2 spoons

Chapman Video Essay Application

2010-10-05T20:57:00.000-07:00

SO. I finally submitted my Chapman University Application. Man, was it a mission! I'm applying to transfer in the Spring of 2011 (January- for all my South African readers).

Along with all the tons of paperwork required in the application, they ask you to submit a two minute video. This is the prompt:

"Create a self-introductory video no more than two minutes in length. Your video should visually highlight something about yourself, your

personality, your interests, etc. that is not related to film. The only rule is that you may NOTappear in the video in any way (including any

photographs of yourself), so be creative. We are primarily looking for your strengths at conveying a story visually and for evidence of your

creativity rather than your technical abilities."

Please let me know what you think!

Kudos to Jon Hans, Melissa Murphy and David Taylor for helping create this.

Palm Springs in the heat of summer

2010-08-19T16:00:00.000-07:00

Jono and I have this week off. This summers been absolutely manic, so crazy in fact, that we didn't even find a chance to plan our vacation (which was supposed to be two weeks). This is very unusual for us, as we normally dream up vacations years in advance. And so we found ourselves searching the internet for last minute deals late Sunday afternoon. By tuesday we still hadn't found anything that invoked our wanderlust and realized that if we didn't decide on a destination soon we would end up staying home and feeling cheated out of a holiday. Desperate times call for desperate measures, which meant we needed to consider Palm Springs. In August the mercury reaches a searing 110 degrees fahrenheit (43 degrees celsius) in Palm Springs. That is stinkin hot! Because of the unbearable heat, hotels in this area offer great deals during this time of year. "How bad could it be?' we thought to ourselves.

And so, with a spring in our step, we packed our bags in a minute and were out the door to a hotel we pricelined (priceline lets you name your own price on hotels, flights and more. If you haven't tried it yet, you should!).

This hotel was a.ma.zing. Its called The Riviera and it used to be a hotspot for celebrities such as Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis and Marilyn Monroe in the 50's and 60's. It recently underwent a $70 million renovation, fuzing 60's chic decor with modern design. It is absolutely beautiful. Once we arrived the girl at the front desk informed us that their pool was closed for maintenance (a smaller pool on the premises was still open). She apologized for the inconvenience and offered to upgrade us to a Junior Suite. Heck yeah. We got hooked up!

The view from our balcony

Me: way excited about the bathroom

The fun wall paper in the corridors

Love the design of this place

Tuesday night we went to an awesome restaurant: Las Consuelas Terraza. This place had so much atmosphere with great lighting and a live band. We got seated in our own little booth.

The following day we braved the heat and ventured out to have brunch at Pinnochios: a 'great place for brunch' according to Yelp and apparently one of the most gay places in Palm Springs. Anyhoo, we had a delicious brunch and then took a trip down Palm Canyon drive to suss out the area (also to enjoy the air conditioning the funbus had to offer). In the afternoon we took the Palm Springs aerial tramway up to Mount San Jacinto. This is the largest rotating cable car in the world- I'm sure Table Mountain's tram is a close second. The views from the top are truly breathtaking and the difference in temperature was remarkable.

We decided to have dinner up there. No sooner had we finished, but a raccoon shows up to scavenge off our leftovers. little bugger. He didn't even care that we were only standing a few inches away. he took a piece of my turkey and then came back for a slice of beef, Cheeky little fellow!

Here are some more pics of the fun decor at the Riviera:

They had these awesome beanbags to use in the pool. Can you spot Jono?

Video of our New York Trip

2010-07-12T07:52:00.000-07:00

Exploring My America

2010-07-04T15:01:00.001-07:00

Our friend, Nate Pollet, informed us about the Sears Auto Center Exploring My America contest a couple of weeks ago. Sears is selecting 21 teams to do various road trip routes across the great US of A over this summer.

Here is our application.

If you have a youtube account, please leave a comment on our video!

NYC Day 5

2010-05-30T08:16:00.000-07:00

Today was our last day in NYC. We ate at a little bagel shop on 5^th avenue and took a stroll along the southern end of Central Park. Then it was time for our tour of NBC studios at the Rockefeller Center. The tour was ok, however the best part was getting to see the studio where SNL is shot. I guess its nearly impossible to get tickets to this show, so we figured we’d never get to sit in those seats again. At the end of the tour they usher the group of 30 or so into a little mock studio and ask for two volunteers. Since no one was putting their hand up, I volunteered. I had to “act “ as a news anchor and read from the teleprompter. The other girl had to act as the Weathergirl. This was a fun little exercise. After the tour it was a mad dash to get back to our apartment to check out and catch our bus to the airport. I was so relieved when the lady we were renting from showed up on time, but then she utters these disastrous words:

“I have $80 (the deposit was $100), so you’ll have to stop by my café (she runs a café which is four blocks up) to get the other $20.” We had 9 minutes before our bus arrived. This video explains what ensued.

In the end we made it to the airport on time, frazzled in true New York fashion.

I loved NYC. Getting to live in the city for a week gave us a window onto what it would be like to live there. Our favorite spots were: Greenwich Village, Washington Square, Morningside Heights/ The Upper West side and the Upper East side.

We'll miss our little Au Bon Pain stop for breakfast at the Rockefeller Center every morning, but we certainly are happy to be home in a clean apartment and to see family and friends again.

NYC Day 4

2010-05-29T23:02:00.000-07:00

Jono is a huge fan of SNL. I too enjoy this show, but he’s definitely more passionate about it than me. Because of this fact we decided to get the “Rock Pass”, where one can go to the top of the Rockefeller Center and get a tour of the NBC studios located in this building (for the South African peeps: this is where Saturday Night Live is shot). Before we took the elevator to the top we went to NBC to reserve our tour of the studios. Upon arriving at the NBC desk they notified us that all tours were fully booked for that day and that we would have to reserve one on Saturday: the day we leave. Fortunately they had a spot for us in the very last available time slot we could accommodate with our schedule for Saturday. Phew, that was a close call!

I think our outing to the Top of the Rock was my highlight of the trip. At the top of this building one has an incredible view of the city in all directions. We spent a couple of hours here as we perused through the displays on the building’s history and took in the breathtaking vistas of New York.

After spending a considerable amount of time at 30 Rock we moved northwest on Manhattan to Columbia University. Here we strolled around the campus, which has a lot of character. Whilst there, Jono decided he wanted a Dunkin Donuts cup of coffee. Since we were right by a university campus we figured this popular east coast chain of coffee shops would most definitely have a store just around the corner. Not So. Finally, after walking down Broadway for about 40 minutes we finally found one. Eureka! Exhausted after our hunt for Dunkin and the fact that we have been walking 8hrs of the day for 4 days straight, we decided to head to Riverside Park, located just a few blocks to the West on the Hudson. Once there we plonked down on a bench facing the river and read for a bit. This was nice.

Getting silly at Columbia University

Any Seinfeld fans out there?

Jono is so exhausted he can hardly celebrate!

After talking about it for a bit we decided to try and see a Broadway show that night, since it was our last night in New York and all. So, rejuvenated from our rest stop by the river, we set out yet again in the direction of Times Square to get tickets to a show. Our first choice was “Promises Promises” with Kristin Chenoworth and Sean Hayes, however the only two seats available weren’t together, so we decided to get tickets for “A Behanding in Spokane” instead: a play featuring Christopher Walken and Sam Rockwell, both actors we absolutely adore. The time was now 5.45pm and the play didn’t start till 8pm, so we figured we had PLENTY of time to go back to our apartment, change and make it back to the theatre in time. And we would have: if a train hadn’t stalled on the subway track we were on. Oh my goodness, it was so close! By the time we got to our apartment it was 7.05pm: the play starts in 55min and is 61 blocks downtown. Realizing we wouldn’t have enough time to walk from the apartment to the subway station we decided to hail a cab: this was fun. In the end we made it to the theatre with 5 minutes to spare. But we were sweating! The play was a dark comedy and had a great plotline. The theatre was quite small and so it was really cool to see Christopher Walken and Sam Rockwell up close in that kind of a setting. They did really well. I think Rockwell carried the show. After the show we decided to end our evening at the Beekman Tower Hotel with drinks. Friday was a lovely day in New York.

