Hungry Hungry Hippo

Somebody recently told me that my blog has turned sappy as of late. With that in mind, I wanted to post a video of my new nephew chomping away. I embrace sappiness.

Ruminations

I went snowboarding today. I must be getting old, because I don't do any of the slopes, jumps, or tricks I used to do. Despite sticking to the bunny slope most of the day, I managed to have two spectacular and very humbling crashes...

I turn my rental car/motel in tomorrow. After two weeks, 2,000 miles, and many chilly nights, it will be a little hard to part ways with my Daihatsu (I swear it is a real car brand; I looked it up). I'll let you know if the rental company charges me for the overwhelming hints of lavender, juniper, margarine, and whatever else Glade puts in its "Garden Bliss" air freshener.

I thought I would share a few lines from a British friend I met traveling. He is describing Australia, but the same could be said for New Zealand:
"...great 5 weeks here but its not been travelling, its not been backpacking, its been a holiday like I would take in a European city. It lacks the adventure and the rugged appeal of a place like Cambodia. For example, since I've been here I've drank my weight in beer...but in Cambodia I'm told there is a place where you can pay 30 sterling and fire a heat seeking rocket at a cow. As I'm sure you'll all agree, both are equally valid activities but one of them just cries out a bit more than the other. This is obviously partly because I can drink at home but somehow I can't see myself being able to fire a bazooka at a poodle on Wimbledon common."

I go to Fiji on Monday (in three days). Today, Fiji imposed martial law. Great.

If you want to see more pictures of my final days in NZ, including ice-climbing and snowboarding photos, click on the footprints below:

New Zealand III--Nature, Ice Climbing, and Snowboarding

South by Southwest

I signed up to run the Austin marathon with my cousins on February 17, 2008. Let me know if any of you are interested in joining. Click on http://www.attaustinmarathon.com/cms/ for registration details.

And one more thing...

...please stop sending me emails about Michigan losing to Appalachian State.

Eugene O'Neill

Today I went ice climbing. Why ice climb? After 6 months, I was running out of new activities, so I decided why NOT ice climb. I know what you are probably thinking: "Dave is making this up. I was willing to go along with him on the hiking, the biking, the scuba diving, the kayaking, the skydiving...hell, even the zip lining. But ice climbing? Come on. Ice climbing? This is getting ridiculous. Now I know it is time for him to come home."

And so it goes. I will be home in 12 days. When I am sitting behind my desk under the flourescent lights, I can always look at my ice climbing pictures--ice picks, crampons, and clinging to Franz Joseph Glacier--to remind me how happy I used to be.... I'll post another NZ photo album in the coming days with more ice climbing pictures. Hope all of you enjoyed your Labor Day weekends.

Wedding Announcements...

Congratulations to two sets of couples: Steve Goodfriend and Gillian Parrot, as well as Xander Meise and Ben Bay. Their weddings are this weekend. Sorry to be missing out on the celebrations but know that I am sending big hugs to all of you from kiwi-land. Have fun!

More New Zealand Nature Pictures

New Zealand is a beautiful country indeed. If you are interested in seeing more pictures of the South Island, click on the album below. As usual, they are best viewed in the slideshow mode.

New Zealand Nature Pictures II