Good By Houston, Hello Louisville

One week ago, I left the best group of co-workers one could ever hope to work with. Each and every one of them made my day sparkle and I love them dearly. (And I didn't even have to lock my locker!)

These are only a few of the great people I worked with in Houston.

A beautiful cake for my last day.

After driving for 1050 miles, I reached Louisville, KY last Sunday. It was a beautiful drive. Kentucky is green and gorgeous and has much cooler temperatures. I have to say, just the change in heat, helped my spirits. It was hard to leave Houston; not only was I leaving such a nice place to work, but I was also leaving my dog behind.

I am now living in the best apartment complex in history, though. It is a converted motel and my apartment is twice as big as the other two that I've had. I love all this extra space! And I already count 9 people and 5 dogs as my friends here. This setup is just so much more conducive to meeting and knowing people. I listen to the fountain, smell the rose bushes and sit outside at some of the rod-iron tables. It's gated and I feel entirely safe.

Sista Good-Luck, family pictures (Sue, I need new ones), musical snowball from my sweet cousins...what more could I want?

Beer is food.

View of Fourth Street Live which is walking distance from my apartment.

Yesterday, I was driving to a state park near Louisville, when I stopped at a Visitor Center and was told about the Kentucky Bourbon festival in a nearby town. So I went. Barrel racing takes on a whole new meaning here in Kentucky.

And the accents! One of my neighbors was telling me about this "rod-Kintucky" website. I stared at him blankly (not uncommon for me) and said..."I don't get it. What does rod mean?" (I figured out the "kin" part.) He looked at me blankly (not uncommon for him) and said, "Rod. You know, rod." I stared again. (Our conversations take much longer down here.) And then it dawned on me, "Ride."

O.K. Here's another one. I actually know a very intelligent nurse who calls it "see'-ment". I always ask her to repeat it, because it sounds so funny to me. And really, why can't they say "I" instead of "ah-ah"? That's why conversations take so long down here....they add so many extra syllables to their sentences. I'm practicing to say "ah-ah" but I just don't have it right, yet.

I love it here. The sights, the sounds, the music, the magic. Come see me, y'all. I'll git us some Derby pa-ah.

Love,

Nancy Jo (you're suppose to have 2 names down here)

Terra Cotta Warriors

About a month ago I was very fortunate to have the opportunity to see the Terra Cotta Warrior exhibit that will only be on display in 4 cities in the U.S. It's next and last stop is in Washington D.C. starting in November for those who are able to make it there.

Photography was not allowed in the museum, but I was also lucky enough to see replications of these incredible figures in the Forbidden Gardens in nearby Katy.

In 1974, while drilling for a well in China, some local farmers discovered one of the burial pits of the First Emperor who died in 210 BC. Since then, 3 other pits have been uncovered and the excavation continues today.

The Forbidden Gardens has replicated to 1/3 of their size about 2,000 warriors. The burial site in
China has over 8,000 warriors plus chariots, muscians, cranes and horses.

Each one of the warriors is different.

It is believed that 700,000 slaves and artisans created the underground palace and army. Notice the detail in the clothing of these 6-6.5 feet tall warriors.

It is also believed, because of the posing of the hands, that most of the warriors were equiped with weapons...weapons that were probably stolen when the site was looted and burned 5 years after the First Emperor's death.

And yes, it was hot!

Love, Nancy

Butterfly Museum

Just pictures....I don't know any of their names. It was magical!