Photo of the day:

NYC Day 3

2010-05-27T22:35:00.000-07:00

Today was absolutely delightful! The suffocating heat was exchanged for a cool 70 degrees with scattered showers. perfect. We started the day by heading to Times Square to stand in line at the TKTS booth to purchase cheap tickets for a broadway show. Since it was lunch time by the time we got there we decided to get some lunch. I got a MOST delicious salad box from Maoz- a Mediterranean fast food place. Jono had a slice of pizza :)

After lunch we headed towards the TKTS booth. The line was insanely long and so we decided to come back later. As we were leaving, a dude stopped us and asked if we'd like to go to a comedy club tonight.He mentioned that some actors from SNL might be there.. we figured this was a scam, but Jono really wanted to go to a comedy club whilst we were here so we decided to take the risk.

Represent in Times Square

Hoping we hadn't made a terrible mistake by buying the comedy tickets, we headed South West towards the meat packing district to go explore the High Line. This park is soooo cool and seems as though it was designed by a bunch of "anti-starbucks cool kids", as Jono put it. The following is a little excerpt of this Park's history:

The High Line is a New York City park, built on an elevated 1930s freight rail structure on the city's west side. Prior to the HIgh Line's construction, freight train accidents on the street level caused so many fatalities that the street was known as "death avenue". Built to remove dangerous freight trains from Manhattan's streets, the High Line delivered milk, meat, produce and raw and manufactured goods into upper-floor loading docks of factories and warehouses. The last train ran on the High Line in 1980, carrying a trainload of frozen turkeys.

How cool is that? Now its this uber cool park that one can walk along amidst the west side buildings. A must see when in New York- kudos to Mark Paternostro for giving us the heads up about it.

After strolling along the High Line we decided it was time for a cup of Joe. We wanted something other than Starbucks and so started hunting for a quaint coffee shop. Although we never located this ideal place, we did walk past one restaurant and saw Bob Balaban (A Mighty Wind, Waiting for Guffman etc) sitting at a table by the window. I would've taken a picture to prove it, but didn't want to be "that guy".

Since our hopes of finding a good coffee shop were slipping, we gave in and got Starbucks in Union Square. We realized we would have enough time to zip uptown and change before our comedy show (it had gotten a little chilly). And so we did just that. Using all our navigational skills we dashed uptown, made a quick wardrobe change and zipped back down just in time to get a slice of pizza before the show.

Ahhh the show. Other than being lied to in various ways it actually turned out to be pretty enjoyable. It was no Jerry Seinfeld, but entertaining nonetheless. By the time it was done it was just before midnight and so public transportation had thinned out quite a bit. We wanted to get to 49th and 1st ave, and so hopped on a bus going in that direction. Once on board we realized we were the only ones on the bus. The bus driver used the intercom to communicate with us even though we were two seats away from him. He asked us where we wanted to go and dropped us off right at our spot. So cool. We had our own private bus for 10 minutes. On the corner of 49th and 1st is the Beekman Tower Hotel that has a 26th floor restaurant and bar. Although they were closed we still got to go up and look at the view: a great ending to a great day!

The comedy club was just around the corner from where Dave shoots his show.

Pizza before the show

Photo of the day: A bus all to ourselves

NYC Day 2

2010-05-26T20:48:00.000-07:00

It was 95 degrees in New York today. 95. I'm gonna let that sink in for a moment.

Basically, we were just barely short of dying. It was so hot -but we prevailed against the harsh forces of nature. We started out our day with a delicious pastry (once again) from Au Bon Pain- they really should bring this franchise to California. With energy from these scrumptious goodies coursing through our veins we headed down to the financial district.

The Subway was our relief from the heat today

Here we accidently stumbled upon St Paul's church: now a memorial spot for 9/11. We sifted through all the displays and photos of people who died on that day. It was quite something to be right where it happened and imagining what it must have been like for people who spent each day working in that area. We went and looked at the 9/11 memorial site preview and I recorded my story of where I was when it happened (they are gathering stories from around the world for the new 9/11 memorial museum).

From there we walked down to Battery Park to get a good look at the Statue of Liberty. Of course we first had to sit on a bench for about 20min just to try and cool down- it was so stinkin hot- both of us were dripping in sweat (gross, I know). We then made the almost fatal decision of walking Brooklyn Bridge- the WORST possible day to attempt this "hike". With lots of moaning due to the heat, we made the trek. It was still worth it though, and whilst there we saw a buddhist monk with a really nice camera- doesn't that contradict what they are all about? Anyway, after taking in the view we made our way back over the bridge and decided to visit Chinatown: Bad Choice #2.

Battery Park

Statue of Liberty in the distance

Drinking in the view of the city on Brooklyn Bridge

Mixing the odors of Chinatown (raw fish, garbage, urine etc) with sweltering heat is never a good combination. Add lots of people and soon I was very hot and bothered. We were actually on the hunt for little Italy but could not locate it: just before vowing to NEVER go to that part of town again and heading back to the cool subway we noticed a restaurant "La Bella something-or-other". We had struck gold! Little Italy was a timely relief and we thoroughly enjoyed walking down Mulberry st and listening to the "Luigi's" and "Frankie Cee's" chatter in their thick italian-american accents: we felt as though we were on a movie set. We even heard someone say :"Get outta here!". That was awesome. WE continued walking all the way to Greenwich Village to find a spot to have dinner. We discovered a great little gem called the Olive Tree and enjoyed the oasis of air conditioning and tasty food. Exhausted from a long hot day we decided to head back to our apartment- but first we just HAD to go back to little Italy to have Tiramisu for dessert. So, we navigated the treacherous subway system yet again, making about 3 transfers just to get some tiramisu. There was a little street vendor selling homemade tiramisu in cups that we had seen earlier in the day. With our tiramisu and cold water we sat down on a curb and enjoyed the sights and sounds of Little Italy yet again. A perfect ending to a not so perfect day. :)

Jono's cool new playing cards

One could write on the tables with chalk at the Olive Tree

Although it was extremely hot today, we still had a great time, and feel as though we saw and did a lot. So please don't misunderstand my "whining". Now to rest our weary feet.

Photo of the day:

Jono in the cemetery of St Paul's Church with ground zero in the background

NYC Day 1

2010-05-25T21:16:00.000-07:00

Jono and I are visiting New York this week- neither of us have ever been.

We arrived yesterday and had a fairly smooth transit to our apartment for the week, located on 116th st - a little too far Uptown for my liking. Once inside the place it became very clear to both of us that a trip to the laundromat was necessary. So, with sheets in tow, we made our way through this "eclectic" (sketchy can also be inserted here) neighborhood at midnight. We survived this outing, although we are absolutely convinced we saw a Mafia deal going down on our way back. Of course my husband, being a superhero, immediately got to work on scrubbing the bathroom once we got back to the apartment. Now we have a squeeky clean powder room. I love him.

We intended on starting the day Bright and early this morning, only to wake up at 10.30am, although dismayed at first we soon realized that the New York day goes deep into the night and not much time had been wasted.

Ready for the Day!

Our Apartment Building

We decided to hit up the Metropolitan museum. After wandering around Central Park much longer than we originally intended we finally found it. I really enjoyed the Met: the medieval display was my favorite. The coolest thing about the Met is the snappy-pin-thingys they give you as a ticket- this way you can sport your little pin all day letting the whole city know you are a tourist. Can you spot our pins in the pics?

Getting lost in Central Park is fun

Next up was Times Square. On our way there we stopped at the Rockefellar Center and had an AMAZING apple pastry at the Subway station there. Good times.

Once we got to Times Square we noticed everyone gazing at one Jumbotron in particular: this was because the NFL people were about to announce where the 2014 Superbowl was going to be held- NYC was in the running. Jono and I took a seat on the stadium seating located at the north end of the square. Within a few minutes the results were in for the NFL vote and NYC had won. It was cool to see everyone's reaction. We were almost on TV but were obviously not enthusiastic enough to make the 3sec shot.

