back to savannah i fly

Such a long day it has been!

That's to be expected, though when it begins at 3:45 in the morning... Pacific Time.

So, I was up at 12:45 AM to get ready to travel to the airport.

Paul was up then, too, thankfully agreeing to start his day almost two hours early.

We left the house at 0415 PT, arriving at the Oakland airport about 30 minutes later.

That was good, very good.

The queue at the security station was already curled around and continuing down the hall.

When my turn finally came, I was patted down thoroughly, just as I had been at the Savannah airport when I started this vacation travel.

Odd, right?

Determined not to have caffeine, I walked around, lugging my carry-on behind me, staying mobile to stay awake until time to sleep on the flight.

That worked quite well.

It was a very full flight, as Southwest had canceled a group of flights eastward over the weekend, leaving this one to fill up.

Lucky for me I had Business Select, so I was able to have a seat up front!

That was actually supremely fortunate, as I found out later.

I chose an aisle seat, on the second row, instead of sitting on the first row again.

I slept most of the three-hour, thirty-minute flight, leaving me refreshed upon arrival...

and ready for the sprint to my outgoing flight home, which was boarding by the time I had used the bathroom!

No time for breakfast in Dallas!

Good thing I'd spotted those trail mix snacks, with 10 grams of protein in them, when I was at Sonoma Harvest with Paul and Cathy.

The package of Moon Cheese bought for the flight west was almost empty.

Protein! 

That's what I need for breakfast!

So, on the second leg of my journey today, my caffeine consisted of a half-cup of Diet Coke and whatever was in the chocolate of the M&Ms in the trail mix.

This flight was very full, too, but I snagged the aisle seat on the second row again.

That meant I served as bouncer for the pre-teen girl traveling solo in the window seat.

I liked that role!

It's about to end, though.

When the plane lands, Carolyn is picking me up and we'll be off to the movies -

after all, it's Tuesday and that means 5-buck films at the Pooler cinemas!

I wonder what we'll see?

(smile!)

candy factory with cathy!

One good thing about being retired?

Watching other people work!

That's what Cathy and I did today for almost two hours at the Jelly Belly Factory out in Fairfield.

Oh, here's a fun fact: By the time we left there in early afternoon, the temperature was 83 F.

Twenty-five minutes later, and due westward, the temperature was 69 F.

Seriously, I had not dressed for weather affected by the marine layer coming off the Pacific Ocean, as I ran around in shorts and lightweight tops most of my time out here in California.

Note to self: check the forecast before travel!

Anyway, where was I?

Oh, yeah, watching people work!

That's why we were here on a Monday instead of our trial run on Saturday, when even the robots were off.

Did I say robots?

Indeed I did!

Here's one of those fine fellows right here, doing the heavy, repetitive, lifting and shifting, again and again, of those ungainly 25-pound bins of jellybeans.

We stood and watched him for at least five minutes!

We stood around and watched these guys for a while, too.

That man on the upper level was quite friendly, even waving back when he saw me waving at him!

We weren't actually on the factory floor, of course.

I'm sure that even if this wasn't the tail end - hopefully - of the pandemic, the folks wouldn't want the public traipsing around and possibly touching the foodstuffs.

I would have liked to get closer to some of the artwork made from the candies and hanging from the ceiling of the factory.

How cool it would have been to get a selfie with this one, of my Great-great-great-great-and a few more-Uncle, Ben Franklin!

I don't think I would have cared so much for posing with the any of the ones of Ronald Reagan, but I admit it was very cool that he sent some of the jellybeans up to the space station in 1983!

I'm sure the astronauts appreciated that!

As for someone else I'd like to have gotten close to...

well, that would be Elvis, of course!

Such a pity that Marilyn Monroe gets to hang around with him -

get my little joke? -

but I'm on the tour route, separated by glass walls and yards of empty space from the King of Rock'n'Roll.

I wonder...

how much would that piece of art cost?

And how much would it be to fly him home with me?

I guess I'll have to let the Jelly Belly version be!

Not that I left there empty-handed, of course.

I had to buy some of that candy, right?

