OH HAI THURRRR

Not like you noticed, but it's been almost three weeks since my last post. I had to turn in my beloved Sony Vaio over to Best Buy's Geek Squad for a tune-up. New battery, AC adapter, CPU fan . . . this baby's back in action. See 0:55 - 1:40 for a visual metaphor. Simba = laptop, Rafiki = me.

Anyway.

Highlights from the past little while:

• Greek Festival! Or as I like to call it, the Eat Festival . . . because that's pretty much all you do there. Unless you're five years old, in which case they have a giant inflatable sinking Titanic ship to slide down on. TOO SOON, GREEK FESTIVAL. The food was freaking delicious though. We tried a little bit of everything: Dolmathes, keftedes, spanakopitka, loukoumades, tyropita, melomakarona, kourambiedes, galotopita, and the best grilled chicken I have ever tasted. Check out pictures and recipes here!

• Shot the tube with friends! (For non-Utahns: See here.) Brock bought an old Samsonite suitcase at DI for $5, took it apart at the hinges and BOOM. We had two water sleds. I never would've thought of that myself, but I've got to give him credit. It was genius.

• Explored the Timpanogos Caves! It's a pretty gnarly hike up and down, but well worth it. Inside, we got to experience total  darkness for the first time, which was very cool. The kind that your eyes will not  adjust to no matter how hard you try. On our way back down, a little girl on the trail (probably three or four years old) grabbed Brock's hand thinking he was her dad. They walked together for probably five steps or so when Brock says "Um, I'm not your daddy. But you can still hold my hand!" She looked up at him and burst into surprised/scared/embarrased tears--poor thing! She started laughing as soon as she was in the arms of her real  daddy, though. Too cute!

• Watched my cousin Peter perform stand-up comedy at Wiseguys! He killed, as usual. Check out the group he performs stand-up with here. They are all so talented. As a woman has has tried--and bitterly failed at--stand-up before, I am acutely aware of how hard it actually is! Peter and his friends make it look effortless.

• Drove the Alpine Loop! Autumn reds, oranges, yellows, and pinks were on full display--I caught my breath more than once.

• Labor Day! We spent time with family up at Brock's grandparents' cabin (my favorite place in Utah) and wiled away the day in Park City going on hikes, visiting an art gallery, and stopping by Olympic Park.

• The Holy War. This was more of a lowlight rather than a highlight, but still. Do the final eight seconds of a football game get any crazier than this?!