Catching up with the Bowman's

Hello all!

It has been awhile since I last added anything to my blog, and since I am on a school break, I have more time, so here goes. Fun reading for everyone!

I finished the semester officially on December 13th, where I had my last final. I still had to finish helping my teacher grade projects (I was a T.A.), but that was done from my home, and I didn't have to be in Logan for it. As it was my only final, and it was towards the end of the week, I really had it easy at the end. I didn't even go to school on that last Friday, the 7th, as there was supposed to be a bad storm that I was avoiding. Anyway, it all ended, and ended well. I got great grades, and can look forward to my last semester as a student at USU, as an undergraduate! Yeah for me! I am excited, but am going to be busy still. Going to finish with a bang, or not at all. I will be taking 17 credits, only one of which is easy (Yoga again - love it). 4 credits are block classes, so I will really only have 15 credits at any given time, but it will still be hard work. I am going to graduate with Honors, and have a thesis that I need to write. I am going to be taking a memorial design course which will be hard, but so rewarding that it should be okay. And of course some other stupid classes that the university says will be helpful to me, but I really think they just want more money.

Last Sunday, we went out to get in our Jeep for Church, and it was gone. Yep, stolen in fact. We didn't just park it farther away than usual, it was gone. It was recovered the next day, but we had to put money into it to get it to run again. The window is still broken from the first time it was broken into, but we park it in the garage now (the Jetta is getting work done by the slowest mechanic known to mankind, so it's not there and I don't want the Jeep to get stolen again - apparently that year is popular to steal). Fun times, not really. It was so hard to have any emotion, and know what to do that I didn't really feel like doing anything. I had planned on making sugar cookies, so I did that while singing Christmas carols with the radio station, but when I stopped to think about things going on, it just brought me down again.

We are finishing making Jerry's (the father-in-law) gift, and finished shopping for other gifts yesterday. I had been done with all my shopping last weekend, but Corey still had to finish. Don't think he is a procrastinator, because I didn't give him my list until last week, so he really didn't know where to start with many ideas. Apparently I am hard to shop for. Didn't know that, but will remember it!

My days are filled with cleaning, playing with doggies, organizing what little things we have out of boxes into better, clean spots, and then nights are filled with working on the house. We are almost completely done drywalling the upstairs bedroom and it is looking great. We will mud and sand (not a fun task) ourselves to get it done quicker, and then paint. Our goal is to have a completely finished room that I can use as my work room for my last semester. I will only have to drive two days a week, so we want a place for me to go to get tons of things done the rest of the days! It is coming quickly, and I couldn't be happier. By the way, hanging drywall with two people is not a good idea, but can be done.

I had to take this lovely computer in to get work done again. It was quicker this time, and I have known for about 2 months that I would have to take it in, but it was fixed very quickly this time. My wireless card was no longer recognized at all by the computer, so I had to plug in the ethernet cord to use the internet, not always easy to do. I dropped off my computer the 14th of December and got to pick it up last Friday. I wanted to check to see that the internet card was working before I left the store, but the Geek Squad guy couldn't find the right adapter to the power cord (I had not brought my own), and they had totally run out my battery. I was so frustrated that I told the guy that I would take the computer home and try it, and that if it didn't work I would call back and he would hear and feel my wrath. He laughed thinking that I was making a joke, and then saw my face, and immediately quit laughing. I was not being funny, as I have had too many times when I have had to pick something up that was "fixed" only to find that indeed it was not. He had me sign the papers that it was in my possession, and I left. When I did try it, it started up really slowly, and did not want to work much at all, so I was scared. Then it was working. I think that they had totally run the battery out that it didn't have any power, and even the power cord needed to give the battery some life before it would work. It now works fine, and the internet is a great source of information, fun, and communication.

I can think of a dozen other things to write about, but I have to go. One of the things that I organized was all my travel pictures to Italy and London. Not Florida yet. I hope to finish my travelogue of my international trip this break. Happy reading!

Italy Day Four, Part Two, Villa Torlonia

Villa Torlonia was beautiful, as were all the other villas. The actual villa is not as close to the garden and water features as the other villas, probably because over time the use has been changed. The grounds seem to be more easily accessible to the public than some of the villas and gardens. It was also kind of depressing at first glance as none of the water features were on, but later on in the visit, they started. Two of our male group members slipped away at the top terrace, and when they came back, the fountains came on. We asked them what they did, and they said they peed on a tree. We think that it was the trick, but either way, we got a laugh out of it.









