Two years ago today, I married the love of my life.
Together, we have traveled a few places, but the list of places to see and things to do in our future is quite long. I’m excited about our life in the years to come and growing together as husband and wife.
Our first date December 2007:
Atlanta Falcons vs. New Orleans Saints
Josh makes me feel complete, he makes me happy. When I’m cranky, he tries his hardest to make me laugh (even if it makes me more cranky in the end). He’s more spontaneous, while I like to plan. He’s more fun loving, while I tend to always be serious. We complement each other and I’m thankful that he entered my life.
I love him and he loves me. We are a pair, we are partners.
And today I’m celebrating the day that we committed to each other to spend our lives together, for better or for worse, in sickness and in health, ’til death do us part.
Josh and I on our wedding day:
April 18, 2009
I love you Josh and I look forward to the life we’ll continue to build together in the years to come.
[#8 of #52]
For a majority of my life, I always dreamed of hearing my name called along side, “Amy….come on down!! You’re the next contestant on The Price is Right!” Every summer as a child, or every sick day home from school, you could place money on the fact that when 11:00 am rolled around, I was in front of the TV watching Bob Barker and his Beauties feature random home products. I wanted to be there, in the crowd – they looked so happy! I wanted to be on stage under the lights – listening to the crowd yell “Higher!!”, “Lower!!” or random prices from their seats. I wanted to kiss Bob Barker on the cheek – well, cause that’s what every woman did! I wanted to play the most prized game on the entire show – Plinko! Yes sir, it was my dream to be on The Price is Right.
Years passed and I grew up still loving TPIR. In high school, Happy Gilmore came out, which made Bob Barker very funny and kind of cool as he punched out Adam Sandler’s character in a golf course brawl. I graduated from college and started working, so my daytime game show habit dwindled. Bob Barker was getting older and it was clear that he would be retiring soon. It wasn’t until December of 2006 that the spark rekindled. I won employee of the year, and with that came an all-expenses paid trip to anywhere in the continental United States for me and anyone of my choosing. Woo hoo!
I instantly thought of my mom and The Price is Right – I was going to use this trip to go to Los Angeles and see Bob Barker before he retired! That following March, my mom and I flew out to Los Angeles to cross this item off my life list.
Arriving at LAX - Happy to be in Los Angeles!
We had written for tickets and received them for the Tuesday taping. Gates opened at 6 am, and the first folks in line up to a certain number were admitted. I was *so* incredibly excited! We pulled up via taxi around 5:30 am and the line was insanely long – there was no way we were going to make it in, but we got in line to try anyway. The line started moving and we were approximately 50-60 people away from the entrance when they notified everyone that they were out of passes for the taping. I was crushed – this was the sole reason I opted to come out to Los Angeles! I spoke to the CBS affiliate and she said sometimes they have extra seats available for those without tickets – she couldn’t guarantee that we’d be able to make it in the next morning without one, but it was worth a shot.
I informed my mother that we would be returning that evening/even earlier the next morning to attempt getting into the audience. She thought I was crazy until she saw the tears forming. Since she didn’t want to come with me, I was going to take a taxi and get in line early, I didn’t care what she said. The thought of her only daughter sitting out on the streets overnight didn’t set well with her – so she agreed to drive by the location that night before making a decision. It was 8 pm and people were already in line. I was determined to be there before midnight, so we went to Target, bought blankets, a few snacks, and went back to Fairfax Avenue to get into the line around 10:30 pm. There were already 40 people in line! (There are no pictures from this time period – as I was not wearing any make-up!)
Taken during our first attempt to make it to The Price is Right
When you sit in line for long periods of time, you tend to make friends with the people around you. We met two nice ladies from Michigan who were there on vacation. We learned that the bagel shop across the street rented plastic chairs for $3 each – so I went across the street and picked up two for us to sit in. It was going to be a long night and the sidewalk was not comfortable. It was approximately 40 degrees outside with 15 mph wind. I was freezing trying to sleep bundled up in my chair – it wasn’t happening. Thankfully, my mom had parked the car across the street from where we camped out, so we alternated getting inside and turning it on to enjoy the heated seats and warm air blowing from the vents. Clearly I would not make it out on the streets for very long if I were forced into that situation. At this point, we still didn’t have tickets to get in the next day – and my mom is cursing me under her breath stating that we BETTER get to see a taping in the morning and about how we were wasting perfectly good beds in our hotel room.
