REDONDOWRITER'S SACRED ORDINARY

Sunset on the Colorado River

One hundred of our reunion classmates and guests took a Colorado River sunset cruise tonight from the casino area up to Davis Dam and back. It was very windy and hot but I got to see lots of things I had not seen before including a camper in the marina mooning us as we sailed by. Our guide also gave us a wonderful historical perspective of the Colorado River, its dams, and the history of the Laughlin/Bullhead City area. 

This was a wonderful reunion day all the way around. We met at 11 a.m. in one of the ballrooms and the committee had done a wonderful job decorating and preparing a silent and Chinese auction. Our buffet was fine and I was invited to sit at a table with some people that I knew which made the four hours far more comfortable for me. 

When we were young, we hung out at Bob's Big Boy restaurant, mostly in Glendale, but sometimes in Toluca Lake. I won the Bob's Big Boy centerpiece at our table--hip hip hooray. That includes a big Bob's bank which is behind the menu and the hand-made black and red miniature socks are to hang on the rear view mirror. The menu is a replica of one from the 1950s and the prices are unbelievable. 

After the river cruise, I tripped across several classmates waiting in line for one of the restaurants and they invited me to join them. When you go to these kinds of things alone, it's always nicer to eat with others--and do the heavy duty reminiscing we came to do. 

But, tomorrow I drive back to Vegas to catch my afternoon flight to L.A. 

I feel very grateful that I am in as good a health as I am. One classmate came in a wheel chair with her caregiver and several were using canes and walkers, but there they were. How many high school classes from the 1950s do you know who continue to get together once a year? 

Redondowriter in Las Vegas

• This morning I flew to Las Vegas to visit my sister Virginia for a few days. She is recuperating from gall bladder surgery and dealing with Parkinsons Disease, but she's holding her own.

• I park in Lot 1 these days when I fly Southwest and that's a piece of cake. Flight was perfect but getting my rental car from Thrifty was a nightmare. 40 people in line and only 1 person working, occasionally 2. It took me much longer to get the car than the whole airport experience.

• Cookie has our friend Carole caring for her and housesitting for me, so I know she's in good hands. 

• My nephew, sis and I went to dinner at a small local casino in their neighborhood. Excellent food, good prices. 

• I got an iPod Touch this week and my nephew has been showing me how it works. I'm a real novice. The Touch is exactly like an iPhone but without the phone. And he's hooked me up to his wireless. I'm a happy camper. My sis goes to bed very early and sleeps late so I'll have some ME time, too.

• Tomorrow my sis has some places she would like to go, so we'll hang out. As we all grow older, our time together, which is only a few times per year, becomes very special. 

• On Sunday morning I head for Laughlin, NV for my 54th class reunion--and more adventures in store.

• Observation, I don't spend much time on the Internet at home anymore. I'm too obsessed with art, readings, movies, my occasional social life, but I sure love traveling with my electronics. Who says you can't teach an old dog new tricks?

• Whenever I visit Las Vegas these days I remember so many wonderful memories. I drove through Las Vegas with my folks as we drove for family visits to Michigan and my first time to stay here was when several of us came to see our friend Dannie get married here. Remember that day, Dannie?

Terranea Resort: A Must When in Southern California

Generally speaking, luxury properties don’t particularly attract me, but I went to the brand-new Terranea Resort on Palos Verdes Peninsula for lunch today and I’m glowing still. I’ll even go so far as to say that if you are planning a trip to Southern California, visiting this exquisite place should be included on your list of “must sees.” Though I’m posting some of my own photos, if you have the time, link to the site and go through the photo and video galleries. They are also booking the $300 rooms in the hotel for $150 through the end of June and cheap as I am, I’d book a room in a heartbeat if I didn’t already live here.

Their PR blurb says, “Secluded on California's Palos Verdes Peninsula, on the western edge of the continental shelf, Terranea is a timeless, world-class resort and spa with a rare collection of Legacy Estates in a remarkable setting. Here the world recedes behind you in a coastal preserve protected by the highest environmental and design standards of the State of California. Internationally respected experts in hospitality, community design, and conservation have come together to make Terranea Southern California's most celebrated and special resort environment.”