After people-watching for quite some time we hit up Chelsea and had GRAY's Papaya pineapple juice while watching a man get arrested for trying to take his pant off in public- a valid reason in my opinion for getting arrested.

*Sidenote* we stopped at what we thought was an authentic pizza place for lunch, which ended up being really crappy.

After our refreshing pineapple fix, we walked to the Flatiron building and sat in Madison Square Park watching the squirrels harass the people. Extremely amusing. From Chelsea we went down to Greenwich Village and enjoyed Washington Square Park. I love the arch in this park, and kept thinking of "I am Legend", since Will Smith's character lived right on the square in the movie. Then we walked along Bleecker st and checked out all the cool little restaurants along the way. This part of the city really reminded us both of Cape Town. We then made our way back to Times Square to soak up the City lights (because according to Alicia Keys "they will inspire you") Feeling truly inspired we decided to call it a day and head home.

Photo of the Day: On the Rooftop of the Metropolitan Museum. I heart New York.

Wintercamp

2010-03-20T22:37:00.000-07:00

Trip USA

2010-03-10T14:43:00.001-08:00

Over a year ago Jono and I embarked on one of the most fun adventures we've ever had. Now, 18 months later,we have a little clip to show for it .

Saturday

2010-03-07T18:15:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was the annual event: "Invisible Art, Visible Artists", where the best editor nominees discuss their techniques at the Grauman's egyptian theatre. Jono and I scored great seats 4 rows in, and enjoyed listening to the editors share their tips and frustrations. This year's nominated films for editing are: Avatar (standard, although I don't think it deserves to be in this category), District 9 (woohoo for all the saffers!), Inglorious Bastards (a woman edited this film, interestingly- she edits all Tarantino's movies), The Hurtlocker and Precious. Afterwards Jono and I got to chat with Julian Clarke, District 9's editor. He's from Vancouver and this is his first big gig. I really liked him and found him very down to earth and genuinely excited about everything he's experiencing this weekend.

After this, we were ravenous and so stopped at the first little eatery we found, which happened to be Cafe Audrey. Apparently this little joint has been around for 3 years now, although this was the first we'd heard of it. It was absolutely delightful: the food was delish, decor was creative and it had good atmosphere: an old guy was playing piano for most of our time there: such fun!

After lunch we walked down Hollywood Blvd to where they were preparing for the Oscars.

A few months ago Nate & Jen told us about a outdoor shopping mall similar to the Grove being built in Glendale, so we decided to go find it. The Americana is definitely worth a visit! Here we wandered around, enjoying the fountain and 3 story Barnes & Noble. We also shared a cream puff from Papa Beard: tasty.

All in all it was a perfect day... the weather was even a bit gloomy: lovely!

Pork Skins

2010-03-07T18:06:00.000-08:00

I found these at a little gas station convenience store along the way to Lake Tahoe. This is hardly my idea of a tasty snack: does anyone buy these??

Fender Bender

2010-02-23T22:31:00.000-08:00

Today I had my first of the above. I was hoping to make it to old age without being in a car accident, but no, Mr. Dodge Ram had to drive into my backside this evening.

Now the fun and games of claiming insurance begins.

Our Wedding Videography Idol

2010-02-15T12:35:00.000-08:00

I sometimes wonder what Jason Magbanua would think if he knew a couple was watching his every move a few thousand miles away. Jason shoots weddings in the Philippines, and he has become our standard for event videography: one we strive to attain (we are far from it). Sometimes his music choice is somewhat cheesy, but the shots & editing remain beautiful and captivating. Here is one of his latest videos.

Carla (Rica) Peralejo and Joe Bonifacio's Same Day Edit from Jason Magbanua on Vimeo.

The Neighbours

2010-02-06T09:03:00.000-08:00

The fact that it's February and the bachelors that live across from us still haven't taken down their christmas decorations leads me to believe that one of their girlfriends did the decorating, but that they have split up between then and now.

!Kooza

2010-02-01T08:46:00.000-08:00

This weekend we had the privilege of going to see Cirque du Soleil's production Kooza. I remember seeing a promo for Cirque when I was about 14 in South Africa, and since that moment it had been a loose goal of mine to see them perform someday. Well, thanks to a very generous gift that "goal" was attained this weekend.

The entire production was incredibly well co-ordinated: from the sound, to lighting to the choice of music and costuming. I can't remember the last time I was so wowed by a performance.

Here are three videos highlighting Kooza. The trailer is poorer quality than I'd prefer, but I couldn't find a better one. The contortionist one is much better quality. The unicycle act was my favorite; I loved the french feel to it. And maybe it was my favorite because of the romantic aspect. enjoy!

Yep, he's pretty much amazing

2010-01-28T18:27:00.000-08:00

On Monday Jono, me and a few of our friends went snowboarding. This was my first time, and I was pretty nervous but excited at the same time. Jono was born on a snowboard (pretty much) and is quite the pro: he's even done some snowboarding instruction in his time.

Deep down inside I was hoping to be a natural at this, that I would simply jump on the board and glide down the mountain effortlessly with people cheering and ooh-ing and aah-ing as I swoop by them. Needless to say: I'm NOT a natural. Far from it. More like a clumsy sloth staggering slash crawling down the bunny slope. I fell so many times I stopped counting and I have the black and blue bruises to show for it. It was not a pretty sight, not only because my limbs would be in 5 different directions at all times or because my butt was pushed out so far that my nose was almost touching the snow. No, because my attitude stank too. I just could not stand the fact that I couldn't do it. At one point in the day, after falling on my face yet again, I simply lay in the snow wailing:"I hate this, I never want to do this again! this was the stupidest idea ever!! We never should've come!". Do you see it? Yep, not a pretty sight in the slightest.

Now most people would shudder at this sight, and simply say :"Suck it up girly, you're not the first person to suck at this," and they would have every right to: I was being a brat. But Jono never once lost his patience with me. Every time I would throw a tantrum he would have a kind reply, encouraging me to try again. He spent the entire day helping me, when I know he would very much have wanted to take a few runs by himself. He sacrificed his own desires to place me before himself. Time after time he would guide me on my board and whenever I fell he would rush to help me up. He's incredible.

By the end of the day we had figured out a tactic that helped me a lot in learning the ropes, and I actually began to enjoy the sport: a little. I'll definitely give it another shot, and maybe it'll be a little easier the second time around. As we drove home that night, although tired and emotionally spent, I was completely content knowing that my husband loves me no matter how ugly I am inside and was reminded of the same love Christ has for us: unconditionally sacrificing himself even though we don't deserve it at all.

Inge

2009-12-12T23:25:00.000-08:00

My dear friend Inge celebrated her birthday this week on the 11th. I just love her. Inge and I met in High School and have been pretty much inseparable since then. Well, except for the fact that the entire atlantic ocean and north american continent came between us. But other than that, inseparable I tell you!

Inge is a woman of grace and beauty. She lights up a room when she enters it and has the most wonderful gentleness about her. Whenever we talk it's like we're sitting on my mom's couch drinking tea - we always pick up where we left off. I am so blessed to have such a dear friend like her.

Happy Birthday Inge!

Invictus

2009-12-12T22:11:00.001-08:00

We went to see Invictus last night. I loved it. Was it a little on the cheesy side? Most definitely. However, it was absolutely incredible to see images of Newlands Stadium, Table Mountain, Robben Island and the N2 on the bigscreen in our little Aliso Viejo California theatre. Matt Damon did a great job with the accent. Morgan Freeman struggled a bit, but still pulled it off. The score was painful: I think they used local artists. What do you do?

It was good for me to be reminded of that sweet day when we won the world cup, and I certainly was proud to be a South African as the credits rolled.

ps. I had the great honour of interviewing Francois Pienaar in 2005. Just thought you should know :)

Trip to Tahoe

2009-12-11T16:47:00.000-08:00

This past November Jono and I celebrated our third wedding anniversary. A few months ago I was looking for good deals for flights to Hawaii and I stumbled upon a good deal to stay at the Hyatt Regency in North Shore Lake Tahoe. Seeing as flight prices to Hawaii were not co-operating with our budget we decided to go for the Tahoe option.

