Laguna Beach, Santa Monica (August 2-6, 2012)

My delightful traveling companion.  Friday evening.

PJ and I first did a hotel stay-over in Laguna Beach in July 2010, and liked it well enough to make a return trip in 2011 (this latter trip coupled with a visit to EPG in Santa Monica).  This was a repeat of the 2011 trip.

Friday evening sunset from our hotel room's balcony.

Taken while wandering around Laguna Beach on Friday morning.

Similar/delightful experiences in Laguna Beach.  Mostly stuck with the same restaurants that we had enjoyed so much on prior trips; also had a fine lunch at Watermarc on Saturday.  Did a very long walking tour of some of the Laguna Beach neighborhoods on Friday morning; long beach walks (heading south) both evenings; Starbucks breakfast sitting on the bench overlooking the ocean at the main park; couldn't be nicer. We started getting reports from PJr/Nedda who were arriving in Paris.

Our regular breakfast spot - hard to beat.

EPG's homage' to Kerry.

Then onto Santa Monica.  EPG had identified a restaurant named "Ink" for Saturday night - this was a delight - we had five sharing dishes, seated at a corner of the bar (no reservations to be had), easy to see why the place is thriving.

Delightful breakfast at the local farmers' market on Sunday morning - I had a real peach for the first time in quite awhile, burrito and coffee = awesome.  Wandered around Rodeo Drive area; then to LA County Museum of Art - which was much enjoyable.  I'll probably post some of what we looked at over on the "review" website.  I think the most interesting area was the 1920s/30s German expressionism - after reading a bunch about this era over the last couple years, it had a whole new interest for me.  (UPDATE: LACMA information is now posted here.)

Late lunch at Umami burgers; a Racer5 IPA at some SF-themed bar (because Umami didn't have a liquor license); a bold attempt to visit the Griffith Observatory which was a fun ride but too crowded to really take advantage of; late dinner at Mercado something-or-other, another very wonderful sharing concept, this one with Italian food.

Madonna and child, times two.  LA County Museum of Art.

An unnerving lamppost forest at LACMA.

Monday arrived way too fast; breakfast at Starbucks and EPG off to work; we drive back after shopping some at the outlet mall (where I love to shop) and having a bite at Strand in downtown Phoenix.  PJ a delightful traveling companion, EPG a great host.

Nice.

EPG birthday

Continuing a practice noted here, here's a photo for the July 30 birthday boy:  EPG.

This was taken on July 27, 2003 - EPG was a mere 17.  (Or nearly so - I don't recall why the celebration was held a few days early.)

I rather liked this photo grouping.  PJ no doubt taking a straight-on picture with a camera using conventional film.  Mark S. prep'ing for graduation, it appears.

Happy birthday!

MN-IA trip (wedding in Mason City)

Nick Gales - Maeve Ryan wedding gave us a fine excuse to make the Minnesota-Iowa circuit last weekend.  

After lunch at Aster Cafe (Friday).  Mighty Mississippi in background.  Smiling people in foreground.

We didn't take photos of our own so are at the mercy of others for copies of theirs.  The few photos in this post were stolen without attribution sourced from a couple social media posts (meaning posts by Lancaster Gales plus a couple from EPG (if I recall correctly)), and are actually quite good.  (EPG will be my main source once he stops gallivanting to weddings and starts sharing his photos.  At this point we are missing photos of most of the important folks in attendance.)

Here's how it came down:

Thursday, July 19
PJ and I flew to MSP, ran into Jim & Carol at rental car counter, fit in lunch, then picked up CPG at airport.  Up to House house where Cecilia & Steve hosted us, and Charlie & Beth supplied the Yuengling and pork patties.  Beautiful late afternoon on the patio, then we moved inside.  Made another airport run in the evening and collected Kerry and Patrick.  Back to House house for euchre (six-handed).  Then to hotel (Charlie family there also).  Some played late-night euchre.

Thursday evening in New Brighton, MN.

