seattle times

I repeat, J is famous. This photo appeared in the Seattle Times last Friday. Here is the whole article.

hiking in the northwest

For the past month or so, we have gone hiking almost every weekend. I used to hike incessantly during the summers I was in high school, and then I hiked a lot when I worked as a camp counselor. But the past couple of summers I haven't had much of a chance to hike. This summer, however, is going to be different. There are a lot of great trails close to our home, and I have decided that the Northwest is my favorite place to hike. Although I think Colorado and Utah are beautiful in their own way, I love how everything is verdant along the Northwest trails. I especially love the ferns, extremely tall trees, and lush moss. Plus, the best thing about hiking in Washington (as opposed to Utah or Colorado) is that the trails aren't dusty. It's so nice to breathe clearly as I make my way uphill (although I have to admit that breathing dry dirt (and consequentially having clods of dirt in my nose post-hike) is a part of Utah hiking which I will think of semi-nostalgically).

Here are some pics:

Twin Falls with Matt and Joanna
Remember how I talked about hiking incessantly during high school? Joanna was with me on most of those hikes. I'm so glad that she lives nearby - it's fun to be with her in the mountains again! (You can see a few more pics of the hike on Joanna's blog.)

The lower falls of Twin Falls

Rattlesnake Ridge
This is the ridge that is located next to Rattlesnake Lake (this is the lake that we visited on Memorial Day - can you see the old tree stumps in the lake below?)

J and Sam at the Talus Rocks/Bat Caves

Talus Rocks/Bat Caves

This hike is especially great because the trail goes in a loop - you don't have to turn around pass the same stuff on the return trip. There is a really pretty fern valley with some large mossy trees on the way down.

Apparently we need to teach Sam about nature appreciation

South Beach of Discovery Park
There are a lot of trails in this area and we plan on going back. We intended on going to the North Beach (since we parked in the North Parking Lot), but ended up going on a longer hike which eventually descended to the South Beach.

Have you gone hiking this summer? What's your favorite state/region for hiking? What trails would you recommend?

michael jackson

Anyone else shocked by this news? Wow. I'm so surprised. I guess that the King of Pop will never have his anticipated comeback.

I love the early Michael Jackson stuff, especially from when he was in the Jackson Five. Here's a clip of the first time that the song "ABC" was aired. What an amazing voice for such a small kid! I love his little dance moves too:



And I think that Thriller is one of the most fantastic albums of all time. Click here to watch the Thriller music video in all its awesome '80s-ness.

You can't beat Michael Jackson's early stuff. What a talented man.

sam as caboose

Sam loves the animal train that he got from his grandparents. I love how Sam waits for all of the train cars to move before he joins in the fun:

more memoirs

Earlier this month I posted some thoughts on "celebrity" memoirs. I guess memoirs have been on my mind lately. I just finished reading one and am trying to get J to read my favorite memoir. I feel like these two memoirs are different from "celebrity" memoirs, though. It seems like both of these authors are quite sincere in their desire to talk about their experiences - there doesn't seem to be motivation to regain the spotlight or popularity (which I feel is the case for some "celebrity" memoirs).

The memoir that I recently finished is Ruth Reichl's Garlic and Sapphires: The Secret Life of a Critic in Disguise. This is a fun story about a food critic for the New York Times who realized that she needed to dress up in disguises so that she wouldn't be noticed in restaurants around the city. By assuming different costumes (she even dressed up as her own mother one time), she learned more about her own personality. This is a fun book and a quick read. The only thing I didn't like is that when Reichl is conversing with friends, some of the leading questions addressed to Reichl are a little contrived - the questions are obviously planted to help Reichl introduce background information to the reader. I remember in one scene Reichl sits down with her friend Brenda at a restaurant, and her friend immediately queries something to the effect, "So...tell me about the chef that works here." And then Reichl proceeds to give Brenda (but really the reader) all of the necessary information about the chef. The use of leading questions is not a bad gimmick for writing a memoir, but I think Reichl's approach was a little too obvious. I had to roll my eyes once or twice.

And boy, does Reichl like food. A lot. I always thought that I appreciated good food, but I obviously don't in comparison with her. Wow.

This book also has fun gourmet and ethnic recipes that are easy to make at home. I'm not much of a cook, but I have several friends who I think would like to try the recipes in this book (such as my friend Kelly, who writes regularly on this cooking blog.)

The other memoir I mentioned is The Long Walk by Slavomir Rawicz. My friend Ry Ry gave me this book a few years ago, and I have reread it several times. I keep trying to get J to read it, and one time I remember sitting down and reading him parts out loud. He finally picked it up the other evening, so maybe he's coming around.

This book is the memoir of a Polish prisoner who escaped from a Soviet labor camp during 1941. Rawicz recounts how he and a small group of escapees marched out of Sibera, through China, the Gobi Desert, and the Himalayas to find freedom. This story is very engaging and well written. If anyone likes memoirs and adventure stories (or if anyone has an interest in WWII stories), I think you'll like this book.

Has anyone else read these books? What did you think? Do you know of any other great WWII memoirs?

the Yanni singer

A few years ago, my friend Rachelle offered to set me up with her friend Nathan Pacheco. Rachelle and I sang in BYU Women's Chorus together, and Nathan also was a singer. I met him a few times and thought he was a nice guy, but we never went out. Phew - and I'm sure glad! I just found out this morning that now Nathan Pacheco is one of the Yanni Singers!

Ha!

J kiddingly asked if now I have regrets for not going out with Nathan.

Uh...no. I think I'm okay with not being the wife of a famous Yanni singer. Plus, I kind of doubt that our common interest in singing would have gotten us very far - I have a feeling that we have very, uh, different tastes in music.

my famous sister

Speaking of singing, I thought I'd post this clip of my famous little sister, C. Now she can sing. This was her high school performance of Pirates of Penzance from a few years ago. She makes her entrance about 1:41 of this clip. Enjoy!