We successfully (well, some days more successfully than others), navigated Portugal.  We spent most of our time in the North:  Braga, Porto, Guimaraes, Vierho do Minho, and only 2 nights in Lisbon. 

 

Portugal was a very friendly country and a beautiful place.  I'd love to come back sometime and spend more days in the central/southern areas.  But, not sure when Portugal will fall back onto the list - there are so many other places to go and things to see. 

 

I've loaded my selection of favorite pictures. 

 

Just got to Hong Kong, and will have a bit of sightseeing time before I start into work.  Steve is off to Shenzhen already, so I'm on my own until I hook up with my boss. 

 

The adventure continues!

 

 

I'm travelling the world right now and having an amazing time.  Pictures from Greece are posted.  I'll continue adding as I work my way through each country!

 

In Greece, we spent time wandering the city around the old port.  We were there for Greece National Day, and got to witness a very fun parade of many children in historic attire!  We rented a car one day and drove the island - visited several beaches (and tried to drive up a goat path).  Another day we took a boat out to the Archeological site at Delos which was impressive - wish we'd had more time there.  Lots of time sitting and relaxing - naps in the afternoons, tasty good (although it took until we got back to Athens to find any lamb - wierd!).

 

Intended to spend today in Athens, but our morning flight was cancelled and we coudln't get here until evening, so no sightseeing here - just the airport.

 

On to Israel......

Thanks to McCrea winery for choosing my birthday weekend to host one of their amazing wine weekends.  There were breakfasts, lunches, and dinners arranged every day, starting Thursday night thru Sunday night.  I participated in 5 of the meals.  What a blast!!  I got to meet some amazing new people - some who live locally, others who live farther away.  I got to try several new restaurants. 

 

Thursday night started at Place Pigalle, with Bob and Susan hosting us.  It was certainly fun, and we got the extra-special treatment.  Arlene and David told the funniest story of the evening.  They've devised a way to determine if there really is an afterlife.  Apparently Arlene is planning to die first.  After the funeral, David is going to bring home some sultry brunette (Arlene is blond).  They are going to crack open the best bottle of wine in the cellar, and David is planning to serve it over ice.  :)  If there's an afterlife - Arlene will be back!

 

Friday night (my actualy birthday) was at Szmania.  My friend Jen was there, along with Fred and Eva and the Schlegels.  We started off with some really bad wine, but were rescued and did well the rest of the evening.  The chef even made a special dessert tray for me, with a sampling of different desserts, and a special birthday message written on the plate.  It was lovely.

 

Saturday night was the best night of all, though!  Sarah, Ginny, Robert, and I (along with the Berglunds) had an incredible dinner, with a huge number of tasty treats, at Lark.  We just kept eating, and kept drinking, and kept having a wonderful time.  When we finished dinner, it was only a bit after 11, so I invited Sarah, Ginny, and Robert back to my house for another drink, and just to hang out for the evening, before I drove them back to their hotel.  It was a clear, brilliant evening, so we stubmled up onto the roof for a view.  Then, sat back inside on the third floor laughing and telling stories for hours.  I think it was nearly 3am when I got them back to their hotel downtown.  What a blast!!  We're definitely going to have more get togethers in the future!

 

Sunday morning brunch at Monsoon came very early.  I could have just stayed home and slept, but I'm so glad I didn't.  Instead, Fred and Eva and I got to spend more time talking, and they ended up coming to spend the afternoon at the house.  We had great conversation.  They shared pictures of their house and wine cellar and some fun wine trips and travels they've done recently.  We're planning to get together in the future - at wine events, here, or in California.

 

I got to spend a short time at Bob and Susan's house at the end of the evening saying goodbye to everyone, before I ran off to the Sonics game with Tabatha.  And, with that, the weekend ended.  What a fun way to spend a birthday weekend! :)  Maybe I should start planning next year - how can I top that?!

 

 

First of all, you should know that my record for number of movies seen at the theater in a year (to the best of my recollection) is 4 (record set in 2007!).  I’ve already seen 3 in 2008, and it’s only January 18.  Two of them were just today – yes, two in the same day – both first day releases!  And, neither were movies at the top of my list (ok – probably not even in the middle of the list.  Well, honestly, not on the list at all).

 

The morning started at the Cinerama for the noon showing of “Cloverfield.”   “grrr…grrr…stomp….stomp….cloverfield monster”  It’s the latest monster movie from director JJ Abrams.  I didn’t really fit the stereotype of the crowd in the theater, which was white, male, 25-45 years old.  Not sure how many people were there in total.  I’d estimate the theater was probably 60% full, and out of that, about half a dozen women (I know there were 3 for sure – me, Mary, and some girl on a row in front of us, so I’m doubling it to get an estimate). 

 

All that aside – it was pretty cool for a horror, monster movie.  And, I was lucky that the shaking camera didn’t make me at all nauseas. 

 

Then, the evening ended with a showing of 27 dresses.  I like to think I didn’t fit the stereotype of the crowd in the theater.  It was a bunch of women in groups (I was with Tabatha), the theater was packed, although there were a surprising number of dates (guy-girl dates), maybe 2-3 dozen – I assume they were all pretty early in the relationship, or anything is worth getting away from the kids for a night.  The movie was the epitome of ‘chick flick.’ More proof that I don’t fit that stereotype:  A couple years ago, Jeff found a list of the supposed top 50 chick flicks of all time.  I had seen maybe 10.  I think he had seen about 20.  Tabatha had seen something like 45 of them.  This is her genre. 

