This is why kids frighten me!

Some of Nick's personal photography

Hello all, thought I would share some of my photography (and one I photo manipulated from a friends studio collection.) Hope you enjoy them.

~Leaves on the road~

~Blue Rings~

~Water Tower~

~Egypt Girl IV~

*photo taken by Tyler Adams

things every one should know about food!

I have been reading... yes I do read! No one thinks of food as a Cancer causing, disease creating, energy destroyer. No not all food, but the wrong kind of food which I'm finding is more things then I suspected. I will give you a few facts ( I will try not to get out of hand). There are a few things to touch on so I will split it up into several blogs. today I will talk about additives.

• "60 - 90% of chronic, degenerative diseases can be prevented by diet and lifestyle."
  

If its not food...Don't eat it! , Kelly Hayford, C.N.C

• "70% of all antibiotic drugs in the U.S. are being fed to farm animal as growth promoters or production aids, reducing the effectiveness of these drugs in humans and increasing the spread of resistant bacteria. This practice is now starting to be banned in Europe."
  

Union of Concerned Scientists

• "Mono sodium glutamate (MSG) is a popular flavor enhancer that causes people to crave more of the food which it is added. Over 60% of processed foods now contain this neurotoxin, despite the fact it has been proven to cause brain damage and is accordingly not recommended for use in baby foods."

nomsg.com

• "Since the 1950's over 3,500 man made chemicals has found their way into manufactured food. nowadays in the U.S. alone we consume every year a staggering one million tons of food chemicals in addition, 50,000 chemicals are released into the environment by industry and 2.6 billion pounds of pesticides and herbicides are sprayed onto food and pastures."
  

Patric Holford, Optimum nutrition bible

• "At present, 9 chemical food colorings are permanently listed as safe. Among them FD and C Blue No. 1 and FD and C Citrus Red No. 2 have been shown to cause tumors at the site of injection in animals, but the FDA does not consider this significant because the experiment concerned injection by needle and not ingestion by food... FD and C Red No. 40, one of the most widely used colorings, is also being quietened because it is made from a base known to be carcinogenic and because many scientists feel that it should not have been given permanent listing based on the manufacturers tests."

Ruth Winter, M.S. , A Consumers Dictionary of Food Additives

• In one case, where the researcher used soup in the (MSG) study, the researchers obtained the soup from japan ( the worlds Largest producer of MSG)... In these controlled studies some subjects always react to MSG, but large numbers also react to the placebo. These studies conclude that since the subjects react to both MSG and the placebo, It "proves" that it is not the MSG that people are reacting to...For years, I could not figure out why large numbers of subjects in MSG industry sponsored studies were reacting to placebos which by definition, should be made up of inert, non reactive material. Finally, in 1993, we found the answer. The Placebos contained aspartame!... Aspartame is far from inert and nonreactive... Indeed, MSG sensitive people suffer similar adverse reactions from aspartame, providing that they ingest amounts that exceed their tolerance levels, and vise verse.

Jack L. Samuels, Truth in labeling

If you don't know, aspartame is also used in rat poison!

In order to keep this short (er) I will just add that there are also quotes expressing that just because the FDA says its safe does not mean they actually tested it. Companies like to use the phrase "there is no evidence to that proves that" when all it means is they didn't really test it so there isn't any evidence at all. also that MSG and other additives poison your body and cause head aches, loss of energy, and weight gain.

I personally don't understand why no one has put a stop to the additives in food.

super extra snort time

Thanksgiving!

I had a long day at work and came home to " thanks giving dinner". Yummmy!

I am thankful Melissa and Roger!

My fair lady

I love Audrey Hepburn. If I had to pick a favorite actress she would be the one. I have been having a "craving" to watch my fair lady! I thought I would share some of it today!

Lacuna Coil

A few years back, Nick took me to see the lacuna coil concert that played in Seattle.

I don't remember the whole list of people that played that night ( Nick is the one to asked for that). I do remember stolen babies being there ( Nick bought a CD from them).

We were getting ready to go and I had a long sleeve shirt on. Nick told me it was a small venue so long sleeves wouldn't be a good idea. He let me borrow one of his shirts. It wasn't until later that I realized I was totally unprepared.