Usually when we go on road trips we leave right after church on Sunday, but this time we decided to get up EARLY on Monday morning and leave then instead of Sunday. It was so much fun getting up at 4.30am and hitting the road whilst everyone else was still asleep (well, except for the crazy OC-LA commuters - I mean , really? 4.30am?). We took a route that we have never taken before: the 395 highway. Best Decision Ever. Before this trip I've been as far as Ridgecrest on the 395 and the scenery on that stretch is, well... not the most scenic in the world, let's just leave it at that. BUT not even 5 minutes past Ridgecrest you hit the Sierra Nevada's on your left side and MAN is it beautiful! I loved taking this route, and would definitely consider going north some time soon just to go on the 395 again. yes, it was .that.cool.

Since our traveling schedule was slightly more flexible than road trips we've done in the past, we decided to stop wherever it pleased us, one of these stops being Bodie: deserted town of the old west. Now let me just say this: If you EVER find yourself in the Mid-eastern part of California: GO TO BODIE! This was such an awesome experience. I'll let the pictures tell the story.

Great caravan we found on the road to Bodie

From Bodie we were back on the road again, this time heading straight for Lake Tahoe. We arrived right at sunset, and so the sight of the lake glimpsing through the trees as we drove down the 50 was magnificent. Our hotel was SO NICE. They gave us an upgrade and a pass to the "Hyatt Mile High Club" or something like that. Basically we had free breakfast and or'd'oeuvres everyday on the 11th floor overlooking the mountains AND lake. awesomeness.

The first two days we just spent chilling and reading and watching movies in our room. even more awesomeness. On the third day it was time for us to move on to our next location: the Worldmark Resort on the South Shore. This place was so cozy. We tried our hand at gambling at one of the local casinos; this did not go very well, and within 5 minutes we were walking out the shiny casino lobby, $20 poorer. SUCKS.

The next day magic happened: It snowed! The weather reporters had been threatening all week with snow, and so I decided to set my alarm nice and early to see if they were correct in saying it would start snowing at 6am. Sure enough, it did! After some very child-like frolicking in the snow (including a hot tub dip at 7am) we settled down to a day indoors: I had a lot of homework for my online history class, and Jono just reveled in the coziness of it all and watched movies & read.

The next day was our last in Tahoe, so we decided to do the standard thing we always do on vacation: a horseback ride. This ride was magnificent with patches of freshly fallen snow here and there. The guide lead us on a great trail up the mountain, bringing us to this view:

We even spotted some fresh bear tracks, but never spotted the bear.

Truly inspired after our ride, we hit the road again, this time headed to see Reinhardt in Berekeley, California. We only spent one night in Berkeley and the following day, Saturday. Friday night we took the train into the city and had yummy indian food and gelato (nothing like that fabulous combination!).

Leaving Lake Tahoe

Entering The Bay area

After that we went back to Berkeley to visit the Albatross: a great little pub that is all about GAMES. Everyone plays GAMES. We had a grand time playing card GAMES and Jono entertaining us with mildly impressive card tricks. This was a fun time indeed. On Saturday Reinhardt took us on a meander through Rockridge and took us to a super local pizza place: Zachary's. I never thought I would say this about deep dish pizza, but I loved it! With our tummies stuffed we hung out a little longer and then got back on the road again: homeward bound.

Oh what a great trip this was! One of my favorites.

Cookies and Christ

2009-11-29T08:02:00.000-08:00

I am so excited by this! A few of the students in our church have started a christian club on their high school campus called "Cookies & Christ". Their motto is: loving people with cookies as Christ would. So awesome. 3 students have gotten saved through this outreach already. They filmed this video, and I think it gives one a really good idea of what cookies & Christ is all about.

High School Girls'/Guys' Night

2009-11-27T23:46:00.000-08:00

Every few months we do a youth event entitled "Girls/Guys Night". We've done so many fun things for this occasion from dressing up 50's style and going to Ruby's diner, to putting money together and buying outfits for a fashion show, to camping at O' Neill park:just the girls! The guys do super cool things too, like Airsoft nights at 45 Tesla or cellophane wrapping Laela's car (remember that night anyone? :). Last saturday we had another one of these: The girls had a cooking class and the guys... well, I'm not sure exactly what the guys did. All I know is that a really wacky video was produced after their time together. Here are the videos from the night for your viewing pleasure:

Natalie and Noodle

2009-11-22T17:07:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was my sister, Natalie's, baby shower. This was my first experience of an American baby shower. The afternoon was very entertaining indeed, with delightful games like: "smell the poopy diaper" and "my water broke!". Here are some pictures documenting the day:

Poopy diaper

The "my water broke" game.

Just a little bit creepy

I am so excited for the coming of this little noodle!

Website Launched

2009-11-05T17:37:00.000-08:00

It is with great enthusiasm and excitement that I type this news: The Two Spoons Productions website has been launched! You can visit it at:

www.twospoonsproductions.com

And... if you refer a friend to Two Spoons, and they book with us, you will receive a referral reward of 10% of whichever package they choose: so get on your iphone or email or something and start referring!

2009-10-28T09:33:00.000-07:00

Pumpkin Carving

2009-10-25T23:32:00.000-07:00

This weekend, I got to experience an American tradition that I have not tried before: Pumpkin Carving. My friend Ibeth, who I met in my Deutsche class, invited Jono, myself, Melissa, Natalie and Victor over to her pumpkin carving party. We had such a fun time! Who knew carving pumpkins could be so much fun? My pumpkin did not turn out so great (I'm a little creatively-challenged when it comes to this sort of thing), but everyone else's came out incredibly creative. I was especially impressed with Natalie and Victor's products since neither of them have ever done this before.

Melissa imitating Natalie's baby bump

Getting gooey

Ibeth and her ghoulish design

Natalie hard at work

The end result (Natalie's pumpkin)

Victor's masterpiece

Mine's the haggard looking one on the end

Jono's work of art

Ibeth's husband, James, admiring his handy work

The end result

All our pumpkins on display

Friday Early Morning Girls' Group

2009-10-25T23:18:00.000-07:00

I've been meeting with my small group of High School girls on friday mornings this semester. We meet at the crack of dawn, 6am, since they start school at 7am (shocking). I have been so encouraged by my girls and their dedication to this early morning meeting. I'm ashamed to say I've overslept twice... but they still agree to meet that early, despite my tardiness.

We've been going through Rick Warren's book, 40 days of purpose. I've read this book once before whilst living in Perth and I thoroughly enjoyed it then as I am now. It's been so refreshing going over some of the basics of maturing as christian.

So, here's to my small group and their incredible dedication!

Elimination Station

2009-10-18T23:51:00.000-07:00

I need to post this, as this is an important thing that all fans of the A>R need to know. The Amazing Race (Airs on CBS sunday nights at 8pm: that plug was free this time, CBS!) now has short 5 min webisodes showing what happens to the teams once they get eliminated.

AMAZING. I never knew this.

just click here for this week's episode of... dum dum dum: ELIMINATION STATION!

Lake Tahoe Baby!

2009-10-11T19:48:00.001-07:00

I am so excited as Jono and I will be spending our 3 year anniversary here:

And I really hope it looks like this when we go:

The Week

2009-10-10T18:58:00.000-07:00

This is how I love to spend my Saturday afternoons:

Reading The Week magazine, with a cup of tea on the patio. Nothing like it! The Week is so cool, because it samples from the best columns around the country and compiles them all, including interesting little titbits from around the world. For example, the following story appeared in this week's issue:

"It was a good week for reverse discrimination, after a group of dwarves in China set up a village where nobody taller than 4foot3 is allowed. 'As small people we are used to being pushed around and being exploited by big people,' said resident Fu Tien. 'But here there aren't any big people.' "

Christmas comes early

2009-10-06T22:45:00.001-07:00

It's here. You should've seen me as I strutted down to the Aventine Office with my UPS slip in hand. I was like a kid on Christmas Eve as I walked back to our apartment, triumphant with the large box gripped in my arms.

Jono's parents generously helped us buy our first production quality camera: a Canon XL1. Here are a few pics documenting the opening process. Watch this space, as we have a wedding scheduled for October 17th and will be using this beauty to shoot it.