Around 3:30 am, the bagel shop across the street opened up. Thank goodness! They sold hot chocolate, coffee, breakfast foods, juices, and most importantly, they were the only place open with a restroom! You couldn’t just use the restroom though, you had to have a receipt proving you’d purchased something from the shop. That wasn’t a problem though, because we were hungry and I wanted something warm as I was still freezing! While standing in line to use the ladies room, I struck up a conversation with a lady who happened to be about 8 people in front of us in the line outside for the show. She told me she was in town for a national college auditors convention (random?) and then asked me about what brought me out to California. I told her how I’d won employee of the year and my life list goal of being a contestant on (or being at a live taping of) The Price is Right – and that we didn’t have tickets (explained what happened earlier in the day) and stated that we were hoping we’d be able to get in anyway. We parted ways and I went back to my spot in line.
Around 5:50 am, minutes from the gate opening, some guy from the college auditors group walks up to me and says, “I heard you needed two tickets. We have a few people that aren’t coming anymore, so you can have theirs. Congrats on being employee of the year.” I jumped up and down and thanked the guy over and over again! Our night on the street wasn’t in vain! And while we’d been awake all night, the day was just beginning as we got closer to the gate, and closer to fulfilling one of my life long goals.
To be continued…[Read Part 2]
[#7 of #52]
I appreciate good customer service.
Having worked directly with customers of various types since I was 15, I have high standards for how others should treat me as a customer. Be friendly, be polite, be respectful, be helpful, be truthful. It’s really pretty simple.
That being said, I like to recognize when I feel someone does a great job. Often times people complain, but never give praise. I know I complain here and there, so here’s my praise!
This Wednesday evening I decided I needed to go ahead and buy our plane tickets to Australia. I called two months ago for an inquiry, and the guy told me it was far too early to buy our tickets. I wasn’t quite sure I agreed, so I wrote the quote down, and didn’t make the booking. It’s nagged at me since.
As gas prices have started to rise, I kept looking online at the prices slightly increasing – I didn’t want to wait. So I sat down and I called VAustralia’s Guest Contact Centre to make our multi-city booking, since you can’t book them online. A young lady picked up on the other end, got my travel dates and details, and then put me on hold while she started looking at my options.
Minutes later, she returned and asked me if my travel dates were flexible. I got nervous, really nervous. Why didn’t I follow my instinct to book in February when I originally called?! Panic set in. I told her they weren’t (I’ve been planning on these dates for over a year now!) and asked why she asked such a question. “Well, you see, many of the cheaper flights for these dates have sold out and it’s significantly more expensive due to the time of year it is.” Knowing we’ll be there during peak season, I already had a number in mind for what our flights would cost, not cheap by any means, and asked her what the lowest available rate was. Her response, “The cheapest we have available is $3701 per person.” I quickly did the math, “That’s $7402 total.” *Gulp* That’s also much more than we anticipated paying, and much more than what was appearing online.
She takes a minute to listen to what I found online, and put me on hold to see what she can tweak in their system to help me make my booking. While she was looking at rates on her end, I started at looking at domestic flights on VirginBlue.com.au (I really just love saying that outloud – it rhymes!) I found a one-way flight from SYD to ADL, at a reasonable price. When the booking agent returned, she stated that she wasn’t able to access the same rates that were available online. She recommended that I make my bookings online, rather than through the call centre since they were lower. It was in that moment that I decided to book tickets from home to SYD through their website, and then book a domestic flight separately via another transaction. In doing so, it would save us $700 from the quoted price. $700! It was a no brainer.
I ran my plan by her, and she agreed that it was definitely the best route for me to take and wished she could have helped me further. She answered a few more questions that I had regarding customs on our return flight and thanked me for using VAustralia.
While we weren’t able to use the booking agent for our purchase, she was extremely helpful, polite, and eager to help me out. I really appreciate her assistance and assurance that we would be better off booking online. Honesty and customer service at its finest.
I immediately (and excitedly) booked our round-trip tickets to Sydney, and we are now set for our departure! I was bouncing up and down on the sofa with joy. It’s official, we are going to Australia in December!!!
Things I learned from the booking experience:
- Follow your instincts, if you want to book your airfare, don’t wait – especially if you’re going somewhere during peak season.
- Research your options! I looked at Delta, Qantas, and VAustralia for our flights. While they were close in price, VAustralia still comes out as the cheapest option for our flight path – thank goodness.
- Be polite to those in customer service and they’ll go an extra mile for you. Thank them when they do, you can definitely hear a smile on the other end of the line.
- It causes anxiety when you think you made the wrong choice for your air carrier and start looking at other options after you’ve bitten the bullet an purchased your tickets. Don’t do it.
- I rarely listen to my own advice and looked at the flights on competitor sites tonight. Or VAustralia booking is still the cheaper option AND when I looked at VAustralia again, our exact flights went up $300 from Wednesday evening. Glad I booked when I did.
