Thanksgiving Update

I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving Day. Our meal was wonderful and unexpectedly quiet as a result of last-minute cancellations by my brother and cousins. The bright side of this was that I was able to enjoy the longest uninterrupted conversation I have ever had with my uncle, a great guy whom I do not see often enough. Having arrived a bit early, I was even able to enjoy a private visit with my aunt and uncle while I constructed a salad. (No, the world has not ended, as I did not actually "cook" anything . . . I merely assembled pieces of a salad). By the time my Mom and I returned home, it was after 5 pm and I was exhausted, having only slept for a few hours before catching my early morning flight to Chicago.

On another note, there is something strange about waking up in one's childhood bedroom. There was a period of time between high school graduation and my father's death in which I did not sleep in this room, because I always stayed with my Dad when back in Illinois. But now, by default, I stay at my mother's house, which is also the only house I ever lived in as a child. The room has now been painted, the Shaun Cassidy and Parker Stephenson posters are gone and there is a new and much more comfortable mattress on the narrow twin bed. But still, I cannot shake the feeling of being watched here by ghosts of my childhood. Being here returns me to the silence of my childhood, where feelings were never discussed, except for jotting them down in my diary.

Thoughts for another day, as I go off to take my grandmother's boyfriend to breakfast . . .

Travel Time.

I've been all work and no play--with very little sleep--for the last several days, but today there were filings galore, and now I'm ready to play. There are three days of business trips beginning tomorrow, to Minneapolis and New York. While I adore the clients I'm visiting and look forward to seeing them, I must confess that dressing up and being on my best behavior is one of my least favorite things to do.

After that, there will be three days of pure pleasure in New York City. I was going to be "good" and come home for the weekend, but then I thought, "I'm there and probably won't get back for a while, why not enjoy it?" I need to get back some of that centered vacation feeling and am hoping to find it there.

These are things I saw last time I was in my beloved NYC, in May:

Outdoor Chair Art:



New York Public Library Reading Room:



I'm looking forward to seeing little Freddie, also known as the "Love Pig":



How can you not feel happier just by looking at his picture?

Have a wonderful week, all!

Something strange.

Near the end of my vacation, I stayed at a pretty little inn on the western side of New Hampshire, near the White Mountains. By the time I arrived, I was feeling tired from a very long day of driving through northern Vermont, Canada and northern New Hampshire. I gratefully settled in for the tasty meal the female innkeeper arranged for me to have despite my late arrival time. Afterward, I wandered into this comfortable and lovely library, craving the opportunity to curl up on the leather couch and read for a little while:



I was startled to see that nearly every book on the shelves of this library is also found in my own home. Nearly my entire collection is here . . . from Ayn Rand to Anne Patchett, from Presidents' biographies to "Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood." Even the small set of DVDs found on one shelf is a subset of the movies found in my home. This wasn't a small library, really--the book-lined shelves were on several walls. So, odd that I felt as if I were looking at my own bookshelves.

When I passed the check-in desk on the way to my room, I asked the innkeepers, "Whose books are those in the library?" And the male innkeeper said, "They are mostly mine. Why?" And of course I explained, but I think we both felt a little awkward about this, for reasons I do not pretend to understand.

At breakfast the next morning, the female innkeeper said how nice it was for them to have a solo traveler, as she and the male innkeeper are single as well and don't meet that many solo travelers. The male innkeeper came out to visit with me after I ate the breakfast he had prepared. He was wearing one of those white chef's jackets that makes every man who wears it look charming, but he would have been cute even without it. We chatted briefly, but I felt shy and wordless and did not do much to prolong the discussion.

My friend S thinks I should follow up in a friendly way, perhaps with an email forwarding some photographs I took of the inn. What do you think?

Oh, and if you are wondering who is sitting at the chess board, here is a close-up:

A Vacation/Political Adventure

As you know, I was very interested in participating in some good old-fashioned New Hampshire primary stumping during my vacation. As you also know, I had some trouble locating the Democratic candidates so I could do this--who knew that campaigning was best conducted in secret? Left with no alternative, I resorted to attending a meeting of a different sort on the last full day of my vacation: I participated in the Seacoast Republican Women's Chili Fest. Actually, "participated" may not be quite accurate, in that I was reluctant to give a dime to any Republican group, so I ate no chili and drank no drinks. Instead, I listened, watched and talked to people.

Here is what I learned:

I'm going to use my last few hours of vacation

actually vacationing . . . but I do have a surprise ending to the trip to share with you! I'll write it on the plane . . .

Happy Sunday!

Sadly, the vacation is winding down.