Friday, July 20
Morning somewhat disjointed - got our group of five through the morning paces, then had to do some shopping - mostly because EPG suitcase zippers suffered a fail at MSP airport.  After shopping, ended up down by the river in Minneapolis for lunch at Aster Cafe - this turned out delightfully - good food and drinks, hosted by our three children.  Photos by the river.  Road trip to Mason City where we checked in.  Pretty quick turn-around to head to the rehearsal dinner - very nicely put together indeed.  Lots of chatting, good food and drink, nice toasts - very fine evening.  Late (very late, by my standards) euchre at the hotel, which was very fun.  Great turn-out of family members - eight of the nine of the siblings were here, lots of next-gen, Grandpa & Grandma, etc.  Fun to get acquainted with Ryan family - nice folks indeed.

Pretty sure this group could still clean out a corncrib (if we could just find one).  At rehearsal dinner.

Saturday, July 21
Early part of day flew by - partly because we slept in (again).  2p wedding at the church near Steve & Liz house - beautiful ceremony, including very good music (thanks in large part to Cullen performers).  Photos.  Back to hotel for a couple hours - this was a nice interlude.  I much enjoyed sitting 'round a big table with Chris and Bill Capesius, Romie & Joy, Kathy & Daryl, Mary Lou, my dad, Charlie, and others rotating in such as Art C and Steve H.  Fine to hear those so-familiar voices again, sometimes in that type of situation I don't even focus on the words at all.  On to the wedding reception at Mason City Country Club - nice setting, they did a great job with everything.  We sat with the Houses and the Haags - fun.  The dance went late into the evening.  PJ and I eventually back to room and to bed; our traveling companions arrived a bit later.  Then they went off for more euchre, and re-arrived, a bit later still.

Stars of the weekend.  At rehearsal dinner.

Sunday, July 22
We had planned to stay this extra day based on experience with POC/N and PJr/N weddings - the extra day gives a good chance to recap and catch up with everyone, without the time demands of scheduled events (fun as they are).  Main focus of the day was a gathering at Steve & Liz house - started around 11a (we arrived at noon), big crowd, pretty much everyone was able to stop by (even those that needed to peel off for home as the day wore on).  Took a nice walk across the bridge to the newly-restored Frank Lloyd Wright hotel in downtown Mason City with a small group including Barb, Emily, Dolores, Clare, Kieran, Carol, Jim, Therese (who knows, I might have the list wrong).  This was fun.

Lots of euchre (and Yuengling, for that matter)in party room.  Photo taken Friday night (or Saturday morning).

Then back to house, and focused on sitting in back yard with beers, snacks and nonstop chatter.  Which all went very nicely considering it was 97, somewhat humid, mostly shady under the trees, occasional breeze - really very pleasant July afternoon in the upper midwest.  Steve & Liz home and yard very well set up for this kind of thing.  This ended up being a full day there, very nice, they eventually arranged pizza for dinner, we sat around talking (or playing "apples to apples") until 8p or so.  Grandma and Grandpa stuck around 'til the end, which was nice.

At this point, all were gone except Jim & Carol, Haags, us - we all returned to hotel - ended up hanging around at the pool.  Chris and Patrick eventually jumped in, which led to the shenanigans shown in this video.



I halfway thought Allison, Emily, or both were going to be washed over the side of the pool, in the way that wreckage gets tossed up onshore from a stormy ocean.  But that didn't happen (fortunately).  It was a fun evening.

Monday, July 23
Mostly a travel day - nice chats with the few folks still at the hotel (same group as preceding evening) over breakfast, got organized, drove to airport, back to Phoenix, PJr picked us up.

Overall
1.  The wedding planning was excellent.  I'm starting to get a better feel for how much detail is involved.  They did a great job.  Steve & Liz were v. fine host/hostess.

2.  Nick & Maeve = very nice couple.

3.  Very, very fun to travel with PJ, K, CPG, EPG.  Aster lunch, "turntable" music on car ride, five folks in a room, endless series of fine moments.  (Too bad! that POC and N were at a different wedding, and PJr and Nedda were dealing with final throes of bar exam prep.  But our sub-group was excellent.)

Grandpa should have worn his wedding suit.  But this is still a nice photo.

