Washington/British Columbia Trip – Day 1

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Have you ever gone on a vacation and everything was perfect…the weather, the train pulls up just as you walk to the platform, the locations you chose to stay in, the traffic is light, the whale comes within 20 feet of your whale watching boat!  This was one of those trips.  I fell in love with the VRBO (Vacation Rental By Owner) in Seattle.  As you can see from the photos, the views were spectacular.

You could walk down to the beach…

The location is only a 10 minute drive from downtown Seattle and situated on the Puget Sound, in a neighborhood called Magnolia.  The first day was a little cloudy, so I was very surprised and in awe the morning of Day 2, when I looked to the South from the picture windows and rising, like an apparition, was Mt. Rainier, in all of its glory.  I had no idea it would be so dramatic and spiritual in nature.

We had dinner at Palisades Restaurant, which also has a lovely view.  If you have reservations for 5pm seating, it’s only $29 for a 3 course meal.  The food was good…not great.

Importance of Travel Itinerary

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If you arrange your own travel plans, a Travel Itinerary is a key component of staying organized and being able to maximize your vacation time.  Below is my itinerary for an upcoming trip to the Pacific Northwest.  I like to research most details ahead of time, so I don’t use valuable vacation time.

You can determine how many sights and/or activities you can squeeze in comfortably.

I use Bing or Google Maps and plan out my driving route.  My driving time is minimized because I plan my order of activities based on the driving route.  Sometimes I use it to plan my walking route if I need to see a lot in one day.

For ideas, I usually look at Frommer’s suggested itineraries and Trip Advisor, and talk to the owner of the VRBO or friends that have been there.   I also Google “itinerary” for the area and look at other people’s blogs for inspiration.  Sometimes it’s difficult to decide which places to visit because they’re all wonderful!

Spontaneity is nice, that’s why I always leave 1 or 2 days open.  Some people might prefer to plan a lot less and take it day by day, but I feel when you’re spending a lot of money, you should get to see and do as much as you can.

You’ll notice on my itinerary that we take the light rail from the airport to a car rental place downtown.  You can save hundreds of dollars by not renting the car from the airport…just another tip!

Tues

6:30 am – Leave house

9:20am  – Delta Flight leaves Cincinnati

11:10am – Arrive Seattle

(Take light rail 10 stops (36 mins) to University St. Station

BAY A then walk to 6th street to the Hilton & p/u rental car)

Stop at grocery – arrive to VRBO unit approx. 2:00pm

5:00pm – Dinner at Palisade – 1st seating $29pp

Wed

7:00am – Drive to AMGEN Co.

Walk 40 min. to Pike Place Market

Walk to Olympic Sculpture Park

Walk to Space Needle – take monorail to Seattle Center – take Monorail back to Space Needle

Walk to Edgewater Hotel for Happy Hr.        

Thur 

Walk to Discovery Park

Fri

7:00am – Drive loop around Mt. Rainier

Hike Rampart Ridge trail (4.6 miles)

Sat

  FREE DAY

Sun

6:00am –    Drive 1 ½  hrs. to Anacortes

9:00am –   Board ferry

10:00am – Arrive San Juan Islands

Drop luggage at hotel – explore Friday Harbor /  eat lunch / bicycle

Have lunch at Market Chef   or  Duck Soup Inn

3:00pm – Whale watching tour with Western Prince (3 hrs.)