 

Anyway, there were eerie similarities about the two movies.  They both took place in Manhattan.  What’s scarier – a huge building-crushing people eating monster, or some of the horrific bridesmaid dresses that woman had to wear?  Without going into the premise of the whole 27 Dresses movie, suffice it to say that at one point the main character is referred to a “Bridezilla” – see?!  it’s another link to monster movies!

 

Anyway – if I fast forward to March, I’ve still only seen 3 movies in the theater this year.  But, I’m still sure I’ll set a new record. 

One blog entry to cover 8-10 weeks should suffice to get people caught up.

 

Life got very, very, very busy in October, and by November I had to make some adjustments.  I stopped singing (won't be competing this year with the group - but hope to get back next year). I stopped my drum lessons - they were seriously, amazingly fun, and Ned is an awesome teacher, but I needed to carve out space to deal with other stuff.  I thought it would be a small break, but I haven't gotten back to it yet. :(  I found out (ok - this one was really September) that Tabatha was pregnant and due in April.  My divorce was officially finalized.  I had two bouts of random medical stuff (I'm fine though).  My parents came up around the holidays, and we spent Xmas Day in Portland with them and my sister, who recently moved there from Atlanta.  Spent lots of time with friends, old and new.  Spent some time partying and dating.  Spent time with my non-profit groups (Washington Women's Foundation and Amara Parenting & Adoption Services).  Spent lots of time working.  Oh - and early January was filled with lazy weekends watching Playoff Football!  I was NOT happy with how the Superbowl turned out - but i'm over it (Eli sucks).  Also went to some events (Trans-Siberian Orchestra concert, Sonics games, Seattle Symphony performances , National Geographic Explorer Lecture Series).  I think that gets us up to my birthday. :)

 

I'll find the Xmas photos and post them in an album.  I do have one from New Years Eve.  No date for me, but, I had a great time without one!  I went to dinner at Paul & Megan's house - amazingly tasty food and drinks!  Hung out there with Kris & Lisa and everyone else until midnight.  Then, went to Dan & Jane's place downtown for more munchies & drinks and catching up with a different crowd.  Here's to 2008!

There probably isn't anyone by now who doesn't know that I had a major house flood in October - long story - was writing a post back when it happened, but now I really donm't want to go over every painful detail.  bottom line - old nail through a pipe rusted out on the 3rd floor - managed to do damage almost everywhere.  It was raining inside the house.  I've posted some pics of the freakiness that was the drying process (that alone took almost 2 weeks!)  I felt like my houe had been taken oer by the borg (except yellow themed instead of black).  And, it was 110 degrees or more in the house while the equipment was here.  Anyway, they finally finished all of the work on the house yesterday - yes, it really took 5 months (ugh).  New carpet, lots of new drywall and paint, new guest bathroom cabinets, etc.  But, now, everything is lovely and fabulous, and hey I even got to do some decorating in the process.  I'll try to get new pics of the house posted up soon. 

There were things I couldn’t have imagined about Israel.  Some of my impressions were just wrong because of lack of information.  Some of them were wrong because of the perceptions we are led to believe in the US.  Some of them were just unformed, because I had no context, and therefore no idea, of what to expect.

 

Tel Aviv is a beautiful city.  It sits on the Mediterranean Sea.  My hotel was right on the beach, and I walked along it every morning except one (when I was so tired, I couldn’t convince myself to get out of bed an hour early).  I swam in the Mediterranean two mornings – bobbing and floating in the waves.  Feeling my feet in the sand.  Of course, I brought home seashells.  Speaking of – most of their shells, 99.8% of the ones I saw, were of one type – half of what was a hinged, mostly round, opaque shell with varying degrees of orange, red, or pink stripes/bands. 

 

The city was alive, metropolitan, filled with great restaurants, art, a unique blend of the past, the present, and the future.  We dined one evening at a marina, another at a very old building modeled to feel like a wine cave, another at an art museum and actual home of the artist (sculptor) who offers catered events, another evening on the beach, and a lovely evening at the home of the VP of our Israel Development Offices.

 

The food:

Israel is a melting pot of cultures, and the food reflects this.  The seafood is fresh and simple.  I had grilled fish on multiple occasions – just very simply caught, filleted, and grilled.  The highlight of many meals was the array of salads presented to us.  It’s an experience hard to imagine, as it’s nothing like what we have in the US.  You sit down, and generally before you’ve even ordered your entrée, anywhere from 5-15 small dishes arrive at the table.  And, each place we ate, they were slightly different – always including Hummus and Tahini, and beyond that:  BabaGhanoush, Eggplant with Tomatos, Carrots, roasted squash, Cole Slaw, Marinated Roasted Peppers, Tomatos with Mushrooms, Spicy Ground Peppers, and always Olives.  The list is simply too long to remember it all. 

 

Another misconception – I had no idea what clothing I should pack – not from a weather standpoint, but from an ‘appropriateness’ standpoint.  I brought primarily pants and basic colored blouses, conservative in cut.  I had a belief that the society would be very conservative, for women especially.  I thought it might be different for the younger girls, but probably not in the offices.  WRONG.  I needn’t have worried about this at all.  I could have worn anything and wouldn’t have been out of place.  I think the only challenge I faced from a clothing perspective was walking in the old city (2 different nights for dinner) on cobblestone-type streets.  It just meant I had to look at my feet to be sure I didn’t slip on the uneven stones. 

