seen and done

ok, so it has been a busy two weeks or so. i will not bore you with minute details of things we've seen and done, but here's a listing of a few of the favorite activities from the fabulous trip to south dakota:

1 - attempted to memorize "we didn't start the fire" by billy joel. it's a very long song, but it was a very long car ride. (ps...i've decided that if i ever become a history teacher, this song will be the focus of my lessons. all of them...) in case you're wondering about the lyrics, go here: http://www.teacheroz.com/fire.htm

2 - attempted to snowboard. let me tell you, i can do it, but i don't do it in the conventional way. i do it "peanut butter style" or "falling leaf style." BUT i will be doing it again and practicing the toe-side turn that will enable me to ride like a pro.

3 - talked politics.

4 - listened to the hillengirls on the ipod.

5 - Chubby Chipmunk chocolates http://www.chubbychipmunk.net/TruffleLove.html

6 - woke up to 3 inches of fresh snow on New Year's Day.

7 - camped out in Custer State Park with long-horned sheep and 45+ mph winds. also saw hundreds of buffalo, some mulies, a few antelopes (or maybe they were pronghorns), and one little prairie dog while we were there.

8 - Rummy and Apples to Apples.

9 - debated over the degree of "studliness" Bear Grylls (AKA man vs. wild star) possesses. my opinion: he fakes a lot. remember the video of him jumping around acting like he was defeating death in a desert when all along there was a highway right in front of him? but he does find several uses for pee, and he jumps into freezing lakes, and he eats snakes right after killing them, so his studliness is somewhat justifiable.

10 - lost a wedding band on the mountain. (not me.)

11 - drove through the awesomely bad Badlands and saw hundreds of mulies and more prairie dogs. (so cute!)

12 - stayed in a sweet cabin that was only two minutes from the slopes (unless, of course ANOTHER car got stuck in the intersection of our road and the guys had to push it out. again.)

13 - learned the word "pronghorn," and just now figured out what it was:

14 - hung out with two very sweet/neat/cool/adventurous couples.

(pics to come later...)