You can read about our road trip to San Diego here.
Because we arrived so early on Saturday we basically had the full day to explore. P has some family and family-friends who live in San Diego. They were gracious enough to let us stay with them for the week. They had also taken some days off of work to give us the grand tour and boy, did they deliver.
The first thing we did when we arrived was head over to Seaport Village.
Actually, let me preface everything by saying that in San Antonio the heat is pretty much unbearable. We don't "do" things in the summer. I mean, you get your few crazies who want skin cancer and heat stroke and will run at noon but the most of us only run from one air-conditioned place to the next. It's stupid hot here. And humid. It's like being in a sauna and opening the oven door when you're baking cookies. Seriously. It's gross. No amount of deodorant or number of showers will keep you fresh and clean for more than a few minutes. So if you want people to go to your outdoor activities they better be in the morning, in the night, or in the fall.
We don't hike here. We don't walk to the grocery store. We don't picnic outside for lunch. These things can be done, but they usually only happen in March and November.
Now that we've gotten that out of the way you can fully appreciate our love for the weather in San Diego. It was absolutely perfect. I don't think it ever got above 85 when we were there. And there is this always constant breeze cooling you off and leaving you refreshed. It was amazing. We understood why people were out walking their dogs at one in the afternoon or why hiking is such a big amusement there.
Walking around Seaport Village and taking in all the attractions was just the icing on the cake that was the weather. I mean, they would ask us if we were OK or if we needed a break and both John and I were like "Are you crazy? We can do this all day! We love hiking/walking/running/being sporty."
We found a man who was part wizard/part rock balancer.
And the cutest cow couch.
They also have a bunch of ships that you can tour.
It may sound crazy but we actually got sea sick just from being on them for about an hour. Even though they're docked you can feel them swaying with the water and when you go out onto the top deck you can see the buildings on land swaying too. One of the ships, Surprise, was actually a real ship that was redone for movies. You may recognize it from Master and Commander.
Via 20th Century Fox
After Seaport we went to La Jolla to see the tide-pools.
And my favorite! The seals!!!
Then we stayed to watch the sunset...only the clouds weren't cooperating. But it was still beautiful.
One of the best things about being with someone are the times you both get to experience something together that neither one of you had done before. Last week, John and I got to experience San Diego together for the first time and it was awesome.
One of John's friends, P, was moving to California so he needed friends to help make the drive out there with him. The three of us would take turns driving whenever one was getting too tired or sleepy so that we could drive nonstop and arrive within the next day.
We left on Friday at around 5:00pm (CST) and drove straight through, stopping only for gas and restroom breaks. John and I ended up driving the overnight shifts where we would take turns switching every three to four hours or so. I'm sure you've heard that Everything is Bigger in Texas but Texas itself is HUGE! It took us about 8 hours to reach El Paso! Which is just the tip of Texas.
Via Google Maps
By the time we entered New Mexico it was dark and cool. We stopped at a rest stop to stretch our legs for a bit and were shocked to find it so windy out there! And because we were in the middle of nowhere you were able to see thousands of stars and the faint outline of the Milky Way.
Because it was dark out we weren't able to see much of the scenery but that was OK with us because New Mexico and Arizona looks a lot like this (at least the parts we drove through).
Which is to say - dry, desolate, boring.
But then morning came and we reached the tip of Arizona where we were happy and coffee-ed up enough to take pictures with dinosaurs.
And a giant reptile of some kind.
Photo credit to P
We eventually reached California and stopped on the side of the road like the tourists we are to take a picture.
Photo credit to P
All in all, we made it in a bit under 18 hours! We arrived in San Diego on Saturday at about 10am (PST). Even without going over the speed limit. Cruise control and Red Bull were life savers.
Total miles traveled: 1,275
Number of Red Bulls drunk: 2
Number of cups of coffee drunk: 2
Restroom breaks: 8?
Number of tumbleweeds seen: 0
Number of Border Patrol stops: 2
Things I can cross off my 2014 bucket list: 1
Happiness of finally arriving at our destination: infinite
For those of you who were missing my absence, I apologize. I went on vacation to San Diego! John and I went up for a whole week! We got back yesterday with tons of souvenirs, major sun tans, and with a new intense loathing for this crippling Texas heat.
I took a ton of pictures but haven't gotten them all downloaded and figured out yet. But prepare yourself because there will definitely be a post or two or three about our adventures.
When I was younger, I went to a private school where we weren't allowed to wear any kind of make-up, or nail polish, or pluck our eyebrows or anything like that. But just because we weren't allowed to do those things doesn't mean that we didn't know about it. As a girl, I'd seen ladies in magazines, TV shows, and on the street walk around with silky smooth legs and armpits. And whenever I looked down at my 12 year old legs all I could see were hairy man-legs. I really wanted them to be smooth when I wore my hideous plaid skirt.
