Howdy Haolie!

Funny conversation I overheard.. (names are being withheld to protect from excessive ribbing over this conversation..teehee)

Person A : Why do white people call each other "haolie"

Person B : No, white people don't use that word, that's a local word. Locals use it when they are talking about white people.

Person A : That's not true. I heard a white guy saying it to another white guy on tv.

Person B : I don't think so, I never heard that word used on tv.

Person A : Yes, It was John Wayne on the movie channel. When he waved at his friend in the movie, he said "HOWLY"

Person B : Umm, I think you mean, he said "Howdy"

Person A : oh...what's a howdy???

I didn't stick around for the rest of the conversation because I had to go find a corner to laugh in..he he he he he

I "Blingee'd" my staff

We had a photo shoot in the office today with our new "Team Moylan's" t-shirts..then I "blingee'd" the pictures..fun, fun!

Property & Casualty Department

Life & Health/Dental Department

Accounting Department

My Claims Adjusters

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On another note, when your PMS'ing and your craving something salty, nothing hits the spot like some local tangerines and asiga (salt..well, actually salt, ajinomoto and red peppers all mixed up) Mmmmmm! I got my tangerines from Tun Kiko's on middle road.

100 blogs and counting!

I was just about to post a new blog with some final pictures from my now broken camera when I realized that I have reached my 100th blog...I have blogged about everything from my weight, to my family, to my missing pet and I have commented on everything from beautiful underwater pictures to casino's to abused pets and then some...It's been interesting and fun and I look forward to the next 100!




HAPPY BLOGGING EVERYONE!

This Christmas

Took the family to the movies the other night and we watched "This Christmas". Mirika and I loved it!!! Of course it didn't hurt that it was chock-full of eye candy (Mekhi Phifer, Chris Brown, Laz Alanso)..Savali said it was "Ok" and Ulu said he got "bored"...Its a dramedy about a family that comes together for Christmas and they all have their own little secrets and family drama's that they bring to the table..I thought the movie was very Tyler Perry-ish and I love Tyler Perry!!! If for one reason, go see it because there is one scene in the movie that will give all you women out there a GREAT idea of what to do if you catch your man cheating..bwahahaha!

Whaaa!

My digital camera has taken its last shot...After taking a bunch of gorgeous morning mountain pictures in Papago yesterday, I proceeded to do the electric slide down the mountain and not by choice. Unfortunately, when my dance move came to an end, my camera bore the brunt of the impact and I jammed the lens in. So now I have to revise my Christmas wish list and #1 would be a new digital camera (which I will probably buy for myself..he he)...These are my top picks..If you know or have experience with a better camera, please hit me up and let me know...Appreciate any input or suggestions on which would be the best digital camera to purchase...


1st choice Canon EOS 400D / Rebel XTi Digital Camera with 18-55mm Lens

2nd choice Canon PowerShot SD1000 / Digital IXUS 70 Digital Camera

3rd choice Canon PowerShot SX100 IS

Sunday Morning in Papago...

Why would you want to wake up anywhere else on earth????

New Doo 4 Yoo!

Say Myspace!

The drk brown was getting too boring..so I caved in and got a new color today..I'm liking it! Ulu likes it, Mirika does too but Savali says "I don't look like a mom"...ha ha..ummmm.....that's the idea!

The Shot!

This is my niece Brandie. I like to call her "mini me" because she looks and acts a lot like me when I was her age. We are partners in crime when it comes to causing trouble at family gatherings. On Thursday she asked me if she could take some pictures of everyone at our luncheon. I figured..great idea..give her the camera, show her how to point and shoot and I can relax and take a break from being family photographer..She took 278 pictures (including this one of herself )...Here are some of her best shots ..



Her feet (One of about 50 pictures she took of them :) . A good photographer always makes sure they have the shot!

Some legs..another one of her favorite subjects to shoot..mine too.

She was under the table for this shot..what creativity!

Mika SMILE! oh wait, my fingers in the way. oops!

Someone else's feet..It's hard to take a good foot photo when someone has shy toes..he he

Self portrait..darn finger!

She's now available for Weddings, Bar Mitzvahs, Birthday Parties and Studio Portraits..

SUPER FULL!

