Friday, July 18, 2014
This week is dead week in Riverside Unified School District (RUSD). The district is closed and everyone is forced to take off and as we know that is a good thing for me, I probably need to be forced at time to take a break. My friend Stacey Baynham is here visiting from SC. I picked her up on Friday night at the airport and we made our way to the hotel we were staying at called the Harbor View Inn and Suites. Well, this is in Little Italy and I thought it would be more like the bed and breakfast I had stayed in in Little Italy before but not so much! Let's just say this place was a little sketchy and maybe not the best choice but I was having trouble finding something in the are for us to stay at. Well we found out why…..Benetta and Erin - it was Gay Pride weekend in San Diego. Stacey and I just laughed and laughed, the four of us seem to always hit whatever city this is going on in at the same time. Walking around with Stacey during this time is hilarious because there are some pretty good looking men and she just continues to say, "What a waste…." LOL!!!!
Saturday, July 19, 2014
So today I was a tourist in San Diego. LOL!!! Stacey and I went down to walk along the wharf and decide to do the Old Town Trolley tour so we did the hop on and off tour of San Diego where war got to hear the history of the area and see lots of different places around the town. It was a lot of fun and while we had to wait a lot of times for the trolley it was fun as well. The trolley took us to the center of San Diego and we learned about Horton and how he started the city of San Diego and got people here. The trolley proceeded to Coronado Island and then back to Old Town of which we then started over to see all the fabulous things from the beginning as we hopped on and off the trolley. We spent time in Seaport Village, at the Horton Plaza, Old Town and we wanted to go back to Coronado but we had to wait on the trolley a lot and therefore never made it. The plan is to do the Zoo and Coronado later this week. We did some shopping today and I found a couple of cool things. I got a conversation starter box of cards to use for Professional Development at school. I probably should have gotten this button since this seems to be the answer I have for everything right now with the Master Schedule.
I also found this at the store, which I end pretty funny. Look guys, it is a life like frog…..Meaning so life-like it hopped away? There were four of these hanging in the toy section and none of them had any frogs on them - and it was not a joke store….. LOL!!!
Stacey remembered that Len Hayes, a friend from USC lived in the area and contacted him. We met Len for dinner that night at Stone Brewery, which is a interesting restaurant on a old base. I wish I would ave taken pictures. . It was fantastic to catch up with him and hear how he was doing. Len is now career Navy and does a lot of traveling back and forth to Washington. He has another five years in the service and then he is planning on retiring. It is interesting to hear what he has been doing and what he has been up to over the years. He has progressed pretty far in the Navy from what we understand.
Sunday, July 20, 2014
I am a lobster! Well a lobster with a strange burn line anyway….. Stacey and I went hiking this morning with Erin and Kellye and at the last minute I changed shirts into a workout top with a "T" back. Well, let's just say that I will have this outline for awhile. We went to Torry Pines to hike and there was such a nice breeze that I did not even think about the sun bearing down on me. I had only put sunscreen on my face and neck this morning when I got dressed and before I changed tops. Needless to say, I have been taking Motrin for the pain of the burn. I hate when this happens and I really try to remember to put on sunscreen but darn-it, one mistake……
On a good note, the hike was great. We had a great time chatting as we walked a new area and saw some beautiful views. There are a lot of people that use these trails and therefore we passed a lot of people but it was not so crowded that you were waiting for people to pass. This hike has a good split of uphill and downhill as you go toward the beach making it a beautiful area to hike and some fabulous views, even if I don't do well at taking pictures. Sorry Stacey!!!
After the hike we went to eat lunch at a Mexican restaurant along the Pacific Coast called Las Olas. The food was okay, nothing fabulous but the location and people inside were very colorful. It amazes me what people will wear or not wear at the beach! I won't go into a lot of detail here because I am not sure who all reads this blog but needless to say, I should not know about your personal hygiene routine based on what you are not wearing.
After the hike, Stacey and I headed to the San Diego Zoo, which we did not complete on Saturday. We took the bus and rode around the park then went and saw the animals we wanted to see including the Panda, Meerkats and we tried to see the Polar Bear but he was hiding from us. A lot of the animals were out including the cute Koalas!!!! They are so adorable and I would just love to take some of these beautiful creatures home with me!