I knew my mother would never let me shave them so young so instead I went the "Don't Ask Permission, Ask for Forgiveness" approach and decided to just go ahead and do it.
My first time looked nothing like this.
When my mom finally noticed them she was like "Did you shave your legs?!" and I said all nonchalantly, "Yeah," thinking I was a total badass.
I was not a badass. I probably looked like a kid trying to be a grownup.
My mum didn't get mad or anything. She seemed a bit disappointed but I guess she knew that she'd be getting the last laugh anyway because once you start -- you can't stop. And I've had to shave my hairy man-legs ever since.
I've gone through thousands of razors.
Pink Ones.
Double bladed ones.
Triple bladed ones.
Ones that claimed to be the NEXT BEST THING.
I've spent hundreds of dollars trying to find cheap ones that wouldn't completely shave off my skin.
Or I'd spend a bit more money for a better one but then have to use the same blades for months because the cartridges were equivalent to a month's rent.
Then you give them your credit card information & every month you get your new cartridges in the mail. Before they ship your box they will email you, asking if you would like to add anything extra. They sell shave butter, extra handles, an after shave, and butt wipes. You're also able to change your handle, if you wish, at this time.
I selected The 4X razor and plan. After signing up, I received my package in about a week. In the first package I got my handle and a set of four cartridges along with a little sample of their shave butter and a little toilet reading companion.
The reading companion really put them above and beyond in my opinion. It may seem completely arbitrary but it goes well with their humorous brand and I think it just adds a little bit extra to each month's package.
The handle was heavier than I expected. It feels like a Gillette Mach or Fusion handle. I expected it to be a tiny bit heavier than a cheap disposable so I was pleasantly surprised with the heft. It has a few ridges to keep it in your hand while in the shower. The head has a little release for disposing of the blades without having to touch them.
The first time I tried the razor I used their shave butter to see if I would like it.
The butter reminded me of conditioner more than butter. It was smooth and thick enough to stay on your skin without running off, but not too thick that your razor would get clogged dragging it across your skin. It was not greasy and did not have a scent, which was a big plus to me. I didn't want my legs smelling like musk.
If I were a man who had to shave my face I would buy it. You don't need a lot to do the job but as I have to shave my legs, 6oz just isn't worth the price for me.
The razor glided across my skin smoothly. It did not tug, bump, or get stuck on any already grown hairs. The blades were sharp enough to do the job with just one pass. The open back makes it easy to rinse off all the hair from the blades. I was very excited about it since I had only paid 6$. But since I don't wasn't going to buy their shaving butter I wanted to try the razor with just plain soap.
So the next time I shaved I lathered my legs with a loofa and some body wash. The razor didn't seem to have any problems with it. Of course the soap washes off quickly so there was a bit more resistance against my skin but nothing out of the ordinary. The blades were still sharp enough for just one pass.
I think I changed the blade after the 5th or 6th time I used it. I started noticing a few nicks along my knees and ankles but nothing major. No arteries were severed. I just dumped out the old one, clicked in the new one and voila! ready for next time.
I've received four packages from them but haven't even had to start on a new pack. I'm on the last (4th) cartridge from the first box. Obviously, depending on your body hair and your shaving routine, you may need to change out the cartridges sooner. But I think that this has saved me a lot of time, money, and blood.
I love the concept of Dollar Shave Club and I love their razors. I would recommend them to anyone who is tired of buying razors and expensive cartridges, or someone who is using the same blade because the just keep forgetting to get a new one. The process is easy and they make it easy to change, add, or cancel your subscription at any time.
Maybe my mum didn't get the last laugh after all.
*I guess I should say that they did not pay me to write this review. This review and the opinions in it are completely my own.*
1. What is the most difficult thing you have been through?
Luckily, I've never had anything truly terrible happen to me. But there was this one time that was probably my most scared moment and the most difficult...which I will probably write about another time.
2. What was your best birthday?
Last year's birthday was pretty sweet. First birthday with John, got to see Kathy Griffin (up close), drank with some (new) friends.
3. What has been your favorite thing you’ve done in your own city?
San Antonio is pretty cool in that it has: Six Flags, Sea World, the Riverwalk, a zoo, Fiesta, and museums. I love roller coasters so Six Flags is always a fun option. But there are lot of things I like doing in my city: including food truck eating, swing dancing, & kayaking.
4. What is your idea of the perfect date night?
I love to eat and I like movies. So the classic is a favorite of mine. But I wouldn't mind eating somewhere super fancy and then going for drinks at a cool, little jazz bar.
5. Have you ever been to a blogging conference? If so which one(s)? If not do you want to?
I have never been but would want to so that I might get free stuff! Oh and to meet new people.
