Archives

Olive Oil…FYI

Apr13

scan0002

 While on vacation in Arizona a few weeks ago, my friends and I visited the Queen Creek Olive Mill in Queen Creek, near the Apache Junction / Mesa area. What a great place and unique experience! Queen Creek Olive Mill is a family owned business with olive orchards, pressing mill, bistro, and store. The owner is also the master-blender. They grow and press olives into handcrafted extra virgin olive oil from “blossom to bottle” and it is the only olive oil producer in Arizona. Their products are of high quality, as they ONLY produce Extra Virgin grade olive oils. They offer tours, which includes a class called “Olive Oil 101″, that we really enjoyed. I never gave olive oil much thought – it is just a more healthy oil, right? I mean, I like and use it and knew it was made from olives, but other than that, it wasn’t something I ever wondered about. But, I have to say, I learned a lot and went away with a new view of olive oil!

 The plan was to take the tour and then have lunch in the Bistro. But, we arrived just a tad too late to join the tour that was about to start, so we switched gears and did lunch first. It was not easy to decide what to eat…..there was a large selection and everything sounded absolutely wonderful!!! But, I finally settled on the Lucca sandwich - Herb roasted turkey breast, brie (of course, I asked that they leave the cheese off because of my allergy), sliced apple, seasonal greens, and caramelized red onion and fig tapenade (their own product) on a multi-grain ciabatta roll. Oh…My…God, it was so amazing!!! I enjoyed the caramelized red onion and fig tapenade so much, I bought two jars to include in what I had shipped home! The sandwich came with chips and olives. Now, I have to include here that I am not an olive fan…..never liked the taste of them at all. But, I decided that I really should try the ones that were on my plate because I may never have a chance to try some that were grown and processed so close to when I ate them! So, try them, I did…….and………I still don’t like olives – but, no one can say, “but you’d really like them if….”! HAHA! But, the sandwich was incredible! The bistro not only had sandwiches, but they also served made-from-scratch soups, pizzas, fresh-baked desserts, wines, and gelato and sorbetto! I didn’t have anything other than the sandwich, but Ronald tried the gelato and said it was very good!

After we ate, we still had a few minutes to browse through the store before our tour started. I decided I wanted to take some things home with me, but my suitcase was already stretched to the max and I knew the liquids wouldn’t be allowed in my carry-on! So, I asked if they would ship my purchases to me and the girl I spoke with was very excited to tell me that they absolutely would! :)   So, I got an idea of what I wanted and then, after the tour, we went back in the store and I picked out several items and arranged for them to be shipped. When the box came, I was so happy to see my purchases — a bottle of Extra Virgin Olive Oil, a bottle of roasted garlic flavored EVOO, a bottle of Mexican lime flavored EVOO, a bottle of aged balsamic vinegar, a bottle of balsamic and fig flavored vinegar, two jars of caramelized red onion and fig tapenade, a copy of their family cook book, a jar of lavender-scented body cream made from EVOO, and a couple pour corks for the bottles. Yeah, I went a little crazy, but it was all so fresh and so good and after the tour I had an increased awareness and respect for EVOO, so I couldn’t help myself! :)

The tour was really cool…….it started outside at an olive tree where we learned all about how olives grow and are harvested and some history of olives and olive oil. We, then, moved into the pressing room where we learned how the olives are processed into olive oil and the differences between the various grades of olive oil. It was very informative and absolutely fascinating!!! I’ll go into some of what I learned, but I want to leave this paragraph with the bottom line piece of info I left the tour with…..I always bought “extra light” olive oil because I just assumed it was better for you and had a lighter taste when used on salads……after learning what I learned, I will NEVER buy anything other than Extra Virgin Olive Oil again……ever!!!

OK, so what did I learn?

  • The Queen Creek, Arizona olive grove is located in an area that has ideal conditions for growing olive trees – long sunny days, cool nights, very fertile soil, and located in a flood plain. Also, by growing the trees in the dessert, there is no risk of their natural predators – the olive fly and olive tree molds – so there is no need to use any kind of pesticide or mold inhibitors!
  • Olives are harvested in Arizona in the months of September thru December.
  • Olive oil is made from a carefully timed blend of both green and purple olives (color denotes degree of ripeness), as well as oil pressed from the pits, so the whole olive is used.
  • It takes 50 pounds of olives to make one gallon of olive oil…….no wonder it is so expensive!!!
  • Extra Virgin is the highest quality grade of olive oil. In order to be graded Extra Virgin, the olives MUST be cold pressed and not undergo any treatment other than washing, grinding, mixing, gentle separation, and filtering. It also must have a free acidity level of less than or equal to 0.8% – this measures the degree of freshness of the olives at the time of pressing. To get a grade of Extra Virgin, the oil must be pure and not be refined in any way – any use of heat pressing or chemicals to extract the oils results in a lower grade olive oil. “Virgin” (without the “Extra” designation) is processed the same way, but will have a free acidity level of more than 0.8%, but no more than 2%.
  • Queen Creek Olive Mill’s Extra Virgin Olive Oil typically has a free acidity level of 0.3% – pretty high quality, if you ask me! This shows their level of dedication to processing the olives as close to harvest as possible so that the oil is as fresh as it can possibly be.
  • During the cold pressing process, the freshly harvested olives – pit and all – are milled into a coarse paste, which is blended very slowly in a large mixer prior to going through a centrifuge to separate the oils from the solids. Extra Virgin is the grade of oil that is extracted during this process. The fresh oil is decanted and transferred to an oxygen-free stainless steel storage decanter with a conical bottom where the oil and any remaining water can naturally separate. The oil is then blended to achieve the best taste – grassy, peppery, fruity, bitter, or buttery are all positive flavor attributes of a good batch of EVOO and blending batches with these different flavor attributes makes the perfect tasting bottle! The blended oils are stored in stainless steel tanks and kept fresh until it is bottled. They blend every 6 weeks and bottle every 3 weeks to ensure the freshest oil at the time of bottling.
  • Shelf life – as long as the oil is fresh at the time of bottling, it will remain fresh for one year – opened or unopened!
  • Do not refrigerate olive oil, as it will solidify. The oils I had shipped to me must have gotten very cold during shipment, because they were solid in the bottles when they arrived. But, I didn’t panic, because I remembered learning that if they do get cold enough to solidify, that you can just set them out and let them re-liquefy – that it won’t harm the oil in any way! And, sure enough, I actually watched them gradually liquefy over about an hour! Cool!!!
  • Don’t let the terms “Pure”, “Light”, “Extra Light” or any other descriptor other than “Extra Virgin” or “Virgin” fool you…….they sound like high quality grades – especially the term “Pure”, but they are NOT! All grades other than Extra Virgin or Virgin have free acidity levels higher than 2% and are heat and chemically pressed. Remember the centrifuge step I mentioned above? Well, the “good” oil is procured from the front of the press and the solids and water are captured out the back of the press as “waste”. Well, the waste product does still contain extractable oils, but you can’t extract it further without heat and chemicals — so, any oil extracted through those methods are considered “refined” and can no longer be graded as any form of “virgin” oil.
  • Remember my comment about always purchasing “Extra Light” olive oil? Well, that is the absolute lowest, bottom of the totem pole, grade of olive oil – the farthest end of the spectrum from “Extra Virgin”!  eeeewwww…….yeah, I’m never buying it, again! In fact, I have a full, large bottle that will now be used to moisturizer my skin……or maybe I’ll just toss it out!!!!

So, that is what I learned about Olive Oil……now, we also learned a little about olives, in general! They do not process olives for sale as olives, there, but some of their grove does get processed by another partner company not far from there. Here is what I learned about olives…..which, as I stated earlier, I don’t particularly care for! :)

  • Don’t eat an olive off the tree – it will be very bitter and must be cured before it can be eaten!
  • The color of the olive is a reflection of ripeness – green olives are less ripe than the very ripe dark purple olives.
  • Olive trees are harvested when the percentage of green and purple olives reach a ratio best for whatever purpose they are being harvested for – oils or olives.
  • There is no such thing as a BLACK olive — black olives are the riper purple ones that have been chemically colored to give them the black appearance. They are sweeter than the green ones because they are riper.
  • Olives are not naturally salty – they obtain that salty taste from the brines they are cured in.
  • It takes 3-5 months to naturally cure olives in the brines. The best tasting and highest quality olives are naturally cured. The olives that were included with the sandwiches in the Bistro were naturally cured – which is why I thought maybe, just maybe, I’d like them better than store-bought ones I’ve tried in the past……..oh well, I tried them!!!
  • Most store brand olives are more rapidly mass cured over 3-5 days using food grade lye and other chemicals.

So, there you have it……..everything you ever wanted to know about olive oil and olives, but were afraid to ask…….in a nutshell!!! If you ever get to the Phoenix/Mesa/Apache Junction or surrounding area, be sure to put the Queen Creek Olive Mill on your tour plans — it really is a unique experience and one I’m sure you’ll enjoy as much as I did!

** Info in this post came from my memory of what we learned in the tour, as well as from the brochures I took home with me and their website. You can click HERE to visit their website for more info or to shop online for their products! Check it out!!!!

Photos we took at the mill:

The press and centrifuge assembly

The press room is very small with just this one press and a few stainless steel tanks

IMG_1016 

Ronald and me  /  Ronald and Lisa

photos taken after the tour in the courtyard outside the store and bistro

 IMG_1019

 IMG_1020

Arizona Vacation

Mar25

arizonaWhat do you do when you have friends who live in a state that has a lot of neat things to see and do? Well, I don’t know about you, but I plan a vacation to go visit them! And that’s just what I did March 4th – 11th – I went to Arizona and had an amazing time!!! I do believe I saw more of the state of Arizona in one week than most people see in a lifetime – and there are still a whole bunch of things I didn’t get to see and we put on the list for my next visit!