All of us old timers in the South Bay remember this property as the home of Marineland of the Pacific from 1954 to 1987. Sea World purchased it and abruptly moved everything to San Diego. My eldest son actually worked in the dolphin tank there when he was young. The property sat empty until Terranea began to develop it several years ago. The trails there remained open once Marineland left and that was primarily what I went there for. Terranea officially opened just a few weekends ago but at the last minute the City of Rancho Palos Verdes had to loan the resort $8 million to make that happen. The city took a risk, but I personally think it was a good one.

What impressed me today about the resort is that it is built and decorated simply but classically. The "living room" off the main entrance was so homey that I could have stayed there indefinitely. The staff is the friendliest I've personally ever encountered in a resort setting. To be honest, though it definitely is a commercial endeavor, the whole space felt light, airy--and sacred. There were many people in the restaurants and on the grounds, but there was absolutely nothing pretentious about the space or the people. They were dressed California casual and there were a lot of families with kids.

My friend Betty is the one who suggested we have lunch here today. She lives very near and had already visited once. She took this photo of me in the garden. She is a wonderful woman who was a reporter for the Los Angeles Times for many years and was one of my journalism teachers when I went back to college in the late 1970s. We've recently reconnected and have so many things in common. 

A very nice employee took this photo of the two of us together; he volunteered without us even asking. Incidentally, should you visit Terranea, you can make a day of it as the Pt. Vicente Lighthouse and Interpretive Center, the Wayfarers Chapel, and Abalone Cove are nearby. 

Throughout the resort property there are beautiful flower arrangements that remind me so much of the work of Mrs. Kenju at the Imagine What I'm Leaving Out blog. Her work and what I saw at Terranea are simple, exquisite, classy. The hotel also features art work by local artists throughout the property. We were told that the Lunada Bay Room is hung with the artwork of the Portuguese Bend Artists Colony. That room is open on Sundays so we didn't get to see it, but I know the work of these plein air artists and it's world class. 

After lunch, we walked by the row of "fancy" cars that are always parked right outside the entrance of classy hotels and Betty stopped to ponder what this plate was saying. I never figured it out, but she did. Can you decipher what it says? 

Our 1939 Trip to South America: Charles and Sonia Hammer-Housestead

As many of you know, I work part-time as an archivist at a private school. One of the really interesting “mysteries” is when you first open a box in deep storage and see its content for the first time. Last year I found a box with three photo albums and two scrapbooks, two of them from Ft. Reilly, Kansas. The few names that were written in white pencil on the black pages had no correlation to the school as far as I could discern. The date ranges were from the late 1920s through the 1950s. 

As it turned out, our photography teacher was given these albums by a former employee thinking he might be able to use the photos for teaching purposes. Instead, he stored them in the archives where they have sat for many years. There is no connection to my school as far as I can tell, which means I can decide their fate. Archivists share their materials so ultimately I'll find the proper home for them. But for now, I've gone into my story telling mode because as I was told from early childhood, "She has an imagination that won't quit."

Above you see a photo of a woman on deck of a ship and I was instantly taken deep into who she is and what she was doing. A chinchilla lap robe, a wicker chair, a cloche, furs about her neck. My only clues of this series are The SS Florencia, 300 tons; Chalet Suisse Iguigue, and the Antofagasta Part Works. With the exception of the latter link, I can’t find anything so far when I’ve searched. The albums date from the late 1920s through the 1950s. This series of photos seems to be in 1939 and are largely in South America. Many of them are of engineering projects underway and a series of men hiking, and these of a ship.

So, out of my imagination comes Mrs. Charles (Sonia) Hammer-Housestead whose husband is a civil engineer in the United States.  He and his colleagues are on a business/pleasure trip to South America and Charles brings along his wife and their shepherd King.

In this photo, King looks out to sea while Sonia holds up a treat.

This is King and Sonia posing for Charles on the deck.
 

 

And here a very proud Charles takes a classic profile of Sonia next to the Imperial.

This is a photo Sonia snapped of hubby Charles aboard ship with his suit, vest and fedora. 

If these were your characters you just acquired through photos, what would their names and their stories be? 