Scarlet
Author: Marissa Meyer
Published by: Feiwel and Friends
The second book in The Lunar Chronicles, continues where Cinder left off. Cinder is trying to escape from jail and Kai is trying to rule the Eastern Commonwealth without inciting a Lunar/Earthen war. In France, Scarlet meets a mysterious boy, Wolf, who she thinks may have information about her grandmother's whereabouts. Wolf believes that Scarlet may know more about Lunars than she lets on. Will the four of them be able to keep Queen Levana at bay?
I was so disappointed in this book. I expected to devour this book like I did with Cinder but it took me almost a week to get through it. Yes, get through it.
This book, like the first, is loosely based on a fairy tale. In this case: Little Red Riding Hood which means that going into this book, you are introduced to another character all together: Scarlet. I personally didn't like her. I thought she was rude, impulsive, and reckless. I understand that she loves and cares for her grandmother but I just couldn't care for her when I was so invested in Cinder. Cinder has her own few chapters but after spending a few hundred pages with her and Kai, I felt it was a bit too much to get involved in a whole new couple and their romance.
Iko comes back and I love that she wasn't abandoned. I also really liked Thorne. As annoying as he may be I think he adds the perfect amount of comedic relief to the story and balances out Cinder's one-track mind very well.
I also really liked Wolf. I thought that his character was complex and interesting. I know that there has to be more to him and I was constantly wondering about his past...But even then all I really wanted to read about was Cinder and Kai. When it comes to them though, their few chapters aren't all that interesting as this book is mostly about Scarlet, Wolf, and how their stories play into the entire saga.
I think that many people will like this book. Perhaps if I had to waited a bit longer to read this one I would have found it more enjoyable. But whatever. I'm still ready to read the third book: Cress.
If you're looking for action, adventure, and a little interspecies love-- this book is for you.
1. What are you reading? Tell us about it!
Right now I'm reading Scarlet, which is the second book in the Lunar Chronicle series by Marissa Meyer. I hate to say that I'm just not that interested in this one as the first one.
This one seems to be slower but I know that as soon as I get past the hump I'll speed through it. 2. Do you find yourself reading more of a particular genre during the heat of summer?
I tend to read YA all the time. My genre of choice does not change with the weather.
3. Who are your favorite book villains (either to love or to hate?)
In all of the books I've ever read I don't think I've ever hated anyone more than Percy Wetmore from The Green Mile. I know that there always has to be villain and that usually they are corrupt, crazy people that are meant to be scary, but the thing about Percy was how he completely lacked any sort of empathy for his fellow man. And on top of his lack of it, his need to see them suffer. There is nothing scarier than a person who chooses to do harm to other people for the sake of satisfying their fancy.
4. If you could choose one author’s writing powers to harness, who would you choose and why?
This is such a hard question! I think that all authors have their strengths and weaknesses. Some do a certain type of genre better than others, for instance. I love Megan McCafferty's use of sarcasm and wit in her Jessica Darling series. I love Stephen King's understanding of the human condition and what makes people afraid of the dark. I love Sarah Dessen's ability to write about those awkward teen years. I greatly envy J.K.'s research and all the time, effort, and symbolism she puts into the seemingly most mundane things. There are many more.
5. Do you read one book at a time, or read multiple books at once?
I read one book at a time. I can read more than one at a time but don't find the need to do it.
6. What are some of your favorite non-fiction books?
I'm not a big non-fiction reader. These are the hardest books to get me to read. Though I am going to try my hand at a memoir/biography/autobiography soon. I think I'm going to start with one by a comedian so that it will at least be more entertaining.
When I was in college I met this girl named *Ally (not her real name). We were introduced through a mutual friend and soon Ally and I were hanging out all the time.
At 16, she was two years younger than me and obviously twice as smart. We bonded over our mutual love of books. She worked at Barnes & Noble and was artsy and sophisticated in ways I had only ever seen on TV.
I'd hang out in her dorm room a lot even though mine was usually roommate free. She had posters of famous paintings and stacks of books. She'd brought her entire book collection; they filled the space beneath her 4ft high bed.
She was a student in the honors program which meant she was more often than not in her room doing homework. She never skipped class and went to bed early to wake up for her morning shift at work.
At first her knowledge and her passion for politics and history intimidated me. I could hardly keep up with her conversations half the time, but instead of thinking me stupid - she taught me.
I remember when I introduced her to World Market. We drove thirty minutes to visit and we spent two hours touching everything in the store and collecting candy we'd never heard of from places we'd never been to.
She never finished the last bit of her drinks. An inch or two of liquid in various bottles and cups littered her room. Always making me nervous that my flailing limbs and unsteady feet would knock one over onto her bookstacks.
And then she had to leave college. She got cancer and wouldn't be able to continue. I visited her two more times before I moved back to San Antonio.
When I returned back home, our friendship was continued through letters and emails. She didn't have a Facebook or Myspace. She was and old-soul. Believed that being able to have such constant contact with people strained the friendship.