I liked these trees. They were opposite the entrance of the first staircase entering the garden.


One of the ramps heading up to the villa from the bottom terrace. There was another one on the other side, with stairs leading up the middle.

The main part of the gardens. I loved how these trees lined the drive and forced you to view this second staircase. In the center of the staircase is a fountain that runs from the top terrace fountain to the second terrace level.

A close up of more fountains. These were not going much, but we were used to using our imaginations by this time.

A view looking down from the upper terrace. Loved the moss on the fountain.

A better close up of the fountains between the two terrace levels. There was a cave under each of the 4 levels.

The fountains at the bottom while they were working. No imagination required.

A view from the side. It was so great to see it all!

Like many of you, I love to read blogs and catch up on everyone's lives. However, as the list of blogger friends and family increases, I have been spending way too much time checking each blog to see if there is a new post. So for those of you who don't know, here is a way to subscribe to blogs so you can get alerts when something new is posted. It has saved me TONS of time!

You can either make www.google.com your homepage or if you have a gmail account already, log into your email account. If you are setting your homepage to google.com, you will either see a huge list that says "start by selecting some of our most popular content" or a tab on the right that says "add stuff." Click on this and type in the search field for "google reader." If you have a gmail account, log in, and then at the top click on the "more" tab. Choose google reader, and it is here that you can add peoples' blogs and other websites you check frequently. Click on "add subscription" and add your fav's one at a time. When you log in next time, it will let you know what is new and on who's blog! The first time, you will have to select each blog and then hit the button at the top that says "mark all as read" so that it will work correctly.

I hope this made sense to everyone, and that you find it as helpful as I have! I believe that if you don't have a gmail account, you can still use google reader, you will just have to create an account. Since you all have blogs which are google run, then you might not have to create an account either, I don't know for sure.

School at the Beach

I know that this was done a long time ago, but I thought you should all know the kinds of things I will potentially be involved in the rest of my life. For a senior class, we participated in National PARK(ing) Day. The purpose is to encourage people to walk more and drive less, therefore lessening the number of cars we need. When people realize they don't need their car everywhere, more open space is created and available for all to enjoy. Click here for the link to see what we did! There were four groups, so click on one of the titles at the top, and it will take you to specific images regarding the designs for that space. I was at the beach all morning, even though I am not in all the pictures. It sure was fun, and we got tons of odd looks.

Italy, Day Four, Part One

We traveled from Pompeii to see Villa Aldobrandini and Villa Torlonia. Later on, I will post pictures from Villa Torlonia, but this post is entirely Villa Aldobrandini.




On the way, we stopped at a rest area, and we saw this Fido Park. We didn't totally understand how it worked, but did get that it was a rest area for dogs. Nice touch!


The villa from the side, where we entered after we parked. The grounds were under some renovation, like usual. The terraces use up the grade change wonderfully.


A view down to the main entrance, well the original formal entrance from the city. It is now just a walking path up to the grounds.


A view of the top of the trees that line the formal entrance. These were cut square on the outer sides and the top. The tops will grow together, creating this cool canopy. It was one of the most interesting views we had.


A view of the terrace in the back of the villa. It seems out of scale when you are actually standing in the space, but when you are viewing someone else in the space, it seems just fine. Each of the sculptures were actually twice as big as a human. Tricky!


We found this on the trail as we walked to see more of the grounds. It was funny, but I don't know what it is called.


This water feature was on the way up to more of the grounds behind the villa. The water was not flowing, but it was still beautiful.


A view of the back of the villa through much of the overgrown shrubs and trees. You can also see the towers that were once another water feature on either side of the villa. These were entirely made of marble.

One of the magnificent views of the city below from the back of the villa.


Another view of the city, as well as another view of the uniquely trimmed trees.


Villa Aldobrandini from one of the lower terraces.


A view of the walkway up from the city. It was a great view, and the trees created quite the canopy.

The trimmed trees from the front.


After we toured the grounds of Villa Aldobrandini, we ate lunch and then a group of us went off to find a restroom (By the way, the restrooms in Europe are more primitive than in America, as very few of them had a toilet seat - your calves would get quite a workout, and then it was much better to carry your own toilet paper, or travel tissues, as they didn't think it was so nice to provide that either. Water was also optional in most of them as well.) and on our way back, we saw a view of Villa Aldobrandini from the city. I don't know what the villa is used for now, except the occasional party, but it still looks impressive sitting up there on the hill!

Too much going on!

