There was a gathering of Lakenheath Lancers in San Antonio over the weekend of 4-5 April (folks who attended high school at RAF Lakenheath, UK). Photos below and at: http://imageevent.com/getdown/lakenheathinsanantonio
Don’t take my picture!
Category: Travel
Sonoma County: Freestone and Bodega
I don’t always trust what I read on TripAdvisor, but I do consult it when traveling. The Scout is busy in Sebastopol, CA this weekend, and I was curious what TripAdvisor would say about this bastion of all things local, organic and yummy.
We drove out to Wild Flour Bakery in Freestone, and yes, the scones are well worth the short and beautiful drive.
The town of Bodega (not to be confused with Bodega Bay) is a few miles down the road from the bakery. Both towns were principal locations for Alfred Hitchcock’s The Birds.
Here’s the school:
The church adjacent to the school:
Bodega recently celebrated the 50th anniversary of The Birds, and the Bodega Country Store was well equipped with all things Hitchcock and bird-y. (I guess they didn’t want to call it Bodega’s Bodega.)
My favorite Hitchcock is Rear Window, but The Birds gets full points for being enduringly creepy. The homage to The Birds carried on by the Bodega Country Store has it’s own creepy factor, but tinged with humor. Tippi Wine, anyone?
O California!
Or to be more precise, O Santa Ynez Valley!
I have a new job working for a large bureaucracy, but I can’t tell you more than that because I signed something or other swearing me to secrecy. I haven’t worked in many large institutions, and my head is spinning with wonder. If you take the one bureaucracy I’m in and multiply it by the number of bureaucracies worldwide…well, don’t do it. Your head will explode.
The Scout is carrying on without me—most recently in the Santa Ynez Valley. One of my favorite places evah.
When The Scout called me from The Hitching Post, I groaned out loud.
He had a pork chop, but I have a paycheck.
The Magic Kingdom
If the genus is Walt Disney World, then the species is The Magic Kingdom. The Scout worked there the week between Christmas Day and New Year’s Day, the time of year when the park swells from its typical 35,000 visitors a day to 70,000.
Needless to say, it was hard to avoid people.
If you can’t beat ’em, join ’em.
About the third day into the job, I was talking to The Scout and he said in a tired voice, “Well, I have to go back to the Magic Kingdom…”
I began to fixate on that word couplet: “magic kingdom.” Just what is a magic kingdom?
The sheep-like ability of people to herd themselves into The Magic Kingdom at the busiest time of year at $82.00 each (one-day ticket) amazes me. It’s not that I detest Disney, it’s that I don’t understand going when it is so busy. Here in SoCal, many of us have learned to go places at ‘off’ times. Were I to go to Disneyland here, I’d go on a Tuesday in October.
My favorite thing at Disneyland is the first few seconds of the Peter Pan ride where you fly out of the window of the house and swoop over London on the way to Neverland. Since I’d prefer to swoop over the real London, I’m saving my magic pennies for that.
Notes from Europe
Have been in touch with my friend N who lives in Roquebrune-Cap-Martin. Continue reading “Notes from Europe”
My Summer With Frida
It started in Vancouver BC, when I spied stuffed Frida y Frida pillows sitting on the couch in a loft.
Two Photos of NYC
I’ve been traveling again, this time to Boston (for the first time) and New York City. I’ve lots to tell, but for the moment, here are two photos.
Stepping down into the Apple store on Fifth Avenue.
Lost sock found at MOMA’s sculpture garden.
Where Canada Ends
On leaving Vancouver. Continue reading “Where Canada Ends”
Air Travel
I like traveling by air. It’s quick. You can leave one world and get plopped in another in a relatively short amount of time. We left the big city (Vancouver, BC) for a quick trip to Tofino on the west coast of Vancouver Island.
No bothersome security checks, no crying babies with embarrassed, frustrated parents. Just a whole lot of great scenery.
Meet Max, our pilot. This guy has job satisfaction in the high 90th percentile. Max loves to fly. Continue reading “Air Travel”
Around Town: Vancouver, BC
West Coast Grrlie Blather 