Carolina on My Mind

Back by popular demand.
Sorry we have neglected for so long. I [Erika] am taking 18 credits this semester and it's whipping my butt. So that's my excuse. I'm not sure what Jessica's is. Maybe she will say in her next post. :) Whenever that may be.

Lots has happened in our lives since our last post, obviously. But. I'll skip the play-by-play and just go straight to the newest most exciting information: SPRING BREAK!

Yeah.
It happened last week and it was... marvelous. I really can't explain just how great it was. It was so nice to have a break from school. And a fun one at that. Jessica, Kate, Alyssum and I all headed down to Greenville, South Carolina for the week. And like I said. It was great. I think I'm gonna just do what I always do and make a list of the highlights for y'all. [Yes. the "y'all" was on purpose to get you all in the southern mindset].

Ok. Highlights. And... go:

1. On the way down we stopped at a gas station that was so old you couldn't even pay at the pump. It was great. And the people inside were so nice.

2. Alyssum/Jessica accidently super-sized it at Arby's. Hahaha. It was so funny.

3. We ate in Buttermilk. Aka: the greatest place on earth where everything is funny.

4. We called one of those "how's my driving?" numbers on the back of a semi to report a good driver. You could tell the phone lady wasn't used to that. And she called me "sir." Oiy.

5. I saw a dead dog on the side of the road and Jessica and Kate took advantage of my dismay and took the... best... picture ever taken of me.

6. Kate waved at a trucker who then followed us at a pretty high speed [for a semi] for quite a while.

7. When we went to Sonic, there was somebody there w/ narcolepsy who had been there for hours and just kept passing out in the car. I'm not making this stuff up. I swear.

8. The grass was green. And the sky was blue.


9. We climbed on the waterfalls of Falls Park even though it's "strictly prohibited." Shh, don't tell. ;)

10. We went to the "coolest toy store on the planet" and I thought a chair was a hat. Don't even hate on me. It would have been a sweet hat.


11. Alyssum FELL. hahahahaha.

12. We went downtown on the St. Patty's night for the Blarney Bash. Let me tell you. It was an experience:

13. There was a drunk couple there who.... well.... let's just say were a little too close to each other for too long in a far too public place.

14. And. There was a "drunk" child. Ok... let's hope not literally, but it sure seemed like it.

15. And. There was an Irish Gypsy Fairy Queen. She wanted to dance w/ everybody. But we wouldn't let her dance w/ us cause she was weird. And obviously we don't dance w/ weird people.

16. Kate and I got a picture with the guitarist from Gypsy Soul - the band that was playing. They were really good, but the man held us a little too tight and too long for comfort. Haha.


17. A man with long braided pigtails [we now refer to him as Pocohontas] was impressed with how excellent we all smelled. What can I say? We aim to please.

18. We went to Table Rock and went on a slew of adventures there too:

19. A boy took his shirt off so that we could gaze lovingly at his muscles. Or lack thereof.

20. Kate and Kendal and I went off the path quite a bit and always took the adventure way. Which means going over trees that would be much easier to go under. And Jessica and Alyssum did a great job taking beautiful pictures of it all.


21. Kate and I climbed a tree. Kate fell in a hole. Hahaha. Yes. I do get joy from seeing people fall, ok?


22. Jessica, Kate and Alyssum experienced Waffle House for the first time. They liked it... except for the gas that followed. Yes, I'm sure you alll wanted to know about that. :)

23. Our waitress there said that we were all very polite and then compared us to teenagers. But it was all good in the 'hood cause she was so nice about it.

24. Jessica and Kate are in love with the Game Show Network. And we almost got to be on it and talk to Carlton from Fresh Prince.



25. We got all dressed up and went downtown for dinner, and a man looked at Kate with the opposite of disgust.



26. We went to Liquid Highway cause we got mad at another coffee place for not letting us sit where we wanted to. But it all worked out for the better cause the barista there was HOT. And he put a heart shape in my coffee. SCORE.