We have been busy, and I have been trying to adjust my schedule, trying to find what works best for me to get school work done, take care of the house, and still have time for Corey and animal kids. At the beginning of the semester, I was sleep deprived many nights because I would just wake up, and then not be able to go back to sleep. It was frustrating, and my eyes hurt so bad! Finally, I was able to get used to school and driving, therefore I don't have problems anymore. I still get up early because of the dogs, but usually I have been able to get a good solid nights sleep.

School has been interesting. I am a T.A., but for my fellow students. It is unique for sure! Because of an internship over the summer, I waived a class, and since they have a hard time finding seniors to be a T.A. for a senior class, I was personally asked to be one. Now, I don't ever have my own time in the studio, because I am always there, and when students have a question, they don't mind asking. There are about 25 students in the class. I get along great with the new professor. We see some things eye to eye, and other things slightly different, but that is good for this class, as there are many successful ways to do the many different projects we have the students do.

There is a lot of change in the program this year. We had the department head, Liz Brabec, and her husband, Peter, leave us at the end of last year (after a successful trip to Italy too!) to go teach at UMass. Our college at USU cares very little for our small department, and Liz had such a hard time getting any funding, and then they cut some funding for our department, which this year has more students in the Freshman and Sophomore classes than ever before, with not enough teachers, and they won't let us hire more! She struggled with funding issues for so long, and then her parents and Peter's parents' health is suffering with age, and they live on the east coast, so they moved. I still email them, and they are such wonderful people I hope to keep in contact with them. Liz has been encouraging me to get my master's degree, which I plan on doing after Corey gets his.

We have a teacher on the brink of retirement. He was going to retire completely this year, but when my class was in his Sophomore class, he took such a liking to us that he decided he needed to teach us his Senior Winter class, so he is fishing in Minnesota this semester and will teach one last semester, and then be done. He has taught for 40 years, all at USU, has two Masters degrees, one in Landscape Architecture and the other from South Dakota University in Science Fisheries and Wildlife Biology. He is renowned in the academic field for many things, and is just an incredible person. I am lucky to have had his influence!

There is a new teacher from California that is fun and energetic. His name is Rick LaBrasseur, and he is so fun to talk to. Friday, the senior class had to participate in Park(ing) Day, and my group designed a beach in our parking stall (the idea is to encourage people to walk more and drive less, so we took over a metered parking stall with open space and sat around all day visiting with people). He came and sat for quite some time, and we just had so much fun. I got my first tan in my life, and it's pretty dark! I might be a T.A. for his class next semester. The junior class has been asking me to be their T.A. next semester almost since this one began. We'll see!

Corey and I have been designing our remodel of the house. It is coming along. Because it takes one person to devote much of the evening to watch the doggies outside, we have had to structure our schedule to accommodate them. I leave for school at 7 every morning, and leave campus around 5 every evening, hoping that the extra time I put in after and between classes will allow me to get everything done at school, and leave the evenings to watch the doggies or work on the house. I have only tried it for two days, so I'll keep you posted on how it is working!

Corey has been busy at work getting prepared to install Robots at the Museum. It opens on the 29th of September, so he has been very busy. He is thinking of beginning his Master's degree from the school of the gods, BYU, next fall. I am nervous about being the one to pull in the full-time salaried income, but am looking forward to using my degree in the working field! We hope to be done remodeling the house by then, and can move further south, closer to BYU, but we'll see. I hope that we can purchase something that doesn't need this much work. I am done remodeling, and it's just in the beginning!

We still don't have any callings. Our ward is very unique, and it's hard to get to know people because there is another ward that we combine with for Relief Society/Priesthood, and Sunday School. Supposedly is it because the Primary would be so small, but we had the Primary Program last week, and it was huge because of combining them. I am baffled, but continue to go and support the ward. We have been gone a lot this summer which is unusual for us, so maybe that is why we don't have callings yet.

Well, this has been long enough! I wanted to let you all know what we have been doing, especially since I haven't been posting much lately. Hopefully, I will post yet another blessed day of my Italy trip later today! Also, more pictures of Mallory, Kurt and Carson's trip to come.

Italy, Day Three with Group - I See Dead People

Pompeii - A truly impressive city that the Italians are working constantly on. They are always uncovering more ruins preserved by the volcano, and they are also trying to constantly preserve what they have already uncovered.

We had a great time here, but the heat got to us quickly. There was not much cover from the sun as many of the roofs did not survive being buried and then uncovered.