We were waiting in line to get into the building when Nick welcomed me to Seattle. I looked up at him a little confused and then I saw. There was a woman walking by without a shirt on and her nipples covered with electrical tape. she was not the only one I saw dressed in that fashion.

once in we got ear plugs that didn't fit in my ears, It was really hot and crowded. We listened through several bands and the longer we listened the hotter it got. the security guards started spraying people with water to keep anyone from overheating... unfortunately they didn't think it was as important for the people that weren't on the floor next to the stage. I got through all of the bands and I realized I was going to be sick.

Lesson learned: when you go to a concert dress like one of the electrical tape girls! That way you don't get too hot while at the concert and nearly die! Just joking I wouldn't dress like that... I will dress for the heat though!

zombie's and River Tam!

I was pretty proud of myself after I took these quizez... I know these things arent real but they can be fun!


Bonnie completed the quiz "# Of Days You Will Survive In The Zombie Invasion" with the result You've survived the entire Zombie Apocalypse!!.
You are the ultimate zombie killing deity. You kill them by the thousands, with strategic traps and land mines. Not to mention all of the weapons you've stored in your closet in case of a zombie invasion. The only cost is all of your friends and family. You spend so much time locked in your house you never see them. When the invasion happens you send one of your friends to get food, but you know what your really did. You used him/her to lure zombies away from the house. You smirk as you watch him/her get devoured..




Bonnie completed the quiz "Which Firefly Character Are You?" with the result River Tam.
You are River, the craziest genius who ever lived. You are unique, one-of-a-kind, and totally out there. People try to categorize you and fail, because there just aren't words to describe you. Beautiful, graceful, lethal, and weird hardly begin to cover it. You march to the beat of your own drummer, drumming inside your head. Though you are totally unpredictable, the people in your life can't help but love you and want to protect you, even though they are usually the ones who need to be protected. From you..

pottery

for today's wedding Wednesday I wanted to tell you about the pottery we will be using! something that is important to nick and is only slightly less important to me is that things that we use in our wedding don't look mass produced. we wanted it to look more " handmade". after having this conversation with Nick I realized that I know of someone that makes pottery as an on the side business.

Valerie Blessly is a very talented woman. Her and her husband make instruments, she is a performer of the harp and kentle, she makes pottery, and she is an English teacher.

what are we doing with hand made pots you ask? we are going to plant rosemary, sage, and maybe thyme in them for center pieces on our tables! I took some pictures of her pottery but the computer wouldn't download them for some reason. I also looked for some pictures online that might look similar and all of them look like they were pulled out of an assembly line.

i can has cheezburger

If you like cats you will enjoy this site! It's mostly funny pictures and a few cat videos. Enjoy my friends!

Precious time

I have been quiet and blogless this weekend. Nick was able to spend one day with me. Saturday. He drove up after work Friday and got to my house at 12:30 a.m. The time was precious . We did absolutely nothing. this was our time to be in each others presence and that was all I wanted. We could talk face to face, play and laugh together. 11a.m. Sunday morning; I was at work and Nick was on his way back home. I remind myself that this is how things need to be for now and I wait for next time.

The rebellion

After work I drive around the block so I can park on the street the way you are supposed to. One day I noticed there were at least 20 other cars in the neighborhood parked "illegally". If someone wanted to give me a ticket then they would be giving a lot of tickets that day. So I decided I'm going to be a rebel! I'm not going to drive around the block to park the "right" way!

Of course when Holly followed me to Vancouver from Yakima I did my usual parking job and Holly followed me in. She was only there for about 4 hours and her car was hit and then the perpetrator "ran".

A few days later I walked into the house after work. Holly's eyes were as big as saucers and she exclaimed, “do you know that we are parked illegally?" while taking my shoes off I told her that I did. She said, "Oh", and turned to walk away. I asked what brought that on and she said that the officer that was at the door told her. After I asked holly a few questions she explained that the police found the person that hit her car. She was a 90 year old lady that didn't know what she hit. Luckily she has insurance. The officer also said that although we are parked illegally they don't really care on the street we live on. So I will continue my rebellion.

