Our California Adventure!

2009 in Review

2010-01-02T13:13:00.000-08:00

As fast as 2009 went - and I think it went faster than any year I can remember - it was truly an amazing year PACKED with amazing experiences that we will never forget. And since we failed to share these experiences with you on here as they happened - I (Timmy) thought I'd try to sum up the highlights with a few pictures as well.

I would say the first really exciting experience of 2009 came in March with our very first century bike ride (100 miles) in Solvang, CA. We spent the first two months of the year training for this. Since we moved to California (over two years ago already) - cycling has become a real passion for us. So to bike 100 miles at one time was really something.

April brought one of the highlights of my entire year in the booking of my very first commercial. It was a commercial for a new roller coaster at Universal Orlando called the Hollywood Rip Ride and Rocket. I played the part of rock 'n roller Syd Vinyl - a washed up 80's has-been who Orlando called up to promote the new ride. It really was an amazing experience and a huge encouragement for me that I #1 actually booked something and #2 - that it wasn't just an ordinary commercial - but an opportunity to put a lot of my comedy and other gifts to use! While that was the only onscreen commercial I booked last year, 2009 also brought a ton of direction for me as far as my voiceover pursuits go. I was able to book some smaller jobs and begin working with some agents. I have high hopes that 2010 will bring even more exciting year and bring more clarity and direction in the comedy/acting front.

May brought Debbie's sister Katie's wedding. It was so wonderful to fly home for a week and be part of such a wonderful celebration. Debbie was Katie's maid of honor and she did a great job being...honorable??

We had an amazing summer filled with bike riding, hiking and a trip to Cape Hatteras with my family. In August we took a hugely anticipated trip to the Grand Canyon - where we hiked down and camped on the Havasupai indian Reservation with our good friends the Widemans and Whites. There we hiked, played, relaxed, and swam in the amazing Havasupai river and it's waterfalls. It was one of the most beautiful places I've ever been.

The highlight of our Autumn came in October when we flew home for Messiah College's 100 year anniversary homecoming - where I performed a standup comedy set in front 800 people. I was well received (phewww) and it was so great, once again, to be home and see family.

And probably the highlight of 2009 - was our amazing and epic 3 week adventure through Australia in December (see earlier postings).

Debbie had a great year in nursing. She's still working hard on the Oncology unit at Huntington Hospital and she's already completed a year and a half of her online grad program at Cal State! Half way done! This year will bring more studying for her and next fall, she will begin the final leg of her degree with clinical rotations. It will be challenging - but she will continue to thrive!

2009 was a wonderful year indeed filled with wonderful experiences and deepening relationships. In fact - this blog would have become a blook if I had filled it with every highlight of this year. We truly look back with hearts running over with thanksgiving and we look forward to 2010 with anticipation and hope. There still remains many question marks and much uncertainty as far as where our path is going. But we continue to trust God through it all. We wish you all a Happy New year. And we'll do our best to keep you in the loop as we move forward!

blessings,
Tim and Deb

Home Sweet Home

2009-12-21T21:18:00.000-08:00

Well, we sadly boarded our plane for Los Angeles this morning, thus bringing an end to a trip we will never forget. We are safe and sound now, back in our Pasadena apartment. We don't finish this trip crossing it off of our list of places to go and things to do, but hope to return again in the future.

Looking back, we can't say that this trip went too fast ~ it actually went by at a perfect pace. And there wasn't one dud of a day; each and every day was great and memorable. We enjoyed perfect weather, good health, safe travels, and delicious food. And we can honestly say that the people of Australia are among the most warm, hospitable and friendly people we've ever met. If you have not gone to Australia, you must!

Our brains are too tired and jet-lagged to think straight, so this will be all for tonight. But hope to keep up the blog (right, heard that before)...

G'day mates.

Dolphins and BBQ

2009-12-19T08:31:00.000-08:00

Even thought today was sadly our last day in Western Australia it was nonetheless BRILLIANT. This morning we got up and got ready to go out to see wild dolphins! Lisa’s mum’s boyfriend Rusty happens to own a very nice boat and graciously offered to take us out to a place nearby where wild dolphins hang out. We weren’t sure what to expect – but it turned out to be un-be-lieveable. When we got to the spot, all the sudden Dolphins popped up all over the place and actually came over to our boat to check us out on several occasions. But that wasn’t enough for us. We got our snorkel gear and fins on and hopped in. When we got in the water there weren’t actually many dolphins nearby – so we just swam around and looked at some of the other fish in the water. All the sudden we heard a ‘clicking’ sound under water and I looked down and a dolphin was swimming right under me (tim) – just 3 feet below me. This dolphin ended up swimming with us for about 2 MINUTES. It really was unreal. We didn’t touch it or ride it or anything like that. It was actually kind of intense because this was a wild animal and we weren’t sure what it would do. But it just checked us out and then went on its way. Pretty incredible. We sadly didn’t get any pics of that – but hopefully the story will suffice. Rusty took us around a bit longer and then we headed back in.

The rest of the day was spent swimming, chilling, taking Harley rides, and eating amazing food with Bree and Lisa and their family. We are just so blessed by how welcome we’ve felt here and the time Bree and Lisa have given us. In many ways this short visit has been a highlight of our whole trip. We’re sad to have to leave them tomorrow morning.

So tomorrow we head back to Sydney, spend the night (Sunday), enjoy our last remaining hours in this amazing place on Monday morning, and then head back to America on Monday evening and return to America on…Monday evening. We may pop another blog off before we head out. We’ll see. Enjoy some pics from today.

Pastries and Candy and Wineries ~ Oh my!

2009-12-18T17:02:00.001-08:00

We just thought it would be nice to “introduce” you to the Dudek’s - for those of you who don’t know them. This is a picture of Bree and Lisa, with their 15-month-old daughter, Abbie, and Johnson, their golden retriever. Bree will be starting a new job as an assistant principal in February (when summer is over here and the kids return to school), and Lisa is a full-time mom, and she sure is good at it! Their hospitality has been phenomenal!!! They have taken the time to show us all over Western Australia to see all sorts of really neat sights and to good places to eat. The fridge was stocked full with Carmel Koalas when we arrived ☺ and they have really gone out of their way to give us a really wonderful visit.

Today, we are going over to Lisa’s mom’s house to relax around the pool and have a BBQ together with the rest of the family. Yesterday, Bree took us around town to show us some more beautiful beaches, the southern tip of Western Australia, some really neat karri trees (they grow really tall and really straight), to a winery, a candy shop that makes their own candy fresh there, a local bakery with all sorts of meat pies, pasties (sort of like a potpie filling in a fluffier pastry that you eat with your hands), and pastries, and we enjoyed a rather peaceful ride in the car out through the bush. We went for a walk in the evening as the sun was setting and spotted some more kangaroos in the field by their house. Bree had a basketball game that he played in, so we went and watched his team dominate the court and beat the other team. It was rather brutal… Here are a few pictures from our day yesterday. More to come from our adventures today.

Our day with the wonderful Aussies!

2009-12-17T18:31:00.000-08:00

We are rather sore this morning after our day of waterskiing and tubing yesterday. What fun it was though! Lisa’s sister, Kim and her husband Sean took us out on their boat (that can go really fast!!) to play at a local freshwater dam. The sun was shining and the flies were buzzing ~ the flies are pretty nasty here. Thankfully, they do not bite, but at any given time you can easily have 20 flies on you. We were quite thankful when the wind kicked up and blew them away. We went skiing – both of us at the same time – and we both managed to get up! Everyone there went for a few laps around the lake either on the wakeboard, knee board, slalom ski, or water ski’s. Our favorite was the big “biscuit” – sort of like a big tube with no hole in the middle that can hold 2 people at once. Tim and I were out on it together, while Sean and his mate Paul were driving the boat, trying to throw us off of the biscuit around turns and such. We were laughing so hard and having so much fun trying to hold on for dear life and being thrown around back there. It was great! But, again, all of us woke up this morning feeling the after effects in our sore muscles…

We went to a party in a friend of Bree’s back shed. (Everyone has a back shed here that the men sit around in, drink, eat, and talk. It’s like a local pub in someone’s back yard). It was a neat experience to be the Americans invited in to shoot the breeze with these men. But we sat around for the evening and enjoyed some genuine Australian company. We also had a taste of rabbit (tastes a lot like chicken), maron (kind of like a freshwater lobster/huge crayfish) ~ it was Delicious!! You eat it cold with a little bit of salt, we’d have to say it’s better than lobster in our opinion. We also ate some homemade meat pies prepared by Bree’s dad ~ best meat pies ever! ☺ Tim entertained the gang by playing some songs on the guitar and singing for everyone. Not everyone recognized all of the American songs, but they still seemed to enjoy it and sang along to the ones they could. Bree’s dad also sang for everyone – 7 songs, each in a different language! Very impressive.

Anyway, we were pretty tired when we got home and had no trouble falling asleep. Waking up this morning was a bit more difficult… but we are ready for another day filled with adventures here in Perth.

Hope the holiday season is treating everyone well!

And we've made it to Perth!

2009-12-16T03:58:00.000-08:00

After a 3 hour flight to Sydney, camping out in Sydney's International Airport last night (because the domestic terminal closes...), getting up at 4am to catch a taxi back to the Domestic Airport, and hopping on yet another plane for 4 more hours - we are finally here on the west side of Australia in Perth under the wonderful hospitality of Bree and Lisa Dudek. In case you are wondering who Bree and Lisa are, Tim and I met them in the United Kingdom on a 3-day tour of Scotland and have kept in touch ever since.

After our long 16 hours of travel, Bree was our knight in shining armor as he rescued us from the utter exhaustion of travel. He showed us around Perth, which felt like we were home in LA because the air is smokey from the bush fires. We enjoyed some more delicious Aussie breakfast, saw some BEAUTIFUL beaches, and then went to the Marapana wildlife world to see some Australian wildlife. Here, at this off-the-beaten-path zoo, we got to see dingo's, Tim got to drape a python around his neck, we got to feed (tame) kangaroos, ostriches, goats, deer, sheep, etc., and Deb got to fulfill her dream of holding a real-live koala! It was actually quite heavy, but surprisingly softer than imagined, and smelled of fresh eucalyptus.

