Return from Mexico

After 4 days and 3 nights of basking in Cabo San Lucas, we return (to 30 degree weather and an ice-storm)! The Melia Cabo Real, our all-inclusive resort, was a great bargain. The staff was friendly and sometimes overly attentive, shots of tequila would appear at our table without even asking and our glasses never stayed empty too long. Perhaps bc they knew we were on the search for the Chupacabra. Heard of the chupacabra? Check this out: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chupacabra .

Our 2nd day at the resort we received a note under the door informing all hotel guests that the hotel would be under intense security for the next couple of days due to the stay of important Mexican & US personalities. Sure enough as we laid out by the pool that afternoon we were surrounded by Mexican Federal Policia who were guarding the beautifully landscaped resort grounds with AK-47s. And becasue we had an oceanview room, which was closest to the nicest rooms, our building was protected with snipers on the roof (who we soon made friends with). After making friends with the guards and some American agents, we found out that it was some immigration and drug enforcement conference at the resort. Higher ups from the Mexican government and perhaps the US Attorney General were meeting during our stay. Needless to say, security was TIGHT, the gates were guarded with Policia and you had to show your wristbands to enter. This aspect definitely made the trip quite interesting, we were known quite easily by the Mexican Policia who we befriended, and they knew we were looking for the chupacabra.

While we did spend much time by the pool and swim-up bar, we also went out on a party boat for snorkeling and whale watching, and a separate adventure of sea-kayaking. We saw gray and humpback whales within 10-20 feet of the boat. Some were with their babies, the whales journey down from AK and the Bering Sea to the warmer waters to breed and then return north this time of year. They were amazing! Since the babies cant stay under water as long as their mothers, we saw one who kept jumping for air. It was great. We also did some pretty cool snorkeling. The boat anchored down in a bay near some rocks and a small coral reef where we then had to jump into FREEZING cold water. I was the brave one who jumped first and although it was shockingly cold, I warmed up as I began to tread water. Swimming in the coral reef area, we saw all kinds of cool fish...brightly colored aquas, yellow and black striped, glowing orange and then at least 3-4 EELS. I had no idea what they were until Christina and Jen told me to swim away from them. Oops!

To wrap this up, Cabo was beautiful...it's where the desert and mountains meet the Sea of Cortez & the Pacific Ocean, and it's a beautiful landscape. However, it didnt really feel like we were in a foreign country, I'd prefer to call it CaliforiaMexico. It's definitely designed for tourists and the cheesy nightlife at the notorious CaboWabo and El Squid Roe were prime examples of tourist traps (especially for the middle-aged). But we still managed to have a great time wherever we went!

Day from Hell

Today has been the day from hell...well, maybe it started yesterday. Let's just say it did. See, my flight home was 3 hours delayed, which got us home to Dulles around 2;30pm yesterday. Now, Sara's shower started at 1pm and had the flight been on time, I had planned on going. I even considered going late, BUT when I got to baggage claim and realized that my bag was MIA, I then had to deal with that fiasco. By the time I left the airport, the shower was well done. Anywho, after phoning United's 800 number to check in on the bag at least 10x during the last 24 hours and given the run around...I finally got my bag by just going back to the airport this evening to look in their claims area. Sure enough, there it was, no tags...somehow the tags had come off. I was just glad it was there (my ipod, my africa jewelry, my running shoes, and my earrings were all in it). On top of all this, here's what else happened to me today:

1) I got a speeding ticket this morning on my way to run an errand in Tysons
2) I dropped and broke a bowl that was in the refrigerator
3) I dropped this arts & craft box that had ink and all kinds of messy items, which caused a huge cleanup in the laundry room
4) I went to Harris Teeter and asked for cash back ($160) and walked out without it...had to go back an hour later and see if they had it, luckily they did
5) The bag fiasco

WHAT else?!

Nashville, the friendliest city!