We ended our evening on Sunset Cliffs so that Stacey could see a Pacific Coast Sunset. This was fun and it was a beautiful sunset. This area has an area that you can sit on the rocks and out of the cliffs if you dare. There were a lot of people around but not so many that it was not enjoyable. Here are some pictures of the progression.
Monday, July 21, 2014
This morning was a lazy morning after such a long night. We went to have our nails done and then headed to Palm Springs to see what adventure would occur. We both have heard so much about Palm Springs and how everyone goes there so we were really excited to have the change to go. We had a name of a restaurant to go to and in fact some of the Management that I work with were in Palm Springs for a meeting. As we drove out to the desert, you could feel the car getting hotter and hotter the further we went. As we entered Palm Springs and began to look around, there was really not much around. We saw some cut shops to go in and out of, restaurants and some casinos but for the most part both Stacey and I were lost as to what the "draw" of Palm Springs actually is. The restaurant we at as was extremely good. Their prices were reasonable and the service was wonderful. Much better than the food and service from Sunday. The reason that we chose this place is because one of Stacey's friends got engaged at this restaurant a few years ago. After lunch we went to the Aerial Tram that takes you to the top of San Jacinto and allows you to see at the view around. The funniest thing about this is at the bottom of the mountain in Palm Springs because it is so hot, there is nothing green and growing. However, at the top of the mountain because of the cooler air and temperature, there is actually trees, grass and plants. And this is at 8,500 ft in elevation. We even got to see some cute wildlife!
After Palm Springs we left to head to the Angels baseball game. The good news is that we had great seats. The bad news is the Angles lost their game to the Orioles. We had fun at the game hanging out and the games have so many things happening between the innings you are never bored and it is always exciting.
After the Angels game we proceeded to Disneyland to stay at the Grand Californian Resort and Spa for the night so we could hit Disneyland on Tuesday. I have never stayed at the hotel before and it was absolutely beautiful. The beds were super comfortable and the view was over California Adventureland. While we got there very late and there was nothing really going on, it was still nice to see the hotel and get a great night's sleep to hit Disney on Tuesday.
Tuesday, July 22, 2014
Today was Disney Marathon Day!!! We had one day to do both California Adventure and Disneyland. We started in California Adventureland this morning thanks to Kathy Rossi. We started on the right side of the park and just moved around the entire park riding everything that we could. rest food was eaten and lots of diet coke was drank today. I know that it will go strait through me since I don't normally drink sodas but it was hot and I was trying to stay hydrated today. After we finished in California Adventureland, we made our way to Disneyland where we did the same thing and stayed in the park until about 11:30 pm after watching Fastasmic and the fireworks. It was a long drive home in which we finally arrived at 1:30 am.
Wednesday, July 23, 2014
It was a slow but quick start to the morning. Stacey made arrangements to meet a friend from her high school in Fashion Valley so we were up and going at 7:00 am this morning and ready to go by 8:30 am. After meeting with Stacey's friend we hit the mall in Fashion Valley for Tiffany's, of which Stacey always visits when we go to different places. We walked the mall a little to find this is the "ritzy" mall. They had several high dollar stores in the mall. After we left the mall we traveled to Pacific and Ocean Beach to look for a pier to walk on and to eat lunch. We found a pier and area to park. As we were parking we saw a young girl fly off her skateboard and land on her hip and all I could think was OUCH!!! She was fine and had friends with her but she definitely not dressed real well for riding a skateboard. As we headed to the pier we noticed there were little bungalow houses on the pier as well. They are pretty cute and it would be cool to be that close to the ocean and over the ocean in fact. From here we ate at a restaurant on the beach which had good salads, chips and salsa.
We left this location to go to Coronado and see the hotel and rock around. The Coronado Hotel is huge and beautiful but has very little air conditioning inside to maintain its history. The beach it sits on is beautiful overlooking the ocean and the sidewalks are wonderful to walk up and down on. Stacey and I walked around the town and found the cutest boutique called Pretty Please where we both found an item or two that we liked. Their prices are extremely reasonable and I would highly suggest a visit. There was another store that repurposes items. The two items that I saw that was most interesting was cutting vodka bottles to make drinking glasses and the use of old Bombay bottles for jewelry.