4.  I'm the one who's lucky when it comes to family.  What a fine thing - two healthy 80-something parents; seven of eight siblings (with spouses) able to attend this one; a bunch of fine nieces and nephews, some now married to (or dating) interesting folks (and another generating starting with two young representatives), all full of life and personality, good conversationalists, respectful to we older folks and even show interest in our conversations; not to mention my own wife and kids, who are pretty much to brag on already.  Wow.  (A bonus at this wedding - as mentioned above, got to see some of my aunts, uncles, cousins who I see all too seldom.) 


Next wedding on the schedule:  May 2013.  Pennsylvania.  Looking forward to it.  


Info about other family weddings:  can be found here, here, and here.  (Or just click the "wedding" label in the box at right.)

Haboob'd (or something)

Just back from a most pleasant Midwest visit (will post separately on that shortly).  The locals had advised us of a storm moving through Phoenix while we were away.  It had a pretty big (and negative) effect on our back yard - now two of our "new" (circa 2009, as shown here) mesquites are toppled.

OK, it wasn't a surprise - we could see that these things had grown unsupportably top-heavy, and we had actually obtained price quotes on their removal last week.  But still, it's a significant loss.  Will take several years to re-create the shade.  Oh well.

Haboobs seem to be increasingly frequent, for example this excellent stop-action from last year.

Luche Libre

We worked with POC to arrange one last Dbacks game prior to All-Star break - PJ, CPG, PJr and I went Saturday evening, 7/7.  Big crowd - almost 37,000.  Dodgers are in first place, but they're not very good - especially right now, when their key guys are hurt.  Dbacks won handily.  Fun night - crowd was more alive than usual (perhaps because there was a goodly number of Dodgers fans keeping things stirred up).

And the give-away promo was original, and fun - "luche libre" - a form of pro wrestling - apparently they love to wear masks, as described here.  It was quite entertaining to see a big chunk of the crowd actually wearing these things.  POC stopped by with a couple masks for us (which was nice, since the "free to the first 15000 batch" was long gone by the time we arrived).  PJr seemed to like wearing the mask.  Prompting a grandmotherly-type in the row behind us to lace it up properly.

PJ even modeled the goods, as shown here.

It was a fun night. 

Birthday girl

We have lots of fine birthday photos of the kids.  So I think I'll start posting some at random on their birthdays.

Here's Kerry in 1988.  In addition to cake frosting appropriate to a birthday so near Independence Day, note the extra decorations she designed herself - Teddy Ruxpin characters.

Happy birthday!

U-S-A (4th of July post)

Here's something for the 4th of July - a video (at bottom of this post) that has to be one of the very finest renditions of our national anthem that we've ever seen (or heard, for that matter).

All finished.  A look of pride.  Or relief.

It was a Sunday afternoon game for the Diamondbacks during the interleague portion of the summer 2011 schedule - Chicago White Sox in town.  Sunday is kids day at the ballpark.  Meaning the team lets kids do various tasks, such as some of the in-game announcing, introducing the lineups and - best of all on this particular Sunday - singing the national anthem.

Yes, we've heard the anthem more times than we can count.  But there's something about this performance . . .

We were quite worried that this singer wouldn't make it all the way through.  I think the whole stadium felt that way.

But she seemed to pick up confidence as she went along.  And how about the (tenuous, then triumphant) moment when she goes for the high note (1:55 of the video).  You can feel the crowd responding at this point . . . almost exhaling collectively in relief, then quickly breaking into cheers and applause for our young performer.

I never get tired of this video.

home brew

CPG and POC recently got around to working with a home brew kit (gift from Nicole to POC).  Our two trainee brewers did quite a bit of work a couple weeks ago getting the process started.  (Fortunately, they kept us all fully informed into the wee hours of the morning via "groupme".) 

POC being on a road trip, CPG was left to do the actual bottling single-handed.

This step looked pretty simple - fill the bottle, drop in some kind of carbonation pill, seal it up.

Now we wait two weeks.   

yes it was a good weekend for baseball

As previewed here, PJ and I tried something different - a weekend in downtown Phoenix (June 8-10).  We've had good luck with various Kimpton hotels, and a new one opened in Phoenix on June 5.  The Diamondbacks were in town for a weekend series with Oakland (a really bad team), and POC worked his ticket thing.

