This Is It

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I started writing this final blog entry in my head several days ago, and can't believe the time has actually come to say goodbye. Thank you for going along on this amazing journey with me and for your support and encouragement over the last three months; thank you for the comments, the emails, and the phone calls. I am delighted that you have enjoyed following this blog as much as I've enjoyed writing it.

I've stressed over how to end this thing and I'm still struggling with just how to wrap it up. I think tomorrow when I return to work time will be spent reconnecting with colleagues and answering questions about the time away so perhaps a good way to end this blog is to answer a few of the questions I'm anticipating.

Q. What did you do for three months?

A. I did a lot of traveling. I packed and unpacked my suitcase more than 20 times, traveled approximately 22,000 miles by air and by car. I snorkeled in the south pacific ocean, skied in Wyoming, rode a cable car in San Francisco, posed for a picture next to a sleeping seal in Kikoura, New Zealand, and sent my beloved grandmother a birthday greeting from a beach on the island of Aitutaki. I snapped over 800 pictures, read about the immortal life of Henrietta Lacks and the impossible burden that life placed upon her children. I hugged a towering California redwood and waded in a swimming hole. I visited Florida with my sister Tracy when the temperature dipped to its coldest reading since 1895. I soaked in a natural hot spring after snowshoeing to it through the woods near Yellowstone National Park.. I was comforted by the angelic voices of a Maori congregation at the Cook Island Christian Church and deeply saddened by what I saw and didn't see on my drive through the Cheyenne River Reservation in South Dakota . I toured the Getty Museum, drove on a Los Angeles freeway, learned a lot about California's history and the missions, and sipped wine on the "Sideways Tour." I saw hundreds of dusky dolphins, an albatross, four whales, dozens of seals, and woolless sheep in New Zealand. I danced at a Western bar in Wilson, WY. I met a witch disguised as a little girl on a Florida beach. Okay, she was probably a little girl but she had the face of a 35 year old. I met many wonderful people along the way including our hosts at BB&Bs and boutique hotels, restaurant workers, airplane seatmates, shop keepers, fellow travelers, John's friends Bob, Lynne, Inger, and Peter, and countless others. I drove on the left side of the road for several hundred miles and just narrowly escaped being flattened when I looked left rather than right before stepping into the street somewhere in New Zealand. I kept John safe in New Zealand and he acknowledged more than once that I probably saved him/us from serious injury or death. During the few weeks actually spent at home I met up with friends over leisurely lunches. I went under the knife and had my droopy left eyelid lifted up, and now it almost matches my right eyelid. I spent two nights on a farm in Te Anau, New Zealand, and two nights alone in a cabin in Jackson Hole, WY. I held a blue star fish in my hand and floated above clams the size of suitcases. I mailed postcards to my grandfather from every stop and found a new way to honor my grandmother. After we finished a meal in Hokitika, NZ the waiter presented us with a guest book along with the check. I signed the guest book E.M. Jackson (home city, VA) and continued this practice each time I had the opportunity to sign a guest book from that point onward. I took a cruise through New Zealand's spectacular fjords and hiked in Abel Tasman National Park. I caught a glimpse of what lies beneath the sea and it was AMAZING! I walked through San Francisco's Chinatown and admired the tranquil beauty of the Japanese Tea Garden in Golden Gate Park. I saw more beauty in nature than I thought possible, heard singing so glorious that I was moved to tears, and tasted fruits that defied description.

Q. Did you ever miss work?

A. Actually, I really did miss work. I missed my colleagues most of all and I missed the routine and structure of work. I think 90 days was just the right amount of time away and I'm happy to be back.

Q. How was it spending so much time with John?

A We got along amazingly well considering the amount of time we spent together. We had just one real argument and one misunderstanding. We're very good travel companions because we like to observe, explore, learn, and laugh. He's also a great travel companion for me because he pushes me out of my comport zone and encourages me to try new things.


Q. Do you think this was a life altering experience?

A. It's too early to say, but I'm sure this experience will have a lasting impression on me. The experience made me more aware and more curious and I'm eager to learn more and see more even if it's only through reading and short trips.

Blogging was also a wonderful experience because throughout each day I thought about how I was going to describe the day in the blog; knowing that I had "followers" on my journey forced me to take in everything as it was the only way to really bring my followers along on this incredible journey. So once again thank you for your support and encouragement and thank you for carving out time in your day to join me on this adventure.

Godspeed!

Saturday Night Live

What a fun Saturday! The morning was fairly uneventful, but the evening has been great fun. I lounged around the house until about 3:00 when I ran out to do a little last minute shopping in preparation for our evening on the town. I was cutting it close because John wanted to leave for Tom's party at 4:30 and I only arrived to his house at 4:20! Fortunately, he was still dressed in jeans and not even close to being ready to dash out. We left John's place around 5:00 headed for downtown. John's good friend Tom B. hosted a fund raising event for the Midwest Values PAC (DFL party). Senator Al Franken and Seth Meyers were the featured guests; and while everyone who knows me well knows I'm not a big fan of Al's... I must say he was really quite charming, thoughtful and bright (we had a brief chat about the disturbing conditions on Indian reservations). Seth Meyers was hilarious. For those who don't stay up late enough to catch SNL, Seth Meyers is the head writer and anchor for Weekend News Update. He's really bright, quick, and laugh out loud funny! The event at Tom's penthouse condo was a swanky affair where we were two of perhaps 70 invited guests, every guest got a photo op with Al and Seth and we got some nice face time with both as well as the candidate trying to unseat nutty Michelle Bachmann. The food was tasty too; John pointed out the mini burgers (don't know how I missed 'em) and I managed to scarf down a couple along with a hearty helping of cheese and crackers and a glass of wine. I was expecting a fun evening but the party was way more fun than I expected and I had a great time as did John. Now we're back at the house making popcorn and getting ready to watch a comedy.. either Nurse Betty or Dirty Rotten Scoundrels.

John will ask Tom about getting a copy of the photo so if/when I get my hands on it I'll post it here assuming it's decent. I wore my hair in a braid out but it looked finger-in-an-electrical-socket wild :>)

http://www.midwestvaluespac.com/

I couldn't divulge this at the time I posted this entry because I wanted to surprise my sister with an autographed copy of Al Franken's Liars book. He was kind enough to sign it "To Tracy, Great sister. Al Franken" I felt like such a geek carrying around that book. Earlier in the evening I realized I left my handbag in a corner and it just happened to be very close to where Al and Seth addressed the guests. Once they started talking I realized my handbag was there with the book poking out and my cellphone; I could hardly breathe while they spoke because I was afraid my cellphone would start ringing and the only way to silence it would have involved crossing in front of them and looking like a complete fool with not only the annoying cellphone but the book too! Let's just say theirs were two of the longest speeches I've ever endured.

