National World War II Memorial

My photos don't really do this place justice, but the National World War II Memorial is gorgeous and a wonderful honor to all those who served in the last great war.

I assume the center area is a fountain and pond during the summer months, and I loved the thousands of gold stars in memory of our fallen heroes who paid the ultimate price for our freedom.

The large circular monument has pillars with each state or area from which soldiers served and a large metal wretch adorns each pillar.


There are two main gates which symbolize the Pacific Theatre and the Atlantic Theatre for the war.

Inside each is a beautiful sculpture of eagles carrying a wreath.

GOOD NEWS OF THE DAY: Working on a Saturday, but luckily it's the first time I've had to do it in ages.

Arlington National Cemetery

Wednesday morning, we decided to head out to see what sights we could check out in DC. Our first stop was Arlington National Cemetery, which was only 1 Metro stop away from our hotel. It was a cool, crisp morning with bright blue skies. I loved the feeling that all the leafless trees gave to the photo.

It's a vast expanse of property and there are several very stately and gorgeous buildings & monuments around the acreage.


The headstones were captivating- and I felt like each one had a story to tell about how long a soldier lived or which war he served in or where he was from. Often, I was surrounded by memories of those who made the ultimate sacrifice for our country & my pride stretched down the hills as far as I could see.

Of course the other main attraction here is the eternal flame that burns where the Kennedy family is buried.

This area was a special monument to the women who have served our country. I wish I could have learned more about this area, but we somehow missed it on our way out.

H & our friends had been to the cemetery on Monday when I was meeting up with some friends. They were able to watch the changing of the guard, which is such an awesome tradition and a beautiful way to honor our fallen soldiers. Unfortunately, the area was VERY crowded when I was there & I didn't get to see the ceremony.

From the top of the rolling hills, we had an excellent view across Memorial Bridge on the Potomac and at the National Mall. After we were done at here, we set out to make the trek and check out the other war memorials.

GOOD NEWS OF THE DAY: Hopefully will have my U-Verse installation completed today. If not- I'm sticking with the dish.

The Inauguration of Barack Obama

I wanted to share some of the more fantastic photos and websites that documented the day, especially since I didn't really get any great shots of my own. The video of his speech can be seen here and I'll be buying a full DVD when it's out.


The shot is really neat because it's the first time this angle has every been captured. It was done by putting a camera on a remote mechanical arm that sat at the front of the podium with the other equipment.

Another set of wonderful photos can be found here at The Big Picture. The photos showing people around the world watching are pretty neat too. I loved Michelle's outfit and especially her green shoes. It was great to see them out walking down Pennsylvania Avenue & I wish we'd have had the energy to wander over to the parade route after the inauguration.


Another one of the most amazing photos is this ENORMOUS panorama composed of 220 separate images stitched together. You can check out the original here and zoom in to see some amazing details. People have been having fun spotting celebrities and other shenanigans going on in the crowd. Can you find Clarance Thomas asleep?


This image provided by GeoEye Satellite Image shows Washington D.C.'s National Mall and the United States Capitol (top), in Washington D.C. on Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2009 taken at 11:19AM EDT during the inauguration of President Barack Obama. The image, taken through high, wispy white clouds, shows the masses of people between the Capitol and the Washington Monument.


You can see a nice collection of newspaper covers from around the world here. I collected a few magazines and a few newspapers from DC on the morning after the inauguration.


I'm especially excited that one of the first executive orders Obama issued with closure of Gitmo within one year and the reigning in of various forms of "enhanced interrogation" techniques that the government has been using to torture people.

I'm so excited about what President Obama will mean for so many people around the world and for the interest he has been able to generate among young people throughout our country to care about politics again and become engaged in civics.

GOOD NEWS OF THE DAY: Off to Phoenix today, with a scenic and frosty drive up to Flagstaff.

At the Inauguration

We awoke at 4:15 & left our hotel all bundled up to brave the circus around 4:45. The Metro stop was only a few blocks away and we were lucky enough to be on a train by 5AM. There were some people already on the train & we stood, but it got packed at the next few stops. Exiting the Metro at Federal South was an orderly mess, but fairly well-handled.

We arrived at the blue gate at 5:45 and there were about 30' of people in front of us. As we sat and huddled for the next 2 hours, we visited with our new neighbors and tried to keep warm.

By about 7AM, the crowd was a LONG way behind us & I think we arrived at just the right time to get a good place in line.

I can't tell you how many layers of clothes & accessories I had on, but my feet were still cold! Those hand-warmers are a life-saver though. I only wished we had taken a radio so we could listen to updates while we passed the time until the gates opened at 8.

The entry through the gates was a big chaotic, but as orderly as could be with so many people. We were sent into "cow chutes" and then through metal detectors. They made us take out electronics and peeked into my little sling-bag backpack. We arrived at our spot in the South Blue standing zone by 8:45. We were about 15 rows back from the people and to the right of center of the Capitol. The orange seated section was in front of us & you can see the jumbotron we watched as the trees blocked our direct view of the podium.

Even with my 10x zoom, this is the best photo I could get of the podium. Most of the action was actually further back on the stage and we watched the event on the screen. As we were leaving, I realized that the people behind us probably couldn't even see the screen since they were further down the hill. We got really lucky & I feel awful about some of the horror stories I've heard about other ticket holders.

While waiting the 2 hours inside the gate, we kept trying to look around at the crowd, watch the celebrities pass in front of us in the sitting zone, and find the secret service agents on the roofs of adjacent buildings. I loved having my 200mm lens on my nice camera & this is an uncropped shot of hte rotunda. I love the details and can't wait to go inside of it one day.

