Glacier hike and west coast drive

November 21, 2010

We woke up early before our hike, which was at 8:45am, thinking that the little village of franz Josef would be hopping early since everyone comes here to hike the glacier, but when we went out walking at 7, it was like a ghost town so we went back to the "hut".



At nine, we got ready for our hike. Once the guides told us what to do, we got all of our gear and were off to the glacier. From the car park, it was an hour walk across the valley to actually get to it. Once at the beginning of the ice, we put on our crampons (spiked boot covers for walking on ice) and headed up the glacier. It was out of this world walking on all of that ice. I learned a new term, too: "goat walking". It means walking up a hill zig zagging like a goat...I love it!












The whole hike was four hours and afterwards, we got back on the road to drive three hours to punakaiki, which is probably the most scenic coastline in new Zealand.






Dinner was at the punankaiki resort. The restaurant is right on the beach and we walked on the beach afterwards...and then went to see the pancake rocks (the main reason for stopping in this area). Stay tuned for pictures...

Next up tomorrow...underworld cave rafting

-- Post From My iPhone

Why Won't She Just Go The F#%$ Away???

Sarah Palin, you are an absolute moron. You have no credibility and it shocks me that ANYONE even listens to you. Anyone who thinks they can see Russia out of their window should NOT be in politics. It's interesting that when she wrote her book and went on her book tour, she skipped the cities where most of the "educated" people live and instead, opted to go to the redneck towns where they will believe anything that's shoved down their throats (especially if it's in church!). It just amazes me to no end that she is still getting airtime...

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/2010/03/24/2010-03-24_sarah_palin_aims_to_take_back_the_20_in_wake_of_health_care_reform.html

"You betcha this fur is real! Skinned fresh from the wolves that I had shot from airplanes. God bless us all!"

Respect of others

I don't understand how people can blatantly waste other people's time. Do we not have any respect for each other?

I waited on a street corner for almost 20 minutes after the set meeting time today for a confirmed FREE tour. I was also there ten minutes before our set time also, to make sure they would find me. I had told her that she would find me by my white baseball cap so there was no confusion. We had emailed quite a few times confirming the day and time. She also had my phone number.

After waiting like an idiot, I finally left. That was two or so hours of my weekend that I will never get back. I am so irritated with people!

Short people and general admission concerts

Dear Roseland ballroom,

I want to thank you for last night's awesome concert: adele and the script. It was an amazing show with two great artists. Now, with that said, I just have a one little issue to talk to you about.

I want to know why you are laid out so flat and long. Being a fairly short person, I usually wind up standing right behind some amazon basketball player. It never fails...

Maybe when you were being designed, they should have taken this into consideration, because I know that I wasn't nearly the worse off by far. Of course, if we were VIPs, we could have sat above in the balcony or on the little side stage and had wonderful views, but unfortunately, we are just the little people. You know all about us...the fans...the ones who pay for the music..the ones who support the artists that play there. I have seen other shows by your colleagues, like Webster Hall and Highline Ballroom, and have not had this same problem. Maybe you could take a few pointers from them?

It seems to me that if you wanted to be so big and accommodate so many people, like your big brother Radio City Music Hall, you should do like him: have a slanted floor (or even some seats would be lovely!).

You probably get tired of us shorties complaining, but you should think about us people that keep you in business because without us "little" people, there would be no you.


Thank you for your time.

Sincerely,
Devin Newmeyer

Ain't outsourcing grand?

With the unemployment rate getting higher and higher everyday, I find it really funny (not in the ha-ha way) that our government doesn't really seem to be doing anything to stop outsourcing like we were promised. Companies are still outsourcing as much as before and more Americans keep losing their jobs. I don't want to sound vengeful, but I really do hope all of these banks and other companies that have sent our jobs overseas so they could save their money to put into some fat-ass executives pockets, go down. I am so sick of our capitalist ways. I am directly a victim of this ridiculous greedy scheme and I know many other that are, too. So, America, if you want the economy to get better, PLEASE don't patronize companies that outright outsource...

Unemployed but not dead

Being a direct victim of the economy crash, you would expect one to be pretty down having been unemployed three times in the Past year. It's getting really old, but I am trying to be optimistic about the whole situation. I am so tired of working third shift and I feel like each time I take a job working that dreadful shift, It takes another year or two off of my life. When I am on that shift, I try so hard to workout and eat as well as I could so as not to upset my body's biorhythms anymore than they already are from being up all night. Of course if I have to work another job on that shift, I will do it for now because I have to work.