DAY 1 – March 4th

Not much to say about day 1 – I had an early morning dentist appointment, I dropped the girls off at the boarding place, and I flew non-stop from Buffalo to Phoenix! The flight was long, but uneventful. I stayed with Ron and Lisa in Apache Junction in the Phoenix/Mesa area – they have a beautiful home at the foot of the Superstition Mountain with gorgeous views from every angle!

029

My morning view outside the glass sliding doors of my bedroom – I could get used to this!

002 (2)

And I didn’t even have to go outside to enjoy the views!

This is the view from sitting on the couch in the living room, looking out onto the pool area – with the Superstition Mountain in the background!

002

One of Ron and Lisa’s babies – Chico (AKA, PeePee) – checking out the brochures and suggesting things for us to do!

004

Me – soaking up some sun by the pool – fitting right in with my cowgirl hat and shades!

IMG_1013

This amazed me — I brought this photo home and showed it to my girls and told them that this cabana is how their spoiled AZ cousins shade themselves on the patio! They are so jealous!

DAY 2 – March 5th

This was my “Bonnie” day. A dear old friend that I’ve known from kindergarten also lives right there in Mesa, so we planned to spend a whole day together – just the two of us! What a treat! On the long drive to Tucson, we talked and talked and laughed and laughed – we caught up on everything and everyone! Then, we spend a few hours at Old Tucson – a theme park with old movie and TV sets and memorabilia. We had such a good time! Then, when we got back at the end of the day, we went to Toby Keith’s I Love This Bar and Grill for dinner and had a delicious steak! Here are some photos from our fabulous day together:

Kim and Bonnie at Rons

We had to start the day with a photo — this is me and Bonnie on the patio at Ron and Lisa’s with the Superstition Mountain in the background.

Kim and Bonnie_Old Tucson Wanted Poster

As with most theme parks, they had a photo shop where you put on period clothing and take a fun commemorative photo! We couldn’t resist! Here we are ready to take on any cowboy that comes along! The girl taking the photo asked if we wanted a gun or other props she had to offer – Bonnie took a rifle, but I said, “nope, I’ll just take this bottle of Jack Daniels!”! She still gave me a pistol to hold, but I was happy with the bottle of Jack! hehehe

                    062      063

We posted the WANTED poster on Facebook and asked friends to send bail money………no one did!!!!

055

I love this picture of Bonnie – she is in a chapel looking out at the dessert and mountains – it came out dark, but that is just as it should be……..

048

007

051

All of Old Tucson looks like you just walked onto the set of an old Western movie – cause, you DID!

We saw a gun fight, cowboys, a sheriff, and saloon girls – we even sat in on a Saloon show, complete with a can-can dance:

004

DAY 3 – March 6

On Wednesday, we made the rounds of some local attractions right in and near Apache Junction. We went to the Superstition Mountain Museum – I had to go there because the web site said they had an Elvis Chapel – the chapel used in the filming of Elvis’ western movie, Charro!   What self-respecting Elvis Presley fan wouldn’t take advantage of that? We also went to Saguaro Lake – so beautiful – the water was like the bluest glass I’ve ever seen! Then, we went to Fountain Hills – a town with a gorgeous lake and a huge fountain.

Here are a sampling of photos from Day 3:

First up are pics from the Superstition Mountain Museum – again, there are actual movie and TV sets on display. It is the home of Apache Land Studios and a lot of big stars shot scenes right there where we were!

018

019

This is Ron and Lisa looking at a small section of a wall of portraits of all the stars who were there at one time or another – lots of famous faces.

015

Hard to see him, but this is Ron in the stage-coach.

013

And, THIS, is the Elvis Chapel! What a thrill to step foot into a building where Elvis actually walked!

I half expected to see this walk through the door or be sitting in a pew, just waiting for me to arrive! (be still my heart!)

Charro-elvis-presleys-movies-7457598-300-452

Instead, this was the display I found inside the chapel……….

……….a cheesy metal stand-up that was a badly painted rendition of “Las Vegas Elvis”!

What a disappointment! But, heck, it was still Elvis, so I had my picture taken beside it! HA!

011

Next, we went to Saguaro Lake – the first picture is me and Lisa and the second is of Ron and Lisa:

030

028

After Saguaro Lake, we went to Fountain Hills – very pretty and peaceful place! We had fantastic dinner at a place there called “The Saddle Bronc Grill” – very nice place!

043

Ron and Lisa at the fountain.

041

There were many, many ducks all around the lake – this couple had a bag of bread and were feeding them! They started to leave and a whole line of ducks followed them all the way around the edge of the lake, across the yard, and on until they were out of sight! It was so funny!!!

052

This is the Saddle Bronc Grill – cool looking outside and very nicely decorated inside, including (as you can see in the next two photos) the lady’s room…..

……it wasn’t just the food that was YUMMY!

053

054

DAY 4 – March 7

On Thursday, Lisa and I went shopping during the day. We also stopped in at the Chamber of Commerce and picked up some brochures and information for the rest of the trip. The Chamber building was a great representation of the area – a real eye catcher and typical southwestern design.

003 (2)

Then Ron joined us later in the day to go to Tortilla Flat and take a cruise on the Dolly Steamboat on Canyon Lake — what a fabulous choice! First stop was Tortilla Flat, which is a very small (population: 6) town – actually, just a strip of buildings at the end of a very long, winding, scary road up the mountain. Now, I need to mention here that I’m not a fan of heights and panic a little (OK, a lot) when I don’t feel safe from falling! There were parts of this road where I had to just close my eyes and hold my breath to keep from losing it – like, you know those mountain roads that are so close to the edge of the mountain that you really think if you sneeze, you’ll slide off the face of the earth!!!??? That’s this road! But, when we got there, it was all worth it…….there was a mercantile, a restaurant, a gift shop, and a post office – that’s it, well, and a live band playing some awesome music! It was so cool and was jammed with people – THE place to be! The intent was to have our dinner there, but we ended up not having enough time to eat and get to the cruise on time, so we just shopped and snapped some photos.004 (2)

The left side of the road at Tortilla Flat – across the street was were all the action was!

008 (2)

What fun – lots of people hanging out and enjoying life!

009 (2)

The band was really awesome!

010 (2)

Wish I knew what this guy’s story is!!!

Then, the ultimate adventure happened — the Dolly Steamboat Cruise on Canyon Lake! If you are ever in this area of Arizona, I highly recommend this cruise – words can not describe how amazing it was! And emotional…….I was in tears and had to remind myself to breathe at several points along the hour and a half cruise! Canyon Lake snakes through the canyon and the steamboat takes you through the most gorgeous views and experience. The water was so blue and crystal clear – like a mirror reflecting the rocky ledges along the way. Amidst all that beauty, we also saw big horn sheep, bald eagles, a bald eagle nest, and other wildlife native to the canyon.  Photos can not come close to portraying the majestic beauty we witnessed, but these examples do a good job of trying:

012 (2)

016 (2)

017 (2)

018 (2)

052 (2)

040 (2)

I chose to include this photo to show the incredible massiveness of the canyon – that little boat looks like a toy in the water!

062

There were points in the cruise where the boat sailed so close to the wall of the canyon that you could reach out and touch it!

This is a shot of Ron (the one with the cowboy hat) taking a close up photo of some petrified logs embedded in the rock!

085

The two narrow stacks of rock are called the “guardians of the canyon” – on top of the tallest of the two is a bald eagle nest!

And now……some shots of God’s gift of beauty:

025 (2)

028 (2)

050 (2)

054 (2)

058

064

088

DAY 5 – March 8

Friday was our “take a breath” day! We needed to chill a little and rest up for the weekend trip to the Grand Canyon. So, we went to see a movie in the afternoon – Oz, The Great and Powerful at the IMAX theater – awesome movie! (When you get done reading this post, scroll to the next one down and read my review of the movie!) Then, in the evening, I went to watch Ron bowl with his team – some other friends that I haven’t seen in a long time that now live in AZ, too!

DAY 6 – March 9

We got up early Saturday morning to make the three and a half hour drive to Williams, AZ to catch the two-hour train ride to the southern rim of the Grand Canyon. About the time we were near Flagstaff, it started to snow and it was pretty messy when we made it to Williams. We had breakfast in Williams and then got on the train, which was a really cool experience! There was incredible scenery all the way, musicians singing for us, and lots of wild life to see – including, herds of mule deer, elk, antelope, coyote, and lots and lots of cattle! And, on the way back, we even got stopped by some train robbers, who boarded the train with scarfs over their faces and guns to rob us – boy, the ladies were screaming and everyone was shaking in our boots!!!

003

Arriving in Williams, AZ – Gateway to the Grand Canyon!

THE TRAIN RIDE:

Kim_Ronald_Lisa on Grand Canyon Train

There was a photographer onboard who took souvenir photos – our’s came out so good! LOVE IT!!!

And, the package included this photo of the train robbers on their horses, too – we absolutely had to buy the package:

Outlaws on Grand Canyon Train

IMG_2418

IMG_2423

IMG_2402

IMG_2421

THE GRAND CANYON:

Whatever you’ve heard about the beauty of the Grand Canyon, multiply it by 1000……you still won’t come close!!! It was so cold and snowing while we were there – I wish the weather was better so we could have spent more time just sitting there staring at it in total awe! It was hazy with fog and snow, so we couldn’t see across the canyon as well as they say you usually can, but what we did see was so awe-inspiring – just breathtaking! Again, the photos can never capture the majesty that we experienced in person, but here are some examples that give you a little bit of an idea:

IMG_2406

037

069

Dang – this would have been a great picture, if the wind and snow wasn’t blowing so hard in my face!!!

