Mardi Gras Parade

I left the Sea Scape early tonight so I could go help Devin the the Pizza Gallery & Grill float for the Space Coast Mardi Gras parade in Cocoa Village. Of course I almost got lost trying to find parking but finally I found my way to their float. I got to st and on the trailer and throw beads at people, during which time I learned that accurately aiming beads is much harder than it looks. Luckily, I only hit one person in the face accidentally and she didn't seem to upset by it. Despite the fact that there were not that many people there (it was cold and rainy all day) and we had two giant boxes of beads we still ran out before the end of the parade. Devin and I decided to head home afterwords instead of heading into the party. It was fun to ride on the float.

Meet Halo the Siamese Fighting Fish

Devin and I spent the day running different errands. We started off by working on the float that Pizza Gallery & Grill is going to have in a Mardi Gras parade coming up on Saturday. Erika came over to help us paint and brought lots of empty bottles which will line the back of the truck. After that we did some errand running and I got two new houseplants (yay for clean air) and we got a new family member. His name is Halo and he is our new Betta. He's named Halo because he has a halo of white around the edges of all of his fins. He was definitely the prettiest beta at Incredible Pets.

The Wolfman

I went to go see The Wolfman with my friend Julie and her friend Will after work. Lots of good actors, not really that good of a movie. The special effects were only so-so and the plot had a few confusing points. Granted, there were a lot of parts that I covered my eyes for since I don't like watching gory things like people's body parts being bitten off. Still, I wouldn't recommend it.

Puppy class and the Spy Museum

Devin and I enjoyed another fabulous day of relaxing on Friday. We spent more time reading together snuggled up under a blanket and we also played a couple of games of Fluxx with Devin's parents. The best part of the day, though, was going to Nessi's puppy class for CCI. All of the puppies there had to complete an obstacle course complete with distractions like light up balls and food. They also worked on agility by running through a zigzag of chairs. They did a couple of relay races to see which team could complete all of their commands (sit, down, speak) the fastest. I got to help with the last relay which was for fun. Each team tried to put a t-shirt and socks on our puppy and get back to the finish line the fastest. It had everybody laughing out loud. I also enjoyed the puppies all playing together on their break and enjoying their frosty treats that they ate at the end of class.

Saturday we headed into Washington DC and we went to the International Spy Museum. I was pretending to be Greta Schmidt on a mission to get grant information from the Royal Astronomical Society (or something like that). The museum was really neat, but sadly I don't think I have what it takes to be a spy. For dinner we went to a Chinese restaurant close by for dinner with Devin's uncle Jim. Jim live on a farm in Maryland and is retired secret service. He brought his friend Mario who is in the Coast Guard and entertained us with stories of amazing rescues he has completed.

Tomorrow we have to head back to Florida. Both Devin and I would be happy to stay here relaxing, reading, playing games, but unfortunately work is calling. Luckily it is supposed to be in the high 70's so at least I will be happy about the warm weather.

Visiting Devin's Parents

Devin and I headed to Columbia, Maryland yesterday to visit his parents. They moved from Melbourne earlier this year and bought a new house in MD which we didn't get a chance to visit over the holidays. We flew Airtran and the flight was very smooth and on time. I was somewhat hesitant about the colder weather but it is in the 40's so Devin can enjoy playing in the snow and I don't have to freeze to death in the process. Devin's parent's picked us up at the airport and took us back to the house. It was interesting being back at the Baltimore Washington International airport, it reminded me of working at Epic because I used to fly there almost every week for my Baltimore customer. Devin's parent's house is really nice and cozy and has a backyard lined with evergreen trees (I miss trees). There were HUGE icicles hanging off of the side of the house. They had prepared a delicious dinner of broccoli and cheese soup for us. We also got to meet Nessi, their golden Labrador that they are training for CCI (Canine Companions for Independence) We turned in pretty early and I curled up under about 5 different blankets.

Today was a wonderfully relaxing day. We started off by sleeping in late and then woke up to a fabulous breakfast that Devin's Dad had made with apples and corn bread. We spent the afternoon playing in the snow (Devin hasn't seen snow in years and years). First we spent some time playing with Nessi by throwing her snowballs. Then we made a snow bunny, what made it was the pine needles for whiskers. The arms were the most difficult because Nessi kept stealing the sticks. We also had a snow ball fight and Devin and I made snow angels. It was a lot of fun. Visiting snow isn't so bad when you get to live in Florida. Devin and I also got to spend some time just relaxing and reading. It is so, so, so nice to be on vacation.