OVERNIGHT: SAN JUAN ISLAND

(They have indoor pool/sauna/hot tub/free bikes)

Mon

9:00am –   Take ferry  from San Juan

10:00am – Arrive Anacortes

Drive 2  hrs. to Vancouver – arrive 1pm (with customs wait) – Eat lunch

Keep driving to Squamish towards Whistler…then drive back

OVERNIGHT: VANCOUVER

Tues

8:00am – HAVE breakfast with Mahara & Ken (friends)

Explore Granville Island – go to the sandbar restaurant under

the Granville bridge (go to The Lobster Man booth also)

1:00pm – Take 15 mile (4 1/2 hr.) bicycle tour with CycleVancouver

OVERNIGHT:  VANCOUVER

Wed

Cont’l Brft Included

10:00am – Drive 2.75 hrs. to Seattle (go thru Customs)

2:00pm  –  Arrive back at condo

Thur 

9:00am – Leave rental

12:45pm – Flight leaves

8:05pm –  Arrives Cincinnati

Grocery list:   juice; bananas (6); fruit; muffins, eggs; butter & jam; coffee; cream; chips; beer; wine;

water; trail mix; lunchmeat/bread/cheese/mayo

$1225      –  $1150 for 9 nights – $75 cleaning fee (tax included)

$320       –  Vancouver lodging (includes parking 2 nights) =

$216       –   San Juan Island lodging

$200      –  Whale Watching tour

$23        –   Ferry Fee to San Juan Islands for 2 pp round trip

$15         –   Nat’l Park Entrance Fee

$423       –  Rental Car

$100       –  Gas (approx.)

$ 12        –  Light Rail round trip for 2

$170       –  Guided Bicycle tour Vancouver for 2

$  20       – Parking Lot fee at Anacortes for 2 days

$300      –  Restaurants (approx.)

$100      –  Grocery (approx.)

$3133    –  TOTAL

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Lodge to Lodge Hiking on the Appalachian Trail – Day Three

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There was a 50% chance of thunderstorms today, so we were prepared.  We left Skyland a few minutes after 8:00am, after having a big breakfast and began our almost 10 mile hike to the car parked at Thornton Gap.

The trail was well marked and we never got lost.  Like yesterday’s hike, we ran into a few other hikers, but not many.  I had researched the pattern for thru-hikers and verified that most of them had already been through this section of the trail about a month earlier, on their way to Maine.

 

Luckily, it only sprinkled once for about 2 minutes and the clouds kept the temperature in the 80’s, although it was quite humid.

 

 

The longest hike Cindy had taken before this had been about 5 miles.  She was concerned about hiking 17 miles in two days, but she did a great job!  We only took a couple of breaks (other than when taking photos) and kept a good pace.  I love to see people challenge themselves and realize that they’re capable of doing more than they thought originally!

 

 

One-third to One-half of the trail on today’s hike was rocks…like below.  The shuttle guy, Rodney, calls them “ankle busters”!  They made the hike more difficult, not only physically, but mentally.

 

 

There were a lot of flowers on the trail.  I discovered that when my flash went off, the background was darkened, which really made the flower pop!

 

 

 

 

These look like the kind of berries that bears like.  Luckily, we didn’t run into any… we only saw some bear poop on the trail…but it didn’t look fresh!

 

 

Cindy nicknamed this rock “Plumber’s Rock”…

 

 

After researching the area, I had reserved a room at the historic “Mimslyn Inn” in Luray, Virginia.  It’s located within a 15 minute drive from Thornton Gap (where our car was parked) and has a pool and hot tub.  As soon as we checked in, we took a shower, poured a margarita and went out to the hot tub.  Our calves were sore and it felt great.  The pool was the perfect temperature also.  After relaxing for a bit, we were starving because for lunch we had only eaten an apple and a granola bar, so we went upstairs to shower and made our way to the “Speakeasy Lounge” for dinner.  We both had a tenderloin wrap.  The wrap was made with spinach…yum…yum!

 

 

 

 

I drove us to find some “White Lightning” (kind of like moon shine) and a blackberry syrup, so we could recreate the blackberry moonshine slushie drink we’d had at Skyland Resort.  After returning, we took a few photos of the lovely grounds at the Mimslyn.  They have weddings here and it is lovely!

 

Lovely Cindy!!

 

 

We’re both glad we had the opportunity to do this and look forward to the next adventure!

