Today is my birthday! Let’s see.. the hubby is outta town on a business trip, the kids each hanging out with their respective friends and me? Working, of course. Although - all is not lost! I received a VERY nice b-day present from Chris that I’m really looking forward to! Next week, we’re headed down to Milwaukee so I can shop for and pick out my own, personal scuba gear. I’m excited about it, because now I won’t have to rent every time we go somewhere!
Speaking of going somewhere - there is a second part to the gift that is better than that first! In June, he’s taking me for a 3-day diving weekend in Miami. He’s such a honey! Knowing how stressful the past 5-6 months have been - and knowing how I find complete and utter stress relief at roughly 90ft beneath the ocean waves… he decided the best gift he could give this year was one of total relaxation and bliss! I just cannot even begin to describe the peace I found at the bottom of the ocean. Ok - not the bottom .. we didn’t descend any farther than 100ft… but you get my drift. It’s just the most awesomely beautiful thing.
We had such an amazing time last year when we spent 2 weeks in Bonaire and went diving several times a day, every day we were there. Check out some of the amazing photos we took underwater! The sea turtle is my favorite! I’m looking forward to the Miami trip a lot.
A friend, and client of mine, Jared Emin, runs Scuba Miami and has been promising me for over year that he’d provide some great recommendations and locations - if anyone knows the superb dive locations in Miami, Jared is the man! I guess it’s time to cash in on those promises now and see if we can’t make the most out of a 3 day mini-vacation to Miami this June!
As for the rest of my birthday - - it’s been a quiet day full of work. Not exactly the rip roaring party days of my youth. Man, I’m remembering my 22nd birthday when my friends forced me (FORCED, did you hear?) out the club and I ended up doing 22 shots of Jose Cuervo that night between 5pm and 2am. I’m sitting here remembering that night wondering how on EARTH I managed???!!? I guess, that is an 8 hour time span . . roughly 2-3 shots per hour….if I did that today - I think I would be dead! No, I KNOW I would be dead.
I think, tonight, it will be a fire in the fireplace, a bottle of Merlot and a good book or movie. See what happens when ya get old? Heh.
9:27 pm on April 30th, 2007
First time stumbling upon your blog and it happens to be your birthday! So how could I not stop and wish you a happy day!! Your diving vacation sounds like fun - crossing my fingers for you that you’ll have an excellent time! Happy Birthday!
9:35 pm on April 30th, 2007
Hi Denise - glad you stumbled by
Thanks for the birthday wishes 
12:50 am on May 1st, 2007
Hippety, Happety, Hoppety Birthday!
I love it under the sea, should have been born a mermaid.
4:15 am on May 1st, 2007
Happy birthday! Have a wonderful day!
The sea is my love! haha
4:50 am on May 1st, 2007
Happy Birthday! And I just LOVE the new look!
5:10 am on May 1st, 2007
Many happy returns of the day!!
Raising a toast in your honor (who cares if its 7:10 AM?)
5:33 am on May 1st, 2007
Happy Birthday? How old are you these days, anyway? 19? 20? I’m going to say 23 at the oldest.
6:53 am on May 1st, 2007
Okay, a day late, but happy birthday Lisa! Hope you had a nice bit of relaxation last night.
As for merlot… I’m not a big merlot person (I liked pinot noirs long before that horrible movie came out), but I’d highly recommend the Rutherford Hill if you can find it. We had the 2003 at our last wine club and I can’t remember the last time I’ve been that impressed by a merlot. I think it was in the $20 - $25 range, but well worth the money. They have a malbec that’s supposed to be fantastic that I’m trying to hunt down a bottle of now…
6:58 am on May 1st, 2007
Happy birthday!!
7:07 am on May 1st, 2007
DOH! I’ll blame this on not having coffee yet this morning, but is it too late for the spanking machine?????????
11:47 am on May 1st, 2007
Thanks everyone!!
Jammie - I think I’d make a good mermaid!
Chein Yee - another sea lover!
Char - thank you so much!
Charlie - I don’t think it is ever to early to raise a toast! Cheers!
Dave - 23 is a good number. I’ll keep it lol
Astro - I actually prefer pinot noir to merlot - but dammit, you can’t be in the mood for pinot noir when you only have merlot in the house! (and for the record…I got NO b-day spankings yesterday….my spanker is outta town :(
Bug -
back atcha!
2:12 pm on May 1st, 2007
WHAT????????!!!!!!!!!! How can you just be down to one kind of wine in the house!!! That’s as bad as only having one kind of beer in the house! I could maybe understand just one kind of scotch, but certainly not just one kind of whiskey.
For a bit of wisdom for your new year, did you know that the average time a bottle of wine is aged in the US is roughly 3 hours?
2:42 pm on May 1st, 2007
Let’s just say that the past year has been on of LOTS of wine and scotch without the required replenishing - and leave it at that. Heh.
We do have several white varieties - but I’m not a big white drinker. Chris is, though.
4:09 pm on May 1st, 2007
Whites have their time, like the bottle of reisling I’m going to uncork for with tonight’s grilled shrimp and spinach salad with bacon, honey, and black pepper…
6:07 am on May 2nd, 2007
11:31 am on May 2nd, 2007
Mmmm.. Astro - how was dinner? I think I should’ve eaten at your house last night!
11:33 am on May 2nd, 2007
icoguo - thank you from america!
9:26 pm on May 2nd, 2007
Just stumbled upon your website. Hope you had a good birthday, sounds like your hubby is a saint (tell him to give mine some advice)!
12:54 pm on May 7th, 2007
Just noticed the supper question. It was nice and tasty. I had my timing off so the coals were barely there and the shrimp took a bit longer, but it was a nicely tasty recipe. The salad came out of Tyler Florence’s new “Ultimate” book, which I’d highly recommend. Both Tyler’s “Ultimate” and “Real Kitchen” are two of my favorite cookbooks. The stuff isn’t difficult to make and they don’t use completely wild ingredients (unlike his other book).
Any time you and Chris make it over the river you better come by for a meal!
1:00 pm on May 7th, 2007
Astro - Chris and I would love to! He’s in Minneapolis today and tomorrow.. I should have gone with him this time! It won’t be his last time, tho - - next time, I’ll have to go!