The popcorn flavor sounded intriguing, as did the multi-pack of five different mixtures... plus the Scotty black licorice!

The two paper hats we wore for the tour, as well as the two bags of 'beans they gifted us with our tour ticket, will find their way into the hands of my nephews in Alabama.

My niece out there, as well as my four blonde great-nieces and CJ, will receive metal candy tins with assorted flavors - something to savor and something to save! 

After admiring all the art and all that walking we did, it sure seemed like it should be lunch time, right?

Cathy knew exactly where to take me, too: Berkeley Bowl!

Apparently, it's a lot like the Dekalb Farmers Market that Sam took me to in Atlanta, except for one thing: California has been much stricter with its COVID precautions.

That meant the cafeteria area of the Bowl was still closed, so there would be no dining-in on this trip.

That was fine, though, as she needed to pick up a few things.

I was amazed at the variety of apricots!

I didn't purchase any of those black velvet beauties, but I found some other foods to try.

This piroshki, for instance, turned out to be a Russian version of a Japanese steamed bun, but with beef inside instead of pork.

That was quite tasty!

The tabouleh was good, too, though it would have been good to have a bit more garlic and parsley.

Those both made a nice late lunch when we got back home about an hour ago.

I'm so glad to have had Cathy all to myself today!

Even better: she didn't have to use a vacation day after all, because the university gave her the day off!

They were a little slow to adopt Juneteenth, but this certainly worked out for us!

(smile!)

the view over here! the view over there!

But first, last, and in-between, there was always Mount Diablo.

No, that's not really so, but it did seem that its massive double peaks were visible along almost every route we took.

Perhaps that was just because Paul kept pointing it out to me - sure that probably had something to do with my seeing it again and again.

Perhaps memories of an earlier trip to see them, and the picnic we had on the peak's flanks, brought it to my attention now.

Or, perhaps, it's that little possum hanging on my living room light reminding me of that day so long ago... yes, perhaps!

Our first stop today had been in Benicia, to check out the oils and vinegars at the Sepay Groves store.

What a diverse array of flavors!

My favorite was the blood orange oil!

The oils and vinegars are garnered from five local California groves.

The panoramic view was taken on a side street, just outside a little inn.

How lovely to have that accompany a morning cup of coffee!

After a bit more driving, continuing in a northeasterly direction to Fairfield, we had first thought to visit a candy factory...

but that sounded more like a girls' trip for tomorrow!

Instead, we went down the street to Sonoma Harvest, hoping to check out some tasty oils and vinegars.

And we did!

I liked this roomy place much better than the cramped little store!

And that lemon oil... oh, my, it would be a divine drizzle for ice cream!

Then, back down south to Berkeley, to catch the view before the marine layer returned from wherever it goes to after late morning!

The Lawrence Hall of Science has a webcam so you can watch the fog roll in... then watch it roll away again.

I know, because I watched the 24-hour loop, making note of the few hours in early afternoon when we could see clearly.

Sure enough, at 2 PM, we were there and the city was spread below, crystal clear!

That's the LHOS in the leftmost photo, with the University of California, Berkeley, peeking its white dome into sight.

I wonder if I could make out Mount Diablo from this height and this direction?

Sure, maybe that's what I'm pointing at as Paul and Cathy hang out by the car, admiring the breeze!

And what's that thing in the middle?

That is the actual electromagnet from the very first cyclotron!

It was built by physicist Ernest Lawrence... so, naturally, I had to send that photo to the bfe!

We all realized we were hungry at about the same time.

Down into Berkeley proper we went!

Barcote offered us our introduction to Ethiopian cuisine, as well as to their way of dining without utensils.
I had the house specialty - fish goulash - choosing to eat with the provided spongy bread rolls ... 

very tasty!

Afterward, we drove around past People's Park; it's a shanty town, filled with the many tents and shelters of the area's homeless.

To me, this sight is fairly usual.

The odder sights were the tent towns erected out in the desert, away from shopping centers and suburbs.

Certainly makes me feel blessed to have four walls and a roof.

making a loop in california!

It's Saturday and you know what that means?

Both of my friends were off from work!

This was the first day that I would be in the company of both for nearly the entire time!

