Best airplane safety videos

This interesting animated safety announcement is from the new airline Virgin America:

This computer animated safety video is from Virgin Atlantic:

This popular (and slightly sexy) video is played on Delta Airlines

This LIVE safety announcement is proof of why Southwest Airlines is the most entertaining airline to fly with...  United Airlines doesn't get any applause for their safety announcements!

And finally, this mock-announcement video was made by Mad-TV to make fun of how American Airlines began charging for the most basic of items like carry-ons and snacks in-flight.

Lambchop Part II

Only 34 more days...

So on May 8th the new Star Trek movie premieres! Here are the 3 trailers that have been released for the film. Click on the video window for each trailer to play it.

Lambchops

Today I took snowy to the groomers to get a haircut.  Since her fur was starting to get matted from a lack of brushing on my part (hey, i've been busy lately at school) I told the groomers to shave off the fur and make her a short-haired cat...   And they did!  When I went to pick her up and first saw her I burst out laughing...  She now looks like Lambchops (the Sherri Lewis puppet)  But she got a bath, her back claws trimmed, a mega-haircut, and they even put a bow on her!

Look at how happy Snowy is to be free from 5 extra pounds of fur:

Snowy likes to show off her new bow:

And she worked up an appetite at the groomers!

Rearranging

So last weekend I rearranged the living room when I had the furniture moved out of the room to have the surround sound speakers installed in the ceiling.  I moved the couch and chairs around and put each of the leaning shelves on opposite sides of the room...  The living room feels a lot larger with the sofa moved to the wall and the chairs in the middle of the room now..

Wupatki National Monument

So after visiting Sunset Crater and the Painted Desert overlook, we arrived at Wupatki National Monument... These ruins are at least 800 years old from when the Sunset Crater eruption added minerals to the desert and made the soils in the area more fertile for agriculture.   The weather was beautiful with blue skies and 80 degree temperatures...  the views of the painted desert were amazing and the ruins were fascinating!  

A colorful view of the Painted Desert

After visiting sunset crater, we traveled about 20 minutes northeast and descended from 8000' back down to 3500' and went back from alpine forest to desert brush environment.  Here we came over a hill and the Painted Desert came into view.  It stretches for hundreds of miles to the West, North, and East from the Grand Canyon to the Petrified Forest and is today part of the Navajo and Hopi nations.  We were going from Sunset Crater to the Wupatki Ruins National Monument

And we got closer to the desert....

And then we were finally in the Painted Desert!

Next stop:  Wupatki Ruins National Monument...

Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument

So about 15 minutes northeast of Flagstaff is Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument.  It is the cinder cone of a volcanic explosion from about 900 years ago.  We explored the base of the cone and I climbed out onto the remains of the lava flow.

The lava flow came off the volcano and cooled and solidified near the base of the cone... 900 years later a few pine trees have managed to take root in the rocks...

And finally, here is me in full social studies teacher attire climbing out onto the lava flow rocks...  Who says you can't hike in dress shoes?

Back to Flagstaff

On Friday, Jenna and her mother invited me to join them in Flagstaff for the day.  We left Phoenix around 9AM and it was supposed to get up to 90+ degrees.  But in Flagstaff the forcasted high was 62.  It is a lot warmer at 1500 feet than at 7000+ feet above sea level....  When we got to Flagstaff there was still snow on top of the higher peaks including Humphrey's Peak (elev. 12,000+ ft.)

After some sightseeing, shopping, and lunch in Flagstaff, our next stop was Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument

More about that in the next post!

A coastal vibe

So another one of my mini-projects this week was to try to add some finishing details to the guest suite.  Since I had no family photos to put in the family frame that was above the bed, I took it down and replaced it with a new black and white beach photo that fits perfectly between the two windows above the bed...

And I finally hung up the final square beach print I have had sitting in the closet since January and actually got them hung level to each other!

A little corner to relax...

So I went to IKEA Tempe this week and picked up a tullsta chair and some canvas art prints to finish off the master bedroom with some art and a sitting corner to sit down and read or put my shoes on in the morning or enjoy my view out the window.  (Click on the purple links to see these products at IKEA.com... but don't forget to come back here!)

Laying around

Do I really need to say anything about these photos?

(Click on the photos to enlarge)

Let there be wind...

So this week I have been on spring break and tried to get a little work done around the house.  The most challenging project I tackled this week was installing a ceiling fan in the living room (by myself!)  Putting up a ceiling fan is really an awful task that is very difficult and aggravating to do on your own as you are trying to hold the fan motor up to the ceiling in your right hand while stuffing wires into the downrod with your left hand while standing seven feet in the air on a ladder and then the wires come springing back out and... UGH!   Yet somehow I actually did it... I also painted and installed a ceiling medallion to match the ceiling paint color and add some decorative flair to what would otherwise be a very basic ceiling fan...

The fan above the living room 

(Click photo to enlarge):

The fan and medallion up close:

The (New) Office

So I finally got my new Convertible Compact Desk from Crate & Barrel.  The desk looks like a file cabinet when it is closed but the top rolls to the side to provide a seating area to use as a desk.  I have turned the loft area at the top of the stairs into the office with my chair, desk, and bookcase all fitting nicely inside this previously useless space...

Here is the bookcase on the wall behind the desk (with my diploma proudly displayed above)  Go B.G.!

Here is the desk in the closed position with my work chair beside it.

 

Here is the view looking over the stairwell and window alcove from the office space...

Here is the desk with the top open into the "desk" position revealing the storage tray below for knick-knacks and other frequently-used items.  Below that is a drawer for other miscellaneous items and below that a file drawer that can hold letter and legal-size hanging files (I got legal size hanging files)

Here is the desk with my laptop open... I'm ready to work!  (or as I am doing right now, sitting at the desk writing this blog post...)

Sleeping on Cloud 9

So my new bedding from Crate and Barrel finally arrived thanks to UPS.  I ordered the Mirage Bedding collection  (click the bold text to see it at crateandbarrel.com)and it feels fantastic to sleep on crisp new bedding.  I got four new down pillows, a new duvet cover and comforter, a coverlet, and new crisp white sheets. I also got new curtains (enough curtain panels for BOTH windows!)   Sleeping in my bed an bedroom is like sleeping in one of those ultra-comfy hotel beds... 

The bedding has a nice natural sage and green tone that goes well with the bath linens in the master bathroom...  It is all very relaxing, which after spending 8 hours with 150+ 13 and 14-year-olds, I could use a little calming....

I have four fluffy down pillows and one latex pillow to provide three layers of marshmallow-y soft support for my weary head....

There are many layers of comfort with the crisp-white sheets, the coverlet, and the comforter and duvet cover...

...and curtains! Now it doesn't feel like an oversized apartment!

Now it's time to enjoy my bed and get some much needed rest so I can wake up at 3AM to finish grading papers!

Hello Kitty

The guest suite bathroom

So to compliment the beach theme in the guest bedroom the adjoining guest bath has a blue color scheme with a great black and white beach photograph print and a candle holder with sand and seashells.