A Fun and Relaxing Party

Over the weekend, my sister and bother-in-law celebrated their 23rd year marriage anniversary by having a party. They've been married for quite some time and their relationship is still going strong, I'm happy to tell. They invited me and most of our friends to the grill out/bonfire party and some were able to come while some were unable to attend.

In any case, we had a fun, relaxing time. No one got too drunk and fell in the fire this time. In fact, no one got hurt at all. Must be a record. lol.

Below, you'll find a 60 year old bicycle that my brother-in-law received as a gift. It was made by Bridgestone, of the Bridgestone Tire Company, which is owned by Japan. They only made so many of these bikes in limited edition and it was state of the art during the time.

Whitney the dog having some fun attacking the turkey and being attacked by the turkey. Don't worry. No animals were harmed and there wasn't any betting going on.

Here's a video of the dog and turkey playing around with each other. Turn up the volume to hear our "witty" banter during the animal grudge match.

Here are some baby chicks at my sister's farm. I thought this was a neat shot.

The sun sets, creating a sky of pink and blue hues, rippled in layers of clouds beyond the many trees. It's a tranquil setting. A place where you can breathe in the fresh country air and feel at peace.

The Trip To Red River Gorge (part two)

Continuing from the previous post.... After my wife, friend and I easily walked the quarter mile trail to Sky Bridge, we were greeted with some amazing scenery. You had to be cautious while walking on the natural rock bridge or you could fall and quite possibly die. No railing around. As long as you're careful, you can really enjoy the sights.

Iron ore can be found embedded inside the bridge. Click the pic to enlarge. And yes, that's my shadow. :)

(As for that dude up above, to the left) I'm not sure I'd want to stand where he's standing. And check out the graffiti that's been carved into the rock, below. It's everywhere- even on the edges of the bridge.

Yep, this is the Mrs. and I.

This is a really good map of Red River Gorge and all the trails scattered and connected within the area.

Now, in the following shot, we're on the way to the Nada Tunnel. The Nada Tunnel is a 12' by 12' tunnel, open to only one lane of traffic. Nada Tunnel and the community of Nada were named for the Dana Lumber Company. In the early 1900s, a logging company built the tunnel so they could haul logs out of the Red River Gorge by railroad.

The Nada Tunnel. We had to wait quite a long time to get to the point where we could go through it, but once we did, it was cool. We were surrounded by bronze colored rock as we drove through it and it was pretty neat. Every sound was amplified.

This is the Hemlock Lodge. We ate supper here before making the trip back home. The pic after this, shows what's behind and down below the lodge/restaurant. Standing over the lodge's long balcony, you'll find a golf course, a small track, a lake and a place for dancing and celebrating.

Dolphinaris Cozumel

These are the fantastic shots taken of the dolphins and my wife and I while we were at Dolphinaris in Cozumel, Mexico. My wife and I had always wanted to get the chance of a lifetime by swimming and interacting with dolphins and we got it during one of our cruise excursions this past summer.

Dolphinaris was a great place to go for interacting with bottle nosed dolphins. Everyone took turns going in groups of eight. Each group had their own instructor. Our instructor's name was Thomas and he explained several facts about dolphins. For example:

Dolphins can live up to 35 years in captivity. They usually live only 7 or 8 years in their natural ocean habitat. This is due to their natural enemies... sharks, whales and humans.

The dolphins we played around and interacted with the most were named Bina and Seymour. Bina was a 3 year old female. Seymour was 15 years old.

This is a description of Dolphinaris from their website:

Dolphinaris Cozumel is a place like no other in Cozumel or in the Caribbean, nestled upon the shores of a glittering turquoise sea, it offers an unforgettable experience where guests can swim and interact with dolphins in their natural habitat, the beautiful ocean coves provide a safe place for you and for our dolphins to enjoy a truly unforgettable experience.

The instructor let us feed, swim and touch the dolphins. We were even allowed, surprisingly, to touch a dolphin's teeth and tongue. It was amazing. They were so gentle and loving, you could do almost anything with them. Thomas even taught us the hand signals that would let the dolphins know we wanted them to perform a trick or movement for us.

We were in the ocean water with the dolphins for about an hour. And in that hour we experienced many wonderful moments with these endearing marine mammals. They would come right up to us, sometimes rubbing against us, obviously enjoying human contact and interaction.

This is me, riding a dolphin. It took me from one end of a cove to another. Pretty cool, huh?

It truly was the experience of a lifetime. How many people can say they've swam with dolphins?