Happy Thanksgiving!

Books?

It has been brought to my attention, by my English teacher BFF, that I may need to read some more books. To be honest, I haven't picked up a book since I graduated from college. I'm really not much of a reader... anymore. I used to read all of the time in elementary school and middle school. But when I would stay up until very late at night just to finish the mystery I was reading I would be tired and cranky the next day so I was "banned" from reading more than 20 minutes before bedtime. Maybe that killed my interest, maybe it was being forced to read books I didn't want to read and then writing reports on them in school, but either way, reading for leisure has not been a pastime of mine for a very long time.

I've decided that I need to read a book for fun. Who knows, maybe it can be a new hobby of mine! The problem is, where do I start? I know there are tons of great books out there but, how do I choose one?

Maybe I'll dive into the Harry Potter series since I like the movies, or maybe I'll jump into the Twilight series since I haven't seen either of the movies. Does anyone else have any suggestions on what I should read? Any opinions on Harry vs. Twilight? Any advice is much appreciated! I want to pick a book before December, so bring on the comments!

So Egg-citing!

In my job I get to do some very interesting and unique things. Yesterday I was able to meet the man who holds the Guinness Book of World Records title as the fastest omelet maker, Howard Helmer. He can make 427 omelets in 30 minutes and a single omelet, from cracking the egg to placing the omelet on the plate, in 41 seconds.

He was making omelets for our staff, volunteers and even clients to help celebrate Thanksgiving. He is so full of energy and just a hoot to be around. His looks, voice, mannerisms and corny egg jokes reminded me of Mel Brooks. After every omelet made he would exclaim, "Oh what a beautiful omelet!" Too funny! He cracked me up and I very much enjoyed meeting him.

Here is a picture of us pretending to make omelets, which was his idea for the photo.

It was sure an egg-celent day!

Another winner!

It's a budding rivalry. Since Dave was little he has entered the photo contest for the Colorado Balloon Classic and over the years he has won a total of 12 times! He's a really great photographer and there are balloon photos all over the walls of his parents house as well as our own.

Last year was the first year that I had entered the photo contest and the first year that Dave had entered since he started college. We joked about being each other's competition in the contest and talked about what we would do if one person won and the other didn't... well... I placed 2nd in the professional division last year and he, sadly, didn't place at all.

The competition really began then. Dave swore that he was going to beat me this year and there was no way I could win again. We both took time to carefully select our entries into the contest and honestly (I think) evaluated each others photos in order to pick the best ones. We filled out the entry forms and mailed in our selections. We anxiously waited for the judging day to pass and then didn't let our cell phones out of our sites, waiting for a call to tell us we had won.

I got a call, Dave didn't.

This year I won 3rd place in the professional division. Clearly I was slacking since I didn't place in 2nd again, but I'll try harder next year. The competition is really on now. Dave is determined to beat me and I welcome the competition. Despite us joking about our rivalry, I really appreciate Dave being so supportive of me winning and being willing to drive two hours each way just so I could pick up my plaque, ribbon and bag of goodies at the 45 minute long award ceremony. Here is the winning photo and a picture from the ceremony last night. Enjoy!

This year's winning entry

We drove a total of four hours for that ribbon! Well worth it.