Sunrises and Sunsets of Jamaica

I have always been mesmerized by the colors of sunrise and sunset.  There is nothing more beautiful and dramatic than the sun rounding the curves of the planet when there are clouds in the air.  I won't write much today, I will just share some photos.


Sunset on the beach



Sunset from the Catamaran

The softer more diffused colors show in the clouds to the East as the sun sets to the West. I tried to get some sunrise photos but the position of the resort didn't allow for good pictures.  Besides the fact that 6:00 AM is a bit too early when I'm on vacation.


Sunset Reflection from the Catamaran

We were at the Atlanta airport just before the big snowstorm hit.  I couldn't help but take pictures of the "firestorm" in the sky.  It was brilliant and amazing!


Sunset at Atlanta airport 1/27/14

 I do feel terrible for the pilots that need to fly into and out of the sun.  But for those that don't need to stare into it, it is beautiful!


Sunset at Atlanta airport 1/27/14

Flying away into the sunset

Catamaran Ride

Waiting on the Sunny Beach

The Jamaican lifestyle is hurry up and wait.  The drive like it is urgent to get someplace.  But when you get there it is the "don't worry mon~ every thing in it's time."

Time for a Catamaran Ride

My boss scheduled a Catamaran ride for all of the employees, their spouses and families.  We didn't find out about it until we arrived in Jamaica.  I will write several blogs about it because we rode on the catamaran, we stopped and went snorkeling, then we stopped at Ricke's Café where several people disembarked and a few brave souls tried cliff jumping. (I stayed on the catamaran with Dale and took photos.)



We are there for you.

One thing that impressed me was that knowing that Dale was suffering from lower back pain when he walked, my co-workers stepped up and helped Dale get onto and later off from the catamaran.  If he would have wanted to try snorkeling, they would have helped with that too.  I work for a wonderful company that is much more like an extended family than any company that I've ever worked for.



Time to get your feet wet.

Three of my co-workers surrounded Dale as he walked out to the catamaran, one in front, two on each side and one of the catamaran workers followed behind just in case he had problems walking or getting up the stairs. They handled the issue in a way that was supportive but not demeaning. (Don't they look like just a bunch of ol' friends walking in the ocean?) Then two other catamaran workers carried the wheelchair out to the boat and passed it over the edge. 


Taking care in a special way...



Helping Hands

Okay, so looking over the photos I did feel a bit guilty that when I got up I took a picture of Dale instead of offering my hand to help him up.  But it would not have mattered because there were people standing there helping everyone and I would not have been able to get near in a safe location.  

Another beautiful day in the sunshine!

On the first day Dale got a little burnt in the pool.  It never got any worse, it just looks that way.  We had a very enjoyable catamaran trip.  ~more on that later!

Dolphin Swim

I know that there are animal activists in the world that feel it is abusive to keep dolphins captive for entertainment.  But I have had pets all of my life; mostly dogs and cats.  I watched the dolphins interact with their trainers and there is a respect and love between them.  As the dolphins interacted with us, it looked like they enjoyed the attention and interaction.




Happy Dolphin

I had a dream the night before that while I was in the water with the dolphin that more than one dolphin swam up to me.  What actually happened was that while I was in the water a second dolphin swam up to me and only me.  It swam close enough for me to reach out and stroke her back.  There were seven dolphins in the area and only five were interacting with people.  The alpha male and a female were swimming off to the side.  She decided that he was bothering her and she'd rather be by me.



Petting a Dolphin

In my group were three young people from Chili.  They separated us by languages for everything except petting the dolphin.  That meant that I was alone and the other three were together.  That was fine with me as it made for better photos.  These animals were absolutely amazing, so lovingly playful!


Singing together

Dolphins are very vocal animals.  When we held our hands up, he came up in front of us and sang with us.  In the photos below when I was swimming with the dolphin, it looks like I'm not smiling.  But as he came up saltwater splashed into my eyes and there was no time to wipe it out.