I am trying not to let it get to me but going on like normal with my life and my travelling obsession. I am planning a trip to new Zealand for next year, which is definitely doable!

Blinded

I went to the doctor today for stomach pains. When I got home, I had briefly talked to my father before going to bed and what I expected to hear was what I almost heard. I was told that I am probably missing "important vitamins and minerals" from not eating meat. Of course, I got a little miffed because I had to remind him that this has been going on LONG before I became a vegan so that has NOTHING to do with it. Why are so many people blinded by what they are told?? The funny thing is..the doctor never mentioned ANYTHING about what I was or wasn't eating.

Oh, and if milk really "does a body good", then why does it have to be pasteurized to be safe to drink?? ..just a little something to think about...

Unemployed...again

Today I was told that my job will be ending this week. This was only a four-month assignment that was supposed to end at the end of April so it's not a shock or anything but I am getting tired of doing temp stuff. I just need a full-time job that is not third shift.

To be quite honest, even though I will be unemployed right now, I am sooo relieved. After five years of working third shift on and off (mostly on), I feel like it has taken a few years off of my life. You can't fully understand how rough it is on your body unless you have done it for at least a few months. I vow to never do it again after this week. Period.

...But he sucks!

I don't get Jason Castro. Last year, he came in fourth place on American Idol and I, as many others that I know, wondered how he even got into the top 12...and if that wasn't bad enough, now he just signed a record deal. Well, as anyone who knows me knows, I am a big sucker for ex-american idol contestants and always give their original music a chance. I have actually grown to like some of the contestants that I didn't care for on the show, like Constantine and Ace Young, as some of their original stuff has been pretty good..but this time it is different. I flat-out refuse to even listen to this no-talent's music. Who even voted for him???

No-talent Jason Castro signs record deal

Obama, I am disappointed

So, after all of the talk for months about the Obamas getting a "rescue" dog, they finally have taken a dog...and to a lot of our dismays, it is NOT a rescue. While there are a lot of people that don't think this is a big deal (a lot of them being the same speciests who are saying "it's only a dog"), the bottom line is that it IS a big deal. First of all, it's one less dog of the millions that are euthanised everyday that could have had a chance at life. Second of all, it's going to promote puppy mills mass reproducing these dogs for the people that want to be like the Obamas. Thirdly, the Obamas are role models and are not setting a good example. In November, we all voted for change and believed that Obama was different than the other lying politicians. I personally still think that he is doing a great job so far, but I am not going to lie...I am disappointed in him for going back on his word. We are at a point in our history when we all need to seriously consider the life around us and the effects that our actions have in this world and also take responsibility for own actions. So, in conclusion, I have to say that I don't see any "change" yet...

Click to read the yahoo story!

Seriously???

A small businessman in my neighborhood who sells windows always has these ridiculous signs hanging in his store window. He was a huge McCain/palin supporter and believes that people like George bush actually care for him. God bless America! (oh, and look how he spells liberals...)

Goodbye Big Concerts

Well, it's been announced that Live Nation and Ticketmaster are merging, amidst a lot of speculation. What does this mean to all of us, you might ask. Well, for anyone who goes to concerts now, a 40 dollars concert ticket winds up costing you almost 60 if you buy it through ticketmaster. They have been ripping people off for years and have dominated the ticket industry. With the emerge of Live Nation, there was hope that they would rival this, but no such luck, as they are now merging to form one big, massive conglomerate of consumer rip-off. This is just another thing in the chain of greed sweeping our nation...

I have finally decided that I am not going to see anymore shows if I have to buy tickets through these greedy companies. If there are no sales at the box office, I will just do without and hope that other people feel the same. If too many people boycott, they will all lose money and be forced to rethink their ways. If not, I will at last know that I am not getting ripped off...shows have gotten ridiculously expensive as it is...

So, it is with sadness that I will not be witnessing Stevie Nicks twirling on any stages in the near future...

Foie Gras

BanFoieGras.org
Originally uploaded by In Defense of Animals

What I want to know is...who is the sick individual who came up with the idea of force-feeding ducks to make their livers fatty so people could enjoy having another delicacy that is unhealthy anyways?? How is this legal?? Wait...I know why...because ANIMALS HAVE NO RIGHTS. In the eyes of man, animals are treated as lesser than us because we feel that we are superior to all living beings on this planet. Am I right?