 

I felt incredibly safe the entire time I was there.  I spoke with some of my new co-workers about safety.  They admit there have been times in the past when there were safety concerns – that they worried when their children went out to night clubs or cafes on the weekend.  But, in the past 4-5 years, there haven’t been big issues, and most of the issues arise in Jerusalem vs TelAviv.  Some of the women I spoke with agreed that they wouldn’t tour the country alone, which I had concluded before my trip – one of my few accurate assumptions. 

 

We worked hard all week.  Every morning started around 6:30 (remember – up in time to walk on the beach), at the office by 8:30, meetings all day long, dinners with the team or partners, email back at the hotel before bed, and to sleep anywhere between 1-2 am.  I did email and worked on my boss’ presentations when we arrived on Monday.  Tuesday we met with our Development Team and heard presentations from each of them about their projects, then we met with 100% of the team to talk about the new organization.  Wednesday was a summit with local Venture-Capital firms.  My boss had a keynote, sat on a panel, and gave some press interviews.  I, of course, was in attendance for all of this (and had prepared his presentations).  The next day was a combination of Portfolio presentations from some of the firms, meetings with local team members, and then another presentation to the entire Israel R&D Team (not just those reporting under our organization).  At the dinner with the VC’s, I truly enjoyed talking with a couple of the gentleman in particular about their history (most have lived in other countries, including the US), about Israel and the culture, about their companies and the level of innovation coming out of Israel, etc.  One of the biggest takeaways from the trip is the high quality of the team we have working for us there.  This team has been built from 0 to almost 70 in about a year, and will double in the next year.  Most places where we would want to build a team of that size, we would be hiring a lot of very junior people, many just out of college, etc.  But, in TelAviv, we are able to hire most of a team who has 5-10-15 or more years of experience.  It’s incredible.  Because we are building the team at such a rapid rate, and they are working on a new product, we will probably go back in the next 6 months (minimum commitment is once a year).  I believe we are currently targeting our next visit for February/March.  I can’t wait to go back! J

Ahhhhh - before I get too far from the event......I have to share that I met another LIFE GOAL (or at least one that I've had for the past year). 

 

At the Chris Cornell concert (Soundgarden, Audioslave, old solo stuff, new solo stuff) - it finally happened!  I owe complete thanks to Kristin, who made the arrangements, once I told her of my goal. 

 

The basic details:  We arrived a bit late, after a couple drinks, and worked our way up to the front of the GA, standing room only, crowd, at The Paramount.  Kristin turned around to me at the start of 'Spoonman' and asked if I was ready to go up!  She had recruited a couple guys to hoist me onto the crowd - and off I went!  It was super-quick getting up.  I was passed along about 2/3 of the floor, and then was down.  It was a short, but incredible experience.  I had no idea how fun it would be.  Not at all scary.  A huge, exhilirating rush!

 

Of course, I only just healed, after 2 weeks, from all the bruises I received.  But, it was worth it, and I would do it again in a heartbeat!

After ending Day 1 of the HS reunion so late, it was hard dragging myself out of bed for Day 2.  But, finally I did, got ready, and went out to the picnic.  It was already in full swing when I arrived, although I was not the last one from the night before!

 

The picnic was a time for people to bring their families, and to just sit and chat.  Shannon was in charge of the grill.  Judy, Melissa, Michelle, and others kept everyone organized, took about a million pictures, and made sure everyone had fun.  A few people had brought old yearbooks, so we spent some time laughing at our old photos and those of people who didn’t make it to the picnic.  It was disappointing to hear that a number of people who still live in town chose not to come to the events.  I mean, why not just show up and see people?  It’s been 20 years.  Same goes for all those people who live within a couple of hours.  It’s not that far of a drive.  It’s one weekend out of your year.  And it’s a chance to reconnect.  We know most of them knew about the events – but just made other choices.  Oh well.

 

Interesting events from the picnic to relay:

It’s amazing how perceptions and reality can vary so significantly from one person to another.  One of the people I thought of as fairly popular (cheerleader, etc) when we were in school, approached me to ask who some different people were.  She didn’t recognize them, and was amazed that I remembered so many people.  We talked about the fact that I’d been involved in football, so I knew most of the guys that way.  And between honors classes, drama, choir, etc, etc, I just knew a bunch of people.  Apparently, she moved within her own clic, and didn’t know many people at all.  Very surprising to me.

The second thing was that, with the exception of a few people who I’d been close friends with, no one else remembered that I had a child our senior year.  Wow.  An event so significant for me (obviously), and something that I thought was perceived in a certain way in the community, was nothing they recalled, even when reminded.  How odd. 

During the weekend, I was re-exposed to a couple of catch-phrases I hadn’t recalled (or used) in years.  One is in the next section below.  Another was ‘who did he go with in highschool?’  The context is – who did someone date (for those who don’t recognize the phrase).  By the end of the 2 days, I will admit, I probably had more of a Texas accent than almost any of you have ever heard from me.  I found myself slipping into it when surrounded by people who had fairly strong accents.  And, then, of course, it disappeared as I drove away that night….