We ended the day with a refreshing, much needed shower and then headed out to spot some wild kangaroos with Bree, Lisa and their 14-month-old daughter Abbie. Kangaroos are quite the pest and supposedly out number humans here. They knock down fences, eat plants, and cause car accidents. Sound familiar Pennsylvania...? Anyway, they were still neat to see them hopping and carrying a joey in their pouch. Bree and Lisa even made us feel more at home by frying up some food and cooking macaroni and cheese for dinner. Yum!

Tomorrow we're off to water-ski in the morning and to a genuine Australian BBQ tomorrow night. :)

P.S. ~ I (Deb) passed my final and am officially on winter break from school! Yippee!!

Into the Rainforest

2009-12-14T03:50:00.000-08:00

Today was yet another wonderful day exploring another corner of this great continent (Australia, in case you’re just now joining us on this blog). Today we explored the tropical rainforests of north eastern Australia – just southwest of Cairns – through a tour company called “On the Wallaby Tours.” Our guide, Bart – a man of the world who has been in over 40 different countries, knows a ton about everything, doesn’t care much for shoes or cell phones, and can speak several languages – showed us around a specific part of the jungle called Atherton Tablelands. We got to see some fantastic vegetation – including a HUGE fig tree, which has a majority of its roots growing above ground. Apparently, 500 years ago, a bird pooped on a random (non-fig) tree and in that poop was fig seeds. After some time, those seeds began to grow on that tree and sent it’s roots down into the ground. Eventually, it grew so much that it choked out and killed the host tree and became it’s own, slightly freaky, fig tree. Check it out!

We also got to see some crater lakes and some beautiful water falls – all the while learning tons of random facts and jokes from Bart. We’re so glad we did this tour, despite the fact that we’re still recovering from 10 dives and 3 days on a rocky boat. No joke, I (timmy) am literally still swaying back and forth. Kinda hoping it goes away soon. I’d rather not get seasick while on land. Enjoy some of the photos from today.

Tomorrow is our last day in Cairns and tomorrow night we head back to Sydney and then to Perth on the other side of the continent. And if you think of it, say a prayer for Deb. She has to take a final online tomorrow for her grad course.

And the journey continues!

G’day
Tim and Deb

Great Barrier Reef? Try AWESOME Barrier Reef!

2009-12-13T00:02:00.001-08:00

Well, we have returned safely to land after an incredible 3 days at sea, diving one of the 7 natural wonders of the world. We are officially PADI open water diving certified!

Friday morning, we boarded a diving boat that took us an hour and a half (60 kilometers) away from land and to the reef. Here, we did our first few dives in the warm water. Theses dives were training dives and we had to perform certain skills, like fill our mask up with water and empty it out again underwater, for our certification. We then boarded the overnight boat (a much bigger boat) in the afternoon and got settled there. We did some snorkeling in the afternoon and could see tons of fish right from the surface. The reef is so colorful and alive with so many different fish and life. It was fascinating to watch. The gentle rocking of the boat put us to sleep that night.

Saturday morning we work up bright and early for a 6:30 dive. This was our final certification dive, and despite the moderately strong current, we managed to complete our tasks and pass for our certification. Shortly after breakfast, we went for a “free dive” and could finally go where and do what we pleased. We buddied up with a lovely couple from the Netherlands – Jon and Ineka – and went for a dive. It is absolutely breathtaking (no pun intended) and there are so many different kinds of fish down there. So much to watch and observe. We really enjoyed trying to swim past at a very slow pace to try to see as much life as possible.

Saturday night was a unique experience in that we participated in a night dive. Yes, indeed, we are officially crazy… but we were with many other “crazies” as well. ☺ At 7:00, it was dark out, and after a brief training session, we followed a guide out into the ocean at night. It is a completely different world at night! The smaller fish have gone to sleep and are no where to be found. The bigger fish, however, are out and about. We saw what we like to call “puppy dog” fish – big fish, roughly about 2 feet from fin to face, that swam just beside us the entire time and tried to find food using our beams from the flashlights. They would spot one and dart past you to go get it. We saw some other neat fish as well. Very cool to be diving at night.

Sunday morning we again woke up early for a 6:30 dive and this time spotted a sea turtle! We were probably about 5 feet away from it and watched it eat some breakfast in the coral. Throughout our diver, we saw some sharks, Trigger fish (mean, territorial fish – actually bit another diver (he’s ok though)), chocolate-dipped damsel (fish that looks like it was dipped in chocolate), murray eel, lion fish, and a million others that I can’t name. And we found Nemo!!! Anyway, the list goes on – we saw a lot of cool things out there.

It was a fantastic trip out to the Great Barrier Reef. And we made it back without getting eaten or stung by anything! Or puking ~ neither of us got sick. These pictures do not do it justice unfortunately, but we tried… Now we are relaxing back at the hostel and still feel like we’re rocking back and forth on the boat. Tomorrow we are off to the Tablelands for a guided rainforest tour. More pictures surely to come.

Day #9

2009-12-10T04:29:00.000-08:00

Yet another incredible day in OZ! Today we finished up our in-class portion of PADI open water diving certification. Debbie got a 48/50 on her final - well done Deb! I, on the other hand, got a 49/50. How do I do it, you ask? 3 words: by being awesome.

So tomorrow morning we're on the boat for our HUGELY anticipated 3 day/2 night boat trip into the reef for 9 dives - including 1 night dive. So we're kinda flippin excited. I have my dramamine ready to go so I don't get the pukes and Deb and I bought brand new goggles and snorkels to use. So we are set. We rented an underwater camera - so expect some amazing pictures soon! We probably won't have web access on the boat, so this is our last entry for the next 3 days. But enjoy some pictures from last nights festivities (the fire dancers and Deb giving the didgeridoo a go)!

Cheers,
Tim and Deb

Scuba Class

2009-12-09T04:24:00.000-08:00

Well, the internet is acting up again... so no pictures from today. Unfortunately you'll just have to read about our day.

We started our scuba class today and had half a day in the classroom, then spent the other half in the pool learning some skills on how to scuba dive. It was really fun and in talking to some people at our hostel, the reef sounds like it has many colorful and neat things to see. We're excited to go out on the boat and see it!

We enjoyed a BBQ at our hostel tonight and the exotic food they offered was kangaroo meat and cod that he had caught out on the reef (he hadn't gotten any crocodile). The kangaroo tasted pretty good, actually. They also had some fire dancers perform and we got to try playing the didgeridoo. It's really hard! And sounds so funny.

Well, we're off to bed now. Early start tomorrow for our second day of dive class.

~Tim and Deb

Safely in Cairns

2009-12-08T01:03:00.000-08:00

We arrived safely in Cairns this morning and checked into our hostel with no problem. It's actually a really nice hostel, with lots of open windows and colorful wall paintings; it has a laid back, easygoing vibe to it. We've got a great room that even has a balcony attached to it! (this is a picture of the "common room" here).

We spent the afternoon walking around town and checking out the local scene. There is no swimming in the ocean here because it is pretty muddy and there are crocodiles in it. They have a "swimming lagoon" by the beach, which is basically a really big swimming pool. It was pretty crowded with lots of swimmers and sunbathers; I kept seeing skin cancer and was hoping that everyone was wearing their sunscreen! :) The marina is quite spectacular too, with the mountains in the background.

Tomorrow we start day 1 of 2 days for our dive course, then we head out to the reef on a boat for a few days. We discovered some yummy Cadburry Carmel Koalas that we've been enjoying. Tomorrow, we try kangaroo and crocodile at the Hostel’s BBQ. Gotta love that Australia.

Good on ya, mate!

~Tim and Deb

Day #6 in Sydney

2009-12-07T01:47:00.001-08:00

Today was one of our favorite days so far. We started off by meeting up with Tim’s mom’s cousin Judith; what that makes them, we don’ know… but we’re family. She treated us to a lovely breakfast right on the bay, overlooking the Harbour Bridge and Opera House. Then we caught a ferry ride over to Watson’s Bay ~ a quaint little town in Sydney ~ and explored around there. There was an amazing view of the Pacific Ocean on top of these cliffs there, and we probably spent a good hour enjoying the view and taking it all in. We ate some yummy fish and chips, then returned on the ferry and parted ways. The rest of the afternoon we spent lounging around in a park by the Opera House and ended our day at Harry’s Café de’ Wheels ~ a meat pie cart. They load up the meat pie with mashed potatoes, mashed peas and gravy. Lovely.

We head up to Cairns tomorrow to start our scuba diving adventure. Great Barrier Reef ~ here we come!

2009-12-06T03:21:00.001-08:00

(The internet has not been nearly as readily available as hoped... but alas, we are at trusty old McDonald's with their free wifi to enjoy!)

Yesterday (Saturday) we went to Paddington Market and enjoyed a bunch of outdoor stalls selling clothes, food, and hand-made goods. Breakfast came first, of course, and it was fried eggs, grilled tomatoes ("tah-ma-toes"), fries ("chips"), toast, bacon and tea. Yum. We enjoyed a lovely dinner right on the harbor, with the Opera House in view behind us as we ate. Then it was off to our cultural experience at the Drag Christmas show. We were all rather entertained, to say the least. Today we said good-bye to our travel mates as they are on their way to Cairns now. Tim and I took in some free museums around town and read some leisure reading in a park near the harbor for the afternoon.

I have yet to see a real-live Christmas tree. All of the Christmas decorations and festivities are pretty lousy over here compared to American standards... The weather was better today, and we are still free from sunburn!