We left Coronado to head back to San Diego to meet Len for dinner at Sammy's Woodfire pizza only to find that Sammy's Woodfire pizza does not exist anymore in downtown San Diego and therefore we ended up eating at a place called Tin Roof which was good. The server we had was from Tennessee and since Len was wearing a gamecock shirt that obviously started some conversations about South Carolina and the SEC. After dinner, I took Stacey to the airport for her flight back to SC and headed home to Murrietta. It was a great visit and I was happy to have a friend from SC come and visit!!!!
Thursday, July 24, 2014
Today was a get things done type of day. The car had a dent taken out of it this morning. It had a small dent in the top on the passenger side from an acorn, branch or something. It was a small dent that could be pulled out with the right equipment and the VW dealership did it today. Liz came and picked me up at the dealership and we came back to the apartment to work on her resume and to plan a presentation for the California Mathematics Council in October. Around 12:00 pm Liz took me back to the dealership to pick up the car and it was off to Riverside for errands.
I need to sign my rental agreement for another year at the apartment. I have requested Gloria to do my lease because I like her better than the other girl who I don't really feel knows what she is doing. I am a little disappointed because my rent is going up $50.00 but everyone's is due to changes in the rental agreement. I remember the rent changing at the other complexes I lived at as well.
Well, I have played this week so therefore tonight I did some school work. I worked on the calendar for school, I updated my calendar and tried to get everything on the calendar so that I don't overextend or schedule myself this year. I also have a couple of events going on during the weekends and I needed to make sure I did not have any conflicts.
Friday, July 25, 2014
Today was a beach day! The first time I have gone to the beach since I have been in CA. Now, I am not really a beach girl so this does not really upset me that I have not been but Jessica and Michael were going and wanted to do an adult day. The kids went to their day care and the older girls were with friends so we took the Roe's new jeep to the beach. We just laid on the beach and talked. Yes, I am a lobster but my "zebra" sunburn from Sunday's hike is now evened our and I am more red all over. I am wondering what this is going to do with my "tan" After begin at Carlsbad beach we went to a Pizza Port which is a restaurant nearby. Now, I was excited because I think it is funny that it is called Pizza Port, like in Toy Story, however, this is not at all true. It is port like beer and wine, definitely not something from Disney Tory Story!! LOL!! The salad and pizza were really good though and this is somewhere that I could come back to.
I went to Erin's in the evening to catch up on True Blood since we missed it on Sunday and she cooked healthy vegetarian food!!! We had cauliflower crust pizza and salad for dinner and it was super yummy. It was not crust you could pick up and eat, you had to use a fork but it was great for you because it was not made out of all the flour. True Blood was good but this one really left you hanging. There were several cliffhangers at the end and since it will be two weeks until we are together again to watch True Blood - it was disappointing. Darn schedules and traveling!!! Alan Ball should have consulted me before he set up the True Blood schedule, LOL!!!!!
Saturday, July 26, 2014
So the plan today is catch up, get ready for the week and work on my PhD. I played so much this past week with Stacey and had such a fabulous time that I now need to focus and get back on track. I have a few errands to run this morning and then I am going to work on some school work and finally work on some PhD items this afternoon. I hope Squeak will let me do this a little bit, sometimes she is all over me when I sit down. Wish me luck!!!!!
Sunday, July 20, 2014
I am a lobster! Well a lobster with a strange burn line anyway….. Stacey and I went hiking this morning with Erin and Kellye and at the last minute I changed shirts into a workout top with a "T" back. Well, let's just say that I will have this outline for awhile. We went to Torry Pines to hike and there was such a nice breeze that I did not even think about the sun bearing down on me. I had only put sunscreen on my face and neck this morning when I got dressed and before I changed tops. Needless to say, I have been taking Motrin for the pain of the burn. I hate when this happens and I really try to remember to put on sunscreen but darn-it, one mistake……
On a good note, the hike was great. We had a great time chatting as we walked a new area and saw some beautiful views. There are a lot of people that use these trails and therefore we passed a lot of people but it was not so crowded that you were waiting for people to pass. This hike has a good split of uphill and downhill as you go toward the beach making it a beautiful area to hike and some fabulous views, even if I don't do well at taking pictures. Sorry Stacey!!!