Friday At Home

I made it to the gym at around 10:00 this morning for a good workout and for my 11th of 12 required visits to qualify for the $20 discount on my monthly membership. I met John for lunch at the Turtle Bread Company where it almost but not quite nice enough to sit outside... Spring is most definitely in the air! I want to get that mirror fixed on my car (remember I damaged it a few months ago) and John knows a guy, David who runs an auto shop near The Turtle Bread Co. After lunch we stopped there to see how much it is going set me back to have the mirror replaced or repaired, but David was on his lunch break so John left him a voice mail message. John went off to play tennis and I did a little shopping at Tuesday Morning. David from the auto body shop called me back a few hours later to tell me the cost of replacing and or repairing the mirror will run between $300-500, just about what I expected. I'll also check with the dealer on price and set up an appointment to have it fixed before summer. Back at home I finally started putting away suitcases and piles and piles of clothes and sorting through stacks of mail. I watched TV, surfed the internet, washed and deep conditioned my hair and all in all I had a very pleasant Friday. I called Anne to set up a dinner date but it turns out she was home sick with the cold so we'll have to get together for dinner next week.

Remember to vote in the new poll posted to the right of this entry:>) Thank you

So Long San Francisco

On our last day in Sonoma we decided to check out the spa aspect of the hotel. According to the guest guide in our room the pool is open to all guests. So we got all decked out in our bathing suites and covered up in the fluffy white robes and sandals provided by the hotel and pranced on over to the mineral pool. Unfortunately, the mineral pool, the one we wanted is only open to guests who purchase the spa package! I guess the desk attendant could read the disappointment plastered on my face because she waived the normal $35 fee after I told her we would be checking out of the hotel in just a few hours. I relaxed in the mineral pool and jacuzzi for about 45 minutes but John wasn't all that into it and went back to the room after about 15 minutes. Next we decided to go for a hike high above several vineyards. The weather was perfect for hiking, mild and sunny. We hiked for a little over an hour and the views of the savannah with the emerald green grass and wildflowers against a back drop of rows and rows of vineyards was so simply gorgeous. We got back to the hotel in time to pack up, check out, and make our way to the airport. Our flight was delayed by 30 minutes so we had enough time to have a decent meal at one of the airport's restaurants. We arrived at our airport just after 9:00 and took a taxi to John's house. John popped popcorn and we finally finished watching the movie we started last week. The Best Years Of Our Lives.

http://www.fairmont.com/sonoma

Sonoma Valley

Our Wednesday got off to a very pleasant start. We had a lovely breakfast served by a friendly Welshman at the Olema Inn. We never did catch his name but he was certainly a cheerful fella. Breakfast at the Olema Inn is included because it’s… well a Bed and Breakfast in addition to a restaurant. For breakfast we had a huge plate of fresh fruits and cheeses, the best croissants I’ve ever tasted, hot tea and orange juice. After we checked out of the inn we headed northeast into the Sonoma Valley. We made a stop at the Vallejo Adobe and spent a little time touring the grounds. I won’t give youmMariano Vallejo’s complete bio here, he was a Mexican general in charge of the fort and given a land grant by the Mexican government for 66 thousands acres; practically everything in Sonoma Valley bears his name. Then we went into the town of Sonoma and walked around the beautiful historic square, toured the mission and the barracks and watched a 20 minute film on the history of the Sonoma Valley. Then we bought some sandwiches and headed out of town for a little afternoon picnic. We found the perfect picnic site, a huge estate now maintained by a private foundation. We were practically the only people as far as the eye could see over hundreds of acres of vineyards and rolling hills. After our lunch we went next door to the Buena Vista winery for a wine tasting. After the winery we checked into our beautiful hotel, the Fairmont Sonoma Mission Hotel and Spa. This place is phenomenal very upscale but laid back and relaxed and because it’s also a spa we spotted several people walking around the lobby in fluffy white robes. John went for a hike and I took a little nap. We went back into downtown Sonoma for dinner at a restaurant called the Girl and the Fig. Our waitress, Heidi was terrific. She waits table a few days a week but makes her living as a professional photographer and only photographs women, her business is called In Her Image. Dinner was terrific, and while I don't remember the food being all that wonderful the atmosphere and the setting was simply perfect, not to mention the wine. I’ll post links to the hotel and Heidi’s website a little later.

http://inherimagephoto.com/

http://www.fairmont.com/sonoma

Point Reyes

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Oh my goodness, what a phenomenal day and evening. We spent most of the day on Point Reyes about an hour north of San Francisco. A big thank you to the National Park Service, US Department of the Interior for protecting Point Reyes seashore. This entire area is protected by the National Park Service so there are no beach mansions or hotels here. There are Just miles and miles of wild coastline and some historic ranches (protected by the park service). I've always known about the National Parks but I had no idea about the National Seashore, what great planning all those many years ago. If you want to see unimaginable beauty in this country, the National Parks and Seashore is definitely the way to go. The coastline is simply stunning and today I had my camera aimed charged and ready to shot. We spent most of our time on Drakes Bay walking along the beach and taking in the breath taking scenery. I snapped many pictures but not a single photo captured the honest beauty of this place. We played Frisbee on the beach for at least 30 minutes getting in a little cardio exercise and having some laughs. We hiked through brambles and wildflowers up a sea cliff where we got more amazing views of the sea. After our time at Drakes Bay we drove about 20 minutes to the Point Reyes Lighthouse. The lighthouse is closed on Tuesdays but visitors are still able to get a close look at the lighthouse but cannot enter it and climb up the stairs. Driving through this area you really can't believe you're in the US much less California; it really was like going back in time or traveling in a foreign country. All day John had talked about how much he wanted oysters and we even stopped before we reached Drakes Bay to get some but the place he was thinking of only sells them on the weekends. So after the lighthouse we tried again to get John some oysters. We went to the town of Point Reyes Station to a quaint place where he ordered a dozen oysters and a grape soda. I ordered a beer and tried the oysters but didn't like them and found the beer undrinkable. John was in hog oyster heaven and seemed really happy when I declined a second helping. We got back to the Olema Inn where we caught up on emails and relaxed for couple hours before dinner. I wanted to treat John to a really nice dinner and the Olema Inn has a highly regarded restaurant so it was decided that we would dine here tonight. John ordered hog island oysters, Parmesan Gnocchi with locally grown mushrooms, and asparagus for his main course, and a glass of champagne.I had the roasted beet salad, Beef Short Rib Bourguignon with pearl onions, baby carrots, local mushrooms, Neuske's bacon, pasta. and a glass of merlot. For dessert we shared something called cookies and cream but it was actually an oatmeal cake with vanilla ice cream. The dinner was out of this world amazing and I would rank it among the top 10 meals I've had in my lifetime. We are really ending this leave of absence on a high note. What an amazing day and evening.