 

I had 4-6 hours to kill before heading to the dance/dinner Saturday night.  I wanted to drive around town and see what had changed, what was the same, see if I ran into anyone I knew (outside of school).  I drove through my old neighborhood.  The biggest difference was that the trees are all tall now – and the lawns are shady.  I remember not having a lot of big trees around when we lived there.  I guess that’s the kind of thing that changes over 20 years – trees grow…  I drove past the church – no one was there, of course, on Saturday.  I drove around downtown, past the old schools I attended, past stores where I used to hang out.  The Warehouse Arts Center was closed, but I peered in the windows.  It looks about the same – still thriving.  I stopped in at the library to get a map, so I could wander some neighborhoods where old friends used to live.  I looked up addresses & phone numbers for a few people – but didn’t call any of them.  At this point, the day could have gotten quickly boring.  I’d been invited to drop by Bill’s house where some of the football guys were gathering.  I told them I’d come by later in the day.  I could tell they didn’t believe me.  So, just to prove them wrong, I drove over.  And, sure enough, they were shocked to see me.  It was only Bill, Daniel, and Marcus, Bill’s girlfriend, and a couple of their cousins.  But, I hung out for the rest of the day – Drinking, some dancing, listening to music, catching up on football and on life in general.  Had an interesting experience going to the store with Bill – he really likes being the big man in town – it was fascinating to watch him interact with people.  I went with Daniel to visit ‘his people’, which consisted of several aunts, some of the local church women, and me talking on the phone with his mom.  It was quite fun.  A few other adventures and conversations ensued - if you really want to know – ask me in person.

 

Then, time for the dance.  Most of the same people – several from the picnic decided not to show up for this event.  But, I don’t think there were any newcomers that I hadn’t already seen during the weekend.  A LOT more pictures had been dug up during the day.  Rhea Portis and I noticed that we seemed to be standing next to each other in about 75% of them! J  We had a good time reminiscing.  I gave my email to several people.  I’ve already heard from 2 of them – and look forward to keeping in touch with others.  I won the ‘traveled farthest’ award.  And, I was nominated for the ‘people who have changed the least’ award.  I almost didn’t put that in this blog entry, as it actually bothered me a bit.  I would like to think that not only am I different personality-wise (which many people confirmed – apparently I’ve come into my own and had more confidence, etc), but, I’d also like to think that I changed physically.  I never thought I was all that cute in highschool, and like to believe I improved with age.  I didn’t win the award, so I guess that should make me feel better.  As an aside, I was humbled that several people commented I was living the life they had envisioned for themselves, but hadn’t gotten there.  But, anyway…..it got late, and I had to head back to Arlington for the night, before my flight the next morning.

 All-in-all, I’m so glad I went back for the reunion.  It was great to see people and catch up.  I feel good about who I am, how I look, what I’ve accomplished, and all the things I’ve done with my life.  And, if you’re going to dive back into your past, even for 48 hours, that’s a really good place to do it from.  I’ll definitely be back for the next one!

 

Arrived in Israel today - staying in Hertzelia, which is kind of a suburb of TelAviv (5 mins away).  Here is a picture taken from my hotel room.  Lovely, lovely view!  We walked along the beach tonight to dinner, and I plan to go for a longer walk in the morning before heading into the office for the day.l

I'm back in Corsicana, Texas for my highschool reunion.  The first event, last night, was attending the Homecoming Football Game.  Important things first - yes, the team won.  Of course, you pick your homecoming opponent carefully for that reason - it's no fun to lose the homecoming game.

 

Once I found the field (they've built a new field and amazing facilities), and walked through the gate, I immediately started seeing familiar faces.  The class had special t-shirts made up in Corsicana gold with blue lettering. I beleive there are about 100 of us around this weekend.  Most of those people still live in the area, or within an hour drive.  Most of the remaining ones still live within Texas.  but, there are also people from South Carolina, Colorado, Missouri, California, and Arizona.  And, 1 person back on leave from working in Afghanistan. 

 

The first person I talked with, fittingly, was Coach Denbow, our head football coach when I was in school.  Then, I filtered through the crowd in the stands and talked with many old classmates.  Observation #1 - I am amazed how many people I recognize.  And it's not just because I have a good memory (if I did, I'd remember more names).  But, truly, people don't seem to have changed that much in 20 years.  And, even if they are older, heavier, etc - their faces remain pretty much the same.  At this point, there are 3 categories of people I'm seeing:  1) those I recognize and remember their name, 2) those I recognize but can't recall their name, and 3) those people I don't recognize and even after I find out their name, I still have no clue who they are.  Luckily only 3-4 people fall into that last bucket.  And, I've only had two people who walked up to me and knew my name that I couldn't remember theirs immediately. 

 

After visiting with some of the my old classmates, I decided to take a walk through the stands and see if I could find other local people I knew.  I wasn't having a lot of luck.  but, I made my way up to the top of the reserved seating, and there stood Coach Sam Thompson, who has been the District Athletic Coordinator for the last decade or so.  It's under his tenure that the amazing new facilities have been constructed, including a bunch of tennis courts, softball fields, new gymnasiums, and more at the highschool, along with the new field and all it's amenities.  He was thrilled to see me, an immediately recognized me.  He had apparently even just this week, been reading a note in his office that I'd left him on a trip through town 8-9 years ago.  I stopped by to see him at the administration building, but he wasn't in.  So, I left him a note saying I was no longer working for the Cowboys, and had moved to Seattle and was working for Microsoft now, and was sorry I'd missed him on this visit.  He still had the note, and for whatever reason had been leafing through that file, and then was shocked to see me just days later here at the game!  After we chatted for a few minutes, he took me on the VIP tour.  We went up into the VIP suite, where member of the school board and other vip guests can watch the game.  We walked out to the filming deck, which was very impressive - 4-5 cameras hooked into laptops, capturing play by play for the coaches to see and adjust their play calling, and to review film afterwards.  Much more high tech than the big clunky single video camera we had many years ago.  And, we walked through the stat room, where I got to see our old stats keeper.  And, through the press and pr rooms.  We finally stopped in the radio broadcast room, and they asked Sam to do a halftime interview.  The announcer teed up the first general question...'What do you think so far of tonight's homecoming game..'  Sam answered...'Well, it's a great night here for homecoming.  We have a lot of people from a lot of different classes celebrating here tonight.  We've got a big group from the class of 87 having their reunion.  In fact, I have one of the members of that group standing behind me here in the booth right now.  Cynthia Crawley Smith is here from Seattle for the reunion.  Cynthia was our first female athletic trainer back in 1983.  She's here all the way from Seattle tonight.  I was just giving her a tour of the new facilities here at Tiger Stadium..............'  How cute is that?! 

