shark conservation act

So, my little sister Loves sharks. Just loves them. And since I went to Belize and (as predicted) did not get eaten or even nibbled on by a shark, and as a favor to Little Sister, I'm posting this link to all interested parties.

let's stop finning, okay people?

Finning sharks sounds gross and inhumane (insharkane?) anyway, and it took like a second to tell my congresswoman I'm anti-finning, so there you go. Let's stop finning. (This means you, Erin J.!)

can you belize it?

(Yes, the title of this post is corny. People said "belize" instead of "believe" oh so many times on this trip.)

Well, I'm home from Belize and I'm procrastinating unpacking, so I'll update my blog. I think reading about people's vacation is borking, so I'm only going to mention a few highlights here.

1. Tikal. Tikal is actually in Guatamala, so I really got two countries on this trip. (Two passport stamps too.) It's a place with a lot of Mayan ruins and it was very neat. It was a long, dusty van ride there, but very worth it. Plus, we went zip lining afterward and our zip line guides let me go upside down.

2. Ed. We met Ed in Tikal. There were 7 of us girls on this trip and for reasons I won't go into here, Ed decided to attach himself to our group. (Perhaps he was looking for a hookup, not realizing that a group of Mormon girls is the wrong place to find that.) He was a very nice guy and with a group of 7 girls and 1 boy, we got a lot of stares and comments. (My favorite: "Is that a family? That's not a family....")

3. Snorkling. We took a lovely skiff ride out to an teeny little island and went snorkling. We all lathered on sunscreen and still got fried on our backs. I have a lovely little sunburn line all aroundy my face - especially on my forehead - where the mask was. And I lost my CTR ring in the Caribbean Sea because I forgot to take it off before we went. And I loved every minute of it.

4. Dotty. Dotty was this crazy old lady who was staying at our guest house. (The good kind of crazy, which made her really nice.) She would give us all sorts of advice and tips about Belize. (She is an American who has a house elsewhere in Belize.) One day, we bought some bread from John the bakerman and accidently dropped a loaf on the floor. Dotty thought we were crazy for not eating the bottom of the loaf - the part that touched the floor - because "Belize doesn't have any germs - the sun bakes them all away" and the owner of the guest house mops the floor every day, anyway. (Dotty also went snorkling with us, when we told her we were going.) (Dotty is 79 years old.)

5. Gelato. The town that we were staying the second half of the trip in had the most amazing gelato. There was a little shop owned by an Italian couple. We went every day, sometimes more than once a day. We were in that town 3 and a half days and I think we went 6 or 7 times. (One girl went 4 times in one day, but hey - we're on vacation.) The first day, I think Lorenzo (the owner) was a little annoyed by us, but since we just kept coming back and spending more and more money, I think he warmed up to us by the end. (Also, everything is cheaper in Belize by half. So when the sign says the gelato was 4.50Bz, it really meant $2.25 US. What a steal!)

So there you have it - the highlights of the trip. Belize is a lovely place and we are all not contemplating ways that we could move there. I highly recommend it to anyone.

belizimo

I just wanted to rub it in that I'm going to Belize this Friday. And Guatamala.

Suckers!

(Pictures and stories to follow.....)

10 things i hate about you

I usually don't (read: never) do these tags, but in penance for not reading Rebecca's blog for a month I will do this one, as she bids. (At least she didn't tag me in the "25 random things about me" one.) According to Rebecca's blog, I have to put the first thing that comes into my mind....

I am... my own worst enemy.

I know... the kings of England, and I quote the fights historical, from Marathon to Waterloo, in order categorical.

I want... someone to scratch my back.

I have... four gold teeth.

I miss... riding my bike to work. (And just riding it in general.)

I hear... the ex-girlfriends choir in my head everytime I see Chris. (doot, doot. doot doot doot doot, doot doot, doot.)

I smell... like bacon. Trust me.

I crave... pineapple.

I search... for buried treasure.

I always... have a bruise somewhere on my body.

I believe... everything I read.

I sing... without realizing I'm doing it sometimes.

I lose... pretty much everything. It's a talent of mine to put something down and lose it within seconds. Even if I haven't left the room.

I win... friends and influence people.

I never... forgive people who steal my books. (Stealing = borrow without returning.)

I listen... to books on my iPod at work when I'm bored.

I am scared... of basement monsters, spiders and driving in the mountains.

I need... to see a play like a need a hole in my head. (Story: The reason that phrase came into my head: There is a comic strip called "Pearls Before Swine", which is very funny, if you ask me. And you are reading my blog, so you are asking me. A few months ago they had a story line where the characters built a time machine and brought Abraham Lincoln to our time for a visit. They were trying to find things to do and they asked Abe if he'd like to go see a play and he said....)

I am happy... when someone is scratching my back and I'm eating pineapple.

I tag... your face. If it's reading this.