On the Road to Moscow

With a U-Haul in tow and two cats and Hannah in the back seat of our new truck, we headed north on the road to Moscow, Idaho. We expected a lot of meowing and complaining on this first day out, but surprisingly heard none of either. Everyone was well behaved, if not always happy to be cooped up for 8 hours. Spent the night in Sacramento and ate take-out Chinese food. Cats happily ran around the hotel room and sniffed the carpets and played around all night as we pondered our next move. We abandoned plans to head northeast across Nevada because we're getting pretty poor mileage with the U-Haul, the back desert roads are too hot, and we run too great a risk of running out of gas between towns. Instead, this morning, we're sticking to I-5 north to Portland, Oregon. From there, we'll take the Columbia River Gorge byways to Idaho. It's a prettier drive anyway, even though it will be a little longer in the end. More soon...

Almost Gone

This is our final week in San Diego for a while, as we're heading to Idaho for a few months. A little east, mostly north, definitely colder, an important transition to where ever it is we are going in the future. Boxes are packed, new truck has been purchased, cats are becoming adjusted to their travel cage, good-bye dinners are being shared with family and friends, and the whole house is abuzz with excitement (and some trepidation). We'll be back here in good measure, but I'm planning to start up a new blog to chronicle our adventures with the production of Adoration of Dora. I'll continue to post general travel pix and tales here as we explore the Palouse and neighboring cities, towns and byways of the Pacific Northwest. Love to all.

Summer in San Diego

Twiddling my toes for the next six weeks of summer. Kinda nice to slow way down.

Still Nowhere To Go

At the edge of the continent, thinking about tsunamis and why I live here and where I'd rather be.

Chinese New Year in San Francisco

We ushered in the year of the hare in Chinatown and wish all of our friends and family happiness, peace and prosperity in the coming year.

Humboldt

After a week of rain, the sun is finally out here in Humboldt County, just in time for the weekend. A perfect day for a walk in the woods and out to Patrick's Point.

Nature's Majesty

Standing among the giant redwoods on a silent Sunday morning should be on everyone's bucket list. Although they don't do justice to the experience, here are a few pix to inspire.

Year-End Musings

It's nearly 2011, and I'm reminded of how far I've traveled in this year of change. From San Diego to Idaho to Middlebury, Vermont, and back again. It's a lot of miles on the road and on a plane, but really it's more about a new place inside my head and my heart as I undergo the giant transition from full-time motherhood to being in relationship with adult offspring (calling them my children seems a misnomer). I anticipate another year of travel, change and transition in 2011.

Looking East, for the Last Time

For Poppy, Who I Liked A Lot

I liked his lack of pretension

The way he didn’t distinguish between Minsk and Pinsk

And didn’t remember where he picked up all his carved wood

Statues and masks and buddhas –

Only that he liked them.

I liked that he’d traveled the world with Frieda,

Whom he called “Mi Senora”

Even though he didn’t speak Spanish.

I liked that he spoke Yiddish, but called it Portuguese

Because he thought it was funny.

I liked his stories about growing up in the city,

Working the Polo Grounds,

Cleaning up after the horses,

Buying his first car,

Driving a girlfriend to the country.

I liked how he talked to his plants when he watered them.

I liked his dedication to the Navy,

The Pacific Fleet that shaped him, wounded him,

And caused him to change his name from Rabinowitz,

Because Robbins was less Jewish.

I liked that he changed his family name, too, so they would all be safer

And all belong.

I liked that he said he had a battleship tattoo,

And when I asked to see it,

He bared his naked chest and said it had sunk.

And when I was in college, he gave me his Navy blazer

And said I wore it well, even though it was too big.

I liked that he loved the ocean,

On which he skippered many boats, including Reflections and Pelilu,

On which I fell asleep causing him to believe I had fallen overboard.

And every time he told me that story, he still worried about my safety.

And when he grew old,

I liked sitting with him on a bench by the sea,

Where he watched the seals,

And called it his office,

Because he worked there every day

To remember his stories.

I liked that he cried easily

Because he lost so much,

Because he laughed so hard,

Felt so deeply

For so long.

I liked that he was always a gentleman,

Who opened doors,

And watched his language,

And picked up the check,

Unless I beat him to it.

I liked that he never stopped loving women,

And big breasts,

And his brother, Norman.

I liked that, in his words, life was pretty good until he turned 90,

When he started to slow down,

And we took away his car.

And for four more years, he walked,

Slowly giving up speed,

Then distance,

Then stairs.