27. We were slightly scared by a homeless man trying to talk to some girls and following them. Yikes. Don't worry, though. He didn't follow us. Kate was too fast for him.

28. We had wrestling matches galore. Kate and I always won.

29. Kate and I got cool sunglasses, I got a cool ring, Jessica and Alyssum got cool dresses, Kate got cool earrings and a headband and Alyssum got a cool... something else. :) [for a picture of Jessica's dress, look at our dressed up picture. for a picture of Alyssum's dress, email her and ask her to take a picture of her in it and send it to you. for a picture of our cool sunglasses, look below. for a picture of Alyssum's something else dream on]


30. Kate and I are the best singers in the world. We did a cover of All-American Rejects' "Gives you Hell." Let me tell you. It's great.

31. "Truth," My workshirt, Bat Cave, Buttermilk, GSN, Liquid Hotguy are just some of the many things that will now live in infamy because of this trip.

So that was our spring break in a list of 31 highlights. Hope you all enjoyed it.
And sorry again about the neglect. We will tryyyy to be better.

Ok. Peace out.

Life in Technicolor

All right, folks. Here is part 2 of my 2 part Costa Rica blog. :)

Day 12 -
Today was kind of just a travel day. We made our way to the Arenal Volcano. And the place we are staying at is a BEAUtiful resort type place today. When we got there we all just lounged about by the pool and the hot tub. It. Was. Spectacular.
Couple things I noticed today: (1) I wish I could sleep better on the bus. (2) I am SO thankful for my iPod. (3) When you tell people that you are getting credits while sitting in a hot tub, they will laugh at you.

Day 13 -
Today would have been 100% cooler had it not been rainy and cloudy. But, hey. You win some, you lose some. We went on a boat ride today to the bottom of the volcano which was really neat. I am always up for a good boat ride. :) We also went to the hot springs. Which was cool. Like... 8 or so natural hot tubs. Spectacular.
Couple things I noticed today: (1) Ellen Degeneres is hilarious. (2) Lava looks like a white cloud coming down the mountain during the day. (3) Iguanas look like mini-dinosaurs. (4) The hot springs weren't quite as natural as I would have expected/hoped. It was kind of like a little mini-resort. I thought we would have to like... hike to them.

Day 14 -
Today was our first day in Limon. I have never felt so much like an outsider. I don't like walking around unfamiliar cities at night. Oiy. I just felt like such a tourist today. And I don't like that feeling. Not to mention the fact that everytime we went out somebody was stressing the importance of keeping your bags in front of you at all times. Yikes.
Couple things I noticed today: (1) if a car sees you crossing the street, they don't slow down. They speed up. (2) Talk about a snap back to reality - coming from the resort type place here. I can see why they think all Americans are filthy rich.


Day 15 -
Beach day! Oh my gosh. It was great. We got up. Ate breakfast. And went to the beach. Now, I don't tan. So I therefore normally am not a lay-out-in-the-sun-all-day type of person. But. This was great. I had so much fun. And I saw wild monkeys.
Couple things I noticed today: (1) the monkeys are very bold. They will come right up to you and steal chips out of your hand. (2) Yeah. I don't tan. (3) I got offered a joint. It's not really something I noticed, but still worth mentioning.



Day 16 -
So today we made our way back to San Jose. It's funny how this city that I was so intimidated by has become our home away from home. I love the Don Carlos Hotel. If you're ever in San Jose, stay there. :) We had dinner at somebody's house and they performed traditional Nicaraguan dances for us. They were really neat.
Couple things I noticed today: (1) I like euchre. I hadn't really played in a while. And I like it. (2) I also like my roomates here and that we can do stupid things and think they are funny. (3) Diane would have loved the dances.