You gotta love these little guys

Jono has a burst of excitement as we discover the lens

This moment: Picture worthy

TaDa!

Thanks Ma & Pa Knepper!

New Found Pleasure

2009-09-30T12:12:00.000-07:00

"Away We Go" soundtrack.

Tanzania 2009

2009-09-28T15:54:00.000-07:00

During August, Jono & I led a team to Tanzania, East Africa where Jono's parents have a non-profit: Hope of the Nations. I could write for days about this trip... but alas I don't have days to write, and so i'll just upload the video we made summarizing the trip.

Camp Wedding

2009-09-28T15:04:00.000-07:00

Two Spoons Productions is well under way, with another 3 weddings booked for the next few months and our new camera on the way!

Here is the video we produced for Ben & Diana Camp who married on June 28th.

Click HERE for a pic of our new camera being shipped as I type.

Trip to Canada

2009-08-04T14:52:00.001-07:00

Yes, this trip was in June and it is now practically October... nonetheless, some tales need to be told.

In June, Jono and I ventured on yet another roadtrip. *sidenote: this truly is the best way to see the States* This time we travelled the length of the 5 Freeway: a freeway that goes all the way from the border of Mexico to the Border of Canada and spans over the states of California, Oregon and Washington. It was such a beautiful drive!

We set out on Sunday after the service and travelled all the way to Fall River Mills in Northern California. Fall River Mills is a tiny rural town nestled in the most exquisite valley just south of Mount Shasta. On a clear day you can see the mighty mountain very well, topped with snow year round. Friends of ours have a home there and they graciously let us stay in it for a few days. Our time in Fall River was mellow and relaxing. We rode our bikes along the farm roads, receiving the strangest looks from the locals as they passed by in their TE-rucks (as Cois would say). Jono went on an escapade to try and find a good fishing spot, but the locals were very protective of their river and so he returned home with many warnings of "the warden" and how strict he is. Needless to say, no fish were caught. On one of our days there we decided to go kayakking up the river. THAT was an adventure. Everything started out just grand with birds tweeting, butterflies flying by, a cool breeze whispering through the riverbed and deer feeding by the water's edge. But, as the afternoon drew on, the wind suddenly came up reaching gale force potential (ok, I may be exaggerating a bit) and it was not in our favor. In short, our marriage was tested that day... and that's all I'm going to say about that. :)

All the bugs after our drive through the night

Fall River Mills Valley

His face says it all

Goodbye Fall River!

From Fall River we got back on the road, heading North. Next stop: Vancouver BC, Canada! This stretch from California through Oregon and Washington was most beautiful. We saw all kinds of wildlife from a bear cub along the side of the road to a female deer and her baby. It felt like we were in a scene from the movie Bambi. It rained all the way through Oregon, which I hear is pretty typical for this state. Portland, OR seemed like an awesome city with so many rivers and bridges. And since the annual rainfall there is 90cm, I think I would have a ball living there. Washington was just as beautiful as Oregon, I wish we could've spent more time there. With a quick stop in Seattle for Starbucks (no, we did not visit the Pike Place store - too much effort), we made it to Vancouver by sunset.

Majestic Mount Shasta

More Shasta

The Essentials

Seattle Drive By

Vancouver BC: city of enchantment. I LOVED this place! It is just so uber cool. Firstly: it's beautiful, with sweeping mountains surrounding Vancouver island and a striking skyline. Secondly, it's just cool. Josh and Tami, Jono's brother and sister-in-law, live there. They were awesome tour guides, showing us all the fun things around he city. On one of our days there we went on a bike ride around the city on the "seaboard trail": this was so much fun, with a view of the water on your left and the city on your right the entire day. Vancouver is a very outdoorsy city, and so people riding their bikes is a pretty common sight. We picnicked at one of the beaches along the way. I was very sad to leave Vancouver, but we hope to visit there again some time soon.

Grass RoofTop

On our way back south we visited Jono's grandma and uncle in Cottonwood, California. It was good getting to meet more of Jono's family, since this is one of the reasons we decided to live in the States for the first portion of our marriage. Uncle Roy has a tender spot for animals, and has raised all sorts of "pets", from a bobcat to a wolf. He is currently raising a flock of geese, and they think of him as their mother and so follow him everywhere! We call him the goose-whisperer.

I made it back in!

From Cottonwood, we set out to UC Berkeley to visit our friend Chris Reinhardt. Reinhardt is an avid cyclist, and so we got our bikes out and rode around the campus taking in the sights. I really liked UC Berkeley and enjoyed riding by a group of hippies protesting: typical of Berkeley I've heard. We visited with Reinhardt late into the night at Jupiter, a great little restaurant that everyone should visit when in the Berkeley area. With our tummies full of yummy pizza we hit the road again, this time homeward bound.

I love going on road trips with Jono. There's something about being on the road together that is just so refreshing. I feel so privileged to be able to say we've driven to Canada and back. Thank you God for providing for us so generously!

Price is Right Follow Up

2009-05-27T23:12:00.000-07:00

To watch our episode of The Price is Right (and please do). Click here. It will only be on the web for a limited time, so enjoy it while you can.

Happy Campers

2009-05-27T14:19:00.000-07:00

This weekend Jono and I ventured up to Alpine County to go camping at his childhood campsite, "Sandflat". Sandflat is tucked away, tucked away, in a mountain range just north of Yosemite. It is breathtakingly beautiful and secluded: a true northern California gem.

We set out after church on Sunday with only one stop for gas in Fresno (one very miserable corner of the world) and a car loaded with camping supplies (thank you Wangler family for lending your camping stove to us!). After 8 hrs of driving with the sun just behind the mountains, we finally made it to our destination: Only to find that Jono's childhood campground had been overrun by city slickers and RV's - much to Jono's disgust. We combed the campground in search of a good spot, but only found one barren site close to the road. This just wasn't going to do. We decided to go down the road to the adjacent campground, namely Clark's Fork. Here we found a much more peaceful atmosphere, even though it was full of memorial weekend campers, and so we decided to camp out there for a few days.

Our Tent

That night was FREEZING, because the mountains surrounding us were still covered with snow, which we failed to recognize until morning. Without much sleep we awoke to the rest of the campground packing up for the day: Our camping adventure was only starting!

Note the snow-capped mountains

We went on a bike ride to the river, where Jono spent hours fishing, with me trailing behind him.

Then we went back to the campsite for some lunch. After lunch we set out on a hike that the Knepper family used to do each year. Upon which we had to scale this beauty:

But, once on top of this giant rock, the most awesome vista awaited us:

Whilst at the top of the mountain, a great storm was a-brewing and we could hear the thunder echoing through the canyon. Note the dark clouds

On our way back from the hike we went on a little impromptu bike ride... right into the storm. Needless to say we got rained on, but it was all worth it in the name of adventure.

Once back at our campsite, we thought it best to find a shower since it had been close to 3 days we had gone without one. We travelled to the closest town, Dardanelle, with a staggering population of two. Yes, the sign stated (2).

Clean and warm, we headed back to our spot for dinner and a campfire. As we were quite exhausted after our very physically challenging day, we slept right through the night not even bothered by the cold this time.

The following morning we packed up camp and headed down the hill to Sonora (Jono's hometown) and ... COVER'S APPLE RANCH. This place is amazing. They have the best apple pie this side of the equator. With our bellies full, we hit the road back to Southern California... with two frozen Cover's pies in tow :)

I have never been much of a happy camper, but since marrying Jono, I have discovered a new appreciation for this kind of vacation. And even better was getting some insight into his childhood memories. As we discovered many hidden spots, I was astonished at the beauty of nature and how so much of it goes unnoticed by the majority of the world's population. Yet, God still creates it, and it's there proclaiming His glory, whether we see it or not.

LIFE video

2009-05-19T14:01:00.001-07:00

Last week Jono and I had to throw together a video for the Kingsfield Church Women's Conference which took place this past Saturday. I am very pleased with how it turned out, considering we shot and edited it in one day and didn't have any proffesional lighting or camera equipment.

Come on down

2009-05-11T19:17:00.000-07:00

You are the next contestant on the price is right! ( at least I think thats how it goes??)