 

I got to go out to the new fieldhouse, and see the new weightroom and training facilities.  I saw Doc, our football trainer.  He's still here, doing the same job.  He had a staff of 7-8 kids in the training room, and of course, introduced me the same way....this is Cynthia...she was the first girl trainer that we had.....

 

Good times.....anyway....then we all made our way out to a bar, Xcalibur.  This is different, because when I was growing up, Corsicana was "dry," meaning there was no alcohol sold in the city limits (for those of you who have never encountered such a thing).  Well, we were far from dry last night.  Saw more of my classmates and got to visit with people at length.  I even ran across Bill Jones, our old star running back.  Anyway, I don't know what he's up to now, but he was there.  We drank and drank and drank some more, until they shut the bar down around midnight.  Then, we all made it out to Jeff Flores' house and hung out for a while.  He had a drum set, so I played on that for a bit! :)  Around 2:30, we decided to head to the Waffle House for a late night snack. :)  There were 5 of us in the first group that went (me, Harry Dotson, Leslie Cotton, Kristen Pollard and her husband).  Another 6 showed up from the house later as we were finishing.  I think I got back to my hotel around 3:45 this morning.  And, now I'm up and getting ready to head to the picnic for the afternoon.

 

More updates later! :)

 

The alarm chimed VERY early, 6am.  I was on a quest to actually see, not just hear, elk.  As you know, from yesterday’s post, I had spots all picked out.  And, sure enough – I SAW ELK!  They weren’t stationary like most deer – they were moving- running – most of the time.  I saw 3-4 different groups of them, for a total count of 14.  Way, way cool! My favorite elk picture is of the first elk I saw – around 6:15 am (the one with the dim sky in the background, and the silhouette of the elk on a hill).  Sunrise was at 6:40, giving me plenty of time to enjoy the ever-brightening sky, and even capture a few sunrise shots.  I was positively giddy!   Until, that is – I had an unplanned adventure.  I started driving back out to the distant spot on the gravel roads – past the bison herd, in the middle of nowhere.  About halfway out, I suddenly noticed the ‘low fuel’ light was on in the car.  Uh-oh.  I have no idea when it came on, and with this being a rental, I don’t know how many miles that really gives me before empty.  I turned around, and started the fervent prayers….please let me make it back to the main road….please let me make it back to the main road……please, let me make it past the elk-watching spot……please let me make it back to the road to town…..please let me make it up this hill……please let me make it across the single-lane bridge……please let me make it back to Pringle (where I saw actual buildings).  Hooray – I made it to Pringle….now, where is the gas station?  Circling…circling…I don’t see one – and I don’t have enough gas to wander.  I’ll stop at this old restaurant – there are at least cars here.  (Is it better to leave the car running, or turn it off?  Which takes more gas?  I’m turning it off.)  Inside – where it’s dark, run-down, and the cloud of smoke is thickening already at 8 am – I walk briskly toward the bar.  ‘I’m really worried I’m going to run out of gas – where is the closest gas station?’ ’12 miles away in Custer.’  Crestfallen – ‘Seriously?  I’m not sure I’ll make it that far.’  ‘Hey, Mike, do any of you guys have gas cans in your trucks?’ ‘Nope.  No.  Uh-uh.  I’ll be heading that way in about 30 minutes, and I’ll watch for you on the side of the road.’  ‘Gee-thanks.’  Walking back out the door, I almost start to cry – but this isn’t going to help anything – so I don’t.  I get in the car, start it up, head back onto the main road, and begin counting down the 12 miles back to Custer, aloud.  11 miles……10 miles…..9 miles…..8 miles…..7 miles…..6 miles…..5 miles…..it’s only 5 miles, I guess if I have to walk that far, I can.  I’m wearing tennis shoes, and have a jacket, it’s only 47 degrees outside……4 miles…..3 miles…..2 ½ miles…..2 miles…..I’m going to ignore the speed limit here at the edge of town.  If I get stopped, they’ll have to follow me to the gas station…..1 ½ miles…..1 mile…..1/2 miles….stoplight…please turn green, please turn green…..gas station!  I made it!  I love this car…thank you…thank you…thank you…

 

And back to the B&B for breakfast. J  All packed up and ready to go.  Next stop, Crazy Horse.  For those of you not familiar with it – it’s another mountain carving, this one of the Indian, Crazy Horse.  But, this is nothing like Mount Rushmore.  While, not anywhere near complete, it is a significant magnitude more stunning than Rushmore.  Just the scale – the amount of rock they remove in a short time (a week..a month…something like that), is equal to the total amount of rock removed to carve Rushmore.  They have finished the face, and are working top-down to ‘block-out’ the rest of the structure.  They believe that in 7-10 years, they will have the entire mountain blocked, and will begin again at the top, doing the actual detailed carving.  Apparently, they get more carving done in the fall and winter months than in the spring-summer.  Why?  Because the mountain chosen for the site, because of its strength of the rock, contains a lot of iron, and the mountain attracts a huge amount of lightening during storms, which occur much more frequently during spring and summer.  Anyway, I highly recommend a visit if you get to that area.  Next time, I plan to spend more time at the complex – I just had too many things to do on the final day of my visit to be there more than about 90 minutes.  There is a live webcam, which you can see here, to check progress over time.  http://www.crazyhorse.org/webcam.shtml