Lodge to Lodge Hiking on the Appalachian Trail – Day 2

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After a good night’s sleep, Cindy and I were the first to be seated for breakfast in the dining room at 7:30am.  Breakfast was included so I chose the “Eggs Appalachian“…similar to Eggs Benedict, but on a biscuit instead of a muffin.  It was tasty!  Our box lunch consisted of a sandwich, an apple, a granola bar and soda of choice, prepared by the Lodge, at a cost of $11.  We had filled our water containers with ice and water before breakfast and were ready to hit the trail by 8:00am.

Today’s hike was 7.7 miles from Big Meadows Lodge to Skyland Resort in Shenandoah Nat’l Park.  I would rate this section as moderate in difficulty level because of the length.  There was a variety of terrain ranging from level and soft to rocky and on an incline/ decline.   I especially enjoyed the ferns that were growing alongside the path in many sections.  It created a very lush look.

 

 

This little guy was only about an inch in length.  Cindy spotted him and thought he was a toy at first because he didn’t move.  We were able to stick our cameras right in his face and he didn’t budge.

 

At this section, we had to make our way across the rocks that had slid down the hill.

 

I didn’t grow tired of looking at the green….every where green!!  We only passed a couple of groups of people hiking.  After being warned by family/friends of all of the possible dangers…bears, snakes, deranged hikers, mountain lions…I had armed myself with a large pocket knife!

 

Cute mushrooms!

 

 

More deer about 1/2 mile from finishing!  It took us about 5 hours to arrive at the next lodge….which is about 2 miles per hour.

 

Lodge to Lodge Hiking on the Appalachian Trail – Day 1

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This gallery contains 3 photos.

After driving  8 hours from Cincinnati to Thornton Gap (an entrance to Skyline Drive – a 115 mile scenic road & where I left my car parked) in the Shenandoah National Park, Virginia, my friend Cindy and I were picked … Continue reading →

Peace in the Face of Death

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As each day goes by, my mother approaches her impending death from Stage IV cancer…with acceptance.  We talk about death and what both of us envision after life will be like.  Although she has rarely gone to Church, she believes in God and Jesus and hopes that she will be with relatives that have already departed.  Her life has been difficult, having grown up very poor, one of eleven children, and having gone through most of life’s greatest stresses…divorce, the chronic illness and death of her second husband and most of her siblings and parents, and many more of life’s disappointments.

I think about what it will be like once she’s gone, when I forget and want to call her on the telephone and realize…she won’t answer.  Grinning, she says, “Once I’m gone, if you feel fingertips brushing your arm, it will be me”.  You see, she’s been the type of mother that would do anything in her power to protect her children, blurring the line between motherly nurturing and co dependence.

She tells me the same story every week of when I was little and looked up from my stroller and said, “Me push Mommy, let me push”, and of how independent I was, even then.

I am proud of the grace that she is showing during this process and realize I am my mother’s daughter.

10 Reasons to Travel Solo

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Solo Trip to California

Many people don’t feel comfortable traveling solo.   Usually the fears of being lonely, unsafe, and vulnerable are factors.   Some of the reasons to embark upon a solo trip are:

  1. You can go where you want.  Sometimes it’s difficult to agree upon a destination.  If your companion prefers all-inclusive beach resorts, and you yearn for an exotic spot in India, someone will be disappointed.
  2. You can do what you want.   Whether you’re traveling with an elderly parent, a child or a couch potato, when traveling with others, activity preferences are frequently dissimilar.
  3. You can eat where you want.  Some palettes tend to be very liberal and experimental and others lean towards meat and potatoes.
  4. You don’t have to listen to others complain.  If your traveling companion wants his eggs cooked to perfection and detests long lines at attractions, you’re bound to hear complaints.
  5. It’s easier to meet people.  If you tend to speak to strangers and enjoy meeting locals, then solo travel is magic.
  6. There’s no one snoring in your ear or making a mess in the bathroom.  We all have quirks and/or traits that others find irritating, but when on your own, you avoid these irritations.
  7. You can travel and walk at your speed.  Constantly adjusting your pace to match someone else’s is no fun.
  8. You can sleep late or get up early.  An early bird and a night owl traveling together don’t mix.
  9. You can travel last minute.  Some of the best deals can be found when your plans are flexible.
  10. The feeling of accomplishment you gain during and after a solo trip is very rewarding.