I liked that as he neared the end,

He finally let me do things for him,

Like help him stand up,

Put on his hat,

Open his mail,

Pay his bills,

Feed him peanut brittle,

rub lotion on his parched skin.

Farther Away Than Ever

Four kids east of the Mississippi. Why am I here?

Charlotte Gets a Grown-Up Apartment

My feet are killing me, but all the work we did today to set up Charlotte's apartment was so worth it. As she says, it's like a doll house, only for real.

The apartment is on the second floor of a six-unit building on a quiet, tree-lined street, across the street from Charlotte's old dorm. The windows are large and new, there is a nice view, and the sun really lights up Charlotte's bedroom.

This is the living room (hardwood floors!)

The view looking across the street.

The kitchen, as seen from the dining room.

We put together the bed and the six-drawer dresser ourselves!

And here is a great find from an antique store.

Charlotte is in heaven 

(well, really, she's in her closet, but it feels like heaven for her 

to organize all her things in such a big walk-in closet)

Evanston

Hello world!
Charlotte and I have arrived in Evanston and are busy apartment shopping: Ikea; Macy's; Bed, Bath and Beyond and more! But we've also made time for some friends and some yummy food. (See below)

Charlotte and Alli at the Hertz rental center.

Charlotte at Flat Top Grill. Mmmmm...

Vermont Farm Country

You gotta check out this next set of pix, taken en route from Middlebury to Burlington, when Charlotte and I decided to take the back roads. If you look carefully, you'll see that in places, the roads weren't even paved. But, wow, what beautiful countryside!

As they say in Vermont: Peace, Love and Cows!

Where We Live

Here are a few pix of our B&B, the Swift House Inn:

A quaint country New England boarding house. 

Very Laura Ashley.

The places we live also include dorms, and today was move-in day for Hannah. Battell South is an ivy-covered building, white clapboard and stone, with a blue door. Inside, however, it is a typical dorm room, with cinder block walls, heavy-duty light wood furniture, and tight living quarters. Nevertheless, Hannah did her best to make it feel like home.

Doesn't it look great?

Midd Adventure (Day 4)

Today we actually toured the campus and the town of Middlebury, which is so lovely, the best I can do is post the photos, so you can see for yourself.

One of the many grassy quads.

The chapel.

Hannah's dorm.

The library.

Hannah and Charlotte stroll through town. Note the banner welcoming incoming students.

Otter Creek runs through town.

There are even waterfalls.

We stopped at this tea shop in a restored stone building that was originally used to process marble that was mined locally. We enjoyed freshly brewed chai and maple oolong.

Tomorrow is move-in day. Wish us luck!

Midd Adventure (Day 2)

Today was the big dorm shopping day, but we also managed to take in some of Burlington's sites. Here's a brief tour.

I've got hangers, but I still need hooks for all my coats and scarves, don't I?

Lake Champlain is a great place for some R&R after too much shopping.

Refreshment is just a scoop away at Vermont's own Ben & Jerry's.

Midd Adventure (Day 1)

It's a long way from San Diego to Middlebury. But here we are happy to be in Burlington, Vermont, on the first day of Hannah's great college adventure.

We spent our first evening on Church Street, which is a picturesque pedestrian promenade similar to the one in Santa Monica. Crowds of people were dining al fresco, musicians were playing, shoppers were spending money and everyone seemed to be having a great time. I know we were.

It seems all the cows that were in La Jolla last year have returned to the state that made Ben & Jerry's famous.

More to come...

Vermont

No act shouts Heading East as much as our imminent trip to Vermont to take Hannah to college. It truly speaks to the feeling that I have of living on the western edge of the continent with a longing to go east, where something more is happening, or where nothing much is happening, but to a place where one can feel grounded. Some days, it wouldn't surprise me if an earthquake caused all of California to break off from the rest of the continent and drop away into the ocean, like a massive ice chunk breaking free of the polar cap. The farther east my children go, the more I feel the tug to go back there, the more San Diego feels like it is drifting into the sea.

Colony

The week went too fast. I was remiss in my blogging. But that's what happens when you're having too much fun. Seriously, what a great time... two new works read each day, at 3 and 8 pm, followed by nightly outings to James Bar or The Depot for decompression drinking. I haven't laughed so much in many moons. And last Wednesday, a spectacular river float on the Blackfoot. Although they don't do justice to the event, here are a few images of the river float, a reading and a night out at the James Bar (with Bill and Hillary Caisley):