Our last day in Sydney is tomorrow (Monday); I think we are going to try to track down some meat-pies to try. (Can you tell that food is an important part of the experience...?) :)

Until we find some more free internet ~
Tim and Deb

Day at the Beach

2009-12-04T14:39:00.000-08:00

For the past few days we have been at the Northern Beaches - the beaches on the peninsula that extends North Sydney. They have all been gorgeous! Our "travel guides" Natalie and Andrew took us around and showed us all of the good parts of town and the best beaches. These few days have been filled with lots and lots of walking. We've gone on some pretty incredible hikes, saw a moon rise (just like a sunrise, but with the moon), rode the ferry across the bay, saw some penguins, and done a lot of exploring. We also visited the Sydney Fish Market, and took a behind the scenes tour to see the bustling auction floor where all of the fish are sorted and sold. We weren't expecting Sydney to be so cold... It's probably remained in the 60's, dropping down lower with the wind and at night, getting warmer when the sun is shining. It has been a whirlwind of a trip so far, but we are both very much enjoying Sydney. Tonight, we are off to the Opera House to take in a rather "cultural" show. :) Oh, and they have some really interesting signs here too.

We Made It!!

2009-12-02T02:57:00.000-08:00

We are here - safe and sound in Sydney. We hit the ground running too. After getting our stuff locked away in our hostel - we met up with our good friends Andrew Scandrett and his wife Natalie Thomson and headed out into Sydney. I think we ended up walking 10 miles today - ALL over. Enjoy some pictures from our day!

Off to Australia!

2009-11-30T16:15:00.000-08:00

So yes - we know - it's been almost an entire year since we've written on our blog. 2009 has been an amazing year filled with so many exciting things. However, I will save a year in review blog for later. Right now the big news is that tonight, at 10pm, we depart on our hugely anticipated 3 week backpacking trek through Australia!!! We've known for years that Oz is a place we must see - and it just worked out this year. We'll be going with our good friends Sam and Ellen Wu. We land in Sydney and stay there for a week, then head up to Cairnes for a week diving the great barrier reef, and finish our trip out on the West Coast in Perth to hang with our good friends Bree and Lisa Dudek. We're going to do our best to blog along the way and post pictures of the trip. So check back in with us. Who knows - maybe I'll be able to post a video or two. Here are some pictures of our preparation.

A New Year!

2009-01-11T16:37:00.000-08:00

Welcome to 2009 readers :) So far 2009 is going pretty great! Hope you all had a wonderfully relaxing and enriching Holiday time. I'm usually kinda bummed when it's all over - but this year I'm actually doing great. We had a great time for New Years. Deb's family came out and joined us for year #2 at the rose parade. YEP - we acted homeless again and slept on the street waiting for the big event. It was a blast! And now I have some high hopes for things to come in '09.

First - I'm still pretty excited about this voiceover stuff. My commercial demo is now completed and ready! To go. If you're interested in hearing it - click here! I'm now working on my animation demo - and once that is done - I'll be shopping it to some agents and see where we can go with it all!

I have some interesting ideas for comedy this year in terms of viral type videos to make. I also hope to get more opportunities to perform out here. I go back and forth with my passion for standup - but I still want to do it and see what kind of things come my way.

Debbie is EXCITED for her second semester of grad school. She had a GREAT first semester getting A's in BOTH classes - 4.0 baby! This semester will be a bit more challenging, specifically with her Pathophysiology class (you should see the size of the flippin book) - but she is up for it!

But we'll keep you posted as we move ahead! Happy New Year to you all. I hope this is a blessed year for you all indeed!

Timmy

Merry Christmas!

2008-12-25T19:05:00.000-08:00

It's 7PM on Christmas evening and I wanted to just write a brief note to wish all who read a very MERRY Christmas. I realized many of you east coasters are getting ready to go to bed - but I wanted to get my seasons greetings in. I hope you had a very peaceful, wonderful day. Though I'm alone on Christmas day - I'm very thankful for this Holiday and it means a great deal to us. We had a WONDERFUL visit back home with our wonderful families in PA. It was sad to return - but my awesome brother Kyle came back with us. It was so great to show him around LA.

Hope you have a great Holiday time. Bless you all!

timmy (and deb)

Home for Christmas!

2008-12-07T14:15:00.000-08:00

Well - we are excited! This Tuesday, Deb and I are heading home for an early Christmas to the state of thrills and unending excitement - PENNSYLVANIA! It really feels like it's been a while since we've been home - so we're just so excited for this visit. We'll, of course, split the time between my fam in Harrisburg and Deb's in Pittsburgh. But we're just planning to relax and enjoy time with the people we love. Perhaps we'll get a chance to see some of you. If we don't - so sorry. But you can ALWAYS come visit us out here!

This week, I'm proud to say, I recorded my commercial voiceover demo reel! My producer, Cynthia, my engineer, Chuck, and I cranked it out on Thursday evening. I can't believe how fast we did it. I was in and out in less than two hours (voiceover is nice like that because the only instrument you need is your voice). Now it's in Chuck's hands to engineer the whole thing. The demo will be 1 to 2 minutes in length with about 10 different voice samples. He'll string them together seamlessly AND insert sound tracks behind each sample. So it will sound like a bunch of actual commercials. I can't wait. I'm very confident that this will open the door for me to start getting work! Next step, after Christmas, is to begin producing my animation reel. I'm excited for this one because it will be all character based so I can capture as many of my funny voices as possible! Of course you'll be able to listen to them when they are ready!

Well - that's it for now. Hope this advent season is a joyous time for all of you and that you find yourselves in a loving community in which to share it!

blessings,
Timmy (and Deb)

ps - if you're interested in buying a Honda Scooter, let me know. We're looking to sell ours.

A Very Merry Thanksgiving!

2008-11-30T13:33:00.000-08:00

Ok - I'm STILL full. No joke. I suppose I've been eating a bit less for the past 4 months so Thursday, being thanksgiving of course, was my excuse to go CRAZY. We ate allll day. ALL day folks. We had a FANTASTIC Thanksgiving. We spent it with our good friends Chris and Rachel Hall. We have so much fun with them that we actually had them over on Wednesday night for a sleep over. There's something so much more fun about having a more prolonged celebration - even if they do only live one mile north of us. Wednesday night we went out to see Australia (fantastic film) and had fish tacos at Rubios - one of our very faves.

Thursday morning, Deb and I actually got up early for a little bike ride in a meager attempt to make some extra room for food. When we got back, Chris and Rachel had the parade on and the thankfulness BEGAN! We began cooking our 14 pound bird (way too much meat for 4 people) around 11. I was in charge of basting - something I tend to pretty much rule at. You won't find a better baster. Dinner was ready at 3 and we had turkey, mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, corn casserole or bread or whatever, crescent rolls, and stuffing! It was all VERY good! After cleaning up we decided to take a little walk to help digestion and then we came back to watch one of our all time favorite movies - Love Actually! If you haven't seen it - see it. We have so much to be thankful for and this Holiday with friends only reinforced that.

Friday Deb worked and I hung out with my new friend Jacob! I began a mentorship program through a local organization called the Lake Avenue Foundation. It's linked to our Church and does work with families in a less privileged part of Pasadena. One of their programs is mentoring - so I applied and they matched me up with Jacob. He's 8 years old. I was given free tickets to the LA car show - so we went. We had a GREAT time together. He is a sweet, fun little guy. We just went from car to car - getting in any of the ones that were open and pretending to speed away! I'm excited about this. I'm excited to get to know Jacob more and I'm excited to get to know his family more. They are wonderful people! It's so easy and natural to hang out with people that pretty much look just like us - so I'm excited for the opportunity to connect with people that come from completely different backgrounds and even speak another language (spanish)!

So there's our last couple of days. Now - I'm going to sleep. Happy Sunday.

Brilliant Bluegrass!

2008-11-22T17:15:00.000-08:00

This past Thursday - we went to a BRILLIANT concert. It was in a small, intimate side room at a place in West Hollywood called 'Largo.' You may have heard of a fantastic group called 'Nickel Creek.' Well - two of the groups three members are brother and sister named Sean and Sara Watkins. And every couple of Thursday nights when they're not on tour playing in front of thousands they host a little concert called 'The Watkins Family Hour.' So we went. The 'little room,' they call it, sits only about 50 people. Around 9PM, Sara and Sean and three other guys got up on this tiny stage with one old fashion mic and jammed blue grass for two hours. We just sat there and took it in. And it was such a chill show. They'd just pick what they wanted to play up there and without skipping a beat - they'd go right to it and play brilliantly! Just one of many many things we love about living in LA :) I've borrowed a picture from my friend Ben's blog. It's a picture with Sara and Sean in the middle. On either side are two guys that went with us - John and Alan.

Can't wait for THANKSGIVING! I rode my bicycle up the steepest hill I know of today in preparation for Thursdays gorging. It really kinda sucked. We're planning for a great time with our good friends Chris and Rachel! Hope you have a great week!

much love,
timmy (and deb)

27

2008-11-15T14:58:00.000-08:00

Hard to believe - yet another year of life has come and gone. I am, as of November 12th, now 27 years old. Don't worry those of you who are older than me and wish you were 27 again - I'm not going to complain about how old I feel. I won't do that to you. I don't really think anyone has the right to complain about how old they are unless they're in their 100's. Even if you're 90 and start saying "Oh, I'm just so old" - you know a 91 year old will pipe in and say "Now you shut up! Do you know what I wouldn't give to be 90 again? It only gets harder from here whipper snapper." (At what age to you actually start using the word "whipper snapper" anyway?) But if you're 109, you're kind of the oldest person alive. When you hit that age, you've merited the right to complain about age. All that to say I - at 27 - am doing just fine. In fact, I'm feeling GREAT! I feel healthier and lighter than I did at 22. California is GREAT! I have to keep remembering that back east, people have had to take their exercise (if they are still exercising) indoors. It's 91 in LA today. I love being able to ride my fantastic bicycle all year round! I do have to remind myself, however, that 27 is DONE. I may have that age next to my name - but my 27th year is finished. I am now beginning my 28th year. It's a little more depressing to think that way - but I just have to be realistic. Goodbye 27. :) We celebrated with our friends the Widemans and the Whites by eating some fantastic Thai food at our favorite Thai place - Saladang. mmmmmmm! Deb made me the bestest cake on earth - German Sweet Chocolate! I've got a picture for you to drool over!