Let them eat fruits...he he

I ordered some Thanksgiving fruit baskets for some of our business partners and they are so beautiful. This year I received faxes from Isabella's gifts and Island Floral advertising their Thanksgiving specials, so i decided to order some of my baskets from each place to see who made the better basket. I ordered baskets of equal value from both places.

Both places made some beautiful baskets for me and both were equally good in their own ways.

The baskets from Isabella's had a wider variety of fruit (Kiwi's, apples, atis, pears, grapes and oranges) as well as Cookies and some gourmet coffee inside. However, the ribbon used on the bows looked a bit faded and there were no fancy "Thanksgiving" cards or sticks available. The baskets from Island Floral also had a small Mellon, apples, oranges, bananas and grapes, but no cookies or coffee. They had beautiful fall colored ribbons and cute "Happy Thanksgiving" little plastic sticks and cards though. It was hard to choose who made the better Thanksgiving basket...If you prefer what's in the basket, get your basket's from Isabella's..If you prefer the "presentation" and how your basket looks, order from Island floral...Either way, if the basket is for you or someone else, they are sure to have a Happy Thanksgiving!

The basket from Island Floral Shop (Across from Saipan Grand Hotel)

The basket from Isabella's Gifts (next to Oleai Beach Bar)

It's begining to look a lot like....

This is the first weekend that I can remember in ages that I have not taken a single picture during the whole weekend...I left my camera in the car and just never got around to taking it out and shooting anything...


Oh well, we started decorating our office this weekend..woohoo! I love decorating for Christmas!

We hung our Stockings...

Put up our tree..

We decided to decorate it in maroon and gold this year..

We even bought a new Nativity Set that I absolutely LOVE!

My favorite piece in the set...

This guy plays Christmas Carols and rings his bells when you turn him on...how cute!

We still have a lot of work to do, but I am starting to get into the Christmas spirit! Ho ho ho....

CONGRATULATIONS CONGRESSWOMAN TINA!

GOOD LUCK ON YOUR NEW JOURNEY! WE LOVE YA!!

The one time of the year I get to eat Cranberry Sauce..YUM!

I must say I am looking forward to the upcoming Thanksgiving Holiday. Every year we have our family gathering which usually includes our extended family (no blood relation but good friends we have made along the way)..My mom cooks a mean Ham and Turkey and her stuffing can not be beat! My mom's an awesome cook, but she goes out of her way on Thanksgiving! And yes, I will be forgoing my diet to enjoy everything she cooks on that day :)

And while Thanksgiving is a day to celebrate with family and friends and enjoy a great meal together it is also a day to reflect upon all the blessings we have...blessings that I should be Thankful for every day, not just on Thanksgiving.

Some of the things I am Thankful for this year...

The good health of my children..no major illnesses, no broken bones just a couple of scrapes here and there

My mom...She a great lecturer, a great listener and an awesome mom and I wouldn't be where I am today without her

Mom #2 Donna, for always being a good friend and looking out for mom, always thinking about us kids and our kids in all that she does and for everything she has done for me over the years!

Waking up in a nice bed with a cozy comforter because that means I am not homeless :)

Having a Great job, and one where my hours were not cut and I haven't been threatened with pay cuts or unpaid holidays

conquering my fear of flying and finally meet my Biological Grandfather for the first time ever in April..what an incredible man!

Being engaged to man who may not be perfect in every way, but is perfect for me.

For Pat, our housekeeper...without her I would never have any time to spend with the kids because I would always be cooking for them or cleaning up after them..I am forever grateful for her help

My blog, which has allowed me to meet some pretty cool people, to read opinions (that I may not always agree with) and share mine with others..

The view from my office which reminds me every time I look up from my computer that I live in paradise

PAWS because without them I would have never been united with my cats Uli, Moli and Butterball (although uli is still missing and the kids and I miss him, I hope he is safe where ever he is)

The Coast Guard for taking good care of my daughter and teaching her things that I never could and opening her eyes to a whole new world

Being able to pay my power bill...even though I cringe each time I have to

Harry's blog for sharing all the awesome underwater pictures he takes (especially the turtles :) and making me realize that there is equally amazing beauty beneath the water as there is above it..

My awesome friends that have shared my laughter and tears and remained true friends through it all..

My brother William for never ceasing to amaze me with his incredible generosity and care and concern for other people. my brother Glen for reminding me to stand up for what I believe in no matter what other may think, and my brother Rob for ..let see..for...ummm...for...hmmmm...just kidding Rob..ha ha...I'm thankful for you too!