16 of us attended a taping of "The price is right" today. Now, first let me pause and inform the south african readers what The Price is Right is: Do you guys remember "Win 'n Spin"? well, it's not like that at all, but kind've in the same category. It's a game-show targeted at old retired audiences where contestants have to guess the price of an item and if they guess correctly or close to the right price, they win the item (thats the short of it). Oh ja, and Drew Carey hosts it.

The show is currently doing a fundraiser deal where if you're from a church and you bring 15 or more people, they pay you $20 per person. How cool is that? So, as the Tanzania team, we roped some peeps together and went.

I had never seen the show, so last night Jono, Stefanie, Reinhardt, Megan and I watched an episode online. We spray-painted matching t-shirts - which ended up looking not-so-good (bummed i don't have a picture to show you), and finally at 1am we were in bed, eagerly awaiting this morning.

Everyone was there on time and looking spiffy in our bright orange t-shirts with an outline of the continent of Africa painted on them - except we didn't think the placement of the design through, and so it ended up looking like a giant coffee stain on our t-shirts. Nevertheless, we were not discouraged and so we braved the horrific LA traffic and headed to the CBS studio in Hollywood.

Our team was most certainly the loudest in line, as we kept ourselves entertained by playing Guesstures and Worst Case Scenario. Finally it was time for us to enter the studio, which we did with much enthusiasm. The show started almost immediately with the announcer calling out names from the audience to play as contestants. And only a few rounds in... our very own STEFANIE BAMMER got picked! Woohoo! We went crazy, cheering her on as she walked up to her little "price is right" podium. Bammer did so well, and even won some stuff... but I've heard we're not allowed to disclose that information until the show airs. WATCH IT ON MONDAY MAY 26TH!!

All in all we had such a fun day, and I was reminded of the privilege Jono and I have of living in this part of the world and having such awesome friends.

.fun.

The latest from Pico

2009-05-11T19:07:00.000-07:00

Pico's new trick is opening the cupboards... all of them. And then tipping the trash over. And then I come home to this:

such a delightful little being...

What's that song?

2009-04-19T17:03:00.000-07:00

Music has this magical ability to take you back to a specific moment in time. Perhaps this is why I enjoy the radio so much (as opposed to my ipod/ cd's): you never know which song is going to play next, and it may just be one that you know, taking you back in time.

I will list a few songs that have distinct memories attached to them for me:

First up, Harry Belafonte's "Jump in the line". This song reminds me of my dad. My dad is quite a strange human being and very hard to sum up. One never really knows what he's thinking, nor is it easy to pin down what exactly he likes - birthdays are always a nightmare, trying to figure out what to get him. But one thing I know for certain about my dad, and that is that he loves Harry Belafonte, and whenever this song in particular came on you would see him doing his little "dad groove", jiggling his shoulders and such. If you've never heard Harry Belafonte, look.him.up. and listen.

Cyndi Lauper's "Girls just wanna have fun" is probably on every girl's memory list. I have copied an exert from one of my English 1a essays, explaining the memory behind this song:

"It was my first year of high school. I had chosen to go to Bloemhof, a school for girls only. I didn’t have any reason in particular for choosing Bloemhof, other than the fact that 3 of my closest friends had decided to go there. Bloemhof is a very prestigious school with a very long honorable history. The school was, at the time of my attendance, a hundred and seventy five years old. With all these years of being established, the school had become

very elite and held some distinct traditions. I remember my first week there; I was petrified, but so intrigued at

the same time. The seniors definitely dominated the school and they carried an air of superiority over us younger ones.

Every Monday morning the entire school would gather for “assembly”: an hour long ceremony which consisted of singing the national anthem, the school anthem and a few outdated hymns and then the headmistress would give a message about integrity or some other characteristic that we “as ladies” should aspire to obtain.

The most memorable of all the assemblies I ever attended was during my 4^th week at Bloemhof. We were going through the usual routine of boring singing when the back doors to the hall suddenly flung open violently. And then I heard what was to become my favorite girls’ anthem of all time start to play over the speakers for the first time: Cyndi Lauper’s “Girls just wanna have fun”. The senior girls burst into the room, dancing down the aisles as the music blared. Their uniforms were modified, with their ties tied around their heads and their skirts shortened. It was like something from a Britney Spears music video. The teachers frantically tried to get everyone under control. It was to no avail, as the younger girls had already joined in the riot and were standing on their chairs chiming in with the seniors. I stood by, mesmerized by the display of youthful abandonment. I loved it. Since then, “Girls just wanna have fun” has become my own personal anthem. Whenever I hear it, it brings a smile to my face as I remember the look of horror on the headmistress’ face that Monday morning long ago."

Katie Tunstall's "Suddenly I see" will always remind me of K-fm and West Workout. West Workout is a sketchy little privately owned gym in Somerset West (the town I grew up in). I joined this gym about a year before Jono and I got married so that I might get in shape for the wedding. This gym is so old and so gross... but it was cheap! The owner, who doubled as every member's personal trainer as well as a local body builder champion (gross), would always BLAST the local radio station K-fm. And K-fm is notorious for playing the same songs over and over again - like a broken record. Unfortunately Katie Tunstall was the hottest thing that year.

As a teenager, a great amount of my time was spent at Cattle Baron Steak Ranch. I worked there as a waitress from age 16-19. There are so many songs that remind me of Cattle Baron, but one album that really stands out is Crowded House's best of album. Man alive, they really played that one to death. Any random 60's/70's hit will also immediately make me think of carrying out a "chateau briand" (a piece of meat with brandy poured over it that we would set alight) with a side of soggy butternut and spinach. I am most relieved that that season of my life is over!

Anything from No Doubt always reminds me of my dear friend Inge.. as well as the band "Live". Those two artists make me think of driving in the little white golf, enjoying our new found freedom.

Gosh.. I could just go on and on. What are some songs with memories attached to them that you may have?

Pico's Day Out

2009-03-31T19:50:00.000-07:00

Pico is quite a wuss. I'm not gunna lie (thanks Carrie for that line). However, whenever I go outside to sit on the patio, he sits by the door meowing and pleading to be let out. So, the other day while Natalie was visiting we decided to let him out with us. I was like an overprotective mother that smothers her kid with sunscreen, puts floaties on both arms and legs and puts goggles on the kid. When Pico gets scared he RUNS, so we had to take the necessary precautions. Hence the fact that he had his baby blue collar with name tag attached to it, harness and leash on. Please note that the collar has a bell attached to it - so we always know where he is.

Here are some pics for your viewing pleasure.

By the end of our tea-drinking time he was so exhausted and just wanted to be inside and sleep. He's so odd!

CVS and their scrolls

2009-03-31T19:33:00.000-07:00

When the rest of the world is turning green from all it's environment-friendly freaks, CVS is doing everything in their power to resist this fashionable notion. It never ceases to amaze me every time I go to CVS and they print out a scroll of a receipt. Have they not caught on to the waste of paper that is occurring in their very own stores on a daily basis? Come on CVS, jump on the green train!

By the way this receipt was for a purchase of one shampoo bottle valued at $4.99. ridiculous.

This year so far...

2009-03-31T09:59:00.000-07:00

This year has been unbelievable so far: in more ways than one. The first reason for this statement would be how extremely busy Jono and I have been. It feels as though a summer just went by, even though it was only Jan, Feb and March. Let me list a few of the things contributing to our busyness:

1. I started attending community college. Community College is a grand 'ole thing... if you don't have a job or a life! What makes it so busy is my film production class, requiring approximately 14hrs a week (which obviously wasn't stated in the class schedule). Even though I complain quite a bit about this factor in my life, I have really enjoyed it: meeting new people, learning some new things and changing the usual routine up a bit.

2. Wintercamp. Wintercamp rolls around every year around the end of February. Our first year here I was frustrated with the concept of Wintercamp. My reasoning was: "Why should we spend so much money and time on taking christian students up the mountain to experience God, when they can do that in their own bedrooms?"

