorexic?

Went to a band support group meeting the other day where I revealed my difficulty in eating every day. I was told I have an eating disorder, similar to those with anorexic tendencies. I can't say I believe this. I really just feel like I'm overly cautious. So what constitutes a cautious person turned anorexic? Perhaps the emotional element? I don't deny that I have an emotional attachment to food, and of course I don't want to gain back the weight I lost. Final verdict: No eating disorder!

Hello? (tap tap tap) Is this thing on?

Okay, maybe today's attempt at posting will be successful. I tried to post a before/after pic last night to no avail. Anyhow, here's a 60-pounds-down after pic for your enjoyment. Try not to get too excited.

I think you can click on it and get a bigger pic. I'm now down 62 pounds, not that 2 pounds makes a huge difference. My goal is be down 70 by the time I go on my cruise on May 19.