We are well! I began the process of producing my voiceover demo reel last Monday. This is the thing that makes everything possible within the voiceover actors world. It's going to make it possible for me to get an agent and from there get auditions and WORK!! We're (me and my producer) starting with my commercial demo and after that will work on the animation demo. It's an investment - but it will be worth it! I'm very excited. The process will take a few months. I've had a few comedy gigs recently that went decently.

Deb and I are SO excited for the Holidays! We get to go home for a visit in just about 3 weeks! We go home for a week on Dec.9th! So maybe we'll see some of you readers when we're there!

As always - hope you all are well and that your life is blessed!

Timmy (and Deb)

ps - visit my website if you haven't recently!

New Things!

2008-11-08T11:28:00.000-08:00

So these past few weeks have been filled with new, exciting things. Three in particular. NEW THING #1 - we have a NEW CHAIR! And not just any new chair - but a brand new leather chair WITH a leather ottoman. And it's REAL leather. This thing is so comfortable and it looks great in our apartment. I've always wanted some kind of leather form of furniture. I love the way it looks, feels, AND smells. In fact - I'm sitting in it right this second! I'm attaching a picture - just so you can feel a little bit jealous. But you are more than welcome to come visit and sit in it as LONG as you want!!

NEW THING #2 - I just posted a NEW VIDEO!! It's one my wonderful sibling Kyle and Kara and I shot this past summer. It's entitled Egyptian Tune. It's an intrinsically thoughtful and academic look at the ancient empire of Egypt. Enjoy!

NEW THING #3 - We have a NEW PRESIDENT!! I have to admit that I'm pretty excited about this. All politics aside - it's just so exciting to be a part of this incredibly special time in History. If you're not as excited as me - that's fine. But I have a lot of hope for our country with this new addition to the White House. GOBAMA! Let's commit to keeping our new leaders in prayer!

Well - that's about all for this time. Hope all is well with YOU all.

Timmy (and Debbie)

Gaining and Losing

2008-10-25T16:29:00.000-07:00

Well - I gotta say I'm pretty proud of myself. While we haven't been posting every week - we're doing a bit better. So - definitely some updates!! (ok - let me just say I'm watching man vs. wild on discovery and I'm about to puke. He just ate a sheep heart. DISGUSTING!) So on the gaining side -yesterday - I had a meeting with a talent agent. The meeting went GREAT and now I've got myself a commercial and print agent!! What that means is she will be submitting my headshot and resumes (online) to casting directors of commercials. If the casting directors like my photo - they call me in for an audition. The goal is to be out on several auditions a week, which makes booking one much more likely. Also - eventually - once I've booked some things and join the screen actors guild, they'll very likely represent me theatrically and send me on auditions for tv and film!! So it's just a beginning - but a very encouraging beginning. They're a legit agent - unlike some of the other ones I spoke with that seemed kind shady. Woohooo!!

On the losing side - I am losing WEIGHT!! I (Tim) - had gained a bit of weight since my junior year of college and never really got back to my target weight (170). I got within ten pounds for our wedding - but then afterwords, of course, I gained 10 or so back. I started doing an online version of weight watchers - where you log what you eat online and keep track of your calories then log your weight each week. I started at 194 in August and I am down to 180!! Just 10 more pounds to go! It's just so rewarding and I feel much healthier!

Deb has also lost some things - work hours!! This is fantastic. She was feeling a little overwhelmed working 6 days a work cycle (two weeks) and doing grad school. So she talked to her boss and managed to lose a day AND she's now on a fixed schedule where she works EVERY monday and tuesday and then every other saturday. She won't take to massive a pay cut, will keep benefits, and be able to work overtime! It's so great and she is so excited.

So things are going well. Still loving California. About to love our apartment just a little more. After I post this - I'm running to a furniture store to buy a LEATHER CHAIR AND OTTOMAN!! We'll put some pictures on here when we get it!!

Please leave a comment and say hi. Hope you all are well!

timmy (and deb)

ps - I have some new standup online. Please visit my website - www.timmymorgan.com.

Slow for Tim - CRAZY for Deb

2008-10-09T18:06:00.000-07:00

Hey there readers (all 2 of you :) - by the way - does anyone else find it awkward trying to put a smiley face inside parentheses?

So - life in LA. Let me first say that I JUST released a new video. I made a mock McCain attack ad. I'm sorry - I know it may seem partisan - but I'm just so tired of the negative campaigning so, since I'm comedian, I did the thing that comes most naturally to me - find the comedy in it.

So things are slow for me. While I'm coming out with brilliant comedy online - there just hasn't been much work for me from the extra work OR from subbing. I did submit an application to a local private christian high school which is literally a mile down OUR road. So just waiting on that. "Waiting" - probably the one word that best describes my existence out here. Waiting to hear from agents, waiting to hear about auditions, waiting to hear about day work, waiting to hear about gigs. It can be a little frustrating - especially when you see successful comedians and actors who literally have to turn work DOWN because they're getting so many offers. But God is teaching me patience and how NOT to worry. It's all good!

Debbie, on the other hand, is a busy lady. When she's not working, she's doing grad school work - and when she's not doing grad school work, she's either sleeping or working. But she is learning balance. It's not easy - but to me she's doing it like a pro.

Still loving Cali. Things are starting to cool down a little bit - PERFECT for cycling. Hope you all are well!

love,
timmy and deb

Wiped Out...

2008-09-27T22:03:00.000-07:00

OK - so I'm probably one of the worst bloggists in history. I know we're not giving readers enough to keep 'em coming back. But for those of you who still tune in from time to time. Here's the latest!

OK - so I (timmy) am WIPED OUT. Today I topped my all time cycling mileage in one ride record. My friends Ben and Ryan and I biked - are you ready for this - 107.50 miles today. 107.50 MILES!! Can you believe that. And yes - to answer your question - the tush is quite sore. It was an utterly exhausting experience. Sitting on your hard, bicycle road bike seat for 6+ hours is not a lazyboyesque experience. We hit a major wall around mile 80 or so. It really was like running a marathon - minus the impact pain. But the joy of knowing I probably burned enough calories to put me in the Michael Phelps category was quite gratifying. But I am tired!

So we are well! We returned from a wonderful vacation with Deb's family in Sunset Beach, NC about three weeks ago. It was refreshing and just awesome. What a blessing to be able to spend time with family in such a wonderful place! We were a bit sad upon our return but we're back to loving CA again. Two weeks later we went with two other couples to Sonoma County again for some wine tasting and cycling (where we did 70 miles in one day!) Debbie is busy. She has started grad school. She is doing an online degree and she is busy doing that and working still. I'm still slowly trying to make my go out here. I began a voiceover class and am very excited about it!!

So that's us really quick. I'll try and get another one up soon. Love you all!

timmy

August...

2008-08-26T16:59:00.000-07:00

So gosh - these past couple months have been rough on the blog writing front. I'll try not to make this too long because I know no one will read much if I do! It's been a fantastic and FAST summer. It's just so hard to believe it's almost over. The end of July saw a wonderful visit/vacation with the Morgan family. We hung around Dillsburg for two days - visiting friends and family - and then headed down to one of my favorite places on earth - Avon, North Carolina in the outer banks. It was a relaxing and fun vacation. Obviously, our family interaction is quite limited living here in California. So we savored every minute.

August has been great. I'm feeling very encouraged. As I mentioned earlier, I've decided to pursue voiceover work. I was able to have a meeting with a coach and have gotten into a fantastic workshop staring September 9th! So that will be the first big step on this new career road. I just had my first gig at a major comedy club - The IMPROV! It went extremely well and I will have footage up soon for you to watch! And I have a new website!! timmymorgan.com Please visit!

Deb is well! She has her orientation for grad school TOMORROW! So she's getting excited and nervous for that to begin. And we're both very excited for Thursday because we are flying home to go on vacation with her family - the Schultz's. We're going down to Sunset Beach in NC. So that will be a fantastic, relaxing time!

We hope and pray all is going well in the lives of the probably 2 people who will read this!

blessings and love,
tim and deb

More Visitors!

2008-07-09T15:52:00.001-07:00

We're back! I'm sure we've lost readers - what with the time lapse in our posts. But for those who still tune in...Hey!

June was a fantastic month - and HOT! There's a phenomenon out here called "June Gloom" where the whole city is pretty much covered in this gloomy, misty, cold fog. Then July comes and the sun comes out. Well - there was no June gloom this year - not one day. It was a HOT and sunny month - the average temp being somewhere in the 90's. But that's ok - we still love it. June didn't see as much travel for us. Deb got a great trip out to NY to camp with her college roomies - but besides that, we camped out here in Pasadena. I decided to earn a little more money and do more extra work. You may see me on the 3rd episode of Monk and perhaps an episode of "Chuck (NBC)" next season. I had my very FIRST (and only actually) day of subbing out here. It was for a French class and it went AWESOME! When the school years starts up again in the fall, I look forward to more subbing!

July brought some muchly anticipated visitors - my Aunt Judie and her dear friend Linda! Aunt Judie JUST retired and is enjoying a two week retirement trip to where else but one of the best places on earth - California! They got here on July 2nd and took off upstate just two days ago on the 7th. We had a BLAST with them. We showed them around - checking out Hollywood, Beverly Hills (yes - we actually walked down Rodeo Drive and even went IN the Hugo Boss store (great suits!!)), Santa Monica, Pasadena, Solvang, and Santa Barbara. We even managed to squeeze a screening of Wall-e in there (great Pixar pic)! It was so nice to host them and show them our new home!! And of course - we ate a lot of good food! I think the highlight of their visit was enjoying a pre- 4th of July celebration at the famous Hollywood Bowl. The LA philharmonic performed a tribute to the Dodgers 50th year in LA. Randy Neuman was there as well as some other famous names (all of which we didn't know except Tommy Lasorta) in baseball. The music was wonderful, we ate a wonderful picnic, and of course, enjoyed some incredible fireworks at the end!