Start out small by going out to eat by yourself, followed by a weekend trip to build up your confidence!

Shedding Possessions

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“Asceticism is not that you should not own anything, but that nothing should own you.” –Ali ibn Abi Talib

During the past six weeks, I’ve been on a quest to simplify my life and minimize my possessions.  I would prefer to collect experiences, not things!  Having gone through every room, closet and drawer, I’ve managed to eliminate things I seldom/never use, and have donated, sold, given away to friends or trashed these possessions.  This includes paperwork, files, e-mails, online documents, etc.  After sorting through three large bins of photo albums, I was able to condense them into one.  Cloud storage is a new concept for me and sites like Dropbox, have enabled me to store important documents, such as tax returns, college transcripts, etc.

Another cool website I’m using is LastPass.  The challenge of managing 50 + passwords/usernames is solved with one password.  It feels great to be organized!

 

As the layers are shed, what is important to me remains!

Face Your Fears…Skydive!

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Back in 2008, I convinced my son to skydive with me at the Warren County Airport in Ohio.  I was nervous…but he was really nervous!  I wanted to be an example to him of someone that wants to experience life and face fears!  I believe the second photo is of me landing and my son is already on the ground.

P7130108 P7130089

It was a great experience…my favorite part was the free fall.  I kept my eyes closed while my instructor (who was attached to my back) inched us out of the plane and once out…opened my eyes and loved it!  You’ll see in the video that my son, who is 6’9″ tall, is attached to a guy that is about 5’7″!  Just click on the following link…then provide your name (you can make one up if you want) and zip code.

via Skydive Video.

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My Mother

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When my mother was living with me last year, I composed a five-page typewritten mini “autobiography” for her. Following the ideas from a website called “Living Legacies”, I questioned her extensively and discovered many things about her that I previously wasn’t aware of.

When she was born in the early 1930’s, there was a mid-wife to herald her birth. She was one of eleven children, born into poverty. Her parents did share-cropping for a few years and life was difficult in the country.

There was no electricity or running water. Coal oil lamps were used and there was an outhouse. They didn’t own a car, so walking was a necessity. A horse and wagon was used to transport their possessions when they moved. The boys were the horsepower to pull the plow for farming!

Rainwater was collected to wash hair and bath time came around once a week. Her mother would cut everyone’s hair when necessary. Although mom was a tall and skinny girl, she chopped wood, carried water from a spring, helped with doing laundry on a washboard, and would knock hens off of their nests, so she could gather their eggs. One of her sisters milked the cows. They had pigs and usually a few dogs and cats.

The boys would sleep together in one bed and the girls in another bed. Mom remembers having to pick dandelions for soup, because they had very little food. There were the cherished memories of her mother making cornbread, fried chicken, milk gravy, chicken & dumplings, bacon, eggs, and homemade blackberry pies.

Mother wore hand-me-down clothing and Grandma would make broom-stick skirts for the girls. When the holidays came, there were peppermint sticks for Christmas and Turkey was a treat for Thanksgiving.  She has fond memories of playing hide-n-seek, swimming in the creek, playing with dolls, and her brothers making homemade toys out of sticks.  They picked berries and shelled walnuts.

Gathered together, sitting on the floor, the children enjoyed listening to radio broadcasts of “The Shadow”, “Inner Sanctum” and the “Squeaky Door”.

She left home when she was 17 years old and lived with one of her older sisters for a year, before moving to the YWCA. She married my father in her early 20’s.