All for now!
Looks like Virgin Blue was right! Taken on return flight from Whitsundays trip in 2003.
[#6 of #52]
I can’t believe how quickly 2011 is passing by! It’s almost April, and it’s safe to say I won’t be making my blog a week ratio unless I really step it up and even things out. Going to keep at it though, as Josh inspired me by something he mentioned today when discussing blogging. I just need to find my drive.
Since our trip is getting closer, I thought I’d share our itinerary. It’s something I’ve worked on for months, tweaking/adjusting, and now I’m pretty sure it’s as good as it’s going to get until we’re on the road!
Day 1-3:
Fly from home to LAX (Los Angeles), then LAX to SYD (Sydney), and SYD to ADL (Adelaide)
Day 3:
Arrive in Adelaide, check-in to hotel, explore the area
Day 4:
Explore Adelaide
Day 5:
Pick-up Campervan
Visit Cleland Wildlife Park (so Josh can hold a koala since we won’t be able to in NSW)
Drive to Naracoorte or Kingston [281 km / 174 mi / 3h 27m]
Day 6:
Drive from Naracoort/Kingston to Warrnambool [337 km / 209 mi / 4h 1m]
Day 7:
Drive from Warrnambool to Anglesea [242 km / 150 mi / 3h 40m]
Day 8:
Golf time in Anglesea for Josh (hopefully)
Drive to Kilcunda [231 km / 143 mi / 2h 51m]
Day 9:
Drive from Kilcunda to Lake Bunga/Lakes Entrance [295 km / 183 mi / 4h 4m]
Day 10:
Drive from Lake Bunga/Lakes Entrance to Bateman’s Bay [439 km / 272 mi / 5h 26m]
Day 11:
Drive from Bateman’s Bay to Sydney [288 km / 179 mi / 4h 4m]
Turn in campervan and head to our hotel!
Day 12:
Sydney – Morning Bridge Climb, Tour Sydney Opera House, Explore Sydney, etc.
Day 13:
Sydney – Get Captain Cook Harbour Explorer Pass, go to Taronga Zoo, Sydney Aquarium, Luna Park, etc.
Day 14:
Sydney – Possible Blue Mountains Day Trip
Day 15:
NEW YEARS EVE! Fireworks at 9 pm and 12 am.
This is the day I’ve been waiting for years to experience.
Day 16:
Explore Sydney/Bondi/Bronte
Day 17:
Fly Home SYD > LAX > Home
I put some of the major things we want to do in Sydney on certain days, but we’re not fully committed to them happening on the days above. There will be some flexibility, you know, cause Murphy’s Law exists, but this is our initial thought.
It’s going to be a great trip, one that we’ll remember for the rest of our lives! If you have any stopping points, “big” things we need to see along the way, let me know!
[#4 of #52]
Last year, I joined a book club that one of my sorority sisters put together to meet other women in the area with similar interests. Each month we take turns selecting the next book based on who is hosting the next event. This month was my turn, and to no surprise to anyone, I picked a travel related book (my last book was Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert.
This month, we’re reading Honeymoon with my Brother, by Franz Wisner. It’s a story about a guy whose fiancée leaves him only days before their wedding and what he decides to do next. His brother, Kurt, comes to the rescue and suggests that they go on his honeymoon anyway, after quite the party at the location where the wedding was to be held. During this trip, they decide (and I’m loosely describing what happens) to quit their jobs, sell their homes, and travel the world – 53 countries in 2 years!
The experiences they describe make me envious of their adventure and what they learned about the world out there, as well as themselves.
At one point last year, Josh came home and said, “Let’s quit our jobs and move to another country for a year.” Needless to say, I was stunned. I’d always dreamed of doing something like that, but have always been told that wouldn’t be a “responsible” decision. Sometimes I get tired of being responsible, but unfortunately I’m pretty realistic and realize making a plunge like that with student loans, car notes, pets, and a great job isn’t easy. I did pull out Excel and started budgeting costs, and unfortunately the responsible side in me won – for now.
I can’t help but have a little travel envy in reading all the travel blogs that I do, but I figure this is their time, and we will have ours, we just have to save and sacrifice, but really we need to decide it’s something we want to do – instead of an out from a job we don’t like [not saying this was the case for Josh – I swear!] or when we want something new to challenge us.
For now, we’ll travel using our vacation days, and I’ll lust over the exotic locations people post about, adding them to the list that seems to get longer by the weeks that pass. But one day, I will quit my job and travel the world, it’d just be nice if I could find a gig that would let me travel the world with Josh, while making money at the same time. 😉
If you’ve read Honeymoon with my Brother, I’d love to hear your thoughts! And if you haven’t read it – I highly recommend it!
[Post #2 of #52]
Wow, it’s 2011. How did we get here so fast?? Rather than jotting down my resolution for 2011, I wanted to work on my list of things I want to do/accomplish before I die.
I was inspired to come up with my “Life List” by my friend Ali, based on one of her recent blog posts. I’ve decided to put down in ‘writing’ my jumbled mental list of things that I’ve added to it over the years, but it’s nice to focus and really document them. I included some of my completed items, as I’d like to keep track of them, but I’ve added a few more – just for kicks. 🙂 Who knows, maybe I’ll even blog about some of the experiences to aide in my ‘blog once a week for a year’ goal. 🙂
There’s a chance that I’ll add to the list as the years go on, but for now this is where I stand:
- Study abroad
- Graduate from college with a useful degree (yep, I felt this one was really important)
- Find a job that I love (2 for 3!)
- Adopt a shelter cat
- Go skydiving
- Snorkel in the Great Barrier Reef
- See an opera in the Sydney Opera House
- Get married
- Attend a rodeo
- Take a picture with a Canadian mounty
- See Bob Barker in a taping of The Price is Right
[read about this] - Take a surf lesson
- Ring in a new year in the Sydney Harbour
- Procreate: Have one child, maybe two.
- Climb the Great Wall of China
- Visit the Great Pyramids/Sphinx in Egypt
- Ride the London Eye
- Take a ride on a boat to see Niagara Falls
- Enjoy a pasta dish in Italy
- Kiss (or touch) the Blarney Stone in Ireland
- Wear a kilt in Scotland
- Be an extra in a movie
- Be a contestant on Wheel of Fortune
- Go bungee jumping in New Zealand
- Go topless on a topless beach
- Go on a safari in South Africa
- Buy a house
- Witness the Aurora Borealis
- Live in another country for a year
- Mile High Club
- Climb the Sydney Harbour Bridge
- See Paris from the top of the Eiffel Tower
- Visit all 7 continents
- Blog once a week for an entire year
- Take my mom out of the country for the first time
- Run a half-marathon
Do you have a list? What are the top 5 things you want to do before you die? I’d love to hear them!
[Post #1 of #52]
The thought of traveling somewhere makes me happy. I mean, really happy. Whenever I add some place new to “the list” I get excited. I know the likelihood of hitting them all isn’t high, but I like having options.
I’m seriously giddy when it comes to planning our trip to Australia. I cannot wait to book our hotel room. I cannot wait to purchase our Bridge Climb tickets. I cannot wait to book our camper van. It’s getting close to when I can, since most won’t let you book too far in advance. Ah!
I’ve always thought planning vacations made me happy – but never put much thought into why. Then I came across this article about a research study that took place in Australia. Through their research, they found that planning and taking vacations made people happier.
“According to the study, vacations provide three main elements of happiness. Firstly, the thought of going on a vacation evokes positive emotions like joy, interest, love and contentment in the traveller. While the second benefit is that it gives them a sense of purpose and finally it increases a sense of involvement.”
As simple and as obvious as it seems, taking vacations is healthy for you.
“…the motivation for the trip, the interesting time spent at the destination, and then reminiscing about it by looking at holiday snaps is a euphoric experience that goes a long way in reducing stress levels and energizing a person.”
All of the above is definitely true for me, and the thought of spending time somewhere (especially Australia) and creating memories with Josh really excites me. I don’t know many people who have spent New Years in the Sydney Harbour, and looking back on that experience throughout our lives together is going to be one of the highlights of our memories.
I love travel. And I’m so glad it’s good for me. 🙂
I’m going to apologize in advance for talking about Australia too much on this blog. I have always had an adoration for the country, and spending 8 months there made me love it even more. And now that I’m going back, I can’t stop thinking about it. Seriously.
Today I was at lunch with some co-workers, and one of the waiters had an accent that we couldn’t fully place. I thought he sounded like he was from New Zealand, but another thought he was from Australia (we didn’t have a chance to confirm). So that got us started talking about the trip I have in the works. And then our intern noted that she’d heard of people having a calling to a country, a place that they feel like they should live, and I wondered to myself – could this be the case? Am I meant to live in Australia?
I certainly wouldn’t turn down the opportunity should it arise, that’s a given. The rest of the afternoon I’ve wondered if anyone else has a calling to one particular location, or an inexplicable feeling about a place? Where was it? And what did you do about it?
For now, I’m going through old emails sent to family and friends, wishing I were back in one of the most amazing places I’ve ever lived.
Bondi Beach – New South Wales, Australia (October 2003)