If you know Holly you know that she would never do anything illegal...even if it was just going over the speed limit, or parking the wrong way on the street.

the heat is on

I remember when I was a kid this song was about the coolest thing ever! Melissa, Holly and our aunt Lisa choreographed a dance to this song about 20 years ago. If you were to ask Melissa now she would say that she doesn't remember. I had fun jumping around on the side line.

I still find myself getting excited to hear this song.

Up!

I really want to watch this one also!


However, for anyone that thinks they have the great idea that they are going to try to do what was done in a cartoon...I suggest you read some Darwin awards! I give you (dramatic pause) the balloon priest.

20 April 2008, Atlantic Ocean, Brazil) A Catholic priest recently ascended to heaven on a host of helium party balloons, paying homage to Lawn Chair Larry's aerial adventure. Larry, the beloved survivor of a Darwin-worthy fiasco, attached 45 helium weather balloons to his lawn chair, packed a picnic lunch, and cut the tether--but instead of drifting above the Los Angeles landscape as planned, he was rocketed into LAX air traffic lanes by the lift of the weather balloons. Astoundingly, Larry survived the flight.
Adelir Antonio, 51, was not so lucky.

His audacious attempt to set a world record for clustered balloon flight was intended to publicize his plan to build a spiritual rest stop for truckers. But, as truckers know, sitting for 19 hours in a lawn chair is not a trivial matter even in the comfort of your own backyard. The priest took numerous safety precautions, including wearing a survival suit, selecting a buoyant chair, and packing a satellite phone and a GPS. However, the late Adelir Antonio made a fatal mistake.

He did not know how to use the GPS.

The winds changed, as winds do, and he was blown inexorably toward open sea. He could have parachuted to safety while over land, but chose not to. When the voyager was perilously lost at sea, he prudently phoned for help--but rescuers were unable to determine his location, since he could not use his GPS. He struggled with the unit as the charge on the satellite phone dwindled.

Instead of a GPS, the priest let God be his guide, and God guided him straight to heaven. Bits of balloons began appearing on mountains and beaches. Ultimately the priest's body surfaced, confirming that he, like Elvis, had left the building.

The kicker? It's a Double Darwin. Catholic priests take vows of celibacy. Since they voluntarily remove themselves from the gene pool, the entire group earns a mass Darwin Award. Adelir Antonio wins twice over!

flower girl dresses!

after months of searching I think I finally found the perfect flower girl dresses!

Yes I wanted to stay away from anything that resembled white... It is an off white and other then that I think it will work great! Its really hard to find a dress to fit a theme, color and style of your wedding and still look at the modesty criteria and have it be a cute dress!

And there, my friends, is my latest wedding update!

Think geek

If someone were to ask me where I like to shop the most I would most likely be speechless. "ME? Shop?" after really thinking about the question I came to the conclusion that I do get really excited when the ThinkGeek catalog comes in the mail. I also have to call Nick and tell him all about the cool new Items they may have advertised.

If you cant tell from the name Think geek is an online shop that has a lot of cool/geeky things. For example a shirt that plays theme music for you at the touch of a button. Or shower shock soap. I haven't ever used it but I have heard that Its like having a cup of coffee in the morning.

A few years back I got Nick light sabres for his birthday off this site. Last Halloween Roger bought all of his prizes for his Halloween party off this site.

My firstborn will definitely be wearing this.

If Nick were a bird . . .

Yeah, I would be this awesome!!!

If my Bonnie were a mouse . . .

The sad truth...

When Nick started the Graphics design program at Perry Tech He was led to believe the placement rate is 95%.

He has been going through this program for a year now and has found out that the placement rate is really about 7%. They were able to say 95% because people were made to acquire a master business licence to start their own business; thus "having" a job. Not all of the students that got their business license actually started their business.

Also as you have probably read on nicks school update there isn’t a degree involved as he originally thought. If he completes this program he gets a certificate of completion, he could spend the extra 6 months to get an AA but now he is learning that none of the colleges will transfer the credits from Perry Tech so there is no point in getting the AA. He just has to start over at a different school in order to get a degree.