 

Although I visited Mount Rushmore last night, I also wanted to see it during the daytime, so I made the drive back over to the memorial.  It was cold, but not raining.  A quick walk up the path – more pictures – and I’m off.  I want to take a different route back to Billings than how I started – instead of I-90, highway 212 makes its way across farther north, only crossing through a couple of miles of the corner of Wyoming before getting back into Montana.  While I know it’s only a 2-lane highway, I expect it will be easy enough to travel, and provide some different sights.  I wind my way up through Spearfish Canyon, through Deadwood, stopping for just a moment (I wish I’d had time to visit the cemetery, but that will have to be another trip), and find my way up to Belle Fourche (which is the geographical center of the US – see picture).  It was cold, and sprinkling off and on during this time.  At the time of the picture referenced above, it was 42 degrees.  Brrrrrr.  Stop to grab a quick bite at Dairy Queen (terrible for me, but quite a treat, still…reminds me of all those childhood trips…and my Dad’s ‘magical ability’ to smell a Dairy Queen from miles away as we entered towns.  J  Inside, I asked the people at the counter how far away Billings was – given that my flight was scheduled to depart in 5 ½ hours.  I really only needed to arrive 30 minutes ahead, as I was walking onto the flight, and there are only 6 gates in Billings.  I wasn’t expecting any delays once I got to the airport.  Well – the people at DQ seem to think it’s 5 ½ hours away.  Not to panic, I really didn’t believe they knew what they were talking about, as I had checked the maps, and calculated it as around 4 – 4 ½ hours.  But, if they were right, I’d just have to catch a later flight – no big deal (see, I can manage being unplanned! J ). 

 

The drive back across 212 was uneventful.  It was a nice drive, and the terrain and towns were different than what I’d seen from I-90.  And, for the record, it only took 4 hours and 15 minutes – I arrived with more than an hour until my flight.

Up early because breakfast is served at 8 am.  Visited with the 2 other families staying there.  The best thing I had for breakfast over the 2 days was a grilled grapefruit half this morning.  I’m going to have to try that at home – it was unlike anything I’ve had before!

 

Another sunny day in the upper 80’s!  Drove back out to Wind Cave – to actually tour the cave this time.  It is the 4^th longest cave in the world, and is still being explored.  It’s currently at 125 miles, and based on their research, this is only ~5% of the total!  Scott, the same ranger from the night before, took us on the tour (aside:  this is his first full season at Wind Cave.  He spent the past two years in Jamestown as an archaeologist for the NPS, went to college in VA, and is originally from the Princeton area).  The unique feature at Wind Cave is something they call ‘boxwork’ – see pictures.  This cave contains 95% of the world’s known boxwork features (a few others in the US have some, as does a cave in the Czech Republic).  Following the tour – I took off on my own to scout for elk locations and to see some of the park’s herd of bison.  I drove around on a bunch of NP/County gravel roads that even my B&B hosts had never been on.  It was SO FUN!  I didn’t see any elk – because it was the middle of the day, but scouted out locations to see them at dawn on Day 4!  I did find huge herds of bison – including some who were within a few feet of my car.  That was cool (see close-up pictures!!).  I was having so much fun driving that I decided not to go to Jewel Cave – another cave in the area.  Instead, I just drove around taking more pictures and going on backroad adventures – so excited to be there!

 

Then, it started to get colder as the clouds moved in.  From 11 am to 5 pm, the temperature dropped from 85 to 55 degrees!  Ahh – forgot to mention lunch – I had pie!  Yes, pie – homemade cherry pie (my favorite) – with ice cream.  J  The evening activity was to head to Mt Rushmore for the night-lighting ceremony.  I took the exceptionally long route on Needles Highway (a rock formation that looks like a needle, and other astounding views).  I ate dinner at the Sylvan Lake Lodge – overlooking, you guessed it, Sylvan Lake (I ate Buffalo), and then went to Mt Rushmore.  It was raining, and getting colder.  But, for most of the presentation, the sky cleared up and it was just windy.  I’m glad I went for the ceremony – which they only do thru the end of Sept.  At the end, they lit up the mountain, and invited any veterans and/or active military to come up on the stage to help retire the flag for the evening, and the audience all sang the Star Spangled Banner.  It was quite moving. 

I slept in a bit the next morning (this would be the only day!), and started off on my next adventure.  Earlier in the week, I’d gotten the chance to watch Close Encounters of the Third Kind again – which I hadn’t seen for many years.  So, guess where I went – oh yes – I made my way to Devil’s Tower!  Another place I’d never been!  It was a lovely drive there – and I saw many, many, many herds of Antelope along the way.  Driving in these states keeps you on your toes making sure you don’t run over or into any of the abundant wildlife!  There were only a couple of quick glances of the Tower before you really came upon it – and then, there it was suddenly!  There is a trail that goes around the entire base of the mountain – 1.2 miles to be exact.  I walked this and took pictures from all angles.  The weather was in the mid-70’s with hardly a cloud in the sky.  There were many climbers scaling the mountain.  That actually looks like something fun to do – challenging, but fun.  I think I’ll look into just how much climbing experience you need to be able to make it up (with a guide, of course).  Maybe I’ll add that to my future list of things to do!  One of the stories I especially enjoy about the mountain is an Indian legend that there were 7 young maidens being chased by bears.  They asked the Gods to save them, and as they ran, the ground rose up beneath them into the sky – forming the peak.  The bears, trying to get at the girls, clawed at the rising earth, leaving the deep vertical marks that are the hallmark of the mountain.  OF course, the maidens couldn’t get back down to their home because they had been lifted so high into the sky – and the Gods took them even higher – turning them into the 7 star constellation of Pleiades.  At the entrance of the park, there is a large gift shop, and Harley mecca – they had some amazing pictures of the Devil’s Tower ride that takes place during the Sturgis rally every year.  I was horribly jealous of all the people on their motorcycles for the first 3 days of my trip (by day 4 it got cold – and wouldn’t have been very fun!).  I’m still not buying one – because it’s about enjoying being a passenger – not wanting to control one for/by myself.