We had my nice camera & my new camera with us, but I was mostly too cold to take out the new camera and take any photos. However, H was quite zealous with the nice camera, taking about 542 photos of the jumbotron. I think this one of Obama taking the oath is my favorite.


Just thought I'd capture the crowd reaction when George W. Bush walked out. There were more polite than I thought they'd be. I was cracking up that they were singing the old song "Nah Nah Nah Nay Hey Hey- Goodbye". They actually booed more loudly for Joe Lieberman than for Dick Cheney, although Colin Powell got some love from the crowd.


This other clip is the moment that the announcer introduced Obama & he made his appearance on the podium. It was electrifying to be in the crowd and feel the excitement from so many thousands of people.

GOOD NEWS OF THE DAY: Gram is back home from the hospital for the 3rd time in just a few months. Hopefully we're done with all the hospital visits for a while.

Random Zoe 2

A few more of Zoe to fill in while I get through my hundreds of photos from DC. Yes, my new couch/chaise lounge is Zoe's newest dog bed. She sleeps on it all day & is supposed to stay on the pink blanket and off my white pillows.

Sometime's H joins her & they snuggle while we're discussing things or planning our week out. Then she rolls onto her back and wants some belly rubs.

Zoe wasn't too sure about all the drama in the backyard when we installed the sprinkler.

She was checking out all the holes & investigating all the new smells.

She has always been one to play in the dirt, especially if we are working in the yard- she loves to make a mess!

And sorry for the blur, but I only had my 50mm on my camera & this is a zoom/crop, but I laughed at her licking her chops about something good in the dirt.



One more video from the same night as the last one. I swear we make our bed everyday, but H & Zoe mess it up when they do their welcome home ritual. And that's a doggie Dremel on the dresser- I"m slowly working with Zoe to get her accustomed to it & will hopefully be able to trim her nails.

GOOD NEWS OF THE DAY: I so needed this relaxing Saturday- massage, exercise, movies, shopping, cooking & wine!

2009 Houston Marathon

Another year, another marathon down! 2009 was my 5th finish in Houston & 6th overall marathon, but it was only the 2nd time I finished in under 5 hours! I actually felt great almost the entire race, despite the 70+ degree temperatures and blazing sun.

This is our neighborhood running gang- we had 6 of us running the full, which is quite a bit smaller than usual.

I ran the first 14 miles with my running buddy from the Rocky Raccoon Race earlier this year.

There are some nice scenic parts of the marathon- especially miles 3-12, which go through some fun neighborhoods with nice trees.

It's much better after the half-marathoners turn off & the crowd thins out considerably.


It's a mostly flat course, and the biggest hill is this giant over-pass. It's the not-so-scenic part of the run....

Nor is this part, where you run along a major interstate and between a sound wall. It's only about a mile & then we head back into the swanky parts of town.

I felt great & ran quite a bit the last 6 miles. It always feels so good to turn that last corner & see the finish line.

You can see me on the far right just under the banner.

This is the first place I landed after standing for about 6 hours! I needed to rest, drink and wait for my hubby to come find me.

After getting on some more comfortable shoes & a dry shirt, I was anxious to head home & get rested before our big trip to DC that night!

GOOD NEWS OF THE DAY: Feet are almost healed, I ran again this morning (7 miles) and I'm getting a massage tomorrow.

Random Zoe 1

We made it back from DC & I've got lots of photos and stories to share. Until I can get unpacked, downloaded (from the camera) and uploaded to blogger, I've got a random Zoe post to make you smile.

Look at my little pig! I ran out of her specialty vegetarian dog food last weekend, so she was getting rice, boiled potatos and a few bits of kibble. I have no idea where she get's those table manners from!

This was her at the doggie dermatologist to check on her bumps. She kids under the bench, under the chair, behind me & shakes violently. If she can't hide, she'll hide her face so she can't see them.

She's doing pretty well on her diet, but will continue to remain on low-dose steroids to fight her food allergies from all the garbage and food she sneaks at my parent's house and on our runs.

This is a funny video, with my new camera, of her making a myrid of noises about how she's not happy I'm sticking this thing in her face and not playing with her.

GOOD NEWS OF THE DAY: So good to be home in the warmer weather, with my legs mostly recovered.

Gardening Again

Up until last weekend, we still had a few scraggly tomato plants yeilding some pretty pitiful tomatoes and some pepper plants growing. Since we were cleaning up the yard and hopefully getting ready for the spring, I decided it was time for them to go.

Although those are plants on the right side of the box, the left side was producing some lovely weeds! I wanted to get those all out of there & start fertilizing the soil for spring.

I cleaned out everything but two jalepeno plants that were still producing some small peppers. H & I discussed plans for next year & will be doubling our garden size to include 2 more boxes that are half the size of our first box. We're thinking we might get around to this in late February & hopefully get seeds in the ground in early March.

One of H's Christmas presents was a this Aerogarden to grow some herbs and spices sicnce we didn't have much luck with them last growing season. Although you can grow flowers, tomatos and salad greens, I thought we'd be more likely to use the basil, oregano, parsely, mint & chives.
We filled up the base with water, threw in some food tablets and let these seeds sunbake for 16 hours a day since Saturday the 3rd.

By Tuesday, we could already see one of the seed pods starting to pop out and by Wednesday there were already 4 of the 6 showing teeny, tiny leaves.

Now I just need some good recipes to use all the fresh herbs. They have been growing great for 2 weeks now & 5 of the 6 have their plastic domes removed (that's why the photos are so fuzzy).

I've got mojito plans for our mint plant with our new glassware set.

GOOD NEWS OF THE DAY: If we're not too wiped out, we'll wander around DC today and see some of the sites.