A Letter To 2010 & 2011

Dear 2010 & 2011,

You rocked me hard. You shook me violently like a ragdoll for months and showed no sign of letting up. You pushed me to my physical, emotional and spiritual limits. It was to the point that I was numb to any emotion and there wasn't any other place to go. I visited multiple counselors, doctors, family, friends, priests, nuns and churches. My job wasn't even a safe zone. I walked in everyday with hate and fear and walked out with self doubt and tears. I felt betrayed and beaten down. I was sick. It was an emotional sickness that cut so deep it made my whole world ill.

I was scared to leave a job in a bad economy because it was required of me to bring my husband in from Mexico. But my happiness was on the line.

Then I got all Eat, Pray, Love up on myself. I decided to get the hell out and dedicated all my time to looking for a new job.....and then, I was laid off. No surprise there. The hatred was written all over my face. Usually losing a job means spiraling down into a deeper hole but this was a blessing from God. I then went to a retreat for 3 days and it was my chance to heal. My wounds slowly callused over and the bleeding slowed down. A month later I was offered 4 different jobs. I picked the best one and it's amazing how different it is. I'm treated like a human. A human with a soul and a mind.

I am thankful for my new job and the retreat. I can only hope that 2013 is way better.

Sincerely,
Christy

I am also thankful for these following happy moments that happened in the past year:

Traveled to Mexico City and stayed with a wonderful family.

Added two new ruins to my "been there done that" list.

Saw my first bull fight in Leon, Gto. Mexico

Became a Godmother at my first Mexican Baptism.

Took a stab at a dream and started a photography business called PhotoBox Studios with my sister. 

Took a girls trip to Belize with a good friend after I was laid off.

Ran right into this guy - Gene Simmons on the island of Ambergris Caye, Belize.

Let my sister experience the hipster vibe of Playa del Carmen and the beauty of the Riviera Maya.

Discovered how much I'm in love with cenotes and underground caves!

Took an express trip to Chicago with my mom and sister.

Had a fun anniversary road trip to Kansas City for an art fair. 

Took my dog Rico Suave to his first Woofstock. Then we made him do a dog race and he lost bad.

Oklahoma City Tour & New Puppies

Yes, we are road-tripping again. This time it's through Oklahoma. And I'm not going to lie, Oklahoma is pretty dang bland. I knew that going into it, so I was going to try and find some stuff to spice it up. Plus, we weren't just going there to find adventure or entertainment and new life experiences (even though we had a little of that last one). We were going there to pick up a new member of the family.  A little Sheltie puppy. And I just love him.

I had done some research to try and find dumb crap along the way to look at and make fun of, but I really didn't find a whole lot even worth my time. Jav believes that the US just doesn't have enough history (unlike Mexico) so we just have to make dumb museums out of random stuff we stumble upon. I think he's right. But what I did find was in Oklahoma City. We drove in late on a Friday night and checked out the Bricktown. It was my hometowns version of Old Town but with an interesting canal throughout and a hint of San Antonio's River Walk. It was actually really nice. It was dead for a Friday night but nice. They did have some well known bars though like Coyote Ugly. They even had some fun Water Taxis that took you around the whole Bricktown area for only $8. What I also liked was that everyone wasn't all dressed up like hoochie mamas at the bars. So I felt right at home in my shorts and tshirt. 

But I think there is a reason I didn't see fancy girls flashin their goods. Oklahoma is very poor. And you can till that the bad economy really has hit the area hard. One step out of the downtown main area and it's pretty sad. Shoot, we even booked a hotel that is normally ok, well priced and doable and it ended up being up there with one of the worst hotel stays ever. Sure we were going really cheap with our budget but omg! Lets just say, we were tempted to just sleep in our car and had to buy new sheets at the Walmart in order to even sleep on the bed. But I must say, if you're into cowboys and the old Route 66 then you may love it. Just wasn't my thing.

The trip the next day got WAY better. I remembered last minute that the Oklahoma City Bombing Memorial was there and I had yet to actually see it in person. So we toured that in less than an hour and headed out to Western Ok to pick up the puppy. Here we traveled through Cherokee territory, the Santa Fe Trail and Route 66. The whole way back up North our new puppy just buried himself behind our necks and every nook and cranny he could find. I was glad to be home bound.

Photos 1& 6 - by Javier

Watch cool Bricktown Canal Video here.

Quirky Kansas Roadside Attractions

On Memorial Day weekend we had a good old fashioned family reunion to attend. Actually it was the first one ever. To add to the fact that it's a family reunion and they are known to be a drag, it was also going to be held in Ellis, Kansas. Ellis Kansas what? Ellis is located in NW part of the state and is about 3 hours from Wichita and 15 minutes outside of Hays. Still not sure where? Well, it's not all that important.

To spice up this road trip we decided to keep an eye out for any kind of roadside attraction. No matter the lame factor, we were going to do it. The one thing we were able to find, before our GPS decided to crap out, was Cornado Heights located in Lindsborg, Ks. It was a short drive into the country side and then up a 300 foot hill with 360 degree panoramic views. On top the hill was a park that included a castle. Inside where 2 stone tables and fireplace. A small staircase led to the rooftop. Musicians of all kinds love to come here and play inside the castle. Who knows why, maybe it's the acoustics? Outside the castle doorway was a large fireplace with round seating. And flanking the edges of the park were stone picnic areas jetting out from the walls and overlooking gorgeous views of endless flowing fields. Perfect for an afternoon picnic.

Cornado Heights really didn't have any historical meaning to it except that it was named after Francisco Vasquez de Cornado, who visited central Kansas in 1541 in search for gold. Yep, I believe this castle was made for pure fun. Actually, I think it was the best part of our whole 2 day road trip and family reunion.

Looking for some other roadside Kansas attractions with a quirky twist? Here are a few:

• Try the Hutchinson Underground Salt Museum. I think you'd be surprised at how many odd movie memorabilia is stored there. For example, George Clooney's Batman outfit or the sunglasses from Men In Black.
• The world's largest ball of twine located in Cawker City, Ks. If anything, this 12 foot ball is required for some good laughs on a boring road trip. Story is a farmer didn't know what to do with the extra twine found in his barn so day after day, he just kept rolling it up. Enough said.
• The Garden of Eden in Lucas, Ks. We saw the sign for this place heading West but missed it heading home. But from my research, it seems to be a house with ivy-covered concrete figures of Adam and Eve and children all around. This creepster house will for sure give you some nightmares. Great for the children!
• The Worlds Largest Easel & Sunflower Painting in Goodland, Ks. As an artist myself, this is at the top of my list of odd things to find on the side of the road in Kansas. The sunflower is the state flower and Goodland is the center of the sunflower industry - fitting I suppose. So be sure to take an "I've been here photo" and look dwarfed next to this piece of art.

If anything, these roadside attractions are good for a laugh or even to just realize how many strange bored people actually do live in this world.

31 Places

After a long day of work and Spanish class two of my good friends stopped by my place for an intelligent conversation about history, our careers, travel and the economy. We would love to go on an international trip together but with this rapidly declining economy and higher priced flights it would leave one heck of a dent in our wallets. So we talked about an alternative road trip closer to home. The decision came down to a mountain execution in Colorado or a trip to see the twisting canyons of Utah.

The very next morning my friend sent me this link with a list of often forgotten gems. Humm, perhaps I should start researching. Number 5 and 12 are looking quite tempting!