catch up

Yep, I'm going to catch you up on some of the things I did while on my "blogbatical"...

In March the fam went to Las Vegas for spring break (in honor of David's 21st birthday). Here we are walking around the Wynn Casino:



Actually the setting there looks sort of Pacific Northwesty, so I guess we could have stayed home for that! We had a great time though -- went to lots of shows, etc. As a family we broke about even on the gambling (due to the superior blackjack skill of Christina -- Who knew?!)



Every trip my mom usually makes one attempt to do me in.
Blog readers might remember this from a trip to Alcatraz a few years ago:




On this trip, my mom made her move when I got a little too close to the edge of one of the ponds at the Flamingo...



My mom is a wily one! :)

cowabunga

When we were in Colorado at the end of August we went white water rafting. It was the last day of the season so the water wasn't toooo wild, but we still had a lot of fun. We just got some pictures in the mail today from the fine folks at Rapid Transit Rafting in Estes Park. If you are ever in the Rocky Mountain National Park area, check them out -- they are a class act company.



That's me in the middle on the right, looking like I stole the helmet of Sergeant Schultz on Hogan's Heroes.

gp at the mariners

We're still on vacation (but the return to work is *REE-REE-REE* looming). Yesterday we went to a Mariner's game. We had nice seats in the behind-home-plate area. I took this photo before the start of the game:



One of the main attractions of going to the ballpark is the food! Yesterday's fare was Ivar's Fish & Chips; fresh, hot peanuts; and chocolate covered strawberries on a kabob stick. I have learned not to over-stuff, but I can't say the same for Garbage Puff. He was living up to his name yesterday:



The Mariners lost to Kansas City (3-0), but I've always thought when one goes to a game the score is really beside the point. (Spoken like a true Mariners' fan!)

home again

We're baaaack. We packed a lot of fun into 6 days: We saw an improv group, took a tour of Denver, saw a play (Die Mommie Die!), went to the Museum of Nature and Science, did some shopping in both Denver and Estes Park, bopped around our old home in Loveland, hiked in Rocky Mountain National Park, and went white water rafting on the Cache La Poudre River. Whew! The evening before we left, we saw Jackson Browne in concert at Red Rocks, a breathtakingly beautiful venue. I was glad to hear Jackson do one of my favorite optometry songs -- Doctor My Eyes. :)

(Concert pictures below by Offspring #1)

Garbage Puff and Offspring #2 waiting for Jackson:



Jackson!



Big Red Rock!



At some point I might put together a slideshow of the trip highlights and post it. If so I'll be using Offspring #1's photos, because they are waaaay better than my own. (It's my camera's fault, yeah, that's it.)

Had a great day at...

...Rocky Mountain National Park!



(When one mooches a computer, one does short posts.)

colorado!

(Since I'm computer-mooching I will keep this short!) Yep, we're vacationing in Colorado. We didn't notice him at first, but Garbage Puff managed to stow away in the luggage. Once we discovered him, we decided we might as well include him in our activities. Here he is dining with Offspring #1 at the Ship Tavern in the Brown Palace in Denver.



Tomorrow we head to Rocky Mountain National Park.

Garbage Puff in California

As I mentioned in my last post, Garbage Puff has gotten to be a bit of a camera hog. You'll see what I mean if you watch his slide-show video...



In case you (*gasp!*) don't want to play the video, here's one of the included slides to give you a rough idea. (Click on the photo to enlarge.)

short post on the beach trip...

Had fun. Went here:



(Yep, I said it was a short post!)

at the beach...

Just saying 'hey' from the beach. Hubby, Offsprings #1 & #2, my mom, Mr. Tumnus, and I have all rented a beach house for the weekend. The house doesn't have internet, so I'm quickly posting from a wireless hotspot.

Oh, forgot to mention Garbage Puff is along too. He was excited to find some friends at a local gift shop. They were happy to pose with him:

He has also enjoyed snoozin' with Mr. Tumnus.

Will check in with everyone when we get home!

and the related nyc slideshow link...

is here

this just in...

The "über tourists" are back from their whirlwind spring break trip to NYC! We arrived there on Saturday and came back home on Thursday. During that time we saw 5 plays, enjoyed 2 jazz performances, went on a city tour, took the ferry to the Statue of Liberty, did the NBC Studio tour, and visited 3 museums -- Museum of Modern Art, Museum of Natural History, & the Guggenheim. We also tossed in a visit to the New York Public Library on Thursday morning and saw a Guttenberg Bible and the original "Winnie the Pooh and Friends" stuffed animals.

Whew!

We had "Easter dinner" at the Hard Rock in Times Square with a classmate of Offspring #2. (He took a train from Connecticut to meet us.) I had hoped to meet and have coffee with Processing Counselor, but it just didn't work out due to our über schedule. (We talked on the phone and it almost happened! Next time, PC, next time!)