Swimming with Dolphins



Swimming with a dolphin

We lined up in a row and the dolphin came up in front of us and presented his fins.  We carefully put our hands onto the fins and when we were holding on he began to swim.

Dolphin Kisses

When we put our hands around the top of our life vest, the dolphin came up and rested the end of his bottle-nose onto our cheeks.  It was a dolphin kiss.  Below, we clapped to keep beat as he danced a safe distance away from us so that his tail would not accidentally hit us. It was an amazing thing.  Dale was in a lot of pain that day, so he stayed on shore. Next time, he will need to join us in the water.



Dancing with the Dolphin

Ya Mon! Jamaica Fun begins

I’m not sure where to begin sharing?  The flight on the way down was packed! We flew first to Chicago and then to Jamaica on a different plane.  As the 6AM flight boarded, our flight crew was dressed just a little bit unconventional.  They were celebrating their 13^th anniversary together as a crew.  (They don’t look that old, do they? I must have miss-understood.)  But that did set the mood for the trip! “Fun and Festive”

Fun & Festive!

 Dale debated going or staying after hurting his lower back.  The doctors had done x-rays but didn’t get a chance to do an MRI.  He owns canes, crutches and a wheel chair.  I called and added “needs wheel-chair assistance” onto our tickets and we took the wheel chair with us.  It made the trip easier on Dale and it expedited our way through security, customs and immigration.


What do you see in the clouds?

As we went over the ocean, there were some small puffy clouds; the ones that you can lay on the ground and look up at while you see bunnies, whales, turtles and other crazy things.  What struck me as funny was the way that they decorated the ocean with shadows.


Ya Mon! It's Jamaica!

Jamaica welcomed us with a perfect day in the mid-seventies.  In their opinion, it was a bit chilly. 


A beautiful day!

I will post more details about Jamaica.  I have 1755 photos to share stories about.  It is going to be a difficult time choose what to share!

Over the Rainbow

I love flying.  One of the reason is because of the multiple different views that you see.  Flying back from Texas, I looked out the window and my brain said to me, “look at that rainbow it is almost a full circle! I am flying over a rainbow!”  As the plane traveled further and there were full clouds, I realized that the “rainbow” was a full circle as long as the clouds were there to support it.



The other side of the Rainbow

But we were moving faster than the clouds and the rainbow was keeping up.  I realized that my first thought of what I was seeing was wrong.  It was not a rainbow.  It was most likely the sun (on the other side of the plane) reflecting down onto the clouds.  The color maintained the same general location outside of my widow as we moved along.

As I examined the colors, I realized that there were several colors from the rainbow missing (ROY G BIV: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet.)  Maybe it is more of a sunset in a circle? I will never know for sure what was making the colors on the clouds below.  But it was entertaining for a while.

Twinkle Toes

Yes, I have short wide, hobbit feet (without the hair).  You can’t plan to go to Jamaica and wear sandals without getting a pedicure.  One of my many degrees/certificates that I hold is cosmetology.  I know that going to a school for cosmetology as a client it is a lot cheaper than going to most salons. There is a risk involved.  You could end up being the person’s very first client. 

I was lucky.  I got a woman in her late 20’s that is close to graduation.  She did a wonderful job.  While I was there I also got a haircut or I should say trim.  In the winter time, the ends of my hair start splitting so I usually need a good trim.


Twinkle Toes

But with that done, I am now almost ready for Jamaica.  The rest of the day is spent shopping for clothes. Well okay one new pair of shorts and passport holder, regular groceries, dog treats, and some travel size toothpaste. Now I am ready to go.  Not that I am wishing time away, but it will be really nice to get to Jamaica.

A Little Bit of Bling

I am not one for wearing too much jewelry.  But we were out shopping and the costume rings were on sale.  I saw two pretty rings in silver and I decided to buy them.  They were inexpensive and although that was an expense outside of my “expendable” philosophy, I chose to buy them.