I have reveled in the fresh air and the trees and the mountains and the interesting people and things to see and the delicious food in Vermont and New Hampshire. My only motivation for returning home right now is that I miss my dogs terribly.

This probably doesn't speak well for my overall level of satisfaction with my life. I have not yet spent as much time on introspection as I wanted to, but I'm hoping these next two days at Lake Winnipesaukee will do the trick.

Here's what I did tonight:

Arrivederci, voce bella.

As I drove away from Shelburne Farms today, there were tears in my eyes.



I was sad to leave, but the tears formed when I heard that Luciano Pavarotti died this morning. Immediately, I found his rendition of Nessun Dorma on my Ipod and listened to it several times. If you haven't heard it, please listen:



Hearing Pavarotti sing live was on the "Life List" I carry around in my head, and now that item will never be checked off. I'm sad for me, and sad for the world because that gorgeous voice is forever silenced.

Heavenly

Today was pretty relaxing. I didn't drive much . . . just to downtown Burlington to check out the pedestrian mall. There I bought my major souvenir of the trip. I'll take a picture when it arrives and post it for you--I'm pretty excited about it! While there, I also had a nice panini sandwich for lunch and eavesdropped on a man talking about where all the police speed traps are around town.

After returning to the Inn, I saw a video of different times in the history of the place. It is truly amazing that it was restored to this beauty after being in a state of near-ruin. I love old buildings! I also took a tour of the grounds. A math teacher was our volunteer leading the tour and she was a great guide. Dinner tonight was a special event. It was a "Vermont Fresh Network" dinner in which there was just one sitting, with multiple courses designed to show off the products grown right here on the grounds and elsewhere in Vermont. I enjoyed it thoroughly, except for the pig's belly, where I lost the battle of mind over matter. We were seated with other guests at a big table and it was nice to have actual dinner conversation after so many meals alone on my trip. And now I'm relaxing with the Cubs game and trying not to remember that I have to leave this lovely place tomorrow. I will definitely come back. I'm considering seeing if a group of friends would like to come here for Labor Day weekend next year, as it would be a wonderful place to spend time with a fun gang of friends.

More soon . . .

Zoo Visit!

More pictures here.

Things I miss about home

1. corn fields stretching as far as the eye can see
2. quiet, cool basements
3. nice Midwestern people with funny accents
   
4. a slower pace, a simpler life
5. knowing the back roads like the back of my hand
6. spending time with people who have known me for my entire life
7. being able to identify which family lived in every house on my street
8. exploring out of sight corners of my little town
9. the old library that was my home away from home
10. Tastee Treet soft-serve ice cream cones

Seattle Skyline, From Boat

Mount Rainier, from Airplane

Loving Seattle so far . . . more words and pictures soon!

What tickets are in my planner?

In my beloved Franklin planner binder (I rotate them, like shoes or purses), there is a zippered pocket that holds all of my tickets for the year. Tickets will be added from time to time, and of course tickets leave the pocket as they are called into use. Some tickets are singles; others are in twos or threes. But the tickets found in there at any given time provide a glimpse into how I will be spending my free time:

May 13, 2007 Talk Radio, at the Longacre Theatre in New York City
May 14, 2007 Cubs v. Mets, at Shea Stadium
June 1, 2007 Madame Butterfly, at Bass Hall in Fort Worth, Texas
June 19, 2007 Cubs v. Rangers, at the Ballpark in Arlington, Texas
June 20, 2007 Cubs v. Rangers, at the Ballpark in Arlington, Texas
June 21, 2007 Cubs v. Rangers, at the Ballpark in Arlington, Texas
August 6, 2007 Cubs v. Astros, at Minute Maid Park in Houston, Texas
August 31, 2007 N.H. Fisher Cats v. Trenton Thunder, at Merchantsauto.com Stadium, Nashua, New Hampshire

Oh, and that reminds me that I need to plan a few things to do in New York next weekend (I will be there for four days). I don't like for my time to be too planned, but if I don't have some sort of "to do" list, I end up going to all of my old favorite haunts and not seeing anything new. So here are a few of the things I want to see/do on this trip to New York:

See college roommate Lori
In Brooklyn, Coney Island and Prospect Park
See a play (ticket listed above)
Have a bite and a drink at this place
Photograph at the Cloisters
Visit this movie theatre to catch a showing of Paris Je T'Aime
See the Cubs play the Mets (ticket listed above)
Meet up for a drink with this man
See the Steve Pyke exhibit at Flowers Gallery

Oh, and I am researching how to photograph with a wide-angle lens. I have a new one and am worried I will come back with a slew of unusable photos, as my telephoto lens is in the shop after the terrible accident it experienced in Chicago.