071

032

045

IMG_2407

070

IMG_2417

Hopi House

IMG_2415

Me shopping inside the Hopi House

Some cool things about our day at the Grand Canyon – besides just the obvious cool thing – getting to see the Grand Canyon:  The guides on the train told us to drink lots of water because of the high altitude we were at (over 7000 feet elevation) and the fact that the snow there is a “dry” snow! I snickered when I heard that – you know, they are always saying it doesn’t feel as hot out there cause it is a “dry heat”, but if it is 120 degrees, that is still HOT, regardless of whether or not there is humidity factored in! Well, I thought it was odd that they were saying the snow was actually dryer than what we’re used to in the eastern states. So, when I got there, I had to touch the snow to see if it was really dryer! And, I think it actually was! It felt “odd” – it packed really tight, like a good wet snow, but it also felt powdery, like the fluffier kind that doesn’t pack as well and it took quite a bit to make it melt in my hand and when it did, it wasn’t as watery! Really strange feeling snow! HAHA! Also, they sold recyclable water bottles that we filled at stations around the area – super icy cold water that was filtered straight from the mountain springs — the best water I think I’ve ever tasted!!!

We spent the night at the Grand Canyon Inn that was out in the middle of nowhere about 1/2 way between Williams and the Grand Canyon – really nice place and fantastic food in their restaurant! But, it was so funny – we were driving along for quite a way with nothing but ranch land on either side and then, all of a sudden, there was this little inn, a gas station, a small airport with a museum, and right across the street from the inn was “Bedrock City” – a theme park devoted to the Flintstones!!! And, then, it looked like miles of more “nothing” beyond that!

We got up the next morning and went back to Williams for breakfast at the same place we ate the morning before and to explore a little.

DAY 7 – March 10

Sunday was the return drive back to Apache Junction. We spent some time in Williams and then took the long way home and went through Jerome and Sedona!

Williams, AZ is a small historic town established in 1881, but it really looked more like it was stuck in the 50s! Historic Route 66 goes right through the middle of Williams and they really capitalize on that history and the popularity of it during the 40s, 50s, and 60s.

IMG_2428

This is a really cool cafe in Williams – we didn’t eat there, but couldn’t resist the photo-op!

097

Here is Ron in front of a 50s style gas station

098

A corner shot in Williams

099

I thought taking my pic with this dude would be cool, but what made me like it even more is that you can see Ron’s reflection in the window as he is taking the photo! :)

IMG_1012

Of course, we had to get our picture by one of the US 66 route signs!

Lisa and I really did “get our kicks on Route 66″ – in the form of shopping – see all the bags full of goodies in our hands???  :)

After we left Williams, we headed toward Sedona to see the beautiful red rock that the town is famous for. On the way, we drove through Jerome, which is a very small historic town built right on the side of a mountain at over 5000 foot elevation - it literally looks like there is little keeping it from falling off the edge! Located on Cleopatra Hill in the Black Hills, Jerome used to be a booming mining town in its heyday! Now, the population is barely over 400 people.

107

The road to Jerome — just beyond the guard rail (that is inches from the edge of the road – another route where I needed to close my eyes and remind myself to breathe a lot), you can see the part of the road that we just came from – so twisty, turny and constantly getting higher and higher!

112

Fabulous scenery on this road, but a little too close to the edge of the earth for my taste!

118

Jerome…….we didn’t stop – just drove through it!

132

Coming up on Sedona – see the red rock hills?

136

Downtown Sedona — beautiful — different from any other mountains/hills that I saw anywhere else we went!

140

This mountain really fascinated me!!! Hard to see the detail in this photo, but it looks just like someone carved a statue of an elephant lying down on the top of it!

In person, you can clearly see the body, floppy ears, head, and that big ole trunk curled up out front of it!

144

Gorgeous mountain rock and buttes! The red color is striking!!!

162

163

We stopped for lunch in Sedona and on the way out of town, Ronald and I played tag with the camera to get lots of shots of the beautiful red rock – that was fun – I’d have the camera taking a photo out the front window and he’d rush me to give it to him to get a shot he didn’t want to miss out the side window and I’d say “hurry, hurry, I got a great shot ahead!” and back and forth we went with it! Afterwards, I realized I had my other camera right in my purse and we could have BOTH had a camera to get shots…….but, that wouldn’t have been as much fun!  :)

When we got back to Apache Junction, we were so exhausted from the exciting weekend, that we all crashed with a nap!

DAY 8 – March 11

Last day of the trip….but, we had one more thing to squeeze in before I left! We went to the Queen Creek Olive Mill – a family owned olive orchard and olive oil mill! We had lunch at their cafe and looked around the store/gift shop. Then, we went on the tour and I learned so much about olive oil and how it is made! I won’t go into it here cause I’d like to devote a whole post on what I learned — watch for a post on “Everything you ever wanted to know about olive oil, but were afraid to ask!” – coming soon! After the tour, we shopped and I had a bunch of stuff shipped to me so that I wouldn’t have to take it on the plane — flavored extra virgin olive oils made fresh right there, flavored vinegars, a cook book of owner’s family recipes, a jar of a delicious tapenade that was on the sandwich I had for lunch (caramelized red onion and fig tapenade – YUMMO – so sweet and rich in flavor), and some body butter made with olive oil, shea butter, and lavender essential oils that they make right there, as well. The box came last week and I’ve already had a couple of big salads made with the roasted garlic flavored olive oil and aged balsamic and fig flavored vinegar and relaxed with the lavender-scented body butter – nice to rub on my arms at bed time to soften my skin and give me that wonderful aroma to fall asleep with!!!!

IMG_1019

Ron and me in the courtyard outside the cafe at the Queen Creek Olive Mill

IMG_1020

And, Ron and Lisa in the courtyard with some olive oil they purchased!

IMG_1016

And, this is the press they use to manually cold press the olive oil – fascinating!

And that, my friends, is my trip to Arizona! The week went by so fast, but we crammed a LOT into it! And then, I was on a plane headed home…..leaving the beautiful views and warm, sunny weather (except for the days we were in Williams and the Grand Canyon – it was actually colder there than back home)……….leaving my dear friends………..and returning to the real world!!! It was amazing — so wonderful to spend time with Ron and Lisa and Bonnie! And the sight-seeing was icing on the cake! It was a vacation I’ll never forget and we’re already making a list of things to see next time I can make the trip out there!

Flying on 09/11/11

Sep11

I took my last four vacation days during the Labor Day week and used the time to go to my home town and visit my family.  I originally booked the flight to leave late the afternoon on Friday, the 2nd and return the following Saturday.  But, those plans had to change when my car ended up in the shop and had to be picked up late on Friday.  So, I just shifted the whole vacation one day – leave here on Saturday AM and return the following Sunday.  I paid no mind to the dates – just the days.  It wasn’t until I got up to Mom’s and she said “do you realize you are flying on 9/11?” and I said, “oh, yeah, I guess I am…….and it is the 10th anniversary, too!”

I wasn’t all that concerned about any potential dangers……although, it was a rather eerie thought!  I was concerned, though, about additional security, hassles, long lines, and delays!  I figured it was likely going to be a frustrating trip!

Quite the contrary, it turns out!

I got to Buffalo airport about an hour and a half early, was able to walk right up to a kiosk without having to wait, sailed right through security (they did look through my purse, but it only took an extra minute or two – no big deal), and found a nearly empty terminal!  The plane was only a little over 1/2 full and left and arrived on time!  So far, so good!

Baltimore/Washington was a little more populated, but not as crowded as usual.  I had an hour layover, so I wasn’t too surprised to find only a handful of people at the gate.  That didn’t change much, though!  The plane coming in was about 10 minutes late, but they said they would still be able to get us out on time.  There did end up being a delay, but it had nothing to do with security — the walk-way thingy that connects the gate to the plane for boarding wasn’t working right, so they couldn’t let the passengers off.  They determined about 20 minutes into trying to fix it that the plane should go ahead and change gates.  So, we all walked from B14 to B8.  Once we got to B8 and got all lined up, they announced that they got the thingy fixed, after all, so we needed to return to B14!!!   So, we were late leaving.  That plane had even fewer people on it than the one from Buffalo — it was just barely 1/2 full!

When we landed in Raleigh, I noticed that there were no planes at any of the gates as we taxied to our destination gate.  Where we pulled up to the gate, there was one other plane there.  As I got off the plane and walked through the terminal, it almost looked like it was closed — gate after gate with no one around and only the passengers getting off the two planes that just arrived walking through the terminal.  AND – the flight attendant announced that there were NO through passengers on to the next destination and there were only a handful seated at the gate waiting to board.

So – no added security hassles and no crowds and it seems that there weren’t many who thought flying on the 10th anniversary of 9/11 was a good idea!  Other than all the TV monitors in all three airports televising the ceremonies and replays of 9/11 (which was a little unsettling to watch, seeing as I was in airports, going to be flying, and that my layover was in such close proximity to Washington DC), it was actually one of the more pleasant experiences from a security and crowd standpoint of any flight I’ve ever been on……..

Go figure!