So, what to do on this fine day?

Well, a drive into San Francisco was in order, for sure, with a stop in Japantown first on the list.

Cathy was in search of a specific toy for her nephew and that seemed the most likely source.

After that... who knows?

Well, I know, having been out on our route most of the day, right?

Starting with the red balloon, we traveled clockwise along the blue line, ending at Romano's Macaroni Grill for our 6 PM reservation.

What a fabulous adventure!

First things first, though: a good brunch was in order!

Paul and I went to the local farmers' market to see what the possibilities might be.

Oh, my, Rainier cherries!!!

Oh, wow, fresh tamales, too!

He also treated himself to a rhubarb and poison pie and I got two blueberry turnovers for another day.

Then, after our meal, off we went on our expedition into the city!

Japantown reminded me of shops along Gate 2 Street in Okinawa, especially the toy shop with all the characters from the Pokemon movie I watched several times in 2019.

(Hey, Ryan Reynolds was in it!)

The Peace Pagoda was quite lovely and there were a lot of folks soaking up sun and solace in its view... including these two sweetie pies!

Unfortunately, even though we located the Pikachu, and in two different stores, it was far too expensive for an item meant as a toy for a boy.

We hit the pavement, in the car, of course, with Paul taking the route along the historic Fillmore district.

I kept hoping for some jazz in the air, but no such luck.

Another stretch of the legs was in order, and the Fort Mason Center had a craft fair going on - nice!

Well, for me and Cathy it was!

How fun it was to see the seals lounging on the piers amid all the fancy yachts!

What a treat to recognize the movie on the screen as "The Last Waltz", with heart-throb Robbie Robertson!

His voice and his eyes make my heart go pitter pat... and so did the ride Paul took us on next!

Was it a rollercoaster at the Six Flags Discovery Kingdom?

No, we drove past that much later.

I'm talking about the streets of San Francisco, and, just like in the tv show, they move up and down like a crazy dragon!

I'm so glad I wasn't driving!

And, as we continued along our circuit, I'm again glad I wasn't driving when we came to the Golden Gate Bridge.

That gave me the chance to enjoy the sight of the fog, already on its roll inward before 5 PM; and to catch this biker as we passed him; and to take photographs to my heart's content of the red beams rising all around us.

Magnificent!

Many thanks, y'all, for playing tourist with me today!

(smile!)

a day with paul at a museum!

That's him, having just admired one of the roadsters on display in the giant showroom of the Blackhawk Museum.

He's never been there before, but knew it had old cars and knows how much I love those, and knows I love to get culture on my birthday...

so, there we were, good on all counts!

He was trying to make sure I had fun and got to see what I wanted while out on the West Coast...

you know, being the most excellent host he is...

but I kept assuring him I was there to see him and Cathy, and maybe do some things they liked to do...

much as we'd done things I liked to do and gone where I liked to go on their visit here.

So, back to the museum, shall we?

(smile!) 

Speaking of things I love, I think I've found a new car!

Sure, it's trapped in a display, out there in Danville, California, but I've laid claim to it with my butterfly tote bag!

Should they ever decide to vacate its space on the floor, this will serve of proof that I've called dibs.

Of course, I don't know how I'll get it over to this coast, but I'll work on a solution when that problem arises.

Hopefully my invention for teaching chemistry to blind students will be bringing in money by then!

(smile!) 

Speaking of students, this was one of my favorite displays in the exhibit on the top floor of the museum.

Inside this time capsule are four models, constructed by fourth-graders from recyclable materials from their homes, of the Spanish missions in the state.

Very awesome, right?

Even more so, to me as a retired teacher, were the two teen girls who were so delighted to see that the project they'd worked on when younger was on display so prominently!

I was truly thrilled to witness that realization!

(smile!)

I also was thrilled with the depiction of famous women in the "Spirit Of The Old West" exhibit, using cardboard dolls clad in the garb of the day - magnificent!

But, after a little more than two hours, Paul and I had saturated senses and needed a break, and sustenance.

This was the perfect spot for both!

A babbling brook alongside while I scarfed down Brussels sprouts with pancetta and he had mac'n'cheese set us right as rain!

