hello again

Hello to all!  Last week was really busy.  Eric was taking a management class for the Marriott all week and I was at the hospital every day but Tuesday.  We did get to have dinner together, though, which was nice.  We went to see Proof of Life Friday.  It was pretty good.... the shots of Ecuador were beautiful!  I can't wait to see Auda and Jared's pics from their honeymoon there!  Just wanted to let you all know that Eric and I will be coming home February 22-28.  I'll be home the whole time and he will be there about three days, maybe four.  Mardi Gras is the 27th this year and I can't wait!

In other news... I went to Vegas this past weekend with Karla and her friend Sarah.  It was a blast!  It is a desert town, except it's considered high desert (whereas we are in the low desert).  The difference is the weather.  Vegas is surrounded by four mountain ranges, like we are, but they actually have four seasons.  It was cool when we were there and actually rained!  They shut down everything for the rain too.  The Eiffel Tower at Paris shut down for a drizzle.  It's funny what they think rain is, and what it actually is!

Anyway, we went to see the Blue Man show at Luxor the first night.  The guys on the Pentium 3 commercial have their own show and it was interesting, but I wouldn't say hilarious like they advertised.  The Luxor is the one with the pyramid and the sphinx out front.  It is a cool hotel, but the only business I think they get is from the show because no one was gambling there.  Afterward we went to see a 3D Imax film starring the Simpsons.  It was interesting wearing space goggles for the film!

Monday we took a bus tour to the Grand Canyon.  We stopped at Hoover Dam, which is prettier at night.  Our guide, Rocky, told us how the first scaler to die there during construction died April 13 and the last died the same day, thirteen years later.  What was really freaky was they they were father and son.  It was very interesting driving through the mountains in that bus.  He kept talking about smacking mirrors with the truckers, which thankfully never happened.  We stopped at a Mobil station that sold old Route 66 memorabilia.  It was nice, but i wasn't paying $5.99 for a magnet!

Needless to say, that Grand Canyon is beautiful.  We went to the South Rim where you can see most of the colors.  There is a ranch at the bottom what you can take a mule ride down to.  The canyon is six thousand feet deep, and I don't think pictures do it justice.  It is something that you have to see.  There are trails along the South Rim and most of them have guardrails.  Supposedly they lose more people where there are rails than where there are not because they lean over to take pictures and slip.  Sarah and I liked going out to where there were no rails because it was a better view.  Karla was so funny... she kept flipping out about it and finally left us on one of the trails.  I'll scan the picture of me on the edge when I develop them!  It was good to see the canyon, but the bus trip was fourteen hours.  It was a little tiring.

We stated at the Alladin hotel, which has its own bazaar, sort of.  It's really a row of stores made to look that way.  There are these little guys who wheel you around in their carts too.  Tuesday we went to see Paris, Bellagio, Caesar's Palace, Harrah's, and the Venetian.  They weren't doing the gondola rides outside so we didn't go, but the singing was pretty good.  Supposedly the best places to gamble are the casinos that are paid for.  Harrah's is one of them but I lost my $1.20.  Paris is the prettiest inside because it has the smallest casino and the rest is devoted to parisian sights.  Bellagio is the prettiest outside because the pools all have blue and green tile at the bottom in these cool designs.  We saw a massive statue of David at Caesar's Palace, but I'll spare you the jokes.  He does have a nice butt though!

I had to leave Tuesday to go back to work, but I saw the prettiest sunset I have ever seen.  You drive through the mountains until about ninety miles from L.A.  The desert sunsets are pretty, but this one lasted about an hour and had every color you can imagine.  Alas, I was out of film.  In news of the weird, I passed an exit for Zzyzx Road.  I wonder who named it!  And I had to go through an agricultural inspection since i was coming from another state.  You can't bring fruit or vegetables into California unless they are inspected!  It takes bout four and a half hours to drive from here to Vegas.  All in all it was fun.  I didn't want to leave!

Other than that, not much else is going on.  Work has been hell because people are always really sick around the holidays.  But I'm sticking to stress relief measures and doing Ok.  I can't wait for my week off when Mom, Dad, and Helen are here!  I will write more later... until then Happy Holidays!