What plans are you looking forward to, my friends?

About Lubbock . . .

I traveled to Lubbock, Texas for business this week and I have to say it was one of the nicest business trips I remember having . . . certainly the nicest trip I have had to a God-forsaken place in recent memory.



(Picture by Paul Rosales)

After an uneventful 7:30 a.m. flight, the day began with a paralegal who works for my client picking me up at the airport. She had arrived in Lubbock the day before in order to spend time with her grandparents. This is our second trip to Lubbock together and we have already developed a routine of stopping at the only Starbucks to get coffee that will help us get through our day. When I told her I was thinking of grabbing a bite to eat as well, having flown out too early to eat breakfast, she offered an alternative. Her grandfather had made his special breakfast sandwiches that morning and told her to bring "that girl" by for a sandwich if she was hungry. Even though her description of the contents of the sandwich frightened me, my love of adventure, coupled with my gratitude to a kind grandparent, would not allow me to refuse.

So I found myself standing in the entryway of her grandparents' lovely, art-filled home, gazing around and wishing I could spend my day exploring it. Her adorable four-year-old son had already done that, having squeezed in a few rounds of hide-and-seek-with-great-grandma before we arrived. He entertained me with a newly-acquired toy while his mother fetched the promised sandwich for me. After saying thank you and exchanging some friendly goodbyes, we were off and I was munching on a whole wheat English muffin topped with a fried egg and pimento cheese.

Our work day passed quickly, with us completing our mission quite effectively. Before I knew it, we were winging back to the airport so I could catch my 6:05 p.m. flight back to Dallas. There was no need to hurry, as it turned out, because weather in another part of the state was holding up the planes and my flight was delayed until 7:30 p.m.

After stocking up on chick magazines to last through a potentially long wait, I found a seat at the non-smoking end of the airport bar. There was much discussion about the flight situation among the patrons. Before long, I learned during a call to the airline that my plane also was experiencing a mechanical problem and would not arrive until at least 9:00 p.m., which soon turned into 10:15 p.m. The bar was packed and the guy next to me and I started chatting while he doused his caesar salad with Tobasco sauce. He was scheduled for a later flight that was now actually set to depart earlier than mine, and on the strength of his tip, I switched to that flight. We had a nice visit about his wife the police officer, our dogs, the fact that his mother has worked for years for the very client I was visiting that day, his work, that we each were in car accidents last week and our random life experiences with religion. It was one of those heartwarming times when you meet a person who is friendly, kind and interesting, with life experiences that intersect yours just enough to make the conversation flow easily.

The time passed quickly and we were soon off to catch our flight, which miraculously left "as scheduled" around 9:15 p.m. While I can sometimes be impatient, I let myself stay in the moment and thoroughly enjoyed the wait. But that doesn't mean I am in a hurry to return to Lubbock. :)

A smattering of thoughts from yesterday, some retrieved from my Moleskine . . .

My seatmates (on the flight to Chicago) are two of the nicest ladies I have ever met . . . both are headed to Michigan.

The good thing about a 7am flight is that it goes quickly when one sleeps the whole time.

The drive from O'Hare to downtown goes quickly as well, when one works the whole time.

I love my hotel . . . it is small, in an old and beautifully restored building. [Later, upon checking in . . . ] and the room is like a lovely little jewel box, with a small, but stunning, view of Lake Michigan.

Riding the "L" to Wrigley Field, I realize that a Cubs fan's version of hell is being surrounded by Cardinals fans on a small train car, with all of them seeking to one-up each other with Cardinals history and trivia.

The ushers at Wrigley Field are like an entire team of sweet and welcoming grandparents.

It takes an interesting older lady to create a Cubs hat with a fake dead red bird (legs up) on top of it.

Mixing romance (or anything resembling it) with baseball is a bad idea.

The new young Cubs fans arrive late, block one's view of Ryan Theriot scoring what would be the Cubs' only run of the game, stare at their cell phones for several minutes upon arrival, call someone to say, "I'm at the Cubs game!" and then take several pictures of each other and the field before finally settling in to see what is happening on the field.

I will never understand how Albert Pujols is such a good hitter (except for this season, so far) despite his incredibly awkward batting stance.

Who is the person in the dugout who throws Derek Lee the next inning's toss-around ball each time he comes off the field?

I like having Ted Lilly on the Cubs . . . there is something solid and reassuring about him. Maybe it's because his name is actually Theodore Roosevelt Lilly.