(smile!)

Energy recharged, back to the museum we ventured, our tickets still good for the day!

I started with "Art Of Africa", which, though small, had a nice range of wood carvings and musical instruments.

Take this guitar - I am absolutely sure my ex's best friend, who has about a hundred of that type of axe - most assuredly lacks one like this... and would love to add it to his collection.

As for me, I prefer the assortment of metal works above it.

More cowbell, please!

(smile!)

Then I was off to the doubledecker display for the "World Of Nature", drawn in by the aquarium wall... 

where I proceeded to be lost for probably two hours.

I couldn't swear to that, but I know I was there long enough that Paul came in search of me, to let me know he was done with his exploration and was going to take a nap at the car-viewing area on the second floor.

"Take you r time," he'd said...

and so I did.

(smile!)

How could I not love this left wing of the museum?

In addition to the array of marine life mounted to the upper walls, ceiling, and the walls leading down to the lower floor, the under-the-sea mood lighting utterly captivated me.

The enormous lover level display, though, went on and on and on, with so many animals and so many interactive panels...

it was like some cross between a Rainforest Cafe and a zoo!

One wall was full of these goats and sheep, with the most incredible assortment of horn shapes and styles - wow!

(smile!)

I eventually realized that I'd been down there a while - or so my bladder claimed, lol - and resurfaced, admiring the schools of fish as I did so, of course.

"Into China" I headed, planning to do a quick perusal.

Fortunately, it was not a crowded display.

Not with people, I mean, but with art.

I was able to enjoy clay soldiers and carved, cavorting horses, as well as the city built of delightful marble that had been delicately flourished with swirls.

My last stop was the music room, with so many bells and a video of them being played, alongside this quote.

"To educate somebody, you should start with poems, emphasize ceremonies and finish with music."

Confucius, I so agree!

What an excellent note for ending my adventure - and, yes, that pun was intended! 

(smile!)

I'm so glad that Paul took the day off to share this place with me!

Back we go to his city by the bay, gratefully avoiding the rush hour traffic as we enjoy these views of nature in our magnificent world!

Yes, that was a play on the name of the display I spent the most time in - a little joke!

Here's hoping Cathy has had a successful day of work - after all, she's taking Monday off to be with me!

Bye for now, y'all!

I have different landscapes to enjoy and different air to inhale on this sunny afternoon!

(smile!)

i thank You, God!

ceviche and the sights!

Guess what we did?

We went for a drive!

First, Paul took the three of us along the route I'd walked earlier, letting me know I'd done a 5K - yeah, me!

Then we hit San Pablo Avenue and just kept driving on it... and driving on it... and driving on it...

from their little town to Richmond...

on even farther to Pinole...

and kept on up to Hercules and its refinery.

That last name rang a distant bell with me - oh, wow, this was the source of the Hifax high-molecular-weight linear polyethylene that I'd used in my doctoral research!

What an incredible circumstance, given that I was going through those old papers not even two weeks thence.

(I have to wonder if Andrew has ever been out here and seen this site?)

Along the way, we had stopped for dinner at a new Mexican place, El Agave Azul.

Here's the bonus: it was new to all three of us!

And here's a another bonus: I was the first to post a review of it on Tripadvisor!

Right place, right time! 

After dinner, we'd continued our scenic drive, ending up at Hercules, as I'd mentioned.

(Pay no mind to the map photo, it's just to give a rough idea of where we went.)

Paul pulled over so I could take photographs of the area near the refinery and the bridge and the surrounding hillside, all so different from my saltwater marshes and live oak trees.

The sun was just slipping over the horizon, lending a parting rosy glow as it waved farewell...

absolutely beautiful.

Right place, right time!

i thank You, God.

succulents and a sandwich

This was what greeted me last night as I entered their house!

They had tried to consume all strawberry products before my arrival, but apparently they still had more - wow!

Nice of them to make sure I'd be safe!

I made sure to return the favor by giving their fledgling 'poison' plants a drink when I watered the rest of the back yard.

(smile!)

By the way, Cathy gave me that task, of tending the back yard, partly to make me feel useful.