Life was difficult for Mom as she was raising her three children, because Dad changed jobs frequently and the lack of money was a constant. She felt frustrated because she couldn’t provide much for her children in the way of clothes or any activities that required money. There were no family vacations, except for camping.

Dad and Mom owned a Deli for a while, and Mother worked behind the counter, while Dad grew his beard long and traveled through Amish villages, purchasing meats and cheeses from them.

Mother’s next job was laundering napkins at a restaurant/nightclub. I had left home at this point and was in the military.

There was much turmoil through the years in my family and they ultimately divorced in 1981 and Mother moved to a small apartment. She met her next husband shortly thereafter and remarried in 1983.

For the past 20 years she was an Apartment Complex Manager and her husband was the Maintenance Man there. She has fond memories of her years with him, before he died in 2001. They went fishing, had picnics and grilled out, went to dinner with her sisters, had friends that lived in the apartment complex and enjoyed many good times with them.

Beginning around 1995, Mother had a ghost that would harass her every night in the apartment that she and her husband lived in, until she moved out in 2008. She had a team of paranormal investigators spend the night once and they recorded activity.

In November, 2008, Mother was informed that she has a giant aneurysm at the base of her skull and they didn’t want to operate on it. She was in a nursing home and not doing well, so I quit my job and she moved in to my home so that I could take care of her. She improved rapidly and a year later she moved into a senior citizen apartment nearby.

Just recently she fell and broke both of her arms…so she went back to a nursing home for a month before returning home.

The following are some of mother’s thoughts, beliefs and opinions:

• She believes in God, heaven and hell.

• If she could have three wishes they would be to own a small compact house, that my older brother would stop drinking and that her aneurysm would disappear.

• Her advice to young people is: To live life without drinking too much and without anger.

• Her advice to married people is: To love one another like you would love yourself.

• She is sometimes afraid of the thought of death and other times, not.

• Her greatest challenge in life has been her oldest son, because he has been mean and angry with her for most of his life.

• The most generous thing she’s ever done is: sacrificing many of her wants/needs/money in trying to change her son into a loving son.

• The meaning of life to her is: It is what you make it. God gave us life to see what kind of individuals we would be on earth.

My Amazing Grandfather

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My paternal grandfather was an amazing man!  He is the boy sitting in the middle in the above picture.  The first time I remember meeting him, I was 16 years old.  I flew to Florida with my father…my first trip on a plane…and stayed with he and my grandmother for a week.  I was told they visited a couple of times during my childhood, but I have no memory of this.  He lived to be 100 and passed away in 2004.  He was still playing the violin, driving and using his computer!

He wrote a 35 page autobiography in the 90’s and I’d like to share some of it with you.  There are many stories that I’d like to share, but unfortunately, it was necessary to greatly condense it.  These are his words:

My ancestors came to Long Island from England and then settled in North Carolina in 1693.  I was born in Indiana and my father made a living repairing things, mostly watches and clocks.  In his spare time he made violins.  He was a nut about violins.  In fact, he would rather scratch a tune out of a violin than food out of the earth.

 

My Great-Grandfather

He told me in later years that he had made his first violin out of a shingle but when his father caught him playing it, he broke it into pieces.  The Quakers had strong beliefs about having too much fun and the violin was considered a tool of the devil.

My mother was a talented painter and painted professionally before she married Dad.  My father worked as a general mechanic for a period of time and one of the workmen gave me a large dry battery.  I began gathering discarded dry batteries that had been junked because of low voltage.  These connected in series would provide enough power to operate a small electric motor Dad had bought me, as well as a spark-coil.  The seed was sown.  That was the forerunner of me becoming a radio engineer.

