Hello All!
Holy Cow! Where did summer go?? To be honest, summer isn't really gone but compared to the big open sky and long hot days of the High Sierra Desert, the mildness and shortened season of the New England summer seems sleepy and cool. Already it is time to close the pool. Leaves are falling in the neighbors yard and my garden works to produce the last of the Fall Harvest consisting mostly of Brussels sprouts, leaks and butternut squash... not to mention the freaking monster cucumber plant. It was a surprise to find out that cucumbers are actually spiky fruits. I suspect we have about a month before the first frost.
Anyway.. despite its seemingly swift transition to fall, summer (August in particular) was chalk full of adventure and enjoyment. (Pictures to accompany this post can be found here as there are just to many to cut and paste.)
First, Greg and I went up to Montreal to see Iron Maiden. The last arena rock show, we attended was Before Kids when we won tickets on a party bus in Phoenix to go see Megadeth...1998. Now the bands of that era are gentrifying so I really don't expect to ever see another arena rock concert but after that absolutely amazing show, I don't need to. I've seen the best.
As for Montreal.. it is a beautiful busy city on par with San Francisco. It has a very impressive bridge which is called Pont Champlain. The city is divided into different districts. There is a banking district, a china town, piers and a gay town. It is strongly pedestrian and bicycler oriented and sports the the old world charm of very narrow streets. In other words, driving is insane and added to that, the rules of the road are not the same. For instance, right hand turns require a light meaning you can't turn right without a light even if it is clear to do so. A basic knowledge of french and or the metric system are helpful. There are a couple of reasons that I highly recommend visiting Montreal over San Fran but the biggest is that Montreal isn't a cesspool and you wont be trecking through human feces.
A few weeks later, I left the family behind to soak up some sun and get in quality time with my western roots. This was an important trip for a number of reasons. My grandparents are 90 now and their time on earth is dwindling. Spending quality time with them was really my main objective. Grandma is in better health than she was a few months ago but when having a one on one conversation it becomes obvious that her stream of consciousness is far from linear as she jumps from topic to topic and back again. Grandpa's mind and body are as well as can be. He likes his whisky though. He likes it A LOT .. a 5th lasts him 2 days. For someone who never really drank, it is significant. But he is very conscious of not drinking until he does whatever driving, appointments or errands he has to get done. So that is a positive.
Other than seeing the grandparents, I also got in super visits with a number of dear old friends who happened to converge with me. Elaine was visiting from Japan, Nell and David were in vising in Oregon and timed in a stop on their way home in Alameda. Sidney, Melissa and Terri are all educators and the first week back to school is always a doozy but that didn't stop them (or their families) from joining in the various activities. I love these people. No matter where life takes us, we always pick right back up. They are very dear and I feel blessed to have them in my life even when time and distance puts them on the back burner. Sidney commemorated the event by gifting us wool socks that she had knitted. I will cherish them!
I also took a brief dip in spiritual waters while visiting with the McNallans, Lisa and Megs. How wonderful to reconnect with these individuals who where instrumental in helping me connect to the wellspring of ancestral knowledge and understanding.
I joined the cousins for dinner and a movie. We watched the classic "Flight of the Navigator" The little ones have a huge selection of movies but this was not one they had seen before.
I drove to Bishop and converged with a couple of old neighbors, Matt and Kathleen. They now live in San Diego and were returning home from three weeks in Ogden UT where they were attending to Kathleens mom who had broke her back and then had a stroke. Despite the ordeal, they were in good spirits and brought me the joy of their smiles.
Since I was down there, I planned to take a few moments to myself and spend the night camping, looking at the stars and decompressing. We all need time alone sometimes. It is important to our self care. My plans didn't work out as anticipated. I didn't stay the night because my gear wasn't quite adequate for the conditions, but I did get as much out of the break as I could and conducted a mini sweat lodge which was easy given the 95 degree temps.
During the trip I also dropped in on a few other friends that I wanted to give some appreciation too. A brief visit with Denise who was fighting Pneumonia. A stop in at work to give Heather E. a big hug. She has had a very troubled adulthood but has turned it around and is doing really well now. It did my heart good to see her. I stopped by the Pitts to with them happy birthdays but missed them. I also missed Dan Oster but got to see the golf and rec center he is developing. And lastly I got in a decent visit with Vince. He may not have a mullet anymore but his heart is the same. He carries his hardships with a smile and a laugh and is a rockstar in my book.
And before too long it was time for me to return home with far more luggage than I arrived with. My Dunkle gifted my with display of my Grandfathers WWII medals and a walking stick he had hand carved/created for my Uncle Don. Don was my godfather as well. They were both very special gifts. And my mom gifted me with health related books written in the late 1800's. I had always wanted them! In addition, she restrung my amber necklace and totally spruced it up. Then she scavenged through her closet and gave me a bunch of dresses. And Sidney gifted me with a pair of beautiful wool knitted socks.
It took a whole week to recuperate when I got home. It was mostly jet lag. Because I ate right the whole time, I went home tired but not falling apart as I typically have after such an adventure. It was a very full and satisfying trip.
Now on to the next adventures!
