A reminder

the phlebotomy testing grounds and other stories

soapbox after meeting room full of skeptic t#@!*ers and interacting in t@!!*#%$e and on the planet: many people are walking the planet certain that they have a better way of doing (insert anything here) than the way it is being done now. a healthy theory. in practice, rather derogatory. suggestion: honor that which others are doing their best to accomplish. perhaps suggest rather than scoff? research rather than assume? specify rather than generalize? aren't most doing the best they can with limited information and resources? testing one, too.
(nouns, proper and people, have been changed for the sake of the hairbrush and other plastic items involved)

Reunited!

This rock is sort of emblematic of our Finklestein Adventures. It is quiet, beautiful, intricate, valuable, soft, out in the middle of 'nowhere', and spiritually rejuvenating. It represents to me the revitalizing effects of a Finklestein Adventure.

This is the entrance to the mystical, mythical Silverback Canyon. I don't have a good picture of the namesake, but I can tell you that if you're ever driving along our secret road, and you see a sandstone Gorilla guarding the mouth of a tiny, Cottonwood canyon, you're there. Silverback Canyon.

Inside Silverback Canyon, we stumbled upon the final resting place of a Redtail Hawk. He was returned to the life cycle by a larger animal, but his regalia remained.

It was a Girls Only weekend, except for this guy, who fell about 6 miles (relative scale, of course) down the slope we were inspecting for dinosaur bones. I'd never seen a Tarantula before, and Bunny Finklestein was unsettlingly unafraid to use her hand for scale. It was a beautiful animal, to be sure, but I still have the creepy crawlies.

Katy Finklestein has found her new digs! Congrats, Katy, on closing the deal and making it through the escrow. I can't wait to hear your Dad's thoughts on this new development! Haha. Scratch that, it may not be fit for print!

The meeting of the minds- big ole fantastic Finklestein minds. These are three of my favorite people on the planet. If you were lucky enough to know them, you'd adore them, too!

Bunny Finklestein, contemplating the Big Gypsum Valley, of Western Colorado.

Me, Erin Finklestein, above Silverback Canyon. Actually, at the far right of this photo, you can just make out the Gorilla. This is near the end of October, fyi, and I'm in a tank top and shorts. I love the desert!!!

Taya was not allowed to bring her Michael Jordan sleeping bag (girls only weekend, and all) but she was able to borrow Katy's ladybug costume, which made her feel pretty, oh so pretty. She actually trick-or-treated our campsite, but mostly only got dogfood and Katy's cereal. Sorry, Tay!

Have I mentioned the "hurt your eyes blue" of the desert sky? This is it. No filter, no photoshop, just nature at her best. I ♥ the desert!

As previously mentioned, this was a Girls Only Weekend. Doj expressed his disappointment an being excluded in this interpretive dance:

Utah Canyonlands

We went to the BLM land outside Canyonlands National Park and oooooh'd and aaaaaaah'd at the amazing scenery and scrambled on the rocks and looked for dinosaurs. A good time was had by all...

This is Taya, half of our security team. She and Doj guard the Michael Jordan sleeping bag while we're all out playing. And by "guard", I mean "lay on".
Jen, Mike, and Christopher. Gazing and shivering.

Okay, yes, we were cheating by trying to bait the dinosaurs. And, sadly, it didn't work.

The "Goat In A Coat" went hiking and found these weener rocks. He insisted we duct tape them to the dash. He's kindof a perv.

For scale, that's a two lane dirt road down there.

The anticline. It's not a trick of the lens, nor the curvature of the earth. There's a huge pocket of plastic salt underneath, pushing up the layer cake geology. Sweet! Also, that's the Colorado River running through the photo.

It wasn't even pink!

Those of you who've met me will not be suprised by this at all. I lost the powercord to my computer somewhere between Gallup, New Mexico and Canyon De Chelly, Arizona. It was not even pink, so I'm not sure how this could have happened. I am desperately searching for a replacement so that I can post the awesomely bitchin photos I took of the Finklestein Sisters, and, incidentally, the Shultz Brothers, in the desert near the confluence of the Colorado and Green Rivers. Just so you know, those pictures rule. Too bad you have to take my word for it until I can retrieve them from the computer. I'm pretty sure that Mike has some killer photos, too, that he should post... (hint hint, Mike!). Okay, the search continues...

Team Finklestein Uniform

Here we are

If you're all wondering what the Finklestein Sisters look like, here ya go.

This is us at a super-cool overlook in the LaSal Mountains, in Utah, which, incidentally are plagued with Bermuda-Triangle-like phenomena such as dinosaur footprints and gazeteers that make no sense. It's a mystery who took this photo. But it might have been Jen's Mom.