My first job was picking strawberries on a farm about 3 miles from home, and I had to walk to work.  Next, I worked for the largest grocery store in town and was told I could eat anything in the store, and as much as I wanted, and I did.  I was 10 years old at the time and I suffered working the long hours.  I worked from 7am until 11pm, on my feet the entire time and then after the store closed I had to go with the delivery truck and deliver bushel baskets of food all over town.  I finished around 2:30am and then had to walk a mile home.  I usually couldn’t sleep very well after this because of severe leg cramps.

The next summer I worked for a sheet-metal company that made running boards, fenders and hoods for automobiles.  My pay was 7 cents an hour and I worked 10 hours per day.  I got a job at the “Remy Electric Company” the following summer.

About this time Dad began pressuring me to take up the violin, but I wasn’t interested.  He paid a teacher fifty cents a lesson to teach me, but when he decided I was spending too much time with electricity and not enough practicing the violin, he stopped paying the teacher.  My teacher told me that he would teach me for free if I wanted to continue.  I suppose it was just spite that caused me to continue with the lessons.  Later when I earned some money teaching violin, I repaid the teacher.

A friend had given me an old copy of the boy scout’s handbook that showed how to build a small receiver using a “coherer” and 2 electric door bells, and that’s how I made my first receiver.  My father had given me a nice seven jewel Elgin pocket watch in a gold filled case and I traded it to a school friend for a bunch of junk, coils, wire, a pair of headphones and a magnetic vibrator type battery charger.  When I brought the stuff home, I sure caught hell.  I got all of this for a bargain, because World War I had just been declared and the Commerce Department had stopped the use of all ham equipment.  Consequently, my friend had decided to get out of ham “wireless”.  The word “radio” was coined several years later.

 

He’s the fellow on the right

 

World War I was over and I got my ham operator and station licenses in 1920 and began operating legally.  Concurrently, I was taking violin lessons at the Metropolitan School of Music at Indianapolis, attending high school, and playing in the school orchestra.  When I was 16 years old, I decided to join the Musicians Union hoping to make a little money.  This was during the day of the silent movies.  I tried out for a job in the orchestra at the “Starland”, a local theater and got it.  The pay was $35 for seven days a week 2:00-4:00pm and 7:00-10:30pm.

I had various positions at the following venues:

Riviera Theater…violinist; Meridian Theater Orchestra… Leader; Murat Theater; English Opera House; Ohio Theater; Isis Theater, Kokomo…Leader; Circle Theater, Indianapolis…Violinist; Lowe’s Palace Theater…Concert Master; and the Madison Theater, Illinois…Violinist, Indiana Theater; Concert Master at Cincinnati Civic Symphony; Orange College Symphony Orchestra, California; Stetson University Symphony; Concert Master with the Daytona Beach Little Symphony and Director of the Debary Concert Orchestra.

 

He’s the tall guy behind the drummer


Many of the big name stars were in these shows, such as Eddie Cantor, Jack Benny, Al Jolson, Fannie Brice, Bob Hope, Dick Powell and Paul Whiteman.

In 1923, I married my wife and nine months later our first son was born, followed in 1929 with our last son.

After retiring in 1969, I played for the Hendersonville Symphony, in North Carolina and gave violin performances at churches, the Salvation Army, and retirement homes.

My other positions were as follows:

  • Phototone Company in Indiana as designer of amplifiers for their theater sound systems and then promoted to Chief.
  • Eli Lilly traveling to hospitals and clinics showing a film about insulin for diabetes that they had just developed.
  • WLW in Cincinnati as an engineer in the studio, master control recording, remote pickups, transmitter operation and maintenance.  I was working there during the Flood of 1937. It was a sight to behold, looking down into 3rd street below, seeing small boats traveling in the water covering the street pavement.
  • WSAI as Chief Engineer.
  • VOA, Munich, Germany, Transmitter Supervisor, Foreign Service Staff Officer in the State Dept. and then Studio Supervisor.
  • United States Information Agency, Bonn, Germany as Technical Chief of the Radio Branch and later transferred to W. Berlin in the same capacity.
  • Chief at KFOX in California.
  • I started a company that did consulting for the Defense Contracting Industry.
  • Radio Free Europe, Darmstadt, Germany and lived there for 11 years before retiring to Florida.

