4th of July 2012

A recap of how I spent the 4th. Click the link to read more.


Usually, I spend vacation days being a couch potato and/or drawing or crocheting. This Sunday, though, was my cousin's wedding, which was a very special occasion by itself, but also brought my parents to PA, which was nice. I didn't get so much time to catch up with them (or my cousin's family) because so much was going on, but I think everyone had fun. Dancing at my cousin's wedding reception was probably the highlight of vacation. Weddings are lovely, and obviously mark a big step in someone's life, but the reception is when you really get to celebrate. And one of my favorite things about wedding receptions, in addition to the broader mix of dance music than you get at a bar/club, is watching middle-aged and elderly people dance. My parents danced for about 30 seconds at my brother's wedding, and my uncle (the newlywed cousin's dad) is not into dancing, so I always think it's super cute to see people over 40 dancing.

I had today off for the 4th of July as well, which was perfect. After my first 2 days of Med Surg, I wanted a little time to refresh before my first day of clinical. One of SIL's friends was in town with her husband and toddler, so we all went to the Adventure Aquarium in New Jersey. Compared to my frame of reference, The New England Aquarium, there were a lot more interactive exhibits and there was a more diverse selection of habitats/species. AA had two hippos, for example, and several touch tanks with small (1-2 feet long) sharks and rays. I got to help feed the rays and managed to get a little "love bite" (I think the rays were super excited/impatient about being fed) but it was still fun. Having grown up with cats, I have a high tolerance of little scratches/nicks from animal teeth and claws, and touching the rays outweighed the minor irritation of being bitten.

At home, we had burgers and hot dogs, which was a big deal since SIL is vegetarian. I had about 3 hot dogs, along with a ton of chips and guac, watermelon, and salad. It was awesome. Sometimes I think it's good I only eat kosher-certified meat, because otherwise I would probably eat hot dogs, burgers, and fried chicken too often for my own good.

We also watched The Lion King, since the baby was still up after dinner. The baby sat still for a long portion of the movie, but the other adults in the room were fixed on the screen. I was surprised, since most adults don't share my enthusiasm for Disney movies. I was extremely pleased with the DVD restoration, aside from a few visual edits (adding the CGI Disney castle and changing the crocs' eyes in "Can't Wait to Be King"). The colors and linework were exceptionally vivid, even compared to previous Disney DVD restorations, and the sound remixing was fantastic. Part of it was obviously the difference between watching it on a 1995 VHS tape (and rewatching, and rewatching, until the tape started to wear down), but the resolution and color restoration seemed crisper than that for other 1990s films such as Aladdin or Pocahontas. I will stop here, because I should start switching my brain from Disney Movie Trivia (at which it is apparently still very sharp) Mode to Nursing Mode. And more importantly, I should start sleeping because I have to wake up in 8 hours.