Despite a three hour delayed flight down and a three hour delayed flight home, my work trip to Nashville was a) successful and b) tons of fun. Arriving a bit later than expected on Thursday afternoon, Micki and I were able to check into the hotel, grab a quick lunch with our hotel contact and I was able to make it over to the Gaylord Opryland convention center to catch the last hour of the American Camping Association's annual tradeshow. Similar tradeshow to ours and lots of my exhibitors were there, which was great to see them mid-year. The Opryland Hotel is crazy, it's huge and the amount of flora and fauna in the arboretum area was impressive. I am glad though that our convention is downtown bc the Opryland is way out of town. The Renaissance is a block and a half away from Commerce Street, where all the live country music bars litter this famous Nashville strip. And btw, the proximity to Commerce Street may cause some tough early mornings come November for staff and attendees ;)

Thrusday night, I decided to venture out alone to Commerce Street to check out all the buzz. I made my way into one of the bars, grabbed a seat at the bar and ordered a Blue Moon. Seriously, everyone in Nashville is just so friendly. I think I've forgotten how much I miss the south, the drinks are cheap and everyone is just out to have fun. I ended up meeting a couple from Louisville and before long we had everyone on the dance floor.

Friday, we spent most of the day doing the site visit and pre-con meeting with the Convention Center and hotel. Everything went smoothly and with the contacts we have, I am positive that the convention will be a breeze. Later that evening, Micki and I grabbed dinner at Big River Brewing Company and made out way into the bar, Legends. We were fortunate to get 2 seats at the bar bc the place was starting to get packed. Our seats were perfect for watching all the fools on the dance floor...it's amazing what alcohol makes people do. Micki was dying laughing at the lack of rhythm these poor older white folks weren't afraid to show off. I said to her, "Isnt this place just awesome, you've got all kinds of people in here." And then I paused and said, "well, actually you have one kind of people in here but all kinds of ages...bc you're probably the only black person and I think I'm representing the olive skinned folk." Anywho, we had ourselves a blast. Again, we ended up meeting a couple who we spent most of the evening chatting up and dancing with...and buying rounds for each other. We decided it was time to go when the husband started smacking Micki's butt and grabbing my a**. Micki goes, "Ok then, think it's time to go Kera." I couldn't agree more! But all in all, a very funny night.

PS: I bought myself some cowboy boots!!

What is the What

Check out Dave Eggers, What is the What. This is an inspirational read. A wonderful story of the true life experience of Valentino Achak Deng, one of the thousands of Lost Boys, who was forced to leave his village in Sudan and to venture across 3 countries to finally reach freedom in Kenya's Kakuma refugee camp and eventually here in the United States.

You can learn more about Valentino and his efforts at: www.valentinoachakdeng.org

**Lodwar 13 teammates, I think you'd really enjoy this story. Many of the places we travelled through and even stayed are mentioned. ie: a hotel in Kitale is mentioned and the breakfast room where they crowded into.

For fellow Bourdainiacs: Kitchen Confidential

Got a recommendation from my pal Andy to read Anthony Bourdain's, Kitchen Confidential. He loved it. Maybe this will be a future read of mine. My list is growing and I promised myself that I will read all the books that I currently have before venturing out of my house for another. Andy, I like the term Bourdainiacs, it has a nice ring to it.

24 hour recap

Yep, so I spent my Friday night at a country bar, Nicks in Alexandria. My Aunt Joy discovered the place recently and suggested we meet her out sometime. It was FUN, all types of people and all ages but one heck of a dance floor. There was a band and the floor was packed. Deena's partner (2nd to Dean) was this man who had to be 70+ and reminded me very much of Mr. Ferley (Don Knotts, old Don)but he knew his stuff. He was a good teacher bc he knew the moves but couldnt move very fast, perfect for learning. My partner Deena nicknamed Paul McCartney, also one of the oldest people there...very patient with me. And Aunt Joy got in a couple good rounds of the 2-step. Fun night, I'm suggesting we do a big night out there sometime soon.

Met Tina this morning in DC for our 16+ mi run up Rock Creek Parkway. Ahhh such an amazing setting, the weather was beautiful and the path is just stunning. This time we actually made it into MD. I was tired from the moment we started but I made it. And our time is getting better and better (well, at least for me it is), we were at an 8.5 minute mile at certain points. I am sore as all ever now though. I've got to find a cure for sore legs and buttocks.

