To Utah and back

Well I think Melissa needs an update. This week was another spontaneous trip to see my family in Utah. I have learned when Ben says "Let's go to Utah," I run and get in the car before he changes his mind. This was a quick trip but I got to see my family and Ben's brother Josh and his wife Jerusha. It was so nice to see everyone and we did get to have some random fun.

On the way down we stopped at Antelope Island to see some Buffalo and of course Antelope. I think there is a reason I have never been there. There wasn't much to it but I think it could be better in the summer. Ben and I may return someday. I would say one thoe up and one thoe down.

But then for more randomness. The next day we toured Mrs Cavanaugh's Chocolate Factory in north Salt Lake. After Antelope Island we drove past this little wonder. And Ben, who is really a big kid disguised as a man, got all giddy inside and had to go. He wanted to flip a U-turn on the freeway and bolt to the factory but he refrained until the next morning so we could go with my parents. Ben was in heaven! The smell of chocolate just makes him happy so you can imagine his delight in a Chocolate Factory. We even got to see Mrs Cavanaugh in person. It was actually fun and pretty educational. Ben now believes chocolate is good for you and will fix cavities not cause them. (that movie was a wee bit biased!)

So, the rest of the trip was full of visiting and eating. Why not gain a few Utah pounds? Can we say Cafe Rio, The Mayan and the Lion House Pantry...hello, calorie intake.

Sadie Dog enjoyed the trip as well. She did so good on the long drive. And loves Grandma and Grandpa Nielsen. I think she misses them already. But at least she will always have a piece of the toy Grandma bought her, eternally stuck in her colon.

Now while I am back home, Ben is camping at the base of Mt St Helens. He is hiking it tomorrow morning with his brother Adam and our friend Jimmy Carter. Hopefully they are safe. I have until Sunday night and then I have permission to call Search and Rescue. I am not nervous or anything. Can you tell? OK I am a little nervous. My husband is climbing active volcanoes. And thanks to my Mom I have seen Dante's Peak five thousand times. Honestly, I am more worried about them falling into the crater then the mountain exploding...again... Jeesh, I hope I can sleep tonight.

Melissa needs

This is a fun, blog game that I saw on a friend of a friend’s blog.
What you do is you google “your name” “needs” to find out what you need today. Then post the first ten things that come up.

Melissa needs to take a break.
Melissa needs lots of guidance.
Melissa needs help.
Melissa needs a home.
Melissa needs hydration after the walk.
Melissa needs a roof.
Melissa needs to find a new agent.
Melissa needs to board the blob ship that is hovering overhead.
Melissa needs blogs.
Melissa needs to be the next "bachelorette." Sorry gillian. getting proposed 2 then dumped on natl tv is wayy harsh, jason is a @#&(d!

I definitely do not need to be the next bachelorette or to board the blob ship that is hovering overhead!

Kind of funny.

Coyote Ugly

Two coyotes are living in my neighborhood. Scary, I know. Mostly for Sadie. A lady in the neighborhood stopped me when I was walking my dog yesterday. She told me that the two coyotes were displaced when they treed the woods down the road. (Maybe those environmentalists are on to something) So, I have been worried about the coyotes attacking my dog. I have been keeping her inside or on a leash but they say Sadie is big enough that the coyotes probably won't attack her. If anything, they will just corner her and try to make her one of the pack. I am guessing since Sadie cowers down to Yorkshire Terriers she probably won't join the Coyotes.

So, Jen if you are ever cornered by dogs again, take it as a compliment. They are just trying to recruit you to their pack. ;)

Slumdog

I just watched Slumdog Millionaire. Ah, I loved it. That was such a good movie. It had it all; romance, comedy, drama. I fell in love with the little characters. I cheered and I cried.

The Academy picked a great one this time around. If you haven't seen it, I recommend it...yeah, me and two hundred thousand other people. I know I am probably the last person to see this show but I just hate not having that after-movie conversation. So, I had to blog about it.

What struck me the most was that even though it was definitely a fictional story the circumstances are not that far off. I saw a news story about the little kids that were in the movie and they really do live in the slums of India. The director bought their families a condo to live in after the movie won Best Picture. But I was thinking that director could probably buy the whole slum a new condo. Even though it feels like we are in a horrific economic meltdown, we still have one of the wealthiest countries in the world. It is just amazing.

Anyway, I love a movie that you go away from smiling--and with a little more understanding of the world around you. This one did that for me.