Kelty 3900 ST

Howard & Janith bought me a Kelty 3900 ST for Christmas. I got to see it today to try it on & make sure it fits. I'm ready to start hiking & camping with Aaron & Roxy. They both love it as much I do.

Donnie Darko

PLOT: A troubled teenager is plagued by visions of a large bunny rabbit that manipulates him to commit a series of crimes, after narrowly escaping a bizarre accident.

OPINION: Loved this movie. It was a little weird but in a good way. A ton of well know actors/actress in the movie. Another good movie by Jake Gyllenhaal too.

Valkyrie

PLOT: Based on actual events, a plot to assassinate Hitler is unfurled during the height of WWII.

OPINION: What I watched of this was good. I ended up falling asleep last night & only watching an hour of it. Aaron said he enjoyed it.

Miss Pleiades

I decided to name the car & I love the name Pleiades.

In astronomy, the Pleiades, or Seven Sisters (Messier object 45), is an open star cluster containing middle-aged hot B-type stars located in the constellation of Taurus. It is among the nearest star clusters to Earth and is the cluster most obvious to the naked eye in the night sky. Pleiades has several meanings in different cultures and traditions.

Cultural significance
Japanese automaker Subaru derives its name from the cluster, which is represented by six stars in its corporate logo. WIKIPEDIA

Skyline Trail, New River Gorge, Hawks Nest & Kanawha Falls

Skyline Trail = 4 miles

Red River Gorge - Slade, KY

October 16, 2010

We hiked Auxier Ridge Trail
to Auxier Branch
up to Double Arch
back down to Auxier Branch
and ended on Tunnel Ridge Road

SUGARLAND - Incredible Machine Tour

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by: Stieg Larsson

PLOT: Harriet Vanger, scion of one of Sweden's wealthiest families, disappeared over forty years ago. All these years later, her aged uncle continues to seek the truth. He hires Mikael Blomkvist, a crusading journalist recently trapped by a libel conviction, to investigate. He is aided by the pierced and tattooed punk prodigy Lisbeth Salander. Together they tap into a vein of unfathomable inquity and astonishing corruption.

OPINION: I loved this book. It took about 100 pages to really get interesting but once it did it was awesome. Lisbeth & Mikael is easy to like. Some of the situations in the book I just couldn’t believe. I’m
excited for the second book since this is part of a trilogy.

Nineteen Minutes by: Jodi Picoult

PLOT: Sterling is an ordinary New Hampshire town where nothing ever happens-until the day its complacency is shattered by an act of violence. Josie Cormier, the daughter of the judge sitting on the case, should be the state's best witness, but she can't remember what happened before her very own eyes-or can she? As the trial progresses, fault lines between the high school and the adult community begin to show-destroying the closest of friendships and families. Nineteen Minutes asks what it means to be different in our society, who has the right to judge someone else, and whether anyone is ever really who they seem to be.

OPINION: I was glued to this book from the beginning. I really felt bad for the shooter. He was tortured from the time he started school. Josie was a
loyal friend until high school & she started to hang out with the cool kids.
Those same kids tortured Peter in every way possible. The ending was
unexpected.

Carter Caves

July 10, 2010
On our way to Kentucky....

Shangra La Arch


Roxy was swimming on her own in Smoky Creek


Swinging Bridge over Smoky Creek


We ended up hiking 6 miles over a four hour period.


X-Cave


Was picked on at this point for being quite in the group.

House Rules by: Jodi Picoult

They tell me I'm lucky to have a son who's so verbal, who is blisteringly intelligent, who can take apart the broken microwave and have it working again an hour later. They think there is no greater hell than having a son who is locked in his own world, unaware that there's a wider one to explore. But try having a son who is locked in his own world, and still wants to make a connection. A son who tries to be like everyone else, but truly doesn't know how.