The Beauty of Savannah

Feb20

This past week I was able to experience the beautiful, historic Savannah, GA.  What a treat, in deed!  One of my best friends and I took the pony on a “girl trip” where we stayed three nights on Hilton Head Island and spent two days discovering Savannah.   I had visited Savannah and Hilton Head one other time, several years ago, but was not able to truly enjoy it.  I traveled there with a co-worker for a seminar on Hilton Head.  We arrived a day early so that we could see Savannah, but it was raining and cold.  Although we didn’t get to see much, what I did see was beautiful and I vowed to return someday when I could spend more time and see all there is to see!  I finally fulfilled that promise to myself and it was even more wonderful than I imagined it to be.  This time the weather was gorgeous and there was nothing to hinder our experience!

We started out Monday morning with the drive to Hilton Head Island.  The accommodations part of the trip was my Christmas gift from Ron and Lisa.  Lisa and I took the week and headed to the coast!  We stayed at a nice little resort in a good location.  We checked in and headed out for a late lunch and the chance to explore the island.

Our first stop was South Beach in the Sea Pines area.  It is a lovely spot on the water with lots of shops and places to eat.  We chose the Salty Dog Cafe for our late lunch.  We both started out with some Shrimp Gumbo that was out of this world and some amazing hush puppies.  Then, Lisa had a delicious looking salad and I had a basket of peel and eat shrimp.  My first goal was satisfied – to enjoy some fresh seafood as quickly and as often as possible.  Because, after all, when you go to a coastal island setting, you don’t eat spaghetti!!!  (Inside joke – Mom is reading this and laughing at me.)  We were so full that we didn’t even want to think about dinner!   We had a perfect table overlooking the water and we watched a Heron walking along the docks looking for food and watching some guys painting the pier railings.  I also saw what must have been a dolphin arch up out of the water for a split second and I saw it’s fin glide through the water for just a second before it went under water and disappeared.  It was gone before I could express my surprise and get Lisa to turn around to look!  After we ate, we wandered along the docks and checked out some of the gift shops.

NOTE:  Any photos that you want a better look at can be enlarged by clicking on them to open them up – then click your back arrow on your browser to return to the blog post!

 

Then, we headed across the island to feed my love of lighthouses.  I knew there was one to be found in Harbour Town, so that is where we went next.  The lighthouse was pretty, but the rest of the area around it was the real treat.  It is a peaceful spot on the harbour with several areas with rows and rows of rocking chairs to site and watch the yachts, read, or just enjoy the beautiful day.  I could have sat there for hours!!!  The shops were closed, but we sat for a little bit and just drank in the glorious weather and relaxing atmosphere.

That was the perfect end to a long day of driving and exploring.  We headed back to our room and settled in for the night.  Tomorrow would begin our adventure in Savannah and we wanted to get an early start.  So, a good night’s sleep was a necessary element to a successful day.

We got up early on Day 2 and stopped for breakfast at a really nice little diner — The Hilton Head Diner!  Breakfast was really good and the diner was a very pleasant place to have a relaxing meal.

We drove to Savannah with plans to put our name in at Paula Deen’s restaurant (Lady and Sons) and then just wander around and see what we could find.  It was a nice drive to Savannah with one exception!  Anyone who knows me very well knows that I do NOT like heights and it makes me extremely nervous to be in a situation where I’m at a high elevation and don’t feel in control.  This includes very tall bridges that I have not had a chance to get used to.  Well – there is an enormous bridge just as you cross over into GA at Savannah (I think it is highway 17).  We came up on it with no notice and no chance for me to pull over and prepare myself or switch to let Lisa drive.  It was just there and I was committed to cross it whether I was ready to or not!  The approach from SC to GA is pretty menacing looking, too – all twisty and scary.  Going back, it was just like being on any other road that happens to have a bridge on it.  But, headed toward Savannah – which was the first time I saw the bridge right smack dab in front of me – it is pretty darn intimidating!

This is the SC to GA approach to the Talmadge Memorial Bridge – I didn’t take this photo – I found it on the internet, but it shows how scary it looked to me as I came up on it!!!

This is me with the bridge in the background along the river front in Savannah.

Of course, I survived driving over the bridge, but the trip had me all broke out in a cold sweat and my heart pounding like a race horse!  After I got on ground level and caught my breath, we headed to Paula Deen’s.  Her restaurant is Lady and Sons and is located on the corner of Congress and Whitaker Streets.  It is in a rustic old building and includes her restaurant and a store to purchase her many products.  It is quite a place!  They don’t take reservations for less than 10 people, but they do have a hostess outside the restaurant starting at 9:00 am so people can put their names in for preferred seating.  During the height of the tourist seasons, it is the only way to get in!  We got there right at 9:00 and there was only one person ahead of us to sign in.  We chose a 1:00 lunch time.  When we returned at 12:45, we were seated immediately and browsed the menu.  We decided to eat from the buffet – a delicious assortment of fried chicken, baked chicken, baked spaghetti, Italian sausage, and several side dishes.  It also came with our choice of banana pudding, gooey butter cake, or peach cobbler – we both chose the peach cobbler.  I understand the buffet choices change daily.  It was all so good!!!  Just as you would expect!

This is me with the life-sized cutout of Paula Deen - looks so real, I could probably get away with saying it was really her!  Oh, um, strike that — This is me when I met the sweet lady herself, Paula Deen!

Before and after lunch at Paula Deen’s, we just walked around.  We went to the Visitor’s Center and gathered a bunch of brochures and just walked and walked.  We covered the entire lower portion of the historic district.  The entire historic district consists of a well laid out pattern of squares in four main sections – Along the Waterfront, The First Squares, Squares of Luxury, and The Booming Westside.  On day one, we covered Along the Waterfront and The Booming Westside.  We paid for a total of 5 hours of metered parking (3 hours parked near Paula Deen’s restaurant and 2 hours parked along the waterfront), so we were pretty much on our feet hoofing it around Savannah for much of 5 hours.  And it was very enjoyable! 

Just to show you how much I actually learned while I was there…….Savannah was established in the mid 1700s with the intent to provide a buffer zone between the Spanish pushing northward from Florida and the English colony of South Carolina.  The original charter prohibited slavery, lawyers, Catholics, and hard liquor – all of which were eventually permitted in.  The squares were uniquely designed to give Savannah a strong military advantage and are now lovely parks and memorials to the rich history.  James Edward Oglethorpe started the colony with 4 squares and by 1851 it grew to 24 squares – 22 remain today. 

Here are some of the sights we enjoyed on our walk through the lower half of Savannah on Tuesday:

The city is full of huge, gorgeous trees – I believe this is a Live Oak, which is the most common tree in Savannah.

 

City Market is a lovely courtyard area full of all kinds of shops and places to grab a bite to eat. 

Horse and Carriage in City Market waiting to take some folks on a tour.

Me in City Market

One shop in City Market that I didn’t get a photo of was the candy store!  I was turned on to fresh, warm pralines the day I spent in Savannah several years ago and knew I had to turn Lisa on to them, too!  So, we went in to get a free sample.  As she put that warm nugget in her mouth and let it melt, I watched her face and knew that I succeeded in making her a believer!  We bought some to ship out to friends and family and a couple for ourselves.  I’ve always loved praline anything – ice cream, cake, crumbles, etc….but there is nothing like a warm, freshly made  one to send you straight to heaven!!!  OMG — YUMMO!!!!  I wish I took a photo of the huge taffy puller working away at making fresh salt water taffy, too! 

Me sitting in Ellis Square, just down from Paula Deen’s restaurant.  We sat there for a little bit to rest and wait for our lunch reservation (we were just a little early).

Corleone’s Trattoria — The Godfather is alive and well in Savannah!!!  (See our reflections in the doorway as I took the picture?  LOL)

Savannah Bee Company — a shop full of wonderful specialty honey and soaps!  Smelled amazing in there!

The Cotton Exchange – a busy place back in the day!  In the late 1800s, Savannah and Liverpool, England were the only two places in the world where the price of cotton was quoted!

Factor’s Row – known as the Wall Street of Savannah at the height of the cotton exchange.

Aside from the fabulous mansions, my very favorite part of Savannah is the River Front area.  The wonderful old buildings with amazing architecture, River Road made entirely of cobblestone left by ships that used it to weigh down the cargo holds until they arrived to pick up loads of cotton or other exports, and the beautiful river.  Here are some shots of the River Front:

Of course, with any historical city, there are monuments and statues…..Savannah definitely has its fair share:

Lisa with Johnny Mercer, Savannah native and famed composer – some of the songs he wrote include:  “Moon River”, “You Must Have Been A Beautiful Baby”, “Jeepers Creepers”, and more.  He also had an affair with 19-year-old Judy Garland.

The Haitian Monument – honors a group of 700 men of color from the Island of Haiti who fought alongside American and French soldiers during the Seige of Savannah in 1779.

Washington’s Guns – (known as George and Martha) – were captured from the British at the Battle of Yorktown and presented to the Chatham Artillery by George Washington during his visit to Savannah

John Wesley – the founder of the Methodist religion.

The African-American Monument on the River Front – depicts an African-American family with broken shackles at their feet and has a beautiful inscription written by poet, Maya Angelou

Me with The Waving Girl — this statue honors Florence Martus who waved a handkerchief by day and a lantern by night at all ships entering and leaving the port of Savannah from the porch of her home on Elba Island.  It is said that she never missed waving at a single ship between 1887 and 1931.

A better shot of The Waving Girl with her dog, Wolf, a collie.

The Waving Girl waving at a tug boat passing by on the river.

The Gordon Monument in Wright Square – honoring William Washington Gordon, one of Savannah’s early mayors and founder of the Central Railroad and Banking Company of Georgia.

