multiple choice

what does one do over memorial day weekend?
a. hit the beach
b. bbq
c. home projects

we chose "d. all of the above"

a. hit the beach
we had a fab time in seaside with tim&heidi thomas and ben&heidi sadler! tim&heidi rented a little house for the whole weekend - we spent saturday & sunday. good weather, good friends, good food, good conversation... oh, and no doors. :)
the only door in the whole house was to the bathroom, so we were ... cozy. but hey, if you're only going to have one door, that's the place to have it!



ben&heidi's first trip to haystack rock. complete with psycho-freezing water experience and csi cell phone mystery. (solved, of course, in less than an hour - just like any tv beach drama.)



the other heidi (obviously). baby girl. ocean, gorgeous sunset, cute grin, and camera-eating sand.

b. bbq
we broke out the barbecue despite the rain! we had my fam over and played apples to apples, watched the cosby show, and tried to get rid of mom's headache. rambo helped.



for some reason it didn't work.

c. home project
um ... joel mowed the lawn.
what can i say? we're not home-projecty-fixer-upper-type people.

fun stuff

haven't blogged in a while...
not creative enough to write well right now...
but here's some cool stuff i've found in the last week.

http://www.cagle.com/news/HillaryKeepsGoing/images/sack.jpg
-those of you who know me well know that my political stance is that of militant apathy. (and i proselytize.) i have the cynicism of postmodernism coupled with the enthusiasm of youth.
and i think this cartoon is hilarious.

http://www.searchkindly.org/
-this site is way cool. use it as your search site and they give money to charities. this month's is compassion international. if you don't like the charity of the month, don't use it. simple.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080521/ap_on_hi_te/facebook_facelift
-if you're a facebook user you need to know this! i'm excited about the changes they're making - who doesn't like more control?

http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/15131
-the amazing story of a mystery guy who took a polaroid a day for 18 years. don't worry, it's a 5min read.

http://junoon.com/
-i have discovered pakistani rock. and i like what i hear. junoon is pakistan's most popular rock band. they're like led zeppelin meets the bedouins. if you like "world" music, you'll probably like them.

let me know if you enjoy any of these sites!
oh, and i'll let y'all know about the photo site/name as soon as i finish the site. i will say that i have decided on a name, and thank you for all your input!

to my friends: I NEED HELP!

to those who know me kinda well, really pretty well, awfully well, or "hi nice to meet you" ...
i have a dilemma. please help me. :)

i am working on a website for my photography. it will be nothing fancy right now - i'm starting out really basic, mostly out of necessity since this whole photo thing is growing waayyy faster than i thought it would.
before i can put up a website, however, i need a name.
and that is my dilemma.

i'm thinking something fresh, but not trendy
fun, but not cute
artsy, yet accessible
and not already taken!

none of my ideas so far work:
-lani roberts photography (not fresh, not fun, not artsy, not particularly accessible - i give it 0/4)
-la.lani.photos (too cute?)
-blue sky photography (explanation - my name means blue sky. problem - already taken, 3 times over)
-l.m.roberts photography (too harsh, not accessible or artsy)
-lmrphoto (already taken by a "lisa marie roberts" in texas. punk name-stealer.)
-ripping.my.hair.out.trying.to.think.of.a.stupid.name.so.i.can.launch.a.website.PHOTOGRAPHY (that's it!!!)


help! fresh ideas, opinions on these ideas ... anything!

cat workout plan

this is hilarious!

my cute family

i'm supremely late getting this post up. sorry.
a couple weeks ago we spent a sunday with my extended family.
and i have photos!

they have horses. and hills. and fences. photogenic horses and hills and fences. this is chip and rebekah.


rebekah astride her noble steed


joel spent most of the day entertaining my adorable cousins...


apparently he's pretty good at it...


talitha is 14


tiara is either 12 or 13 ... i don't remember. :(


kirsha is ... drat ... 10? 11? i'm not doing too well. :(


kamelah is 9. i remember that.


kirsha...


kamelah...




aren't they cute?!
sorry for the messed-up, too-large photo size on this post. i could explain why it's that way, but it would be boring and take a long time, so i'm just going to apologize.

that was easy

this is our new easy button. it was free. (easy and free!)
we push it and it says "that was easy" in a hip, cynical male voice. it always reminds me of the mac guy from the commercials.

this week my easy button with its cynical-apple voice has lied to me.

-the computer fix was not easy. it required 4 hours and a reinstallation of microsoft.
-getting rid of my perma-headache has not been easy. 'nuff said.
-getting the mailing out at work will not be easy. we pre-postaged the envelopes, then postponed the mailing to next monday, the day the rates go up.
-honestly, having a good attitude (and not snapping at poor joel) has not been easy.
-i could go on...

and then i wondered where on earth i got the idea that living life is supposed to be easy.
...that i have a right to ease.
am i buying into the ideology of the church of staples?
and - what sacrifices must be made to appease the "idol of ease"?
character?
personal growth?
relational growth (with others and with god)?
witness?

maybe i'll stick it out with my oh-so-hard life for now...

oh look! my persecuted church email update just arrived! (gulp)

fourness

i've been tagged by kristal in blog/email/myspace/etc. tag ...
(didn't these used to be chain letters when we were little?)
thank you, kristal!

4 jobs i've had:
1. server/hostess at rose's tea room
2. receptionist at first american title company (fatco)
3. buyer's assistant to the buyer of all girl's clothing for fred meyer (a temp job that lasted 2 days, thank goodness)
4. middle school choir accompanist/t.a.

4 movies i've watched more than once:
1. chicken little (i LOVE that movie! fish is my HERO! end of ebulations.)
2. the chosen
3. fiddler on the roof
4. oscar

4 places i've lived:
1. gresham, or
2. troutdale, or
3. portland, or
4. kennewick, wa (which one doesn't fit? lol)

4 TV shows i watch:
1. the cosby show
2. m.a.s.h.
3. mary tyler moore
4. ... does pro football count?

4 places i've been:
1. lots of south-central alaska
2. the newark, new jersey airport (ask me about it sometime)
3. vancouver, b.c. (can't wait to go back)
4. rice, ca ;)

4 people who email me regularly:
1. joel :)
2. jay ... the whole boss thing
3. heidi
4. mailerdaemon

4 of my favorite foods:
1. hard boiled eggs
2. chicken makhani from swagat
3. joel's raspberry scones (he got the recipe from a bed&breakfast we stayed at in cannon beach)
4. starbucks

4 places i would love to visit:
1. pretty much anywhere in italy and france
2. l'abri (in switzerland)
3. kyoto
4. peru

4 things i'm looking forward to in the coming year:
1. summer!
2. friends moving up from california
3. selling our house (hopefully!)
4. being able to walk, run, and hike as my foot heals

4 friends i'm tagging:
1. heidi
2. tim (yeah, i know, same blog, but i'm curious about both of your answers)
3. melissa
4. rebekah