This afternoon I got a facial from Spa Noa thanks to Deena and Dean and then went over to their place for dinner. Dean's family is in town bc they are having their crowns removed at church tomorrow. Really nice catching up with them. Mom made a DELICIOUS truffle...I devoured it.

I'm supposed to be at Caryn's bday gathering in Gtown now but I really zonked from todays run and decided to take a break. The thought of climbing the hill from the waterfront to find parking, just killed me. I'm so sorry I'm missing out Car-on! I was looking fwd to it, the piano bar was my idea!

I am sleepy

I am EXHAUSTED. I think all this running is hitting me hard. Yesterday's run was just my usual 5 miles and I was dragging. And as tired as I am, I haven't been able to get a good nights sleep recently. I feel like I need some fuel.

I found this website on running tips, offers some good advice: http://running.lifetips.com/.

Destination Showcase, aka: WORK

Today was the Destination Showcase at the Washington Convention Center. This annual event is an opportunity for meeting planners to meet with Convention & Vistor Bureaus (CVBs)from every city, state and a few select countries and to begin plans for their annual conventions or large events. I was basically along for the ride since I don't handle the meetings per se, but I do deal with the convention centers in regard to expositions. Cool event.

We got to meet with our reps at the Nashville CVB ahead of our meeting next week in Nashville. Looks like we may get dealt a nice hand of cards...the Country Music Awards will be occuring in Nashville the same time as our annual convention there and the Nashville Convention Center has asked us to give up some of our exposition space to accomodate an event for the CMA's. It would require a LOT of refiguring of space on my end BUT for Tim McGraw, I may just do it ;) They said they'd see what they could work for us...now we are in the money!

The day was also cool in that I got to meet MR. FROMMER (as in Frommers Travel Guides) and his daughter, they signed a book for me and Pauline (the daughter) asked for my biz card to contact me about some ideas they had. There are a MILLION campground directories sooo hopefully her idea is a unique one. And lastly the keynote address was Stan Kasten, President of the Nationals. His speech was a good one but predominantly a sales pitch for using the stadium as venue. The other great thing is all the networking and people you get to meet. Plus, I ran into my 2 old managers from USA Today, it was great catching up with them.

Freezin' For A Reason

Ok, so this Saturday Feb. 9th, Deena and I MAY be participating in an event called Freezin' for a Reason. It's a fundraiser that will happen up and down the mid-atlantic/Northeast on Sat. to raise money for Camp Sunshine. Basically, it's a polar plunge into a freezing cold lake. The lake nearby happens to be REALLY nearby, Lake Anne. Camp Sunshine is a camp for terminally ill children and their families up in Maine. We both heard about it and thought, what the heck?? why not?! We'll keep you posted if we go through with this...

www.freezinforareason.com

Michael James L.

Baby Leopold has a new cousin, Michael James. Born yesterday to my cousin Jimbo and his wife. Julie in Myrtle Beach, SC, Michael James weighed 8lbs 9oz. For those of you who know Aunt Amal-- she is now a VERY proud grandmother. I spoke to Jimbo last night and he was ecstatic and said the baby is quite cute and surprisingly tone (muscular). I said to him, "Duh, a natural soccer player like pops and a Bruce Springsteen fan by birth." Jimbo, is the ULTIMATE Bruce Springsteen fan-- I think he's gone to over 25 shows, including the most recent one in DC. Congrats!! Perhaps my little cousin will play USC soccer one day?!

Next week: Nashville & Cabo

I'm headed to Nashville on Feb 14th with my coworker, Micki, to do a site visit for our annual convention. We'll spend most of our time visiting with the Nashville Convention Center and at the sponsor hotel, The Rennaissance Nashville. So our trip happens to falls on Valentines Day and I said to Micki the other day, "We're going to get to go to Valentines Day dinner together in Nashville..YES! hahha" She goes, "Girl, I ain't going to be your Valentine, I got plans that night!" SNAP,huh? Dissed. I can already hear the reminder of the fake rose story. BTw- I hope to get to check out Wild Horse Saloon. Bummed that the following week I'll miss the Gypsy Kings!