http://theolemainn.com

http://www.theolemainn.com/menua.html

The Golden Gate Bridge

I thoroughly enjoyed my final Monday of freedom and leave of absence. We left the hotel before 9:00 and went over to Laura’s condo to pickup our rental car where we left it on Saturday. Parking at the hotel is $50/day and because we knew we wouldn’t need the car while staying downtown John decided to leave it at Laura’s. We had a little trouble with the pass code but John was able to reach Laura at the hospital and we got into the garage after about 15 minutes. First we drove west from Laura’s to Golden Gate Park. Once at the park we toured the Japanese Tea Garden, what a treat! The tea garden is beautiful, colorful and so peaceful. Next we stopped at the memorial to the USS San Francisco (badly damaged but victorious in the fiercely fought nighttime Naval battle of Guadal Canal… history lesson provided by John). Next we stopped at the Palace of the Legion of Honor but this beautiful spot is closed on Mondays, but beautifully situated on a promontory overlooking the Golden Gate bridge. Then we stopped at another memorial to soldiers lost in coastal waters in WWII. We drove across the beautiful Golden Gate Bridge and stopped on the other side at a lookout and snapped a few more pictures. Next is we drove to Sausalito where we had a pleasant lunch near but not on the water. Then we headed north to Muir Woods a national monument protecting thousands of California coastal redwoods. We spent about two hours in the park admiring the majestic redwoods and hiking. After we left the park we made a stop a few miles away at Muir Beach and oh my goodness! You can’t even imagine the beautiful view and unfortunately I didn’t have my camera with me to document it but trust me on this one… it was a sight to behold standing on a cliff and looking down at the rocky coastline. While driving toward our BB&N we spotted about 10 seals but couldn’t get close enough to have much of a look. Then we drove through the funky little town of Bolinas, apparently they don’t want anyone to know they exist because there are no road signs to direct you to Bolinas, but John was there a few years ago and wanted me to see the place. It’s a funky little town with a real laid back feel. Then we made our way to Olema where we’re spending the next two nights at The Olema Inn and Restaurant. We had a casual dinner at a restaurant in town called the Farm House.

Seeing San Francisco

It was a gorgerous day in San Francisco and we didn’t waste one minute of it! We left our hotel in the Nob Hill area and headed into Chinatown before 10:00. We walked around Chinatown for a little while but it was pretty quiet with most of the shops and stores just beginning to open. Just on the outskirts of Chinatown we walked through a park where 50-75 homeless people were gathered for breakfast, free hair cuts, and what sounded to us like church music. Near the park was an open market where I saw everything from jewelry to wooden bowls for sale. The market was just across the street from pier 1. Laura wanted to meet us for breakfast so she and John discussed a meeting place. Laura said she would meet us at the Ferry Building near pier 38. We walked from pier 1 to pier 40 near the baseball stadium but didn’t see the Ferry building. It turns out that we didn’t see the Ferry Building because it was literary next to pier 1 where we started. Laura met us and drove us back to pier 1. We had a great time walking around the pier while enjoying fresh bread, cheese, and olives for a mid morning snack. Laura headed back home to catch up on some work and shop for the dinner she’s hosting for us this evening. John and I walked up many steep hills (it is SF after all) and eventually reached the Coit Tower built in 1933 as a sightseeing spot. You get amazing views of the city from the tower. We got views of downtown, the bay bridge, the golden gate, bridge and Alcatraz! After exploring the coit tower we returned to Chinatown for a second look, and then skipped over to little Italy where I had a beer and John had a Coke. Then we decided to walk up Lombard Street for more nice views of the city. We got back to our hotel shortly after 4:00 and had to scrabble a bit and get ready for dinner at Laura’s. Dinner at Laura’s was superb. The meal was delicious with salmon, green beans, a salad, and sourdough baguette. Laura and her brother Thomas are John’s first cousins (his dad’s brother’s children). Tom is a writer and magazine editor who is busy traveling all over the county promoting his latest book. Laura is a surgeon obviously keeping busy with her work. Thomas is married to Whitney, a social worker and they have two little boys, almost 3 year old, Rex and 5month old Buckminster. Adorable little kids, Rex presented me with gifts throughout the evening usually items belonging to his aunt Laura, coins, a bracelet, a piece of paper with Arabic writing on it, and a black tank top. Rex wanted to sit at the head of the table and assigned me to sit at the opposite end Buck is a strong little guy who loves to stand with assistance and according to Whitney he’s been doing this since he was three week old. I’m going to sign off now because this post is getting long and we have lots to see in San Francisco today including the California Redwoods. Again, no time to proof this post so forgive or just ignore the errors.

The Industrial City

Greetings from San Francisco nicknamed The Industrial City? We arrived here yesterday at around 2:30, rented a car and drove to John's cousin, Laura's condo. The plan is to leave the rental car there until Monday when we need it because parking in downtown SF is crazy expensive and apparently you don't really need a car in downtown. We spent about an hour at Laura's before taking a taxi to our hotel downtown. We're staying at a really beautiful old hotel called the Stanford Court located in the Nob Hill section, a Marriott property but it doesn't look like any Marriott I've ever seen. The hotel decor is my favorite style, art deco and much of what I've seen of SF is also art deco architecture. We took a little walk around the city after we dropped off our luggage. We walked to the edge of China town and back up several steep hills to our hotel. Laura picked us up for dinner around 7:15. We had dinner at a very good Italian restaurant called Piacera, really some of the best Italian food I've ever eaten. After dinner we all took a cable car to Fisherman's Wharf because John wanted us to see a place called Buena Vista, home of the original Irish Coffee. John treated us to Irish coffees and both Laura and I were expecting decaf coffees. We had no idea we would be sipping hot coffee laced with alcohol so we spent a few minutes making faces with each sip. It was pretty cold out last night and we both agreed that the Irish coffee warmed us from the inside out. We took the cable car back to the hotel around 11:30. I can now add to my list of new experiences, riding a cable car. The cable cars are old and make a rumbling sound that made me think of a rickety wooden wagon full of bowling balls and glass bottles being pulled up stairs. Laura has lived in SF for five years but it was her first time on a cable car. It is also very expensive to ride a cable car, $5/ride no transfers or $13 for a day pass. I imagine the price is so steep because it must take an awful lot of money to maintain those old cable cars, tracks, and drivers. The cable cars require two operators and operating or driving a cable car requires a lot of physical labor and looks like hard work. We're going out in a few minutes to have breakfast, explore the city and take pictures. Tonight we're having dinner at Laura's with her brother Tom, his wife Whitney and their two young sons.