July is looking to be busy. I'll be extraing for 10 days on a Tom Hanks movie due out next year called "Angels and Demons." If you haven't read the book - read it. It's by Dan Brown, but less controversial than DaVinci Code. Then we head home at the end of the month for vacation in the outer banks with my fam! Can't wait! So that's us. Hope you all are well. MIss and love you all very much!

Timmy (and Deb)

Let's Catch Up!

2008-06-22T14:49:00.000-07:00

Well hey there readers (if we have any left) - please forgive the amount of time that has lapsed since our last post. Yes we know - we are lazy california bums - what can we say? I'm going to try and briefly catch you up on our last month and a half since you heard about our AMAZING trip to San Fran (a trip we plan to repeat I might add). So shortly after we returned from the bay area - my WONDERFUL parents came out to visit us. They spent a few days enjoying the bay area as well and then we met them in Santa Ynez valley (if you ever saw the movie "Sideways" then you know how amazing it is). Then we showed them around Pasadena and sadly had to say goodbye. But we really had a wonderful time with them. It's so fun to show people from back home our lives out here. Even though we have nothing to do with how awesome Pasadena is - we somehow take pride and credit for it when we show it off.

It would have been much more sad to see them leave if we didn't have the joy of knowing our dear friend Rachel Moury was coming to visit just two days later. On Wednesday, May 21 she flew into town. We immediately went down to San Diego and enjoyed a day and a half there seeing a Padres game and going to Sea World! We also showed our home off to Rachel, went to Santa Monica and just had a brilliant time together. Rae Rae left a week later and there was much sadness. But it was just so wonderful to see her. It was as if it had only been a week since we'd last seen her. Friendships like that are just so wonderful!

Well - two days after Rae left - we were gone again. Our good friends Chris and Rachel Hall were given a time share by their parents for free and they cashed it in at a lodge in Big Bear Lake (in the Sierra's about two hours east). They invited us to join them - so we spent 5 days just chillin with them up there. We did some hiking, played some games, drank some Arbor Mist (Deb's new favorite alcoholic beverage - a nice mix of wine and Sprite haha) - and just had fun with them!

And now we're back in LA! Deb is getting ready for Grad School in a little over two months. She and Meredith (our good friend who is doing the exact same program) just registered and ordered their books! Exciting! I have been just doing some extra work to earn a little money for the summer. I do have some news in terms of what direction I'm planning to go. I've decided to invest time and money into going into voice over work. This is a field that I feel gifted in and there happens to be a lot of work in it too. If you're not sure what that mean - voice over work covers anything from tv/radio ads and commercials, training videos - to cartoons and movies. It's a great field that I can do it from anywhere. So I'll be taking a class this year and putting a good demo together and hopefully can then get an agent and get some work!! I'm also moving ahead in comedy. I'd like to put a website together this summer and a decent demo and hopefully get some management. Still a very unknown and crazy future ahead - but we continue to trust God through it all!!

But life is grand out here. Deb leaves this week for NY where she'll be camping with some good college friends. When she gets back - we'll be graced by a visit from my wonderful aunt Judie! Can't wait. Please say Hi. We miss you all and hope you are all well!

much love,
Timmy and Deb

ps - it's flippin HOT out here. It was 105 yesterday and today it's 100.

Sonoma and San Fran

2008-05-10T13:23:00.000-07:00

So the fun continues in California (sorry to make you all jealous). We took another mini vacation, a mincation if you will, last weekend with our awesome friends Ben and Meredith. We left on Thursday (5/1) for beautiful Sonoma County in Northern California. If you've not heard of it, it's the neighboring county to famous Napa county - the counties known for their production of wonderful wines. It's just an hour north of maybe my favorite city, other than Pasadena, in America - San Francisco. We got to our campsite - yeah, we camped - around 4 on Thursday and kinda just chilled. Friday was our high culture day of wine tasting. We rented some bikes and biked to three different vineyards. It was super fun. The wine was quite tasty and Deb survived the day tasting wine without having to add ANY sprite!! haha

On Saturday, we got up early and left for a day in San Francisco. We played tourist all day - visiting the park where they filmed the opening sequence for "Full House", we went to the hippy district, and then parked at Fisherman's Wharf. We had a nice lunch there and then got some amazing ice cream at Ghiradelli Square. And of course - we rode the trolly. We took it downtown, walked around, got some Chinese food in Chinatown, and then it was nighttime and time to head back to the campsite. We could see ourselves doing well in San Francisco - especially since there are so many scooters everywhere. It was a great day. Sunday, we packed up and it was back south to LA. It was an awesome trip and we hope to return in the fall when the grapes are ripe!

So - what's next? We're looking forward to Mom and Dad Morgan's visit this week. They land in San Fran on Tuesday and we'll meet up with them on Thursday. It will be so great to show them around our new home. When they leave, our dear friend Rachel Moury will be coming into town. Tons to look forward to. As always - we hope you are well!

Tim (and Deb)

Yosemite!!

2008-04-26T21:49:00.000-07:00

We went up to visit our friend Bobby in Fresno this week. (We studied together with Bobby in England ~ jolly good) He took us up to Yosemite for the day. To get to the Yosemite valley ~ the center of the park ~ we had to drive a ways in beyond the gate. The road led through a tunnel and as we came out the other side, the view is amazing. It suddenly opens up and there is this beautiful green valley in front of us. There are waterfalls, huge rock formations and just a breathtaking view of Yosemite. Sort of the kind of view I picture in the movie "The Land Before Time." We kept waiting for a dinosaur head to pop up out of the trees... We decided to take a hike and ended up spending the afternoon hiking up to the top of Yosemite Falls. Wow ~ that was an incredible hike. Very hard, very steep but very rewarding. The view from up there was incredible, we could see all over the valley. It was neat to be at the top of the Falls and see all the water going down over the edge. And can I just say "ouch." We are all feeling the after effects of that hike and are babying our muscles now. Here are some pictures from our trip, but obviously pictures don't do it justice... OH - and if you're wondering just how high we hiked - take a look at the last picture of the falls from a distance and then look at how tiny the people are next to it (they're a good 200 yards in front of it too) - and then look up at where the falls begin - yep - we went that high!

We hung out with Bobby and he showed us around Fresno the next day and we bought some amazingly delicious fruit at some roadside stands. I have never tasted strawberries that taste this good before! And fresh oranges too. California is so good to us! :) It seems like it has just been one big vacation since we moved out here ~ getting to do all these fun things and see all these cool places, and, oh yeah, working every once in awhile... (not that we're complaining!!!) Anyway, we're off to get ready for our next adventure (camping in Sonoma next weekend) Hope all is well out there!!!

Baja Bike Ride

2008-04-26T21:20:00.000-07:00

Last weekend we packed up Dot (our car), loaded up our bikes and headed down for Mexico! We rode down with our pals Ben and Meredith, spent the night along the border and crossed into Mexico in the morning. We joined about 7500 other bikers at the start line for the Baja Bike Ride. It was an awesome ride ~ 50 miles along the coast ~ starting in Rosarito and ending in Ensenada and traveling mainly along the ocean. A lot of families came out and watched along the bike route and cheered us on. And a bunch of little kids lined up and reached out their hands to get a high-5 as we biked past. They also yelled out "candy!" (one of the few English words they knew) as the bikers rode by - some of the bikers knew to bring candy and treats down to throw to the kids in the sidelines. It was great. At the end, they had a big finish line fiesta with all sorts of tacos, burritos, churros and yummy (authentic) Mexican food. We packed up and headed back home afterwards. We all slept pretty well that night... :)

Bikes and Workout Videos...

2008-04-10T23:49:00.001-07:00

Hey Everyone!

It's Timmy. Deb would write this - but she's next to me sleeping. Something about having to go be a nurse tomorrow or something - i don't know. Well - it's been nearly a month - forgive us. Some new things - I just released a NEW VIDEO!! It's called 'Timlates: An Exercise ExtravaFUNza." It's a new workout that is sweeping the nation and changing lives! It's only 4 1/2 minutes long - and that's all you need to have your life changed. Trust me. It's just below. ENJOY!! And please - if this has impacted your life - don't keep it to yourself. Share it with your friends and family. Together...well, you know the rest.

As for what's going on out here - well - Debbie and I just keep falling more and more in love with California!! We've been biking a whole lot. Last Friday we went with our friends Ben and Meredith Wideman (faithful readers of our blog) to Santa Monica and biked 44 miles up and down the coast. it was amazing! Parts of us were sore - but it was a fantastic time. We're getting our money's worth out of those wonderful bikes!!

We have a lot to look forward to this spring. Next week I take my class, finally, to be a substitute. It's been a long road - but it's finally here. Next weekend - we're driving down to Baja, Mexico and riding in a 50 mile century race. It's really low key and will be a blast. In the beginning of May we're planning a trip up to wine country which we can't wait for and then - WE'RE GETTING VISITORS! My parents are planning to come out west for their - your ready for this - 35TH WEDDING ANNIVERSARY!!! So we're going to get to see them. And then the very next week, our dear friend Rachel Moury is coming out!! So like I said - much to look forward to. Deb is still waiting to hear from Cal State as to whether she's in for their nursing education grad program - but we're not worried. Deb rocks!!

We hope you all are well and blessed! We love you all!! Leave a comment and say hey!

love,
Tim and Deb

The Latest...

