spending time

it's amazing how you can still have plenty to do in a day/week even when you are unemployed...also have a different respect for stay-at-home mothers/friends/entrepreneurs and how they have to be spontaneous AND master planners at the same time!

had lunch at chelsea's kitchen last week and got some resume/job search advice from K's brother...a little dose of reality peppered with some hope...not to mention the incredible brussels sprout salad! later that day, my little cousin came over while her parents were taking care of some things and she never ceases to amaze me..."did you know that stars can be over a billion years old? and that they are dead?" while swimming and playing games in the pool...i asked her where she learned that and she said she learned it in school a long time ago...asked her how she remembered it and she said she doesn't write it down but stores it in her brain along with lots of other things...so precious. look out world...J is coming!

surprised dad on 8/19 by hiding in the garage with M, R some balloons and his finished car...the guy who worked on it drove it over to the house and parked it facing out and at an angle...when the garage door went up, we started playing some music and taking photos of him...he was so surprised and then we all got rides in it once he had changed and let it sink in...good things are worth waiting for! enjoy, dad!

reggae concert with R, A on 8/21...outdoor venue at night...great show! on the way there, lightning was illuminating the dark sky and about an hour in to the concert, a strong breeze came in and cooled us off which was followed by sprinkles and then a light rain...the rain came in sideways and was accompanied by the same gusty breezes; it was heaven! the acts were great and i can't remember ever having seen such a mound of dreadlocks. ;) love seeing/hearing live music being performed, and always want it to continue...i always want to hear every song the artist has ever recorded or maybe some that no one has even heard yet!

was dogsitting for cousins this weekend and went to see the fountain last night once it was dark...the highest fountain in the world, to be exact...haven't been there since i was a kid and got there just in time for its hourly 'show'...also worked out for me that there was a gelato shop nearby...love the little flat spoons and tiny little serving cups that you can reuse at home afterwards (and that are biodegradable - made out of corn - should you choose not to be a packrat like me)...for as high as it jets up into the sky and with that much spray on the way down, it was very quiet...stayed until it stopped to see what would happen...it slowly lost its altitude but continued to spray, and when the plume got close to the base of the fountain, it ended with a big puff of water and the lights dimmed...it was so elegant and beautiful bursting into the night sky and so graceful upon closing. nice new shops/restaurants nearby including nice sidewalks, grassy areas and picnic areas surrounding the park...will have to check it out again and any restaurant or shop with a view would be a great place to watch at the top of every hour.

saw some of planet green's blue ocean special...bet you didn't know that parrot fish can crunch rocks and coral in order to eat algae, and that the pulverized waste ends up being sand on the ocean floor....pretty cool!