Time for the soothing panacea that is baseball

I worked late last night and then stayed up all night (what was left of it, anyway) so as not to miss my 7:00 a.m. flight this morning. And now I am posting this from Chicago, where sadly, I am not yet able to check into my hotel (though the delightfulness of the front desk staff makes up for that). The one piece of work I had to do this morning has been completed, so I'm stashing my bags and heading to the ballpark.

Not just any ballpark, of course: Wrigley Field. While Wrigley is always a beautiful place to be, there is something extra special about my first visit there in each baseball season. This is my version of a cathedral, I guess. The place will be even more energized than usual today, as the HATED ST. LOUIS CARDINALS ARE IN TOWN. (Take that, Jay!) Wish my team luck . . . and if you see a girl with a massive Nikon camera obsessively taking pictures, that may very well be me!

Believe it or not . . .

I have already posted my notes from the first part of my visit to Cubs spring training! (I'm trying to turn over a new leaf and keep reasonably up to date with my travel postings). Here is a sample of what you will see if you click on this link:



There are also a few close-up photos of a $126 million dollar pitcher who is so well-watched in spring training this year that they write about what he eats.

Because I couldn't wait for the temperature to reach 90 degrees in Dallas,

I'm headed to Arizona tomorrow for a little Cubs spring training action . . . will be there for the next four days. It seemed like a good time to take yet another trip, as I have yet to make the time to make a proper post about last year's trip:



or to post about my trip to Hawaii or countless other trips I have taken in between.

Nonetheless, I'm excited to see some up-close baseball, not just any baseball, of course, but CUBS BASEBALL! I also have a "wild card" day planned for Saturday, on which I may do a spa thing, or a pool thing, or a hiking thing, or a Sedona thing, or something I have not yet dreamed up! Hey, maybe I can spend the day in a lovely place where I actually--gasp!--catch up on my travel postings! We shall see . . .

**********************

On another travel note, I do need some help from you folks--if you were taking a 10-day trip in the fall and could visit:

(A) Vermont and New Hampshire; or
(B) Maine

which would you choose? I am experiencing a rare case of trip planning paralysis and need your help! I think JD will vote for Maine, but he may surprise me. What do you say?


***********************

On a last and much more somber note, I am awaiting with trepidation the 11am CT press conference scheduled by Democratic Presidential candidate John Edwards and his wife Elizabeth. Based on the stories I have read, it appears likely that they will announce the reappearance of cancer in Elizabeth and explain how that will affect the campaign. I hope that isn't the case, most of all because Elizabeth and John seem like good people, they have young children and it is a shame for anyone to suffer from cancer, but also because I think he is one of our best hopes in the 2008 election and hate to see any setback to his chances. Please keep John and Elizabeth in your thoughts and hope for the best for them!

Tidbits.

I was surprised to see this mea culpa by the founder of USA Today, whose columns I typically read for amusement whenever that paper is delivered to me as a hotel guest.

Have you seen this newly released footage from the day of President Kennedy's assasination? (Via Kottke) The film is surreal. One of the things I have always found strange about living in Dallas is that while the city is not much of a tourist destination--certainly not remotely in the same ballpark as New York, Chicago or Washington, DC--at any hour of the day or night, you will find someone at the Grassy Knoll, peering up at the sniper's window or standing in the spot on the road where the shots met their mark. I find it sad, though somewhat appropriate, that this city's only claim to fame is an event constituting a violent and shocking snuffing out of promise for a generation. At least we will soon have the Bush Presidential Library to change all that. ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha

In the "another reason why Cubs fans are so great" category, is the fact that the proprietor of a Cubs web site where I spend a bit of time cares enough to touch base with various fans he has met to see if they will be going to spring training. His inquiry was enough to motivate me to actually make plans for a quick weekend trip, though I have yet to find a hotel room . . .

I always enjoy the photos at Joe's NYC, but this one seems especially New Yorky to me.

Jen's commentary on a "porn wagon" is quite amusing. Just as amusing is Jay's speculative comment on the subject.

I am really proud of the hike I took that led me to the place where I encountered this feral goat:



I don't have much hiking experience and I am certainly not in primo hiking condition, but I felt like I accomplished something by completing the walk that brought me to this place at a reasonably high altitude, with some steepness in the terrain. My reward was a beautiful view and this memorable encounter with what is a wild animal in the Kauai context. His bleats to his friends could be heard echoing off the canyon walls.

And with that, I'm off to Nashville on a whirlwind business trip.

More Kauai pics for you . . .

I promise to write a real post sometime soon! :)