After all, they are not yet retired, so I would be on my own this first day in town.

No worries!

I needed to stretch my legs after those six hours of air travel yesterday, so a walk around the 'hood was in order.

What's with the photo of the street sign?

Well, I needed to have a trail of bread crumbs to follow so I would be able to return, right?

(smile!)

I admit, I was a little winded, as that point was straight up a winding hill - I was certainly not in Savannah anymore, Toto!

As if to stress that point, this front yard full of succulents was just a few houses down.

Absolutely gorgeous, and with an under-the-sea feel to it, as if those different cacti were some new type of coral!

Several yards along my four-hour excursion featured this carefree plant life - nice!

This was a nice, and unexpected, break along my walk in the sun: a shady Buddhist garden in a side yard.

"May you be safe and protected. 

May you know peace and the causes of peace. 

May all beings everywhere be free."

Such a beautiful sentiment!

And such a tasty sandwich for my lunch!

Mr. Pickle's was new to me, and they proved to have the best pickle ever!

I had it on sourdough, of course... and they even gave me a cookie for dessert!

(smile!)

After checking out the historic (but closed) Contra Costa Florist site and the town's City Hall, I realized it might be time to try to find my way back to the start of my walk.

The street sign photos were a help, but then I took a wrong turn - oh, no!

Not to worry, as I knew to listen for the BART and let it lead me to the station near their house... and it did!

Yeah, me!

When I returned, Cathy tried part of the remaining sandwich, then returned to work on the computer.

I found a game show channel and this was on: a 1987 episode of "Classic Concentration".

Yes, that's Alex Trebek, in the center, as host!

So nice to see him as the healthy 47-year-old he was then.

(smile!) 

I made a mental note of the channel, of course.

One of the nice perks of going out of town is finding television channels that I cannot watch at home, with game shows being my favorite mental 'junk food'.

Soon, Paul will return home from work and we'll have to figure out what's for dinner...

but, for the next little while, I'm snacking on this!

(smile!)

flying off to cali... cali... cali

Last month, after a long phone call about Ronnie and loss and pandemic, Paul and Cathy invited me to come see them... and I accepted.

Within a week, I'd actually purchased tickets, taking a giant step toward normalcy and an even larger leap away from shelter in place.

Now, within an hour, I'll be stepping off the plane at Oakland and into Paul's car.

This will be our first in-person meeting since their visit to me in 2014.

That's far too long to go without seeing friends-who-are-family.

I took this photo to make sure he'll recognize me, with the smiling-moustache mask I changed into while in the Dallas airport.

I'm also wearing the t-shirt I'd bought in the Oakland airport, on my first visit to them, back in February of 2008.

Speaking of Dallas, I had a nice, three-hour, stretch there.

Originally, it was to be almost two hours, giving me a good break to get a bit of dinner - necessary, as Southwest didn't provide meals.

After a big bowl of tofu, beans, and rice from Moe's, I walked about and stumbled upon this Lil Love's Lounge.

Very nice, with fun graphics on the wall and a soft floor!

And what did I do to keep occupied?

I played sudoku, naturally, with the game book I'd purchased at the dollar store a few months ago.

The first two were done in Savannah, one before boarding, the other as the plane taxied.

The other four were during the 3-hour, 30-minute flight between Texas and California.

Not that puzzles were all I did... but they were certainly the most calming.

After all, they're part of my new groove.

Now, pardon me, but the plane should soon be landing... El Cerrito, here I come!

i thank You, God!

fascination 4 fastina

I have found my dream car!

I was over in Old Town Kissimmee, waiting for Christina and her family to arrive for the Cruise-In of the antique cars...

and there it was...

1960 Catalina, dressed in Raspberry Metallic, with fins for miles...

and hubcaps all gleam...

oh, yeah!

(Cue music from "Ferris Bueller's Day Off"!)

Not that the Catalina was the only car sporting fins for the occasion, oh, no.

There were plenty of 1983-and-older vehicles doing so, with a Toyota Celica side by side with a Chevrolet Bel Air!

Gorgeous colors, too, like massive jelly beans waiting to be tasted and savored - how delicious!

Mama would have been so pleased with me...