Walking back to hotel (it's in background) along Jefferson after Sunday's game.

 It all turned out very nicely.  Tried out various downtown restaurants.  We thought the new Cityscape development (encompassing the new hotel and a number of the restaurants) is shaping up nicely.  Hotel was quite good, and the hotel restaurant (Blue Hound) is very well done.

Duggan to the rescue - part of the disastrous start to Friday's game (which turned out well).

As far as the baseball - Friday night's game was the best of the year - Dbacks went down 6-0, eventually won 9-8 on a three-run walk-off home run courtesy of Tatman.  So that was fun, even if we had left after 2+ hours to eat dinner (and follow the game on TV at least).    Dbacks also won the games on Saturday and Sunday.

Saturday's game - "Star Wars night" - imperial storm troopers - it was amusing . . .

We walked around downtown a bunch.  Ran into Jeff Ward, who invited us to soft opening at his new restaurant (Fuego Cityscape) - so that was nice as a pre-game activity on Saturday.

I predict we'll do something like this again.

. . . including Star Wars riffs on player introductions.

Just prior to Sunday afternoon game.  Roof closed for the first time all weekend.

pomegranate

Still obsessing about development of our hardy little pomegranate plant.

Quite a bit of development since this photo was taken a couple months ago.

good weekend for some baseball?

POC is on the case for PJ and me.

yes, it's us

I rather enjoy thinking about politics, policy, etc., even if doing so is often quite discouraging on several levels.  But this is important stuff; it matters even if folks (no doubt including me, more often than I'd like to think) prefer to be in denial, fatalistic or ignorant. 

I copied below a few paragraphs recently written by a pretty well-known doom-monger.  The concepts aren't that original - plenty of folks offer up similar thoughts (in fact, more everyday as more of those who have been in denial are finally waking up).  But I think this explanation is more effectively worded than most.

Politicians will always be hopeless panderers.  And perhaps voters will always be hopeless takers.

But, fortunately or unfortunately, simple math will now overwhelm the widespread grabbing that has dominated our politics for so long.

------------------------- 

" . . . the unsustainable "bubble" is not student debt or subprime mortgages or anything else. The bubble is us, and the assumptions of entitlement. Too many citizens of advanced Western democracies live a life they have not earned, and are not willing to earn. Indeed, much of our present fiscal woe derives from two phases of human existence that are entirely the invention of the modern world. Once upon a time, you were a kid till you were 13 or so; then you worked; then you died. That bit between childhood and death has been chewed away at both ends. We invented something called "adolescence" that now extends not merely through the teenage years but through a desultory half-decade of Whatever Studies at Complacency U up till you're 26 and no longer eligible for coverage on your parents' health insurance policy. At the other end of the spectrum, we introduced something called "retirement" that, in the space of two generations, has led to the presumption that able-bodied citizens are entitled to spend the last couple of decades, or one third of their adult lives, as a long holiday weekend.

The bit in between adolescence and retirement is your working life, and it's been getting shorter and shorter. Which is unfortunate, as it has to pay for everything else. This structural deformity in the life cycle of Western man is at the root of most of our problems. Staying ever longer in "school" (I use the term loosely) leads to ever later workplace entry, and ever later (if at all) family formation. Which means that our generation is running up debt that will have to be repaid by our shrunken progeny. One hundred Greek grandparents have 42 Greek grandchildren. Is it likely that 42 Greeks can repay the debts run up by 100 Greeks? No wonder they'd rather stick it to the Germans. But the thriftier Germans have the same deathbed demographics. If 100 Germans resent having to pick up the check for an entire continent, is it likely 42 Germans will be able to do it?

Look around you. The late 20th century Western lifestyle isn't going to be around much longer. In a few years' time, our children will look at old TV commercials showing retirees dancing, golfing, cruising away their sixties and seventies, and wonder what alternative universe that came from. In turn, their children will be amazed to discover that in the early 21st century the Western world thought it entirely normal that vast swathes of the citizenry should while away their youth enjoying what, a mere hundred years earlier, would have been the leisurely varsity of the younger son of a Mitteleuropean Grand Duke.