After Nashville, I'll be back home for the weekend and then off again on Monday to Cabo San Lucas with Christina & Jen. We found an AMAZING rate--super, super cheap. We're staying at an all-inclusive, the Melia Cabo Real: http://www.meliacaboreal.com/ It was a no brainer price-wise and Feb 18 is Presidents Day which is an optional holiday. So, we'll be soaking up some sun and hitting the beach. I look forward to getting in the water...snorkeling, windsurfing, scuba? Supposedly, the winter is the best time for windsurfing as it's not as rough. I've heard that the water can be very dangerous and too choppy for swimming. I really hope that's not the case. The other cool thing is that it's WHALE season, we'll hopefully get to see some Gray whales. There's a pretty good chance bc they typically migrate to warmer waters between Jan-March. I'm READY.

Cheers to The Gamecock

I just got invited to USC's Student Media's 100th Year Anniversary Celebration. I used to work in advertising for the student newspaper, The Gamecock. Wish I could go :( Would be fun to bump heads with some of the editorial staff and my advertising buddies. And I'd love to see what my old manager is now up to. He used to always have me running around to get him Goody's, the powder pain releiver, he swore by it as a cure-all for his ever-present hangovers. Makes you wonder how the newspaper actually made any money?! Hat's off to The Gamecock!

TV or not to TV?

I've never been all that occupied by television but there really isn't ANYTHING on tv these days. If I get the chance to watch, I'm surfing. Lately, I find myself watching the latest updates on the presidential candidates, the TRAVEL channel: I enjoy Anthony Bourdain's show; Discovery Channel: that series with Anderson Cooper was pretty interesting; and sadly, I've resorted to some trash programming...The Girls Next Door, Meet the Real Housewives of Orange County, and a few others.

What I dont understand though is ROCK of LOVE? Who seriously wants to get with Brett Michaels? That's just sick and those girls are disgusting. Another new show I saw advertised, which sounds RIDCULOUSLY terrible...PetFinder on Animal Planet. If you really need to hire someone or seek outside advice on getting a pet, you're pathetic. That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard. AND lastly, MOMENT of TRUTH...WHY? What a hurtful show, why would you ever agree to go on there and tell your deepest secrets to the world?

Mint.com

Want a breakdown of how you're spending your TRUMP fortune? Well, thanks to my co-worker Grant, I have officially given all my passwords and login info to MINT.com so that I can track my spending. It's a cool site and I was bit skeptical about giving out too much info, but I'm gonna ride it out for now. Check it out... www.mint.com. It'll break down your spending in pie charts and tell you where you spend the most money and where you can save money.

Can you guess the number one retailer where I spend a small fortune? A: Target.

Weekend...

Friday night, Deena and Dean had the cousins over for dinner. Dean made homemade pizza, YUM. Got to see Nyla, Nick and cutie Dalya. She's a doll.

Saturday was a bit slow moving, except the run. Tina met me at my house for our 15mi run. Great run, took the W&OD trail out 7.5 miles which from my house places you about 1.5mi past the Whole Foods on Maple Ave. Great run. Immediately following the run, I met up with my mom. I'd fallen behind in acknowledging her bday (it was overshadowed by Deena's wedding) and wanted to take her out. So for her post bday celebration we went to dinner and a movie. The bday gal wanted to see Atonement, with Keira Knightly. My mom now says she wishes she had spelled my name like hers. I like the simplicity of my name though. Anywho, I think we were both a little disappointed. It was a little too long and slow moving for me and my mom said she was hoping for a bit more romance. Tough love Mom ;)

Sunday, we went to church and afterwards hit-up Al Nakheel's with the family. For those of you wanting a great little Lebanese dive, this is a good place in Vienna. It will never measure up to the cute little old men and shwarmas at Fetoosh in Gtown. RIP Fetoosh. I loved that place, now I must succumb to late night Gyro's/shwarmas at George's (which is right down the street but also not as good).

Meet the RUNNERS

Come out on March 29th to see us in action! Tina has so graciously volunteered to run this marathon with me and to help me train for it. She's a pro, I'm a wimp and a novice.

I was looking for some pics of the 2 of us and sadly, just couldnt find any decent ones. Here's what I came up with!

As the photos imply, I think we are in for trouble ;) That first photo was taken in Charleston in 2006 (Tina, the high school cheerleader was pretty sure she could carry me on her shoulders) and that 2nd photo was at Kristen's Wedding in Sparkle City where we were rockin' out to Pour Some Sugar on Me.

Anywho, here's a little running info on the 2 of us.

Tina -- She ran the Marine Corp Marathon in 2006 and 2007, and improved her time this past year. She finished right under the 4 hour mark, at 3:59. Go girl! She's also run the Capitol Hill Classic 10k 2005, 2006; the Back to School Classic 8k in Kensington, MD in 2005 & 2006; The Annapolis Striders B&A Trail Half Marathon in 2006; and lastly the Komen Race for the Cure 5k in 2006.

Kera -- Rock n' Roll Half Marathon 2006 & 2007, finished in 2:15; Capitol Hill Classic 10k 2005; George Washington Classic 10 miler in 2006; and Komen Race for the Cure 5k in 2005 & 2007.

PS: Tina is gonna kick my arse!

The Wizards minus the Main Man

Two of my favorite Wizards players are still benched for the season due to injuries. My main man, Mr. Gilbert Arenas is still recovering from knee surgery and poor Etan Thomas is still in training after having heart surgery for a leaky valve. Gilbert has been on the scene, he seems to take this opportunity to strut his stylish wardrobe on the court while cheering/encouraging his teammates. Etan on the other hand, just made his first appearance back at the game on Monday night. Luckily the Wizards have been able to do quite well without ball-hog G-A--which surprises me. High fives to Antwan Jamison, Haywood (Dadiani--high five to your UNC boyz and when are we going to a game together?) CARON, and Daniels...they've picked up the slack and have played really nicely together minus the natural team leader, Arenas.

However, the game just isnt the same without my favorite lineup. I was at the Friday night game against the Knicks and had pretty good seats in the Acela Club but without my Great Falls buddy and poetry-writing Thomas, it's not the same for me.

So for now, I think I'll wait it out...

Introducing the newest German Cousin

Introducing the newest cousin, Leopold from MUNICH! Actually, this is the 2nd surname baby...my little nephew Dallas being the first, Leopold being the second. He was born to my cousin Taufig & Sandra on Jan 19th in Munich, Germany. He's apparently 4000 gramms or 4 kilo and 53 centimeters --someone care to do the conversion for me?

For those of you who may remember my trip to Europe a couple of summers ago, I visited Taufig & Sandra in Munich before spending time with his dad (my Uncle Mufid) and mom in Austria, and finally meeting Chris in Krakow. Taufig & Sandra were wonderful hosts. Taufig, a former radio sportscaster in Munich, had some fun connections and one of the perks was getting to drive with him on his VESPA (I heart VESPA's)right onto the field of the Olympic soccer stadium. AMAZING.

Anywho, congrats to proud parents Taufig & Sandra!

Tuesday nights in the city!

It might snow again today and into the evening, I am excited. Perhaps my stinking GMAT review class in DC will be cancelled/postponed. I like the class, dont get me wrong, but jamming algebra, trig, and geometry into 3 hour cram sessions is not fun immediately following work. I should shut up though bc it's only 1x a week and the teacher is actually a pretty cool guy. There's only 3 of us in the class, which is good since I am a SLOW learner and can ask retarded questions. The instructor cracks me up, he's originally from CA and recently moved out here to DC. We'll be in the middle of a problem and he'll be like "Now look, this is the way your f***ing teachers taught you to do this in high school, F*** that! There's an easier way and all you gotta do is this s***!" No one else seems to think his mannerisms are funny but I sure do. And I'm pretty sure that the Brazilian chick who barely spoke english probably didnt understand his use of such vulgarity. She was having a tough enough time trying to understand the Brazilian equivalent of PEMDAS (order of operations). She's no longer in the class. We traded her for a metrosexual Nigerian guy, named Nee, who's pretty darn cool. Wow, writing about this class really makes it seem like I'm in some sort of circus act...it actually isnt all that bad.

