SoCal Sunsets

100 degrees in April makes me want to move! Then I see one of these.....

The Bean

Prior to my recent trip to Chicago when someone said "The Bean", I assumed they were referring to the glorious coffee chain The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf that sells those delicious things called "Ultimate Ice Blended Drinks". 

I went to Chicago to attend an Olympic Media Summit where we spent 12 hours answering questions for journalists, filming short bits for the NBC Olympic telecast to be aired in August, doing still shots for the media and a few on-camera interviews. I have never done anything like this before and it made my head spin. We had our day scheduled from 7am to 9pm. Which room to be in and how many minutes for each interview/shoot. After fielding the same question (ie. What do you feel about the situation in China and the recent protests surrounding the Torch Relay?) multiple times, I realized that everyone wants you to slip and say something controversial or catch you in an awkward statement they can edit to use as they will. Meaning you had to be on it and focused the whole time. Exhausting! 

Which is why I figured a little adventure outside the walls of our hotel was just what we needed. I googled the area and saw The Bean printed smack in the middle of the park two blocks from the hotel. I was curious. If it wasn't coffee, then what? This is what it is.......

It is a huge metallic structure made of highly polished stainless steel plates and it weighs 110 tons!

I went directly underneath the arch in the Bean and laid on my back, placing my camera on my stomach on timer. This is the result. See me- that tiny star fish shaped thing on the left. Find my reflections on the right. A hand here. Leg there. 

WHO LIKES ICE-CREAM????

I DO! And I am thinking you do too. So get yourself to a Baskin Robbins tomorrow, from 5-10pm for 31 cent scoops!!!!!! AND eating ice-cream is for a good cause tomorrow.....they are lowering prices to honor America's Firefighters! 

This will rival the price of a Thrifty(or Rite-Aide now, i think) ice cream cones when I was little. We would go down to get triple scoops for less than a dollar every sunday night. Those were the days! And lets revist them. :)

Peanut Butter Chocolate Here I Come!!!!

China Slideshow

China Recap

Here is a belated picture montage of our trip to China last month. We went to Beijing to play in the Good Luck Beijing Tournament held in the Olympic venue we will use in a few months. The Chinese people were conducting a trial run of how the Games will be run. To work out the glitches. And we used it as a way to aquaint ourselves with the pool, and routine that we will use come competition time. Plus on days off we got to do some touristy things. We saw the Great Wall and then went on a scavenger hunt which encompassed almost all the rest of the major monuments.

Scavenger Hunt Highlights:
1. Taking out a person on a bike when our taxi pulled over in a bike lane. Opened the door to get out.....oops.
2. The Temple of Heaven is massive. (look for me in the bottom right of the picture....i look like a miniture.)
3. Playing a version of hacky-sac with some Chinese people in the gardens surrounding the Temple.
4. Going in a rickshaw through the Chinese "ghetto".
5. Bartering at the Pearl Street market.

I added a couple pictures of typical chinese things we saw while there.... the potty is just a hole ....the "Bird's Nest" is the stadium built for Track and Field and the Opening Ceremonies.......and does that guy not look like he and his pile of sticks are about to get strewn all over the highway?