Day 17 -
Today was just a chill out in San Jose day. We ran some errands: last laundry run, last bank run, that sort of thing. And the main event of the day was getting pierced and tattooed. I didn't get anything done, but there were 3 belly button rings, one tattoo, and one eyebrow ring. We also saw Valkyrie. Which was a good movie. Not really the light-hearted comedy I was in the mood for. At all. But good nonetheless.
Couple things I noticed today: (1) Mandy handled getting a piercing just like I would have - by passing out. (2) It's important to get off at the right bus stop. Otherwise you will risk your life like 10 times crossing one street. (3) I did my mini-lecture. And our professor likes to interrupt me. A lot. (4) Brooke looks great w/ her eyebrow pierced.

Day 18 -
Today was another travel day. Off to Manuel Antonio. My first trip ever to the Pacific ocean. Yes. After all the travel it was a marvelous day. Swimming in the ocean, watching the sunset on the beach, eating a really nice, fancy dinner - all great. Really really great.
Couple things I noticed today: (1) The waves in the Pacific are huge. Like seriously 2 times my size. SO much fun. (2) I have very little patience for people with no patience. (3) I can't stop taking pictures of beautiful sunsets. (4) Brooke still looks great with an eyebrow ring. (5) People think Jamar and I are or should be dating.... awkward. (6) I'm better at the salsa and meringue than I could have guessed. Our teacher chose me to be his partner when showing people how to do it. Yesss. :)

Day 19 -
So could today get any more perfect? Nope. I don't think so. Today we went to the Manuel Antonio National Park which is home to the 3rd most beautiful beach in the world. Yup. It lived up to the hype. Then after we spent some time there, we went on a boat. Like a little mini-cruise that included free [non-alcoholic] drinks, dinner, snorkeling, dolphin sightings, salsa, meringue, and jumping into the ocean off the upper deck. Seriously... Perfect Day was the theme song of the day.
Couple things I noticed today: (1) snorkeling is so cool, but it takes some time to get used to so that you're not inhaling salt water. (2) I love jumping off of high things into the water. So much fun. (3) I saw a rock that was in Jurassic Park. (4) It's much harder to dance the salsa and meringue on a boat than it is on the ground.

Day 20 -
Ok. So today was pretty darn great too. We went zip-lining. Probably one of the coolest, funnest things I have done in my entire life. Oh my gosh. I really don't think I can express how much I loved it. Right after zip-lining we headed back to San Jose. Ugh. I definitely was not ready to go back...
Couple things I noticed today: (1) Alex [Our substitute leader who also taught us to dance] didn't really like zip lining, despite what he said... (2) Amanda Petrakovitz is popular among the Ticos. (3) Like I said - I absolutely love zip-lining. (4) Danielle has huge guns.

Day 21 -
Today was just a get-ready-for-tomorrow day. We did some last minute souvenir shopping. Went to dinner at the place we ate on our first day... and just kinda relaxed before our 16 hours of travel tomorrow.
Couple things I noticed today: (1) I like shows like CSI, The Mentalist, and House. (2) They have these carmel-coffee candies that are delicious. (3) Mandy Phillips and Brooke Nanna are awesome.


Day 22 -
Today is the long, long, looonnnng travel day home. It's weird how fast this trip has flown by. When we made it back to the States, it was so nice to be able to read the signs, talk to people easily, and pay in American money. And it was sooo nice to see my family again.
Couple things I noticed today: (1) 5 hour lay-overs aren't quite as bad as they sound when you're with a bunch of friends. (2) Bennigan's in an airport is sooo expensive. But so good. (3) Quarters, dimes, nickels, and pennies are sooo much smaller than Colones.

And that's about that. Hope you enjoyed and I didn't totally bore you. But. In my defense, if you were bored, you had the option to navigate away. :)

Annnd...
I'll leave you with this image:



Ok. Peace out.

What You Know About It

Peer pressure is good cause it works.

Here is my (Erika's) 25 random things about me. Don't worry. More Costa Rica is to come as well. But... like I said. Peer pressure.

1. I have an extra bone in my jaw and cracks in my tongue.

2. I have been on over 200 plane rides.

3. My dad, stepmom and sister live in South Carolina and people down there tend to think MI is a frozen tundra land.

4. My great-great grandma was in the mob.

5. I have never had a boyfriend.

6. I can't stand Britney Spears.

7. I Love Lucy and The Office are my favorite shows.

8. I have brown, not black, hair.

9. The color of my eyes is highly debatable. I've heard brown, green, yellow... but I say hazel.

10. My favorite book series is the Little Miss and Mister series.

11. I have 4 half siblings - all younger, 2 boys and 2 girls.

12. I'm really good at Mario Kart. :)

13. I love camping and hiking. And waterfalls.

14. I also absolutely LOVE hockey and have since I was... like 7.

15. Since I love hockey, my mom thought it would be a good idea to sign me up for figure skating lessons when i was little.... yeah. that didn't last.

16. I also took clarinet, gymnastics, and played basketball and volleyball in middle school.

17. I have passed out a number of times... I think at least 10. It just runs in my family.

18. I worked at Dairy Queen for 3 years and never got sick of the ice cream.

19. I read part of the Twilight series, and unlike almost every girl on the planet am not head-over-heels in love with Edward.

20. I burp a lot.

21. My parents took me to jail once cause they thought I stole something from a store when I didn't!

22. I love Aretha Franklin. Even when she does wear crazy hats during performances.

23. I was plowed over by a basketball player during a game while standing on the sidelines.

24. I survived the worst earthquake Costa Rica has had in over 100 years.

25. I cry almost every time I laugh - so the term "I laughed so hard I cried" means nothing to me.

Do You Remember?

I (Jessica) finally caved.

I'm writing my 25 random facts. And you get to read them. I hope they make you laugh rather than want to throw up a little.

1. I HATE peeing. Unfortunately, God gave me a bladder the size of a chihuahua's.

2. I haven't had chocolate milk since I was in kindergarten. I saw a boy drink it and throw up, and have since quit it cold turkey.

3. Six months ago, I never noticed Volvos, but now I'm always curious and try to look at the driver.

4. The scar on my lip is courtesy of a poorly planned game of volleyball in a room with a [formerly] mounted deer head.

5. I have never hated my life more than the 2 days that I had to lift and stack strollers at Magic Kingdom.

6. I think that my dad could beat up my new roommate's dad, no problem.

7.I have ever only had 2 regrets in life
- I didn't take my picture in front of the Black Pearl at WDW
- I didn't buy a Disney Princess waffle iron in the shape of Cinderella's carriage
- Since working at Disney, I rectified both regrets so that now I have none.

8. Speaking of the Black Pearl, I saw Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl 7 times in the theater.

9. I have never dated, or even kissed a boy for that matter.

10. Part of the reason #9 exists is because I'm slightly afraid of rejection, but it's mostly because I just haven't found the right guy yet.

11. I make jokes about how I want to fulfill gender roles (staying in the kitchen, not wanting to drive, etc...), but I'm actually fairly serious about wanting that for my life.

12. I can't let my bare hands touch dishrags or sponges that have already been used on dishes.

13. I used to be pretty unique in remembering people's birthdays until stupid facebook came along and made it easy for everyone to remember them.

14. I love to buy gifts for people, but I never have enough money to do so.

15. While at Disney World, I had a dream where they picked me to be a Belle character and when I woke up and realized it was just a dream, I almost cried.

16. While working at Blockbuster one summer, I rented over 100 movies and watched about 80 of the movies I rented.

17. I feel like I lost some of my innocence watching the Block Party Bash at Hollywood Studios. Green army men should never under any circumstances do any form of the pelvic thrust.

18. I can't wait until I'm an old woman and I can partake in Senior Citizen discounts, play BINGO all the time, and call young people whippersnappers.

19. I can relate almost any situation in life to either an episode of "The Office" or "Friends."

20. I cry ALL the time watching movies or reading books, but hardly ever cry in real life situations. I even cried while watching "Elf."