2008-03-14T11:43:00.000-07:00

Well hey there people! How's life? I hope all is quite well with you! We are doing well ourselves. Let me just say how much we love living in California right now. This week's weather has been absolutely fabulous (an adjective I don't typically use to describe anything). It's been consistently in the mid to upper 70's and nothing but sun - though, today is a little cooler and more overcast. Deb has 3 days in a row off this week - so we decided to take a day vacation down to Santa Monica. The nice thing about California is that you literally only have to drive a few miles and you feel like you're on vacation in a place that you'd have to fly to. It was a great day. We rode our brand new bikes (yes - we purchased new bikes!!) on a 22 mile ride up and down the coast on this awesome trail that runs from Malibu down past Hermosa Beach. Out butts were quite sore by the end - but it was awesome.

So yeah - we have new bikes. Deb was due to get one and I, yet again, crashed my bike and this time, totaled it beyond repair. We got a great deal at a beautiful shop nearby and have been enjoying them as much as we can (which is often out here). Enjoy the attached pics.

Deb and I both enjoyed trips back east (not at the same time sadly). Deb and her two sisters (Katie and Pat) flew home to surprise their mom for her birthday. Since it's been over a year since all three girls were at home at the same time - this was a HUGE surprise indeed. They enjoyed a nice, relaxing, snowy three days together eating food, sitting by the fire, and playing games! I was sad not to be there - but so happy for Mom!

I just returned last week from a week at home. I was flown out by Paeoli Presbyterian Church (near Philly) to be the speaker at their annual winter retreat up in the Poconos. Friday night, Feb 29th, I just did comedy. Then I actually preached twice on Saturday. I was a bit nervous about crossing over from goofy comedy to a serious talk about faith - but it actually went quite well. I was amazed at how comfortable I was talking about Jesus and faith and abundant life and all the wonderful stuff! I was also able to just enjoy a great visit with my family for a few days before and after the weekend. I got to meet my BEAUTIFUL new niece Lily! She is a blessing. Lucy is an absolute trip. She's singing and like most little kids - is utterly obsessed with Elmo.

Now I'm back and getting back into things out here. I'm currently editing my workout video - Timlates - and it should be out by the end of the month. Stay tuned! Deb is continuing to enjoy her nursing and is awaiting word from Cal. State to see if she's in for grad school! I don't have any doubts - who wouldn't want Debbie!!! Last weekend was outdoors weekend for us. Friday we went skiing with our friends Ben and Meredith, Saturday we took a 6 mile hike, and Sunday we took a nice bike ride!

So all is well. Please drop us a line and say Hi! Hope life is well for you!

blessings,
Tim and Deb

Way too long - forgive us!!

2008-02-23T22:47:00.001-08:00

Hey You Wonderfuls!!
Please forgive me for not writing a blog for a month and a half. I know it must be really really tough to feel so disconnected from our lives - like being without milk, bread, or eggs during a snowstorm no doubt. We miss you all so much and hope you are super well! Let me quickly catch you up on things.

I'll start with Deb. Deb is still a nurse. She's now off orientation and she's doing amazingly. As you can imagine - there's always a degree of stress in nursing - but Debbie is doing so well and handling her work with skill and grace! Some MAJORLY EXCITING NEWS in Deb's life. Just two days ago - Deb mailed in her application in to California State University to pursue a masters in nursing with a concentration in nurse education. It appears to be a great program! She'll be able to go part time, work full time, and still finish in just two years. It will be through the internet - so she can hog our computer right from home ;) And it's an incredibly affordable program. There will be no need to take on loans! And what's even more exciting - we have good friends Ben and Meredith Wideman - well, Meredith is a nurse and she will be pursuing the same program at the same time. So Deb will have someone to work through it with. How exciting is this?!! It's truly a blessing!

Ok - so on the comedy/acting front. I've been able to get involved with some great projects so far this year. Last weekend I was in a shoot called West Guild Story (you can see it on youtube if you just type the title in the search bar). It's a parody on the writers strike that just ended. It was super fun. We spent a week rehearsing (dance and singing) and shot it on New York Street on CBS studios lot - the very same street where they filmed much of Seinfeld!! I have a supporting role - but was so thankful to be part of it and develop new friendships. Just two weeks ago - I shot my own workout video called "Timlates - A Workout Extravafunzga!!!" I still have yet to do much of the editing - so stay tuned. But it should be funny - and, of course, revolutionize the way the world works out!! I have a few standup gigs lined up - but nothing huge to speak of. Still deliberating over whether or not that's what I want to passionately pursue. We'll see.

As I type - Deb is actually in Pittsburgh. She and her sisters flew back to surprise her mother for her Birthday - and if you know Deb's mom then you'll know that is a wonderful gift indeed. She flies back tomorrow. It's been a wonderful visit. I am actually flying back east on Tuesday for a week. I'm being flone out to speak at a youth group retreat - to do comedy and then be the main speaker. I'm really excited do both. I love making people laugh and I love to talk about Jesus - so this should be a cool experience! Perhaps I'll see some of you while I'm home!

Well - that's the past month and a half - basically. Exciting no? Hope you are well. Please feel free to say HI!! Love you all!

blessings,
Tim (and Deb)

HAPPY 2008!!!

2008-01-04T13:06:00.000-08:00

Hey faithful readers!! Sorry so much for the long delay. Long story short - our mac had a couple issues installing the new operating system - Leopard - so our computer was rendered inoperable for 2 weeks. But thanks to my friend Lee who happens to work at a Mac store and his genius friend - our computer is up and running!!

So - last time we wrote - we were getting ready to go home for our Holiday visit. The visit was AWESOME! We got to split it down the middle and spend 8 days in Harrisburg and 8 in Pittsburgh. We even got to go to a wedding - the wedding of Deb's bestest friend ever Natalie. It was a great celebration. It was so refreshing to spend time with family and friends. Of course - it was way too short. But we're so thankful to be blessed with such wonderful friends and families and the means to return to visit when we need!

We got back to Pasadena late the 18th and returned to work on the 20th. I'll be honest, when Christmas day rolled around - it was actually quite weird. Deb had to work and I was left alone for most of the day. It just didn't feel like Christmas. Deb and I got to celebrate a lovely Christmas together on Christmas eve - so that was nice! When I picked Deb up after work on Christmas night - we drove around San Marino and looked at some of the Christmas lights on the HUGE houses. We were half tempted to walk up to one of the houses and ask if we could come in and hang out - haha. We just missed being with our families a whole lot. It's interesting how Christmas in our culture has become the family climax of the year. So not being with our families was sad. But we bounced back! :)

Deb and I had an AMAZING new years. We decided that we were going to rough it and camp out on Colorado Avenue - the main drag of the Rose Parade (which happens to be just two and a half blocks up from where we live!). We decided to scope out the territory around 1:30 on New Years Eve and it was already filling up. We were talking with one family that was camped out and part of the family happened to be from PA! Well - they just took us under their wing and told us to go get our stuff and camp out with them. it was AWESOME! They gave us their food, they gave us cots to sleep on, they even let us borrow marshmallows to throw at oncoming traffic (a pre-rose parade tradition). We were literally part of the family. IT WAS SOOOO FUN! There wasn't any organized New Years count down - we kinda all the sudden just started cheering and throwing more stuff. We didn't, or course, get much sleep and when we woke up at 6AM - there were 10x more people all around us then when we went to sleep. The parade was awesome! We had front row seats and could actually smell the floats. Debbie and I both felt that it was just so worth it! AND we made some new friends! Enjoy the some of the pictures!

So who knows what 2008 holds for us - but we'll certainly keep posted on everything! We love you all! God Bless you in this new year!

love,
timmy and deb

One more week!

2007-12-02T21:40:00.001-08:00

Hey there everyone! We're getting excited! One week from tomorrow - we will be getting on an airplane at LAX and flying home to PENNSYLVANIA!!! We can't wait. I'll be honest though - it's so hard to believe that we've been here for 3 months already. How ridiculously fast time goes. It's really only felt like a couple of weeks. But we've been having a blast out here - so that probalby explains it. But we're excited to smell the sweet PA air, to enjoy some cold weather, and of course, to see the people we love most in this world! We'll be home for 8 days - four days in Harrisburg and four in Pittsburgh! We hope we get to see as many of you as possible!

Ok - well, that's it. A short one. We'll give you a better update once we see you - AT HOME!!!

All I Want for Christmas is....training wheels please.

2007-11-19T20:24:00.000-08:00

OK - SO (this is Timmy by the way) - I CLEARLY have forgotten how to ride a bike. Some of you may know that I have really gotten into road biking over the past three or so years ever since I bought a GREAT bike from my old Brit buddy - James Hubbard. This bike has treated me great over the past three years. Well TWICE - and I'll repeat that - TWICE I have fallen off this bike in the past TWO WEEKS!!! And I'm not talking, "oops, I forgot my feet were still clipped in when I got to the stop light - here i go." No - I'm talking wipe outs - like you have when body surfing or boggie boarding - only not a nice cushion of ocean water to keep you safe - but the hard, jaggedy, cruel pavement of the road. The first accident occured about three weeks ago. I was riding with a group of friends from Fuller and we were descending the final hill of our 24 mile ride when I got going to fast, hit a sharp curve, hit the breaks, back tire slid, and I hit the road with my left knee to break my fall. Luckily - there was nothing else that broke - except my bike. On top of losing quite a bit of skin from my knee and hand, i popped two tubes, destroyed one tire, bent both wheels, and had to replace the front wheel. It was not a happy time for me. Well - finally, after two weeks, everything was fixed (including my knee - thanks to my wonderful nurse wife), I had new biking shoes with clips, and was ready to go. So this past Friday, I got up early and went off to meet my friend Ben. Not TWO BLOCKS from my apartment, riding down a straight as an arrow street, my left foot came out of the clip, the bike swerved out of control, and what else was there to break my fall again - you guessed it - my left knee. Luckily - I managed to lose skin three OTHER parts of my knee that weren't injured before. With any luck, I can finish off any healthy skin next time I go out. So - I'm not sure what's happening to me - but I'm thinking that this Christmas, it might be wise to invest in some training wheels, knee pads, and inflatable arm wingys just in case I crash into water and forget how to SWIM too.