After the hike we went to eat lunch at a Mexican restaurant along the Pacific Coast called Las Olas. The food was okay, nothing fabulous but the location and people inside were very colorful. It amazes me what people will wear or not wear at the beach! I won't go into a lot of detail here because I am not sure who all reads this blog but needless to say, I should not know about your personal hygiene routine based on what you are not wearing.
After the hike, Stacey and I headed to the San Diego Zoo, which we did not complete on Saturday. We took the bus and rode around the park then went and saw the animals we wanted to see including the Panda, Meerkats and we tried to see the Polar Bear but he was hiding from us. A lot of the animals were out including the cute Koalas!!!! They are so adorable and I would just love to take some of these beautiful creatures home with me!
We ended our evening on Sunset Cliffs so that Stacey could see a Pacific Coast Sunset. This was fun and it was a beautiful sunset. This area has an area that you can sit on the rocks and out of the cliffs if you dare. There were a lot of people around but not so many that it was not enjoyable. Here are some pictures of the progression.
Monday, July 21, 2014
This morning was a lazy morning after such a long night. We went to have our nails done and then headed to Palm Springs to see what adventure would occur. We both have heard so much about Palm Springs and how everyone goes there so we were really excited to have the change to go. We had a name of a restaurant to go to and in fact some of the Management that I work with were in Palm Springs for a meeting. As we drove out to the desert, you could feel the car getting hotter and hotter the further we went. As we entered Palm Springs and began to look around, there was really not much around. We saw some cut shops to go in and out of, restaurants and some casinos but for the most part both Stacey and I were lost as to what the "draw" of Palm Springs actually is. The restaurant we at as was extremely good. Their prices were reasonable and the service was wonderful. Much better than the food and service from Sunday. The reason that we chose this place is because one of Stacey's friends got engaged at this restaurant a few years ago. After lunch we went to the Aerial Tram that takes you to the top of San Jacinto and allows you to see at the view around. The funniest thing about this is at the bottom of the mountain in Palm Springs because it is so hot, there is nothing green and growing. However, at the top of the mountain because of the cooler air and temperature, there is actually trees, grass and plants. And this is at 8,500 ft in elevation. We even got to see some cute wildlife!
After Palm Springs we left to head to the Angels baseball game. The good news is that we had great seats. The bad news is the Angles lost their game to the Orioles. We had fun at the game hanging out and the games have so many things happening between the innings you are never bored and it is always exciting.
After the Angels game we proceeded to Disneyland to stay at the Grand Californian Resort and Spa for the night so we could hit Disneyland on Tuesday. I have never stayed at the hotel before and it was absolutely beautiful. The beds were super comfortable and the view was over California Adventureland. While we got there very late and there was nothing really going on, it was still nice to see the hotel and get a great night's sleep to hit Disney on Tuesday.
Tuesday, July 22, 2014
Today was Disney Marathon Day!!! We had one day to do both California Adventure and Disneyland. We started in California Adventureland this morning thanks to Kathy Rossi. We started on the right side of the park and just moved around the entire park riding everything that we could. rest food was eaten and lots of diet coke was drank today. I know that it will go strait through me since I don't normally drink sodas but it was hot and I was trying to stay hydrated today. After we finished in California Adventureland, we made our way to Disneyland where we did the same thing and stayed in the park until about 11:30 pm after watching Fastasmic and the fireworks. It was a long drive home in which we finally arrived at 1:30 am.
 |
| Squirrel!!!!! |
It was a slow but quick start to the morning. Stacey made arrangements to meet a friend from her high school in Fashion Valley so we were up and going at 7:00 am this morning and ready to go by 8:30 am. After meeting with Stacey's friend we hit the mall in Fashion Valley for Tiffany's, of which Stacey always visits when we go to different places. We walked the mall a little to find this is the "ritzy" mall. They had several high dollar stores in the mall. After we left the mall we traveled to Pacific and Ocean Beach to look for a pier to walk on and to eat lunch. We found a pier and area to park. As we were parking we saw a young girl fly off her skateboard and land on her hip and all I could think was OUCH!!! She was fine and had friends with her but she definitely not dressed real well for riding a skateboard. As we headed to the pier we noticed there were little bungalow houses on the pier as well. They are pretty cute and it would be cool to be that close to the ocean and over the ocean in fact. From here we ate at a restaurant on the beach which had good salads, chips and salsa.