On the bright side Nick is very talented at what he does. I am so proud of him every time I see one of his projects and I know that everything will work out. Even if he has to start over at another school we will get through it and he has a head start on the knowledge. I know that Nick will do well in whatever he decides to do.

Be happy Nick. This is a crappy thing but 10 years from now you will look back and say, “Wow that sucked!” and then in the next thought you will think about how even though it wasn’t what you expected to happen, everything worked out.

Charlie the unicorn

This is a little morbid and a little weird. Watch at your own risk.

Welcome to Nick's Saturday Posts

Ladies and Gentlemen, boys and girls – children of all ages, welcome to the newly installed and thoroughly involved “Weekend Update.” I, Mr. Nicholas “Bonnie’s other half” Shipley, shall be your moderator as we travel this whirlwind of awesomeness better known as the “random, arbitrary, abstract miscellaneous, bizarre world of the internet.”

For tonights’ installment, I give to you the following:

The first image is a painting I found of a concept piece depicting Darth Maul fighting a giant Rancor (I was getting’ my super-geek on with this one – being a mega Star Wars fan and all.)

This second image speaks for itself – but for you out there that might not get the reference, this is an actual He-Man “super puffy bodysuit” with shield and Lion-O’s sword (and yes, that is his real hair – man I loved the ‘80’s.) I must say I don’t think I have seen something this cool in a very long time. It might just be better then Mt. St. Helens ice cream. . . .might be.

BY THE POWER OF GREYSKULL!!!

Oh, and the sad thing is, I kinda looked like this kid it real life when I was younger . . . and yes I was this freakin' awsome too. "Boom Baby!"

So until next time -

Randomness #17: Mr. T vs. Chuck Norris

"Why Mr. T is better then Chuck Norris"

Mr. T cannot be killed by conventional means. The only know method to destroy him is prolonged exposure to "jibba-jabba."

"Why Chuck Norris is better"

"Rather than being birthed like a normal child, Chuck Norris instead decided to punch his way out of his mother's womb. Shortly thereafter he grew a beard."

Do you know what you are eating?

I have been going to some seminars on lunch meat lately ( job required) and you wouldn't believe the things companies do to cut cost! I'm not going to use brand names because this post isn't supposed to be advertisement, Its supposed to be informational.

Did you know that in order to cut cost and make some lunch meats lower in fat the company will mix it with the same stuff used in diapers for absorption?!? Why you ask? because it absorbs 25% its weight in water, its tasteless, colorless, odorless, and fat free. actually it doesn't have any nutritional value what so ever.

The next issue I wanted to touch on is that meat companies that own their own slaughter houses have to use every part of the animal...EVERY PART! I understand want not waste not but they should be specific on the label. one study showed that a particular sandwich meat had over 60% connective tissue and tendons mixed into the sandwich meat. it doesn't stop there! They can say it is (for example) 100% beef because it did come from a cow!

I guess the last thing I'm going to say is; do you want to pay a little more for full muscle sandwich meat? Or are you OK with not being sure what is in your sandwich meat?

Kings

I started watching Kings on hulu last night ( after teasing Roger relentlessly about it) and I really did like it!

OGBALL! ( flashback friday)

A few months ago My sister (Heidi) and her family were visiting. we all decided to go to the park, at the time it was cloudy so I dressed warm. The minute we got to the park I realised that was a big mistake! At first it was just that the sun was coming out and it felt like it was 100 degrees. Then someone came up with this great idea of playing a game sense we had Luke's ( my nephew) ball. at this point I'm thinking " are you kidding me? its like 100 degrees, I'm wearing a turtle neck, and you want me to run around a field chasing a ball!?!" you see, the rest of the group wore t-shirts under their sweat shirts, which them smart and me dumb. When I got a hold of the ball I threw it at Melissas head to make sure every one knew I won, which made me smart.
and then the ball bounced off her head and hit me in the face, I think that made me dumb again. I was hot, I got sunburned, I kick like a girl (in this picture it looks like I might do the typical "me" and either fall on my butt or my face), and the guy that won had a fractured foot so he couldn't even run! But in the end it was a good day.

FYI: Ogball is the name we gave the game that we made up. its not a real game, unless you are in my family.