She'd tell me how her remission was going. She was excited to be able to go back to school. They had let her back in the honor's program. We talked about whatever recent foreign film we both had watched.
Our correspondence eventually dwindled. Emails and letters in the mail came few and far between.
But then, I got one - an email. It had no subject line and contained only one sentence.
My cancer came back.
And I apologized to her. Told her how sorry I was. But I really had nothing else to say. Why would she want to hear about all the good things going on in my life when she had to go through chemo and radiation all over again? What was I going to tell her to keep her spirits up? "Don't worry champ, things will get better?"
So I stopped writing. At first, I just didn't write for a day. Then the one day turned into a week. The week turned into a few weeks and the longer I didn't write the longer I couldn't write.
What excuse would I have for not writing? My life was too busy at the moment? My life wasn't going exactly to plan? The longer I didn't write, the more I thought that I just couldn't jump back into our friendship. Yeah, I hadn't written in months but I couldn't very well write now as if nothing had happened.
So I didn't have the courage to write to her.
For a year. I didn't write to her for a whole year.
But by then it was too late. She had passed away.
I regret that I didn't let her know how much of an impact she had on my life. From her love of foreign films, bottled Starbucks frappuccinos, and Portugal. The Man all of which stayed with me.
I regret that we didn't get to reminiscence enough about the flyers we posted around our dorm that provoked a meeting with our entire floor, the RA, and an official counselor. The flyers that no one knew we had put up because we spent hours making sure no one would see us. Setting our alarms in the hour where no was still awake from the night before but no one had yet gotten up for classes.
I regret that we didn't steal all of her stupid roommate's animal crackers.
There's none of that "No Regrets" bullshit here. I regret everyday I didn't write her. Everyday I didn't take the ten fucking minutes of my not-so-busy day to keep our friendship alive. That I was too embarrassed, or stupid, or ashamed to say "I don't know what to say". I regret that no matter how much my letters may have sucked, or how incompetent I was to deal with this whole situation I wasn't at least there to be there.
1. Tell us about the family you grew up in, parents, siblings, grandparents.
I am fortunate enough that my parents are still married so I grew up with them by myself for ELEVEN years. Then my brother came along. Haha. Pretty big age difference.
This was a hard time in my life, fashionably and uh...hairably.
3. Tell us about your children. If you don’t have children, talk about your fur children.
I love my Boyboy. When we got him from the shelter he was already named Noah but we soon found out that Noah sounds an awful lot like NO so he would get very confused when we called him over to us. So now we call him Boyboy because I called him boy (as in who's a good boy?) and then boyboy and then we made it official and hence the capital B.
Sleeping next to all my shoes.
4. Tell us about your best friends. How long have you known them? How did you meet?
I talk to John a lot about this but I don't really have that many friends.
I'm fortunate that his friends actually like me so going out with them isn't at all awkward and I love them all to bits. But as for me, the only person I really talk to is Lauren but we don't get to see each other as often as we like. (We met in high school because I dated her brother.) I tend to befriend people who are older than me, especially in my job world, so I don't go out to drink with them or anything. And a lot of the friends I had in the past weren't the sticking around type. John is my best friend and we met at lunch in high school.
5. Tell us about any other special people in your life.
John is going to hate me but there is this guy named Sam. He is awesome. We've never formally been introduced, I just admire him from across the counter. I only know his name because of the tag he wears on his shirt. I don't even see him that often but when I do it's magical. Sam is special to me because he gives me free coffee. Yes. FREE COFFEE. Even if I get the extra large cup.
Before I Fall
Author: Lauren Oliver
Published by: Harper
Sam Kingston is a popular senior in high school. She has a tight group of girlfriends but unfortunately she's missing a back bone.
The story follows Sam on her last day of life when she dies in a car accident after a party. Instead of going where ever it is you go after you die, Sam keeps reliving her last day.
I absolutely hated Sam and her friends. They pick on people simply because they can. They are only popular because they stick together, making fun of anyone and everyone else. It's absolutely disgusting.
Their complete lack of humanity for their fellow classmates actually sickened me.
The story is pretty predictable in that Sam finally understands that people have feelings (duh!) and being mean to everyone is a pretty dick thing to do.
The only person I liked in the entire book is Kent - Sam's long-ago friend and the guy who has been crushing on her for.ev.er. He's definitely the nicest person though I feel that he should definitely have been with someone else. Someone who didn't need to relive their life, over and over again to realize that he's a catch.
Besides the fact that it's fiction, I didn't believe the characters. Sam may have died and become enlightened in the process but what about her friends? She kind of tells them to stop but only halfheartedly and I can't believe that they really changed their ways.
If you're one of those shallow, self-centered girls then please, please, please read this book so that you may learn that other people have feelings. Otherwise, give this one a skip and read her other book, Delirium, which I loved.