THE PLAYS!
On our last trip (two years ago), Offspring #1 and I only saw plays on Broadway. This time we ventured out further with recommendations from one of her professors. We saw "Hello Failure", an excellent neo-realistic comedy by Kristen Kosmas, at non-mainstream Performance Space 122. We also saw "The Poor Itch" at The Public Theater. This play, focusing on the issues of a soldier back from Iraq, was left unfinished by the late playwright John Belluso. Director Lisa Peterson and a company of actors and designers used the final drafts of Belluso's script to create a compelling, powerful performance. The other off-Broadway play was Signature Theatre Company's "Paradise Park". (I didn't see that one -- Hubby and Offspring #1 attended that play while Offspring #2 and I went to the Iridium Jazz Club.) They weren't overly enamored with this work about a bizarre carnival of life. As for Broadway plays we saw Nathan Lane and Laurie Metcalf in Mamet's new political comedy "November" and the Tony Award-winning "Spring Awakening" (a musical adaptation of a controversial play about teens dealing with sexual awakening). So we had quite a varied assortment of plays and venues!

THE JAZZ!
As mentioned, Offspring #2 and I went to the Iridium to hear the 14-piece Mingus Big Band. (They had an excellent pianist and some great trumpets.) The whole family went to the Blue Note to hear Spyro Gyra, the jazz-fusion group many of you probably know.

So that's the scoop! Jam-packed and fun. We did a lot of walking, so a Hiking Club slide show video could be in the works. :) It is interesting how deserted Seattle seemed to all of us when we got back (in comparision to Manhattan)...

And now I have a lot of blog reading to catch up on!

the short report

So far: 2 days; 3 plays!
Pictured above: Offspring #1 and Nathan Lane

nyc

Packing for the NYC trip. Not sure when I'll be posting next. (Pondering taking a bit of a blog break, but ya never know!)

Take care, everybody...



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needlepoint art from here

The Thunderhead... AAAAAAH!!

I really did think about Presbyterian Gal when I was at Dollywood since she had expressed interest in the theme park. In fact, I thought about her so much, it was almost as if she was there...

etymologically speaking...

We arrived home from Tennessee (great trip all in all!) and have been doing the usual post-vacation laundry, put-away, etc. I'm not quite up to my usual blogging speed yet. Sigh. I will never be a blogebrity if I just do this microblogging. But, alas, I must turn my attention back to the floordrobe and carbage.

Are those some nifty new words or what?! Here are the definitions as found at word spy, a site that sleuths new words and phrases which have appeared in recent newspapers, magazines, etc. (Check out the other cool words there!)

blogebrity: n. A famous or popular blogger. [Blend of blog and celebrity.]

microblogging: pp. Posting short thoughts and ideas to a personal blog.

floodrobe: n. A pile of discarded clothes on the floor of a person's room. [Blend of floor and wardrobe.]

carbage: n. The garbage that accumulates in some cars, particularly in the back seat. [Blend of car and garbage.]

tennessee, day five

Spent a very full day in the Smoky Mountains (picture above taken there), and now I am tired! (But it's a 'good tired'!) Tomorrow is our last full day in Tennessee (haven't decided yet what we are going to do), then we fly back on Thursday.

I probably won't be bloggin' until we're home -- so see you all then!

tennessee, day four

I gotta tell you, Dollywood was a blast! The rides were fun -- especially the ones where you get wet. I also enjoyed the live music performances, the artisans, the food, the shops, and the (mostly) nice, friendly people who work there. I'd highly recommend it. The big bonus was that it wasn't crowded -- Monday was a perfect day to go. (Notice in this picture, just about the only people you see are Offsprings #1 and 2!)
Tomorrow: Smoky Mountain Day!

tennessee, day three

My blood pressure is currently nice and l-o-w. We spent a very relaxing day out on the boat with a delectable picnic lunch. Ah, this is the life...
Tomorrow: Dollywood!

Left: Offspring #1
Right: Offspring #2

tennessee, day two

Went to Chatanooga today. We saw Ruby Falls which features a 145-ft-high waterfall located inside a cave. It is a really cool cave and waterfall -- so I'm not quite sure why they felt compelled to pipe in dramatic music! I can't say I wasn't warned though. The travel handbook had said: "At the falls visitors are greeted with a light show and music only slightly less portentous than that planned for the Second Coming." Yep, it was sorta like that! :)

We also went to Rock City which has winding paths (through rocks and gardens, over bridges, etc.) leading to an impressive overlook -- including a view of seven states. That was a great panorama! The picture above was taken at Rock City.

Stay tuned...

tennessee, day one

We had a great time on the lake today -- boating, swimming, etc. This butterfly patiently posed on my hat while Offspring #1 took pictures. Tomorrow: Chatanooga! (Is it just me, or does just saying 'Chatanooga' start that 'train' song in your head?)