Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Monument Valley
While we were staying in Page, Arizona we decided we would take a drive through Monument Valley, which is about 100 miles east of Page. Monument Valley starts in a little town called Kayenta and goes north into Southern Utah. The sight of these unusual mountains is just amazing. It is something I won't soon forget.
Another New Post
New photos coming tonight - Monument Valley in Arizona and Utah.
Is anyone else besides myself disturbed by the fact that banks like AIG are giving their executives millions of dollars in bonuses with our tax money? Especially since the banks' predatory lending practices are what got the economy in such a mess. It is illogical for the government to give tax money to banks without setting any restrictions on how the money is to be used.
Anyway, that is my rant for the day. Photos coming this evening. Stay Tuned!
Is anyone else besides myself disturbed by the fact that banks like AIG are giving their executives millions of dollars in bonuses with our tax money? Especially since the banks' predatory lending practices are what got the economy in such a mess. It is illogical for the government to give tax money to banks without setting any restrictions on how the money is to be used.
Anyway, that is my rant for the day. Photos coming this evening. Stay Tuned!
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Lake Powell
This year during our trip to Tucson, my husband and I decided to drive to Northern Arizona to visit Lake Powell and Monument Valley. Lake Powell is just north of Page, Arizona. It is a beautiful area, but February is a little early for the tourist season, so there weren't too many activities on the lake. I did spend a few hours photographing Lake Powell.
I couldn't get a good frontal photograph of the Glen Canyon Dam because there was a chainlink fence on the bridge. Also, I was too petrified to walk out to the middle of the bridge and take some time to try and get a good shot. My husband finds this little quirk of mine quite funny. I'm not afraid to stand at the edge of a canyon on a rock, but I'm terrified of walking on man-made bridges, towers, scaffolding, etc. I'm okay in a tall building, but anything that is out in the open terrifies me. I managed to walk about 1/4 of the way out onto the bridge and snap two or three quick photos of the dam through the fence. By then my knees were about to buckle and my heart was racing so I bolted back to the safety of land and waited for my husband in the car.
Cameron is the opposite. He wasn't at all bothered about walking out to the middle of the bridge, but he gets nervous when I stand too close to the edge of a canyon. I trust the rock created by a Perfect God a lot more than I trust a bridge made by imperfect men. Cameron is of the opinion that you never know when there will be an earthquake or a landslide.
I guess we all have our little quirks.
Here are some photos of Lake Powell for your enjoyment.
Knee-Knocking Photo of Glen Canyon Dam
Sunset Over Lake Powell
Sunset Over Lake Powell Part Two
Rocky Reflection
Sunset Over Page
Glen Canyon Bridge
I couldn't get a good frontal photograph of the Glen Canyon Dam because there was a chainlink fence on the bridge. Also, I was too petrified to walk out to the middle of the bridge and take some time to try and get a good shot. My husband finds this little quirk of mine quite funny. I'm not afraid to stand at the edge of a canyon on a rock, but I'm terrified of walking on man-made bridges, towers, scaffolding, etc. I'm okay in a tall building, but anything that is out in the open terrifies me. I managed to walk about 1/4 of the way out onto the bridge and snap two or three quick photos of the dam through the fence. By then my knees were about to buckle and my heart was racing so I bolted back to the safety of land and waited for my husband in the car.
Cameron is the opposite. He wasn't at all bothered about walking out to the middle of the bridge, but he gets nervous when I stand too close to the edge of a canyon. I trust the rock created by a Perfect God a lot more than I trust a bridge made by imperfect men. Cameron is of the opinion that you never know when there will be an earthquake or a landslide.
I guess we all have our little quirks.
Here are some photos of Lake Powell for your enjoyment.
Knee-Knocking Photo of Glen Canyon Dam
Sunset Over Lake Powell 
Sunset Over Lake Powell Part Two
Rocky Reflection
Sunset Over Page
Glen Canyon BridgeImportant Petitions
Tonight I will be posting some more photos of Arizona, but right now there is something important I would like to bring to your attention.
Every afternoon I listen to a program called "Jay Sekulow Live." Mr. Sekulow is an Attorney for the American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ). The ACLJ is the Christian equivalent of the ACLU. However, where the ACLU wants to eliminate all reference to Christianity from the public view, the ACLJ wants to protect the religious rights of Christians. Today a couple of important issues were discussed on the show that I would like to bring to light. You won't hear about these things in the liberal media, so word of mouth and a few conservative talk shows are your only source for learning about these important issues.
The first issue I would like to discuss is a petition to help prevent President Obama from eliminating a doctor's choice to choose not to perform abortions. President Obama has already signed new legislation that will supply taxpayer money for the study of embryonic stem cells. Essentially, he is taking my hard-earned money to fund the creation and murder of human embryos. I'm not against stem cell research. However, I am opposed to murdering innocent human beings for study. There are now scientific means available to create stem cells that imitate embryonic stem cells. So therefore, the creation and murder of innocent human embryos is no longer necessary. Of course you will never hear about this on the liberal media sources.