21. I love to take jumping pictures, but not as much as I love to photo-bomb people and jump in their pictures.

22. If I really like a book, I reread it more than any human being should. I read the Chronicles of Narnia twice a year, have read each Harry Potter book 7 times,and have read each Twilight book four times since June.

23. I really hope that my Disney World roommate gets famous because she said she'd put me in one of her movies and introduce me to other famous people.

24. If I didn't have a GPS, I don't think I could find the way from my bedroom to the kitchen.

25. I would love it if Rasheed Wallace from the Detroit Pistons punched me, just so that I could tell people that Rasheed Wallace punched me.

Sun is Shining

Oh gracious. Where to start...?

How 'bout here:

...or here:
... or here:

Yes. It's true. I [Erika] spent my January in the most beautiful place I have ever seen: Costa Rica. I honestly don't really know where to start w/ talking about the trip... so much happened....
Ok. I think I'm going to just list highlights of the days I was there... hopefully this doesn't become too long winded. Heh

Day 1 -
We spent the day in San Jose. Which was kind of different than I thought it would be. It's big, but the whole city shuts down at like 6:30-ish. And then there are only sketchy people on the streets. Well... sketchy people and us. Heh. I was a little out of my comfort zone for a while there.
Couple things I've noticed so far: (1) the women all wear very high heels (2) they label very few of the streets (3) they sell "butt-booster" underwear.

Day 2 -
We went to church today. In the red light district of San Jose. It was cool. A lot like a non-denominational type church in the States. Except during the meet and greet time, people actually do that. And enjoy it. We had so many people come up giving us hugs and kisses on the cheeks welcoming us. It was cool.

Couple things I've noticed today: (1) A lot of women and girls wear like... boots w/ fur. Even though it's summer here. (2) The cool thing to do in the parks is chase the pigeons.

Day 3 -
Today was one of my favorite days of the whole trip. We spent the day in one of the burrios of San Jose. Translation: kind of like the ghetto. All we did was play with the kids. It really made me realize how blessed we are. Really the only thing that is different between me and the kids is where and when we were born. They aren't going to have the great opportunities that I had as a kid. I just hope and pray that they can grow out of their circumstances and live a great life.

Couple things I've noticed today: (1) kids LOVE tattoos (2) if you make balloon animals for a group of kids they will all be popped in a matter of hours.

Day 4 -

So. Today was another favorite of mine. We went to La Paz waterfalls and the Poas volcano. I am in love with waterfalls. So it was great. I am just amazed at the beauty of God's creation.

Couple things I noticed today: (1) I'm out of shape (2) Cocoons can be absolutely beautiful (3) Snakes don't freak me out, but very large bugs... they may freak me out.

Day 5 -

Not much happened today. We went and heard a couple lectures. Yawn. Brooke's camera was stolen today. Literally right in front of me. If you want to hear the story... I'd be glad to tell it. Just ask.

Couple things I noticed today (1) People are very good at stealing things. (2) Brooke handles things very well.

Day 6 -
We went to the Basilica in Cartago and QERC (Quetzal Educational Research Center) today. At the church there were tons of kids trying to sell us little necklaces and bracelets and stuff. It's sad that they are forced to do that. At QERC - one of the most beautiful places on earth, I'm sure - we went for a "little" hike to some mini waterfalls. And since I am in love with waterfalls, it was great for me. :)

Couple things I noticed today: (1) Costa Ricans must have very tough knees. At the church they "walk" up to the altar on their knees. (2) It's much harder to say "no" to a cute little kid selling you things than an adult. (3) "Peter" is much more fun to say in an English accent. (4) I felt an earthquake today. (5) I am still out of shape.

Day 7 -

Today was a hike through the forests of QERC. I love hiking. So this was great. Not quite as tiring as yesterday's hike. But still great.

Couple things I noticed today: (1) Baby hummingbirds are TINY. (2) Don't always trust the guide when they hand you something and tells you it tastes good. Even if they've eaten one too (3) I love hangy chair things.