Sorry, I've had no time to proof this post:>) busy trying to get out and enjoy the day.

A date with uncle Sam and lunch with Jane

I nearly forgot to submit today's blog post! I had a really nice Friday despite the cloudy sky and cooler temps. I met up with my friend Jane for lunch at her house. We had a lovely time catching up over her delicious lentil and sweet potato soup and homemade rolls. Her rolls actually reminded me a bit of my grandmother's famous rolls and eating and just seeing them brought back a flood of sweet memories of good times around the kitchen table at 718 ****. I was at Jane's for a little over two hours and it was such good fun. After lunch I made a stop at Target where I always spend 2x as much as I think I'm going to spend and leave with all sorts of things I never intended to buy. Back at home I completed my 2009 tax return.,,yea for me! It feels so good to have that thing done. I've never waited this long to file my taxes, but with all of the traveling this year filing my tax return just wasn't a top priority . Lucky for me I don't owe any money to uncle Sam and he's sending me a small refund. We didn't finish the movie last night because apparently back in 1946 Hollywood made longer films, the movie has a running time of 170 minutes! We plan to watch the rest of it Thursday night once we're back from San Francisco. Now I'm doing laundry and packing for our trip tomorrow. Nighty night.

Run N Fun

I'm having a busy yet productive Thursday. After my workout this morning I went over to Run N Fun. For my birthday my pals at the gym: Jane, Linda and Carol gave my a gift certificate to Run N Fun. Obviously, I've held on to this gift certificate for awhile since my birthday is in June. Anyway, the wait was well worth it because I purchased a pair of Brooks running shoes and 4 workout tops. The tops were in the the clearance room so I got them at 50% off and the shoes for 15% off. Thank you gym friends, what a treat! I wanted the shoes in black because I've never owned running shoes in in any color other than white and I thought the black shoes looked cool; so I'll have to wait about 10 days for the black shoes. After Run N Fun I went over to Trader Joe's to see what all the fuss was about over this grocery store chain. I've been in Trader Joe's in the Boston area but the chain opened here a year or two ago and everyone says how great the stores are so I wanted to check it out for myself. I'm the world's worst grocery shopper so the fact that I only spent $11 and left with a bottle of strawberry lemonade, two boxes of crackers, and a frozen pizza should in no way color your view of Trader Joe's. The store is very nice and the selection of products is interesting and varied; I just don't know how to shop for groceries. After that I drove home and took a 30 minute nap. I watched some NCAA basketball and then called my big brother for a catch up chat and to hear about his weekend with grandpa. Marie and I had planned to meet up for dinner but her training ran long and she has a very early flight tomorrow so we've made tentative plans to get together late next week. I finally sat down long enough to start my '09 tax return and hope to complete both forms before we leave for CA on Saturday. I've been using Turbo Tax online for several years and it really is quite simple especially since I've had no significant changes to my filing status. I spent about 30 minutes working on the tax return and then drove over to John's. He's making popcorn right now and we're going to watch The Best Years of Our Lives (1946) winner of 7 Academy awards, so I guess it's a good one.

Photo taken yesterday at Dairy Queen but the weather today was just as beautiful, sunny and 60s

Irish For A Day

Today was great fun. I got up at a reasonable hour because I finally went to bed at a reasonable hour. I went to the gym and had a pretty good workout and chatted with Celeste and Cynthia. I've known Celeste for a few years and she introduced me to Cynthia just a few days ago. Celeste is in her late 50s and Cynthia in her early 50s. Celeste appears happily single but Celeste is on the hunt for a suitor and has tried every online dating site you've ever heard of except for match.com. She had me cracking up in the sauna yesterday as she talked about some of the characters she's met on various dating sites. We both agreed that eHarmony was the biggest waste of money ever. I mentioned to her that I met John on match.com and now she's eager to try match.com but in the interest of full disclosure I also told her that I met crazy Mike on match.com as well. She seems to have a good attitude and an open mind so I'm sure she will meet some good people online but my advice to her was to avoid the free sites such as Craig's List (the source of many of her dating horror stories) After dispensing online dating advice at the gym I headed to the office to meet up with Anne. Anne and I hopped on a metro transit bus toward downtown for the 44th annual St Patrick's day parade. We went last year and because it was so much fun we decided to try it again and
were not disappointed. Even the bus ride was fun because practically everyone on the bus was going to the parade and most were decked out in wild costumes and in good spirits or already drunk. The paraded lasted just over an hour and boy did we see some hilarious costumes from dogs painted green to a man dressed as an Irish Elvis. I got some good photos and the weather couldn't have been more perfect for a parade, sunny and in the 60s. After the parade we hopped back on the metro transit bus to the office. We decided because it was such a beautiful day and Anne didn't have anything pressing going on at the office that we should walk to the Dairy Queen for treats. I had a peanut buster parfait and Anne had some type of coffee drink. We walked back to the office where we parted ways. I've been relaxing all evening and playing around with my parade photos. Happy St Patrick's Day

Afternoon Tea

I don't know where the time goes, but ever since day light saving time began I've felt like there haven't been enough hours in the day. I got up early but not as early as the alarm (6:15). I did some chores at home and then headed for the gym. I haven't written much about my "hair journey" lately but today was "wash day" and it's quite an involved process. I start with a deep conditioner the night before and leave the conditioner in my hair overnight it's called pre-shampooing (preparing the hair for shampooing). Before I left the house I rinsed out the overnight conditioner (moisturizer) and washed the hair with an herbal powder shampoo, washed and rinsed, and then I saturated my hair with Dove conditioner. I covered my hair and tied on a scarf, and dashed off to the gym for my morning workout. I had a nice workout and even met up with two of my gym pals, LInda and Celeste. After my workout I rinse the conditioner out and sat in the sauna long enough to dry my hair about 50%, Next I sectioned my damp hair into four sections and made four braids. I covered my hair with a silk scarf and then put on my favorite navy blue hat. Next I went off to meet my pal Margaret Ann for lunch at her apartment. M.A. lives near my gym so the timing was perfect. We had a lovely afternoon catching up over herbal tea and Irish soda bread. I spent about three hours with M.A. and enjoyed seeing all of her recent purchases (leather sofa, flat screen TV, laptop, dining room table and chars, and new rug) no she didn't just win the lottery :>) Best of all was just spending the afternoon with my friend and enjoying her delightful company. After I left M.A's I ran a few errands and arrived home at about 5:30. I unbraided my hair and curled the ends just a bit and then snapped the attached photo. The style is called a "braid out" and it's super easy and l think it looks pretty good.