 

 

Hotel de Glace, Quebec: In My Dreams

It’s been cold here lately by So Cal standards; in the late 30s during the night, so whenever I start hunkering down under the electric blanket with a book, I’ve been thinking of the Hotel de Glace in Quebec. So absolutely magical, beautiful and I assume wickedly cold.

My blogging friend Lorna at Lorna in Wonderland sent me a link to these photos recently and I keep looking and looking at them. Being born in California, it seems so odd to me that people would want to spend the night in an ice castle. I’m sure they have their ways of keeping things warm inside the 30 something rooms, but personally I’d prefer a tour versus sleeping over. Each room gets polar bedspreads and sleeping bags. It looks like the promotional room rates start at $160 per night USD, which is surprisingly low. Do you think they have bathrooms, but what would it be like to sit on a toilet seat in that temperature. It all boggles my mind. 

On the other hand, can you imagine a bridal night in a place that’s so cold? Might be fun, actually. 

Beguiled By a Sand Sculpture Goddess

The few times I have seen sand sculptors creating their masterpieces at the beach near me, I’m totally intrigued. When I was recently in Port Angeles, WA, the annual sand sculpture Arts in Action contest had taken place a week earlier. By the time I got down to the pier on August 6, all the creations were still on display. The Arts in Action link has a slide show of all the sculptures. It was this one that caught my fancy, however. This is close up; the whole sculpture is at the link above. I was breathless with delight looking at this particular sculpture.

 

Hosted by the Nor'Wester Rotary, what began as a quiet little festival in 1965 has become a destination for tourists from across Washington and the world.  Arts in Action is the only North American master sand sculptor invitational (international) competition and is the only event of its kind in the Northwest with arts and crafts, food, wine, car shows, live music and sand sculptures. The analytic me thought they must use some kind of adhesive in the mix of sand and water, but not so. Sand Castle Central tells all about yet another sub-culture I never knew about before. I'm just thoroughly enjoying my 200+ photos I took in the Pacific Northwest. 

Sorry for the spacing screw up and I'm too tired to fix it. I'm dealing with Typepad's beta and the screw-up at MobileMe, Macintosh's switch from .mac. I'm a little tech savvy but not nearly enough. 

Thoughts on Coming "Home Again"

Whenever I return from a trip or vacation, I have to decompress for a while while doing all the routine stuff we all have to do to make a successful reentry. As I catch up, I begin to remember all kinds of details on who, why, when, what and where. 

On Friday morning, my grandson Zach was fishing for weeds off the dock at my cabin. Isn’t there something magical about a little kid and a fishing pole? This photo speaks volumes to me about childhood, when everything is new and exciting. Unfortunately, shortly after I snapped this photo, Zach fell into the lake. Fortunately, the water was shallow although when he righted himself, the water was up to his waist. My daughter-in-law had the baby in the Baby Bjorn and couldn’t get him out. Grandma to the rescue, although all I did was hoist him up on the dock, screaming bloody murder.

 

Just as I was preparing to leave my sister’s home in Tumwater yesterday afternoon, we decided to look at old photo albums, always a treat for me along with the stories she shares. How I wished we lived closer to one another. Although I go to Washington twice a year, at our ages (84 and 71), we know that time is narrowing. What fun it was to watch the opening ceremonies of the Olympics together.

SEATAC Airport is a piece of cake compared to LAX, especially on a Saturday night. I flew Virgin America home, which, like Jet Blue, is a real treat. Virgin even has plug in for laptops and I cleaned up my e-mail all the way home.

I was especially in tune with stories I heard throughout my trip. I have a gift of drawing people out. For example, the Washington shuttle driver was a 28 year old man who drives in between his international adventures. A married Buddhist with children, his next adventure will be another trip to Thailand where he will receive his saffron monk’s robes. Then an environmental volunteer vacation—and in two years, he and his family will emigrate to Australia. He served his country proudly in the Army, but the climate of the U.S. is too troubling to him to want to raise his kids here. We chattered all the way to SEATAC.

My cab driver from LAX to home was Armenian and his story really made me sad. He, his wife, dad and mom, all university educated and working professionals, left their country for political reasons and ultimately ended up in Southern California. He and his wife speak English; his parents don’t. He drives cab 16 hours a day and his wife (former pharmacist) is working as a pharm tech in a drug store. His parents can’t land jobs because they don’t speak English. He says he loves America but it’s clear to him they simply can’t afford to live here much longer. "I do not know what will become of us," he shared. 