Day 8 -
Today was the first of 3 days spent with coffee farming families. It was a little overwhelming at first. Mandy and I didn't know what to do... so much so that we just looked at each other and laughed our eyes out for about 5 minutes. We got a hold of ourselves. Thanks to my high school Spanish teacher. :)

Couple things I noticed today (1) They eat dinner about 8:30... at about 6:00 they serve a snack. Don't think that the snack is dinner and get totally full... trust me. (2) These people are SO nice and good at making us feel welcome despite the language barrier. (3) You don't have to speak the same language to have fun playing cards and the guitar. (4) Baby cows are SO cute.

Day 9 -

Second day on the coffee farm. And it's Sunday, so we went to church. And then the families did something that is rarely done in my house: absolutely nothing. It was so great to see them just chill out and enjoy each other's company. I also found out today that the earthquake caused tons of damage. If we had been at the waterfalls or the volcano 2 days later, we would have been killed. Thank God for his protection.

Couple things I noticed today: (1) Everybody is so good at soccer here. (2) I loathe roosters. They don't just crow in the morning. All. Night. Long. (3) I know enough Spanish to give them

English lessons. How cool!

Day 10 -

Today is our last full day with the coffee farmers. We picked coffee today!! Something I never thought I would do. It was nothing like I pictured. We were like... in a jungle... on the side of a mountain. It was fun, though.

Couple things I noticed today: (1) It's hard to keep yourself standing on the side of a mountain w/ a basket of coffee strapped around your waist. (2) I hate bugs. (3) I am out of shape. Still. (4) I am not a very fast coffee picker.

Day 11 -

We all reunited and headed back to San Jose today. It was nice to see everyone and exchange stories. When we got back to our hotel, we splurged for an All-American girls' night. Manicures, pedicures, and pizza.

Couple things I noticed today: (1) It's amazing close you can get to people when you are w/ them 24-7 (2) Manicures and pedicures are much cheaper in Costa Rica. (3) San Jose has become like our home away from home. (4) I can't stand living out of a suitcase.

Well. I think it's time for me to end this mile-long post for now. I'll fill you in on the 2nd part of the trip when your eyes aren't burning from reading so much and I can think again. :)

Ok, peace out.

P.S. If you want to see more pictures click on these: Album #1 and Album #2 and Album #3 and Album #4 and last but not least, Album #5

The Rose

Tonight was my first official date with Jason Mesnik.

And he didn't exactly give me a rose, but it's ok, becuase I already had one :)


I know that some people think that "The Bachelor" is a terrible show and has a total lack of morals, but I don't even care. I love it.

What I don't love is how DeAnna broke Jason's heart two seasons ago. Anyone who lets a man propose to her on national television, just to say no is a terrible, awful person. Every time I see her, my blood pressure goes through the roof. She's pretty much the bane of my existence.

Anyway.

Back to my date.

Some of us from the village (P.S. I'm back at SAU now. In case you didn't know...) got all dressed up like the ladies of The Bachelor and drank sparkling juice and had variations of pizza and it was the BEST. We got to watch TWO WHOLE HOURS of The Bachelor followed by my other new favorite show, "True Beauty."


People are nuts these days, let me tell you. One of the bachelorettes threw up. One bachelorette went in for a kiss and got more than she bargained for. Numerous bachelorettes were involved in cat fights.

Seriously. Go watch it NOW on ABC.com. It's phenomenal.

And we took many pictures - this is going to become a weekly ritual.

There's nothing like watching a man date 15 women to try to find his one true love.

Also. I've been meaning to give a shout out to my aunts Cindy and Judy.
Aunt Cindy - thanks for commenting on my blog and making me feel special. Holla! ;)
Aunt Judy - thanks for commenting to my mom that you love my blog. I love it :)

Peace out
Jessica

I'll Be Home for Christmas

Well, I missed Christmas, but I'm coming home!!!

Much to the chagrin of Prince Caspian, however. ;)

Peace out and see you SOOOOOOON!!!

Jellens