Hanes My Way

Hanes has to be the best brand of socks. Ever.

I've been buying them for years. Or, better said, my mom bought them for years, and then I took up the tradition when I had to start buying necessities for myself. (Darn adulthood) They've always been faithful. I trudge around the house, through the kitchen, and maybe even out on the sidewalk every once in a while. They fade from their bright white, but they sure are sturdy!!

Unfortunately, sooner or later the heel wears out. So I went to Walmart to get some more. Except this time it looked like the Danskins brand was a better value- more socks, lower price. And I bought them. Big mistake. After one wear it looked like the undersides of the sock was unraveling or something. Plus, they don't hold up in my tennis shoes sometimes since they are low cut. It's super annoying to feel like you need to keep adjusting your sock when you're on a run, I'll tell you that! I'm just not very pleased at all!

As a result, on my next trip to Wally World, I'm investing in another pack of my trusty Hanes.

Gaylor Lakes Hike, Yosemite

This past Saturday I went on another hike. I keep thinking that its my last hike, but then I go on another one. Maybe we will have one more this year....

We went to Gaylor Lakes, off Highway 120 and deep into northern Yosemite. It's actually right before the far gate that leads to Highway 395. It was about a three hour drive, but I think it was worth it.  The first mile or so is pretty steep uphill to get over the saddle of a mountain and then into the valley. As you go over the saddle, you descend to Gaylor Lakes. Check out these pictures below! WOWSERS! The clouds were perfect and it was early in the morning, so the wind hadn't picked up. It is a near perfect reflection in the water. God sure did make so amazing landscapes for us to enjoy!

After we passed the first lake, it's about a half mile to another lake, which you can see in the background of the picture with Justin and I. Then it's up a hill to some old mine ruins. Make sure you stay back, because a few of the pits go pretty deep. The old houses were made of thin rock. We were debating if it would be good insulation or if the wind would just go straight through.

We headed down again toward the first Gaylor Lake, but made our hike a little longer by going around the meadow to a basin that held Granite Lakes. Then we went south a bit more to lower Granite Lake. This one was nice, but at this point the sun was hidden behind the clouds and we were getting  really chilly. I had a long-sleeved shirt, but it was one of those thin polyester shirts that dries out really fast. Needless to say, it wasn't much good. I ended up wearing Kelly's poncho to keep warm, and it was a good thing too because it actually hailed on us for a short time! (I think my clothing issue was because I have been hiking in the Emigrant Wilderness, and it's been rather warm the days I hiked there.)

All in all, it was a great hike of about 6 miles. Kelly just had a knack for picking a good ones, I think! Here's our picture, with lower Gaylor Lake back behind us in the valley.

Adenosine Injection

Adenosine Injection. Yea, it sounds bad, doesn't it?

Today I was off work so that I could go with Justin to a doctor's appointment in Santa Clara, near San Jose. In the past, a doctor thought that he might have WPW syndrome, a heart disorder, but it was never officially diagnosed. This test today enabled the doctor here to determine if he really does have WPW, which is basically an accessory pathway into the heart. In other words, it is an extra pacemaker in the heart that can sometimes beat opposite of the main pacemaker and cause fainting. Originally, we though this might be causing his syncope (fainting) that he has had a few times since college.

The test basically injects a medicine that makes the heart stop for about 5 seconds. The half-life of the drug is short though, and the heart catches back up and functions normally right after. It was a bit scary to watch Justin go through it though, because I could see that it really wasn't comfortable. He said that he felt his chest tighten a bit, but that it wasn't too bad. He was expecting something worse since the nurses and doctor described it as "terrible." The only outward affects was that he flushed red and was hot, but the EKG didn't show any abnormalities in the beat or recovery of the heart. If he had the accessory pathway, he wouldn't have had any reaction to the drug.

We are definitely glad to know for sure that Justin doesn't have WPW, and now he feels like he is clear to fill out some more military scholarship applications. Hopefully that could help us move back to O-H-I-O soon!

Since he couldn't eat beforehand, we stopped at McDonald's on the way back. Their sausage egg biscuits are sure tasty. We both splurged and got two hashbrowns each and chocolate milk too... talk about extravagance! (Though that food might give us heart failure.)

Another interesting point of this trip was that we passed Solyndra, the company the Fed's loaned half billion dollars to and is now bankrupt. Talk about close to home. What is Obama doing these days anyways? I can stand a few more taxes perhaps, but these crazy loans? I just can't back that! I hope we have a quality nominee to go against him for president next year. Otherwise, I'm real worried.

9/11... ten years later

Boy without a father

Of all the stories I have read about 9/11 as the anniversary drew near last week, the link above to Peter Negron was one of the most touching. He lost his father when he was just 11, and ten years later he was back to remember his father on the anniversary. It's so heartbreaking.

I love America. I am so proud to be a part of this country. I am glad that we went after the bad guys, and hopefully brought some justice to the families who lost loved ones. Even my father-in-law was deployed for a time in support of the mission. I appreciate it immensely.

The memorial  at Ground Zero is just beautiful from the pictures, and I am hoping that I can return to New York on a visit sometime and see it. I am sure that I will be in tears. Two waterfalls with names of the victims written around them are in the footprint of the original towers.

Nothing else I can say would add to what has already been said. But for the victims' families in New York, Pennsylvania, and the Pentagon, my prayers go out to you. I was in tenth grade on September 11, 2001, and I will always remember.

Kitty Shots

Shots... as in snapshots! Although I am a little bit disappointed because Spike doesn't seem to like the camera that much. He likes the string hanging from the camera, so I can never get him to be still for the picture! Sigh... well, here's what I got so far: