Bryce Canyon and Eight Random Facts

Sonja and I just got back from exploring Bryce Canyon National Park over our 4th of July weekend. It was a long, six-hour drive, but considering the experience we had it was well worth the effort. This was the first time either of us had been to Bryce, and because it was the 4th of July we were expecting it to be packed. Fortunately, it wasn't too crowded. Sure, there were quite a few people at the overlooks, and a lot of totally unprepared hikers on one of the sections of trail that we explored, but we didn't have any problems finding a campsite or parking spaces. And we didn't even have to wait in line to get into the park.

I've uploaded a set of pictures to my flickr account, so you can either click on the picture above, or click here to view a slideshow of our trip's highlights. You'll see the same pictures either way. When viewing the slideshow, you can click on the "i" in the middle of the first picture to see the captions on each image.

Finally, I've been tagged for a blogging meme by Patrick, so now I've got to post eight random facts about myself.

Here are the rules for Eight Random Facts:

Players start with eight random facts/habits about themselves.

People who are tagged need to write their own blog about their eight things and post these rules.

At the end of your blog, you need to choose eight people to get tagged and list their names.

Don’t forget to leave them a comment telling them they’re tagged, and to read your blog.

I bet you didn't know this... or maybe you did:

1) I can recite the entire "Battle of Wits" scene from the movie The Princess Bride by memory (I memorized it while in high school cuz I believed people would think it was cool...which it is, by the way);

2) I won second place in a fencing tournament in Fairbanks five years ago;

3) I won first place in my 5th grade science fair for a project involving ruining several of my mom's cooking pots by growing crystals in them using all sorts of nasty chemicals (like copper sulfate).

4) I played tuba in high school (and some in college) and marched in the 1990 Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena, CA;

5) One of the first things Sonja and I learned about each other is that we both experience hand-swelling during long hikes;

6) I've visited 49 states (it's Rhode Island, in case you were wondering), and lived in twelve (MN, IL, ND, NC, VA, NM, CO, AK, NH, WY, ID, AZ);

7) I once got stuck on a conveyor belt for two hours while chasing my brother through a sandpit near our house (don't ask); and,

8) I know from first-hand experience that daddy long-legs taste like spearmint.

Ok, now I guess I need to tag some people:

Steve
Chris
G
Amy
Dave
Erk
Maj