Happy Hours

Yikes! It seems there's a bit of confusion regarding my return date to work, I received a voice mail message from my boss this afternoon, he's expecting me back to work next Friday the 26th. I was under the impression that my first day back would be Monday, March 29th. I will call employment services in the morning and get it settled; so fingers crossed that I'm right and Steve is wrong. It wouldn't be that big of a deal but John and I are flying to San Francisco on Saturday and returning next Thursday, so I really hope I can have a weekend before going back to work. I know that sounds pretty greedy on my part considering I've had three months off and countless weekends since January. I had a busy morning with a workout at the gym and then a trip to the airport to pick up John's car from the valet lot where he had to leave it yesterday because he got a late start and barely made the flight to FL. Anyway, Anthony picked me up at John's and dropped me off at the airport and I drove the car back to John's where I had left my car. I stayed at John's for much of the afternoon because I was meeting my pal Joyce for cocktails at 3:00 in the area. While at John's I spent loads of time transferring our vacation photos from his computer onto my computer. I met Joyce at McCormick and Schmicks for happy hour or in our case happy 3 hours! We had such a good time catching up and enjoying the drinks and really inexpensive but tasty appetizers, I especially enjoyed the pot roast nachos! Good heavens who comes up with this stuff! Joyce is doing really well and is enjoying her new job . You may remember that she was my realtor and also listed my townhouse almost two years ago when I was looking to move back to the big city. As we all know the housing market is no place to make a living these days so Joyce has been working in another field since the downturn in the housing market. After several happy hours with Joyce I started on my way home around 6:00. I haven't done much here at home, but the evening has been relaxing although my eye has been pretty sore for much of the day, maybe that's a sign of healing? This day light saving time is kicking my butt! I stay up way too late and then I can hardly drag myself out of bed in the morning. I have my alarm set for 6:15 because I'm trying to prepare myself for my return to work but today I hit the off button and slept until almost 9:00!

I like Ike

A lovely Sunday in the Twin Cities. I really missed that extra hour of sleep but managed to get up and going before 9:00. John and Gretchen took a flight to Florida for a mini vacation this afternoon and Mary headed back to school around 3:00. I met up with my gal pal Donna for brunch at Ike's at 1:00 and we had a blast. The last time we got together was just before I left on my first trip in January so we had a lot of catching up to do and stayed at the restaurant until after 3:00. The Ike's brunch is huge and is really just too much food for comfort, but we cleaned our plates anyway. The brunch always begins with the presentation of an enormous gooey cinnamon roll followed by: eggs, bacon, pancakes, toast, and sausage. At the end of it all patrons are presented chocolate chip cookies along with the bill because goodness knows after all of that food you are surely craving another sugary treat. I could have stayed at Ike's all day chatting with Donna but she needed to get to her office to finish up some work before she leaves on a business trip to DC tomorrow. After brunch I stayed downtown and did some clothes shopping at Sax Off 5th. Like most retailers the store was having a HUGE sale 20^% off your entire purchase. I purchased two pairs of Joe's jeans, one pair of skinny and the other classic fit and two blouses. I've never owned a pair of skinny jeans but I like the way they look and fit. After I bought them I started to worry that maybe they were already out of fashion; so I consulted John's daughter who assured me that skinny jeans are here to stay (at least for another season or two). It was actually Gretchen who introduced me to Joe's jeans when I scored a pair of her hand-me- downs a year ago and they quickly became my favorite pair of jeans. It was 64 degrees here today and when I drove by the Dairy Queen near work I was excited to see it open for the season (always closes during the winter). Not only was it open there was a line forming and several people standing in line were wearing shorts! Hello sunshine, hello Spring 2010.


Today's post is 80/90 and the clock is ticking down on my leave of absence. My final entry will be Sunday, March 28th.

The Blues Reborn

Whew! What a busy day and I'm just sitting down at 12:05 AM so really 1:05 AM to blog all about it. The day got off to a late start because I had such a good sleep and didn't want to roll out of bed too early. I finally got going around 10:00 but still didn't leave the house until after noon when I headed over to John's for Gretchen's birthday celebration. The family party was scheduled for 1:30 but John failed to mention to me that he moved it to 2:00. No matter, I was there in plenty of time and it's not like I had anything else to do in the afternoon. Gretchen, Mary, their mom Elizabeth, Will, Joelle, John and I enjoyed cake and ice cream and lots of laughs for a little more than an hour at John's house. After the festivities John, Gretchen and I played a round of the board game SORRY and I guess it was a perfect case of beginner's luck because somehow I managed a win. I left John's just after 5:00 to meet up with Greg and Svetlana for dinner with Anne and Bruno. Greg and Svetlana are friends with Anne and Bruno and the four had planned to have dinner and then go out to hear some live music at the Blues Saloon. Greg and Svetlana wanted to catch up with John and me so they included me in on their plans because John was busy with work and really doesn't like blues music. Anne and Bruno are very nice people and I enjoyed dinner at their home and meeting their daughter and two dogs. After dinner we all went out to hear blues at the place mentioned previously. When I moved here many moons ago I went to the Blues Saloon often with Doug and it was just such a cool place to go dancing and hear great live music. Unfortunately wave of crime hit the neighborhood including a high-profile altercation involving an off duty police officer who just so happened to be the stepson of the former chief of police followed by a senseless murder in the bar . These back-to-back incidents drove patrons away and the Blues Saloon was forced to close its doors years ago. I don't know when it re-opened but I imagine the bar was out of business for at least 7 years but probably more. I was happy to see the place packed tonight and the music was fantastic. Blues guitarist, John Moody headlined tonight's show and he was excellent http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Mooney_(musician) . Svetlana is 7 months pregnant so she was more than ready to call it a night by 10:30 and my eye was beginning to hurt. We had Greg walk us to my car and I drove Svetlana home at 11:00 and then drove myself home. A long but fun day. I know this post requires a good edit but I wanted to get something down before heading off to bed.

Healing

Lovely flowers from my lovely sisters

I woke up this morning so excited to look at myself in the mirror! I looked in the mirror expecting to be horrified at my own reflection; unfortunately, the face staring back at me was the same as before surgery save a little puffiness around my left eye. I was hoping to look like I'd been in a street fight all black and blue and maybe even a few stitches poking through my eyelid, but nope just puffy and a little redness. I guess the ice packs kept the swelling and bruising to a minimum. My follow-up appointment was at 10:20 and nurse Debbie and Dr Korbrin couldn't believe the lack swelling and ugliness. I have some soreness and I'm taking ES Tylenol about every 4 hours and keeping the eye iced and using the $71 prescription Tobrex ointment 2x daily as instructed. It will take six weeks to see the results of the surgery but after about 7 days my eye should appear "normal" but will continue to heal internally so I can't do anything to tug on the muscles or interfere with the healing process like rubbing my eye, putting in a contact lens, or even jarring exercises. After the follow-up appointment I ran a few errands and came home and took a nap. I've bee working on my Cook Island slideshow (posted) and watching TV. It's difficult to read for long periods, my eye gets dry because I'm not blinking normally. Today is Gretchen's 22nd birthday and she arrived home a few hours ago and Mary's flight is due in around 8:00 tonight. John is spending the weekend with his daughters and I'll go over tomorrow afternoon for a little party in Gretchen's honor. I guess that's about it for the day.