Now President Obama wants to prevent doctors from having the right to say "No" to performing abortions, regardless of their religious or moral beliefs. This is outrageous! How would you feel if a law was enacted that said you had to murder a human being despite your beliefs about it? Before this legislation is approved, President Obama is allowing 30 days of "discussion." Of course I'm certain you haven't heard this issue discussed on the news. This way, the President can give the appearance that he gave time for the public to present their opinion without really making the issue known; therefore, no response will be given. Well, it is up to us to spread the word. I encourage you to click on the link below and sign the petition to make your voice heard. Tell President Obama we don't want our doctors to be forced to do something against their moral and/or religious beliefs.
http://www.beheardproject.com/
Another important issue I would like to bring to your attention is something happening at the United Nations. The Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) is trying to create a resolution that would essentially allow the persecution of Christians if they spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
I believe that everyone has a right to practice the religion of their choice (including atheism) assuming no other human is injured or killed because of someone else's religious beliefs. However, the OIC wants to ensure that worldwide, it would be illegal to speak against Islam in any way. So essentially, any time you preach the Gospel or speak about any other belief system (Jew, Hindu, Buddhist, etc.), the UN could declare that this speech is against Islam, hence it is illegal. Last year the OIC tried to get this passed through the UN and because of a petition submitted by the ACLJ, the issue was dismissed. Now they are trying it again. It is up to us to make our voices heard. The OIC wants to make Islam the moral law of the world. This is the same "moral law" that encouraged a group of Muslims in Egypt to burn a man alive and kill his father because they had heard a rumor that this man was involved with a Muslim woman. Just a rumor! And they burned this man alive and murdered his father too! I don't know about you, but this is not the kind of "moral law" I want enforced in this country. Please let the United Nations know that we will not tolerate the Islamic "moral law." Please follow this link and sign this petition.
https://www.aclj.org/Petition/Default.aspx?sc=3417&ac=1
I usually try and keep my posts light-hearted but these issues are something I cannot just dismiss. If we don't stand up for our freedoms, who will?
Every afternoon I listen to a program called "Jay Sekulow Live." Mr. Sekulow is an Attorney for the American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ). The ACLJ is the Christian equivalent of the ACLU. However, where the ACLU wants to eliminate all reference to Christianity from the public view, the ACLJ wants to protect the religious rights of Christians. Today a couple of important issues were discussed on the show that I would like to bring to light. You won't hear about these things in the liberal media, so word of mouth and a few conservative talk shows are your only source for learning about these important issues.
The first issue I would like to discuss is a petition to help prevent President Obama from eliminating a doctor's choice to choose not to perform abortions. President Obama has already signed new legislation that will supply taxpayer money for the study of embryonic stem cells. Essentially, he is taking my hard-earned money to fund the creation and murder of human embryos. I'm not against stem cell research. However, I am opposed to murdering innocent human beings for study. There are now scientific means available to create stem cells that imitate embryonic stem cells. So therefore, the creation and murder of innocent human embryos is no longer necessary. Of course you will never hear about this on the liberal media sources.
Now President Obama wants to prevent doctors from having the right to say "No" to performing abortions, regardless of their religious or moral beliefs. This is outrageous! How would you feel if a law was enacted that said you had to murder a human being despite your beliefs about it? Before this legislation is approved, President Obama is allowing 30 days of "discussion." Of course I'm certain you haven't heard this issue discussed on the news. This way, the President can give the appearance that he gave time for the public to present their opinion without really making the issue known; therefore, no response will be given. Well, it is up to us to spread the word. I encourage you to click on the link below and sign the petition to make your voice heard. Tell President Obama we don't want our doctors to be forced to do something against their moral and/or religious beliefs.
http://www.beheardproject.com/
Another important issue I would like to bring to your attention is something happening at the United Nations. The Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) is trying to create a resolution that would essentially allow the persecution of Christians if they spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
I believe that everyone has a right to practice the religion of their choice (including atheism) assuming no other human is injured or killed because of someone else's religious beliefs. However, the OIC wants to ensure that worldwide, it would be illegal to speak against Islam in any way. So essentially, any time you preach the Gospel or speak about any other belief system (Jew, Hindu, Buddhist, etc.), the UN could declare that this speech is against Islam, hence it is illegal. Last year the OIC tried to get this passed through the UN and because of a petition submitted by the ACLJ, the issue was dismissed. Now they are trying it again. It is up to us to make our voices heard. The OIC wants to make Islam the moral law of the world. This is the same "moral law" that encouraged a group of Muslims in Egypt to burn a man alive and kill his father because they had heard a rumor that this man was involved with a Muslim woman. Just a rumor! And they burned this man alive and murdered his father too! I don't know about you, but this is not the kind of "moral law" I want enforced in this country. Please let the United Nations know that we will not tolerate the Islamic "moral law." Please follow this link and sign this petition.
https://www.aclj.org/Petition/Default.aspx?sc=3417&ac=1
I usually try and keep my posts light-hearted but these issues are something I cannot just dismiss. If we don't stand up for our freedoms, who will?