PLOT: Jacob Hunt is a teenage boy with Asperger's syndrome. He's hopeless at reading social cues or expressing himself well to others, and like many kids with AS, Jacob has a special focus on one subject-in his case, forensic analysis. He's always showing up at crime scenes, thanks to the police scanner he keeps in his room, and telling the cops what they need to do...and he's usually right. But then his town is rocked by a terrible murder and, for a change, the police come to Jacob with questions. All of the hallmark behaviors of Asperger's-not looking someone in the eye, stimulatory tics and twitches, flat effect-can look a lot like guilt to law enforcement personnel. Suddenly, Jacob and his family, who only want to fit in, feel the spotlight shining directly on them. For his mother, Emma, it's a brutal reminder of the intolerance and misunderstanding that always threaten her family. For his brother, Theo, it's another indication of why nothing is normal because of Jacob. And over this small family the soul-scaring question looms: Did Jacob commit murder?

Emotionally powerful from beginning to end, House Rules looks at what it means to be different in our society, how autism affects a family, and how our legal system works well for people who communicate a certain way-and fails those who don't.

OPINION: This was my first Jodi Picoult book. I had heard good things about this author but never read any of her books. I loved this book & Jodi Picoult.
This book made me feel as if I knew someone with Asperger’s syndrome. Jodi
had really done her research before writing this book. I fell in love with
the family. I felt as if the mother was taking too much time with Jacob
(kid with Asperger’s) & leaving out her oldest son Theo. A Great story and
easy read.

Dead in the Family, 'SooKie STaCKHouSE Series' by: Charlaine Harris

PLOT: Even with the blood of two vampires in her system. Sookie is having trouble healing from the terrible torture she endured at the hands of her great-grandfather's enemies during the brief but deadly Fae War. Worse are the emotional wounds-especially over the loss of her own personal fairy godmother and the near death of her first love.

Sookie is hurt and she's mad. Just about the only bright spot in her life-beside the fact that she is, after all, still alive-is the love she thinks she feels for vampire Eric Northman, who is under scrutiny by the new vampire king because of their relationship.

As the political implications of the shifters' coming-out are beginning to be felt, Sookie's connection to one particular Were draws her into the dangerous debate. And, unknown to her, though the doors to Faery have been closed, there are still some fae on the human side-and one of them is angry at Sookie. Very, very angry.

OPINION: Sookie is improving, physically and mentally, but she’s always going to have some dark moments now. She is settled into a relationship with the vampire
Eric. Eric’s maker comes and brings his out of control “brother.” The book
ends with Sookie & her fairy relatives.

Last Scene Alive, 'AuRoRa TeaGaRDeN Mysteries' by: Charlaine Harris

PLOT: It's been more than a year since her husband Martin's death, and Roe Teagarden is still in mourning. All she wants is to be left alone to grieve-but that becomes impossible when a movie company arrives in Lawrenceton. They've come to make a film based on a book written by her onetime boyfriend Robin Crusoe, a book that detailed their shared investigation of a series of murders that occurred years before.

The locals are delighted, Roe is not. But Robin is beginning to win her over when the lead actress-who is playing Roe-is killed. Once again, the two of them join forces to thwart a killer-without knowing that Roe herself is the next target...

OPINION: Aurora is still mourning the death of her husband Martin. She is not happy
that a Hollywood crew is coming to town to shoot the scenes from the first
homicide Roe ever solved. Also coming to town is Robin Crusoe, Roe’s
ex-boyfriend, and the person who helped her solve the case but subsequently
went on to write the book on their investigation that has led to the movie.
I really like that Robin is back & helping her keep her mind off of Martin.
Martin’s son has a role in the movie & Roe is not happy about this. Roe &
Barrett never saw eye to eye.

Trust Me, I'm A Doctor...

This new healthcare bill is getting totally out of control.

Ohio

A Real Doll

Parents, stop buying your kid everything they ask for. That little girl does not need a real life doll to play dress up with, even if they say all their friends have them too.

Pennsylvania