Aitutaki Cook Islands slideshow

Eye to Eye

My vision is blurry tonight because I had eye surgery earlier today. I'm going to keep this post short and sweet. The eye surgery is something I've mentioned in previous blog posts and family and friends are aware of the issue with my left eye. After several consults to rule out brain tumors, strokes, paralysis, etc. it was finally determined that I've been suffering from a condition known as ptosis (drooping or sagging of the eyelid) it is completely harmless and typically occurs as a result of paralysis or disease or as a normal part of the aging process (in both eyes). The reason my condition was approved for treatment is because it affects only my left eye and has been going on for at least 10 years so not the result of normal aging but likely the result of an injury to the eye when I was younger. The procedure I underwent today was an eyelid lift both for cosmetic as well as medical (vision) reasons. The surgery involved going behind the eyelid to tighten the levator muscle. Typically the procedure is performed on the outside of the eyelid (exterior) leaving a visible scar. My case made me a perfect candidate for the behind the eyelid method due to my age and the slightness of the ptosis. A resident named Zach observed the surgery and assisted my physician, Dr Korbrin, MD. The entire procedure took about an hour and I didn't feel a thing after the painful injections used to numb the eyelid. I was prescribed diazepam /valium to calm my nerves prior to surgery and I took one of the two tablets about 30 minutes before the procedure and was feeling like an overcooked spaghetti noodle by the time my name was called. I needed to be awake and alert for the procedure in order to follow instructions such as "look up, look down, look at your toes." I was still loopy from the valium, and joking around with the staff asked to hear some Polynesian music which a nurse managed to find on the internet and cranked it up loud enough for me to enjoy. After the procedure I was given some instructions on how to care for my eye over the next several days and what to expect as far as pain. I asked Dr Korbrin if I should take the other Valium tablet;,his response "you might want to take it before you look at yourself in the mirror tomorrow" LOL! Apparently, I'm going to look like a hot mess tomorrow after the swelling and black and blue bruising kicks in. I took a look at myself in the operating room and I looked homely but apparently it's nothing compared to how awful I'm going to look in the morning, I can't wait. I asked the nurse to take my picture both before and right after the operation and I plan to post those pictures in a few days and of course I’ll snap a few tomorrow when I look like something straight out of the house of horrors.. Judy R. my friend and former colleague was a real sweetie to volunteer to drive me to and from the surgery. She waited through the procedure (a little over an hour) and gave me a lift back to her house where I had left my car. Back at Judy’s I was treated to a Coke and a slice of yummy cake not to mention a nice chat with Judy and her husband Tom. After I left Tom and Judy's I drove myself to a pharmacy to pick up some extra strength Tylenol because the numbing drugs were already starting to wear off and the left side of my face was beginning to ache. My eye feels sore and gooey and it looks sad and homely:<(

Attached photo ptosis in the left eye a few months before surgery

Auto Show

The highlights of the day include lunch with John and his daughter, Brenda and a trip downtown for the Auto Show. We had a nice lunch near John's house and Brenda was in good spirits and looks good although she's complaining about "the freshman 15" her face definitely looks fuller but I don't think she's gained 15 pounds since starting college. I drove her back home so John could get down to his office but I managed to get lost while driving Brenda home due to some road construction and a detour. I finally dropped her off and got back on track. I met John at the Auto Show around 3:00. What I liked about the Auto Show was getting to see the cars without the pressure of overzealous sales people. I really like the Buick Regal, the Buick Lacrosse and the Volvo C30 coupe. My car is in pretty good shape and I'm not in the market for a new car at the moment but it never hurts to look and see what's out there. John was most interested in the fuel efficient cars and hybrids. We spent about a hour at the car show and then John went back to his office to work, and I went to the gym. Unfortunately, my trip to the gym turned out to be a trip to the sauna because I forgot my running shoes. After the nice long sauna, I had a nice chat with my sister and then a good long chat with my pal Felicia. I also had to catch up on yesterday's blog post. Now it's 10:30 and time for bed.

Promising young law students

We didn't get in last night until after 10:00 and it was just too late to blog. . However, I did jot down some notes because I wanted to be sure to share with you details of the wonderful evening we had at the Law School Donor Recognition Dinner. We attended this event last year after the details of John's scholarship were finalized but he didn't have a scholarship recipient at that time. The recipient was selected over the summer and John received a nice letter or note from the young man several months ago, but this was their first face-to -face meeting. John and I we were seated with his scholarship recipient, James, a 1L (first year law student), and Andrew a 1L, Nadia also a 1L, Courtney a 2L, and Tony a 3L. Andrew is from Lake Forest, IL and completed his undergraduate degree at UC Berkeley. Nadia is from the area and completed her B.A. at Boston College, incidentally this is where John's younger daughter attends college. Courtney is also from the area and graduated from Northwestern U in IL where John's oldest daughter is a senior. James is from the area and graduated from Carleton College; his older brother recently completed a law degree at Yale '08 but is back in the area working at a small business firm. Tony is from Nebraska and I missed where he completed his undergraduate work, but he's in his 3rd year of law school and is about to venture out into what he described as a tough market. I found them all so interesting and eager but Tony was the most compelling of the group. Tony is a mix of confidence and fear, intelligence and skepticism. He's looking at all avenues including the Air Force JAG program, large and small firms, government agencies, etc. The reality of tough economic times hasn't been lost on Tony, he believes fewer than 20% of his classmates have clear prospects at the end of the semester. Back in John's day it was common for well over 70% of graduates to know exactly where they would be working upon graduation and passing the bar. The 1L's are just trying to keep up with the tremendous demands of law school, the 2L is swimming comfortably in the deep end of the pool now that she has her footing,. The 3L is climbing up the ladder and out of the pool with knowledge, experience, and confidence but heavy school loan debt and no real prospects for employment. I learned a few things about the UMN Law School at last night's program. The average LSAT score for applicants admitted is 167 or (96th percentile), the U of MN ranks in the low 20s according to US News and World Reports ranking system, and within 3 years all state aid for the law school will dry up due to budget cuts. Now more than ever colleges and universities are needing to rely heavily on the generosity of alumni and donors to attract and graduate the best and the brightest and that's what the night was all about… recognizing donors and the students being helped by these funds. One such student was Forest T. a young man who spoke about his journey from a public high school in the area, to Stanford U., and to the UMN Law School. Forest is a member of the Comanche Nation and his interest in the law began when he Googled his unusual last name, a last name that in the Comanche language translates to “young man who wakes before dawn.” The unique last name came up in his Google search and was linked to a lawsuit filed by a young Comanche man who once sued Fort Collins and the State of Colorado over its decision to renege on a promise to provide full college scholarships to academically qualified native american students. The young Comanche man won his case against the state of Colorado and to this day the college awards academic scholarships to Native American students attending Fort Collins. It turns out the young Comanche gentleman who took on Fort Collins and the state of Colorado was the father of this young man, Forest! Forest said his dad never mentioned the lawsuit perhaps because he never attended Fort Collins or perhaps because he didn’t think it was such a big deal. It was this discovery as a high school sophomore that sparked Forest’s interest in law and led him first to Stanford (he is obviously very bright) and then to the UMN law school. While attending Stanford he was not only a top student but also a star athlete (track). He even ran track as a 1L at U MN because he had a year of eligibility left. This young man is such an inspiration and his story will stick with me for a very long time. The night was also a reminder of the transformative power of education and the importance of recognizing and nurturing talent and curiosity from the start.