This was another complete walking day, and our feet sure were tired at the end of the day! There was so much to see that we didn't even see half of what is there. Many streets are filled with normal houses and businesses that had no particular information regarding what it once was, yet there were many others that had specific information. It was also easy to see the wealthier homes, as they were usually larger and more ornate in what decorations were present. Also, there were a few preserved dead Pompeians. That made the event real, as how could we go to the city of the dead and not see any dead people?




A view of the city from one of the entrances into Pompeii. There were four main entrances, I think this was the west entrance.


The colosseum of Pompeii. A major gathering place for many types of events. Ancient Romans seemed to play more than work, so much of their time was spent in colosseums, baths, or in sport fields.


A view of the underground tunnels beneath the seating in the colosseum of Pompeii.


The interior of the colosseum of Pompeii. I sketched this view, but it really was better in the picture or for real than my sketch!


Not only were buildings and people preserved from the volcano. This is a tree root system that was found and filled with concrete.


Sports were very important to the Romans and Greeks, and this is believed to be a sports field.


A view of a wealthy home-owner's garden from the end of the garden, looking toward the back of his home. The plants were not there, but give a great idea of what it could have looked like at the time. A place to go when you needed out of the sun! We used it later in our adventure through Pompeii.


A look at the atrium and the front of a wealthy merchant's home in Pompeii. It is the same home with the garden in the previous picture.


Original artwork that decorated a wealthy merchant's home. I was amazed at the color still present. It helps that this room, as well as many of the other rooms of this home, had a roof to protect from the weather. Beautiful artwork.


A view of the front of the garden in a wealthy merchant's home. Water would have flowed down the channel, a rarity in normal homes in Pompeii. Water was an expensive commodity only found in the homes of the wealthy. It would have cooled down the garden as well as showed his wealth.


A look at the covered walkways in a wealthy merchant home in Pompeii.


A view of the south entrance road into Pompeii. The ruts are from the carriages wearing the same spot time after time. The blocks in the center of the path would have enabled people to cross without getting their feet dirty, as the road would have been covered with dirt, human waste, and animal waste.


Me in front of the south entrance into Pompeii.


Some cemeteries outside the south entrance to the city. Stone busts of the people represented who was buried inside.


A close-up of the stones that helped people cross the dirty roads in Pompeii. Smart people! I wonder how many of the town leaders got dirty before they implemented these.


We found evidence of a bakery or a restaurant of sorts in Pompeii. It had a beautiful marble counter top, and then these bowls that would have been heated from below.


A preserved dead person from a bath house in Pompeii. They died so fast, and you can almost see the facial expressions on this person, the folds in the fabric.


A large theater where they would have performed plays and other performances.


A view of the top of Pompeii from the top seats of the smaller theater shown immediately below. This was an impressive view, and you can see the number of structures present. Imagine what the city would be like in the present.


The smaller theater which would have been for more private performances, possibly readings, smaller plays, etc. Most of the stone is original and has been better preserved than the larger theater and the colosseum.


A great example of the ornate tile work done in some of the wealthy homes as well as the prominent businesses. It was full of small tiles, smaller than 1 in square. Try doing that Kurt!


A view of the Pompeii Forum.


Another dead person, preserved as it was found, trying to cover up from the ash. What I found interesting is that some of the dead are preserved or protected in glass boxes, yet in this area they were just under a roof top, not covered from any of the other elements of nature. We still couldn't go in and touch it, so it was barricaded off from humans.


This was too funny. Just storing the remains of this human as if it were pots that are on the other shelves.


A view of the modern day Pompei (apparently they dropped the second 'i' for the modern city). This was from the top of a building that was changed into a museum, restaurant, and bathroom facility.


Another view of a wealthy merchant in Pompeii. This home was very ornately decorated, but I took too many pictures to post them all!


I thought it was funny that they had palm trees in Italy. I never would have thought the climate would support them, but they are everywhere. This was in another wealthy merchant's home. I think it is beautiful showing different colors.


A famous site in Pompeii is the Villa of the Mysteries. This tree was growing in an atrium at the Villa.


A fresco in the Villa of the Mysteries. No one really knows much about the place, hence the name, yet it is the most preserved. The preserved colors are even more vibrant in real life!


This is the last dead person I am going to show, and the only reason was because of what was said about him. Jamie, a young female student in our group came up to 'him' and said, "Nice calves." We all paused and wondered why she was checking him out, and started laughing because all of us that heard her, heard, "Nice ass." She was engaged to be married at the end of the summer, so why was she checking a dead guy's butt out we didn't know, but we got a good laugh!