On Wednesday, we started out, again, with breakfast at the Hilton Head Diner (find a good breakfast place, stick with it).  Then, we went to Savannah and took an all day trolley tour.  We got an “on and off” pass so that we could hop off and see things of interest and then get back on another trolley to continue the tour.  We rode one trolley all the way around and planned out where we wanted to hop off.  When the second trolley was about to start off, we got a surprise visitor:

Forrest Gump ran up to the trolley and hopped on and introduced himself with “Hi, I’m Forrest, Forrest Gump”.  He was looking for where he was supposed to meet Lt. Dan.  He waved at all of us and told the driver that he was out of breath because he just ran in from Alabama and was supposed to meet Lt. Dan at the Visitor’s Center.  The driver told him he was at the Welcome Center, not the Visitor’s Center!

So, she showed him where he had to go.  He said goodbye and apologized for not having any chocolates to offer us, but he ate them all!!!  He then said he was late and Lt. Dan told him not to do anything stupid, so he had to hurry to meet him!  He ran off with his arms a flailing.  What a treat to get to meet Mr. Forrest Gump!

It was on the trolley tour that we saw all the wonderful mansions, beautiful homes, and quirky places that Savannah has to offer:

This is Mercer House — remember the statue of Johnny Mercer?  Well, this was built by his Great Grandfather, Confederate General Hugh Mercer during the Civil War.  The Mercers never actually occupied the house.  However, it later became famous after Jim Williams, a Savannah preservationist, bought and restored it and allegedly murdered Danny Hansford in the study after a Christmas party.  His story was the focus of the book and movie “Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil”.  Mercer House sits on an entire city block.

 

Owens-Thomas House – built in 1819 for a wealthy cotton broker, who lost it due to financial problems only 3 years after it was completed.  George Owens purchased the home in 1830 and it remained in his family until his granddaughter willed it to the Telfair Museum of Art in 1951.  The Marquis de Lafayette stayed at the Owens home during his visit during the Revolutionary War

 

Owens-Thomas House – south balcony facing President Street — location of a famous address by The Marquis de Lafayette where he spoke for 2 hours.  America was a young, poor country at the time and Lafayette predicted in his speech that one day America would be a great nation and save the world!  When American soldiers arrived in France during WWI and WWII, they honored that prediction by shouting “Lafayette, we are here!”

In the movie, Something To Talk About, Julia Roberts’ character goes out looking for her husband, played by Dennis Quaid, and finds him with another woman in this restaurant — they have a very robust argument in the street in front of the restaurant.

Hamilton-Turner House – This was the first home in Savannah to have electric lights.  The tour guide told us that people from all over Savannah would gather in Lafayette Square across from the house just to watch the lights come on at dusk!  It is now an inn and there are claims that the original owner, Mr. Hamilton, and his children still make frequent visits.

Kehoe House – built in 1892 for William Kehoe, a poor Irish immigrant who went from an iron foundry apprentice to one of Savannah’s most successful businessmen.  Mr. and Mrs. Kehoe lived here with their 10 children and it remained in their family until 1930.  It has since been a boarding house and a funeral parlor and is now an inn.  Rumors say the inn is haunted by two Kehoe twins who died while playing in one of the chimneys.

One of many row houses along a tree-lined street

The story here, per our tour guide, is that a man had two daughters who fought over everything and were completely jealous of whatever the other had.  So, he built them identical side-by-side houses so the wouldn’t have anything to fight about.  But, rumor has it that they stood out on the front steps arguing about who would have which side of the house!!! 

The Pirate’s House – originally a tavern frequented by pirates and sailors, now a restaurant – we ate a very nice lunch there!  Supposedly, the book Treasure Island was inspired by events that happened at the Pirate’s House.

The Herb House – located right next door to the Pirate’s House – is said to be the oldest surviving home in all of Georgia.  It originally served as the Trustee’s Garden’s gardener’s house.

A haunted drug store on the most haunted street in Savannah

One of many brick streets

A Sears and Roebuck house — for about $2000, this and similar houses could be purchased through the mail order catalog.  The “kit” would arrive and the new owners would assemble the house per the instructions.  The gentleman who purchased this home must not have done a good job of reading the instructions — the windows are all put in upside down (the straight sills are on top and the scalloped toppers are on the bottom)!!!

On one of our hop offs, we visited Colonial Park Cemetery.  I was disappointed that the engraving on the stones was badly worn and most are no longer readable.  There are only about 600 burial markers, but it is estimated that there are approximately 9000 people buried there – the graves even extend out into what is now the paved street.  During the Union occupation during the Civil War, Union troops desecrated many of the graves, looting them and removing bodies to use the graves for their own soldiers.  They even changed the dates on some of the stones in an attempt to be funny — some state that they actually died before they were born!!!  There is a duelist grave site where many who died in duels are buried and a section where hundreds of victims of the Yellow Fever outbreak are buried.

Lisa at the entrance of the cemetery

Duelist Grave

An eerie shot, sure to give you the shivers!!!

Many of the damaged head stones have been cemented along the wall at the end of the cemetery

Another site on this same hop-off was The Cathedral of St. John the Baptist.  We wanted to go inside, but there were worship services going on, so it was closed to tourists.  So, we just admired it from the outside.  The colonial charter for Savannah prohibited Catholics from settling in Savannah because the English feared Catholics would be more loyal to the Spanish in Florida than the English.  Once the prohibition faded after the Revolutionary War, this Catholic Cathedral was constructed.  It is a massive and ornate building with two tall spires extending into the sky.

 

The spires seen from the Colonial Park Cemetery

At the end of our day tour, we returned to Hilton Head and had dinner at Marley’s Island Grill – a great Caribbean grill restaurant!  Lisa had a HUGE salad with grilled tuna and tons of veggies!  I had Sugar Cane Scallops — big sea scallops fire grilled on skewers and drizzled with pina colada and kahlua sauce with a delicious veggie medley!  YUM!!!  Then, we went back to the room and packed up to leave the next morning.  We headed out about 8:00 or so and drove most of the way home with the top down on the pony!  It was a very pleasant drive home!

What a wonderful trip!!!!  One we’re sure to remember for years to come!  This all is actually just a teaser taste — we saw and did so much more — but, if I told it all here, what would there be left for you all to go see for yourselves????

Airports can be entertaining

Dec1

I traveled to my Mom’s for the Thanksgiving holiday.  I flew up on Weds – the busiest travel day of the year – and back on Monday.  I had a wonderful time.   Just a month ago today, Mom had her second hip replacement surgery (the first was two and a half years ago).  She got home from rehab on the Saturday before Thanksgiving, so she had only been home a few days when I arrived.  She had a rough time with the surgery and rehab, which followed many months of agonizing pain – she’s had a tough year!!!  But, she was doing remarkably well – still slow and unable to do most of her normal routine without assistance or taking longer than usual, but she is getting around with a walker and doing a LOT better than I anticipated!  We had a great visit!  I am so glad I went up for the holiday!

The traveling part was rather event free – no long lines (even on Weds morning), no flight delays, no rough weather, no drama, and no one touched my junk!  It would have been very boring…..if it weren’t for the people in the airport!  I love to people watch – especially in airports – I’m always amazed at how people act when traveling and wonder if they act that way all the time or if there is something about traveling that brings the bazaar tendencies out of them!

A few worthy of mentioning from this trip:

  • This actually happens most trips – not sure why I always seem to get behind someone like this in the security line!  The requirements at airports are well publicized and the brunt of many jokes, cartoons, late night talk show banter, etc….so, why is it that there is almost always someone who comes totally unprepared for what they will encounter?  Case in point – this trip wasn’t the first time I’ve been behind someone who chooses to wear something on their feet that is extremely difficult to take off and put back on – holding up the line while they struggle!  This time it was a young woman who wore THIGH high leather boots – yes, thigh high – they were skin-tight and went all the way up to just inches from her – well, you can guess how high they were!  She struggled with the zipper, then couldn’t get them off and needed her travel companion to help her pull them off, and then after passing through the metal detectors - instead of grabbing them and moving on to one of the benches at the end of the conveyor belts – she stood there struggling to put them back on and getting herself all situated – holding up everyone’s bins from getting through the scanners behind her!  Come on!  I wear the easiest shoes to slip off and on and I STILL grab my stuff and move out of everyone’s way before I put them back on and get all the stuff I had to take off and out of bags back where it all belongs! 
  • While on my lengthy layover in Baltimore – after I stopped in at the great little seafood restaurant that specializes in Maryland crab cakes and had a delicious dinner of crab and shrimp – I watched a big guy standing out in the main aisle way doing the “I’m so important, I have to be on the phone every second” dance.  He had a bluetooth or something else that made him hands-free with no sign of where the phone was!   So, he was pacing back and forth, talking loudly, laughing with great animation, waving his arms around for dramatic impact, and basically just making sure everyone in the airport knew he was there and what he was doing!  Since his phone was hidden, it made me think that not all that long ago, if someone was acting the way he was acting in public, people would have stared and laughed or avoided eye contact or went out of their way to not get too close to him — all because he would have looked like someone who needed help from some guys in little white coats!!!  hahaha  But, everyone just passed him by like he wasn’t even there — I’m sure that was much to his disappointment, since it appeared like he really wanted the attention drawn to him! 
  • There was also this woman who was waiting for the same flight I was waiting for who ALSO wanted to be sure everyone knew she was there – and that she left her pizza in Chicago!  She constantly paced around the entire waiting area or stood wherever she could easily be seen by everyone.  Whenever someone from Southwest passed her and said the polite “how are you?”, she would say very loudly and disgustedly, “Not good at all – I left my pizza in Chicago and I’m not too happy about it!”  Apparently, it was some special deep dish pizza from a famous place.  If someone accidentally made eye contact with her (and we all soon learned to try hard to not let that happen) she would say, “Can you believe I left that pizza in Chicago?  I’m so upset!”  And then she got on the phone and loudly told someone all about it!  I got on the plane pretty quickly and sat in one of the front row seats.  When she got on, the flight attendant greeted her and she told him all about it and then I heard her telling another attendant further back all about it!  For pity sake – please get that woman a pizza!!!!

