Guess Who Got a Ticket?

Someone in the family received a PARKING violation this week!


Can you guess who????


See below!

Do you have a guess yet?????

????????????????

????????????????

????????????????


It wasn't Doug ...he's in Moscow

It wasn't Dee ....Her last ticket was for speeding in August 1986.

It wasn't Karl...he got a speeding ticket a few months back...so he's being extra cautious now! Aren't you Karl?!?! He called yesterday and states he just finished the online course for defensive driving to get it taken off his record.

It wasn't Jackie. She's got one accident on her driving record (when she was in high school) and she's had plenty of talks about her speedy driving.

Ding! Ding! Ding!
It was Jill!!!!!!!

She called me the other day to vent on this violation. She had already been to UPD (University Police Department) to dispute the $30.00 violation. She states the ticket said she was not authorized to park in the BLUE lot. She was not in a BLUE parking lot on campus, she states she was parked on the street, adjacent to the BLUE parking lot. She talked to several people at UPD and states the signs do not address the street parking only the lot parking. The UPD personnel kept her ticket and took her phone number and states they will call her back after speaking with the ticketing officer. To date she has not yet recieved a phone call and since they have her ticket, she won't be paying the ticket. Way to go Jill!

TWO WEEKS

ALOHA! It is only two short weeks until we leave for Maui!

Currently we are scheduled for a Whale Watch tour through the Pacific Whale Foundation. Pacific Whale Foundation offers the most thrilling way to view Hawaii's humpback whales. The ecotours are based on 28 years of whale research in the Pacific. We will travel on high-tech catamarans, with expert marine naturalists. We will also get to listen to whale songs on hydrophones. Whale sightings are guaranteed or you go again FREE! The whales enjoy the warm water between the islands of Lanai, Molokai and Mau. February is supposed to be the month where the most whales are spotted. http://www.pacificwhale.org/

After the whale watch tour, we will drive to the Maui Ocean Center. Throughout the marine park, interactive displays, outdoor touch pools and unique exhibits such as the acrylic tunnel through a 750,000-gallon, Open Ocean Exhibit teeming with over 2,000 fishes; encourage visitors to experience Hawai‘i’s marine life up-close. These personal encounters with nature are designed to help visitors develop an understanding and appreciation of the unique nature of Hawai‘i’s marine environment in an enjoyable and safe setting.

Saturday, Feb 9th is the annual Run for the Whales and coincides with the Chinese New Year. The city where we are staying, Lahaina will welcome the lunar New Year. This city has a large celebraion and the street near our hotel will be closed to vehicle traffic for a street festival that begins with a Chinese martial arts demonstration, followed by lion performances with traditional drums, gongs and cymbals, and firecrackers. The festival with have ethnic foods, a tea house, children's arts & crafts, Japanese calligraphy drawing, and more. Free admission Friday and Saturday.

Friday nights are also Lahaina's "Art Night". Fridays many of the 40 or so art galleries open their doors and invite visitors to come in and watch demonstrations, talk to local artists, nibble snacks and enjoy free entertainment. Marine art is a big business in Maui, where whales and dolphins rule the canvas. Maui is also home to Wyland, an artist whose massive marine murals can be found on the outside of buildings in many large cities.

Friday Evening, we will also attend the Lahaina Old Luau. This luau has the reputation for providing one of the islands' most authentic Hawaiin feasts. The site is located on the beach front. Seating is limited, first come, first served. We scheduled out luau back in June so hope to have great seats. This date has been sold out for several months now.