Foie Gras has been banned in some states, but it's still legal here in New York. They have some farms upstate...lovely "family-run" operations...it just sickens me how everything is sugar-coated, even though the reality of it is that millions upon millions of animals are abused and killed everyday at the hands of man, for selfish reasons.

Rodeo Abuse

Rodeo Abuse
Originally uploaded by Vegan Butterfly

For all of you rodeo fans, this abusive footage was shot by one of my flickr friends. RODEOS ABUSE ANIMALS! This is NOT entertainment at all! I just don't understand how people want to be treated equally, but will go to a rodeo and watch animals get tied up and eventually killed, not to mention how they shock the bulls to get them crazy before opening the gate. It's just sickening and if we want to keep living in this world, we need to change our evil ways and start respecting ALL life.

This is what baffles me...someone like Sarah Pallin, who is 100 percent "pro-life". She doesn't believe in killing a baby that is still an embryo, but she can happily participate in these kinds of events. I am not saying that I have seen her at a rodeo, but I would be willing to bet my own life on it that if one came to her town, she would be right in the front row. How does one explain the hippocrisy?

PLEASE do NOT support rodeos!

This sickens me!

So there is a pet shop by my house in Astoria, right on Steinway Street, that sells tons of puppies. It seems like every other day that we walk by, there are new ones and now, they are having a puppy sale. Am I the only one that thinks this is just terribly wrong??? How many people are so fucking stupid and don't know that the dogs are from puppy mills??? The biggest problem is that the puppies are so damn adorable...I would love to see this place shut down!

Stupid me!

So, I was rushing around this morning to get to work on time (I am not used to working during the day anymore...or as of late, working at all!) and I was trying to do everything quickly and efficiently. I got us chewable multi-vitamins at the health food store the other day and they taste really nasty, making anyone wonder why they would make them chewable anyways if they were tasting so nasty...they are also giant-sized. I am the idiot who decided that I would just swallow it and get it over with quickly. So, along with my iron pill, I threw it in my mouth and took a swig of water. Well, the big, fat, stinky pill got stuck in my throat! It was painful and, being the hypocrondriac that I am, I thought that it might kill me...and to top it all off, I HAD to leave for work! I had just finished making some oatmeal, which I couldn't eat because swallowing hurt like hell...

All the way to work, everytime I swallowed while on the train, I tried to think happy thoughts, like the pill being gone....no such luck. I got to work and started working and finally, about ten minutes later, I was able to swallow without pain. I could slightly taste the vitamin, but it wasn't too bad...

So, the bottom line is...I have learned a valuable lesson: if it  says CHEWABLE, chew it and don't just swallow the nasty thing!

Jessie's present

Jessie's present
Originally uploaded by altermood

So my mom sent a package the other day, all with stuff for jessie and
she stuck her big, fat nose right in the box...

Sent from mi telefono de apple

Expedition Everest

Expedition Everest 3
Originally uploaded by karenv@snet.net

If you ever get to Disney's Animal Kingdom in Orlando, you have to go on this ride. We went on it when our cruise stopped in Orlando in April 2008, and it was just so much fun! I think it's even better than space mountain, the matterhorn and thunder mountain!

Sometimes...

Downtown LA
Originally uploaded by honeybeejen

I have been in New York for almost seven years and it's been over seven years since I left the "homeland", Los Angeles. I had lived there pretty much my whole life, up until 2001, apart from the four months I lived in New York before back in 1989 and the two weeks that I made a mistake and moved to Las Vegas in 1992. It was a lifestyle that I had known all too well..the sun, traffic, beautiful weather and eye-stinging smog...somedays, I do miss it, though it's been such a long time, It almost seems like another life. But whenever I go out to visit, it all comes back to me...and after a few days, apart from missing my family and friends out there, I find myself missing my adopted home, New York City!

Factor's Deli

DSC00087
Originally uploaded by neonspecs

I found this photo posted on Flickr and it brought back memories, some good, some bad...

I used to work at Factor's Deli for two and a half years, from March 1999 to October 2001. It was my last job in Los Angeles. It's a very stressful place, but one of the best delis in L.A. The owners are all a little crazy but for the most part, nice people. The same goes for a lot of the people that work there and there are people that have been there for a million years.

Suzee, one of the owners, used to get so stressed out and chase everyone around, driving them crazy and getting in the way of them doing their jobs. Quite a few times, I had to lash out at her because I couldn't take it...and I am not the only one!

Despite the madness, whenever I go to visit my family and friends in L.A. now, I always like to go in and say hello. The food is really good, though I don't think there is much that I can eat there anymore since becoming vegan...