 

Left Devil’s Tower and headed to South Dakota.  Along the way, with my minimal cell coverage (I was out of service areas the vast majority of my trip), I managed to find a room at a B&B in Custer, SD, which would give me a central place from which to explore for the next couple of days.  I arrived in late afternoon, got checked in (with some lemonade and cookies), and went to find a quick dinner (apparently the town shuts down pretty early once tourist season is over).  I had what was the best meal of my trip at Sage Grill – a crusted tilapia with herbed gnocchi and sautéed veggies, and a glass of Pinot Noir.  From there, I drove out to Wind Cave National Park.  They were offering a ranger talk that night on Elk.  There was a 30 minute talk and video – then we got in our cars and followed the ranger out to a couple of different spots in the park to listen for the ‘Bugling’ of the Male Elk – as it’s mating season.  It’s a fascinating sound – I managed to get a bit recorded and will post for you to hear!  It was a clear night.  The weather had been in the upper 80’s when I arrived and was about 72 degrees at 9pm.  I stayed listening to the elk for another 45 minutes or so after the ranger departed.  Wow!  This was one of the top highlights of my trip!  

On Thursday afternoon – we drove back to Santa Fe and checked into our final B&B for the week.  We quickly went to get new pedicures (after trashing our feet hiking and rafting the first several days).  Thanks to Live Local Search – we found a close, inexpensive place.  We were in and out and over to the first O’Keefe event on time!  Thursday night was the reading of letters – Georgia, Arthur, and their friends were prolific corresponders.  Marsha Mason narrated the evening, and read the voice of Anita Pollitzer, Georgia’s close friend from college onward.  Anita wrote a book containing much of their correspondence and some letters from others as well – I have a copy of this – interesting reading.  Georgia, however, was not a fan of the book, thinking it portrayed her as with a biased view (biased more positively than she herself felt about her life).  It was not published until after her death – by Anita’s daughter.  The voice of Georgia O’Keefe was read by Joan Allen.  The hit of the night, though, was the voice of Alfred Steiglitz, read by Sam Waterston.  He was enthusiastic, engaging, and conveyed such a strong sense of real emotion.  After the reading, we went to a tasty, and popular Tapas place – great food and yummy wine.

 

Friday was a day without scheduled events.  We went out to the Art Galleries – where I made some substantial (for me anyway) purchases.  I bought a lovely blown glass vase for my parents – I’d been looking for the last 2-3 years for something, and found the perfect thing, finally!  But, the major purchase were two photographs – one very large (approx 6x3 ft) and one smaller (16x20 inches).  Both were taken at Antelope Canyon.  The larger one has red and oranges.  It is a spot the natives call “The Face of Water”.  Many of you will know why this name has particular meaning to me -  and was one of the reasons I ultimately purchased the piece.  The smaller piece has more yellow with the orange and red.  Both pieces will be arriving soon – and will be hung in the dining room.   (as an aside, I’ve been making more progress painting red accents in the dining room, and have ordered the ceiling to floor red velvet curtains.  Dinner party being scheduled!)

 

We also toured the large cathedral in Santa Fe, and walked the Labyrinth laid in the courtyard in front of the church.  This was also a particularly meaningful thing for me.  It conveyed the feeling of following a path – although sometimes you get closer and sometimes farther away from what you think is the center/goal.  But, you keep moving forward, even when you’re backtracking or not sure where you’re heading.  And, eventually, you arrive exactly where you should be.  We made a preview trip to the O’Keefe museum, although we’d be there again Saturday night.    We toured their current exhibits and made several purchases in the gift-shop.  She was just such a talented artist – I especially liked her charcoal drawings, and her earlier works.  I have to admit, I’ve never been a fan of the ‘bones’ paintings – but everything else is stunning.  I have on my travel list to get to Chicago and see some of her works there, as many people have recommended it to me.

 

We had dinner with Elvis – Elvis Costello that is – and technically, we didn’t dine with he and his wife, Diane Krall, but we dined near them….He’s put on some weight – she looked good – of course, she’s a lot younger!  We tried going out to a tequila bar after dinner – but the place we were trying to visit was either closed, or so scary that no one was there.  Didn’t make sense on a Saturday night at 10:30 pm.  Anyway, we went to another bar instead – listened to some live music, and still managed to get a couple of tequila shots.  Oh, and I managed to beat Casey 7-6 in a game of air hockey! 