I have since then seen the fruits of Wintercamp, and now find myself looking forward to it every year. This year was especially amazing because 4 other churches joined us this time. Namely: Calvary Chapel Carlsbad, East Hills Community Church, Southlands Church int. and Ridgecrest church of the nazarene. The most amazing thing was to experience the unity God gave us as churches. We had sooo much fun together: all 169 of us!

For more info and pictures on wintercamp, visit Carrie's blog.

Jono doing his thing:

Standard:

Melissa doing her thing

Do you see how tired i look?

Dave & Alyson Reinhardt joined us for the weekend: Love Them!

3. Redeemed Girls conference. Redeemed took place this past weekend and it was AWESOME. This event has been a long time coming, first being birthed during Christmas of 2007. God did some wonderful things this weekend in all the girls' lives. I looked back on my teenage years and remembered how events like this impacted my life and stayed with me as I grew up.

4. Tanzania Mission trip: August 2009. I am so excited about this trip. We will be partnering with Hope of the Nations in Kigoma Tanzania. However, there is so much to do before we can go, and so the next few months are lined up with fundraisers and much more. Please be praying for the team as we step out in faith believing this is what God wants for us.

5. And then there is standard everyday stuff: Youth group every wednesday, young adults, skate park outreach, staff meetings, prayer walks, finding a reliable car, home fellowship and pico (he needs attention too).

Wednesday nights:

It feels good to have done so much in this first portion of the year, I'm just so tired.

Laugh or Cry?

2009-03-13T22:59:00.000-07:00

A dear friend of ours, Nate Pollet, introduced us to this video. I don't know who produced it.. but whoever they are : they're brilliant. As hilarious as this video is, it certainly captures the ugly side of american youth ministry.If Jono and I ever become like this, please slap some sense into us!

Ignatius from travis hawkins on Vimeo.

English 1A, I'll miss you

2009-03-08T18:02:00.000-07:00

This semester I took the GE required English 1A class with Miss Suki Fisher. It is an 8 week class. This Tuesday will be our last class, and I am so sad that it's done! I never thought I would enjoy this class the most out of all the classes I'm taking.

We always had great conversations during class, breaching topics such as: serial killers, adultery, God, faith, moral code and the differences between men and women. I even met another South African in this class! The crazy thing is that we only figured out that we are both from SA 6 weeks into the class. He has managed to disguise his accent quite a bit, and he thought I was from Australia. Australia. Really?

I really enjoyed the way Miss Fisher taught, always up for interesting discussion. And, along the way I also learnt a lot about writing structure. That's always good I guess?

I think I'm going to take cupcakes to class on Tuesday.

Wazzup?

2009-03-07T14:05:00.000-08:00

Don't you just hate it when people greet you like this: "Whats up man?" Could a question be any more vague? I never know how to respond - do they expect me just to say hi, to tell them what I'm doing right at that moment or what's going on in my life and what my short- and long term goals are.

Whatever happened to a cordial "Hey, how're you doing?"

Great Video

2009-03-03T22:25:00.001-08:00

My sister introduced me to this gem of a video. I love it, and I'm blown away at the originality and story line. Well done to whoever you are!

Re-generations Nat King Cole

2009-03-02T22:58:00.000-08:00

A.ma.zing. album. Love it.

A tribute to PICO

2009-03-02T21:57:00.000-08:00

Frank first suggested that Pico be the catalyst for me to start a blog. I very well could have done that: Pico provides enough entertainment and stories to sustain a full time blog. We're coming up on his 1 yr birthday. unbelievable. I can't believe we've almost had him a year! He's been such a delight from the day we got him. What I love most about Pico is that he always has to be around us - every moment. If I leave the kitchen to go to the bedroom, he's on my heels, following me all the way.

It isn't all fun and games with Pico though. He has a fetish with flowers. I can't have fresh flowers in the house anymore, because he'll eat them. Now I have to resort to doing this:

Hiding the flowers in the bathroom closet.

As a strategy to get him not to scratch the furniture, we started giving him a treat every time he uses his scratching post. Now he does it all the time. He always does it when we first get home, and then very half heartedly about another 4 times, always looking over to see if we've noticed. I think he's on to us, taking advantage of "the system".

His latest trick is opening cupboards. Sometimes I come home, and all the kitchen and bathroom cupboards are open. It's quite funny watching him do it - I have yet to catch it on video.The other day I got home and the freezer door was open. the freezer. Now thats impressive!

We lost all his kitten pictures when our computer crashed a few months ago, but here are some of my more recent favorites:

We like to call this one: "Pico in a box"

ACE Eddie Awards

2009-02-17T23:49:00.000-08:00

One good thing about being enrolled in the Saddleback Film 1 class is the info on the all the awards ceremonies taking place this time of year. One that I am very excited about is the ACE Eddie Awards. This event features the editors of the Academy Award nominated films of this year. They will showcase some clips, and explain how they achieved the editing style. Jono and I will be attending this seminar on saturday. SO excited.

Jono and his finagling

2009-02-17T23:26:00.000-08:00

On our most recent visit to Las vegas, whilst making our way back to our hotel at 2am, Jono managed to get himself a free waterbed massage. I've never been too keen on these, since it seems like the most unrelaxing place to have a massage. Usually these machines are stationed in the middle of busy walkways in Malls, or, like this one, in a casino. So, I sat by as Jono enjoyed his freebie. What a finagler! Afterwards he said: "It was ok."

A List

2009-02-17T22:55:00.000-08:00

So, a few random things that have popped into my head that I'd like to do/ see happen in 2009:

1. Go snowboarding

2. Do the Voice Over class offered at Saddleback

3. Tell Charlie he's "outtaline"

4. See my High School girls make wise decisions, ones that count for God

5. Travel up the West Coast to Vancouver BC

6. Sit outside on our patio more

7. Buy a cat power album - have been enjoying her music very much of late

8. Cook at home more

9. Have more patience with Pico

10. Drink more water

11. Exercise more

12. Blog more

13. Worry less

14. Give more. One can always be challenged in your generosity

15. Be a videographer at a wedding

This list is ever expanding. Sometimes it helps writing things down in lists. I am most definitely a "list" person. Something about writing a list calms me down. For instance, on days when I have to go to Trader Joe's (which, btw, I heard confirmation this week that the building opposite Lowe's in Aliso Viejo IS a Trader Joe's!), Ralphs, Target, Henry's and Block Buster, I write a list, ordering the day . It makes the tasks so much more manageable.

Something on my list for this week is Wintercamp. Winter camp is next weekend. un.be.liev.a.ble. I love winter camp. And this year I am especially expectant of what God is going to do in the lives of those going. Right now we have such a large group going that we're struggling with transportation plans. Hopefully it all falls into place by next weekend - it always does.

Anyhoo... just thought I would share some of my lists with the blogosphere.

no time to write

2009-02-10T23:05:00.000-08:00

However, As I was quickly trying to catch up on all friends in the realm of "blogosphere", I came upon this:

HowManyOfMe.com

There are
1
or fewer people with my name in the U.S.A.

How many have your name?

And felt so compelled to tell everyone: THAT I AM THE ONLY SIMONE KNEPPER IN THE USA... that must count for something, right?

This Weekend

2009-01-24T16:43:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow we're going here:

To see them play.

.yay.

An ode to Olympia

2009-01-24T15:44:00.000-08:00

Since I'm having a hard time finding time to blog (due to school work), I've decided to incorporate the two. Here is an essay I'm due to hand in this week. It made me super nostalgic about Kalk Bay, hence me posting it. The assignment was a "descriptive essay", which is also why it's so long winded and what not. So, consider yourself warned!

"Olympia, a place like no other"

There’s always a line out the door. All different kinds of people: bohemian families with children that have knotty blonde hair and are wearing tie-dyed shirts, German tourists with their snake skin shoes, the old man with his weathered book and rowdy students chatting loudly with bursts of jovial laughter. A cool breeze whips around the corner, but nothing deters these high-spirited patrons from their routinely visit. The Oceanside smell mingles with whiffs of freshly brewed coffee and homemade baked bread, as the door swings open and shut. The muffled sound of conversations and china clinking grow clear as the door opens, inviting us inside. Olympia café is a landmark to Kalk Bay, and one of my favorite spots.