Thursday, March 05, 2009
Tucson Sunset
My husband was born and raised in Tucson, Arizona. I was born and raised (mostly) in Louisville, Kentucky. We met on the Internet in the Spring of 1997. It was a whirlwind romance. By December 1997 I had moved to Arizona to be with him. In February 1998 we were married. We moved back to Louisville in October 1999 to be closer to my family. In 2006 we decided it was time to go back and visit his parents in Tucson. We realized we missed not only his family, but Arizona as well. So now we make a yearly pilgrimage to Tucson.
There are a few things that I absolutely love about Arizona; the weather, the scenery, and especially the mountains.
In Tucson, you are surrounded by mountains on every side. To the north you have the Catalina Mountains, to the east you have the Rincon Mountains, to the south you have the Santa Rita Mountains, and to the west you have the Tucson Mountains. The Catalina Mountains, particularly Mount Lemmon, are the tallest and most accessible range. You can travel the Catalina Highway to the top of Mount Lemmon where you will find Summerhaven and Ski Valley. Along the highway you will find pullouts for scenic and picnic areas. The Catalina Mountains are approximately 9000 feet high. As you travel the Catalina Highway you start in the desert and work your way up to an evergreen forest. When I lived in Tucson, the Catalinas were my way of having a small piece of Kentucky in Arizona. If it is 100 degrees in Tucson, it is 70 degrees in Summerhaven. In the winter there is often snow on Mount Lemmon.
The last photo was taken at the Babad Doag pullout on the Catalina Highway. This is one of the first scenic pullouts on the highway. We had spent a few hours traveling up and down the mountain and decided to wait there for the sunset. I just love the way the rays of sunlight are splashing over the city. As we were leaving the mountain and got to the bottom of the foothills, the skyline lit up with oranges, pinks, and reds. I had to pullover to the side of the road to take the first two photographs.
Sunsets like these are a fairly common occurrence in the Arizona desert.
Orange Sunset
Desert Sunset
Sunset Over The Tucson Mountains
There are a few things that I absolutely love about Arizona; the weather, the scenery, and especially the mountains.
In Tucson, you are surrounded by mountains on every side. To the north you have the Catalina Mountains, to the east you have the Rincon Mountains, to the south you have the Santa Rita Mountains, and to the west you have the Tucson Mountains. The Catalina Mountains, particularly Mount Lemmon, are the tallest and most accessible range. You can travel the Catalina Highway to the top of Mount Lemmon where you will find Summerhaven and Ski Valley. Along the highway you will find pullouts for scenic and picnic areas. The Catalina Mountains are approximately 9000 feet high. As you travel the Catalina Highway you start in the desert and work your way up to an evergreen forest. When I lived in Tucson, the Catalinas were my way of having a small piece of Kentucky in Arizona. If it is 100 degrees in Tucson, it is 70 degrees in Summerhaven. In the winter there is often snow on Mount Lemmon.
The last photo was taken at the Babad Doag pullout on the Catalina Highway. This is one of the first scenic pullouts on the highway. We had spent a few hours traveling up and down the mountain and decided to wait there for the sunset. I just love the way the rays of sunlight are splashing over the city. As we were leaving the mountain and got to the bottom of the foothills, the skyline lit up with oranges, pinks, and reds. I had to pullover to the side of the road to take the first two photographs.
Sunsets like these are a fairly common occurrence in the Arizona desert.
Orange Sunset
Desert Sunset
Sunset Over The Tucson MountainsWednesday, March 04, 2009
Traveling Through Arizona
Every year my husband and I travel to Tucson, Arizona to visit his family. He and I lived in Arizona for two years when we were first married, then we moved to Kentucky where my family lives. I really loved living in Arizona, but I missed my family so much that I had to move back home. I really love it when we get an opportunity to return to Arizona. We usually spend the week at his parents house; however, we will take a two-day road trip to somewhere scenic in Arizona. This year we decided to go to Lake Powell in Northern Arizona and Monument Valley in Northern Arizona an Southern Utah. It was just amazing to see. Over the next few days I will be adding photos from our trip to Arizona. Here are a few to get you started.
Glen Canyon Dam & Bridge on Lake Powell
Desert Wilflower in Orange
Glen Canyon Dam & Bridge on Lake Powell 
Desert Wilflower in OrangeMonday, March 02, 2009
New Posts
I will be putting up some new vacation photos today or tomorrow. I was trying to do it in a hotel while I was on vacation, but my photos wouldn't upload. Stay tuned for some photos of beautiful Arizona!
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