A little bit of bling

I had noticed that several people whom I will be working with on my new work project wear a fair amount of bling.  And well, they were silver!  (Just kidding.)  Well the first one looks like an engagement ring.  I like to pull people’s chains wearing fake engagement rings.  The technology is getting so good that the average person can’t tell the difference between a real diamond and a nice piece of bling.  So why not just buy costume and save the money?  I know, the real rings last much better than costume jewelry.



A pretty green "bling"

The other one was a very pretty green stone.  I wear a lot of blue clothing and green is a nice complementary color to it.  If you don’t think so look, stand outside in a park on a sunny summer’s day.  What do you see? Green grass and a blue sky, if you want to know what colors look good together, just look at nature.

Remembering Another Travel Game

It goes by many names: dots and boxes, boxes, squares, paddocks, pigs in pen, and square-it just to name a few.

The Box game

Whoever gets to fill in the fourth line wins the box and gets another turn in the game.  Sometimes you can get a large run in boxes and you win!



West Texas from the sky

I remembered the game as I looked down out of the airplane.  It looked like someone was playing a mega-size game of boxes.  This was another thing from the airplane that you really could not tell what it was.  It created an interesting pattern.



The Box game?

I did find out that the dots were oil wells and the lines were service roads connecting the multiple oil wells.  They are not necessarily named roads but more like paths through the dessert.

I love seeing and or learning new things, don’t you?

I'm getting used to this new way of life.

At the restaurant tonight, I ordered a grilled chicken sandwich with cheddar cheese and no bun.  Instead of chips or fries, I had broccoli covered in cheddar cheese. They could have put a little more cheese on the broccoli. 

Dale ordered fetticini alfredo with shrimp.  Although it looked good, I didn't crave it when I saw it.  My meal was plenty and I was full but not overfull.  And did you notice that my meal was more colorful than his? (Sorry, my competative side.)

My blood sugar levels are dropping every day. The other day when I woke up it was a perfect 96! It has been bouncing between 96 and 136 but generally closer to a hundred.  I am achieving natural control of my blood sugars and losing weight at the same time. This fall to winter, I am down almost twenty pounds.

Timing is everything

I was driving home from a friend's this evening and watching the fluffly snow come flying at me like a scene from a scifi movie.  When I reached about two miles out of town, I saw the most amazing sight!


The lights were reflecting up to the sky. Not just one or two like a beacon but every major light across the farmland. I tried to get a picture but with the cell phone I had to use the zoom in order for it to show up.


Reaching to the sky

Then when I arrived home, I heard an unusual drip. I looked down and saw the water cooler was had a leak. I was glad that I had the fore-thought to buy the puppy pad to put under it. There had to be at least a gallon of water that dripped out while I was gone.

Bummer the water cooler is leaking

Mischievous Misty Blue

My little Misty Blue is a sharp little puppy.  She is at my place tonight while Duchess stays with Dale.  He was in Dobie withdrawal since both dogs stayed at my place last night and most of today to help him recuperate.

Planning the mischief

I have caught Misty taking her torn tennis ball and tossing it over the fan and rod that I use as a gate. Then she turns and barks at me, "Gammy! I can't get to the tennis ball it is way over there!"

Misty yelling to Gammy

(My version of the big bang theory: she bumps it and it falls and goes "BANG!") and it works, it keeps her out of the kitchen. 

What's this?

When she isn't planning mischief, she is "regenerating" just like a little child.  Don't they look so precious? But then again, I am a bit prejudiced to my babies (Dobies.)



Precious pups Regenerating

Time to pay bills

Pay day was yesterday, I am a volunteer treasurer for a church and I help a friend living on a tight budget make sure they get all of their bills paid each month.  Most months bill paying for each of us ends up at a different time.


Not this month.  I had three checkbooks sitting in front of me with stacks of bills from all three.  When it was done, I was happy that for all three  that the funds were able to cover all of the bills.  There is an extra comfort knowing that bill have been paid.


The trick after that is not spending what is left.  I have been buying only consumable things like food and clothing (after old clothing can be thrown away).  It is still difficult.