Those are the ones that stood out the most for me this trip……but there are always some that give me reason to chuckle to myself, just as I’m sure someone is chuckling over something I do while I’m sitting there, as well!

If any of you are traveling over the upcoming holidays or for other reasons, I hope you find joy in the free entertainment that is provided by all your fellow travelers!

Happy Holidays!

Quickie Trip….so worth it!!!

Aug3

Going home is always a treat.  No doubt or argument there.  I give a lot of thought to the pros and cons of going for 1-2 extended trips or multiple shorter trips each year.  Both definitely have distinct benefits and downfalls.  In past years, I have tended to go for the longer, but less frequent trips.  But this year, I seem to have opted for the multiple shorter trips.  I just popped up for a long weekend visit last week and was so very glad I did!

The reason was a spur of the moment trip up for Mom’s birthday.  The ulterior motive was that she has been having some problem with pain and has been laid up for several months.  It was upsetting to be so far away and not able to help or do anything!  It worked out that I could have a nice visit with her, help her out a little, and be able to take her to the doctor for an appointment.  It was really nice and well worth it!  We had a good time just spending time with each other!

I also managed to cram a few other things in this trip, too!

First — my first great-nephew was born in January and I haven’t been able to meet him, yet.  I was up over Memorial Day weekend, but they were out-of-town, so I missed getting to see him!   We finally connected this trip!  We had a little family gathering for Mom’s birthday and Nolen was there.  He is absolutely PERFECT!  At six months old, he is 22 pounds, 6 ounces and 28 inches tall!  Big boy!  But, beautiful!  Here is my precious great-nephew, Nolen – totally fascinated with my watch!  I dare you to try to tell me he isn’t the most adorable big boy in the world!

Of course, I also popped in at the Mount Albion Cemetery to visit Poppie, Grandma, Grandpa, and other relatives that are no longer with us.

A while back, a friend posted an article about an open house at a Bed & Breakfast in an old school in our town.  I found the information interesting and thought that I would have to check it out some day, but didn’t make note of the date because I didn’t have any plans to go up at that time.  I don’t know what made me think of it when I was packing for the trip, but I decided to see if by some freak chance it might be happening that weekend - I thought there was no way the dates lined up!  But, they DID!  So, I had to go to town to pick up some groceries for Mom and run a couple other errands for her, so I popped in to check it out!  WOW — what a treat!  The historic building was the old St. Mary’s Assumption School and someone bought it and turned it into a B&B.  They kept the antique feel and the Catholic school theme for the decor throughout.  It is amazing!  If you ever find yourself in Albion, NY and need a place to stay, check out the Erie Canal Schoolhouse Bed & Breakfast – here is their web site for more info about it.

Part of the open house was a display of handmade miniature carnival rides that was incredible and also a wonderful tribute to Charlie Howard – the real Santa Claus!  I was so excited to see it all.  I have so many wonderful memories of Charlie Howard’s Santa Claus School and Christmas Park that was a major attraction in my home town when I was a child.  I wrote a special post about him and his legacy (click here to read it).  The following photo shows some of the signs that came from Christmas Park – the one in front put a huge smile on my face because I used to LOVE to put my quarter in the clothes pin at the end of a fishing pole string and dangle it over the wall to “fish” for a special surprise gift!  What fun for a child!

Another day when I went to town to get some things for Mom, I made a side trip to Point Breeze to check out the progress on the new lighthouse they are building there.  (check out my post about the lighthouse so you, too, can see the progress)  They still have some work to do and the brick walkways and seating areas they have planned aren’t started, yet, but it looks pretty good!

And, of course, I can’t go to Point Breeze without spending a little time enjoying the water and watching the boats making their way up Oak Orchard River out to Lake Ontario for a day on the lake.  I love Point Breeze and being on or near the lake! 

So – it was a very FULL trip, but mostly spent just being with Mom, which was GREAT!  The only regret is that I didn’t have a chance to contact some of my friends and arrange a lunch or get together of some kind — next trip, for sure!

What’s New?

Jun5

Lot’s going on — busy, busy, busy!!!  All kinds of stuff to blog about and purge from rattling around in my mind!!!  So, I will take a few minutes out of my beautiful, relaxed Saturday morning to capture some of my thoughts before I decide what all is in store for me today!  Peruse through to hear about my recent adventures and see how pretty some of the key features in my yard look!

I took a quickie trip up to visit with my family over Memorial Weekend.  The plan was to leave after I got off work at noon on Friday and head back on the late flight Monday evening so that I could have two full and two partial days up home without having to use any vacation days!  Sounded good — didn’t work out, though!  Oh, the trip was GREAT and I got to spend a lot of quality time with my family (more on that later), but the “no vacation days” part didn’t quite pan out!  My return trip didn’t go exactly as planned.  Apparently, there was a lot of severe weather in some parts of the country that really messed up air travel on Monday – particularly in Chicago, from what I was told.  The risk in booking a late flight, in particular the last flight, is that it is usually delayed and sometimes gets canceled.  My flight didn’t get canceled, but it did get delayed so late that it was scheduled to leave Buffalo about 40 minutes AFTER my connecting flight (which was the last flight of the night) was scheduled to leave Baltimore!  So – my choices were to get as far as Baltimore and spend the night there OR stay at Mom’s another night and start out fresh in the morning………duh – that’s a no brainer!  Both options meant I wasn’t gonna get to work on time the next morning and would need to take at least a partial vacation day!  I chose to stay put!  The next day wasn’t much better — had I chosen to stay in Baltimore, I still would have had to take a full vacation day because they were all clogged up with weather delays most of the day, again!  I got home Tuesday evening and all was fine………BUT — I am sure after this and the last flight disaster that the travel Gods are trying to tell me to keep my butt on the ground for a while and stop gallivanting all over the country!!!  hahaha

As for the trip home…….we crammed in a lot of stuff and managed to do a lot of relaxing, too!  Mom and I went out to dinner Friday night after she picked me up at the airport.  Then, Saturday was a full day — it started out with Mom and me making a big macaroni salad together – by the time we both stopped adding stuff that we each put in “our” mac salads, it ended up being quite a mixture of both of our styles and it was SOOOOO good!!!  hahaha  Then, we went to get flowers for the cemetery from Navarra’s and took them out to fill the crocks and wash the head stones of those who have gone on before us.  All are nice and bright and cheery for the summer season!  Then, we enjoyed an ice cream sundae at Double Dips before we went home to meet my brother and his wife for a cook out!  Zweigles hot dogs on the grill, macaroni salad, devilled eggs, etc……  Mom and I ended the evening watching a couple of movies!  Sunday was another day for the family to get together – my brother, sister-in-law, and nephew went out for lunch and then went back to Mom’s.  More food and movies and fun!  Monday was a relaxing day with just Mom and me before I headed to the airport, only to come back for a “bonus” night with her!

The big disappointment for the weekend was not getting to see my new great-nephew!  Nolen was born in January and this was my first trip up since he arrived!  The plan was to get to meet him and spend some time cuddling with him!  BUT – my nephew’s wife went out of town with her family and took Nolen with her to meet some of her extended family!  boo hoo!!!  But – they didn’t know I was coming, so didn’t know to shift things a little so that I could get to see him, too!  There is always next time………

This morning, I snapped these two pictures of my beautiful, crooked mimosa tree!  I love this tree and look forward to it blooming every year about this time!  When I first moved into my house, most of the back yard was crammed full of wild weeds and stumps and broken trees and vines.  It was unusable, so I rented a back hoe and Ronald, Robby, and I worked to clear it out so I could do some nice landscaping and use the entire yard……OK, so it was actually mostly Ronald and Robby, but I also put some time in on the back hoe tearing out tree stumps and debris!  One tree they wanted to pull out was this mimosa tree — because it had grown crooked and looked weird!  But, I wouldn’t let them — I thought it was quirky, not weird, and if it fought that hard to make its way up through all the crappy stuff to survive, then it deserved to continue surviving!  And I think it makes a perfect statement in my landscaping!  Yeah, I know – these grow wild all over town and are messy when they shed their blossoms, but I still love it and it isn’t located where the messy blossoms are a problem!  But, I do cut down the new ones that try to come up from the seed pods it drops – I don’t want a forest of them!  hahaha   Look at how pretty it looks in the corner of my lot and check out that gorgeous Saturday morning blue sky!

My special little Weeping Japanese Red Maple is really taking off and branching out.  It was just a twig when the elves planted it a few years ago and in the last year or so, it has started to really get full and pretty!  I adore it and it makes a perfect feature in the opposite corner of the lot that the mimosa is on.

I almost missed the Gardenia blossoms across the back of my house!!!  The buds were just barely ready to pop when I left and by the time I returned, some of the blossoms were already spent!  But, it is still blossoming and I am so enjoying them – they smell so marvelous and look so beautiful!

And Katie is loving the warm grass in front of the fragrant gardenias this morning, too!

So, that’s all for now…….I want to get out and enjoy this fabulous day!

 

Cruisin’

May7

OK, so it took me longer than planned to do a post with cruise highlights, but here they are – better late than never, right?  Yep, I just got back from a cruise and it was GREAT!  I went with my Mom and we had a wonderful time just being away together – the other fun stuff was just icing on the already perfect cake!