We left this location to go to Coronado and see the hotel and rock around. The Coronado Hotel is huge and beautiful but has very little air conditioning inside to maintain its history. The beach it sits on is beautiful overlooking the ocean and the sidewalks are wonderful to walk up and down on. Stacey and I walked around the town and found the cutest boutique called Pretty Please where we both found an item or two that we liked. Their prices are extremely reasonable and I would highly suggest a visit. There was another store that repurposes items. The two items that I saw that was most interesting was cutting vodka bottles to make drinking glasses and the use of old Bombay bottles for jewelry.
We left Coronado to head back to San Diego to meet Len for dinner at Sammy's Woodfire pizza only to find that Sammy's Woodfire pizza does not exist anymore in downtown San Diego and therefore we ended up eating at a place called Tin Roof which was good. The server we had was from Tennessee and since Len was wearing a gamecock shirt that obviously started some conversations about South Carolina and the SEC. After dinner, I took Stacey to the airport for her flight back to SC and headed home to Murrietta. It was a great visit and I was happy to have a friend from SC come and visit!!!!
Thursday, July 24, 2014
Today was a get things done type of day. The car had a dent taken out of it this morning. It had a small dent in the top on the passenger side from an acorn, branch or something. It was a small dent that could be pulled out with the right equipment and the VW dealership did it today. Liz came and picked me up at the dealership and we came back to the apartment to work on her resume and to plan a presentation for the California Mathematics Council in October. Around 12:00 pm Liz took me back to the dealership to pick up the car and it was off to Riverside for errands.
I need to sign my rental agreement for another year at the apartment. I have requested Gloria to do my lease because I like her better than the other girl who I don't really feel knows what she is doing. I am a little disappointed because my rent is going up $50.00 but everyone's is due to changes in the rental agreement. I remember the rent changing at the other complexes I lived at as well.
Well, I have played this week so therefore tonight I did some school work. I worked on the calendar for school, I updated my calendar and tried to get everything on the calendar so that I don't overextend or schedule myself this year. I also have a couple of events going on during the weekends and I needed to make sure I did not have any conflicts.
Friday, July 25, 2014
Today was a beach day! The first time I have gone to the beach since I have been in CA. Now, I am not really a beach girl so this does not really upset me that I have not been but Jessica and Michael were going and wanted to do an adult day. The kids went to their day care and the older girls were with friends so we took the Roe's new jeep to the beach. We just laid on the beach and talked. Yes, I am a lobster but my "zebra" sunburn from Sunday's hike is now evened our and I am more red all over. I am wondering what this is going to do with my "tan" After begin at Carlsbad beach we went to a Pizza Port which is a restaurant nearby. Now, I was excited because I think it is funny that it is called Pizza Port, like in Toy Story, however, this is not at all true. It is port like beer and wine, definitely not something from Disney Tory Story!! LOL!! The salad and pizza were really good though and this is somewhere that I could come back to.
I went to Erin's in the evening to catch up on True Blood since we missed it on Sunday and she cooked healthy vegetarian food!!! We had cauliflower crust pizza and salad for dinner and it was super yummy. It was not crust you could pick up and eat, you had to use a fork but it was great for you because it was not made out of all the flour. True Blood was good but this one really left you hanging. There were several cliffhangers at the end and since it will be two weeks until we are together again to watch True Blood - it was disappointing. Darn schedules and traveling!!! Alan Ball should have consulted me before he set up the True Blood schedule, LOL!!!!!
Saturday, July 26, 2014
So the plan today is catch up, get ready for the week and work on my PhD. I played so much this past week with Stacey and had such a fabulous time that I now need to focus and get back on track. I have a few errands to run this morning and then I am going to work on some school work and finally work on some PhD items this afternoon. I hope Squeak will let me do this a little bit, sometimes she is all over me when I sit down. Wish me luck!!!!!
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