Sunday we will take the Temptation Tours: Road to Hana and Sky Trek Tour. This is an air/land combo tour. We will leave the heliport and view the dramatic waterfalls, pristine rainforest, inspiring cliffs and then soar above the Mt Haleakala crater. We will then enjoy a picnic lunch of Tamari and Ginger Chicken and Baked Mahi Mahi lunch, elegantly served at one of Hana’s black sand beaches. After a lunch we will explore the twisting road to Hana aboard a 6 passenger luxury van. This road is something of an endurance test (54 miles, 600+ curves and 54 small bridges) to negotiate. During the chauffered ride, we will see a quaint Hawaiian Village at Keanae peninsula, and watch ocean waves crash against JAGGED LAVA ROCKS, take a splash in the ocean at a black sand beach, or a dip in a freshwater pool at a cascading waterfall, and stroll through enchanting Kakala Gardens and enjoy the aromatic tropical flowers. At the end of the trip we will receive a FREE Hana & Beyond land-tour video....that way you all can experience the same trip.

I got a new camera for Christmas and I can't wait to use it to capture all the awe-inspiring sites we will see.

Aloha!

Tea from Vivian

This past week, I received a gift in the mail from a friend and co-worker of mine - Vivian Tucay. She resides in Columbus, Ohio and we talk frequently and feel like we are a part of each other's family.

I got the opportunity to meet Vivian when we were both attending a work sponsored event in Minneapolis, this past October. She had noted that I was drinking tea every meal (iced tea or hot tea). She told me I had to try this tea that she gets in Toronto,Canada.

The tea is called Eight-Treasures Spirit Tea. This delightful beverage is a special blend of eight ingredients. Eight Treasures Tea is a great thrist quencher and it has medicinal properties that help to decrease body heat, promote digestion, induce appetite and relieve fatigue. This herbal tea is sold in packs of 10, with each pack weighing between 10 to 12 grams. Each packet contains whole herbs, flowers, berries, dates, currants and others that make a very healthy cup of tea. Add boiled water and steep for three minutes. In China, it is consumed not only for health, but also for beauty and to assist with meditation and spiritual development.
And the best part.....it tastes wonderful!!!!!!!!!

Thanks Vivian!

Church Photo

Trinity Presbyterian Church in The Colony is creating a photo directory of it's church members.

http://www.trinitypresbyterian.us/

This is our photo that was taken Sunday, December 30th, 2007

Food Poisoning

I received a call from Jackie last night. She and Jonathan had been to Johnny Carino's Italian Grill & Restaurant to eat earlier in the evening and she was not feeling well. She had an upset stomach and vomiting. I offered her some symptomatic relief and then she proceeded to drive the 40 minutes back to Huntsville.

I talked to her this morning and she is doing fine. No additional nausea or vomiting.

FYI....Food poisoning is a general term for health problems arising from eating contaminated food. Food may be contaminated by bacteria, viruses, environmental toxins, or toxins present within the food itself, such as the poisons in some mushrooms or certain seafood. Symptoms of food poisoning usually involve nausea, vomiting and/or diarrhea.

Food poisoning is a common, usually mild, but can sometimes be a deadly illness. Typical symptoms include nausea, vomiting, abdominal cramping, and diarrhea that come on suddenly (within 48 hours) of consuming a contaminated food or drink. Depending on the contaminant, fever and chills, bloody stools, dehydration, and nervous system damage may follow. These symptoms may affect one person or a group of people who ate the same thing (this would be called an outbreak).

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that in the United States alone, food poisoning causes about 76 million illnesses, 325,000 hospitalizations, and up to 5,000 deaths each year. One of the most common bacterial forms of infection, the salmonellae organisms, account for one billion dollars in medical costs and lost work time.

Weekend with Karl

Karl came home this weekend and spent some quality time with his mom.

He arrived Friday afternoon and we visited for a few hours before heading off to Terilli's Italian Restaraunt in Frisco http://www.terillis.com/ Karl enjoyed the Seafood Lasagna and I had the Chilean Sea Bass. It was the first time, either of us had been to that restaurant and it was fabulous!!!