But besides my biking mishaps - things are going well. A week ago I turned 26!! Woohooo! Who knows what this year will hold. But I had a great birthday and so many of you made me feel special by either calling or sending me lovely facebook messages! Debbie and I were finally able to go out for my birthday on Saturday night to the Macaroni Grill - my favorite of chain restaurants. They simply have the best bread you can get ANYWHERE!!!

We're excited for Thanksgiving! We'll be spending it in San Diego with Deb's sister Patti. We're so glad we'll be able to be with family. We hope you all have a wonderful Holiday and we want you to know that we couldn't possibly thank God MORE for all you wonderful souls that he has brought into our lives. Until next time - may the Lord bless and keep you. May he cause his face to shine upon you and be gracious unto you - and give you peace FOREVER!

love,
Timmy and Deb

NEW VIDEO!!

2007-11-10T17:57:00.000-08:00

Hello dear readers! You may have already heard (most likely by me) that I've posted my first comedic short online (one of hopefully many to come)! It's a short film called 'the conversation' and it's about two good friends who learn the hard way that silent conversation in the back of class can lead to devastating, earthshattering, and even horrific misunderstandings. There are three places that you can go to see it - and if you wouldn't mind - it would be great if you went to all three. You only have to watch it on one - but the more hits I get on each - the better!! Here are the links:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=igWrEEidASU

http://www.funnyordie.com/videos/489538502a - BE SURE to vote on this one (voting it funny would be nice!)

http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=2071234124

If you don't feel like highlighting and pasting them, the links are in the tab to the right of our blog.

Also - feel free to check out my myspace page from time to time. I'll be keeping that updated and will be putting other stuff on there as well!

http://www.myspace.com/timmymorgan

I hope you enjoy it! If you don't get it - that's fine. It could be one of those concepts that only Aaron (the other guy in the video) and I find funny - and we're ok with that! But TELL YOUR FRIENDS!! Since I don't have a manager - any help you can give me is GREAT!

Things are still going great for us out here! Deb and I got to meet Patti (Deb's sister) - who lives in San Diego - for dinner on Thursday night halfway between LA and San Diego! It was a great time!! It is such a blessing having family living nearbye.

We continue to work hard out here and we're loving it. Of course your thoughts and prayers are SOOO much appreciated! Hope you're having a wonderful weekend!

tim and deb

A little taste of China

2007-11-04T11:20:00.000-08:00

Last Sunday night, after our evening church service, we went out to eat with some fellow church-goers. We went to a Chinese restaurant, and our friends, who happen to be of Chinese decent, ordered for us in Chinese. We felt like we had entered into another country ~ the restaurant was in a mostly Asian community and hardly any of the store signs were in English. We were the only two white people in site... It was fun, though. And we had to eat with chopsticks! I quickly learned that the best way to eat with those things is to shovel the food in to your mouth from the bowl and gave up on trying to pick up the pieces of food. The food was pretty tastey too, much better than Panda Express. After dinner we went to get 'Boba' drinks. That was an experience in itself. It is essentially large tapioca balls floating in sweet, cold chai tea. You have a big straw to drink through, and as you drink the liquid chai tea, you also suck up these large tapioca balls. You essentially drink/chew this beverage. Yeah, not our favorite drinks in the world, but it was fun to try. You can go to this website to see what we're talking about. (lollicup.com)

Tim auditioned for a goofy dance competition show (like Napoleon Dynamite style dancing) that will be on ABC next year. We are waiting to hear back from the judges. Keep your fingers crossed! In the meantime, he is continuing to do some extra work. Next Monday, Nov. 12 Tim will hopefully make his debut on Heros. And then the following Sunday night, he may be on Desperate Housewives. Keep your eyes out for him, you may not see any better acting for a long time... :) I went through chemotherapy class last week and will start giving chemo to patients shortly. And, of course, I am enjoying my job at the hospital. So far so good on the scooter too. No one has beeped at me yet! The weather is still warm amd it's comical to see snowmen here for sale with the Christmas stuff. They don't get any snow here! How can they even know what a snowman is...?

My funnest day yet!

2007-10-25T16:45:00.000-07:00

Soooo - yesterday (this is Tim by the way) I had my most fun gig yet. I was booked - through an online casting company called LAcasting - on a video project that Bette Midler was having made to open for her big Las Vegas show starting next year. The premise is that a HUGE tornado tears through Las Vegas, picking up all sorts of "Las Vegas type" people - Elvis, a couple getting married, construction workers, showgirls etc. Well, I was booked as the groom AND a construction worker. It was such a blast. They put us in harnesses and then we put our costumes over top of the them and we were hooked into this suspension system in front of a huge green screen. We were hoisted above the ground and they blew a lot of air on us and we flipped around - all the while trying to continue the wedding ceremony. I'm not exaggerating when I say this - but it was probably one of the most physically demanding things I've ever done. I was drenched in sweat after the long takes and the director yelling different things for us to do. When I was a construction worker, they had us go from swaying in the wind to dancing to YMCA. By the end of that, I truly felt like I was going to throw up. But it was so fun and the director and crew all were so nice and told me they thought I was funny - SUCCESS!!! It was a non union gig (which means not much money) but you know - I'm really thankful for the experience and can only hope for more like it. Yet another chapter in living the dream!!

Oh - and by the way, if you happen to find yourself in Las Vegas next year, be sure to check out Bette's new show. It will be staged in Caesar's Palace and you won't be able to miss me. I'm at the very beginning on apparently the biggest screen in the history of mankind. Check it out. The picture I've included gives you an idea of what I was doing! Hope you're having an awesome day!!

DON'T WORRY - WE'RE SAFE!!!!

2007-10-23T22:13:00.000-07:00

Hello Dear Readers (however many of you there might be)!

I (timmy) thought I would just take a minute to let you know that we are SAFE! We are NOT one of the 3/4 of a million people who've had to be evacuated because of these crazy fires. These fires, as you may have heard, are being rapidly spread by the Santa Ana winds - which blow east to west. Pasadena happens to be one of the further inland parts of LA - so the fire won't be coming out here. We also aren't directly in line with the winds so if a fire did start here, it would be quickly contained. So now you can sleep. Goodnight! :) Our good friend Amy Freeman is here and we took an awesome hike today on Echo Mountain and we could really see the smoke. At 1 pm, the color of the sun reflecting off the ground looked like sunset colors, not midday. Our neighbors told us today that they actually saw ash coming down like snow in Pasadena. I've got a few pictures attached for you to see. Please pray that we get some rain and that these wild fires stop.

In other news - Deb, Amy, and I had a great weekend visiting Deb's sister Pattie in San Diego. It only took us two hours to get down there. We got to spend time at the beach, shopping (ok, it was really the ladies dong the shopping), and we went down town for a nice dinner where I swear I had the BEST Mahi Mahi I've ever had - so good, in fact, that I took a picture of it. YUM! But it really was a fun weekend and if you haven't been, San Diego is just Gorgeous!

Tonight was really neat. Deb and I (ok, it was Deb) sent a homemade invitation to each of our neighbors last week inviting them to come drop in and have some milk and cookies with us tonight - Tuesday 10/23. We really just wanted the chance to meet our neighbors and show some hospitality to them. Three different apartments (out of 12) showed up. It was a really nice time and we look forward to getting to know them better as time goes along. Deb's cookies were AMAZING! We really enjoyed getting to talk with our next door neighbors. They are from Iran and couldn't be nicer - greeting us with hugs and kisses. We even got to meet their grandchildren and daughter in law.

So day by day we are establishing ourselves here. We're REALLY loving it. When you move from so far away, you really have no idea how it will turn out - but this is turning out to be so much fun! We've hosted our first out of state visitor - thanks Amy - we're waiting for more! Ok - I gotta get to bed. I'm working on a project for Bette Midler tomorrow :) Love you all!

And the journey continues...

2007-10-15T22:09:00.000-07:00

Sorry it's been a little while since we last posted. We are definitely getting settled in here which means we're getting busier - woohooo!! The past week proved quite an eventful week with new exciting things. Debbie continued her week (if you can call only 3 days a week) of shaddowing. But she's beginning to get some patients of her own. The days are certainly long (I can finally sympathize with the long days I have to put in for background work) and tiring - but she is still excited about her future in the hospital - working, of course, NOT being a patient.

I worked on four different shows last week and all in all, it was pretty fun. I did my second open mic at LA's famous Laugh Factory. I went on 6th and felt pretty good about my bit (I did the being born bit again). I'm finding, though, that open mics aren't really that great. Basically - the only audience you get at most open mics...are the comedians. Besides that - the room is pretty much empty. Empty room with only comedians as the audience = not so great comedic experience. There's not really much energy so it makes it tough to get an accurate picture as to how well you did. I guess it's just part of the learning. I'm excited for my Novermber 18th gig because that should be a packed room with mostly regular people - not over critical distracted non - laughing comics. haha One day I can use these experiences as great stories for when I'm on the Late Show.

On another front altogether - I've been looking for just regular part time work. I had applied and been offered a job at a local bookstore but was really struggling with the fact that I'd have to work weekends and nights (times I'd rather be using for comedy and other stuff) AND I'd only be making minimum wage. It just wasn't going to offer me the flexibility I need to make the most of my time out here. So I was really thinking and praying a lot about this and I'm so excited about how God answered that prayer. I was talking with a guy on set the other day and he brought up - you ready for this - substitute teaching!! In LA - you need a bachelors degree (check) and to pass the cbest test (not yet a check). But it's day by day schedule and in LA - get this - they pay $170 a day - and you're done each day by 3!! Plus - I think I'd really enjoy working with middle school and high school students! So I'm going to begin the process of becoming one of the most abused people in the public school system today - a substitute (hey, I'm always looking for new material). I won't be able to take the test until December 1st - but we're really excited about this possibility. It's really just perfect! So pray that I get through the red tape.

