562. Persistent

562. Persistent
Definition: (adj) continuing firmly in a course of action despite difficulty or challenges
Location Placed: ESPN Club, Orlando, Florida
Date Placed: 2/23/14 at 10:06am



So in my haste, I forgot to take a picture of this crane before placing it! I was cutting it close popping in to the ESPN Club prior to my 10:20 brunch reservation at Boma. So I didn't really get to explore the ESPN Club or do much other than seeing how to get to it. I didn't even know it existed prior to this trip! Orlando definitely has a lot to offer when you have your own mode of transportation!

561. Virtuous

561. Virtuous
Definition: (adj) having or showing high moral standards
Location Placed: Starbucks, Kissimmee, Florida
Date Placed: 2/23/14 at 9:23am





I used to have a very wonderful blogging friend, Lubabat. She was so supportive, kind, and inquisitive when I first started my crane project. She would comment often, and vigorously. I would smile every time I saw a message from her in my inbox. She ran a project called Operation Smiley Face and often brought smiles to all the people she encountered. L was a bright star with a knack for bringing joy. Unfortunately she passed away back in 2011 from cancer before I was able to cross paths with her. Being in the area she lived reminded me of her wonderful personality and encouragement. So I placed this crane in L's memory.

560. Savior

560. Savior
Definition: (n) a person who saves someone or something from danger
Location Placed: Tropical Palms Resort & Campground, Kissimmee, Florida
Date Placed: 2/23/14 at 9:33am





I'm finally able to place the last few cranes with the Christmas paper. It was a slow winter with all the snow, so I definitely took advantage of all the good weather down in Florida. Good being there was no snow on the ground, and I was able to remember life without having to wear several layers in order to walk to my car. I didn't even mind the cloudy days and the random rain showers. It was above freezing, and I loved every glorious second of it! Did I mention that it snowed when I came back to New Jersey?

559. Reassure

559. Reassure
Definition: (v) to say or do something to remove doubts from another
Location Placed: The Grand Floridian Resort, Lake Buena Vista, Florida
Date Placed: 2/22/14 at 4:14pm





The Grand Floridian was one of the resorts I had never been to at Disney World. I had seen it from the monorail, but had never gotten the opportunity to stop in. My friend had booked us all in for an afternoon tea at the resort and it was absolutely wonderful! The tea was delicious. The sandwiches and pastries were wonderful. And the absolute cherry on top was the "dessert" portion, which I sadly couldn't finish. It was a wonderful experience and I look forward to enjoying some afternoon teas when I am finally able to make my way to England again!

558. Joke

558. Joke
Definition: (n) a thing that someone says to cause amusement or laughter
Location Placed: Orlando Premium Outlets, Orlando, Florida
Date Placed: 2/22/14 at 1:47pm





My first activity of vacation was to meet up with a friend and her family and hit up the outlet mall. Given the fact that I packed only a carry-on suitcase, my buying potential was limited. So mostly I just tagged around with my friend while she made some good finds. It was a larger outlet mall than I've been to at home with stores I've never heard of. I definitely enjoyed ducking into to some of those places, all while avoiding the massive afternoon rain showers that were unleashed.

557. Cozy

557. Cozy
Definition: (adj) giving a feeling of comfort, warmth, and relaxation
Location Placed: Milagro Spa, Manasquan, New Jersey
Date Placed: 2/19/14 at 6:03pm





I decided it was time to go for a good chop. My hair had been getting quite long, and it was time for me to donate it again to Pantene's Beautiful Length program. This is the second time I've gotten my hair cut to donate it to make wigs for women who are cancer patients. Given that there is a history of different types of cancer in my family, I felt this was a cause close to my heart. I've found Milagro is definitely the best place to go for a good haircut. The hair dresser was extremely nice and good at her job. The hair washer was also quite nice and gave a good massage. Even the front desk ladies were sweet as pie and very kind. Definitely a great experience!

556. Able

556. Able
Definition: (adj) having considerable skill, proficiency, or intelligence
Location Placed: The Joyce Theater, New York City, New York
Date Placed: 2/16/14 at 4:16pm




We went to see the Royal New Zealand Ballet perform for their first time in the United States. It was a different sort of ballet than I am used to. There were 3 acts set to different types of music, and the dancer did different types of dances. The first was a more traditional sort of ballet-style dance, which I quite enjoyed. The second was a very dark sort of non-traditional dance, which was a bit odd and stilted. The third act was set to African-style music where the dancers did a lot of whipping around. While I was glad to be able to see it, it's definitely not something I'd rush out to see again. I'm more a fan of ballets that are set to a story, so I think I'll stick to those in the future. But the Joyce Theater was very lovely and intimate without a bad seat in the house.

555. Cool

555. Cool
Definition: (adj) fashionably attractive or impressive
Location Placed: Starbucks, New York City, New York
Date Placed: 2/16/14 at 1:37pm




So I went into the City with a few other ladies to see a ballet at the nearby Joyce Theater. It turns out we were a little bit earlier to get in, so we decided to duck into Starbucks from the cold and enjoy a bit of warmth. (I think all of us up north are tired of this Polar Vortex nonsense!) It was nice to do a bit of sitting around and chatting prior to the show starting and even nicer that we were able to score enough seats to do so!

554. Precious

554. Precious
Definition: (adj) of great value
Location Placed: The UPS Store, Glendale, Arizona
Date Placed: 12/24/13 at 11:51am





So we determined rather than bring a checked piece of luggage, we would just mail anything home that couldn't fit. So on my last day in Arizona, we took a trip to the UPS store to send home some goodies that either wouldn't make it past security (I'm looking at you, really nice hand creams) or couldn't fit among my overly packed carry-on bags. They arrived safe and sound, and definitely saved us a chunk of change at the airport.

553. Astound

553. Astound
Definition: (v) amaze, astonish, surprise
Location Placed: Danny's Car Wash, Phoenix, Arizona
Date Placed: 12/23/13 at 1:51pm





A dirty car warranted a trip to the car wash. I'm not sure if I've seen as big, or as busy, a car wash as this one. There had to have been 2 dozen people waiting around for their cars at any given time. Coming from a person who probably doesn't get her car washed often enough, I was pretty impressed. And the younger me definitely would've appreciated that you could see the car going through the wash as I always enjoyed that sort of car wash. (Apparently when I was very young, I was super scared of the sort of car wash where you stay in your car. Not surprising, really.) Squeaky clean and sparkling, we were ready to get on with the day pretty quick.