Article from our local paper re: the changing economy and tough road ahead for law school graduates
http://www.startribune.com/business/40447957.html

Easing Back

I'm starting to ease back into something resembling a "normal" schedule. I got up early this morning to start some chores primarily laundry and 2 months worth of recycling. We have single sort recycling in the county and it's awesome but takes time to organize it all. I left the house for the gym around 11:00 where I had a very nice workout but it was too late to see any of my gym friends. It felt really good to be at the gym since I only made one appearance there in February. I had a terrific catch up lunch date with my pal Erin around 1:00 at a new restaurant near her house, Erin said in January that 2010 would be her year to focus on Erin and WOW! You go girl, looking great and more importantly looking happy and healthy. Back at home I did more stuff around the house, had dinner, watched a little TV, worked on a new slideshow, talked with mom, and talked with John. I'm working on a Cook Island slideshow and my plan is to produce one for each of our big trips and post to the blog. Now I'm going to read and listen to the radio until I fall asleep:>)

And the award goes to...

I’m taking a little break from The Academy Awards to post tonight and sadly it’s not all that difficult to take a break from this show. I had a nice morning hanging out with John before he headed out to play tennis around noon. I had a mad craving for chicken and cheese, so I stopped at the grocery store on the way home and stocked up. Unfortunately, I didn’t have a craving for affordable everyday Kraft cheddar but rather the good stuff I get at John’s… gruyere and emmenthaler Now that I’ve had to purchase my own slab of emmenthaler I will stop eating it at John's like he has his very own emmenthaler tree in the yard. I played around with my photos (finally transferred many of them from John's computer), watched TV, talked with John before his flight took off for San Diego, and then chatted with Tracy until she had to leave for her Sunday night massage appointment. John is in CA to take a deposition in the ACLU case he’s working on and will be back tomorrow night. If I wake up in time I’m hoping to go to the club for a morning workout, if not I will definitely get myself there in the afternoon. Regarding The Academy Awards, I just heard a wonderful acceptance speech by the gentleman who won for best adapted screenplay, Geoffrey Fletcher, it was the most heartfelt Oscar acceptance speech I think I’ve ever heard. Queen Latifah is so pretty. Mo’ Nique just delivered one heck of an acceptance speech too! Robert Downey Jr. looks like he hitched a ride to the Oscars in a clown car. I’m suddenly more interested in the Oscars.

Exterior Maintenance

We just finished watching Beverly Hills Cop, that 80s movie with Eddie Murphy, and I'm too sleepy to write much tonight. All these years later I still find that movie laugh out loud funny. After more than 20 weeks since my last hair appointment I finally made a stop at the salon for a relaxer (relaxes the natural curl/texture in my hair) and trim. My hair was at least an inch longer but also pretty damaged at the ends so after the trim the length is about the same or maybe even a little shorter but so much thicker and healthier. Del Marie was really surprised that after so many weeks my hair was in such good condition. I think my next relaxer "stretch" will be a little shorter probably 16 weeks (in the past I had it relaxed about every 8 weeks) My appointment was for 10:30 with Del Marie but true to form she didn't start until around 11:30 so I didn't leave the salon until almost 2:00! As I mentioned in yesterday's post Del Marie is about 9 weeks pregnant but she looks 4 months and says she's been eating like a horse for weeks, is tired and needs to rest between appointments and eat more. She told me later that the father of her baby had been in the salon while I was there but I didn't see him and he's a guy she's never mentioned to me so I guess he's a new fella in her life. She's already planning to go on public assistance when the baby arrives in late September so apparently the father doesn't have much to contribute. My hair appointment was the only real highlight of the day. Today I also went through my mail (3 weeks worth), ran a couple errands, and reacquainted myself with my house.

Home Again

We rolled into Minneapolis at 8:00 PM after starting out this morning in Spearfish, SD at 8:30 AM. Needless to say it was a long and exhausting day of driving and the scenery was both foggy and bleak for much of the drive. We drove through the Cheyenne River Reservation (Sioux). The drive through the reservation is about 75 miles long and it is 75 miles of virtual nothingness. In a little over an hour we saw a number of aluminum sided homes, two gas stations, a cultural center, a few churches, and a wellness center; I believe we saw most of the non-residential spaces in Eagle Butte one of the larger towns on the reservation. We also saw a power plant and a beautiful new school made of red brick, antelope, and cows. I was struck by several things 1. the size of the reservation 2. the lack of businesses and employment opportunities, 3. the number of road markers indicating traffic fatalities* there must have been 30 such signs within the 75 miles stretch of hwy 212, 4. the remoteness and isolation 4. the lousy land with its dry conditions that make farming impossible. Please see the link to the right for more information about the reservation. We made just a few quick stops for gas but didn't stop for lunch until 4:00 PM in the town of Watertown, SD because it was the first town large enough to have more than a couple family owned diners. John did about 80% of the driving today because the heavy fog made me nervous and it lasted for hours, he did the night driving too because my night vision isn't the greatest. When we got to his house we made popcorn and I had a cup of hot tea, and now we're just chillin' out.

I have an appointment with my hairdresser, Del Marie at 10:30 tomorrow, the first since October 22nd. She was afraid I'd dropped her, but I told her "no way" just traveling and trying a new hair regimen. She also told me that she's 9 weeks pregnant with her 2nd child. Her older "child" is 21 years old.