. . . Any functioning society is like an orchestra. When the parts don't fit together, it's always the other fellow who's out of tune. So the Greeks will blame the Germans, and vice-versa. But the developed world is all playing the same recessional. In the world after Western prosperity, we will work till we're older, and we will start younger – and we will despise those who thought they could defy not just the rules of economic gravity but the basic human life cycle."

Flagstaff and Winslow tour (32nd anniversary trip)

PJ heading through Hart Prairie (around 8500' elevation here per trail guide)

Patricia and I celebrated our 32nd wedding anniversary on May 24.  We took a short road trip to two familiar places (each visited just last year):  Flagstaff (2011 trip here) and Winslow (2011 trip here).  We do love touring around Arizona together.

PJ in the distance, one of the many beautiful public spaces at La Posada

In Flagstaff - we concentrate on the downtown restaurants and on hiking.  Revisited Criollo Latin Kitchen for lunch; visited Brix on the actual day of our anniversary (very good but not great); had dinner for the first time at Tinderbox and we had a fantastic meal - PJ had duck prepared three ways, mine was a sugar-cured leg of venison with blackberries, blueberries, cherry chutney atop grits - really one of the very top meals we've ever had.  As far as hiking - we were looking for something interesting but not too challenging - drove up into Hart Prairie (often featured in the "fall color" issues of Arizona Highways) - this may be beautiful in fall, the trail indeed was nice, but we can find better hiking spots.  Plus the wind kicked up too much.

PJ (again in the distance) at overlook, Little Painted Desert

In Winslow - we concentrate on the hotel (the fabulous La Posada) and the in-hotel restaurant (John Sharpe's equally fabulous Turquoise Room).  Notwithstanding that Winslow is not much of a town and that the area doesn't offer all that much in the way of hiking etc. - we will be back here.  We find the place evocative, captivating, or something.  It helps a great deal to have read this biography of Mary Colter, the hotel's architect (book purchased last year; it includes lots of information about Fred Harvey etc.)  The thoroughness and care of the hotel restoration is astonishing - every detail was considered - every time we walk through the expansive public spaces and gardens we notice something extra.  The art gallery (all works by redeveloper's wife) adds quite a bit of interest.

wildflowers in pretty desolate environment; Little Painted Desert

And then there are the trains - we aren't really of a generation of train buffs, but part of the charm here is that the restored railroad hotel sits a few hundred feet north of one of the few remaining busy railroad tracks in this part of the world - about 100 trains a day go by, including two passenger train stops.  In this setting - it's really neat.

La Posada main entrance from the street (this side was the back entrance when trains ruled)

And thinking back to 19th century authors etc. - trains in general were a defining change for people - first opened up vistas and minds in a way no other form of transportation has or will.  There's good reason literature, songs and hobos often revolved around trains.  Airplanes and cars affected transportation, but they were just differences in degree - not differences in kind.  (Try Anna Karenina, for example.)

sitting, chatting, watching the fairly regular train traffic . . . La Posada

The Turquoise room is a marvel - we had six meals in two days there (just like last year), each a delight (just like last year).  I think my favorite was the lamb posole at lunch; but my duck and elk dinners were right there.  Not to mention the bread pudding for breakfast.  As nice as the hotel is, I think we would feel less strongly about it if the restaurant wasn't so good.

"Sunken garden," La Posada

entrance to "sunken garden," La Posada

Mion art gallery, La Posada. 

We ventured out to the Painted Desert for the first time - we were surprised at how easily accessible at least this portion is from Winslow, and at how great it looked (even in mid-day - this clearly would be best at sunrise or sunset).  Fun.

view of La Posada lobby (from just inside south entrance (opening toward the tracks))

breakfast at Turquoise Room

odd fellow, observed on Hart Prairie trail

"staircase" consisting of railroad ties leading down from overlook; very poor condition; Little Painted Desert

Great trip, great anniversary, great wife.

18 out of 279 in eight minutes (Phantom Ranch)

Hard to believe it's already been five years (to the day) since we were last down at Phantom Ranch (discussed here, here, here, and here).   I am obsessed with Grand Canyon and its ilk and would love to visit far more often.  Not sure how to solve for this.