Some of my other accomplishments include:

  • Designed and built a portable sound projector – – assigned patent rights to a Company in exchange for commission.  The Company went bankrupt during the 1929 stock market crash.
  • Built a portable public address system – made extra money with it through neighborhood picnics and on the side for WLW.
  • Elected Steward and Executive Board Member and later Local Union President and Business Mgr. for the new Union (I believe it was IBEW).
  • Member of The Masonic Blue Lodge, Scottish Rite & Syrian Temple Shrine.
  • I visited Mittenwald, Germany, bought 100 yr. old wood, shipped it to my father in Indiana and he made two violins, which he thought were the finest in his collection.

One of my favorite writers, Sydney Harris said “The violin is unique in that no other instrument sounds more heavenly when played well or more agonizing when played badly”.

Here are a few of my observations:

Knowledge, education, curiosity, imagination and perseverance all went into the making of the transistor and I believe the transistor and its progeny have done more for our scientific world today than anything else.  Just look at what has been accomplished with the use of electronics in medical science.  The microchip, which is nothing more than many tiny transistors in a small package.  It is extremely important in the space program, computers and most electronic devices.

Those five words: knowledge, education, curiosity, imagination and perseverance applies to anything worth doing.  There is a sixth word–challenge, which is of great importance.  All of these, coupled with an understanding of human nature are the ingredients necessary for getting along in this world.  It is also a good idea to practice “The Golden Rule”.

 

This was his 80th Birthday party.  They had a

40-year-old belly dancer for him.

 

 

The same belly dancer came out of retirement

20 years later for his 100th Birthday party!


 

What girls do on a girls’ weekend

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This weekend I went on my annual girls’ weekend with my friends Sherry, Gina and Dee.  This was Dee’s first trip with us.  The tradition started almost 20 years ago with a trip to Put-n-Bay and the destinations have included Myrtle Beach, Red River Gorge, Ky, Indianapolis, Shawnee Nat’l Forest,  and Nashville, to name a few.  Typically, we would find a cabin with a hot tub and the weekend consisted of eating, drinking, talking and hiking.  But more recently we’ve been heading to cities for sight-seeing and listening to bands.  I’m usually in charge of finding the accommodations and booked a 3 bedroom condo in the Highlands section of Louisville for the weekend that I found through VRBO online.  It was in a great location, within walking distance to restaurants, boutiques and a large park with walking trails.

The Highlands reminds me of Yellowsprings, Ohio.  It was an eclectic blend of boutiques selling handmade jewelry, vintage clothing, books and wares from around the world; cozy coffee shops, a yoga studio, art galleries, and many restaurants that varied from Indian to Asian.

 

This painting caught my eye in one of the shops!

 

 

An interesting sign…

 

 

While walking down the street we were stopped by a local T.V. reporter wondering if we’d be interested in giving our opinion on pornography pop-ups on the internet.  So…being it was a new experience…I volunteered.  I don’t remember most of the questions, but I’ll be able to view it on their website.

 

We had fun trying hats on in one of the shops…a little pricey for me at $190 per hat!

 

 

 

It was a beautiful fall weekend for our escape…so we went hiking in Cherokee Park.

 

 

We went to a bar that caters to the over 40 crowd called Jim Porter’s Good Times Emporium.  Boasting three live bands (Pop, Rock and Blues) we had a great time dancing most of the evening!  Our husbands don’t particularly enjoy dancing…so we indulged ourselves!

 


The following evening we dressed for Halloween and our first stop was 4th Street Live in downtown Louisville.

 

 

We stopped a man on the street to take our photo before we left the condo…he was a bit shaky I believe!  As you can see, Gina was a girl scout!  But what was remarkable about it, was that it was her uniform from when she was 9 years old!