All the soldiers who have fought and died for my freedom, for those who have been injured and for those who continue fighting...I could never express in words my gratitude for the sacrifices they have made.

I am thankful for Forgiveness and the ability to forgive people who have hurt me in the past, learn from it and move on.

For my employees and co-workers who make it so much easier for me to do what I do..and a special Thank you to Sarai for bringing me coffee when she can sense that I need a cup but that Im too busy to run and get one myself!

for tv shows like I love NewYork, A shot of Love with Tila Tequila, The singing bee and What not to wear that allow me to watch them, forget about all the real issues going on in the world for 30 minutes and just LMSAO!

and for just being able to wake up every day in such a gorgeous place and know that life is beautiful and i am so privileged to be here and how thankful i am that as i drive to work or where ever it is that i am going, that as i am driving, i'm counting kingfishers along the way and not bullets or bombs...

Oh Happy Day....

Got some new pictures of my girl in the Coast Guard today so I am SUPER HAPPY!

Here she is working..yes, for those of you who know her, I know that sounds impossible..ha ha..but this photo was not photo shopped...he he...(just giving you a hard time T..luv u!)

I sure hope your not out there taking a "smoke" break..hmmm...(My girl is second from the left)

Saul, Tia, and three other "line 5ers"

This is where she is stationed..Seattle

“In the name of the best within you, do not sacrifice this world to those who are its worst. In the name of the values that keep you alive, do not let your vision of man be distorted by the ugly, the cowardly, the mindless in those who have never achieved his title. Do not lose your knowledge that man's proper estate is an upright posture, an intransigent mind and a step that travels unlimited roads. Do not let your fire go out, spark by irreplaceable spark, in the hopeless swamps of the approximate, the not-quite, the not-yet, the not-at-all. Do not let the hero in your soul perish, in lonely frustration for the life you deserved, but have never been able to reach. Check your road and the nature of your battle. The world you desired can be won, it exists, it is real, it is possible, it's yours.” ~Ayn Rand

Just in time for Thanksgiving...

The newest member of our family, BUTTERBALL. Uli has not returned and Moli has been "meowing" non-stop every night because she misses him, so I told the kids if Uli did not return over the weekend we would start looking for another cat. It just so happened that this morning I went to drop Ulu at work and on the way to the beach I turned on Power 99 and Paws was in the studio. They announced my missing cat and immediately after made the announcement that the Pet of the month was also a cat looking for a home. Immediately after she got off the air, I called Rose from PAWS and this evening we brought home our new cat. The kids love him and he seems to be getting along well with Moli so far..I'm still holding out hope that Uli will find his way home....

Parrot Fish Samoan Style

This is my good buddy Danny Punimata who came over to my place yesterday to hang out and cook some off the hook parrot fish for us...and I must say, It was definitely some of the most delicious fish I have eaten ...so I'm sharing his secret recipe with you..

start off with some nice cleaned and scaled parrot fish...My mouth is watering already!

You will need to cut a couple banana leaves, make sure they are cleaned thoroughly and cut them into pieces that are bigger than your fish.

The special sauce for the fish is made of Mayo and Kimchi base (which can be purchased in just about any store here on saipan). Your going to need about one cup of mayo and 3-4 tablespoons of kimchi base (depending on how big your fish is and how much of a kick you want. More kimichi base= more kick) You want to make sure you have enough sauce to give your fish a good coating.

Special sauce should be stirred well by someone with GREAT enthusiasm

(see photo above..he he)

salt and pepper your clean fish

lay out a piece of foil big enough to cover the entire fish and banana leaf. Place the banana leaf on top of the foil and the fish on top of the banana leaf.

Fill the cavity of the fish with the special sauce

Slather a lot of the sauce on top of the fish

Lay out some lemon slices on top of the fish

Your fish should look something like this at this point...how Gorgeous!

Cover the fish with banana leaves

Tie the banana together with some string (in this case they used some of the fiber from the middle of the banana leaves)

Wrap the entire banana covered fish in foil (this will ensure that none of that delicious juice escapes)

Bake for about 25 minutes at 350 ° (depending on the size of the fish...bigger fish may take a little longer but you don't want to over cook so keep an eye on it)

Open carefully and ENJOY your absolutely DELICIOUS parrot fish!

( be careful not to swallow any bones)