Kalk Bay is a colonial seaside suburb with cobblestone roads leading down to the cold Atlantic ocean. Turn of the century architecture dominates the homes and buildings upon the hills sweeping down towards the shore. Everyday, early in the morning, the harbor comes alive with colorful fishermen going about their daily work. Kalk Bay has become home to a wide range of people, from the cosmopolitan of the world to simpleminded laborers. Like a gem, Olympia Café lies nestled in the middle of this eclectic urban scene. The Café opened in 1998. Before that it was a simple South African style fish and chips store, selling a slim selection of cigarettes, chewing gum and potato chips, along with some archaic video game machines. Present owner of Olympia Café, Kenneth McClarty, saw potential in this little corner side venue and decided to open a deli. It quickly grew in popularity, and transitioned from a small bakery to what it is today, a bustling coffee shop and hot spot of the city.

Once inside, the next challenge is to find an open table. The loud and stifled atmosphere is almost overwhelming. A quirky server, dressed in tattered jeans, a stained white t-shirt and worn apron, approaches me: “Have you written your name on the board?” I glance up at the black board he’s gesturing to. “No, not yet,” I reply. “Well, go ahead,” he shouts as he rushes to the customer signaling him from the far right corner of the restaurant. No one seems to disturbed by his loud reply, as the reprise of laughter and general loudness drowns it. As I wait for my table, I take the time to enjoy the art that is Olympia Café. The black and white linoleum tiles on the floor are old and scratched. The paint on the walls is chipping in some places, but is masked by the artwork displayed. Every couple of weeks or so a different artist is showcased. This week it’s photographic art, featuring pictures from Kalk Bay itself. My eyes are drawn to a photo of a red weather-beaten fisherman’s boat moored at the harbor. The name on the boat reads “Good ‘ole Sally”. The rain clouds in the picture simulate the ones that hover over Kalk Bay today. “Simone!” The waiter’s voice pierces through my daydream. “Your table is ready.”

He seats me at the bar by the window, facing the street, railway track and harbor beyond. I order a cappuccino with extra foam – their’s is the best! The old man with his book is seated to my right. Now the hardest decision of the day faces me: what to order? Their menu isn’t that big, but everything on it is enticing. I decide to try something new. My steak salad arrives, the meat still sizzling from the pan. The aroma fills the air, and customers at other tables peer at my food inquisitively to see whether they should order the same. It’s not just any ordinary salad: the steak is perfectly cooked to a medium rare state, crusted with mustard seed and spices. It is then laid on a bed of delicious rocket, baby spring lettuces and fresh spring onions. Mixed in are halved cocktail tomatoes, cucumbers sliced into quarters and grilled button mushrooms. The salad is drizzled with sweet balsamic vinaigrette. I take my first bite – for this I have been waiting all day. It’s succulent and tasty, and I am very pleased with my decision to try something else for a change. The meal is over all to soon, and I am left with another cappuccino gazing out at the unique view. By now it is late in the afternoon, and the bohemian children are growing restless. The youngest bumps a coffee cup, and it tumbles to the ground and shatters as cold milky coffee splashes onto my white shoes. The server doesn’t seem to perturbed, and I realize that I should’ve dressed accordingly, especially when knowing that anything could happen at Olympia.

I feel relaxed here, without a care in the world. The loud chaos is strangely soothing and rejuvenating. They don’t seem to care how long you stay, and so I always stay a little while longer. Sunlight now pours through the big window at which I’m sitting. This makes me even lazier. Another train rushes by, the yellow and black lines flashing rhythmically as it passes. I take this as my queue to leave, even though I would love to stay, there are still many things I need to do today.

I reach the counter to pay my bill, but a clean exit isn’t possible at Olympia. The counter is stacked with delicious pastries, croissants and perfect ciabattas. I grab a couple of chocolate croissants and a loaf of bread and place them in the old-school brown paper bags provided. These will be tasty treats tomorrow! There is no place like Olympia Café. No other restaurant can compete with their rustic atmosphere, scrumptious menu and fascinating range of customers. It is the combination of all these factors that makes this café so special. As I leave the warm interior behind, I look forward to the next time I’ll be visiting my favorite place.

Busy

2009-01-20T08:38:00.000-08:00

This is exactly why I was apprehensive of starting a blog: That I would start a one, and not be able to keep up with it. I hope that this post will bring some clarity on why I haven't written in a while.

A couple of months ago I was sitting down with some of my mentors, and the classic question came up:"So... when will kids be in the picture?" I realized right then that one of the main reasons why I would like to wait another 4 years is because I would like to have a better tertiary education. The ladies all encouraged me to simply go for it.

And so, that is what I've done. In America you have to complete what is called your "general education" after High School. Once you've done this, you can transfer to a university and complete your degree. It takes approximately 2 years, and requires you to take classes like math, English composition, one from sciences, one from the arts etc. It's a little frustrating, because most of this work is included in the last 2 years of high school in South Africa. However, I have accepted that this is what I need to do, and so I'm just going to put my shoulder to the wheel and DO IT!

I started this past week with classes at Saddleback Valley Community College. I'm taking Maths ("Math" as the locals say it), English 1a, History of Film, Film Production. The maths class I'm taking is an online one. I'm very chuffed with myself, as I've already completed two of the online tests. This isn't such a great feat, since I'm taking beginning algebra! I first learnt algebra 10 years ago, and so I'm a little rusty! Anyways, I passed the tests. woohoo.

My History of Film class is quite fascinating, and we get to watch movies every week: How fun!

My English class is standard.

My Film Production class. This one should be interesting. We're expected to complete 7 short films by the end of the semester. I've been placed in a "production company" with Joel, Jan, John and Pia. The professor, Charlie Myers, is outrageous. He's blunt, crude, short tempered, insulting and entertaining. He would probably describe himself the same way - thats what's funny.

It feels good to be back in a classroom setting, having your thinking be challenged. However, Jono & I are extremely busy with events such as Wintercamp, Redeemed Girls Conference, Summercamp and a Mission trip to Tanzania coming up. Hopefully I can manage all these things well.

I am sorry if I disappear from the blogosphere at times. Bare with me.

Word Verification Thingy-ma-gingy's

2009-01-09T11:58:00.000-08:00

Today I had the coolest one yet : "PROODIT" - how do they come up with these?

If you're going to San Francisco

2009-01-03T08:59:00.000-08:00

... be sure to wear some flowers in your hair."

This week we had the opportunity to go to San Francisco. Dear friends of ours, Jeremiah & Laura Lee, graciously offered their place in the Marina district for us to stay in, as they were visiting with family down in Southern California.

We had a great time exploring the city, hopping on and off the cable cars, eating clam chowder in a bread bowl by the wharf, and welcoming in the new year with a good friend and fireworks.

I absolutely loved the victorian architecture of most of the houses there - it adds such character to the city, as well as all the hills. We were also able to go on a little cruise of the Bay, including sailing around "The Rock" - man alive, I am just so fascinated with this prison! We felt so inspired, that we rented "Escape from Alcatraz" featuring Clint Eastwood that night - an oldie, but a goody.

I enjoyed pondering about the recent history of this city, with great structures like the Golden Gate bridge and Alcatraz, and also the revolution which took place in the 60's as thousands of hippies flocked there.

It definitely is a most fascinating city, but I have no desire to live there - unlike Chicago. San Francisco seems to have a dark, almost melancholy atmosphere. Kind've like the tone of the song "San Francisco" - quoted above.

In closing of 2008, I am so thankful for God's amazing provision to Jono and I throughout the year. I'm thankful that He provided us with so many opportunities to travel:

We were able to visit Sonora, Jono's home town in Northern california,

*Yosemite

*I was able to attend a friend's wedding in South Africa

*Denver and the Rockies

*Las Vegas

*Chicago

*Kurt & Ami in Iowa

* The Grand Canyon - even though it was shrouded in rain and fog :)

* Santa Barbara

* and now, San Francisco too.

I have always had a strong desire to travel, and looking back over the year I am astounded at how much of the USA we saw.

"Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart" - Psalm 37:4

Here is a little slideshow with some pics from our trip: