August 23, 2008 - Posted by danielle- 3 Comments
Ah, the weekend. I just had my first week of work and thought I would tell you a little bit about it.
It was mostly filled with orientation, faculty activities, and lots of getting things set up like my ID, parking pass, email, website for students to view the course, etc. I think I had a half day where I wasn’t dealing with stuff like that.
The craziest part of the week is that my office wasn’t ready. My office is the room where the vending machines were located. And for annoying reasons that had to deal with bureaucracy mostly, the vending machines were still present on my first days of work. The associate provost actually apologized to me and told me his own frustrations in trying to get it taken care of. Finally, on Thursday, the vending machines were moved into the hallway, my room was painted, blinds were installed in the window, and the floor was in the initial stages of being taken care of. I picked out furniture on Friday which should be delivered on Monday. I also get my computer on Monday if all goes well.
The enjoyable parts of my week included several things.
1. My department chair is exceptionally friendly, easy to work with, and understanding. She is also good about being organized. I suppose you have to be if you are a chair.
2. I had a very enjoyable set of tours of the campuses. Yes, two. I’d rather not go into it here. But suffice to say, there is some beautiful architecture on campus.
3. There was a faculty picnic that was very nice. It was a good social event where I began to get to know some of the faculty in my department. And some outside of the department too.
4. I have great neighbors (for my new office). Very helpful, welcoming, and kind.
5. Yes, I have a window in my office! It even has ivy peeking around the edges, which is really nice. Photos will be forthcoming once I get settled in and I can show you “before and after” shots.
I had a lot of great interactions with people that really energized me. All in all, it was a great first week. 
August 15, 2008 - Posted by danielle- 5 Comments
This heliotrope caught my eye when I was choosing annuals this year, because it was so intensely purple. It was also rather tall, which appealed to me.
Unfortunately, there was a period of time where it evidently didn’t get enough water and kinda died off. You can see that some in the photo.
But I was really pleased when I went to take close-up photos and realized it had such beautifully star-shaped blossoms.
and in large
August 6, 2008 - Posted by danielle- 2 Comments
and it is really good in large
Here is the pool from the other direction (opposite from my first entry). I took this from the water slide platform. We hung out at the farthest pool. Because of the way they are connected with waterfalls, we were at the lowest one in elevation. We always got a good table with a nice umbrella for shade. On the last day, we got one next to the music speakers, which was really great, since the music list they were playing was perfect.
That is Munchie, Trainwreck, and Dad hanging out by the bar stools as they watch the kids jumping off of and playing around the waterfall.
That would be Texas Seestor, Munchie, and Trainwreck hanging out in the pool.
A little out of order, but that is the sunrise photo I shot on the first morning. I walked out on the balcony, was pleasantly surprised at the humidity and the sound of the ocean, and was joyous that I caught the sunrise.
And speaking of mornings, this next pic is one of Munchie licking the cream cheese off of her breakfast bagel.
I guess she really loves cream cheese, as it turns out. And the funny thing is that the first thing she does when she gets a piece of bread, is licks it to see if there is cream cheese or butter on it. It almost breaks your heart when she gets just plain bread and you see her lick it and lick it, trying to find the cream cheese or butter. But it is so dang cute, you don’t feel sorry for her for long.
Let’s see, what other pics can I put up here…
This is a photo that Dad took of me watching the waves the night before the hurricane hit the area south of us.
And here is a photo that Texas Seestor took with her camera of the waves that night. My photos don’t look very good. I was so busy taking these wide shots to encompass the feeling of seeing such a large stretch of rough surf, that I didn’t really get good close-ups.
We hung out on the balcony for a while that night. I like this one of Munchie because of the railing, I think.
And here I am playing Super Mario Galaxy (at least I think that is what it was called) with the Wii on our one rainy day.
We didn’t go to the aquarium, because there were tornado warnings around the area, but we stayed in and had a lot of fun playing games. I also played a lot of Mario Kart, which is a driving game. I really love driving games.
And while I am on the topic of our rainy day, I will mention that we really lucked out and our next day (which was our last full day) was nice enough that we hung out at the pool again all day. It was really terrific.
On our last morning, we walked down the boardwalk to the beach to see the state of the waves and beach. And then Texas Seestor and I went down the water slide 6 or 7 times! It was a blast and a great way to end our time there.
I know I’m skipping around some, but here are a couple shots of us playing.
And here was a moment when Munchie got so close when we were playing that she was standing on my hand. 
Actually, I think she might’ve been coming for my camera.
And I think I will end with this photo. In this one, Munchie is pointing out at the ocean and the birds and saying “See!” It is one of her favorite things to do.
All in all, it was a wonderfully fantastical fabuloso vacation. 
August 1, 2008 - Posted by danielle- 2 Comments
I’ve always liked lantana. I particularly enjoy the multi-colored blossoms that cluster together on a stalk. In fact, last year I posted photos of the lantana that grew in containers on our deck.
and in large
That is all for now. I keep meaning to post more about my TX trip, but I never quite put aside the time to do it. I will soon, though.
In other news, I got my ticket for So You Think You Can Dance (touring show) today. We had a password to get tickets by presale. I’m actually farther back than I was last year when I didn’t have the presale option. So, it must be getting more popular. I’m in row 11 (last year, I was in row 3). Maybe being a little farther back will be better for seeing more of their feet when they are half-way back on the stage. However, I probably won’t be able to get the kinds of pictures that I took last year. (Note that I’ve had 193 views on that set!) I guess I’ll just have to see.