I kept my hands in my pockets or behind my back!

No touching was allowed!

(smile!)

Here's a car showing off another of the things that make these special to me:

a plethora of gauges on the dash!

No idiot lights for these beauties!

This one, a 1972 Pontiac Trans Am dressed in gold and with the classic Firebird on the hood, reminded me of the 1973 one owned by my first husband, Keith.

It was white, trimmed out in blue, and it took us from Pensacola, Florida, all the way to Galeta Island, Panama, via the Pan-American highway!

Small world: Rene, one of the staff at AMC 11, is from El Salvador, and we were talking about that road two weeks ago!

 

On Wednesday I'd been treated to this beauty!

It's the May 28, 1978, pace car for the Indianapolis 500... 

and it's also the car used by Ken's daughter's boyfriend to pick up the girl for dates!

True story!

The car belonged to the young man's dad.

That young man is now the beloved son-in-law of Ken and Wanda, and has been for more than three decades.

Ken bought the car 32 years ago from that original owner.

How nice to keep it in the family!

(smile!)

For today's showing and cruise, Ken brought his considerably older "Santa truck" -

at least that's its sobriquet!

He even dons the suit and beard of the jolly chap in December for the neighborhood kids!

Not today, though -

far too hot and humid for that!

He had happened upon the truck while on a trip to Michigan - a trip that coincided with a birthday - and so Wanda got it for him.

True story!

I so enjoyed talking with this couple -

glad I got to do so twice!

(smile!)

By the time Christina arrived with the little ones, the bright sky had faded to dark and a steady drizzle had started.

The Cruise-In, as the parade of cars through the streets of Old Town is called, had started, too, but we managed to catch the last fifteen cars, or thereabouts.

That really brought back memories of the 12-hour Woodward Dream Cruise - held in August annually in Michigan - that Jeff and I had finally seen one time in our fifteen years of marriage.

Good times, good times!

And here I was making new memories, with Miyah, Chloe, and Christina, in one of my favorite places in Florida!

(smile!)

Not much later, and after the rain stopped, we caught up with Chris and Junior - or they caught up with us, however that worked!

Hahahaha hahaha!

We dined at A&W, with Junior having his first Coney and first A&W root beer - all with his approval!

Then we crossed right over to The Great Magic Hall for the 10 PM show.

After all, that was truly the reason they had ventured out from Silver Lake Resort, as I had pledged to treat them to the event... and they knew I would never stop asking them to come to a show with me.

And so they did!

And a nice young woman took this photo to mark this time I shared with them for Nathan Coe Marsh's style of magical feats, including a calculator trick that gave us the date and time that it occurred!

(smile!)

 

I'm so glad to have seen his show again!

In many ways, today was a bit of a repeat of what I'd done on Wednesday after my arrival at Barefoot'n Resort.

I'd dined on a footlong Coney, with onions, and root beer, at A&W, being sure to send a photo to the ex.

Then I'd looked at some of the fancy cars before going to the 7 PM show at the Magic Hall.

I'd sent car photos to Chris and he had joined me in Old Town, showing off his car, naturally.

(smile!)

That photo above, by the way, is from the Wednesday evening show, hence the numbers scrawled on the placard read "616730" for the "math magical moment" calculated then.

(Tonight's read "6191027", fyi.)

The photo to the right is from an earlier show today, seen solo.

This magician is the one I saw twice in 2018: once, live and in-person, right here in Old Town; then, a few days later, on television!

Yes, here is the amazing Jafo!

His repertoire has changed a bit from that long-ago show,  but I was glad to "see" the invisible purse and hear the clink of coins against glass again - very nice!

What was nicest of all, perhaps, was being treated like royalty by these two fine fellows.

How did that come about?

Well, I'd mentioned to Nathan how glad I was that the Magic Hall was still there, how much I had always enjoyed it, and that I had written it's first review on TripAdvisor, after my first experience with their illusions and sleight of hand.

Nice to see that the place has done so well!

For all three shows I attended this time around, there were at least 15 people sharing the thrill with me.

Hallelujah - the choir is flourishing and growing...

and now I can include five from my family!

(smile!)