 

Finally Saturday arrived – and another O’Keefe event.  An interview with Ruth Bader Ginsberg.  Surprising, and disappointing to us was the fact that Casey was probably the youngest person there.  We discussed how many of our friends, when we had mentioned this event to them back at our respective homes, didn’t kno0w who she was!  Hello – what is wrong with you people?!  The interview was incredible, although we feel the interviewer missed a couple of opportunities to discuss issues particularly relevant to women (especially since this was part of the ‘women of distinction’ lecture series).  But, the insights we gained about the judicial system, about the Supreme Court, and about Mrs Ginsberg were fascinating and valuable.  We went to the Loretto Chapel – home of the magical staircase – and my favorite place of all places in Santa Fe.  There really is something magical about the story and being in that chapel.  I can’t go to Santa Fe without seeing it over and over.  This time, I purchased a wooden cross embedded with some local stones – not that I collect crosses, but I do have 3-4 special ones from over the years.  We took a tour of a working bronze foundry – where they do weekly pours of bronze artwork, statues, etc.  It was a process unlike anything I’d ever seen before, and certainly something that makes you think more about the art itself.  It isn’t just the work of the artist/sculptor that goes into its production – but the work of those at the foundry that bring that vision into physical being.  Of course, a big adventure within that adventure was when the pourers got sloppy and sloshed 1400 degree bronze on the floor – which bounced into the crowd.  Luckily no one was injured, but Casey was ‘singed’ and has the souvenir shirt to show when she tells the tale.  It was scary for a moment, then mainly became a topic of how risky the owners were in how they run their tours – no protection or waivers, or mandatory clothing types, etc. 

 

It was a busy, busy day – but we were just getting started!  That evening was the “Gala Dinner and Dance.”  We spent a couple hours getting ready, picking just the right outfits, shoes, jewelry, makeup, and hairstyles.  There is a picture of we two gorgeous women taken at the beginning of the evening which I’ll post up soon – and then you can see for yourself!  The event was a fun place for people watching – my top tip from that evening – ladies/children – wear your sunscreen – we’ve seen firsthand the hideous results of being a UV-Worshipper.  A majority of the attendees were local, and most seemed to have quite a bit of money.  It was interesting to see that side of the world.  We were fortunate to sit at a table with 8 other influentials with varied stories.  The Museum’s Education Director and her husband; A member of the Board of Directors and her husband; a woman from Florida, and another from New York (who had attended the $2500 per person dinner the night before!); a man from Italy who had donated one of the 5 auction items for the evening – two weeks at his private Villa on Lake Como, and his acquaintance (we weren’t sure what her story was – but she didn’t like us by the end of the evening – and he dumped her before arriving at the next party).  We both danced the night away with a variety of partners.  And, by the end of that party, we had gotten ourselves an invitation to yet another event.  We drove our car, and one of our new friends (a wealthy, 80-ish year old man named Jack) to the party – a 60^th birthday party for another Jack.  Too many stories to tell about the evening – suffice it to say – both events were quite eventful and we have great stories to last for years.  J  Just ask if you really want more details!

 

Sadly, the next morning, it was time to head for home, ending our first sister trip.  If you haven’t gathered from the details above, not only did we have a fabulous time celebrating Casey’s accomplishments, and spending time together as sisters, but we also travelled really well together – something that isn’t always so easy for two people to do – no matter how much they like each other.  We’ve promised to do a trip every 5 years – just the two of us.  Maybe next time we’ll venture to Europe?  

Back in December, my sister, Casey, graduated from UT with her PhD in Psychology.  I wanted to give her a special present for such a monumental accomplishment (all by the age of barely 26).  I gave her several options – and the one she chose was a trip to New Mexico for the 10^th Anniversary celebration of the founding of the Georgia O’Keefe museum in Santa Fe.  We planned (only minimally) for the late August trip, meeting up on a Saturday in Albuquerque for 8 days of adventure!  

 

The first day was spent driving to Taos, stopping many times along the way, u-turning a few times (this became a theme for us!), taking lots of pictures – including a fabulous rainbow stretched across the entire sky.  We stayed at a B&B in Taos for 2 nights.  The first night we just ate dinner and crashed.  The next day, we went into Santa Fe for the annual Indian Market – when Indian craftsmen sell their wares – all sorts of things from jewelry to art to carvings to weavings.  There are literally hundreds of booths (maybe even 4 or 500).  It was crowded and hot – and we found several treasures.  One of our biggest adventures of the day was approaching several Indian artisans asking for permission to take their picture.  We both really wanted these pictures, but had a hard time getting up the nerve to ask.  One fear conquered!  We were granted permission each time – after we took their card and promised to send them copies.  Speaking of fears, on the way back to Taos, we stopped at the Rio Grande gorge where Casey bravely walked across the entire bridge and even looked down!  Dinner that night at the Apple Tree, where Casey had eaten on her last trip there at age 12. 

 

 Next day, we got up and did the morning white water rafting trip on the Rio Grande river.  It was late in the summer, but they’d had a lot of rain recently, so we still had a few Cat 3 rapids.  I became a popular ‘splashing’ target of the second guide, mainly as a result of being the ‘hottest chick in metal.’  J  We also drove to the Jimez mountains – quite a distance.  We found another lovely B&B in which to stay (we elected each morning to continue staying there, for in the end, 3 nights). 

 

We visited multiple natural hot springs in the area.  We hiked at Bandelier National Monument – and even climbed ladders up 140 ft to some of the caves.  It was a HOT day – but I was soaking up all the sunshine and warmth I could – storing up for winter….We did a lot of driving and taking pictures.  I would bet between the two of us we easily took 750 pictures or more on this trip – now we still need to swap discs to have full sets!  The mountain terrain in New Mexico is fascinating – especially in areas with so many different colored layers of rocks/earth.  It ranged from a pale tan, through orange, brick red, and a deep maroon color.  We got lots of reading done – not all the books I brought – but a few!  I always pack way more than I can get through – but, I like having options – who knows what I’ll feel like reading on a given day?!