Dale is in severe pain and I will probably be taking him to either urgent care or the emergency room today.  So I am cutting this short.  Hopefully I have the chance to share some things from Texas with you later today.

Perfect Bacon Bowl

Not to disappoint my sister, I am doing a late night post.  My bacon bowls arrived this week and I am so excited!  Now I need to learn how to use them.  With anything new, it sometimes takes a few tries.  So here I am recording my first try.


Perfect Bacon Bowl

I started by pulling out my jelly roll pan.  The four bacon bowl forms fit on top of it.  That is a requirement of the process to put it on an oven safe pan. 



Setting up bacon bowls

Then I cut one strip in half and made an X.  Putting the fat side up you wrap a another piece around from the base. I little bit higher and starting on the opposite side, another strip of bacon is wrapped around.  Then you bake them for about 35 minutes at 375 degrees.

I am anxiously waiting to see how they turn out!  I am patient in some things but not in this.  I really want to see how they turned out.  Did I tell you that I only had thick cut bacon in the house?  That could definitely work differently.

Checking on bacon bowl

I let them cook an extra ten minutes and I learned something very important. Do NOT use thick cut bacon.  I flipped one off and it was still raw inside.  I put it back in place and put it in the oven again.  I will not get the final picture posted tonight.  But next time I will use thin bacon and post a picture for you then.


Don't use thick cut bacon

Success can only be achieved by risking failure and learning from mistakes.

A UFO?

I was flying home on the wrong side of the plane to see the sunset. But I got to see the moon rise and it was beautiful. I only had my cell phone so I couldn't control the pictures.

But I got some pretty fun shots including a UFO, a painting, and a red moon rising.  The airplane windows are never clean. When we reach a certain altitude they will frost up especially around the dirt. Taking pictures through the dirty, partially frosty windows is a challenge.


A UFO?

The shine of the moon reflected through the double pain of glass sent out rays only seen by the lens in the cell camera.

A Painting?

Doesn't the frost make these photos look more like paintings than photos?  I love the effect!

A red moon rising through a frosty window

But like any challenge in life, if you face it you will find some hidden gems.

A beautiful end to a good day

It was time to go shopping after work today.  As we drove down the frontage road called a "feeder road" here, It looked like the moon was sitting right on the overpass.  Deb turned around and went to the edge of a parking lot for me to get a photo.  It had already risen enough that it was no longer sitting on the overpass.  It was still in touching reach.  Big, bold and a little bit ominous!


Touch the Moon!

 I started getting dizzy at the mall.  I realized that it was time to eat and there was a Fuddruckers in the mall!  http://www.fuddruckers.com/ They have huge and very delicious hamburgers.  I ordered one without a bun and picked up a second piece of lettuce to use as a wrap.

Leftovers

The photo was taken after I had eaten half of the meal.  I ordered a half pound hamburger so that I could have some left over for lunch tomorrow.  I haven't eaten at a Fuddruckers in almost 30 years.  It was just as good today as it was back then (but then I would have eaten the bun too.)

Another Great Find for Food!

After work the team decided to go out for supper, at Wall Street Bar and Grill. I found out later the guys got online to pull up the menu because two of us are eating low carb this week.  The Wall Street Bar and Grill had come with a few very good personal references. 


Standing Room only

I decided to be the designated driver under one condition: they navigate so that I do not get lost.  When we got to the restaurant, it was standing room only on a Tuesday evening with a 

45 minute wait!  It had an old fashioned appeal.


I cheated! This much....

They had fresh baked bread just like Grandma Field's.  I could not resist and I cut a tiny little piece off.  It was twice as big as the photo which was just enough for a nice taste.

A good salad

I forgot to take a photo of the salad before I started eating.  I didn't take a huge amount.  It was probably three times what is in the picture.  The house dressing contained some white wine and olive oil. Best of all was the wonderful cut of beef that was cooked to perfection along with the vegetables.

Steak and Veggies

So where in the world is Trisha now?  She is in Midland, Texas!