*Official signs erected by the SD Dept. of Transportation, part of a program started in 1979. Diamond in shape, one side says “Think,” and the other side says “Why Die?” Both sides have a red “X” painted on them (definitely not a Christian cross), with “X marks the spot” in small type.

Multiple fatalities are depicted as individual signs in a line spaced ten feet apart -- we assume this was to avoid the visual horror of signs sprouting from one spot like some abstract fatality flower.

The signs stay until they fall apart or are displaced by construction, and are not replaced unless the deceased family makes a special request.

Spearfish, SD

We got off to an early start, getting up at 6:30 to have breakfast and pack up the car. We were on the road at 8:00 AM on the dot only 30 minutes shy of our goal of 7:30. The drive was beautiful and today was the perfect day to spend on the road. I had no idea how much beauty one could see from the window of a car moving along at 65 mph. I was completely blown away by the spectacular scenery along the highway. We started out in the Tetons, then drove between the Wind Rivers and the Absarokas (mountain ranges), then the spectacular Big Horns, and finally into the South Dakota Black HIlls. We stopped in Thermopolis, WY and for a picnic lunch in a park near the hot springs where it was nearly 60 degrees. Thermopolis is known for its dinosaur discoveries and hot springs (the world’s largest according to words painted into a hillside leading into town). After lunch we hopped back in the car for more beautiful scenery. We spotted hundreds of antelope by the highway, and saw everything from snow-covered fields, 3 billion year-old precambrian granite. Unfortunately everything wasn’t completely perfect and picturesque; ugly oil fields complete with pumps resembling huge grasshoppers littered a long stretch of the highway. The oil towns are horribly unattractive with no sense of order or planning whatsoever. It's like an airplane just dropped houses and businesses from the sky to take root wherever they landed. Something about the oil fields polluted by the big grasshopper like machines was a little unsettling, even depressing. Once you've seen those enormous long necked machines repeating the same incessant nagging motion over and over again for 50 miles it starts to get to you. I guess they are synonymous with our constant, nagging, incessant, dependence on oil and this made me feel a tad bit slimy as we burned through precious oil trying to make our way home. We logged 495 miles today to our ultimate destination, The Best Western in Spearfish, SD and an Italian dinner at Roma's. We didn't waste any time after checking into the hotel and walked several blocks to Roma within minutes of dropping off our luggage at the hotel. Roma's is a lovely looking place and I'm sure it is hands down the finest eating establishment in all of Spearfish, SD and possibly all of South Dakota but with the exception of a decent Caesar salad and a nice glass of wine the food was average at best and the tiramisu tasted like something I made in my Easy Bake oven when I was a child. There was a plus size waitress working at Roma's, she wore a snug fitting skirt and blouse and fishnet stockings, and I truly enjoyed watching her work because she had so much confidence and style. I took at least 50 photos today so I'll upload one in a few hours to accompany this post. Goodnight from Spearfish.

Packing Up

We didn't leave the house until after 1:00 this afternoon! John worked a lot in the morning and I lounged around, listened to music, and surfed the internet. Once we finally got moving the day was pretty great. We went to town for some quick errands and then back to Teton National Park for another solid hour of cross country skiing. I fell down once but so did John so I didn't feel quite so goofy. I'm definitely getting better on xc skis and will probably invest in a pair when I get back home. After skiing we went over the guest cabin to tidy up and put away all those dishes I de-stickered and washed yesterday. We probably spent an hour or more over there. It started to snow heavily while we were there and it was nice to see since this area is 40% normal snowfall for this time of the year. Unfortunately, the new snow is coming too late for John to get out and enjoy it skiing. Once back at the Western cabin we had soup and yams for dinner. More chores after dinner to get ready for our 7:00 AM departure in the morning. We've been washing clothes and basically getting organized to head out tomorrow. John and I have been together every day since January 21 and I think we're both in need of some alone time.

Tedious Tuesday

I don't have much to report on about today. I spent a good bit of the morning peeling off price stickers from the new dinnerware and glassware we purchased yesterday. I had to get the stickers off before loading the new stuff into the dishwasher for a good first scrubbing. It was taking forever to get those darn stickers off but midway through the process I realized that soaking them first in warm water made removing the labels a lot easier. I got the new dishes into the dishwasher and put away the other stuff and the whole ordeal took a little over two hours. That was about the most exciting part of my day. John had a meeting in town at 1:30 with an attorney for the site committed to discuss the trim on the new cabin and after that he met up with a judge he knows from his early years in WY. I spent the time in town shopping for a few gifts, and eventually shopping for myself. I bought a nice pair of khakis for $16 (70% off). I picked up two tops at a local consignment shop, a pretty yellow western/cowgirl blouse and a basic brown and white gap stretch tee. I'm really happy with the yellow western blouse but I can't say that I was overly impressed with the selection at this consignment shop. I guess my expectations were a bit too high and influenced by the wealth and excess found here, I've found much better stuff in the consignment shops in little old St Paul. After his meeting with the site committee it was decided the blue and red trim will go away and John will probably have the house stained a dark grey... so long Swedish cabin. On our way back we stopped at the fanciest DQ I've ever seen. The Dairy Queen in Jackson has a big fireplace, comfortable booth seating, and DVDs playing old western movies! We made a quick stop a the grocery store as well as one at the movie rental place. We just finished watching Raising Arizona (1987) very entertaining.

If you're interested in knowing a little more about Peter and Inger, the mother and son we had dinner with Saturday night you should revisit Saturday's post now titled xc skiing and sprouted grain pasta

Tomorrow we plan to spend the day packing and organizing. We're getting on the road Thursday morning for the 1200+ mile drive home.

Back to Idaho Falls

Well today was mostly about shopping! John hates to shop but the guest cabin is in need of furniture and accessories, so we headed back over the pass to Idaho for a day of shopping. We didn't find any furniture and he's decided to buy furniture in the Twin Cities and have it shipped out later. We made a stop at Bed Bath and Beyond where we stocked up on all sorts of things, pots and pans, towels, kitchen gadgets, glassware, etc. Then we had lunch at the Pita Pit, a fast food place I discovered while traveling in North Carolina a couple years ago; we had a good and inexpensive lunch at the Pita Pit. Next it was off to Pier 1 where we picked up a really nice set of dishes and more glassware. . We stopped at two furniture stores but John wasn't impressed or inspired by either so that's when he decided not to rush and try to furnish the house in a single day of shopping in Idaho Falls. We started the two hour drive back to Jackson around 3:30 and arrived here at 5:30. After sitting in the car for over 4 hours decided to take a little walk around the subdivision for some fresh air and exercise. I'm planning to read after dinner and listen to some tunes and John plans to work.

attached photo big horn sheep