Our time together started when Mom arrived here over two weeks ago on April 17th and ended this past Tuesday, May 4th.  She spent a week here visiting, then we cruised for 5 days, and she was here for another 3 days unwinding after the trip!  It was a wonderful two and a half weeks.  I was able to work 1/2 days while she was here, so we got to spend a lot of quality time together just hanging out!  We checked out the new Steele Pig, had a perfect ribeye at Cafe 121, pedicures and hair at Marcello’s, and watched a lot of Netflix movies.  We spent a rather low-key week cause we didn’t want to get all wore out before the cruise!  haha

We left for Jacksonville, Fl on Sunday, the 25th and spent the night in a nice hotel right near the port.  We, then, took the shuttle to the ship and boarded a little after noon-ish on Monday.  Our ship was the Carnival Fascination – a newly refurbished ship that was spacious and beautiful!  The first day was filled with a lot of figuring out where things were, getting our luggage delivered and situated, and lunch on the Lido deck right about the time we set sail.  We spent some time on the Lido open deck at mid ship while we set sail and watched the festivities begin…….music and line dancing was the entertainment!

Then, later on, we found the open deck at the back-end of the ship on the Lido deck, which ended up being our deck of choice for the rest of the cruise.  It was just outside the Coconut Grove restaurant, so we had easy access to drinks and snacks, it was quiet and less crowded, and it didn’t get as much wind as the side open decks did.  It was a perfect area to sit, talk, and relax!  We spent our first evening our there watching the first of several beautiful sunsets!

Our dinner seating assignment was 8:15, which at first sounded awfully late to me!  But ended up being perfect!  We could spend the bulk of the evening out on the deck and catch the sunset and then go in and eat dinner!  It allowed for nice, enjoyable evenings!  The first night we got in to dinner and discovered a surprise!  As we started a conversation with the couple that was also assigned to our table, the woman mentioned she was from North Carolina.  I grinned and asked where in NC and mentioned that I was also from NC.  The conversation went like this:  Woman – “Are you from Sanford?  Is your name…..Karen or Kathy or….”  Me – “YES!  I’m Kim and this is my Mom, Marilyn!  Are you the other couple from Lisa’s group?”  Woman – “I knew it was a ‘K’ name.  Yes, we wondered if we’d get to meet up with you!”  You see, the original arrangements were through a group thing that Lisa Orlando (Painted Petal) organized as a “Cruising to paint in the Bahamas”!  She had something like 12-14 cabins arranged and 1/2 day painting classes on the “at sea” days.  It was going to be fun!  But, all except me, Mom, and this one other couple canceled.  We were able to keep the group rate, but we were sailing solo!  We had a lovely dinner and nice conversation.  The other couple requested the early seating time when they checked in at boarding and after that first night, they were switched, so we didn’t see them again — I did catch a glimpse of them in the crowd a couple of times, but they were not close enough to connect with again. 

Day two was an “at sea” day.  We checked out the shore excursion options and the on ship shops, marveled at the amazing center atrium area that spanned multiple decks, and spent some time out on the deck getting some sun and relaxing in the fresh air!  That evening, we caught the 7:00 lounge show and dinner was the special “Captain’s Dinner” night!  The meal we chose was lobster and grilled shrimp with cherries jubilee for dessert – OMG – YUM!  And the waiters all entertained us with a fun performance of Dean Martin’s “That’s Amore”!  It was a great day and a wonderful evening!

Day three was in port at Key West!  I’ve always wanted to see the Keys and this was the part of the cruise that caught my attention and that I was most looking forward to…..and it didn’t disappoint me at all!  We took a trolley ride so that we could get a good view of everything without a lot of effort and time.  And, of course, we stopped for lunch and had seafood and an amazing piece of key lime pie!!  What a beautiful place Key West is!  I can’t wait to plan a short trip to explore it further and visit some of the other Keys – like Key Largo!  As I got off the ship, I was immediately curious about a huge RED house that stuck out against the landscape!  I discovered it was a museum with lots of really cool and realistic statues of people doing various routine things – snapping photos, sweeping up debris, dancing, painting, gardening, etc. all around the outside of it!  We didn’t go inside, but that is on the agenda for my next trip!

The fourth day was in port in Nassau, Bahamas!  We decided to stay on ship and enjoy the view from the open decks.  The shore excursions were quite a way’s away and didn’t really interest us much and there was nothing really to do right there near the port.  But, we weren’t disappointed at all – our goal was spending relaxed time together and seeing some amazing scenery and everything we chose to do fit that bill perfectly!  As we sat on the open decks looking out over the beautiful aqua blue Caribbean waters and watching the boats come and go, we were entertained by seagulls and pigeons that were interested in the food another passenger left behind on their table!

The rest of the trip was “at sea” and filled with lounge shows (including a really funny comedian), singing/dancing waiters, breathtaking sunsets, great food, adorable animals made out of towels left on our beds, hours on the open decks feeling the breeze in our hair, and just plain living the good life!!!

And that is that!  No stress, no phones, no problems, no worries…..just calm, quiet days and entertainment/excitement when we wanted it…..the perfect vacation!  I won’t go in to our return trip home – I already did that in a post the night I got back!  Suffice it to say that nothing was able to ruin the wonderful time we had and the memories we made together!  I will cherish this trip forever!  And I’m already wondering what we’ll do and where we’ll go next!  hehehe

Southwest

May3

A large portion of my last post focused on the nightmare flight the day we returned from our cruise.  When I wrote it, some parts were still unresolved – our luggage was still in limbo.  I’ve reflected a lot on the last couple of days and have a lot of thoughts I need to unload – so, here I go!

When I fly, I always choose Southwest (unless they don’t fly into my destination city).  Reasons I love Southwest:

  • I usually find the best connections, service, and prices over any other airline. 
  • They don’t tend to have the delays other airlines do – they pretty much stay on schedule. 
  • If they do get off schedule, for whatever reason, they find a way to get back on track as much as possible. 
  • I have rarely, if ever, found a rude or un-accommodating Southwest employee. 
  • They only use full size jets – no puddle jumpers!!  Very important, since I don’t like flying on small planes!!
  • Most flight crews are very entertaining and make me laugh!!!

I do realize that, for the most part, Saturday’s events were out of Southwest’s control.  I was actually impressed by some of their actions and at least understood the rest.  I’ve been on canceled or diverted flights on other airlines and found the lack of communication and chaos in trying to get where I was going to be frustrating and unacceptable!  Southwest did a very good job with both those concerns!

  • They kept us informed.  The pilot and crew were honest with us and made sure we knew what was going on.  I’m not so sure the honesty was really all that reassuring at that point in time (I would have been just fine not knowing about the low fuel situation), but I do have to say we knew exactly what the situation was and why the pilot was making the decisions he was making!
  • Instead of waiting out the storm or heading to a closer airport, the pilot decided to go on to their next scheduled destination, which kept at least part of the passengers on schedule and in their planned destination!  Either of the other two options would have put us ALL way off track for both time and destination!
  • Within minutes of letting the passengers who were scheduled to be in Columbus off the plane, a Customer Service supervisor was on board making announcements about the arrangements that were being made for us.  He knew exactly where everyone’s final destination was and what we needed to do to get there!  There were a couple of destinations that they had immediate solutions for (thank goodness our’s was one) and they got us off the plane, rebooked, and on the next plane in what seemed like a flash of time!  
  • Even though some of the passengers were creating some chaos, if they had just taken a breath and listened (followed) the instructions being given, they would have realized it was actually very organized and professionally handled!

The only part I felt could have been handled better was the luggage situation!  I understand that everything in and out of Nashville was delayed, canceled, diverted, or something on Saturday because of the devastating thunderstorms and tornadoes they had.  So, that meant a very large number of bags that had to be pulled and rerouted in some way, shape, or form!  Our’s were just three out of probably hundreds!!!  We were told several things that ended up not being correct – probably because those who were relaying the info were basing it on what their procedures tell them should happen, but because of all the activity, didn’t happen!  Here’s what happened:

  • The Customer Service supervisor told us that the bags were being pulled and put on the same planes we were being rebooked on, so they would go with us — they didn’t!
  • When we arrived and found no bags, the lady in the baggage claim office told us that they were put on the next flight and would arrive at 9:30…which ended up being delayed until 10:00.  So, we waited and they didn’t come in on that flight, either!
  • She, then, said they went back to Nashville from Columbus and were on the next Nashville flight, but changed that info before we waited too long — she found out they would be on the one coming from Nashville at noon on Sunday, so we gave her the info needed to deliver them to us Sunday afternoon.
  • We got a call about 12:30 saying they weren’t on that flight, either, but there were two other flights from Nashville and they would be on one of them – but they finally admitted that they had no idea which one!
  • We got a call about 2:00 saying they had arrived and would be delivered later in the day!  They were delivered safe and sound about 6:00 or so!  YAY!!!

What I found out in all this was that the bar coding process has some kinks in it!  Bags are only scanned when they are in the terminal – first when they are put on the originating flight and then when they are unloaded to the baggage claim area in the final destination!  They don’t scan them when they transfer them from plane to plane……so,  that’s why they sometimes don’t know exactly where misdirected bags are for a while and, in this case in particular, there were so many being rerouted all over the country that it made it even more difficult!  But – I do have to say that of all the years I’ve flown on Southwest, I’ve only had my bags misdirected twice and both times they were hand delivered to me the next day and both times I was either home or at Mom’s, so it wasn’t like I was traveling on business with no clean clothes or necessary toiletries to get me by!  The first time, my bag was accidentally put on the wrong cart and loaded onto a plane that ended up in Los Angeles (I was going to Buffalo in a snow storm, so I think it was actually the bag that just decided to take the detour) – it was found that same day, rerouted to Buffalo and in my hands the next morning!  This time it was because of the weather crisis and among many others – it was found and in my hands the next afternoon!  I have heard many horror stories about bags that apparently went by way of the Bermuda Triangle and were never seen again or found days/weeks later!

