I recently discovered IZZE sparkling juices created right here in Boulder, Colorado.

I had my first IZZE experience several weeks ago while we were at a restaurant celebrating happy hour with friends. The grapefruit IZZE and vodka $3.50 beverage special caught my eye on the menu. As a hard-core grapefruit lover, I couldn’t resist trying it out. Yet another drink later, I was thoroughly obsessed.

Know that I usually drink just tea and water, with a glass of smart water here and there. Things have changed.

We now have different flavors of IZZE on hand at all times at home. We’ve discovered that I am in fact allergic to the pomegranate one (not a complete surprise as I’ve reacted sporadically in the past to pomegranates). I prefer the grapefruit variety to the other flavors that I’ve tried. We’ve also developed a soft spot for IZZE spiked with rum (like the vodka version, it’s delicious!). IZZE has become my special treat at the end of the day. I am so addicted. Go try it!

We finally picked up the rest of the black and white prints from the wedding. We have so many fantastic photos! I’ve been slowly ordering prints of all of the digital photos so that we can have one album with all of the photos from the Big Day.

At the right is one of my favorite group shots, taken with one of the black and white disposable cameras just before the ceremony.

In order to gather material for his masters thesis, Eric and his wife Mary took a plunge into Mennonite country living in order to experience life unplugged. For eighteen months they lived without electricity and at a low technological level, discovering what a simpler life would be like. The book closes with a retrospective look at their choices after this eighteen month experience, during which time they chose to not own a television or computer, rarely rely on using their car for transportation and instead choose to walk or ride their bikes, and often barter goods with neighbors rather than purchase them outright.

I found this book to be an interesting and thought-provoking (as well as a quick read), despite its lacking a clear chronological organization or glossary with characters names. Nevertheless, I would recommend this book to anyone who questions their own reliance on technology and yearns for a more simple life.

Learn more about “Better Off: Flipping The Switch On Technology” by Eric Brende.

After much hemming and hawing about what to do with my much neglected photoblog, I’ve decided to return to a more traditional journal format with hints of photographs here and there. Hopefully this will remove my guilt in not updating as often as I’d like and provide a less-rigid format to update friends and family with our daily happenings.

I’ve also redesigned our main site: please visit and let me know what you think!