 

 

After having a very tasty dinner at the Red Star Tavern, our plan was to party downtown…but it seemed a little dead…so we took a taxi back to Jim Porter’s.

 

 

 

 

Being “Supergirl” I had to pick someone up, so I chose this girl…but the photo turned out too blurry to post!

 

 

This girl “the naked girl costume” won third place in the contest at Jim Porter’s.  I didn’t think it appropriate to take a picture of the front, although it wasn’t real!

 

 

 

 

My husband thought I should call this post “Cougar’s Weekend”!  Hope you had a Happy Halloween!

 

To be In The Moment…Zipline!

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Another fun day with my son…Ziplining at Camp Kern, just north of Cincinnati.  We’ve been one other time in Mexico about 7 years ago.  I’m admitting it…I was scared…but one of my big beliefs is to “face your fears”!  I took Justin skydiving a few years ago and for some reason this makes me a little more nervous.  The only injury of the day was before we even got outside…Justin hit his head hard on this doorway of the Ozone Zipline building.  The autumn colors were stunning and the other five participants were fun.  We went on seven lines…each one getting longer, faster and higher…up to 175 ft. high and 45 mph.  Because I was one of the lightest in weight, I had to do the “cannonball” to ensure I went fast enough on the longest lines to reach the end.  I can’t say I was ever totally relaxed…but I was in the moment. It’s nice to feel proud of yourself for doing something that pushes you…I guess that’s called empowerment!

 

 

 

 

 

Justin always went in circles…unintentionally…and one of the guides asked if he came out of the womb backwards!

 

 

 

Color coordinated gear…

 

 

 

This is the cannonball!

 

 

 

 

Sending peace, love and joy!

~Sherry~

 

p.s.  I have a phone interview with a travel company…so send good thoughts!

 

 

It’s Alive!

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I can scratch off another experience from my bucket list…a Segway tour!  It was fun…a bit dangerous…and we had a beautiful day for it.  I took my son, whom I infrequently do anything with and he loved it.  There were six people on the tour of Eden Park in Cincinnati.  After a 20 minute lesson…we were off.  Up and down hills…along skinny sidewalks with steep drop offs…and even off-road.

I had to laugh watching the tour guide give Justin his lesson…she was about 5’4″ and in comparison to his 6’9″ frame…it was quite comical!

Unfortunately, a couple in their late 50’s or early 60’s fell off of their Segway a number of times.  Luckily only their pride was injured.  They are quite tricky – when you step on or off…they sense your presence and react by moving.

The mighty “Ohio River” was sparkling in the sunlight!

“Twin Lakes” were very tranquil.  I haven’t been to Eden Park in many years.

 

 

 

We sat outside in Mt. Adams for a late lunch afterwards and went shopping afterwards.  It was a great day.  I’m blessed to have a wonderful son to spend time with!

Hope your day was great too!!

 

Solo Cruise with Carnival

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In 2007, when I still had brown hair, I went on my 3rd cruise, but my first solo cruise for a week and visited Belize, Roatan Island, Honduras, Grand Cayman Island and Cozumel, Mexico.  I booked it last minute (about two weeks in advance), so instead of paying double…it only cost a third more for the single supplement.  I met a group of guys/girls from New Mexico, a lady from somewhere…can’t remember where now…and a college student and her parents.  I ended up hanging with the college student a lot of the time.

This is a photo of them…

I’ve always fit in with younger people…they have lots of energy like me.  It was fun fixing her up with guys…there was a cute Brazilian guy that I introduced her to.  I was married at the time, so only “looking” allowed for me.  One night after a few drinks I got the idea for us to push each other on a luggage rack through the hallways at 2am…followed by turning the signs around on people’s doors…if they had it positioned to say, “Do Not Disturb”, we switched it to “Please Clean My Room” and vice versa…I know…pretty immature…but it was fun! Continue reading →