So — all in all, I think Southwest handled a really horrifying and frustrating situation very well – or as well as they could, in the case of the misdirected luggage!  I hope I never have a flight that scary again…….but, if I do, I hope I’m on Southwest!

Are you kidding me????

May2

I’ve been away for the past week – I went on a cruise with my Mom!  YAY!  But that isn’t the topic of this post – nope, the juicy cruise details will come after I get some much-needed sleep and get settled in – maybe in a day or two!  The topic of today’s post is strictly devoted to the events of May 1st…..the day from hell……the nightmare I don’t care to repeat!!!

Our day started at 6:00 AM when the wake up call broke into the approximately two hours of sleep I was able to get last night.  We knew we would have to get up early to get breakfast and prepare to debark the ship first thing in the morning…..the end of a relaxing adventure to Key West and Nassau.  But, knowing we would have to get up early created some anxiety that wouldn’t allow me to fall asleep.  Also, the ship’s crew were busy in the hallway loading up suitcases and squeaking their carts and banging on the walls…….who could sleep?  I dozed off a few times, but didn’t really fall asleep until around 4:00 or so and even then, it was broken up by my waking to peek at my watch for the time every 1/2 hour or so!

Here’s how the rest of the day went:

  • Our 6:30 AM breakfast was good and the debarkation process went smoothly and quickly once they got to our zone and we were allowed to start making our way off ship at about 10:30.  So far, so good!
  • The news was reporting severe weather in Nashville – where our connecting flight was – violent thunderstorms and tornado warnings!  But, they were supposed to expire before we would get there.  So we kept an eye on it, but weren’t getting too excited.
  • The Carnival bus took us to the airport and could only make one stop – instead of dropping everyone off in the center somewhere, they dropped us all off at the far end and, of course, the Southwest terminals were at the opposite far end! 
  • Jacksonville, Fla airport was crazy crowded and the limited lanes through security couldn’t accommodate the mass confusion and congestion - what a zoo!!! 
  • We finally got to our gate about 12:30.  Our flight wasn’t until 2:00, so we had time to grab some lunch.  Just up from our gate was a sit down restaurant with some good-looking sandwiches and there were only a couple other tables occupied, so they weren’t busy - we decided it was worth a try!  The waitress took a long time to notice we were there.  When she came over, she never looked at us – just asked “would you like to order something?”  We ordered and she walked away without saying anything else.  I realized I forgot to tell her “no cheese” on my sandwich, so I went to the bar and caught her as she was entering the order.  She gave me a blank stare, rolled her eyes, and went back to the computer.  She brought the drinks and I apologized for the confusion and she didn’t acknowledge I was there, let alone that I actually spoke to her.  The food came and to my surprise, it actually was the way I ordered it – no cheese!  The food was very good!!!  She brought the bill without saying a word – never checked to see if everything was OK or if we wanted more drinks or anything – and never came back for the money!  So, I took it to the bar and she cashed me out without so much as a split second of eye contact or speaking to me!  We reluctantly left a tip, but if I had it to do over, I wouldn’t have…….
  • We got on the plane in Jacksonville to head to Nashville!  Everything was showing “on time” and no apparent issues.
  • The guys behind us were also on the cruise and had obviously spent the morning on the Lido deck drinking the time away waiting to debark!  They proceeded to have two more drinks a piece on the plane!  The result was a string of very loud, obnoxious, and……well, let’s just say colorful vocabulary filled conversations that were non-stop from the time we got on until we landed!  They also kept kicking or punching the back of our seats and pulling back on the top of them – a couple of times catching my hair and pulling it as they did so!  It was all I could do to keep from getting up out of my seat and giving them hell!!!!
  • As we got closer to Nashville, the flight got rough!  Really rough!  Mom doesn’t like to fly, so she was really getting nervous and scared!  Frankly, so was I and a little rough weather doesn’t usually get me worked up!  The Captain came on and said that there are dangerous storms around Nashville and he was waiting for instructions and would keep us posted.
  • Just then —- LIGHTENING HIT THE PLANE!!!!  REALLY – IT ACTUALLY HIT THE PLANE!!!!  RIGHT BY MOM’S WINDOW!!!!  We heard a loud bang and a bright flash of light and knew exactly what it was!!!!  Everyone gasped and let out some yells!!!  I’ve flown in some pretty nasty weather, but that is the first time that has ever happened!  I was in shock and had to force myself to start breathing again!!!!
  • The pilot accelerated the plane and came back on to say that he was attempting to fly away from the storm and that he was still waiting for instructions – he said they wanted him to circle for at least 45 minutes to wait out the storm, but that he DIDN’T HAVE ENOUGH FUEL FOR THAT, so they were assessing the field again!!!! 
  • Someone tried to get up to use the restroom and the flight attendant made the announcement that everyone had to remain in their seat because it was too dangerous to be up for any reason!  Someone pressed their call button and he said to reset it and only press it again if it was a medical emergency because it was not safe for the attendants to assist anyone for any non-emergency reasons!
  • LIGHTENING HITTING THE PLANE……NOT ENOUGH FUEL……TOO DANGEROUS…..NOT SAFE……OK – DEFINITELY THE WORST WEATHER SITUATION FLIGHT I’VE EVER BEEN ON!!!  And it had to be with Mom, who is a nervous wreck on a normal, calm flight!!!!  I pretty much decided that if we landed in Nashville or anywhere close, we wouldn’t get on the connection to RDU with bad weather – I was going to just rent a car and drive here!!!
  • Then the decision announcement came — “Ladies and Gentleman, we just don’t have the fuel to do what Nashville wants us to do and the storm is not letting up, so we’re going on to Columbus!”  That plane was already scheduled to go to Columbus next, so that part made sense…….but…….they didn’t have enough fuel to hang around Nashville for up to 45 mins, but they had enough to go all the way to Columbus, Ohio???  Really???  My mind started to wander with thoughts of the next announcement being “sorry, folks, we’re not going to make it to Columbus, but there’s a nice looking corn field we’re going to try to land on!” 
  • The loud, obnoxious drunks behind us were still at it through it all…..now they were making sure the entire plane knew how going to Columbus was ruining their plans to attend a Jimmy Buffett concert in Nashville tonight and that they fully intended to rent a car in Columbus and drive back to the concert!  They made the stressful situation worse throughout the bad weather and now the whole way to Columbus!!!  UUGGHH!!!! 
  • My thoughts went to what I could do for Mom — since Columbus is so close to home for her and she was only going to be here for a couple more days, it didn’t make sense for her to go through getting a flight to RDU.  So, we talked about getting her a flight to Buffalo or maybe me renting a car and drive her home and then get a flight back here tomorrow or Monday or something……I am still on vacation from work until Weds!!!  That could work!!!
  • We landed in Columbus and they very quickly got us all rebooked!  I asked about a flight to Buffalo for Mom and mentioned the option of renting a car and driving, but they said they couldn’t change our final destination and we’d be in Raleigh tonight and it wasn’t likely they could get us in Buffalo tonight, anyway, and that our bags were already pulled and on their way to our new flight that was boarding NOW!
  • So, we were whisked away to another gate and on our way to Baltimore to change planes to head to Raleigh!  OK, so it was all working out and it looked like we were only going to be about an hour delayed from our original arrival time in RDU.
  • We arrived in Baltimore about 6:30 and our next flight was scheduled to leave at 8:05, so we got a Subway sandwich and made some calls (my brother still doesn’t believe our story)!  Both flights were smooth and uneventful and we made it to Raleigh a little after 9:00.
  • I went to get the car and bring it around while Mom waited for the bags!  As I pulled up to meet her, a porter came out to flag me down and proceeded to tell me that our bags weren’t on the flight and needed my baggage claim tags.  Mom and the porter came out a few minutes later (luckily, a very nice security guy let me sit there and wait, so I didn’t have to keep circling around).  They said the bags were still on the original flight from Nashville and it was scheduled to arrive at 9:30……then they found out it was delayed until 10:00!  So, we waited……and security allowed me to stay parked there, so long as I didn’t go inside and leave it unattended. 
  • About 10:30, the last of the bags on that flight were done going around the carousel……and our’s weren’t there!!!  We weren’t the only ones, though – others that were diverted with us had the same problem – apparently, none of the bags were pulled and loaded on the new flights, as we were told!
  • We were first told that they were on the next flight, but then they found out they weren’t, so there was no need for us to wait for it!  We gave them all the information about the bags and how to contact us!  They “think” they are going to be on the flight that is set to arrive about noon tomorrow……we’ll believe it when we see it!
  • Finally home about 11:30 PM….exhausted!!!

After a week on a relaxing cruise, I was rested and totally de-stressed!!!  Today totally unraveled all of that!!!  And we’ve been around a block or two in the past week…….Starting with Raleigh to Fort Lauderdale to Jacksonville on Sunday, out to sea, then Key West, then Nassau, more out to sea, back to Jacksonville on Saturday, almost to Nashville, then Columbus, then Baltimore, and finally back to Raleigh!!! 

So – my Saturday was LONG and MISERABLE!!!  How was your’s???