Gotta hand it to Mr. Vedder...

I know Pearl Jam is kinda a band of the past, but they are pretty darn amazing. And lead singer Eddie Vedder, is also STILL pretty amazing (musically). I used to have a crush on him back in the day.

Anywho, Eddie wrote a bunch of new songs for the movie, Into the Wild, and they ROCK. The soundtrack is awesome. The movie, which was based on Jon Krakauers book, Into the Wild, tells the true story of a local Northern Virginian, Chris McCandless and his adventures into the Alaskan wilderness. Great book, great movie and great SOUNDTRACK. Check it out.

Weekend Recap

Tina and I are at it again (training)...we started our training together today for the DC Wirefly Marathon on March 29th. We've agreed to follow the same training schedule which over the past couple weeks we decided we'd start running together at the 13 mile mark. So, after a couple weeks of getting back into the swing of things, we did it. A great run actually, we ran Rock Creek Parkway North and back. Just a few miles short of hitting the MD border, but a totally serene and beautifully wooded trail following the creek (mostly still snow covered). Of course, our luck has it that we picked the coldest DC day yet to begin our training--22 degrees outside, with a wind chill of 9 degrees. NICE. I hate the COLD but after a quick warmup, surprisingly we were not bothered by the cold at all. Jeff, I took your advice and SACKED UP! Thanks ;) Only until we stopped running to cool down did I realize how frozen my fingers were! Seat warmers are the bomb and I am quite thankful for them on days like today. I am also quite thankful for Moby Dicks--the best kabob place in the area. Yes, I stopped there on the way home to pick up dinner...truly a delicious staple and a well-deserved treat post-run.

So last night, I met the ladies (Christina, Erin, Karen, Jen, and Gina) in the city for dinner at Aria Trattoria. This past week was DC's winter Restaurant Week and luckily Christina was able to score us a reservation. Fortunately the gathering was a fun crowd, because I think the overall consensus was that the food was pretty sub-par or at least just average. We did go out with a bang though bc the dessert was pretty heavenly...some pretty decent Tiramisu. Can't say it's as good as the little shot glasses of Tiramisu at Vapiano but it certainly left me in a pleasant mood. Or maybe it was just the 3 glasses of wine ;) After dinner my friends twisted my arm to join them for a DC firefighters fundraiser at Adams Mill. Gotta respect the firefighters, but to our dismay this wasn't the calendar squad...and now we all know why DC doesnt have a firefighters calendar. And it's probably a wise decision and we are thankful for that. But we did support their Polar Bear Plunge--an event next weekend where they jump in the Potomac to raise money. I asked if I could participate, but was denied...unfortunately I already know that when you're not permitted to swim in the Potomac, you get escorted out by the Coast Guard. Oh and long lost, Beglis and Herndon met us out, which was so great to see both of them! Anywho, fun night and I couldnt leave Adams Morgan without Big Slice...yes, I got BIG Slice by myself before hailing a cab. I offered to share with my cabbie named Bereket, who by no big surprise turned out to be Ethiopian Orthodox. It's great being Orthodox in a city where half of the cabbies are Ethiopian and almost all Orthodox. The Orthodox discount rocks! May have a new friend coming to Ss. Peter & Paul soon.

That about wraps up my weekend...I did manage to get another run in yesterday, helped the newlyweds set up their new place and got to see their HM pics, and now I've got some studying to do...

That's all my friends.

Thanks to my coworkers...

Thanks for reminding me Ms. Espinoza!

Not a good day for me. And he could have had all the RV Park connections he wanted. What a shame! And they call it a LOVE child...barf.