We do tee up an effort every now and then to get organized for a large-group return trip.  One problem is Phantom Ranch's overwhelming international popularity - combined with a somewhat archaic "first come-first served" fax system.  You have no chance unless you hit the "send" button on your fax machine at exactly midnight of the first day of the month in which you wish to hike in the ensuing year.  (Large group reservations for October 2011 are opened on October 1, 2010, for example).

The below email shows our last effort - I was trying to arrange things for October 2011.  Started at midnight 10/1/10.  Constant busy signals before I got through - way too late.  My contact told me via the below email they received 279 faxes and immediately filled all 18 large group spots.

Maybe autumn 2013??

Sampling of 2007 photos follows (many more via links in first sentence of this post) (click any photo to access enlargements of all):

reception at the Rim - evening prior to hiking

ready to head down South Kaibab trail

down, down, down . . .

card-playing at the canteen at Phantom Ranch

sunflower fire

This was interesting (though not as interesting as last year's weather phenomenon).

I have my personal neighborhood watch program underway on a daily basis - because my office has a great vantage point to the north and east, also because I'm nosy.

Early this afternoon, I became vaguely aware of a cloud formation to the NE that didn't look quite right.  Seemed too early in the year for a t'storm to be brewing in Mogollon Rim country, plus the formation was odd.  I wasn't aware that any above-ground nuclear testing had been scheduled.  I finally remembered that there was a pretty significant wildfire up toward Payson.

Ah, that's it - this is smoke from a 4500 acre (and growing) fire.  Photo taken from home office, with mobile phone.

echo

I have all sorts of thoughts about policy and politics.  But they generally aren't sufficiently coherent to do much more with than to muse about things from time to time.  And occasionally get into a conversation with folks, but that often doesn't go very far either.  I do believe that policy and politics matter; that it is possible to change the character of a nation over time via policy; etc.; yet many basic themes do endure.

Reading Robert Penn Warren's "All the King's Men" (1946), the echo from our current divider-in-chief was unmistakable.  Southern demagogue Willie Stark is making his first run for governor.  This being his first run, he is not yet a fully-developed demagogue.  Willie has a carefully thought-out tax plan that balances various competing interests; he presents this to the voters at various speeches; he is ignored, because absorbing policy nuances would require some thought and effort from the voters.

Jack Burden (newspaperman assigned to cover Willie's campaign) tries to straighten out Willie as to his approach:  "Maybe you try to tell 'em too much.  It breaks down their brain cells."

"Looks like they'd want to hear about taxes, though," [Stark] said.

"You tell 'em too much.  Just tell 'em you're gonna soak the fat boys, and forget the rest of the tax stuff."

**sigh**

ASU law school graduation (this generation might be done with school?)

Nedda and Paul Jr; 5/3/12.  (Nadia photo) 
Last day of school for this generation, I think.

Starting in fall 1986, we've had between one and five children in school and working along through the so-familiar academic calendar.

But - after well-nigh 26 years - this could be the end.  PJr and Nedda graduated from law school today.  No other school plans on the horizon, as far as I know.

List of schools:

• Liberty Elementary (N, C, K)
• St. Thomas the Apostle (N, C, K, EP, PJr)
• Cocopah middle school (K, PJr)
• Chaparral high school (N, C, K, EP, PJr)
• St. Mary's College (N)
• ASU (N, C, PJr)
• U of A (K, EP)

By the way, today's law school commencement was quite a nice affair.  Sandra Day O'Connor - for whom the ASU law school was named - gave a fine speech.  PJr and Nedda both graduated with honors.

Sandra Day O'Connor speech.

Also nice:  Saeed and Mina treated to a most excellent after-meal at the Persian Room, it was a great conclusion to the event.  (I drank doogh (دوغ‎ dūgh) for my first time - neat, I read that this drink goes back to classical Persia.)  Also, Patrick had shown up unexpectedly this morning (rerouting flight from CA to Seattle), which was quite the nice move.  Had a euchre game or two before he was whisked back to the airport.  PJ and I won, of course.

1st day our children attended school . . . Nicole at kindergarten, 9/3/86.