Kalahari Oasis

On this weekend that represents the birth of the greatest country in the world, we took the family to The Kalahari Waterpark in the Wisconsin Dells. We owe special thanks for this trip to my brother Paul and sister-in-law Allison...they gave us a vacation that was truly enjoyable.

We arrived Thursday, July 3rd about midday and were able to check in right away. the kids and I meandered around the lobby while Stacie checked us in...and Graeme dug for gold in this Gorilla's nose.
After a quick stop in the room to change, we were off to the waterpark. Other than an evening visit to Pirates Cove golf and the Tommy Bartlett Show (ouch), the waterpark is where we would spend the next three days of fun filled excitement!

Fun pics:
This is me and Gabe rocking out to a few poolside tunes (ya dig the Indiana Jones hat...it's Gabe's)
...and even managed to catch some fireworks too while sitting in the back of our minivan.

Thanks Pablo and Allison, your generosity is too much for words!!!!

Half-Million Dollar Views

Thought this was an interesting photo of the Riverwalk in Grafton, where about 2 years ago they built $500,000 condo's with walkout access to the riverwalk. Ouch, check out more photo's from this storm at JSOnline

Waterpark Capital of the World - Drained

Well not exactly are the water parks empty, but a major tourist destination in the Dells is. Lake Delton, home to the Tommy Bartlett Thrill Show, has overflowed taking with it peoples homes and dreams of a peaceful summer on the lake.

It is truly sad yet awesome to see the power mother nature once again shows us she has. No matter how many damns, levy's, or protective barriers we put in place, she reminds us that nothing can stand in her way. We pray for the people in these situations and are glad to know it is only material things that were lost in this disaster.

On a personal note, my in-laws who live on the Milwaukee River are experiencing a record high and thank god to this point haven't lost much more than a couple hours of sleep. It is times like this that I think of what Noah had to face on his ark, and we are only seeing about 1/1,000,000,000 (maybe more) of what he saw.

Meteorologist Flop

Perhaps you may have heard that a deadly cyclone hit Myanmar killing an estimated 15,000 people thus far, and the death toll continues to climb. What you maybe have not heard was the serious miscalculation on the part of their local meteorologists and the government. These quotes come from the World News on MSNBC;

-----"The government misled people. They could have warned us about the severity of the coming cyclone so we could be better prepared," said Thin Thin, a grocery store owner.

-----"Before the cyclone hit, the government had only put out “storm news,” saying the cyclone would travel at about 30 miles an hour, whereas it struck with winds of almost four times that speed"

In an area that has seen many of these natural diasters (tsunami's, tidal waves, cyclones/hurricanes) strike over the past few years no mild storm should every be assumed.

Water

As I drove to my office today, which although located on the shores of Lake Michigan offers no view of the water, I pondered the attraction for water. Why do we want ocean views or lake property, what does it offer us that land doesn't it? Sure, its beautiful, just look at the pictures of any of your vacations but I think it's deeper. See if you can follow along with my theory on this (its pretty deep).

Before we are even born we are surrounded by water, ok amniotic fluid, but essentially its water. In our mothers stomachs despite the kicks and jabs we give her we are pretty peaceful and really have little to worry about.

So why water gives us this overwhelming sense of peace and tranquility has to do with the feelings we experienced as an embryo. Do you see the correlation I am making? If you do you then also see why an embryo is a child...yes (had to plug the pro life stance)!

Another strong and obvious reason we may strive for water is the life line it provides. Your body is comprised of mostly water, making up between 45 and 75% of body weight. So the theory that we are attracted to water as a means to fulfill what the body may be innately wanting is also not so far fetched.

Whatever the reason I am not sure but the amazing attributes it provides to me controls many of my emotions. For example, look at still bath water in a tub and tell me how it makes you feel? Now splash or have someone constantly splash the bath water...now how do you feel? Not the same, right...pretty wild. That is the physical presence of any water, now add color to the water and you add a whole new dimension to water. Why does the blue/green ocean in Guam where Joe and Brenda live conjure up thoughts of peace, tranquility, and stability. Perhaps because it is not the norm and away from our day to day routine (yet another theory in itself), but it actually has more to do with the psychology of colors instead. Can you tell I need a vacation to somewhere warm with water?

Picture of pathway entering Ritidian Beach (Guam) - courtesy of JosePH and Brenda