Finally - Debbie and I went to The Warehouse (our church) for the fourth time yesterday and we left just so excited! We actually KNEW people and had some great conversations. We're not quite at the "Morgans always last to leave" rep - but we're getting there. We're just so encouraged because people are starting to recognize us and know our names. That was one of our biggest prayers - that we would get connected to God's community out here - and it's happening. So praise God for that! It's certainly a process, but we're thankful that with each week, we're getting more and more plugged in to this community!!

Well thanks so much for sticking this long blog out (if you made it this far). We love you all so very much! In the words of Garrison Keillor - "be well, do good work, and stay in touch!"

love,
timmy and debbie

Oh what a beautiful morning!

2007-10-07T16:32:00.000-07:00

The weather was too beautiful today to not be outside enjoying it! So we went for a bike ride this morning. We biked over to the famous Rose Bowl Stadium and around the path that goes around the stadium. It is a really nice path and there were a lot of people out exercising on it too. Pasadena is a little bit hillier than I thought, though. I think that my muscles are going to be a bit sore tomorrow...

Tim auditioned at a comedy club in Pasadena called "The Ice House." He auditioned yesterday and they just called back today to offer him a spot in their Sunday show on November 18!!! Tim's first booking! He will have 10 minutes to do stand-up during a 2 hour long show. Wow-wee! He's on his way to becoming that comedian!

Work is going well for me (Deb) at the hospital. I think that the unit that I am working on is a good match. Tim is going to be on Hero's tomorrow as an extra. That's one of his favorite shows at the moment, so he's excited about spending 12 hours on the set tomorrow. (Extras really have to put in long days...) Anyway, we are well and hope that you are well too! So long for now.

PS Be proud of Tim. Today he was offered weed while we were sitting in the park and he just said "No." (true story) Crazy Californians...

Missing You All!!

2007-09-29T20:32:00.000-07:00

Hey dearest friends and dear dear family! So - we miss you all a whole ton and then some. We're finding more and more to love about Southern California - but one of the things we love the most will never be found here: YOU! (that is unless you come VISIT!!) Today was our dear niece Lucy's first birthday - it's so hard to believe it's already been a year since that little angel squeezed into the world (sorry Kelle). But we could not be there :( This is one of the trades you make when you leave to chase your callings and dreams. It's kinda tough. On the other side of the coin, though, if you're going to have any problem in the world - having tons of people that you love so much is a pretty good problem to have. Some people move away to GET away from family. This is not the case for us. We're so blessed to have you all in our lives - even if it is from a distance at this particular season.

But just for a little update for y'all - this was an eventful week. Debbie finished her orientation this week and Monday will begin being a real nurse again. She's definitely excited about it. Her boss is really seeming to be a wonderful person. On Thursday, Gloria (the boss's name) took Debbie to the cafeteria on a break and bought her some tea and just intentionally chatted with her. So things are looking real good!

I worked four different extra gigs this week - I was a wedding reception guest on "Step Brothers" - Will Ferrell's new movie due out next summer (look for me in the background when John C. Reilly is giving his toast), Samantha Who (a new tv show staring Christina Applegate), Greek (don't really care about this one), and today I spent the morning at the beach and was a background beach goer for a Royal Navy commercial - so if you find yourself in England watching tv, look for me. On Friday I had my first audition - I found out about an agent who does open auditions for representation (which is actually quite rare - agents usually only want referrals) - so I went and read a commercial about Oreo's. So I'll let you know if I get an agent!!

One thing I'm excited about is a new soccer pickup group that I found. There's a group of people that play soccer in a park in Pasadena three times a week. I just got back from playing tonight. It's a great group of people who love the game. Not suprisingly, I'm one of the very few white guys that comes out to play. I love it!

So that's the update for now. Feel free to leave a comment or call us or email us! We love to hear from you! Until next time - HANG TEN DUDES!

timmy and debbie

The Work Begins!

2007-09-22T13:45:00.000-07:00

Well - our wonderful TWO MONTH furlow/hiatus has sadly come to an end. Not that working is a bad thing at all - but not working - well - it's pretty fun :) Deb and I began working this week. Debbie is working at Huntington Hospital here in Pasadena - and this was orientation week. So Monday through Thursday Deb was up at 7AM and at the hospital sitting through seminars on benefits and hospital info. and all that fun stuff. As tough as it was to shift back into work mode, Deb is getting excited about working at Huntington. On three separate occasions - people have told her how GREAT her boss is. So she's very encouraged. Also - the benefits of working at Huntington are pretty cool. Every time Deb gives blood, she gets an hour of paid vacation AND a gift ranging from free movie tickets, starbucks coffee, a tee shirt, ice cream, or free carwash! So it's pretty awesome!

I began EXTRA work this week!!! wooohooo! The proper name is "background actor" but we all know we're just moving scenery. It was actually pretty fun - nothing I could stand doing long term - but fun to have front row seats to tv and film production. On Tuesday I was a cop for the new show "Womens Murder Club," which is beginning its first season on ABC on Friday evenings. My costume was realistic - I had the full cop getup with the full utility belt AND a bullet proof vest that I had to wear under my shirt. I probably weighed an extra 20 lbs. and looked like I weighed an extra 50. I looked quite rediculous, actually. I was also on "Criminal Minds" on Wednesday. That was a bit more boring - but I got a lot of reading done! Monday I'm on the movie "Step Brothers" with Will Ferrell - so that should be kinda fun.

I had my standup debut last night!! I connected with a guy who goes to Fuller Seminary and he was putting a show together for first year students and asked me to do 5 mintues. So, naturally, I did 10. It was a blast - the audience was great (yes - they laughed) and I got so much encouragement from the other comics who performed. There was actually a couple who were the headliners who have been doing a lot of work around LA who we talked to afterword for probably 30-45 minutes. They had some really nice things to say about my bit and gave me some great tips for performing out here. So bit by bit - God is connecting me to this place! Call us if you want more details.

As always - we miss you all very much. Keep in touch and stay tuned!! :)

New Wheels

2007-09-16T15:46:00.000-07:00

So. Here's the dilemma: I (Deb) kind of need a way to get to work. Tim and I have been exploring many options. I could walk to the hospital, but that would be a long walk and I do plenty of that as a nurse anyway. Biking was an option, however we thought it might be a little dangerous to bike on the side of the road with traffic, and then I'd have to bike home after dark. Then we thought, "How about the bus?" We checked into the bus schedules and unfortunately, many nights there is no bus available to take me home. A car is out because, well, one car is plenty of money out here (insurance has doubled. But you do the math. Having 2 cars in PA was cheaper than having one car in LA) The ad should say "Geico could save you 15% or more on car insurance, except for in California. Everything here is expensive - get over it." But besides insurance, there is no place to park a second car, the upkeep would be expensive as well as not very economical. The solution: a scooter. We went to a local motorcycle/scooter dealer and went home with our new wheels. Dot (our scion's name) has a new sibling, yet to be named. It's a Honda Metropolitan scooter. It's small, zippy and get's 70-80 miles to the gallon. We're real Californians now! Especially since we now frequent Trader Joe's for groceries. We've scoped out the routes to the Hospital and have found a good, safe one to get me to and from the hospital, which happens to drive me past the famous Father of the Bride house. I'm going to take a scooter safety course too, so I'll get back to you on what tidbits I learn. We'll be taking it on the Freeway's in no time... ;)

We're still ready and waiting for visitors. And when you do come, we'll be glad to cruise you around town on our scooter. It may be a slow ride, but we'll still be saving gas! :)

Santa Barbara

2007-09-13T21:54:00.000-07:00

We just took a nice three day/two night mini-vacation (as if our 2-month long vacation wasn't enough...) up to Santa Barbara to celebrate our 2 year anniversary! It is about an hour-and-a-half drive from here in Pasadena to Santa Barbara beach, without traffic, so it wasn't a bad trip at all. We stayed in a Bed and Breakfast 2 blocks away from the beach. Tim and I got to go to a Farmer's Market on the street (that's a picture of Tim at the Farmer's Market) and get some beautiful California produce for a nice price. We spent a lot of time on the beach and exploring around town. There we are at the PACIFIC OCEAN!!! It was a nice way to celebrate our anniversary, since we were packing up the moving truck on our real anniversary. Tomorrow we're off to apply to be extras! :) Only in L.A...

We're here!!!

2007-09-09T14:55:00.000-07:00

Dearest Friends and Family!!! (this is Tim writing)
We are here - we are in Los Angeles California - Pasadena more specifically! We made it safely across this great country of ours. What an awesome adventure that was. If you didn't get a chance to see it, check out our dear friend Rachel's blog at blogs.messiah.edu/rmoury. We wrote all about the 9 day drip on her blog and there are pictures and everything. Check it out. We've been in Pasadena now for a WHOLE WEEK! We are officially Californians - well, ok that's not completely true since our plates still say PA and we have PA drivers licenses making us look like tourists every time we have to pull them out. But soon enough - we will be official Californians. We LOVE our apartment. It was tough trying to find a place to live from 3000 miles away because you're just never sure what you'll end up with. But this place is amazing. They completely renovated the whole thing, so it's as good as new AND IKEAized (we have one just 15 minutes away)! We're also in an awesome part of Pasadena. You can literally walk EVERYWHERE - grocery stores, coffee shops, restaurants, movie theaters, seminaries - everywhere!! We're also near Old Town Pasadena which is just beautiful. You'll see when you come visit!

Deb will begin working in another week on September 17th at the beautiful Huntington Hospital. I'm going to be beginning the process of looking for work. I will most likely start doing extra work for a while. I also plan to audition for classes at the Groundling - an improv. theater in Hollywood. And once I figure out how, I'm going to start doing standup comedy again. While standup is not ultimately what I see myself doing professionally, it will be good to get in front of people with it! I also plan to release a short indy film that I shot earlier this summer - so stay tuned.

But we thought a blog would be a great idea to keep everyone updated with how things are going for us out here. You'll be able to follow Deb and me through this crazy adventure that will lead who knows where. But we trust God through it all - knowing that He cares and He is with us! We love and miss you all! Be in touch!

Timmy and Deb