STS-130 Space Shuttle Endeavour Launch

Yesterday I got up at 4:00am and drove half an hour to Cocoa Beach only to find when I got there that the launch had been cancelled and rescheduled for today. So this morning I got up at 3:30am and drove to Cocoa Beach again. Luckily this time the weather was cooperating and I got to see the shuttle launch. This is the last night launch before they retire the shuttles. The shuttle lit up the entire sky when it took off and you could see the giant fireball crossing the sky. It was awesome. This time I remembered to take video but as of right not it seems like the memory card is irreversibly corrupted which I am really, really unhappy about. The launch was for Space Shuttle Endeavour’s 13-day flight where they will conduct three spacewalks and deliver a connecting module that will increase the International Space Station’s interior space. Node 3, known as Tranquility, will provide additional room for crew members and many of the space station's life support and environmental control systems. Attached to the node is a cupola, which is a robotic control station with six windows around its sides and another in the center that will provide a panoramic view of Earth, celestial objects and visiting spacecrafts. After the node and cupola are added, the space station will be about 90% complete.

Gatorade Dual at Daytona

Devin and I went to the Daytona International Speedway to watch the Gatorade Duel races which I think are one of the qualifying races for the Daytona 500. Devin got free tickets from his boss. On the drive up we stopped at an old library to find a letterbox which we found. We got there right after the first race started. We spent some time walking through Midway which is where the vendors have booths set up for selling things or showing things off. Devin liked looking at the cars on display. Then we settled into our seats in the Petty Tower to watch the races. The first race I picked the neon green car because it was the easiest to see of all the cars. It did well for most of the 60 laps but then fell back in the last 2 laps. The next race I was rooting for the Target Car and the Crown Royal car, both of which were 1st at some point in the race, but neither one won. The races were really loud and I'm glad friends warned me ahead of time to bring ear plugs. It was interesting seeing the race, and now I can say I've been to one, but it's probably not something I really want to do again.

Avatar

Devin and I saw Avatar this morning after taking Grant for a walk. Mostly because Devin's dad saw it and left him a really long message about how great it was. I think everyone I have talked to about it has said it was great. We agree. Both of us really liked it and want to go live on Pandora instead of here. I wasn't a huge fan of the big war at the end with lots of people dying. It's not like all those soldiers wanted to wipe out the indigenous people, they were just trying to do their job. I really liked the idea of humanoids being able to connect with other living organisms. And the 3D was awesome; normally 3D makes me motion sick but this didn't. Good movie. Go see it if you haven't already.

SeaWorld and car shopping

Devin and I had a fantastic day today. The weather was just absolutely gorgeous. We are finally getting some warmer days (relative I know, believe me I am very thankful for the lack of snow). We headed to SeaWorld first thing and it was pleasantly uncrowded. The first thing we did was go on the Manta roller coaster which was sooooo much fun (for me at least, Devin is not a huge fan of roller coasters). There are aquariums set up as you go through the line that have rays and best of all nautiluses. Then we went to Dolphin Cove and fed the dolphins. I actually got to feed a dolphin and pet it and scratch it under the chin. It was amazing! I pet a dolphin! We walked through the Garden to see the sea turtles and manatees. The first show we watched was Blue Horizons which we saw last time we came to SeaWorld but it was my favorite and I wanted to go again. The show was actually different this time, for one, they had a lot more dolphins out, and secondly, instead of just dolphins they also had a false killer whale which was freaking amazing. Neither Devin nor I was sure what it was when it swam out. At the end of the show Devin asked one of the animal trainers what it was. Then I made him go back and ask what kind of degree you need to be an animal trainer. Next we were off to Pacific Point Preserve to take pictures of the sea lions and then to the Wild Arctic. The polar bear was sleeping but we had a walrus come and swim right in front of us. Our last adventure for the trip was the Pets Ahoy! show where cats and dogs (and a skunk and a pig) perform. The cats' dexterity is pretty impressive.

After SeaWorld we stopped for some ice cream at Twistee Treat, a local shop with a building shaped like an ice cream cone. Then we went to Carmax to see what they had. My beloved Juniper (my car) is starting to make a variety of funny sounds and I think I might have to move on to a new car, something I am not very happy about. There were very few manual transmissions so I didn't really see anything I liked. I did, however, test drive a supercharged Mini Cooper which was a lot of fun and in my price range. Although the Mini was a lot of fun I'm still car searching.