Got home about 11 p.m. last night and it is always a good feeling when the airplane’s wheels touch down on California soil. It is pleasantly warm in L.A., my Cookie is doing great, and I’m catching up on nine days away from home. And tomorrow I resume my own summer routine for the three weeks left before I return to “paid” work. I actually have done a lot of volunteer work this summer, but I am grateful that I have the freedom to make choices and don’t have to work 16 hours a day to pay rent. Traveling always brings me new insights, perspectives and memories to recapture, along with my photos. I "dread" my travel logistics, especially the airports and the car rentals and driving, but I face into my fears and will venture out as long as I can comfortably do so.  

Doors Ready to Open at Age 71

But, will I be brave enough to open them and see what is inside?

 Today I turned 71 and it was one of the most perfect days I’ve experienced in a very long time. I awoke to the panoramic view of Lake Dawn and the Olympic mountain range and a phone call from my daughter wishing me happy birthday. I had a day of photography which is always such a creative outlet.

These photos are of the front and back doors of my cabin and the metaphor of the doors opening at age 71 came to mind. I can continue to enjoy life to the fullest because I’ve been so blessed with relatively good health, a great family, security, abundant friends, work I love, and always new things to learn or see.

My daughter-in-law and my grandsons came to my cabin this morning and Zach stayed with me while his mom, baby and dog went on a run with the baby jogger.

Zach was priceless; he got out all the old toys and games from the cabin’s cupboard and I showed him how to make a row of dominoes fall. Then it was outdoors where he spent a long time throwing a stick for Charlie Brown, the lab who lives next door to the cabin, who often pops in to rest on the rug when I leave the door open. When Zach’s mom returned we went down to the dock where Zach began throwing the stick into the water. Charlie leaped in and got it every time.

While the kids went home to nap, I finished a book, wrote in my journal, and then went down to the dock to sit in the “noise” of the forest—birds chirping, ducks quacking, frogs croaking, fish leaping, and the breeze whistling through the trees. I’ll admit I fell asleep for a time in this paradise.

I went back to my family’s home and spent a lot of time with Laura and the boys in late afternoon. I played with Zach while his mom went to Pt. Angeles for a meeting and my son picked Zach and I up after work. We met Laura and Arlo at a Mexican restaurant in P.A. for grandma’s birthday—including flan. This is my family right after they sang happy birthday to me.

 

I also got some quality time with my son which I’m always deeply touched by. When I got back to the cabin, there was a voice mail on my cell phone where Henry and Fritz, my son Tony’s boys, and Tony, all left birthday messages. Tomorrow I’ll drive back on the 101 to Tumwater, where I won’t have any internet access, and then back to L.A. on Saturday night. I’ll remember this trip all the rest of my life.

When I opened those birthday doors this morning, it felt like I need a little cabin up here of my own, but we’ll have to see how that all manifests itself. 

In the meantime, happy birthday to Joe who was 46 yesterday, and to me today. 

Arlo and Zachary: Grandma's Pt. Angeles Boys

Well, today I got to spend a lot of time with Zachary, 2 1/2, and baby Arlo, five weeks. Arlo had a hard time today, but he was a doll baby when we went to an outdoor concert at the harbor. 

This is Arlo:

This is Zach on the deck with his "puppy" Elowa, an animal who has the patience of a saint. Another wonderful day. Tomorrow my daughter-in-law and the kids are going to stay at grandma's cabin so they can escape the construction guys for a while.

Villa Vista View: Wow!

How would you like to wake up to this view every morning? This is what you see from the bank of windows overlooking Lake Dawn from my 1931 Villa Vista cabin--and what I woke up to this morning. All of this and a wi fi connection, too, and my grandkids five houses down. I'm now drinking my first cup of coffee and then I'll walk to my son and daughter-in-law's house to spend the day with Laura and the boys. Zach is already in his "swimming pool" aka plastic tub out on his deck and Arlo is sleeping. This afternoon we go to a place in Port Angeles where the boys will have their hands put in plaster--grandma's birthday present.