After dinner, we headed to Stonebriar Mall - AMC Theater and saw the movie "I am Legend". This is a science fiction/adventure movie about a brilliant scientist,Robert Neville played by Will Smith, but even he could not contain the terrible virus that was unstoppable, incurable...and manmade. Somehow immune, Neville is now the last human survivor in what is left of New York City...and maybe the world. But he is not alone. He is surrounded by "the Infected"--victims of the plague who have mutated into carnivorous beings who can only exist in the dark and who will devour or infect anyone or anything in their path. For three years, Neville has spent his days scavenging for food and supplies and faithfully sending out radio messages, desperate to find any other survivors who might be out there. All the while, the Infected lurk in the shadows, watching Neville's every move, waiting for him to make a fatal mistake. Perhaps mankind's last, best hope, Neville is driven by only one remaining mission: to find a way to reverse the effects of the virus using his own immune blood.

Saturday afternoon: We mailed a package to Maykayla and then headed out for lunch in Lewisville; after that we went to Costco and purchased the television series: LOST Season 1 and the television series: 24 Season 1. I started watching LOST late during Season 1 and did not know some of the history of it's characters. It was a marathon of LOST all afternoon and evening, with Karl as my LOST guide. Karl also aquainted me to the online encyclopedia for LOST http://www.lostpedia.com/wiki/Main_Page I will use this online site as I have questions that arise during this next season.

Thanks Karl for keeping me company this weekend!

Cowboys Lost

The Cowboys season comes to a crashing end in the playoffs....and therefore the football season as I know it.... is done.

The Dallas Cowboys lost to the New York Giants 21-17.











I have enjoyed rooting my favorite team and player (#81 Terrell Owens)...most of the time to spite Doug and his favorite player (#82 Jason Witten)

The pictures will show my early jubilation when we were ahead ....but would be soon followed my pictures showing the agony of defeat!

But to boost my spirits I received a message on my answering machine from my niece Makayla in which she is touting her favorite team by saying over and over again "Go Packers!" followed by the cutest giggle. I am saving the message on my phone and I listen to it a few times a day just to lift my spirits. Thanks Makayla!

















There's always next year!!!!!!!!!!

Singing Stars

Doug and Jackie are shown here singing along to the PlayStation 2 "SING STAR".

Some of the songs they sang as a duet were:
Lynyrd Skynrd - Sweet Home Alabama
Thin Lizzy - The Boys Are Back In Town
The Police - Every Breath You Take
Marvin Gaye - I Heard It Through The Grapevine
Elton John - Rocket Man
Dusty Springfield - Son Of A Preacher Man
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Here is the info about SING STAR.

It's time to live the dream of being a rock star!

Whether you've got perfect pitch or your singing skills are reserved for the shower only, everyone enjoys singing. But now there's no excuse for keeping that voice to yourself; step up to the mic, and into the spotlight!

Playing SING STAR is so easy anyone can join in. You can sing along to some of your favorite tracks and score points as you perform - it doesn't matter how well you sing; when you that microphone, YOU are the star, and that's all that counts.

Congratulations Josh

Hello Everyone!

I just got an email from Jill. She wanted to let you all know Josh called her this morning and let her know she is dating an official Licensed Athletic Trainer!

It is a huge accomplishment, the test was very difficult!

Kudos to Josh!

If you would like to send him a congratulatory e-mail, his address is: joshuaelliott@shsu.edu

CONGRATULATIONS JOSH! Good Luck at Texas Chiropractic College!

Doug the Rockstar

Doug is shown here playing Jackie's Christmas gift - Playstation2 "Guitar Hero3"

He's not quite at the level of Jackie. He is playing at the easy level and has got up to 44 notes in a row right. Jackie on the other hand has 237 notes in a row correct.

Now that he doesn't have the Nintendo Wii here to advance as a professional bowler he will be using his time to improve his use of the strings.

Rock On Doug!

Xmas Photos

This is the Kuklenz Family photo in our favorite Sam Houston State University shirt.

There were many other photos taken over the course of our Christmas weekend. Please click on the link below to view the photos.

You do not need to sign in to view these photos. Enjoy!





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