Pasta Salad

I tried a new recipe for pasta salad. It is really colorful with green broccoli, orange carrots, red grape tomatoes, red bell pepper, black olives, green celery, orange cheese, vege turkey, fresh dill and tri-colored pasta. It tasted really good too!

Happy July 4th

I had never taken pictures of fireworks before, so here is my first attempt.

Running Springs

A friend and I went to Running Springs after church. It was about 10 degrees cooler than in the valley. I had a chance to try out my new camera.

Palomar Observatory

Today a friend and I went to see the Hale telescope at the Palomar Observatory. The 200" telescope was the largest in the world from the mid 30's until the late 70's. It took 13 years to polish 10,000 pounds from the Pyrex mirror/lens.

The finished dome is 135' tall, and 137' in diameter. The dome weighs approximately 1,000 tons, with a plate steel exterior and aluminum panel interior, separated by four feet to allow for dome venting. Two 125-ton shutters cover the opening seen in the center image and slide open at night to allow light through the slit and into the dome. Needless to say, it was huge!

Vacation

I'm really excited as later this year I'll be going NC for a photography class. The setting is going to be beautiful. (Photo's not mine)

New Lens

My new camera lens came today, as there was no one else around, Nikoli and Fikus had to be my models. Fikus is wide eyed as I said the magic word "Fishy" to get his attention. The lens is so amazing as these were both taken in very low light (compliments of then 2.8 aperture). It's heavier than my other lens, and it's big enough that I might feel like the paparazzi carrying it around, but so far I'm very pleased with it.

Today, a small group from work (and spouses/friends) went on the 40 ft boat from work to Catalina Island for lunch. On the way back, we saw a pod of dolphins. They were everywhere we looked and swam along with the boat for about 30 minutes. It was fun to watch them and get pictures of them. It was so amazing to see them so close up in their natural habitat.

A Day in the Office!

Today, I went down to Long Beach for our monthly staff meeting. We spent the first couple of hours out on the water. What fun! I was able to dock the 40' boat using the new Zeus technology on the boat. It's a system that allows you to dock a boat using a simple joy stick. The boat moves whichever direction you push the switch. Very easy to use.

Palm Springs Arial Tramway

This weekend, I went with friends to Palm Springs to ride the tramcar. It starts at the valley station (elev. 2,643'), then ascends 2 1/2 miles up Chino Canyon to the wilderness at the top (8,516'). The rotating tramcars are the largest in the world. It was much cooler at the top and we hiked the picturesque Long Valley.

Big Bear Lake

On Sabbath afternoon, a friend and I went to the mountains. There was fresh snow in the higher elevations. It was only 38 degrees there compared to 55 in the Loma Linda area...quite a switch from the 100+ degree weather we had last weekend. I was surprised there weren't more people there, but I guess the cold weather and the price of gas kept some people away.

Catalina Island - Elevation 30'

On Sunday, a friend took me to Catalina Island. We took the 10:00 a.m. Catalina Express over to Avalon. We had a good Mexican meal, then went on a glass bottom boat ride, shopped, walked and rented a golf cart to ride that took us up the hill which gave a great view of the bay. It was a fun surprise and a perfect day to spend at the beach.

Mount Whitney - Elevation 14,497'

Today, a friend and I went to Mount Whitney. We had a picnic lunch and then climbed part of the way up the trail. We stopped when we got to the second stream as I didn't want to slip off a rock and drop my new camera (which I just got on Friday). It was a perfect day for hiking. Here are is a picture with my new camera.

My Birthday!

When I got to work today, my office was decorated with a Happy Birthday banner and balloons. Then for lunch, the ladies made enchiladas for everyone with chocolate cupcakes for dessert. I also had an edible fruit basket delivered to the office. In addition, I received some really nice e-mails, cards and presents. In the evening, a friend took me out to eat dinner at Johnny Carino's.

Projects

Today, I got most of the curtains up in the family room. I bought them back in February, when my parents were here. They helped me up the one of the left side of the fireplace. I then bought the remaining curtain rods, and now only have two rods left. It looks real nice. After lunch, and friend came and helped me build the large cabinet (below left) and the workbench back. All the extra space is nice for keeping things organized

Random Acts of Kindness

This evening, I stopped by Subway to get a sandwich for supper. Right behind me was a mother with her kids. As a spontaneous act, when the cashier rang up my order, I quietly told her to add the the ladies order behind me. I quickly paid for the orders and hurried out the store before the other lady got to the register. What a surprise when she would find out it had already been paid. Doing a random act of kindness is a great feeling. Try it next time you get a chance and see how fun it is to do something for a total stranger, what will leave them surprised when they find out!
I was looking for something on the internet this evening, and this caught my eye. Make your dash count with those around you. http://www.thedashmovie.com/